EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The General Neighborhood Plan is a statement of goals and policies that work as the primary tool for guiding the future development of the neighborhood of Davis Islands. It is an expression of our neighborhood’s collective vision and direction for the future of Davis Islands and how we want future growth and the character of the community to evolve over the next 10-20 years.

On a daily basis, individual residents, business managers, investors, community organizations, and governing authorities make decisions that aggregately create the neighborhood’s conditions. A General Neighborhood Plan provides a guide for making these choices, by describing their long-term goals for the neighborhood’s future as well as policies to guide day-to-day decisions.

In workshops, surveys, study circles, forums, and neighborhood meetings we asked you what you were concerned about and what you wanted for the future Davis Islands. You told us you were worried about pedestrian safety, the pace and nature of business growth, and the forfeiture of our public parks. You described a Davis Islands that keeps its small-town qualities, shapes and directs residential redevelopment, and preserves and protects the quantity and quality of our green spaces and blue waters.

The Neighborhood Plan is our report to you, the stakeholders. It describes a vision for the future, sets forth a policy framework to guide city and neighborhood decision makers, and advances an initial agenda to achieve the vision. It is a plan for smarter growth that balances sustainability with the fullest wishes of the neighborhood regarding character and design, land use, open spaces and the natural environment, business and economics, community services, neighborhood vitality, housing, transportation, growth issues, human services, and economic vitality. The recommended mechanisms to activate the wishes of the neighborhood in the General Plan will be implemented and detailed through various ordinances and ongoing formal procedures with the city, in areas such as Zoning, Subdivision Ordinance, and Design Guidelines.

The intent of the General Plan is that it is to be implemented through further specific detailed research of the Task Force after the Community and City Council approves the General Neighborhood Plan. Implementation prioritized by community vote will be detailed by attention to specific recommended actions to be approved by the community.

For this plan to be successful, we need collaborating recommendations and suggestions from City Council, City Administration and City Departmental staff. Over time the General Neighborhood Plan is a living document that is manifested by many specific decisions and events that cause it to respond to the changing conditions, needs and desires of the community.

Davis Islands is a special place, and each of us has a stake in its future. We invite all members of the community to join us in putting the General Neighborhood Plan into practice.

INTRODUCTION

The vitality of Tampa and the region's buoyant growth cannot be separated from economic change on Davis Islands, and the turning of decades has naturally exceeded the foresight of its founder's detailed plans. The shared interests of residents, landowners, shareholders, and authorities have--at times--become competing interests. Myriad agencies and associations address their respective constituencies, but no over-reaching concept or plan has united these efforts since the original visions of the Islands' founder. No modern strategy has existed for achieving the full potential balance of the neighborhood's residential, commercial, recreational, environmental, and municipal roles--until now.

MISSION STATEMENT

“Our mission is to facilitate the formation of a collective vision of the stakeholders of Davis Islands for the design, physical conditions and improvements to Davis Islands, and to translate that collective vision into a master plan that at least 75 percent of the stakeholders at the presentation of the plan support. The vision will be developed through a public participation process, which includes the residents, property owners, business owners, organizations and other stakeholders of Davis Islands.”

Note: Since this statement was composed in 2001, the City has changed the requirements for passing a neighborhood plan to 50 percent.

PLANNING PROCESS

#1 June 3, 2002 – Kick-off Community Wide Forum to identify the issues.

Planning Task Force Study Circles – Research the issues Describe the Values

#2 May 8, 2003 – Community wide forum – Validate the Values

Planning Task Force Develops the Vision

#3 November 20, 2003 – Validating the VISION

Planning Task Force Examines Options

#4 May 5^th, 2005 – Presenting the Options to the Community

Planning Task Force – Completes “Draft” of Neighborhood Plan based on public comments

#5 1^st Quarter 2006 – Present the Draft Plan for information Neighborhood Feedback

Planning Task Force modifies Draft Plan based on feedback from neighborhood

#6 Community Wide Forum – Present the Plan for the neighborhood Vote

TIME FRAME

The Plan was created in the period spanning the creation of the Task Force in 2001 and the forum for the neighborhood vote in 2006 (see timeline above).

The Plan is intended to survive indefinitely. The community created the Plan, and the community should modify the Plan as conditions, values, and needs change. The exact mechanisms for modifying the Plan will always be the choice of the community, though some options for this are included under the heading “An Implementation Framework.”

Officially, the DI Neighborhood Planning Task Force was decreed by City Council, March 28, 2002. The Task Force was required to work under the SunShine Law of Florida.

EMERGENCE OF THE DINPTF

The Task Force materialized from a public dialogue beginning in January of 2001 when residents organized in opposition to an otherwise unopposed development. Feeling the need for a residential body to complement the existing community authorities, these individuals continued to meet as an ad hoc steering committee. City Councilmember Linda Saul-Sena was instrumental in generating dialogue among all interested parties, encouraging very broad participation. Names were submitted to the City Council on February 18, 2002, the nominations marking the inception of the Davis Islands Neighborhood Planning Task Force.

