Michael Feehan calls himself the Mayor of Franklin Street.
Everywhere he goes, people know him. At the Tampa Theatre. At the Hub. At the Italian Pavilion Cafe. He waves, stops to chat or simply nods hello. Rare is the day he doesn't bump into a familiar face at lunch.
Actually, it's no wonder. He lives and works downtown.
Feehan is among the handful of people who call downtown proper home. Not Harbour Island. Not Channel District. But in the heart of the city, amid the skyscrapers.
HE LIVES IN One Laurel Place, a 10-story condo building visible from Interstate 275 near the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center. The complex was built in 1983, long before downtown residential development became the in thing.
Among the true urban pioneers, Feehan says it irritates the heck out of him when city leaders and developers overlook Laurel dwellers in their talks about getting people to nest downtown.
A Massachusetts native, Feehan moved to One Laurel Place seven years ago. He had been living in Hyde Park but needed a change. His cottage apartment had been burglarized (the thieves' loot included frozen fish sticks) and he wanted a place with security.
LAUREL PLACE seemed a good choice. It had a 24-hour guard and a pool and was within walking distance to his job at the U.S. Probation Office and his favorite hangouts, such as the theater, the library and Tampa Museum of Art.
The price was right, too: $62,300 for a two-bedroom, 1,100-square-foot unit with a balcony.
Back then, downtown was, well, pretty much the same as it is now. Maybe even a bit more happening, he says. People figured it was just a matter of time before the area boomed. Regardless, Feehan liked the urban setting.
Since then, Harbour Island has blossomed and the Channel District is on the verge. Channelside and the streetcar promise big economic benefits, but beginning on the edges of town, not the core.
Feehan, 49, says the city should focus on the center, starting with Franklin Street, which has plenty of potential with its old commercial buildings and pretty new landscaping. Lower the rents. Offer businesses incentives to stay.
He suggests developers shoot for truly affordable housing, keeping in mind that even a $200,000 condo - considered cheap in builder circles - is way out of reach for many downtown workers.
Like a lot of people, Feehan guesses there's some chicken and egg going on. Developers won't create housing unless the residents have places to go. And businesses won't open unless they have customers.
Ask Mayor Feehan how to do it, and his response is simple: Think of downtown from the view of a tourist, who expects a city experience while staying in a city. Where can people walk to from Courtyard Marriott on Cass Street or the Hyatt Regency? Is it safe?
Forget the overblown urban design plans that end up on a bureaucrat's shelf. Start small and build from there.
Consult the people at Laurel Place. They already know the gig.
THE LAST DROP: Rattlefish Raw Bar and Grill on Tyson Avenue off West Shore Boulevard definitely recognized Tampa's yen for waterfront dining when it opened in December. The wait for a table for four last Saturday night: two hours, 45 minutes.
