The Ybor Harbor development project has received initial approval from Tampa City Council, with a few reservations.
It would be located on the Ybor Channel, a site once proposed for a baseball stadium for the Tampa Bay Rays.
The property is bounded by the Channel District on the west and North19th Street on the east, with the Selmon Expressway to the north.
Developer Darryl Shaw is proposing to put in offices, residential units, hotels, retail — and plenty of space to walk around the harbor.
"We vision a thriving, dynamic urban core. We vision multiple, interconnected neighborhoods. And I emphasize interconnected," said Shaw.
Last week, the city council approved the plan on first reading. But Council member Lynn Hurtak expressed concerns.
"I think it's the beginning of the end of the port," Hurtak said.
Shaw said people wanting to live, work and play on the harbor and the importance of Port Tampa Bay are front of mind for him.
"And those two worlds interconnect and in some ways collide at Ybor Channel," explained Shaw.
The council was assured that the project would not interfere with channel navigation. And no one from Port Tampa Bay spoke in opposition.
The second reading is scheduled for May 2.
