JULY/AUGUST 2016
| TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE 109
Since opening in 1987, the Straz Center
has developed into an established cultural
and economic anchor for the Tampa Bay
region. With an annual average attendance
of 600,000 people, the Straz seeks to
fulfill its mission to the community
in creative, sustainable and exciting
ways by integrating the environment,
the community and the performing
arts to be at the heart of Tampa Mayor
Bob Buckhorn’s InVision Tampa plan.
The Master Plan, which was funded by
the Frank E. Duckwall Foundation, has
been approved by the Straz Center board
and presented to Mayor Buckhorn and
city officials. A feasibility study, which
is expected to take several months, is
underway and will look for possible
sources of funding for this projected $65-
$100 million project.
In 2012, the Straz Center assembled a
Strategic Advisory Task Force to address
growth, enrichment and funding for the
evolving role it plays for the Tampa Bay
region and for the national arts scene. This
task force collaborated with community
leaders and planners to create a new
vision to elevate The Straz’s status as
a cultural attraction and point of pride
for the city. Consequently, a Straz Center
Board of Trustees Master Plan Committee
was formed in 2014 and, through a
vigorous selection process, engaged the
services of architectural firm Westlake
Reed Leskosky. The provocative plans,
developed and conceptualized by Paul
Westlake and Jonathan Kurtz, call for the
creation of a Grand Terrace that flows to
the river front, the expansion of the Patel
Conservatory, the reinvention and
enlargement of the Silbiger Lobby
in Morsani Hall and the addition
of a multi-purpose events center to
accommodate growth in food and
beverage, education and artistic
programming – all while establishing
the Straz as a model for diversity
and inclusion that supports the arts
and audiences across communities
and cultures in our area and beyond.
There are a multitude of parts to
this concept involving everything
from parking to dining. Yet, it is easy
to see the impact such improvements
will have on Tampa’s Riverwalk.
More importantly, those plans are
far more about giving the Center
tentacles into the community and
allowing it to expand its services to
the entire population by providing
a central meeting place that can be
used for a wide variety of social,
cultural and charitable activities.
Bravo for the Straz! 9