Tampa Bay
Tourist Destinations
FROM THE PAST
THE BAYFRONT CENTER
Before the era of Tropicana Field and the Amalie Arena, there was the Bayfront Center. Once
attached to downtown St. Petersburg’s Mahaffey Theater by a common lobby, the Bayfront Center
opened in May 1965 with a rousing performance from the late, great comedian Jonathan Winters.
The 7,500-seat arena hosted everything from concerts to ice shows to trade shows. Longtime locals
often associate the Bayfront Center with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which
performed there on an annual basis from the 1960s through 1990s.
The original Tampa Bay Rowdies, who played for the North American Soccer League from 1975
through 1984, held most of their indoor games at the Bayfront Center in the late 1970s and early
1980s. Wrestling, boxing, basketball, and tennis events were also played at the arena. In 2004, after
hosting a diverse array of events, the Bayfront Center was demolished to help make way for the
current Salvadore Dalí Museum; and the Mahaffey Theater subsequently underwent a massive
renovation project that included the construction of an atrium and a new lobby area.
46 TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE MARCH/APRIL 2015