Development of the Davis Islands Neighborhood Plan has been a public process spanning the ensuing four years, relying upon volunteered hours, dollars, and experiences. Armed with the goals for the Neighborhood Plan, reflected in the mission statement above that was forged in 2002, the Task Force began an intensive public outreach to inform, inquire of, and include interested stakeholders. Seminars introduced elements of the process; study circles queried sample populations on their perspectives; open houses fostered continuous dialogue. Dozens of meetings were required to allow this process, and a web site provided unabridged access by stakeholders. The Task Force called stakeholders to meetings; they provided notice of the meetings in the community newspaper; they created a TV program composed of task force members, commission planners, and Linda Saul-Sena which was aired on Community Television.

HOW TO USE THIS DOCUMENT

LAYOUT OF THE PLAN

Introduction: (This section.) The Introduction includes specific factual information about the creation of this document. It speaks to the methodology for creation and use of the document.

Citizen Participation Proclamation: The Participation Proclamation describes the formation of the Plan itself. It focuses on the philosophy and guiding principles for creating the Plan, and it demonstrates how the Davis Islands community formed this plan through its instrument, the Task Force.

Neighborhood Profile: The Neighborhood Profile describes what Davis Islands is like today. It is a guided tour of the Islands that provides much of the background information needed to facilitate discussion. This includes physical assets (such as roads) as well as the organizations and authorities (such as the Chamber of Commerce) that make the neighborhood function.

Davis Islands’ Vision: The Vision is a community-wide consensus, not only of what Davis Islands could look like some day, but also of the key values the stakeholders would like to see in their future. The Vision is the focal point, if not the centerpiece, of the Plan.

Needs Assessment: The Needs Assessment discusses the predominant elements of the Vision that are not currently being adequately met. These are objectives and goals that should bring the neighborhood closer to the Vision. It is a summary of what could be working better.

Options For Achieving the Vision: The Options present some specific strategies for making the Vision a reality. No such list can be complete, and it must also change frequently. Some strategies even preclude other, alternative strategies. The Options included are only those most encountered, most agreed upon, and most congruent with the Vision.

Implementation Framework: No document can stay automatically and perpetually up to date. The decision-making Framework allows the Plan to serve the community even as conditions change. It is a guide to using the community’s Vision and applying it to the decisions and waypoints that the stakeholders encounter.

Appendices: The Appendices contain data and protracted discussions on certain topics, much of which is referenced directly in the Plan. However, there are reference materials, such as the Glossary, which complement the entire document.

RELATIONSHIP TO CITY, COUNTY, AND OTHER PLANNING INITIATIVES

REVIEW AND ADOPTION OF NEIGHBORHOOD PLANS

Review

Neighborhood plans submitted to the City Council should be representative of the neighborhood and consistent with adopted City policies. To guarantee these qualities, parties from the neighborhood, City staff, and City boards and commissions review the plan and proposed rezonings.

Neighborhood Review

Neighborhood Plans should be thoroughly reviewed and endorsed by members of the community. There are numerous opportunities for members of the neighborhood to voice their opinions and thoughts throughout the process. Venues for input include neighborhood meetings, surveys and public hearings.

City Staff Review

Staff from various City departments develop cost estimates for the plan's recommendations—especially those that are costly to implement. They also review recommendations for feasibility. All recommendations will be included in the final draft of the Neighborhood Plan, however, those that are not supported by City departments will be in the appendix. In addition, the City's Law Department reviews the plan to ensure that its recommendations are consistent with adopted City policies and with applicable laws. It should be noted that the final draft of a neighborhood plan might be revised following City staff review. These revisions can reflect concerns arising over the planning principles contained in the plan and over legal and financial issues.

Planning Commission Review

Once City staff has reviewed the Neighborhood Plan and the necessary changes have been made, the plan is ready to be reviewed by the Planning Commission. The Planning Commission is a nine-member group appointed by the City Council. The members are citizens of Tampa who volunteer their time to serve on the Commission. When the plan comes before the Planning Commission, staff makes a formal presentation of the plan. The presentation includes two parts, a discussion of the plan and a presentation of the rezonings. In addition to this presentation, a public hearing is conducted, and community members and interested parties may sign up to speak for three minutes apiece—either in favor of or in opposition to the neighborhood plan. When possible, it is best for speakers to coordinate the content of their speeches to avoid repetition. After all the speakers have presented their statements, Commission members may ask questions about the plan. The Commission may then move to endorse the plan and recommend it to City Council for adoption.

Other Boards and Commissions

The Neighborhood Plan could be presented to other boards and commissions. If there are a significant number of historic structures in the neighborhood, it should be presented to the City’s Historic Landmark Commission. If the plan contains numerous recommendations to attract new business into the neighborhood, it can be presented to the Real Estate Council of Tampa.

Adoption by City Council

Once it receives a recommendation from the Planning Commission, the neighborhood plan and rezonings will be presented to City Council for adoption. Council Members may ask questions concerning specific points in the plan. A public hearing is also conducted using similar procedures to the Planning Commission. Following the presentation and questions from Council Members, the City Council may move to adopt the plan. Once adopted by an ordinance, the neighborhood plan becomes an amendment to Tampa’s Comprehensive Plan. By adopting the plan, the City Council shows the City’s commitment to implement as many of the plan’s action items as possible.

