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Tampa and Tampa Bay

Tampa Basics

   Surrounded by the glittering sea and miles of calm rivers, Tampa truly has something for everyone. From the golden sails of the Sunshine Skyway to the strawberry fields of Land O’ Lakes, 3.3 million residents call the Tampa Bay area home. The bay area encompasses Hernando, Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk and Sarasota counties. Major cities include Tampa, St. Petersburg, St. Pete Beach, Clearwater, Sarasota, Brandon, Tarpon Springs and Largo. Standouts among dozens of the Gulf Coast’s famous white sand beaches are Caladesi Park, Fort DeSoto, Clearwater Beach, Longboat Key, Pass-a-Grille, Belleair Shores, Anna Maria Island and Siesta Key.
   Tampa Bay ranks first in population in Florida, second in the Southeast, and is the wealthiest market in Florida. Tampa Bay draws younger residents with higher education levels every year, and the median resident age of 34 years old is quite young for the state. Though the cost of living is 5 percent below the national average, Tampa Bay is No. 1 in buying income and retail sales. According to U.S. Labor statistics, Tampa Bay is also No. 1 in job growth for all national major metro areas.
   Florida’s homestead exemption statutes, which lessen property taxes owed by homeowners, shelter Tampa Bay residents. Better yet, there's no state or local personal income tax, and no estate tax.

Climate

   Tampa Bay boasts an ideal 72-degree average annual temperature, and the refreshing bay breezes keep the air moving. The sun shines on Tampa almost every day, even in the winter months. Summer brings quick afternoon showers, and Tampa holds the distinction of “Lightning Capital of the World”-- more than 50,000 cloud-to-ground flashes were recorded in June 1994 alone. Rollerbladers and golfers should beware, but it's fantastic for photographers and those with a high-rise view of the bay.

Communities

   Hyde Park is likely the most old-money section of Tampa and is often regarded as the stateliest and most desirable. Tree-lined streets lead to restored bungalows, Colonial and Tudor manses, and classical-style homes. The neighborhood incorporates the Hyde Park Village shopping district and a recently renovated and beautifully landscaped public park. Hyde Park homes currently sell for approximately $150 per square foot; a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house will cost roughly $360,000.
   Bayshore Boulevard overlooks Hillsborough Bay and affords a resplendent view of the Davis Islands and the cruise ships floating around the harbor. Many of the estates along the boulevard have recently been restored, and real estate in the district is fetching high prices, averaging $2 million for 4,800 square feet and a prestigious address. Bayshore serves as the main thoroughfare in southeast Tampa and connects Gandy to the Davis Islands and downtown, passing Hyde Park as it travels northeast along Hillsborough Bay.
   The Davis Islands community is a nearly self-contained neighborhood that juts out into the bay off Bayshore Boulevard. Many restaurants, shops and pharmacies line the avenues, and Tampa General Hospital and the Ronald McDonald House sit at the north end of the island. Peter O. Knight airfield and the Tampa Aero Club occupies the southern end. Davis Islands boasts both an extremely active Yacht Club and a Garden Club that ensures beautiful foliage will always grace the islands’ public spaces. Even with all the island amenities, the vast variety of the mainland is only minutes away, as Davis Islands sits near the Crosstown Expressway between Hyde Park and the Downtown/Ybor City area. A ranch-style single story two-bed, two-bath house on Davis Island sells for around $400,000 and is approximately 1,500 square feet.
   Two-story inland homes with five bedrooms and three baths are currently listed around $700,000 and contain 2,500 square feet. A canal waterfront home sells in the neighborhood of $1.6 million and features five-bedroom, 4.5-baths and 5,000 square feet of living space. The ultimate address, on open bay waterfront, begins around $4 million and averages three stories and 6,000 square feet.
   New Tampa is comprised of many master-planned gated communities built around recreational themes, such as golf and tennis. New Tampa affords a resort lifestyle without sacrificing access to the downtown area, which is approximately 15 miles to the southwest. Communities include housing options ranging from town home to estates with waterfront. All of New Tampa exudes an open, contemporary feel and relies on classic Florida stucco painted classy beiges and sorbet shades to maintain a sense of aesthetic cohesion throughout the town. Home prices range from $100,000 to over $1 million, although the average home, which features four bedrooms and two baths, currently fetches $210,000. A sub-section of New Tampa worth noting is Tampa Palms, a favorite retirement community for sports stars.

