Old Florida gives way to urban development

Saturday, June 28, 2008

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This photograph shows McKay Bay prior to the influx of development. Watch the story Watch Video

PALMETTO BEACH (Bay News 9) -- A once-quiet Tampa fishing village is undergoing a transformation into an urban community. Some residents are resisting the changes, while others are embracing them.

Palmetto Beach resident Michael Lofly sees change happening around the century-old house in which he lives. A sign announces the upcoming arrival of Bermuda Vista, a townhouse and marina complex that is about to be built on fenced-off waterfront property. New homes are going up where old ones once stood.

In addition, a hotel and retail complex are slated for construction to the west, while a new IKEA furniture store is going up to the north.

Lofly said he liked it better when fishing and crabbing were a way of life in Palmetto Beach.

"Everybody on the beach back in the old days fished," he said. "They either crabbed or fished. You could go out there and wade in the day time and catch a tub of crabs. Those days are gone."

Bermuda Village, a new townhome and marina complex, is slated to be built on a plot of waterfront land.

Lofly says back then, not only were the fish jumping in McKay Bay, but old crab shacks were busy places as well.

These days, the crab shack has gone the way of the fishing village.

Not all residents are resistant to the town's burgeoning metamorphosis. Greg Meyer and his wife Kristen are taking advantage of the changes. After renovating the home they live in, they plan to buy and fix up other homes for resale.

Meyer said he sees Palmetto Beach as the next trendy place to live in Tampa.

"This is now looking a lot more popular," he said. "We've seen a huge influx of young families, young professionals who want to live close to downtown. Close to the water, Ybor, Channelside, south Tampa. It's all very accessible from this location."

As much as some residents may not care for the new way of life, Lofly said he knows the change is acceptable, and that since he has no intention of leaving, he's learned to accept it.

"I'm hard-headed but I'm not dumb," he said.