HOW WILL THE PLAN BE IMPLEMENTED?

City Boards, Commissions and Staff

The City’s boards and commissions will look to the neighborhood plan when they need guidance about the neighborhood. For example, the Planning Commission will know if a proposed zoning change in the neighborhood would be appropriate and supported by the neighborhood residents, businesses and property owners. Additionally, City Staff can use the plan as guidance when reviewing projects and programs.

Department Budgets

Every year all City departments develop annual budgets that outline their priorities for the coming year. The goals, objectives, and action items in a neighborhood plan can be referenced during the departmental budget process. Capital Improvement Projects a capital improvement program (CIP) is a city’s plan for implementing large-scale improvements, and paying for them with anticipated revenues, such as taxes and bonds. The neighborhood plan may identify issues or problems in the community that require significant capital expenditures. The input offered by an adopted neighborhood plan could help demonstrate that a particular CIP project will advance the long-term interests of the neighborhood. Improving drainage and erosion, fixing roads, upgrading water and sewer lines, developing additional parkland, and expanding sidewalks are examples of projects that could be addressed by the capital improvement program.

Other Agencies and Organizations

Other agencies and organizations outside City government also play a key role in the implementation of the neighborhood plan. When agencies such as Capital Metro, Keep Austin Beautiful and others look for public input, the Neighborhood Plan provides a concise summary of neighbor’s views.

Direct Neighborhood Action

Some of the elements of the Neighborhood Plan will be implemented by direct neighborhood action. Neighborhood clean-ups, graffiti abatement, and a citizen’s crime watch are examples of projects that some neighborhoods have tackled directly.

It is said that “No man is an island,” and even a Plan for an island community must function within an existing framework of laws and planning efforts. How will this document be used by the City of Tampa and Hillsborough County? What gaps does it fill among other planning initiatives? What will this Plan do that just isn’t being done otherwise?

Davis Islands has seen two land-use planning documents in its 78 years of existence.  The first was a detailed vision of creator D. P. Davis. The second was in 1974 by the Planning Commission; the City Council had requested that Hillsborough County Planning Commission develop land use plans for the City’s Urban Core, including Downtown, Seddon Island, Hyde Park, and Davis Islands. (Note: The 1974 plan did not have a transportation section.)

The 2005 Neighborhood Plan is intended to be a “living” plan of the stakeholders’ values. As values, needs, and goals change, so will this Neighborhood Plan. The expected natural period is five years.

CITIZEN PARTICIPATION PROCLAMATION

A VALUES-DRIVEN APPROACH

This Plan is a grassroots, values-driven approach. That means that the community has stepped up to make its needs known, and the Task Force volunteers have emerged from the community to be its instrument.

This makes this Plan very different from the more common professional plans, and not because the quality of the output is different. With hired planning firms, the agents bring a wealth of experience and resources, usually from outside the community. Much of input comes from the hiring authority, perhaps a city. Constraints are established, such as budgets and excluded topics. After study and analysis, specific solutions are offered. The emphasis usually rests on the implementation of options, details of how the specified solutions would be carried out.

Instead, this is the community’s Plan, and it is driven by the community’s values. From the community’s values comes the Vision. From the Vision comes the Plan.

Unlike commissioned plans, the focus of this Plan rests not with specific solutions, but with the Vision. Though options are presented, it is ultimately up to community to decide whether any option or choice—included in this current Plan or not—would be an effective way to grow closer to the Vision. The options can guide the community towards the Vision, for only rarely does a neighborhood look at its entirety and realize what is involved in realizing such community values. It is the evaluation process involved, weighing any given option against the Vision and having a solid foundation in community values, that embodies this Plan.

A COMMUNITY-BASED PROCESS

The Davis Islands’ Neighborhood Planning Task Force began its trek in March 2002. The neighborhood had stated at a public meeting that they wanted a Neighborhood Plan to protect them from the infill and enormous development that was beginning in South Tampa.

CALLING ALL VOLUNTEERS

Requests for volunteers went to the entire community via the Tampa Tribune. The initial selection was made by an existing grass-roots planning committee and representatives from the DI Civic Association. The members of the volunteer Task Force were authorized by the Tampa City Council on March 4, 2002, as an autonomous body operating under the Florida Sunshine Law. All Task Force meetings were Public Noticed.

KICKING OFF

The Task Force held an Open House publicized with our newly created Logo and website (www.dineighborhoodplan.org), our community newspaper (Davis Islands Community News), public radio talk shows, and coverage by the Tampa Tribune and St. Petersburg Times. Signs announcing the Open House meetings were distributed throughout the Islands. To entice yet more participants, the Task Force held contests at this first meeting, awarding prizes donated by local merchants. About 250 stakeholders attended this “kickoff” meeting.

Participants were asked to draw their travel route to the meeting on an overlay of an aerial photo, and they placed colored dots near their homes to indicate areas of participation. Community input on the importance of Davis Islands was gauged, including with ranking favorite Islands photographs and identifying historic photographs. Participants were asked to give one-line descriptions of Davis Islands and its importance to them.

