TAMPA, Fla. – Tampa residents know they live someplace special. Now Time magazine backs them up.
Time identified Tampa as one of its ‘World’s Greatest Places” for 2023, a list that the magazine published Thursday.
The City was one of just six places in the U.S. to make Time’s list.
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Time noted that the development, or redevelopment, of Tampa’s downtown core, earned it on its list. Highlighting Time’s rationale was reporting on Water Street Tampa, a project whose backers include Bill Gates and Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik, and which Time described as “a cutting-edge, multi-billion-dollar landmark development project” that “redefines its downtown.”
Time also noted how Water Street Tampa has fed growth in its “sustainability and livability,” emphasizing trendy restaurants as well as “lifestyle hotels and residences,” including the city’s first-ever true five-star hotel.
The ongoing makeover in downtown is a “renaissance that’s seen Tampa finally take full advantage of what’s been here all along — water, water, everywhere, between the Hillsborough River and Tampa Bay.”
“The city has become an entrepreneur- and millennial-magnet,” Time added.
The upscale touristy sites are taking root alongside Tampa’s emerging tech-industry scene.
A report by Berkadia last year pointed out that the Tampa Bay area is “one of the top corporate relocation spots” in Florida, drawing Suzuki Marine, Pfizer, The Mosaic Company, and others.
Tampa has a business-friendly environment, with low taxes, minimal regulations, and incentives for businesses, which has played a significant role in the city’s economic growth.
The city is known for its robust healthcare sector, with world-class hospitals such as Tampa General Hospital, research facilities, and medical schools attracting top talent and investments.
And of course, there is the tourism industry, which in 2022 generated more than $1 billion in taxable hotel revenues.
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The region’s tourist development tax collections in 2022 spiked to almost $58 million, a 56.5% jump compared to the prior year.
Meanwhile, Tampa’s strong job numbers draw new residents, with a 5.6% increase in private-sector employment in 2022, compared to 2021. That led all of Florida’s metro areas in job gains.
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