Real Estate

   Tampa's median home price hovers around $105,000, although prices can vary dramatically depending upon square footage and location.  Small homes in central neighborhoods can be bought for around $40,000, and waterfront estates commonly sell for multimillion-dollar amounts.
   Tampa homes are rather eclectic in style, and colonials and Mediterraneans sitting alongside one another is not at all uncommon. This variety also allows prospective homeowners more choice in finding the home that perfectly suits their own style and personality. Many neighborhoods are comprised of smaller wood-frame bungalows, which not only have character and possibility, but are a great first home because they're affordable, and their small size demands less upkeep.
   For those who hope never to mow a lawn, the recent explosion of construction on luxury high-rises along the water and downtown offers another option. The buildings house offices, condominiums and penthouse lofts featuring two-story plans. Many now in construction are selling for figures between $400,000 and $2 million, and there are more high-rises planned along the waterfront in the South Tampa area.

Leisure and Attractions

   In the winter, locals don stripes and eye patches for the annual century-old Gasparilla Festival and Parade, a weeklong piracy-themed celebration of Tampa Bay’s imaginary swashbuckling past. The Gasparilla Distance Classic race includes 5K and 15K courses as well as a 15K wheelchair race. There are also juried gallery shows at the Gasparilla Festival of the Arts in Gaslight Square Park.
   October means Halloween, and that means Ybor City's Guavaween, a wild night modeled on New Orleans’ Bourbon Street revelry during the heights of Mardi Gras. Indeed, Ybor sets the stage appropriately with its wrought iron balconies and throngs of costumed partiers surging through the avenues and alleyways.
   Other annual festivities include the Strawberry Festival, the Florida State Fair, the Tampa International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, the Victorian Christmas Stroll, the Tampa Cigar Heritage Festival, and many arts fests.
   Busch Gardens theme park and its heart-stopping roller coasters, water rides, exotic animal exhibits and stage shows bring visitors from across the country, but Tampa residents enjoy the happy ability to stop in anytime. Next door, Adventure Island provides hours of water park excitement, including a nearly vertical seven-story tall water slide sure to give friction burns survivors wear as a badge of courage. There’s also a beach, cafés, a volleyball court, a tube river slide, the fantastic “Runaway Rapids” trio of waterslides, a children's area and a leisurely moat that encircles the park.
   Lowry Park Zoo is among the country's premiere city zoos and wildlife preservation operations. The zoo's highlight is a spectacular underground-tunnel aquarium exhibit of the manatees that have graduated its ongoing rehabilitation program. You'll also find the usual suspects, and the zoo just unveiled a new six-acre “Safari Africa” sector.
   The Florida Aquarium at the port of Tampa just opened the new “Explore-a-Shore” children's activity and educational park, featuring a pirate ship, water jets, a coral reef jungle gym structure and interactive shows. The aquarium's Dolphin Quest cruises float around the bay in search of bottlenose dolphin schools, and kids can “Swim with the Fishes” in an indoor tank with real scuba gear.  Brave adults with scuba certification can dive with the sharks: black-tip reef sharks, sand tiger sharks, zebra sharks and nurse sharks inhabit the 93,000-gallon tank and provide a fix for adrenaline junkies. Regular exhibits cover all the typical Florida marine environments, from the brackish wetlands to vibrant coral reefs.
   Stop next door at Channelside for a bite to eat and a movie. The two stories of shops, galleries and restaurants face an interior courtyard and fountain, all overlooking the Port of Tampa. Two cruise lines, Bay Spirit Tours and Carnival Cruises, launch from the port. The multiplex at Channelside operates nine screens plus the city's only 3D flat-screen IMAX.
   For a change of pace, board the Tampa Town Ferry “water taxi” and jaunt over to Bird Island, the Plant Museum, the Performing Arts Center or one of its four other stops. Sea Trader Cruises run a sunset cruise; St. Nicholas tours the sponge docks; and Captain Nemo’s Pirate Cruise runs sunset and sightseeing cruises with -- what else -- a pirate theme.
   Educational attractions include the Bishop Planetarium in Sarasota, several marine mammal and bird sanctuaries, and St. Petersburg’s Great Explorations, a hands-on museum for children. Children and adults alike enjoy the hands-on explanations and demonstrations at The Museum of Science & Industry in Tampa, including the “hurricane wind” room and high-wire bicycles. Florida’s only domed IMAX theater plays beautifully filmed and written educational films at the museum.
   For those with an interest in botany, St. Petersburg has Sunken Gardens, and Sarasota has the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, both of which abound with lush greenery and informative guides.