IDENTIFYING THE ISSUES

To cover a broad area, the Task Force held personal, documented interviews with business owners, employees, residents, and major stakeholders including TGH, HCC, and HCAA. The meetings and updates were announced on the website and in the local newspapers (Times, Tribune, and DI News). With the cooperation of the Tampa Bay Community Network, the Task Force created a television show featuring Linda Saul-Sena, a show which aired three times.

Stakeholders were invited to attend study circles, which were organized into four categories: Residential, Transportation, Commercial, and Parks and Recreation. For over three months of sessions, the community gave to the study circles their issues, wishes, and suggestions. Approximately 12 to 20 people were in attendance at each study circle session.

DETERMINING THE VALUES

The issues were organized and converted into values using a “mind-mapping” technique, illuminating the many values that Islanders’ have.

At the second Open House, the community shared in and responded to the values that were derived from their input. Participants completed a 45-question survey to identify priorities and solicit their approval of the value statements. There were 207 responses to this survey. As with other Open Houses, the community brought their children, and responses came from the young and old. The Task Force was delighted to get a full range of perspectives.

VALIDATING THE VISION

From the values approved by the community came the Vision. From the discussions of the value statements, a unique Davis Islands came into focus. Connie Gee, a resident at the meetings, felt that there was a song that matched what the stakeholders were saying: What a Wonderful World. She adjusted the lyrics to a song to herald the stakeholders’ vision.

At the third Open House, the Theme Song for Davis Islands was performed, and the Vision was presented. With interaction, surveys, and general comments, the approximately 150 stakeholders in attendance expressed agreement with the Vision. The Task Force brought the Vision statements and map to the major stakeholders and asked for endorsement and any exceptions. All responded positively, and there was only one exception, which was documented, from one of the major stakeholders.

EVALUATING OPTIONS

The Task Force divided into subcommittees to determine the best available options to achieve the Vision, utilizing donated professional input where possible.

The fourth Open House presented these options to the community. Participants were given choices of surveys, conversations, easels, white boards, and open-ended comments to respond to the various options presented. The feedback allowed the options to be revised to agree with the community consensus. About 97 members of the community attended.

THE FINDINGS AND THE PLAN

The community has shaped each step of the planning process. The process has yielded the issues, values, vision statements, and options. The Task Force has organized each of these results and brought them back to the community for validation.

Now these validated results have been compiled into one Plan, this document. Additional research and discussion with city officials was needed to provide a framework for the Plan, as well as to ensure its usefulness to the community. This document now goes out to the community in an Open House, so that the community can offer its input again.

Once the Plan has been reshaped (if needed), it will be offered to the stakeholders in a vote. If approved, the community’s Plan will serve as a consistent basis for decision-making on Davis Islands.

DI THEME SONG

People have said during this process “you can live on Davis Islands from birth to death.” The neonatal ward at TGH, the multifamily rental units popular with singles, the single-family homes favored by new families, the larger homes preferred by established families, and the assisted living home all affirm that statement. During one of the Task Force meetings, a resident and singer, was listening to us discuss and organize the things we’d received from the stakeholders into values – she was trying at our request to create a song that reflect what we all thought about Davis Islands. She remarked that it had already been written: It’s a Wonderful World.

Louie Armstrong popularized it; Connie Gee rewrote the lyrics, and presented it at the subsequent community-wide meeting.

NEIGHBORHOOD PROFILE

Created 80 years ago from tidal mud flats, Davis Islands was engineered to provide its Tampanians with community and recreation on both land and sea. Now a defining feature of the Tampa Bay shore, the Islands sit at the geographic heart of the city: with parkland, boating facilities and canals, Tampa General Hospital’s main campus, HCC’s (Hillsborough County Community College) Corporate Training Center as well as the College’s Administration offices and Peter O. Knight Airport’s 140 acres owned by Hillsborough County Aviation Authority.

Yet it is the connected open spaces, from park to commercial patio, that lie at the symbolic heart of the City of Tampa: All are welcome to share these spaces. Just a few meters from Tampa’s vibrant downtown, one can visit the houses and shops and paths—the gathering places of a seemingly remote town. In that sense, Davis Islands is a neighborhood out-of-time.

IDENTIFICATION AND BOUNDARIES

GEOGRAPHIC

Davis Islands sits in Hillsborough Bay to the west of Harbor Island and Seddon Channel, south of the mouth of the Hillsborough River. Greatest spans are approximately from: 27.937N to 27.908N and 82.450W to 82.461W.

TOPOGRAPHIC

Davis Islands comprises three man-made islands, dredged in the 1920’s and supported by seawall. The individual islands were separated by canals and linked by bridges; one of the canals was partially covered to accommodate an airport, and its bridge was removed. A culvert remains.

MUNICIPAL

The ingress and egress to the Islands are each one-way viaducts. Hyde Park Avenue connects to the ingress, and the egress deposits drivers onto Plant Avenue. The nearest highway interchanges are ??.

Tampa Police and Fire Rescue Grid: 133.
Fire Station 17 located at 601 E Davis Blvd.
Tampa General Hospital, with Helicopter Pad, located at 2 Columbia Dr.

COUNTY

The entire neighborhood is contained within hurricane evacuation level A.

