TAMPA, Fla. — The City of Tampa hosted a meeting on Thursday to discuss a $57 million Riverwalk expansion project.
City officials asked the community for their feedback about plans to extend downtown Tampa's Riverwalk to the west side of the Hillsborough River.
The project also includes safety improvements for bicyclists and pedestrians.
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"It is a five mile overall project with about a two mile stretch of Riverwalk that is being added and it's really going to stitch together the neighborhood on the west side of the river through West Tampa through multiple different segments," said Brandon Campbell, interim mobility director for the City of Tampa.
The project is estimated to cost nearly $57 million. City officials said the funding includes local and federal sources.
"The overall price is just over $56 million, a lot of that is funded with a $24 million federal grant and $10 million dollars of the additional funding is coming from the West Tampa CRA," said Campbell.
"We think this is going to be a transformative project," he added.
Dianne McNeilly lives in Riverside Heights. She thinks the project is a good move for Tampa, but does not want to see pedestrian traffic in her neighborhood.
"I think the project is great. It has brought a lot of money to Tampa, this will just increase the money, but I think it needs to stay out of the neighborhoods and just keep it on the major areas where the socializing is, but I think it's going to be a great plan," said McNeilly.
The project is divided into six segments. Segment one includes two new pedestrian underpass bridges and a newly constructed multi-use trail from Bayshore Boulevard (immediately south of the Platt Street Bridge) north and to the existing West Riverwalk at Arabelle Riverwalk apartments, north of Brorein Street.
This segment links Bayshore to Tony Jannus Park and north to the Arabelle Riverwalk Apartments.
The project also includes safety improvements to the roadway including the addition of bicycle lanes, parking and sidewalks.
"When all is said and done, we’re gonna have a great, active transportation connection truly from Bayshore all the way down to Ballast Point and then up to Armature Works, and we’re really excited about continuing to build those connections where we have good segments already and we’re stitching those together with this project," said Campbell.
City officials are hosting a groundbreaking on Tuesday, October 28, 2025. The project is expected to be completed by 2027.
For more information on the West River BUILD Project, click here.
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