This article is about the region. For the body of water, see Tampa Bay. For the city at the hub of the area, see Tampa, Florida.

Coordinates: 28°00′N 82°18′W / 28°N 82.3°W / 28; -82.3

Tampa Bay Area Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater MSA
—  MSA  —
A simulated-color satellite image of the Tampa Bay Area. Taken on NASA's Landsat 7 satellite.
Location in Florida
Country	United States
State	Florida
Largest city	Tampa
Counties	List In MSA: Hernando Hillsborough Pasco Pinellas
Area
• Urban	2,077.9 sq mi (5,382 km2)
• MSA	2,554.5 sq mi (6,616 km2)
Elevation	0–301 ft (0–91.74 m)
Population (2010)[1] Some population information contained in this document are based off 2008 estimates due to the fact the Census Bureau is currently releasing 2010 information that includes major Tampa region changes.
• Urban	2,783,243 (19th as of 2,008)
• MSA	4,228,855 (18th in 2,008)
	MSA = 2010, Urban = 2010
Time zone	EST (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
Area code(s)	813, 727, 352

The Tampa Bay Area is the region of west central Florida adjacent to Tampa Bay. Definitions of the region vary. It is often considered equivalent to the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area (or MSA) defined by the United States Census Bureau. The Census Bureau currently estimates the population for the CMSA at 4,228,855 as of 2010 during consolidation.^[2] as of July 1, 2008, making it the second most populous metropolitan area in Florida and fourth in the Southeast.

A wider definition is adopted by other entities, including state agencies like Enterprise Florida and the Florida Department of Transportation,^[3] and the Tampa Bay Partnership, a not-for-profit organization created to promote economic growth in the region.^[4] These entities include additional nearby counties. According to the Tampa Bay Partnership the Greater Tampa Bay Region contains 4 million residents.^[5] The Tampa Bay Partnership and U.S. Census data showed an average annual growth of 2.47 percent, or a gain of approximately 97,000 residents per year between 2000 and 2006. The combined Greater Tampa Bay region experienced a combined growth rate of 14.8 percent, growing from 3.4 million to 3.9 million and hitting the 4 million mark on April 1, 2007 in the continuous Tampa Bay urban area.^[5]

Definitions[link]

Definitions of the region vary. The U.S. Census Bureau defines the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area as comprising Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, and Hernando counties.^[2]

Other entities use a wider definition. Enterprise Florida, the state's economic development agency, identifies the Tampa Bay region as one of eight economic regions used by the agency and other state and outside entities, including the Florida Department of Transportation. This definition includes the four counties above with the addition of Manatee and Sarasota counties (constituting the North Port–Bradenton–Sarasota MSA) to the south, Citrus County to the north, and Polk County (coextensive with the Lakeland – Winter Haven MSA) to the east.^[3] The Tampa Bay Partnership, private growth and development organization, also uses this definition.^[4]

The Tampa Bay media market includes the wider region promoted by the Tampa Bay Partnership. Polk County is served by media outlets from both Tampa^[5] and Orlando,^[6] although the east of the county has closer economic ties to Orlando. Significant daily commuting also occurs within the region promoted by the Tampa Bay Partnership.

The Tampa Bay Area Regional Transportation Authority (TBARTA) includes the four core counties plus Citrus, Manatee, and Sarasota counties.^[7]

Cities[link]

The following is a list of important cities and unincorporated communities located in both the core Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater MSA, along with the other counties included in some definitions of the Tampa Bay region.

Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater MSA[link]

Principal cities[link]

Each of these cities has a population in excess of 100,000 inhabitants.

• Tampa
• St. Petersburg
• Clearwater
• Brandon (unincorporated)

Downtown Tampa

St. Petersburg

Clearwater

More than 10,000 inhabitants[link]

North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota MSA[link]

Principal cities[link]

• Bradenton
• Sarasota
• North Port

More than 10,000 inhabitants[link]

Citrus County[link]

More than 10,000 inhabitants[link]

• Homosassa Springs (unincorporated)

Lakeland-Winter Haven MSA[link]

Principal cities[link]

• Lakeland
• Winter Haven

More than 10,000 inhabitants[link]

Demographics[link]

According to the 2000 U.S. Census, the Tampa-St. Pete-Clearwater MSA consists of the following ethnic demographics:

• White (Non-Hispanic/Latino)- 1,821,955 76.0%
• Black - 248,058 10.4%
• Hispanic - 248,642 10.4%
• Asian/Pacific Islander - 57,235 2.4%

Population and age[link]

Tampa Bay's expanding population has grown more than 11 percent in the past six years and is projected to grow an additional 9 percent by 2011. The wider Tampa Bay region's population is projected to increase from the current 3.8 million to more than 4.2 million in 2011. That translates to over 70,000 new people a year, mostly through migration.