Sports and Recreation

   Home to winning national teams and nearly inexhaustible opportunities for the active individual, Tampa Bay beckons to the avid sportsman. The Tampa Bay Lightning won the 2004 Stanley Cup, and Super Bowl XXXVII belonged to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. These teams make their home in the St. Petersburg Times Arena and Raymond James Stadium respectively, allowing sports fans dozens of opportunities throughout the season to catch a game. Champions in 2003, the Tampa Bay Storm play arena football to win, and the Mutiny represent Tampa on the Major League Soccer circuit. As for baseball, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays run the field at the renovated Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, and the New York Yankees spend their winters warming up in Tampa.
   The bay area is a veritable treasure trove of water sports, offering everything from swimming to power boating. The mix of open and protected waters is ideal for canoeing, kayaking, jet skiing and sailing. The Hillsborough and Alafia rivers provide excellent canoeing, tubing and camping, and are home to pockets of snook and largemouth bass, both excellent sport species. Schools of sailfish, tarpon, snapper, wahoo, kingfish and barracuda swarm through the waters seasonally, making Tampa Bay a favorite destination of sport fishermen as well as those who just like to catch their own dinner. Shell Island and Egmont Key State Park are the perfect places to have a weekend picnic, although they're only accessible by boat.
   There's plenty of marina space for your boat if you don't live on the water, and deep-sea fishing boats and private charters are available for hire. Ladies will enjoy lunch or dinner cruises at a relaxing pace, gamers the casino boats, adventurers the scuba diving charters. Yearly regattas test the seamanship of those aboard all manner of sailboats; tag along if you can for a breathtaking jaunt to the Florida Keys or the Tortugas.  The St. Petersburg waterfront is a frequent stop on the offshore power boating circuit and affords a thunderous weekend of entertainment. Whatever your ideal sea escape, the appropriate vessel is sure to be afloat somewhere in the bay.
   Beaches include resort haven St. Petersburg Beach, quaint Pass-a-Grille and Gulfport, natural Fort DeSoto, and beautiful Clearwater Beach.  Stretch out on the miles of white sand and watch the dolphins, or wade in the gentle surf and glean for sand dollars. Send some shells to relatives and friends up north to brighten their day; if you don't find the perfect conch shell on the sand, the beach shops are sure to please. All beaches are public, and ample parking is available.
   Joggers, walkers and rollerbladers flock to the uninterrupted 4.5 mile sidewalk along Bayshore Boulevard, which was named among the best places to run in the United States by Runners’ World magazine. Bayshore overlooks the sparkling bay waters, expansive estates and new high-rise condominiums. Tampa maintains 156 city parks, many with ball fields, grills, pools, playgrounds, tennis courts and even boat ramps. There are two city marinas with more than 100 wet docks, and Sea Plane Basin provides moorings in a protected harbor.
   Tampa is committed to becoming a leader in canine recreation, and it currently operates four city leash-free dog parks with more in the planning stages. These parks allow dogs to socialize, provide separate areas for large and small breeds, and feature various amenities such as bath areas, picnic tables and training courses. The Davis Islands Park provides 200 feet along the bay and beach that's fenced for safety.

Arts

   Cultural opportunities in Tampa increase yearly, and the current roster of museums, galleries, theaters and live venues is long enough to exhaust even the most energetic of “cultural butterflies.” Whether you've an appetite for theater, music or art, there are plenty of places downtown to satisfy.
   The Tampa Museum of Art displays a stunning collection of photo-realistic paintings alongside antiquities and modern masterpieces. The Henry B. Plant Museum at the University of Tampa works to educate the public about turn-of-the-century Tampa and the Spanish-American War. The Victorian-meets-Moorish-style building was originally the Tampa Bay Hotel and is now a National Historic Landmark filled with exhibits on period furniture and the railroads which once crossed the state. The Museum of African American Art and the USF Contemporary Art Museum boast engaging collections and traveling exhibits well worth the quick trip.
   The architecturally resplendent Tampa Theatre plays art-house, classic and documentary films. Stage shows, orchestras, speeches and wine tastings also often take the stage at Tampa Theatre. Modern movie screens equipped with state-of-the-art digital sound systems and stadium seating are dispersed across Tampa, many in dining and shopping developments such as Centro Ybor, Channelside and St. Petersburg's Baywalk.
   In St. Petersburg, art lovers can choose among the award-winning Salvador Dali Museum; the Museum of Fine Arts; the Museum of Natural History; the Florida Holocaust Museum; and the Florida International Museum, which is a Smithsonian affiliate. Cross the famous Sunshine Skyway to visit the Ringling Museum in Sarasota, which features not only an extensive renaissance and classical art collection but also the resplendent Mediterranean-style Ca D’Zan. Before extensive restoration to its current state, Ringling’s sprawling winter home served as the set for the film "Great Expectations," starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Ethan Hawke.
   St. Petersburg and adjacent Clearwater play host to the Palladium Theatre, the American Stage Company, the Mahaffey Theatre for the Performing Arts and the celebrated annual Shakespeare in the Park productions. Small venues include the intimate brick courtyard of Jannus Landing, the famous Coliseum and the punk-rock State Theatre.
   The Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center hosts Broadway plays and musicals, concerts, orchestras, and seasonal shows. Top-selling performers stop at the USF Sun Dome, the posh new Ford Amphitheatre, the Florida State Fairgrounds, the St. Petersburg Times Arena and Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater.

