Tampa Council to Vote on Magnolia Hotel Redevelopment
Tampa's City Council is scheduled to vote on a proposed land use change for the Magnolia Hotel property in Hyde Park. The decision, expected tonight, will determine whether the site can be redeveloped.
- The proposed $136 million project by developer Copperline Partners aimed to construct a 122-room hotel, 21 condominiums, and eight townhomes. The plan also included a restaurant, a spa, and structured parking, occupying a full city block at Swann and Magnolia avenues near Bayshore Boulevard. - The vote was to amend the city's Comprehensive Plan, changing the site's land use designation from Residential-35 to Community Mixed Use-35 to allow for commercial and hotel use. However, the City Council denied the amendment in a 3-3 vote; a tie vote results in the motion failing. - The Hillsborough County Planning Commission had recommended against the land use change. Their reasoning cited conflicts with policies that discourage high density in coastal high-hazard areas and evacuation zones. - Concerns from residents and some council members centered on the project's intensity and scale being incompatible with the historic Hyde Park neighborhood. Other issues raised included potential increases in traffic on narrow streets and flood risks in an area that is part of a storm surge zone. - Proponents argued the project would replace aging office buildings and parking lots with a well-designed development that included significant infrastructure upgrades. This included a modern underground stormwater system to capture and filter rainwater, addressing existing drainage issues in the vicinity. - The development plan included preserving a historic home on the property to be repurposed as an office. The overall design intended to use materials like brick and limestone to complement the area's architectural heritage. - This decision follows the council's recent denial of a similar request to convert the historic Mirasol apartment building on Davis Islands into a boutique hotel, which also faced significant neighborhood opposition. - Prior to the council's vote, the Tampa Architectural Review Commission had also voted 4-2 to deny the proposal, citing its height, flood risk, and inconsistency with surrounding structures.