Nearly 20% of Tampa Bay's population is in the 18-34 age group.

Ethnicity[link]

Hispanic or Latino by Origin

Migration[link]

From 2000-2004, total net migration for the Tampa Bay region was 262,961 or an average of 65,740 per year. During this time Tampa Bay accounted for nearly 20% of Florida's total net migration. The annual migration totals grew steadily since 2000 until 200 people a day moved to Tampa Bay in 2004. Two Tampa Bay region counties are among the top counties in the country for net in-migration. Pasco County ranks 8th in the nation for net migration and Hillsborough County ranks 13th out of more than 3,000 counties.

Housing[link]

In 2008 the area's construction based boom was brought to a sudden halt by the financial crisis of 2007–2010, and by 2009 it was ranked as the fourth worst performing housing market in the United States.^[9]

Changes in house prices for the area are publicly tracked on a regular basis using the Case–Shiller index; the statistic is published by Standard & Poor's and is also a component of S&P's 20-city composite index of the value of the U.S. residential real estate market.

Climate[link]

The Tampa Bay area has a humid subtropical climate (Koppen Cfa), with warm temperatures and the threat of thunderstorms during the summer and the winter frost about every 2–3 years. However, large freezes only occur in the area about every 10–15 years, and the area shows some characteristics of a tropical monsoon climate. The area is listed by the USDA as being in hardiness zone 10, which is about the northern limit of where coconut palms and royal palms can be grown. Highs usually range between 65 and 95 °F (18 and 35 °C) year round. Surprisingly to some, Tampa's official high has never reached 100 °F (38 °C) - the all-time record high temperature is 99 °F (37 °C). St. Petersburg's all-time record high is exactly 100 °F (38 °C).^[10]

Pinellas County lies on a peninsula between Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, and much of the city of Tampa lies on a smaller peninsula jutting out into Tampa Bay. This proximity to large bodies of water both moderates local temperatures and introduces large amounts of humidity into the atmosphere. In general, the communities farthest from the coast have more extreme temperature differences, both during a single day and throughout the seasons of the year.

Economy[link]

Avionics, defense and marine electronics[link]

The University of South Florida’s Center for Ocean Technology, which has been a leader in Microelectromechanical systems research and development and has been using the technology to collect biological and chemical data to monitor water quality, provided underwater technology for port security at the 2004 Republican National Convention. USF’s Center for Robot-Assisted Search and Rescue used its miniature robots to assist rescue teams at Ground Zero following the September 11 terrorist attacks. Tampa Bay is also the location of two major military installations, MacDill Air Force Base and Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater. MacDill AFB is home to the 6th Air Mobility Wing of the Air Mobility Command (AMC) and the 927th Air Refueling Wing of the Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC). Both wings share flight operations of a fleet of KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft. MacDill also hosts multiple tenant organizations, to include two major combatant commands: United States Central Command (USCENTCOM), which directs military operations in Afghanistan, Iraq and the middle East; and United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), which has responsibility for all special operations forces in the US Armed Forces. CGAS Clearwater is located at the St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport. It is the largest air station in the United States Coast Guard, operating HC-130 Hercules aircraft and HH-60 Jayhawk helicopters with principal missions focused on search and rescue, counternarcotics interdiction and homeland security.

Business and information services[link]

Nearly one in four of the state's business and information services firms resides in Tampa Bay. These firms range from financial services firms to information technology providers to professional services organizations such as law firms, accounting firms, engineering firms, consulting and more. As a gateway to the Florida High Tech Corridor, Tampa Bay is home to many information technology firms along with many business services providers.