Dining

   Tampa dining expertly integrates global flavors but concentrates on casual Florida cuisine. Native seafood includes grouper, mullet, red snapper, gulf shrimp and stone crab, and clawless Key lobster that is nearly as good as its Maine counterpart. Fruits and citrus are fresh and abundant, and grace many of the tropical cocktails served on patios and balconies baywide.
   Perhaps the most famous restaurant in the city in Bern’s Steak House, equally known for its decadent fare, upper-crust prices and impossibly backlogged reservation book. They'll fly in whatever entrée you fancy if you tell them your desires in advance; they feature one of the most extensive wine cellars in the world; and their posh dessert room is nothing to miss, either.
   The aged steaks at Charley’s and the perfect seafood at the Rusty Pelican make locals and tourists alike hungry for more. Kojak’s on Gandy serves barbecue and ribs in a fantastic open-air setting beneath stately oaks, and the Colonnade along Bayshore Boulevard provides diners an exceptional water view to complement their steaks and seafood.
   Ybor City, the Cuban and Italian district near downtown, is a great spot for a late-night meal or just as an escape from the ordinary. The famous Columbia, Tampa’s oldest restaurant, dishes out fine Spanish and Cuban entrees while flamenco dancers entertain guests. The building itself is an excellent representation of elaborate Spanish architecture, and they've even got a gift shop. Several other area restaurants provide unique interpretations of classic Cuban cuisine: Carmine’s; La Cueva; Castillo’s; La Tropicana; and Café Creole, where seafood and oysters are the house specialty. Elegant Bernini serves a rotating menu and is known for its wood-fired pizzas and innovative Italian dishes. La Terraza Ristorante, Little Sicily, the Spaghetti Warehouse and The Laughing Cat also specialize in Italian fare. Papered with signed dollar bills from floor to ceiling, The Green Iguana is the favorite place for a casual lunch on the sidewalk. Both Barley Hopper’s and the Tampa Bay Brewery make their own beer to complement the casual American dishes.
   Centro Ybor is a subdivision within Ybor City that features newer restaurants and innovative shops. The Dish lets you choose your dinner from loads of fresh ingredients and sauces, and then cooks it right before your eyes. The Marble Slab Creamery scoops out homemade ice cream with toppings to order, and Samurai Blue tempts diners with 30 feet of fresh sushi from which to choose.
   Maggiano’s at the Westshore Plaza shopping mall serves heaping classic Italian dishes in a congenial pre-World War II atmosphere. Next door is P.F. Chang’s China Bistro and the Florida cuisine of the Palm Restaurant, all of which cater especially to famished shoppers.

Nightlife

   With nightclubs that cater to every desire imaginable, Tampa shines once the sun goes down. Ybor is undoubtedly the singular destination for the young and fashionable crowd, and the area offers a multitude of venue choices. A stop on nearly every alternative or punk rock tour, Masquerade hosts national bands and weekly themed parties. The Castle is the locus for the goth subculture, which is strangely strong in Tampa despite what the heat does to those wearing black leather and heavy eyeliner. They also put on an entertaining '80s night, if a flashback to Duran Duran and the Cure sounds like a nice evening out. The Rare Olive pours upscale martinis, and quintessential party site Club Hedo sponsors ladies’ nights and bikini contests. There's a comedy/improv club, sports cafés, Latin bars and the James Joyce Irish Pub.
   Any thorough profile of Tampa would be remiss to overlook the fame of its gentlemen's clubs, among them Mons Venus and Odyssey 2001. There are also plenty of alternative-lifestyle hotspots in Tampa, St. Petersburg and especially along the beaches.

