TAMPA, Fla. — A viewer tip led me to discover how ZooTampa's ambitious expansion plans are transforming the area around the Lowry Park and Seminole Heights neighborhoods, creating new opportunities along the Hillsborough River.
The story idea came after a previous Tampa Bay 28 report highlighting the potential transformation of North Tampa.
WATCH full report by Michael Paluska
The Hillsborough River winds through the beating heart of Tampa, but one section often goes overlooked.
Mark Haney, Chief External Relations Officer at ZooTampa, is working to change that with a $125 million expansion project he calls "Riverwalk North."
"We anticipate the first phase of this will be about $125 million," Haney said.
On a beautiful fall day surrounded by wildlife inside and outside the zoo, Haney took me on a golf cart ride to Lowry Park, where a newly discovered sulfur spring bubbles up. But in the middle of the greenery and peace, there's one spot that sticks out, a 13-acre city maintenance yard with more asphalt than animals, fuel tanks, and rusty remnants of the past littering the land.
Haney told Tampa Bay 28 reporter Michael Paluska this area is the perfect spot to go.
"Well, you know, we always say that every good city deserves a great zoo, and we feel like we are part of the community," Haney said.
The expansion would connect Tampa's cultural attractions along the water.
"You could actually, theoretically take a water taxi from the Florida aquarium, stop at the Children's Museum, and then end up at the zoo. Tampa has many cultural attractions that are located on the river or by the water. So you could almost do a cultural tour all the way up from the aquarium to the zoo," Haney said.
Two businesses are making significant investments in the zoo's expansion. Blind Tiger Coffee Roasters and Bamboozle, a Vietnamese fusion restaurant, both bought their buildings to serve their community today and into the future.
Roberto Torres, owner of Blind Tiger, strategically positioned his coffee shop to serve zoo visitors.
"So before the zoo, they can grab their coffee on the way in, depending on what time, because everything revolves around the children's nap time, if you are between two and seven," Torres said.
Torres sees Seminole Heights as a neighborhood in transition.
"I think the main reason is that, as one of the original suburbs, Seminole Heights has this opportunity to kind of like welcome families, and the neighborhood is always in transition, with families moving out and new families coming in," Torres said. "We have had a presence as a store since 2015, so now we get an opportunity to call this our home, and enhance that process," Torres said.
Lynn Pham is the owner of Bamboozle Heights, relocating her Vietnamese fusion restaurant from downtown to Seminole Heights due to the strong community presence.
"Personally, I love this area because it's just got such a strong community here. That's part of the reason why I opened here," Pham said.
"This is my neighborhood. My home is here, and a lot of my customers from downtown, their homes are here. So it was such an easy decision to make," Pham said.
The restaurant is known for its pho soup, banh mi sandwiches made with in-house bread, and fresh rolls.
"A main dish would be our pho soup, our banh mi. We make our bread in-house here, but we're actually really known for our fresh rolls, and I consider them like a salad transporter. You know, it's really light, it's really healthy," Pham said.
Pham already sees how the zoo impacts on her business.
"Well, I noticed the impact here, especially on certain holidays, families will go to the zoo and they'll swing by and visit us here at the heights," Pham said.
The growth benefits the zoo as well.
"So there's a lot of new restaurants coming in the area," Haney said. "It brings more attention to the Lowry Park area and Seminole Heights area, and overall, it's just a really good thing for us."
The zoo's expansion isn't just about animals — it's about people too. The zoo employs around 400 people and is still growing.
The newly renovated and expanded Manatee Critical Care Center, which live streams these sea cows 24/7, is showing tourists there's more to Florida than just Disney World and the beach.
"You'll be able to see the manatees in a whole new light, and the neat thing about this is every single manatee you see is scheduled to go out into the wild," Haney said.
The zoo is also attracting visitors who come to Tampa specifically for ZooTampa.
"People would never come to Tampa just to come to the zoo. Now we're seeing visitors who are coming. They're coming to Tampa just to go to Zoo Tampa. And so that's really exciting for us," Haney said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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