[edit] Wall Street South

Tampa Bay's financial services cluster is the largest in the state of Florida and ranks 20th in the nation in terms of domestic employment. The size and scope of this sector has drawn many service vendors to the region to support the financial services industry.

Financial Service Firms:

• Bank of America
• JPMorgan Chase
• Citigroup
• Deposit Trust & Clearing Corporation
• Raymond James Financial
• Franklin Templeton
• Metlife
• USAA
• Progressive Insurance
• State Farm

Information services[link]

Tampa Bay serves as the gateway to the Florida High Tech Corridor which spans 23 counties. Created as a partnership between the University of South Florida, University of Central Florida and now including the University of Florida, the Florida High Tech Corridor promotes the growth of the high tech industry across Central Florida.

Research[link]

Academic research is a key component of high-tech growth and a powerful economic engine. The presence of cutting-edge research in the region is vital to technology transfer, which enables innovative ideas discovered in academia to achieve commercialization in the marketplace. Tampa Bay has several powerhouse research centers that are engaged in both pure scientific research and aggressively pursuing technology transfer to enrich people’s lives.

Health care[link]

With more than 50 hospitals, dozens of clinics and ambulatory care centers, the Tampa Bay has an abundance of top-rated health care facilities for children and adults. The region also has a wealth of well-trained medical professionals – nearly 53,000 nurses and more than 9,200 physicians (including physician assistants) – provide care to Tampa Bay residents and visitors every year.

High-technology industry[link]

Medical device manufacturing[link]

Tampa Bay ranks in the top 20 nationwide for medical device manufacturing clusters. The industry employs more than 10,000 people with an average wage in excess of $49,000 and produces over $2 billion worth of goods and services for an economic impact of more than 51,000 jobs and $5 billion. Tampa Bay's history of manufacturing for the defense industry has created a workforce skilled in high-precision fabrication of electronic parts and assemblies and experience in dealing with government relations, easing the transition to the highly regulated medical manufacturing industry.

Microelectronics and nanotechonology[link]

Researchers at the University of South Florida's Nanomaterials and Nanomanufacturing Research Center (NNRC), H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and the Center for Ocean Technogy at USF's College of Marine Science are researching how to use nanotechnology for a myriad of targeted uses including drug delivery, mechanized microsurgery, customized laser microchips, ways to turn sunlight into electricity, purifying water, storing hydrogen in small nanotubes, designing and developing marine sensors using microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and curing cancer.

Media[link]

The Tampa Bay media market also includes Citrus, Manatee, Sarasota and Polk counties, which are outside the Tampa Bay metropolitan area.^[5]

Education[link]

Primary and secondary education is provided by the school districts of the individual counties making up the region.

The area is home to several institutions of higher learning, including the main campus of the University of South Florida in Tampa and the satellite campuses of USF St Petersburg, USF Sarasota-Manatee, and USF Polytechnic in Lakeland. Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, the University of Tampa, Clearwater Christian College, Florida College in Temple Terrace, Saint Leo University in Pasco County, Florida Southern College in Lakeland, and New College of Florida and Ringling College of Art and Design, both in Sarasota, are all four-year institutions located in the area.

Stetson University College of Law is the area's only law school and has campuses in Gulfport and Tampa.

Hillsborough Community College, St. Petersburg College, State College of Florida, Manatee–Sarasota, and Pasco-Hernando Community College are community colleges serving the area.

Culture, recreation, and sports[link]

Salvador Dalí Museum

Arts and culture make a big impact in Tampa Bay. In a single year, the economic impact of the cultural institutions in the Tampa Bay area was $521.3 million, according to a recent PricewaterhouseCoopers study. In 2004, 5.6 million people attended plays, musical performances, museum exhibits and other cultural institutions in Tampa Bay, supporting 7,800 jobs.

The area is home to an unusually high concentration of quality art museums. Long established communities, particularly those near the bay such as Cuban flavored Ybor City, Old Northeast in St. Petersburg, and Palma Ceia and Hyde Park in Tampa contain historic architecture. Florida Southern College in Lakeland is home of the world’s largest single-site collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture. Fresh seafood and locally grown produce are available in many restaurants and in weekly farmer's markets in multiple urban centers in the area. Yuengling, the largest American-owned brewer, operates a brewery in Tampa, as does the highly regarded craft brewer Cigar City Brewing. Sports attractions, in addition to the teams listed below, include many professional quality golf courses, tennis courts, and pools. Ybor and the Channel District in Tampa, Downtown St. Petersburg, and the beaches all along the coast all attract a vibrant nightlife.

