TAMPA, Fla. — With six yays and one nay, the Tampa City Council approved a nearly $35-million community project after residents in East Tampa have been fighting for years to renovate Fair Oaks Community Park and the senior citizen center.
“I am so ecstatic. I am so excited, but I am grateful to the council people, and I’m happy for the people of East Tampa,” said Bishop Michelle B. Patty.
The project will create a 34,000-square-foot building that’ll house a senior citizen center, along with a jogging path, basketball court, sports field with artificial turf, and electric vehicle charging station, among other things. All of this is welcomed news to East Tampa residents.
“Like my son said, ‘Mom, when I was a little boy coming to Fair Oaks, now I’m a grown man – 40 years old – and it still looks the same,” said Vonnie Scott.
Norene Miller has been on the frontlines advocating for this renovation project for years and coming to city hall to make her case.
“I think we deserve the same amenities as other communities, and I would love to have it built so I can go and sit down, go to aerobics classes, go into a game room, just go in and network and meet my peers, and shuffleboard, all of the things that they are going to be offering at that center. Cooking classes, just being able to meet other seniors, but also intergenerational perspective because they’ll have young kids in there, as well, and we can read stories to them or engage them so they can see a better quality of life,” said Miller.
Construction is expected to begin in the second week of April and be completed in 2026.
