A 33,000-square-foot, $34.7 million community center has opened in East Tampa.
City leaders and community members praised the Fair Oaks Recreation Complex at a ribbon-cutting ceremony Monday. They said the project, which provides dedicated spaces for schoolchildren and older adults, represents an historic investment into a long-underserved corner of the city.
“East Tampa, this is for you,” Mayor Jane Castor told the cheering crowd. “Welcome home.”
Dozens of neighbors toured the sprawling complex after the ceremony, eyes wide and mouths agape. “It’s huge,” one woman exclaimed as she entered, her neck craning toward the tall ceilings. Children bounded from room to room, exploring the basketball court, the weight room and the music studio.
The building, which also houses classrooms, meeting spaces and a kitchen, sits on a 10.25 acre site that, when complete, will offer a sports field, a playground, basketball and pickleball courts, a splash pad and 1.5 acres of walking paths.
“I’ve spoken about how important parks and recreation (were) to me in my upbringing,” said council member Naya Young, whose district encompasses the park. “It is extremely, extremely important to have these spaces where communities come together, to talk and meet your neighbors and share ideas, reconnect with one another.”
The project got $1 million in funding from the East Tampa Community Redevelopment Area and another $1 million in federal money secured by U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor.
The future of Fair Oaks Park has been a hot-button issue in East Tampa for years.
In 2019,as the city poured millions into parks projects in more affluent neighborhoods, East Tampa residents complained about the aging complex. The city had planned a $200,000 renovation for the community center — it needed new flooring, carpet and windows, among other upgrades — but a chorus of community members said it wasn’t enough.
The roof leaked and bars blocked the windows “like a jailhouse,” said Yvette Lewis, president of the local chapter of the NAACP. The building was cramped and rat-infested, others added (though a city probe found just one rat, and said the structure was sound).
By 2020, some City Council members were pushing for a new building to replace the shabby structure. Later that year, Mayor Jane Castor said the city would expand and rebuild the center within two years for $18 million.
The cost and timeline quickly stretched. In 2024, the city chose the construction firm Skanska to lead the nearly $35 million project.
While some questioned the steep price tag, others said the investment was overdue.
“A big, beautiful $40 million park is going to be built in a Black community,” said former Council member Gwen Henderson, Young’s predecessor who died in June. “If you don’t like that, that is not something that I actually care about at this point.”
At the event Monday, Young paid tribute to Henderson.
“Thank you, Ms. Gwen,” Young said, glancing skyward. “This is beautiful, and I know you are smiling down and thinking, ‘Yes, yes, yes.’”