Paul Wilborn

Paul Wilborn returned to his hometown in July of 2003 to join Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio’s administration as Manager of Creative Industries.

His work with the city has focused on developing the film and digital industry in Tampa, launching support initiatives for artists including health plans and housing/studio space projects, and creating two major arts festivals for the City of Tampa.

Paul was an award-winning reporter for the Tampa Tribune, the St. Petersburg Times and the Associated Press. His writing was recognized nationally and statewide with numerous awards. In 1996 he was named Florida’s Reporter of the Year by the Florida Society of Newspaper Editors. In 1998 he was among 16 international journalists chosen for a yearlong Michigan Journalism Fellowship in Ann Arbor.

He is a founder of the Artists and Writers Ball, a legendary arts event during the 1980s in Ybor City that established the historic district as an arts and entertainment destination. He also co-founded Guavaween, the annual fundraiser that draws more than 30,000 people annually to the district.

Paul has also been a successful playwright, musician, singer and actor. His play, Stray Dogs, played to sold-out houses at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center and the University of Michigan drama department. He was a member of the Artists Collective at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center and appeared in the Center’s production of “Return to the Forbidden Planet,” along with numerous other musicals.

For ten years, he fronted the popular band, Paul Wilborn and the Pop Tarts. An accomplished pianist and singer, his current jazz trio is called Blue Roses.

Paul is a descendant of Sicilian immigrants who came to Tampa in 1900. He is a graduate of the University of South Florida.

E-mail
paul.wilborn@tampagov.net