FDOT destroyed Tampa’s historic Lamar House in a matter of hours

Rick Fernandez stood heartbroken while staring at what’s left of Tampa Height’s Historic Lamar House, which was demolished today by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT).

Fernandez and several community groups had fought to preserve the building for more than six years. But within a matter of two hours today, construction crews turned the historic structure located at 1902 N Lamar Ave. into a rubbish heap.

A tractor sat on top of the building, digging into the remains as Fernandez told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that he was feeling a wave of emotions watching it be destroyed.

“This building represents a piece of Tampa heights history to which I am personally connected,” Fernandez said. “It was built in 1925. I was born in 1955. No more than a mile from where we’re standing right now.”

FDOT purchased the property in 2015 and announced in November that the Lamar House would be destroyed if an investor didn’t take over the property within 60 days. Despite offers from the Tampa Heights Junior Civic Association (THJCA) to take over the lease and restore the house, FDOT chose destruction, Fernandez and advocates for the Lamar House say.

After seeing the demolition crew on site in November, a coalition of community leaders and organizations came together to investigate FDOT’s intentions with the building. In a press release, the group insisted that the building did not need to be demolished. THCA and Sunshine Citizens, a group that opposes I-275 expansion in Tampa, had helped lead the charge to preserve the site.  Architectural Associate and Public Policy Advisor for Sunshine Citizens, Matthew Suarez, performed a site visit of the Historic Lamar on January 21st.

After the visit he wrote in an email to FDOT personnel that, “At first glance, most of the building deficiencies observed could have been prevented by the FDOT-D7 simply following the guidance provided by the National Park Service’s ‘Mothballing Historic Buildings’ preservation article.” In the same email he also identified that “the FDOT-D7 could have followed the guidance provided by NPS’s ‘Roofing for Historic Buildings.'”

The groups also insisted that the building could be restored the same way several other historic structures had been, from the Jackson House, to the Sanchez Y Haya building which was recently described as “decrepit.”

They also said that although the FDOT is working on a project nearby to expand the downtown interchange , the demolition of this building is not required for that project.

THJCA had several possible visions for the Lamar building before it was destroyed, including using it for an art space, more youth programming, job training, a place to honor the African American history of the Central Avenue Corridor, or using it for affordable housing.
David Gwynn is Tampa’s District 7 Secretary for FDOT. When CL first heard the Lamar House destruction might be imminent, we reached out to Gwynn for input on the situation but did not receive a response. Instead, Kris Carson, District Seven Communications Manager replied.

In an email statement, Carson said that FDOT demolished the structure at 1902 N. Lamar Ave. due to unsafe conditions, multiple police calls and the building’s deteriorated conditions.

“We understand some members of the community wanted to salvage this building however the building conditions were such that FDOT has planned to demolish the structure since 2017,” Carson wrote in an email.

FDOT said it has relocated 64 buildings in Ybor City, Tampa Heights and West Tampa between 2001 and 2017. In addition, the rehabilitated homes were sold to first time home buyers. A revolving Trust Fund was established that provides low-interest loans to rehabilitate the historic homes in Ybor City, Tampa Heights and West Tampa with the proceeds from the sale of these homes. A grant program was also established to assist low-income residents in the three impacted communities with home repairs (roof, electrical, etc.). Over 100 historic buildings (and their residents) have benefitted from this program and more than $5 Million dollars have been loaned and granted, FDOT said.

“FDOT has committed funding in excess of $120 Million to various transit and bicycle/pedestrian improvements within Tampa Heights, all a product of feedback from the community. FDOT will be working with the Tampa Heights neighborhood over the next few months to determine options for the Lamar Avenue property so the space will be an asset to the community.

With Lamar’s collapse, so have the aspirations of those advocates for the building.
Since 2015, Fernandez said the coalition had worked to protect the property. It was in that year that FDOT presented a massive expansion plan known as TBX, which would have expanded the interstate through the Lamar House and aimed to plow through Tampa from downtown to North Tampa to make way for express lanes. Stop TBX, an activist group formed, and through public pressure made FDOT abandon its original plans. But now, the interstate expansion is happening with new plans (previously called Tampa Bay Next, or less-formally, “TBX 2.0”) in place.

“There have been individuals on our city council and county commission at times between 2016 and now that have been supportive of David Gwynn and the efforts that he has made to continue to pave over this area of our city. I’m not going to name names, but they know who they are,” Fernandez said.

Starting today, the FDOT has said crews will begin overpass widening work along the east side of I-275 throughout Tampa.

“Over the coming weeks, nearby homes and businesses should expect noise, vibration, and at times lighting impacts,” FDOT wrote in a press release. “These impacts are unavoidable as heavy machinery will be used to reconstruct the overpasses at Floribraska Avenue, Lake Avenue, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Chelsea Street, Osborne Avenue, and Hillsborough Avenue as part of the I-275 Capacity Improvements project.”

For Fernandez, the destruction of the Lamar House and the interstate expansion tie into each other, as they represent FDOT’s lack of care for those who live near the interstate in Tampa.

“We’re under their thumb,” Fernandez said. “I mean, it creates a constant sense of stress.” UPDATED: Updated at 9:45 p.m. on 01/31/2022 with a response from FDOT.

This article appears in Jan 27 – Feb 2, 2022.