WELCOME TO DAVIS ISLANDS

Davis Islands' character, while slow of pace, remains as robust as in the development visions of the 1920's--so much so that the neighborhood is more frequently regarded as its own "little city." Like any larger city, Davis Islands has recognizable zones, each with its own character, which collectively define and identify the larger neighborhood. As any planning initiative must begin with this basic identity of a neighborhood, these character aspects of the Islands are briefly introduced as following.

Accessed by a set of bridges adjoining Hyde Park and Plant Avenues, Davis Islands may be known to some as the home of Tampa General Hospital and to others as an access point via Peter O'Knight Airport. Yet these are just the tips of the Islands (north and south, respectively) as any of the cyclists headed for "The Loop" will tell you, as well any Tampanian canines whose walkers are in the know--or any of the walkers, runners, skaters, and boaters who make this their recreation destination (and the Gasparilla pirates need not be asked about their favorite destination).

The Boulevard (primarily East Davis) features an arcade of commerce with no fewer than eleven restaurants and a full range of professional, service, and retail businesses concentrated in the area known simply as The Village.

Historic buildings can be witnessed from the parapets of the Ponce de Leon Apartments (a resort hotel from 1925) to the dramatic but classical Palace of Florence (inspired by Florence's Palazzo Vecchio in 1924). These buildings are clustered in the north-central portions of the Islands, also known as the Heritage Corridor.

The two dog-friendly parks on the Islands are as heavily valued as any of the XX extant acres of the neighborhood's parkland. Other facilities include a ballpark, tennis complex, which are focused on the east side of the Island north of the Village.

Finally, while rows of low-profile houses fold into the suburban-style reaches of the central and western Islands, it is the network of canals and water access that singularly distinguish the Islands. Boating on the canals, use of the marina, and yacht club membership are only some indications of how truly Davis Islands is an island community.

FROM HISTORY TO HERITAGE

Today, if Davis Islands were given—as blank patches of land—to a developer, that person might not be able to plan the development better than D. P. Davis. Utterly creating the Islands, Davis’ 1920’s master plan included areas dedicated to commercial, residential, and recreational uses, from which it is clear that Davis Islands was designed to be a self-contained community. Original plans were for upscale development. Housing was generally two- to three-story, Spanish-Mediterranean. The broad boulevard, East Davis, connected the signature anchors of Davis Islands, the Pool, Yacht Basin, Coliseum, Hudson Manor, and Clubhouse. Circumscribed within that swath was a grid of narrower lots, as suited for storefront businesses, extending east towards Seddon Channel.

Of course, the immortal advice of Robert Burns about “best laid schemes” held for mice and men in the 1920’s, and the ensuing market forces made strong and lasting impressions on the Islands much as the conditions and surroundings would for any other adolescent.

But the Great Depression and World War II were no ordinary market influences.

Most modern neighborhoods reach maturity within five years of the start of building. These timeframes reduce the chances that economic changes will be broad enough to prevent completion of the development. While developments back in Davis’ time had somewhat longer maturation periods, the real estate crash concurrent with the Great Depression proved too great an economic shock to be absorbed by one developer. Florida had no air conditioning, Tampa was still an unsightly port, and the salinity of the dredged soil that became Davis Islands could not yet support trees. Many of the lots that sold in record number even while they were underwater were now sitting empty but with sand. There was no market for Davis Islands, and Davis himself disappeared while crossing the Atlantic.

(There can be few modern equivalents to this kind of disruption to a neighborhood. One might imagine if a newly planned neighborhood were halted halfway through completion. Perhaps a majority of the houses have been built and part of one strip-mall. There are no trees, only sand. The amenities completed do not have enough people to sustain them, and these begin to close. The remaining lots auctioned off to any willing buyers. Now one would have to imagine this process spanning three decades.)

As the years advanced with Davis Islands still trying to navigate its extended adolescence, World War II further hindered the planned development. In some cases the original land-use intent were abandoned in favor of development that could be sold. For example, the Coliseum at the corner of Danube and Chesapeake, survived by its twin in St. Petersburg, functioned as a skating rink and a bowling alley before being claimed by fire and succeeded by town homes. As with the 9-hole golf course, market forces of their decades gave these lands to residential development (hence why one group of homes on the Islands’ south side never had sidewalks), and only East Davis itself saw commercial development.

This, then, explains why Davis Islands features such an amalgam of contradictory traits! Initial development on parts of the Islands was driven by markets decades removed from areas just a few streets over. Boutique hotels abut simple, low-scale apartment buildings. Vibrant Mediterranean structures from the 1920’s connect (and some have been replaced by) the most humble or efficient suburban creations—and Islanders would not have it any other way. This unique, aleatoric history of Davis Islands is as much a part of its heritage as any of the original Mediterranean Revival landmarks.

THE THREE-ISLAND TOUR

The islands (now 1.4 square miles), were originally linked by three distinguished bridges. The bridge from West Davis Blvd to Riviera Island survives but renovated from of its original style. The second bridge retains its heritage but is known better for its creative drivers as “Thrill Hill,” on West Davis Blvd separating the northern and southern parts of the Islands. The third bridge spans history only, instead of South Davis Blvd just east of Mamora; it was supplanted by a culvert that drains a canal along Suwannee Circle and Geneva Place. The Peter O. Knight Airport authority needed the surface for the North (their longest) runway, so the massive drain was immured under South Davis Blvd, all the way under Severn Ave and the parkland to its outlet at the SeaPlane Basin.

