Stetson breaks ground in Tampa

If all goes as planned, the $11-million Stetson Law Center and Campus will open in the fall, officials say.

By BABITA PERSAUD, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published January 11, 2003

TAMPA -- Stetson University launched construction Friday of an $11-million law school that will have potential lawyers heading downtown by year's end.

The Stetson Law Center and Campus, scheduled to open this fall, sits on seven acres on N Tampa Street near Interstate 275 and the Hillsborough River in Tampa Heights.

The three-story, 73,500 square-foot building will resemble Stetson's Gulfport campus, with Spanish Mediterranean architecture and a watchtower.

But the Tampa school will be different.

While the first floor will have classrooms, a law library and a courtroom, the second floor will house the 2nd District Court of Appeals.

Students will see judges in action, and judges can become mentors. The courtroom will do double duty, with real trials during the day and student mock trials at night.

Sharing space was cost-effective, said appeals court judge Chris Altenbernd. It would cost $12-million for the appeals court, currently housed in the Hillsborough County Courthouse Annex on Twiggs Street, to erect its own building.

The Law Center is already working on expansion. A second building is planned to house the Hillsborough County Bar Association.

Founded in 1883 in Deland, Stetson University relocated its College of Law to Gulfport in 1954. A part-time law program was offered for students who worked during the day or had family obligations.

Several years ago, Stetson began searching for a satellite campus and bought the site of the old police station at 1700 N Tampa Street from the city of Tampa last year for $1.2-million.

Mayor Dick Greco pushed for Stetson's presence in Tampa. It fits into his plans to revitalize the area near downtown. Just north of the campus, Bank of America Community Development plans to build condominiums and townhomes.

"For the remainder of my life, I will drive by this place and feel I had a small part in it," Greco said Friday.

Law program

Fall tuition: $8,240

Application deadline: March 1

Call (727) 562-7802 or visit www.law.stetson.edu

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