Writer: Ryan Gandolfo
2 min read March 2024 — The smallest of Hillsborough’s three municipalities, Temple Terrace could see a big transformation in the coming years as the city continues exploring a “downtown” area concept. Yet as it approaches the 100-year milestone in 2025, city leadership has a long way to go and is in search of willing partners for developing the early stages of its first-ever downtown.
“We’re not getting the projects that we want. We could build apartments there tomorrow, we could have a McDonalds there tomorrow…But that’s not what we want,” said Mayor Andy Ross at a Feb. 20 City Council meeting. “The development community is speaking very loudly and clearly to us – it’s not viable,” he said, adding that it may be a “blessing in disguise” to get no traction rather than build out projects that remain empty or do not serve the intended use.
Among the city’s top goals and objectives outlined in the Imagine 2040: Temple Terrace Comprehensive Plan, developing a mixed-use city center and the redevelopment of commercial corridors along 56th Street and Temple Terrace Highway represent one of the biggest opportunities to rejuvenate the area and increase the tax base since the annexation of Telecom Park and surrounding areas in the mid-1980s.
According to the Tampa Bay Times, the proposed downtown area covers the east side of 56th Street stretching from Bullard Parkway to the Hillsborough River, which includes the Fountain Shoppes of Temple Terrace on the corner of 56th Street, the Winn-Dixie plaza and Enigma Center.
Plans involving the downtown project include greater mobility features such as walking and biking trails with a strong focus on outdoor activities and amenities. The Temple Terrace Pedestrian Master Plan, finalized in January 2024, would include a raised crosswalk that connects multi-use trails to a proposed boardwalk along the Hillsborough River.
Viewed as a key pillar in reviving the downtown project, The Fountain Shoppes – featuring high foot traffic businesses such as Starbucks and Chase Bank – was recently reported suffering from poor upkeep and the developer, Jared Moon of Paragon Property Group, received seven code violations from the city. The beleaguered retail strip has put the city’s downtown aspirations at odds as the city looks for other partners to develop parcels of land.
Elsewhere in Tampa Bay, cities like Clearwater and St. Petersburg are dealing with their own set of challenges to enhance their downtown areas and historic neighborhoods. The Bluffs, a proposed mixed-use project aimed at connecting downtown Clearwater with its revamped Coachman Park, is expected to be scaled down from its original scope of two 27-story residential towers comprising 600 units to a single tower with 400 units. Retail space would also be cut by more than half from 40,000 to 15,000 square feet, according to St. Pete Catalyst.
Further South in St. Pete, the transformational Historic Gas Plan District and Tampa Bay Rays baseball stadium redevelopment has peeved some residents, according to a recent survey by the League of Women Voters. The survey highlighted issues with affordable housing projections and community impact. The city council is set to vote on the proposal in May.
Despite their current setbacks, these projects could all play a unique role in shaping the future of the Tampa Bay region’s downtown areas and historic neighborhoods once they come to fruition.
For more information, please visit:
https://www.templeterrace.gov/
