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Homes

Achieving high-rise happiness

After decades in the suburbs, a grandmother moves on up - way up, to cityscape views.

By ELIZABETH BETTENDORF
Published October 14, 2005

TAMPA - Shirley Hoffman spent most of her adult life in a waterfront house on Davis Islands. A half century, to be precise.

"I was really happy there - I loved my house," she recalls. "I never wanted to leave."

Not only did she and her late husband raise their three children in the 1940s-era home built by a Florida air-conditioning pioneer, but Hoffman liked being able to slip into the back yard for no reason, wave hello to her neighbors, or walk her poodle, Peanut, any time she pleased.

Suburban life was her thing.

But, she says, it's never too late to let go and start over.

Now the stylish grandmother of five lives surrounded by urban life. She makes her nest high above downtown Tampa in a new high-rise with a knockout view of water and skyline.

Though she was sentimental about the past, she says, she managed to move on - with flair.

Now she wouldn't have it any other way.

"I have my independence, my car - plus I'm right across the street from Publix," she says. "That's the best part."

Hoffman lives at The Parkside of One Bayshore, a high-rise condominium complex at 275 Bayshore Blvd. She bought it preconstruction in January 2004, but didn't move in until her unit was completed this June.

The time span allowed her to sell her house and slowly shed years worth of accumulated possessions.

"You can't imagine the amount of stuff that was in my house. Getting rid of it was the hardest part," she says. "It was traumatic. I had 58 big boxes when I moved. At first I felt like I was living in a hotel and it took me awhile to adjust, but the result was really positive. I'm very happy now."

And why not?

The view from her 1,650-square-foot corner unit on the eighth floor defies even the most polished Realtor's raves. From the 9-foot windows, the scenery unfolds like an IMAX movie - only the viewer stands in the middle of it. Imagine, for a moment, living suspended over the city with a straight-on, almost wraparound view of the Tampa convention center, Harbour Island, the Platt Street tunnel, water, sky, sailboats and cruise ships.

And then - skyline.

From Hoffman's vantage point, it's a youthful and energized cityscape. Tampa's skyscrapers stand like tall, glamorous party guests mingling outside her windows. Step outside and the balcony feels like the bow of a ship: windy and beautiful and mesmerizing all at once.

"I sat out here the other night with a friend and had coffee and it was really nice," she said.

Because the view is so dominant, Hoffman sought help decorating. She hired Tampa Bay area interior designer Pat Kelley, of Pat Kelley Interiors, who has a reputation for working well with clients bringing in their own furniture and accessories.

"I wanted to use a lot of my things," Hoffman said. "The challenge was putting old and new furniture together."

Kelley and Hoffman talked a lot about how the rooms would be used.

"We discussed where she would sit, what she would be doing, where she would eat and entertain friends," Kelley said.

They decided to turn an extra bedroom into a study and a cozy gathering place for Hoffman's regular mah-jongg games. Kelly encouraged Hoffman to take her time as she sorted through furnishings and decided what to bring with her.

"We decided on colors of spring - colors like pink, yellow and celery green," Kelley said. "I thought it was suitable up there in the sky."

In the study, they chose a warm yellow paint and a cool, minty green carpet. Rich botanical prints hang on the walls and an old sofa found new life thanks to a jaunty yellow and pink upholstered fabric.

Hoffman asked the builder to install hardwood floors, stainless-steel appliances and to erect a wall in the expansive living area to break up the space and allow for an extra bedroom. The kitchen features dark wood cabinets and a rounded eating bar, covered in black and green granite. Tall, traditional pub chairs allow for comfortable eating - and view gazing.

Hoffman says that making the transition from house to a hip, urban condo "where a lot of people are in their 30s and 40s" required considerable soul-searching.

Though her husband died 51/2 years ago, it was tempting to stay in her family home indefinitely.

"But I knew in my heart it was time to move," she said. "And I wanted to stay in South Tampa. I have friends here, volunteer work, and all my children live within 3 miles."

Hoffman, who loves to travel and volunteers regularly at Life's Treasures, the Lifepath Hospice thrift store on S Dale Mabry Highway, could have moved to a retirement community.

"But I really like being around young people," she admits. "I find I really enjoy it."

One day a few years ago, she heard about Parkside, a proposed $30-million, 104-unit, 17-story high-rise. Plans included a pool terrace and ground-level retail space. She and her daughter went to an open house to look at plans, but all the good units had been snapped up.

"All you had to do was put $5,000 down. People had started lining up at 6 a.m.," she recalls. "And all the large apartments were taken."

Fate intervened when a man called and offered to sell his condo - long before the building was ever built.

Hoffman took a chance and bought it.

She sold her house and began to make plans for the future.

In fact, when the day came to move in, Hoffman admits the view proved even better than promised.

"My friends who come over to play mah-jongg love to see the people coming and going from the Publix parking lot. For some reason, it's really interesting to watch," she says.

They play at a wooden card table that sat in Hoffman's waterfront house on Davis Islands for decades. There's something comforting about that, Hoffman says.

"It makes me feel really good to have my old furniture and things around," she said, gazing out the window as a boat cruised past Jackson's Bistro across the way. "This place feels happy, happy, happy to me."

[Last modified October 13, 2005, 08:20:12]