TAMPA, Fla. — When Jay Coachman grabbed his sticks of charcoal to start sketching out his latest painting Monday night, he had just four words in mind: Love is the answer.
And in just hours, he delivered a vibrant acrylic painting that personified that message. He painted the face of a woman — superimposed above the Tampa skyline — announcing those four words for all below to hear.
Coachman is a Tampa artist and the studio director of Factory on Fifth. He was just one of the artists invited to Crowbar in Ybor City on Monday for an event the live music venue dubbed “There’s Good in Ybor.”
“Think of it as a Ybor pep rally, right?” explained Dennis Amadeus, the event’s emcee. “But with the intention of delivering a very clear message.”
The message conveyed was that Ybor City is stronger together after the Oct. 29 shooting that killed two people and started a citywide discussion about the historic district’s safety and path forward.
Tom DeGeorge, Crowbar’s owner, has been part of the discussion in the shooting’s aftermath and helped assemble the Monday night event at his venue.
“The keyword in community is unity,” he said. “This is our home. We love this area, so we are going to do everything we can to protect it and make sure people feel safe and make sure people feel welcome.”
As the city brainstorms and studies long-term solutions to improve safety in Ybor City, DeGeorge is trying to do his part.
He plans to hold quarterly training sessions on topics like crisis management and de-escalation for Ybor businesses.
He also plans to hold quarterly events like the one on Monday night to not only give artists a safe place to create but also a space to fundraise for anti-violence causes and bring diverse people together for the good of Ybor.
“They care about their community,” DeGeorge said. “They don’t want to see senseless acts of violence. We don’t want to see young people dying.”
According to DeGeorge, everyone at Monday’s event has a vested interest in changing the narrative in Ybor, including Coachman.
“We’re still here. We’re still building. We’re still showing love to everybody and one another no matter the effects of the event that happened,” the artist said.
Meanwhile, Tampa city leaders continue to pursue and study myriad solutions, including a temporary curfew for people younger than 16.
