University Square is a hub of culture and education
With its proximity to cultural attractions, array of restaurants and coffee shops and convenient location in the heart of northwest Tampa, University Square, Florida, makes the grade as a modern urban neighborhood. Bordered by the University of South Florida campus, the neighborhood’s housing is spread out among commercial centers and rental properties. Ranch-style Florida homes are prevalent among University Square’s single-family housing.
USF offers museums, gardens and a central civic plaza
With the university on their doorstep, residents have access to all it has to offer. They can watch the performing arts or take in a basketball game at the Yuengling Center. See more than 3,000 plants, animals and natural habitats at the Botanical Gardens, which offers guided tours and field trips. Take in the exhibits highlighting cultural trends and more than 5,000 pieces of artwork at the USF Contemporary Art Museum. And visit Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza, which features a bust of the renowned civil-rights leader surrounded by palm trees at the head of a fountain-filled reflecting pool. The plaza, which takes up 3 acres of the USF Central Lawn, is the urban, and geographic, center of the school’s cross-campus greenway concept.
Hillsborough County School District serves the area
Learning is a theme of life in University Square, and, fittingly, the neighborhood is home to four elementary schools operating within the Hillsborough County School District. Among them are New Springs Elementary, which offers a STEM-R education; and Muller Elementary, a magnet school that incorporates a global leadership program into its curriculum.
Green spaces and community centers
University Square has plenty of its own green space, highlighted by the 132-acre Copeland Park complex. The park’s amenities include a mix of rural and urban recreational options, including a freshwater pond, nature trails, an athletics center and a swimming pool. David E. West Park is a smaller, urban green space in which children can play amid the shade of a tree canopy. University Area Community Park features a 50,000-square-foot multipurpose center for community events and includes a fitness center, gymnasium and playground.
Close to restaurants, retail options and services
Dining options abound among University Square's three commercial corridors. Residents can find an array of places to eat and drink along Fletcher Avenue, Fowler Avenue and Busch Boulevard. Eateries include everything from popular chains to independent restaurants. The Sambito food truck, Portillo’s Tampa, Ho Ho Choy Chinese and Waffle House are just a few of the establishments that illustrate the neighborhood’s culinary diversity. As for coffee, residents can grab their favorite order from either of the two neighborhood Starbucks or branch out and try the local flavor of Kaleisia Tea Lounge’s specialty drinks. Other facilities serving the regular needs of the community include University Mall; the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital, the 10th-largest VA hospital in the country with more than 400 beds; and the Arthenia L. Joyner University Area Library, which holds classes and seminars and features an extensive online collection of materials for learning and research.
A short drive to downtown Tampa and St. Pete
For residents who want to venture out of their busy community, quick access to downtown Tampa and the eclectic neighborhoods of St. Petersburg is available via U.S. Highway 41 and Interstate 275, both of which are on the neighborhood’s west side.
