30-05-2025
Construction continues on University Area park to install artificial turf on sports field
The Brief
This week, work to install artificial turf continues at the sports field at Harvest Hope Park in the University Area of Tampa.
Community leaders said because this sports field was used so much by so many teams, the grass was reduced to dirt, and the field needed repairs.
The new turf is made possible by federal funding awarded to the community through a Hillsborough County grant.
TAMPA, Fla. - Construction continues at Harvest Hope Park in the University Area of Tampa as crews work to install artificial turf on the sports field.
"We have so many sports leagues that run this to the ground so hard that we needed a field that would be able to last for all the different sports programs," Dr. Sarah Combs, the CEO of the University Area CDC, told FOX 13.
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Dig deeper
This field is used by soccer, football and girls' flag football teams. Due to heavy usage, Combs said the grass was reduced to dirt, so significant upgrades were needed. Thanks to federal funding awarded through a Hillsborough County grant, this new turf should be done in the next month, so sports can resume at Harvest Hope Park.
"[The field] was used so much that we had another problem, which was trying to figure out how to get more use on it," Combs added. "Putting in a turf field will actually solve a lot of those problems and challenges. And, it is very low maintenance, so we're excited about that as well."
Why you should care
Located near USF, more than 30% of residents in the University Area neighborhood live in poverty, according to recent census data. Community leaders told FOX 13 they believe the park and all its amenities have become an asset to the neighborhood.
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Meanwhile, residents have described this park – which includes a playground, splash pad, community garden, and soon, a turf field – as an oasis.
"This was one of the highest crime statistic tracks in the community. After we acquired it and spoke with the community about what they wanted to build, we thought they wanted to build housing, and they said, no, we want a park," Combs said. "And so, after we opened the park, crime reduced by 65%. So that just talks to you about how important community development is."
The Source
FOX 13's Ariel Plasencia gathered information from University Area CDC officials, past FOX 13 News reporting, and U.S. Census Bureau data.
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