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Neighborhood Report

Developers pitch Armory projects

Groups hear reactions to a film studio, marketplace, ice rink and other ideas.

By ALEXANDRA ZAYAS
Published July 21, 2006

Groups seeking to redevelop the Fort Homer Hesterly Armory on Howard Avenue learned for the first time who supports them and who opposes them during a recent public forum at the Tampa Convention Center.

Going into the meeting, the proposal by Tampa Digital Studios, Newkirk Ventures and DeBartolo Development to convert the armory into a sound stage and film studio seemed to have the most traction.

But members of the Tampa Alliance, which includes representatives from local television production, audio and multimedia companies, turned out at the forum to voice their concerns.

"Tampa Digital Studios has no real-world experience in successfully administering a large-scale motion picture studio enterprise, as the focus of their work is video production," John Samaha of Shooting Stars Post read in a statement.

Michael Piotrowski of Tampa Digital Studios said the proposal goes beyond bringing in feature films.

"The Armory Partners Group is about bringing a mixed-use creative complex to the Tampa Bay area so that we can bring creative jobs in abundance for the 21st century," he said. "We are not looking to bring in jobs such as janitorial work or maids or receptionists. We want to give people who live in West Tampa and throughout the area an opportunity to take an idea, bring it to a place where they can create a company and change their lives."

Opponents said the studio would not generate local jobs as the proposal promises, because productions require the work of highly skilled imported technicians. They also said other cities, such as Orlando, have tried similar ventures, but their soundstages sit empty and unused.

Tampa Bay film commissioner Krista Soroka backed the Tampa Digital team. She said Tampa is No. 1 on a list for a $30-million film, and many filmmakers are interested in using Tampa as a backdrop.

"It's something we see growing and becoming a trend," she said.

Meanwhile, lower profile proposals such as Heritage Square at the Armory, which includes a luxury hotel, spa and marketplace, received a big reception at the July 12 forum.

About 50 supporters, including some residents of West Tampa, sported Heritage Square T-shirts. The proposal team involves two Ybor firms: Curtis Gaines Hall Jones Architects and WilsonMiller planning, design and engineering firm.

The developers rented a hospitality suite at the convention center with food and refreshments for their supporters.

A promotional video highlighted the armory's history and gave a look at its potential future.

"The armory's interior is home to specialty merchants, locally owned cafes and ethnic restaurants that celebrate West Tampa's heritage," the narrator said. "Here, local merchants sell everything from cigars to quinceanera dresses."

Familiar faces on the video included West Tampa historian Maura Barrios and chef Waylon Nelson.

Georgia developers Coastal Retail, who have proposed a supermarket on the site, didn't attend the forum, citing medical reasons.

Brothers Spencer and Jarrett Kass of Landmarc Realty in West Tampa want to tear down the armory to build a 610-unit luxury mixed-use development with residential and retail space. Their concept drew little public comment for or against. Many people, however, have opposed demolition.

The idea for a community event center and police substation, proposed by Williams Holdings Corp. of Brandon, also received little public feedback.

Several parents of ice skaters spoke in favor of the armory becoming an ice rink, a plan proposed by Reliant Development of Tampa. Mark Newkirk with the film group also would construct an ice rink in West Tampa, but not on armory grounds. Newkirk pitched it as an addition to the armory proposal.

Both developers said local skaters and hockey players are forced to drive outside Tampa for ice time and that Tampa is the only American city with an NHL team but no ice rink.

West Tampa artist Alex Torres, who plays ice hockey and works at the Ice Sports Forum in Brandon, said the sport is too expensive for children in the working-class community around the armory to enjoy.

"It's a bourgeois sport in the South," he said. "People who are proponents are not West Tampa people."

He wore a Heritage Square T-shirt.

Alexandra Zayas can be reached at 226-3354 or azayas@sptimes.com.

[Last modified July 20, 2006, 13:26:11]