TBO.com - Tampa Bay Online
Harvey Park Committee Has $3.5 Million, Big Revamp Ideas
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Published: June 11, 2007
TAMPA - Out of the June 11, 1967, police shooting of black teenager Martin Chambers came a park. Now comes the change.
A 16-member advisory committee appointed by Mayor Pam Iorio has until the fall to decide how to drastically change Perry Harvey Sr. Park in the north pocket of downtown.
This much the committee agrees on: The update is long overdue for the 11-acre park, which opened in 1979 at 1200 N. Orange Ave. and is named for the longtime longshoremen's union president.
With $3.5 million earmarked for the park, and spurred on by Bank of America and Tampa Housing Authority officials to 'think big,' the committee wants a destination area with an amphitheater, playgrounds, a replacement skateboard park and statues - all tied to the history of Central Avenue, once a bustling district of black-owned businesses.
The project is linked to the upcoming demolition of the adjacent Central Park Village, a public housing complex dating to the 1970s and set to make way for residential and retail redevelopment.
Committee member Dorothy Harvey Keel, daughter of the union leader, remembers holding her youngest child at the park's dedication.
'My child is now 27,' she said recently at her family's College Hill Pharmacy, 3503 22nd St.
Keel, 65, who is known for her eloquence at committee meetings, wants education emphasized in the renovations. She envisions students and other visitors pushing buttons for recorded memories and vibrant visuals.
'We have a rich history in this town, and we fought hard for our rights,' she said, flanked by her sisters, Gustava Harvey, 70, who operates the pharmacy, and Ruth Harvey Brown, 75, a retired principal.
Keel said she's using her view of her late father, who was a penniless young man when he moved to Tampa from Thomasville, Ga., in the 1930s, to determine what's right for the park.
'My father stood on others' shoulders,' she said of appreciating sacrifices made.
As for the park redesign, Keel said, 'I'm very thankful that some time is being taken to consider the past of the black community.'
For information on the park project, call Fred Hearns, the city's community affairs director, at (813) 274-8615.
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