EXISTING CONDITIONS

TRANSPORTATION

Air

Peter O. Knight Airport (TPF) http://www.tampaairport.com/about/general_aviation/tpf.html

Fixed Base Operator: Atlas Aviation, Inc. http://www.atlasaviationinc.com/

825 Severn Avenue

Tampa, FL 33606

Publicly Owned: Hillsborough County Aviation Authority

Po Box 22287

Tampa, Fl 33622

Phone Number: (813) 251-1752

Fax Number: (813) 251-0731

UNICOM: 122.8

Hours of Operation: 12 hours, 7 days

Runways: 03-21 - 3,405 ft.

17-35 - 2,688 ft.

Elevation: 8 ft.

Noise Abatement: Stay clear of residential area to the west

Right traffic RWY 03 and RWY 35

Notes: Jet A and 100ll Fuel (Shell), Full Service Maintenance, Flight School, Aircraft Sales & Rental, Rental Cars Available, Pilot Supplies, Computerized Weather Briefing, Tie-Down and Hangar Storage.

Water

Transit

Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority’s HARTline (http://www.hartline.org/) travels the Davis Boulevards with route 46, and route 19 services TGH. HART performs transit service on a broad area coverage system.

Automobile

The ingress and egress to the Islands are each one-way viaducts. Hyde Park Avenue connects to the ingress, and the egress deposits drivers onto Plant Avenue. The nearest highway interchanges are ??.

The street network is based on the wide Davis Boulevards, which circumnavigate the Islands. These roads were designed to move vehicles quickly, and essentially all of the Islands vehicular traffic relies upon this primary thoroughfare. As a general method, the streets are named after bodies of water, ascending in alphabetical order as one travels southward.

There are no traffic lights on Davis Islands.

Parking

Parking is unmanaged; there are no meters and no time limits. Parking is indicated in the Village, for the one block of E Davis Blvd, as diagonal. There are a small number of parallel spots marked on E Davis between Biscayne and Chesapeake.

Major factors in parking use include: Village businesses, recreation facilities (ball fields on Columbia, notably), and the Baptist church (Biscayne).

Pedestrian, Cycling, Skating

The street network was designed to facilitate automobile traffic. Most streets have sidewalks, though S Davis Boulevard does not. A series of streets, formerly the 9-hole golf course, also lacks sidewalks.

The Village experienced a series of pedestrian sleeve and other traffic calming measures.

There are no bicycle lanes designated.

Pavement grades were selected primarily for vehicles.

COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT

RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT

Historic – structures that were constructed during the 1920’s and 1930’s which posses a Spanish/Mediterranean quality. These buildings are characterized by smaller scale masonry construction decorative entrances, porches and garages at the rear of the property.

Post WWII – structures that were predominantly built between 1945 and 1970 and have a suburban ranch feel. These structures are characterized by low slope roofs with single-story elongated plans which include a contiguous garage, typically in the front façade.

Waterfront – structures that are a combination of Mediterranean; 1950s – 1980s styles and a combination of ranch-style and current FEMA requirements of height. Building materials are variously brick, stucco and cement block.

Housing – Most housing is in good condition; renovations have changed the original floor-plan of single-family detached housing to sometimes poor character; the current preference for larger housing has created ___ percentage of “infill” whereby FEMA regulations have required that the bottom level of the house be 11 feet above ground level introducing a negative impact on the surrounding area in many cases because of the lack of Design Guidelines.  The current costs of land ownership on the Islands has also caused the preference for using the maximum footprint on the lots, which are primarily small (75’ x 150” average) unless existing double lots are utilized in the construction of current houses.

Multi-family - In most cases the smaller, single-family attached dwellings such as duplexes and 4 – 5 unit apartment buildings are made of inexpensive materials and are of poor design.  The larger relatively new condos (built in the 1980s) are tall (6 or more stories) and block shape, which detracts from our character from the historic viewpoint.

PARKS, RECREATION, AND OPEN SPACES

HISTORY

Early Years

In 1924, D.P. Davis proposed to the City of Tampa a new residential development, which he called “Davis Islands, Tampa in the Bay.” See Figure “X” of D.P. Davis’ plan. The City owned the riparian rights to the bay bottom that D.P. Davis wanted to dredge to create the islands, so the City’s agreement to sell those rights to D.P. Davis was necessary to proceed with the development.

As part of the bargaining for approval of his development plan, D.P. Davis agreed to pay for and build a bridge to the islands and to convey to the City 55 acres of park land along the Seddon Channel waterfront. In addition, D.P. Davis received the naming rights to the park, which he named after his wife, Marjorie.

