Hillsborough Community College changes course in historic Ybor City architecture dispute
June 5, 2009 at 7:03 am by Manny Leto
Architect sketch of the new HCC Student Services Building
By Manny Leto
PoHo contributor
It’s 8 a.m in Ybor City, and there’s not a construction worker in sight at Hillsborough Community College’s new Student Services building on Palm Avenue. Pillars for the fourth floor reach skyward, while exposed rebar twists in the wind.
For weeks now, a group of influential Ybor City property owners, the Barrio Latino Commission, the city’s Office of Historic Preservation and the Cuban Club has battled HCC over the design of it’s new Student Services Building which by anyone’s standing is clearly out of place along the brick streets of Old Ybor.
There’s a reason why the architecture of HCC’s Ybor Campus, including the design for the new Student Services building, has never really jibed with what the Barrio Latino Commission considers the “historic patterns” of Tampa’s National Historic Landmark District: It doesn’t have to.
At least, that’s what college officials say.
A bit of history might help. In the late 1960s and 1970s, the City of Tampa’s Urban Renewal Agency embarked on an ambitious plan to “revitalize” several inner-city neighborhoods. Using the power of eminent domain, the agency demolished more than 1,000 homes and businesses in Ybor City. Central to Federal Urban Renewal policy, both locally and nationally, was the belief that cities could improve deteriorating urban centers by clearing away old structures and building new ones. With grant funding from HUD, Tampa’s Urban Renewal Agency demolished, cleared, and assembled large parcels of land, offering them for sale to private developers.
Between about 1965 and 1974, land acquisition and demolition in Ybor proceeded quickly. Once this initial phase was completed, however, federal funding dried up, the Urban Renewal Agency closed its doors and Ybor City was left with acres and acres of barren lots. Ironically, Urban Renewal only exacerbated the perception that the Latin Quarter was a “slum area.”
Unable to attract private investment, city leaders looked to Hillsborough County for a solution. Already concerned about the lack of private-sector interest, in 1968, then-Mayor Dick Greco proposed an “urban campus” of Hillsborough Community College to be located on what were now acres and acres of empty city-owned parcels. HCC was at the time looking to open a campus in Tampa and was considering Dale Mabry Highway and Plant City. Initial plans for a branch campus called for the acquisition of 33 acres of land in Ybor City. The college would eventually own as many as 53.
Because the land was cheap and abundant, other county agencies followed suit. Today, Hillsborough County is the largest single property owner in Ybor City. HCC alone owns around 40 acres of developed and undeveloped property in the Historic District.
But since the first building was constructed in 1973, HCC has rarely appeared before the Barrio Latino Commission. For new construction, they skip the process entirely.
The reason for HCC’s exemption is difficult to pin down.
One argument, offered by HCC, is that they’re located outside of the National Historic Landmark District and therefore exempt from Barrio review. Not so says Joe Howden, chairman of the Barrio , which has jurisdiction from Columbus Drive to Adamo Drive. Yet another reason, explains the City’s Historic Preservation Manager, Dennis Fernandez, is that state buildings are “self regulating” and therefore aren’t required to pull building permits. Fernandez says that HCC is only required to abide city land use and zoning requirements, not design review. A 1976 Tampa Tribune article seems to back this up. However, the Barrio is empowered in Chapter 27 of Tampa’s zoning codes so, even by this logic, HCC still falls under the Barrio’s umbrella.
Yet another theory is that HCC was exempted from local design review as a concession for agreeing to build a campus in Ybor City back in 1970, an idea the college was reluctant to support.
Whatever the reason for the exemption, once the student services building went beyond 45 feet they triggered a zoning review, which required them to appear before the Barrio, the very group whose scrutiny they have generally avoided.
“When they decided to add the 4th story, they actually violated their own zoning classification,” said Fernandez.
They also raised the ire of key Ybor players. Since at least January the Cuban Club and La Gaceta publisher, Patrick Mantiega, have challenged the school to comply with local standards. Surrounding property owners, Joe Capitano and Alan Kahana – two guys you don’t mess with around these parts – also got involved. Why should they comply when HCC gets a free pass? Why should a homeowner or a small business spend extra money to restore their property when a big player like HCC thumbs its nose?
The last two weeks have seen a sea change in HCC position.
The school has agreed to reduce the height of the Services building from four to three stories (absorbing what is undoubtedly a huge expense that may trigger legal action). In exchange, surrounding property owners have agreed not to challenge HCC’s variance request for additional height, a nominal two feet above what is allowed. The school has also agreed to a variety of aesthetic enhancements outlined by the city’s historic preservation office.
Most significantly, HCC has agreed to enter into an inter-local agreement with the City of Tampa requiring that they seek Barrio approval for all future projects.
In light of the recent fracas, it might be easy to overlook the fact that HCC actually has a good track record of restoring historic buildings in Ybor City. Just a few years ago, they restored the La Benifica Clinic on the corner of 15th Street and Palm Avenue for use as its dance studio and child care facility.
They also restored a 4-story brick building, originally built in 1905 for use as administrative offices.
The question is, why doesn’t HCC employ this model more often? Any casual observer would easily note the glut of empty storefronts throughout the Historic District. A 2002 vision plan commissioned by the city suggested both HCC and Ybor City would benefit by expanding the campus further out into the District. A campus bookstore on 7th Avenue, maybe? The school’s T.V. and radio production classes in a second floor Ybor loft? Heck, call me crazy but, how about a theater class at the Cuban Club or the Centro Asturiano, which boast 300 and 1,200-seat theaters, respectively. Some historic buildings, neglected for years, are looking for saviors. Why not HCC? Filling empty storefronts would not only provide more visibility for the school but it would go a long way towards making Hillsborough Community College a bigger part of the community.
Ultimately, the controversy surrounding the Student Services building could become what educators call a “teachable moment.” HCC should use this moment to teach its students about the value of Historic Preservation, about Ybor City’s place in Florida history, and about the challenges of community development, planning and politics. HCC should comply with the standards the Barrio enforces not because it has to but because, as a learning institution, it should lead by example.
