Quick Facts
Biography
Bill Edwards is an American businessman. He owns numerous properties in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Biography
Edwards grew up in New Bedford, Massachusetts. He served in the United States Marine Corps during the Vietnam War, earning a Purple Heart. After the war, Edwards moved to Detroit and entered the mortgage business. Born Edward Francis Sylvia III, he changed his name to William Larry Edwards when he moved to Detroit.
Edwards served as president of Mortgage Investors Corp., which the Tampa Bay Times described as the "nation's largest VA mortgage lender in 2005. In 2013, the Edwards-owned Mortgage Investors was fined $7.5 million for violating the federal do not call list. That same year, Edwards negotiated a sale of Mortgage Investors to HomeBancorp, but the deal was never completed. After the failure of the deal, Mortgage Investors stopped making new home loans and laid off the majority of its staff. In 2015, the United States Department of Justice and two mortgage brokers sued Edwards, alleging that Mortgage Investors defrauded veteran home buyers and the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.
In 2011, Edwards bought the BayWalk in downtown St. Petersburg. In 2014, the BayWalk reopened as Sundial St. Pete.
In 2013, Edwards bought a controlling interest in the Tampa Bay Rowdies soccer team, then playing in the USL. Edwards hopes to move the Rowdies up to Major League Soccer, the league two tier above the USL. Edwards operates the Al Lang Stadium for the city of St. Petersburg, and owns the nearby McNulty Station parking garage and a Rowdies-themed bar and restaurant.
In 2009, Edwards bought the Treasure Island Tennis & Yacht Club. In 2011, he won the right to manage the Mahaffey Theater. Edwards also owns Big 3 Entertainment, which has produced records for artists such as Cheap Trick. In 2014, Edwards bought a block of St. Petersburg known as the Tropicana Block.
Political activities
Edwards donated $1 million to the campaign of Florida Governor Rick Scott and $4.6 million to the 2012 Republican National Convention. Edwards donated $350,000 to the presidential candidacy of Jeb Bush.