The area is highly noted for its beaches, with the warm, blue gulf waters and nearly 70 miles of barriers islands from North Pinellas south to Venice attracting tourists from all over the world. Three of the beaches in this area, Fort De Soto's North Beach (2005), Caladesi Island (2008), and Sarasota's Siesta Key (2011) have been named by Dr. Beach as America's Top Beach.^[14]

Museums[link]

• Tampa Museum of Art in downtown Tampa
• USF Contemporary Art Museum on the USF's main Tampa campus
• Florida Museum of Photographic Arts in downtown Tampa
• Museum of Science and Industry adjacent to USF's main Tampa campus
• Museum of Fine Arts near the Pier in downtown St. Petersburg
• Salvador Dalí Museum in downtown St. Petersburg
• Florida International Museum at St. Petersburg College in downtown St. Petersburg
• Florida Holocaust Museum in downtown St. Petersburg
• Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art on the Tarpon Springs Campus of St. Petersurg College
• John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota
• Polk Museum of Art in Lakeland

Sports teams[link]

St. Pete Times Forum

Tropicana Field

Raymond James Stadium

The Tampa Bay Area is home to three major professional sports teams and a number of minor-league and college teams. Regardless of the specific city where they play their games, all of the major pro teams use "Tampa Bay" in their name to signify that they represent the entire area.

• National Football League: Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Raymond James Stadium in Tampa
• National Hockey League: Tampa Bay Lightning: Tampa Bay Times Forum in Tampa
• Major League Baseball: Tampa Bay Rays: Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg
• Arena Football League: Tampa Bay Storm: Tampa Bay Times Forum in Tampa
• NCAA Football, Div. I, Big East : University of South Florida Bulls: Raymond James Stadium in Tampa
• NCAA Basketball, Div. I, Big East: University of South Florida Bulls: The Sun Dome in Tampa
• NASL Soccer: Tampa Bay Rowdies: Progress Energy Park in St. Petersburg

MLB spring training teams in the area[link]

Major League Baseball teams have come to the Tampa Bay area for spring training since 1913. Grapefruit League games are still a favorite pastime for both residents and tourists alike every March.

• The New York Yankees of Major League Baseball play spring training games at Steinbrenner Field in Tampa.
• The Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball play spring training games at Bright House Networks Field in Clearwater.
• The Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball play spring training games at Dunedin Stadium in Dunedin.
• The Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball play spring training games at Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota.
• The Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball play spring training games at McKechnie Field in Bradenton.
• The Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball play spring training games at Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland.

Minor League teams[link]

Minor League baseball teams in the area include: Florida State League (Single-A baseball)

• The Tampa Yankees: George M. Steinbrenner Field formerly Legends Field in Tampa
• The Clearwater Threshers: Bright House Networks Field in Clearwater
• The Dunedin Blue Jays: Dunedin Stadium at Grant Field in Dunedin
• The Bradenton Marauders: McKechnie Field in Bradenton

Sporting events[link]

• The NCAA football Outback Bowl is held annually at Raymond James Stadium, usually on January 1.
• The NCAA football St. Petersburg Bowl is held annually at Tropicana Field, usually in December. (Began in 2008)
• Four Super Bowls have been held in Tampa: Super Bowl XVIII in 1984, Super Bowl XXV in 1991, Super Bowl XXXV in 2001 and Super Bowl XLIII in 2009.
• Indy Racing League's Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg is held annually during the first weekend of April.
• The 1999 NCAA Men's Final Four was held in St. Petersburg at Tropicana Field
• The 2008 NCAA Women's FInal Four was held in Tampa at The St. Pete Times Forum
• The St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa has been the site for various rounds of NCAA Men's and Women's basketball championship tournament over the years, as well as conference tournaments.

