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Movies In The Park Gets City Screening

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By RICHARD MULLINS, The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 4, 2007

Office workers and downtown dwellers, grab some popcorn and a blanket. A regular movie night could soon come to a downtown park in Tampa.

City officials and a group of local design experts are pondering a 'Media Park' at MacDill Park on the river downtown, featuring movies projected on the side of the Sheraton Tampa Riverwalk Hotel. Local restaurants would offer food and drinks at temporary kiosks.

The park is tucked between the Regions Bank building on Ashley Drive and the river. Already a recently renovated and well-kept pocket of space on the water downtown, the park is often used by office workers to exercise at lunch.

'Our goal was to get some creative thoughts together, bring some good design ideas to some areas around Tampa that we think could use it a bit,' said John Wakefield, a business development manager at Lykes Brothers in Tampa who helped spark the idea. 'We want this to be a really updated city and one that is attractive and appealing to young professionals like us.'

The goal is twofold: Provide a fun spot for people living and working downtown, and to attract more people into the downtown market where there are dozens of condominium projects under construction or ready for occupancy.

That idea sparked the interest of Mayor Pam Iorio. 'I'm very open to the idea,' Iorio said. 'It's a very creative idea. ... Every park up and down the Riverwalk needs to be something that offers something different for different people.'

Lee Hoffman, Tampa's Riverwalk manager, is reviewing the Media Park plans and exploring options for the park.

As of this summer, about 600 people were living downtown, according to the Tampa Downtown Partnership. That number could swell to 5,000 by the end of 2008, according to a forecast by the real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield.

The idea for the Media Park started with Design Tampa, an ad hoc group of architects, advertising executives and graphic designers who came together this summer to collaborate and donate their time to designing better uses for urban spaces. For this project, they took cues from New York City's popular Bryant Park in Manhattan, with its daytime piano concerts and nighttime movie festivals.

Park designers said they are talking to several corporate sponsors for the park. It's possible, they said, the park could have something like 'The Sony Movie Night,' or 'Heineken Film Festival.'

The design also calls for free Wi-Fi Internet access and a set of boat docks and kayak launches.

Rather than work through the traditional, political planning avenues of city development for this project, Design Tampa organizers approached it in much the same way they promote products for corporate clients - first using their design skills to solve an urban problem, then building public interest and support that prompts politicians to fast-track the idea.

Beth Leytham, a board member of the nonprofit group Friends of the Riverwalk, which is raising money for the city attraction, said, 'Design Tampa people are just the kinds of people and thinkers and groups we want to work with. MacDill Park is still a passive site and we know a couple cool things like this would just make it a primo spot downtown.'

Although its project is still in early stages, Design Tampa is turning its approach to other projects, such as transforming some of Tampa's dormant cigar factories into high-tech libraries, taking advantage of their open space and large windows for light.

Reporter Richard Mullins can be reached at rmullins@tampatrib.com or (813) 259-7919.

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