First Encroachment on Park Land

The City was looking for land for a new municipal hospital about the time the development proposal was being considered. According to a Tampa Tribune article, “Legend has it that Tampa General Hospital was conceived in the sand trap of a golf course. The story goes that D.P. Davis interrupted a golf game being played by Tampa Mayor Perry Wall, J. Brown Farrior, a longtime community medical leader, and James Swann, chairman of a civic committee. The developer had a proposal. He drew the shape of his emerging islands neighborhood in the sand and asked Farrior, ‘Where do you want to put the hospital?’ Farrior pointed to the northern tip [which was part of the 55-acre park donation]. And that’s were the hospital went.”

The hospital opened in 1927. Hillsborough County Hospital Authority owns this land today and leases it to Florida Health Sciences Center, Inc. for the purpose of operating Tampa General Hospital.

Recreation Envisioned by D.P. Davis

D.P. Davis’ development plan called for a number of recreational facilities, including tennis courts with a club house, a marina with a dock master building, a nine-hole golf course and club house, a swimming pool facility, and a pier park and museum.

The tennis courts and clubhouse were constructed just south of the hospital. Both the tennis and marina facilities were completed in 1926, about the time D.P. Davis sold the project. The golf course and its clubhouse were completed in 1928. The swimming pool facility, with 3 above ground pools, was completed in 1929.

The remainder of the waterfront park land along Seddon Channel became a passive park, with concrete walkways, benches, and a gold fish pond. A concrete walkway along the waterfront, with concrete benches located at intervals, existed along the marina south to Barbados Avenue.

Depression Brought Changes

During the economic depression of the 1930’s, the development plan was significantly altered. Rather than residential development and a pier park on the southern waterfront, which was to include a Spanish-American War museum, an airport was constructed in that location.

Peter O. Knight Airport was a Work Progress Administration funded project and was completed in 1934. Creation of a longer runway a few years later required filling and culverting a portion of one of the canals from South Davis Boulevard to the bay and the elimination of one of the two canal bridges. In the late 1940’s, dredge material was used to create the present day spit of land referred to as the Point, which partially encloses and protects the Seaplane Basin.

All of the property where the airport facility is located was owned by the City of Tampa until recent years when the City sold most of it to the Aviation Authority. Today, the portion of the Seaplane Basin property along the water remains City-owned and is designated park land. The sale of the property to the Aviation Authority included a first right of refusal to the City to buy back the land at same price the City sold it, should the airport no longer operate at that location in the future.

About 1937, the City leased an existing building on the east side of the marina to the Davis Islands Yacht Club, which had incorporated a few years before. That building later became the home of the Power Squadron when the Yacht Club moved to the Point in 1956. Today, the City has reclaimed and rebuilt Power Squadron building as part of a renovation and expansion of the marina facility. The marina renovation also included restoration of the original dock master building for neighborhood policing office space and public restrooms.

Park Land Conversions Continued after WWII

Shortly after World War II, the Coast Guard leased park land on the south side of the marina. Prior to that, the closest Coast Guard Station was in St. Petersburg.

In the 1950’s, the City began leasing for $1/year a portion of the park along Seddon Channel north of the marina to the Davis Islands Garden Club. In 1957, the City deeded the property to the garden club for the sum of $1.00 upon the express condition that the property would always be used for a garden club. The City retained a 25-foot easement along the seawall for seawall related construction and maintenance and for public utility uses.

In 1957, the City gave a long term lease to the Junior League of Tampa for its headquarters on waterfront park land south of the Garden Club. In 1959, the City deeded the land needed for the building footprint to the Junior League for $1.00. The headquarters building was constructed in 1963.

In 1960, the City deeded park land for the Gordon Keller Nursing School and dormitory, which later became the Davis Islands campus of Hillsborough Community College. Information regarding any conditions of the deeds transferring title from the City has not been located in official records, although some residents recall a requirement that the land would revert to the City if not used for educational purposes.

Most of the park on the south side of the marina functioned many years as a playground and a place for summer recreation programs. A small wooden building served as indoor recreational space for arts and crafts and other activities. The land is now dominated by the Bayshore Little League’s baseball complex, with areas set aside for a small playground, a basketball court and a waterfront picnic shelter.

The Golf Course and Country Club

The City-owned nine-hole golf course and country club built by D.P. Davis was in use from 1928 until some time after World War II. Fairways were located on both the first and second islands, connected by two foot bridges over the canal between the first and second islands. The country club building was located at the apex of Bosphorus and Luzon and was a beautiful Spanish Mediterranean style building with a roll back ceiling for dancing under the stars. There was also a smaller clubhouse building located at the corner of Chesapeake and Bosphorus, between the 1^st and 9^th fairways, that served patrons as a meeting place before or after a round of golf. This building is now a private residence.

The golf course fell into disrepair and was sold in the early 1960’s to home builders Joe Byars and George Thompson. The country club building was demolished in the late 1960’s after efforts seeking approval to turn it into a restaurant failed due to the concerns of adjacent residents about parking.