Theme parks[link]

• Busch Gardens in Tampa
• Adventure Island in Tampa
• Weeki Wachee Springs in Hernando County
• Legoland Florida in Winter Haven

Zoos and Aquariums[link]

• Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa
• Florida Aquarium in Tampa
• Clearwater Marine Aquarium in Clearwater
• Suncoast Seabird Sanctuary in Indian Shores
• Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota

Botanical gardens[link]

• Florida Botanical Gardens, part of the Pinewood Cultural Park in Largo
• Sunken Gardens in St. Petersburg, a former tourist attraction now run by the City of St. Petersburg
• USF Botanical Gardens in Tampa
• Marie Selby Botanical Gardens in Sarasota

Cultural events[link]

• Gasparilla Pirate Festival held every January in Tampa
• Florida Strawberry Festival held every March in Plant City
• Clearwater Jazz Holiday held every October in Coachman Park in downtown Clearwater; in its 32nd year
• Guavaween, a Latin-flavored Halloween celebration held every October in the Ybor City section of Tampa

Notable public parks and recreation areas[link]

The Tampa Bay area is home to an extensive system of state, county, and city parks. Hillsborough River State Park in Thonotosassa and Myakka River State Park in Sarasota are two of Florida's original eight state parks and Honeymoon Island State Park, near Dunedin, is Florida's most visited state park. De Soto National Memorial in Bradenton commemorates the 1539 landing of Hernando De Soto in the area. Pinellas County is home to the Fred Marquis Pinellas Trail, a 37-mile running and cycling trail over a former railroad bed connecting Tarpon Springs to St. Petersburg. Skyway Fishing Pier State Park, the remnants of the approaches to the original Sunshine Skyway Bridge forms the world's largest fishing pier in Pinellas and Manatee counties. The shallow waters and many mangrove islands of the bay and Gulf make the area popular with kayakers. The Gulf is also home to a large number of natural and artificial coral reefs that are popular for fishing and scuba diving.

Transportation[link]

Transportation in the Tampa Bay Area is heavily affected by its position around Tampa Bay. For more about marine transportation in the area, including the many bridges over Tampa Bay, see Tampa Bay#Transportation.

Air[link]

Tampa International Airport is the largest airport in the region with 21 carriers and more than 17 million passengers served last year. In addition to the recent opening of a new terminal, improvements are being planned to handle 25 million passengers by 2020. Traveler satisfaction has always been a top priority for "America's Favorite Airport."^{[citation needed]} It has won high recognition in the international J.D. Power and Associates Global Airport Passenger Satisfaction Study for three consecutive years. Condé Nast Traveler Magazine recognized TIA as the third best airport in the world and IATA Skytrax 2003 survey named TIA as the No. 2 airport in North America.

Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport has experienced a 19.2 percent increase in passenger traffic during the first quarter of 2005, mainly due to the addition of AirTran Airways and expanded service to destinations.

St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport provides access to commercial airliners, and smaller charter craft. The airport is currently planning an expansion which will include new terminal facilities and runway extension. Dotting the landscape throughout the area, are many general aviation airports for the aircraft enthusiast and smaller corporate jets.

Rail[link]

Amtrak provides passenger rail service from Union Station in Tampa.

CSX provides freight rail service for the entire Tampa Bay region. The railroad serves every major population and industrial center east of the Mississippi including Ontario and Montreal. CSX also connects with more than 166 bulk intermodal distribution terminals and rail-to-truck bulk transloading facilities throughout its service area, linking it to all of North America.

Public transport[link]

Bus service is provided in Hillsborough County by Hillsborough Area Regional Transit (HART), in Pinellas County by Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA), in Pasco County by Pasco County Public Transportation and in Hernando County by THE Bus. HART and PSTA provide express services between Tampa and Pinellas County, and PSTA provides connections to Pasco County.

HART also operates the TECO streetcar between downtown Tampa and Ybor City.

On July 1, 2007, an intermodal transportation authority was created to serve the seven county Tampa Bay area. The Tampa Bay Area Regional Transportation Authority (TBARTA) was formed to develop bus, rapid transit, and other transportation options for the region.

Roads[link]

The Tampa Bay Area is served by these interstate highways.

• Interstate 4
• Interstate 75
• Interstate 175
• Interstate 275
• Interstate 375

Hillsborough County is also served by other roadways such as the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway (SR 618) which commutes workers from Brandon into downtown Tampa and the Veterans Expressway/Suncoast Parkway (Toll 589) which serves traffic from the Citrus/Hernando County border southward into Tampa.

