The Tampa love shines

Momentum for Tampa as the place to be for millennials continues to build.

The latest love comes from a Forbes magazine online story. Written by workplace trends blogger Larissa Faw, the article states that a “confluence of activity, along with a visionary mayor, accessible airport and diverse population, is transforming Tampa into the hippest city in America.”

Faw cites a host of data and surveys that trumpet Tampa. The list includes:

• It's the No. 1 city people moved to in 2016, according to Realtor.com;

• The hottest city for startups, according to Fortune;

• The most pet-friendly, according to RewardExpert; and

• The best overall city in the Southeast, says Money magazine;

Beyond “best-of” lists, the story says Tampa beats out Dallas and Atlanta for millennials, for example, because it has a lower crime rate and less traffic than those cities. Close access to water and beaches, says Faw, is something else millennials covet, and Tampa obviously has that, too. Other pluses: lots of parks and a thriving brewery scene.

The story was posted April 25 and had more than 75,000 views in the first week. Citing data from a survey entitled “Millennial Matter,” Faw writes that people like Tampa because it's “small enough where they can actually make a difference, whether it is through politics, business, or philanthropy.”

But Tampa, even with the love, has some dents. Nearly four of 10 respondents to the survey Faw cites, 39%, complain that the city isn't a headquarters; more than one-third, 36%, say the K-12 public school system could be stronger; and 35% say there's a lack of public transportation.
Headquarters and transportation has been, and remains, a top priority of civic and government leaders in the region.

“That said,” writes Faw, “when asked to name Tampa's negative, 48% of the local respondents said 'none.'”