Hospital Expansion

In 1985, a major expansion of Tampa General Hospital required more parking space. The City agreed to tear down the original tennis courts and tennis clubhouse on waterfront parkland to accommodate a seven-story hospital parking garage and a Ronald McDonald House, retaining a linear waterfront park. The Hospital Authority bought land at the apex of East and West Davis boulevards and gave it to the City for a park to mitigate the loss of waterfront park land to build the parking garage. The City built a new tennis complex south of HCC on what remained of the passive park land where the gold fish pond was located. The City then built the parking garage and ran the City-owned facility until recently, when the City sold the garage to the Hospital Authority. In 2005, the Hospital Authority leased the north 0.4 acre portion of the linear waterfront park to the Hospital Authority to build a seven-story parking garage expansion and gave $1,000,000 to the City to make parks and recreation improvements on Davis Islands.

Other Features of Davis’ Plan

The planned Davis Arms Hotel, a large hotel with spacious grounds, was to be situated on the west side of Davis Islands at Biscayne, overlooking Hillsborough Bay and Bayshore. However, it was never constructed, and the land was subdivided for single family homes.

The Coliseum was located at the corner of Danube and Chesapeake and was the same design as the one that still stands in downtown St. Petersburg. For a time, the Davis Islands Coliseum functioned as a skating rink. In the 1960’s, it became a bowling alley, and later it burned down. The land was then subdivided for townhomes.

INVENTORY

Tampa General Hospital Park

Address: 30 block of Columbia Drive

Size: 1.387 Ac

Recreational Uses: Passive Open Space with concrete walkway, lighting and benches. The south end of the site contains an unpaved parking area used by Hillsborough Community College. There are no structures on the site.

Sandy Freedman Tennis Complex

Address: 40-70 block of Columbia Drive

Size: 5.354 Ac

Recreational Uses: There are 8 full-size tennis courts near Seddon Channel and 2 racquetball courts south of the tennis courts. The 1988 building in the center, with 4 courts on either side, has restrooms and shower facilities, beverage machines, a lounge with TV, one meeting room, and recreation personnel offices. A round water feature with fountain is located on the west side of the building, with concrete, lighted walkways leading from Columbia Drive and a small parking lot south of the HCC parking lot. The remainder of the property is open space located north of the tennis courts, west of the tennis courts, and south of the racquetball courts.

Marjorie Park Yacht Basin

Address: 90 block of Columbia Drive

Size: 3.479 Ac

Recreational Uses: This site serves as a marina. The original dock master building on Columbia Drive at Bosphorus is part of the original marina facility built by D.P. Davis and contains two offices and restrooms. The original 1953 Power Squadron Building south of the Junior League headquarters has undergone renovation and serves as the new dock master building.

Davis Islands Playground / Bayshore Little League Complex

Address: 115 Columbia Drive

Size: 3.954 Ac

Recreational Uses: There is one major baseball field, two minor baseball fields and one pee-wee baseball field, all with clay infields. A 50’ wide by 62-foot long basketball court on the north end of the site sits adjacent to the parking lot. A newer concession stand is adjacent to the playground area and includes restrooms. The playground was surfaced and new equipment was added in 2004. A 1968 two-story concession stand next to the major baseball field at the south end of the site is in poor condition. A picnic shelter was recently added near the water north of the pee-wee field. New, more attractive black metal fencing has replaced the old chain link fence around the property.

Roy Jenkins Pool and Outdoor Grounds

Address: 154 Columbia Drive

Size: 0.7715 Ac

Recreational Uses: Swimming lessons, free swim and lap swimming. The 1920 pool is in poor condition yet has very good potential for restoration. Outdoor grounds (0.2574 Ac) associated with the entrance front of the pool on the south side of the property once functioned as an open garden with walkways and a snack bar for pool patrons. Today this open space is treed and continues to be used to access the pool.

Davis Islands Apex Park

Address: 106 East David Boulevard

Size: 0.4899 Ac

Recreational Uses: This park at the apex of East Davis Boulevard and West David Boulevard was dedicated in 1996 and includes a Mediterranean tower, drinking water fountain, benches, lighting, and a native plant garden.

South Davis Linear Park

Address: South Davis Boulevard between East Davis Boulevard and West Davis Boulevard/Severn Avenue.

Size: Undetermined

Recreational Uses: This open, unimproved area consists of triangular medians on South Davis Boulevard and the right-of-way between the curb and the fence around Peter O’ Knight Airport. This right-of-way area has potential for use as a multi-use paved trail.

Davis Islands Park & Seaplane Basin Park

Address: 600-800 block of Severn Avenue - encompassing an area from Martinique at Severn Avenue around the seaplane basin to the Davis Islands Yacht Club and comprising “Martinique Overlook”, “the Jetty,” “West Bank”, a boat ramp facility, a beach, and two dog parks (one with water access). The area is officially designated as two separate parks. The area west of the airport terminal is called Davis Islands Park, and the area east of the airport terminal is called Seaplane Basin Park. Combining the two parks as one and calling it Seaplane Basin Park would eliminate confusion.

Size: 24.06 Ac

Recreational Uses: This park is a passive open space with few amenities at present other than boat ramps. Current uses include fishing, sunbathing and boating access. Consistent with the 2000 Seaplane Basin Park Concept Plan, which was developed by the Davis Islands Civic Association, future plans call for the addition of a paved trail connecting the east and west sides of the park, trash receptacles, drinking fountains, bike racks, benches, restrooms and additional landscaping.

DEMOGRAPHICS

Statistics taken from the national 2000 census.