In Pinellas County, US 19 is the main north-south route through the county, and is being upgraded to freeway standards complete with frontage roads to ease congestion through the north part of the county. Also, the Bayside Bridge allows traffic to go from Clearwater into St. Petersburg without having to use US 19.

The Courtney Campbell Causeway (SR 60) is one of the 3 roads that connect Pinellas County to Hillsborough County across the bay. The other two are the Howard Frankland Bridge (I-275) and Gandy Bridge (US 92). The Sunshine Skyway Bridge is part of I-275 and connects Bradenton and other Manatee County and Sarasota County commuters into Pinellas County.

See also[link]

Florida portal

• United States metropolitan area

References[link]

External links[link]

• Tampa Bay 365 Daily photo stories of people, events, and places in the Tampa Bay area

v t e Tampa Bay Area Topics Tampa Bay · Climate · History · Media · Sports · Tampa International Airport · Hillsborough County Schools · Pinellas County Schools · University of South Florida Central cities Tampa · St. Petersburg · Clearwater Smaller communities Pinellas Park · Temple Terrace · Brandon · Zeyphrhills · Plant City · Largo · Dunedin · Tarpon Springs · Lutz · Greater Sun Center Counties in MSA Hernando · Hillsborough · Pasco · Pinellas See also:  Florida

v t e  State of Florida Tallahassee (capital) Topics Delegations Environment Floridians Geography Government History State Parks Transportation Visitor Attractions Society Culture Crime Demographics Economy Education Politics Regions Big Bend Central Florida Emerald Coast First Coast Florida Heartland Florida Keys Florida Panhandle Forgotten Coast Fun Coast Glades Gold Coast Nature Coast North Central Florida North Florida Northeast Florida South Florida Southwest Florida Space Coast Suncoast Tampa Bay Area Treasure Coast Metro areas Cape Coral–Fort Myers Deltona–Daytona Beach–Ormond Beach Fort Walton Beach–Crestview–Destin Gainesville Jacksonville Lakeland–Winter Haven Miami–Fort Lauderdale–Pompano Beach Naples–Marco Island North Port–Bradenton–Sarasota Ocala Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford Palm Bay–Melbourne–Titusville Palm Coast Panama City–Lynn Haven–Panama City Beach Pensacola–Ferry Pass–Brent Port St. Lucie Punta Gorda Sebastian–Vero Beach Tallahassee Tampa-St. Petersburg–Clearwater Largest cities Jacksonville Miami Tampa St. Petersburg Orlando Hialeah Tallahassee Fort Lauderdale Port St. Lucie Pembroke Pines Cape Coral Hollywood Gainesville Miramar Coral Springs Clearwater Miami Gardens Brandon Palm Bay West Palm Beach Pompano Beach Spring Hill Lakeland Davie Miami Beach Counties Alachua Baker Bay Bradford Brevard Broward Calhoun Charlotte Citrus Clay Collier Columbia DeSoto Dixie Duval Escambia Flagler Franklin Gadsden Gilchrist Glades Gulf Hamilton Hardee Hendry Hernando Highlands Hillsborough Holmes Indian River Jackson Jefferson Lafayette Lake Lee Leon Levy Liberty Madison Manatee Marion Martin Miami‑Dade Monroe Nassau Okaloosa Okeechobee Orange Osceola Palm Beach Pasco Pinellas Polk Putnam Santa Rosa Sarasota Seminole St. Johns St. Lucie Sumter Suwannee Taylor Union Volusia Wakulla Walton Washington

