HCP’s Pat Hill Presents at Tampa Downtown Partnership Development Forum

TAMPA, Fla. (March 16, 2015) HCP Chairman, Pat Hill presented findings from the firm’s biennial Downtown Tampa resident and worker study at Friday’s Tampa Downtown Partnership Development Forum.

Results stem from a biennial Downtown Tampa resident and worker survey that began in 2008. Hill addressed the significant change in resident and worker engagement with Downtown Tampa over the past six years and all that has come to fruition during that time.

While there were numerous positives reported, residents and workers continue to demand more. Hill stated, “There is growing interest in the urban experience as more and more residents report being drawn to Downtown for the arts, culture, entertainment, walkability, etc. With that search for the urban experience, however, comes expectations for retail and grocers—two staples to urban living that the numbers suggest are lacking. Satisfaction is high, but expectations are higher.”

Hill’s presentation addressed another major challenge facing Downtown—perception—by way of a series of myth versus reality considerations, from sidewalks rolling up at 5PM, to downtown living being just for the young and unattached, to safety and pet friendliness concerns; all points were refuted by study data.

The Tampa Bay Times reported on the demystification of some of these perceptions in their follow-up article, here.

The 2014 study marked the fourth installment. Results can be found on the Tampa Downtown Partnership at www.tampasdowntown.com.