Shopping

   Tampa continually aspires to attain world-class shopping status, and new boutiques debut monthly, showcasing goods ranging from couture to eclectic. One of the best places to seek out the season's essential piece by an up-and-coming designer is open-air Old Hyde Park Village off Bayshore Boulevard. MaxwellMack stocks high-end designers such as Marc Jacobs and Dries Van Noten. Village Threads sells more adventurous and off-the-wall pieces, including handbags and jewelry, and Georgette’s is the place to go for shoes. The classy White House Black Market, island-themed Tommy Bahama and retro-chic Anthropologie line the streets. There are also national home stores: Restoration Hardware, Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Storehouse and the wildly original Nicholson House. In cosmetics, there’s MAC, Origins, and Crabtree & Evelyn. Hungry shoppers flock to the Samba Room, which even sets out water dishes for thirsty pups and is consistently named among the best date-night spots in the city. Hyde Park features cafes and theaters, hosts outdoor concerts and themed events such as Samba Days, and provides free parking in two garages.
   Lilly Pulitzer fans will love the Pink Palm, the line's signature store, which is packed with bold prints and the “Palm Beach pair”: leaf green and bright pink. La France in Ybor is the premiere shopping destination for all things vintage: dresses, shoes, bags, jewelry and men's fashions.
   International and Westshore plazas and Brandon Town Center provide a respite from the afternoon warmth, offering chic and classic national chains. Nordstrom’s, Saks Fifth Avenue, Tiffany, Coach, Betsey Johnson, Bebe, Godiva, Diesel and many others line the tiled indoor avenues of these fine shopping malls.

Education

   Tampa public schools are all part of a single countywide district, Hillsborough County Schools, which operates special magnet schools that aim to prepare gifted students for college study in the arts, technical fields, architecture, or math and the sciences. More than 190 public schools and 40 private schools teach students from pre-kindergarten to 12th grade.
   Degree-seeking students in Tampa can choose among the University of South Florida Tampa, the University of Tampa, the Tampa branch of the acclaimed Stetson College of Law, the International Academy of Art & Design, Florida Metropolitan University, and Hillsborough Community College. Various technical and beauty schools also operate in town. Nearby in St. Petersburg are Eckerd College, the original Stetson University College of Law, the Poynter Institute for Media Studies and St. Petersburg College. The Poynter Institute, which is affiliated with the highly lauded St. Petersburg Times newspaper, is a world-renowned center for journalistic training and ethics. Acclaimed area marine science schools include the Florida Institute of Oceanography at USF; the U.S. Geological Survey's Center for Coastal Geology; and the Florida Marine Research Institute, part of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Employment

   Tampa Bay is among the fastest-growing job markets in the technology sector, and Newsweek magazine named it the “No. 10 market for projected job growth” overall. The job growth rate for Tampa Bay is 4.8 percent, compared with the average of just 2.2 percent countrywide.
   Many national companies maintain regional headquarters in Tampa, among them a large number of financial and telecommunication institutions. There is also a concentration of corporations in the health care and consulting arenas, and in the high-tech sector that includes computer, imaging and hardware manufacture companies. Tampa is also initiating many programs that assist and direct new entrepreneurs and their start-up companies, making the bay area a great place for small business as well.
   As of the 2000 Census, the median family income was slightly over $40,000.

Transportation

   A well-planned network of roadways criss-cross the 112 square miles of Tampa soil, providing quick access to anywhere in the region. Navigation is simple because the city was designed using the grid system, and most roads are north-south or east-west in orientation.  The primary artery through town is I-275, a branch of I-75 that cuts from the north end of Tampa across the bay and south through St. Petersburg. After crossing the Sunshine Skyway into Manatee County, it merges with I-75 and continues to Sarasota. The interstate allows four lanes of traffic to flow in either direction and exits onto all the major city streets.
   Interstate 4 begins in Tampa and runs through Orlando to Daytona Beach, where it meets I-95, which traverses the east coast of Florida, and U.S. 1, which is the primary route to the Florida Keys.
   Tampa also has two expressways that greatly simplify getting places the interstate doesn't go. The Crosstown, or Lee Roy Selmon Expressway, begins on Gandy Boulevard and heads east to Brandon. The Veteran's Expressway begins near Tampa International Airport and takes motorists far north past Odessa. Two bridges simplify travel to St. Petersburg: the Howard Frankland, which is the I-275 route, and the Gandy Bridge. Those driving to Clearwater take the Courtney Campbell Causeway.
   The Tampa International Airport is consistently ranked among the best in the country in terms of efficiency, service and ease of navigation. Most major airlines fly out of TIA, as do smaller day-trip airlines servicing nearby locations such as Key West, St. Augustine and Orlando. Other smaller area airports include St. Petersburg-Clearwater International, Peter O. Knight, Vandenburg, the Tampa North Aero Park and Albert Whitted in St. Petersburg. Although they don't service civilian flights, the MacDill Air Force Base operates from the southern tip of the city.
   There's also an extensive bus network that crosses the bridges, and a Greyhound station. Taxis are readily available downtown and are always on call.

Maps of Tampa

Written by Kelly Culbertson exclusively for CoastParadise.com.

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