Tampa
—  City  —
Images from top, left to right: Skyline of Downtown Tampa, Tampa Bay Times Forum, Ybor City, Henry B. Plant Museum, Raymond James Stadium, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
Flag Seal
Nickname(s): Cigar City, The Big Guava
Location in Hillsborough County and the state of Florida
Tampa Location in the United States
Coordinates: 27°56′50″N 82°27′31″W / 27.94722°N 82.45861°W / 27.94722; -82.45861
Country	United States
State	Florida
County	Hillsborough
Settled	1823
Incorporated (Village)	January 18, 1849
Incorporated (Town)	September 10, 1853 and August 11, 1873
Incorporated (City)	December 15, 1855 * and July 15, 1887
Government
• Type	Mayor-council
• Mayor	Bob Buckhorn (D)
• City attorney	Jim Shimberg[1]
• Legislative	City Council
Area
• City	170.6 sq mi (441.9 km2)
• Land	112.1 sq mi (290.3 km2)
• Water	58.5 sq mi (151.6 km2)  34.3%
• Urban	802.3 sq mi (2,078 km2)
• Metro	2,554 sq mi (6,610 km2)
Elevation	48 ft (14.6 m)
Population (2010)
• City	335,709
• Rank	55th in the US
• Density	2,969.6/sq mi (1,146.7/km2)
• Urban	2.7 million (19th)
• Metro	4 million
Demonym	Tampanian
Time zone	EST (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP Codes	33601-33626, 33629-33631, 33633-33635, 33637, 33647, 33650-33651, 33655, 33660-33664, 33672-33675, 33677, 33679-33682, 33684-33690, 33694, 33697[2]
Area code(s)	813
FIPS code	12-71000[3]
GNIS feature ID	0292005[4]
Website	www.tampagov.net
* Original city charter revoked by Florida Legislature on October 4, 1869[5]

Tampa (pronunciation: /ˈtæmpə/)^[6] is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County^[7] and is located on the west coast of Florida, on the Gulf of Mexico. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709.^[8][9]

The current location of Tampa was once inhabited by indigenous peoples of the Safety Harbor culture, most notably the Tocobaga and the Pohoy, who lived along the shores of Tampa Bay. It was briefly explored by Spanish explorers in the early 16th century, but there were no permanent American or European settlements within today's city limits until after the United States had acquired Florida from Spain in 1819.

In 1824, the United States Army established a frontier outpost called Fort Brooke at the mouth of the Hillsborough River, near the site of today's Tampa Convention Center. The first civilian residents were pioneers who settled near the fort for protection from the nearby Seminole population. The town grew slowly until the 1880s, when railroad links, the discovery of phosphate, and the arrival of the cigar industry jump-started Tampa's development and helped it to grow into an important city by the early 1900s.

Today, Tampa is a part of the metropolitan area most commonly referred to as the Tampa Bay Area. For U.S. Census purposes, Tampa is part of the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida MSA. The four-county area is composed of roughly 2.7 million residents, making it the second largest metropolitan statistical area (MSA) in the state, and the fourth largest in the Southeastern United States, behind Miami, Washington, D.C., and Atlanta.^[10] The Greater Tampa Bay area has just over 4 million residents and generally includes the Tampa and Sarasota metro areas. The Tampa Bay Partnership and U.S. Census data showed an average annual growth of 2.47 percent, or a gain of approximately 97,000 residents per year. Between 2000 and 2006, the Greater Tampa Bay Market experienced a combined growth rate of 14.8 percent, growing from 3.4 million to 3.9 million and hitting the 4 million people mark on April 1, 2007.^[11]

Tampa has a number of sports teams, such as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the NFL, the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League, the Tampa Bay Storm of the Arena Football League, and the Tampa Bay Rowdies of the North American Soccer League. The Tampa Bay Rays in Major League Baseball, are actually based in neighboring St. Petersburg, Florida.

In 2008, Tampa was ranked as the 5th best outdoor city by Forbes.^[12] A 2004 survey by the NYU newspaper Washington Square News ranked Tampa as a top city for "twenty-somethings."^[13] Tampa is now ranked as a "Gamma" world city by Loughborough University. According to Loughborough, Tampa ranks alongside other world cities such as Phoenix, Santo Domingo, and Osaka.^[14] In recent years Tampa has seen a notable upsurge in high-market demand from consumers, signaling more wealth concentrated in the area.^[15] Tampa has been tapped to host the 2012 Republican National Convention.^[16]

History[link]

Name[link]

The word "Tampa" may mean "sticks of fire" in the language of the Calusa, a Native American tribe that once lived south of today’s Tampa Bay. This might be a reference to the many lightning strikes that the area receives during the summer months. Other historians claim the name means "the place to gather sticks".^[17]