Historical Ybor City has seen many changes

The first time I ever saw a glimpse of Ybor City was from the window of an orange school bus taking me to Booker T. Washington middle school in 1984. It was a ghetto back then. There was an old forgotten cigar museum, a few struggling businesses, The Columbian Restaurant, and a lot of empty rotting space. There were no hotels or condos. Not too far away from my school or Ybor City were buildings that they called "the projects". In 1984, it did not look like the Ybor City that visitors see today.

In 1988, I was a curious 17-year-old in my first car and I went to explore Ybor City. I learned that there were three nightclubs there: The Ritz (which was a theater and a nightclub), The Masquerade, and Club Impulse. While the streets looked dirty, forgotten and economically suffering, the dance and music scene was beginning to thrive and the heartbeat of Ybor had begun to be heard. The next club, Tracks, was like the defibrilator shocking the small city area back into life. I was too young to get into the clubs at 17, but as soon as I turned 18, I was a regular at the Ybor City dance clubs.

Then in the 90s as we club hoppers danced our tailfeathers off to the club beats and wild lights, Ybor City began to thrive and evolve. Little shops like LaFrance were acknowledged and supported. Other businesses began to notice and want in. Some came and failed. Some came and succeeded. All the while Ybor City grew and kept improving and evolving.

Some historical events are recorded in typical history books. If you go to a library or book store and read the history of Ybor City, you'll discover the founders names and the Cuban heritage and how a long, long time ago it was a thriving factory of the cigar industry. You'll read about how being so close to Tampa Bay was excellent for importing and exporting these goods. What you won't typically find in a book about Ybor City history are the stories of the people like me who were there in the 90s when Ybor City came back to life. How did it happen? How did it go from forsaken ghetto dump to thriving nightlife and commercial success?

I believe that it had a lot to do with Tampons (our joke for Tampa citizens) loving historical architecture and zoning Ybor City as "historical" land. It also had a lot to do with the festivals that tons of people attended even if they were not nightlife participants such as The Gasparilla Festival and the once revered and enjoyed Guavaween Parade. I miss Guavaween so much, but I understand why Howl O Scream (the Busch Gardens event in October) in North Tampa took over the Halloween celebrations. The festivals in Ybor were getting too rowdy and chaotic and messy. After about a decade of Tampons donning their favorite Halloween costumes on the streets of Ybor City for Guavaween, the festivities finally came to an end. The businesses that had turned the once gloomy Ybor City into a thriving commerical metropolitian area did not want to deal with the after-effects of Guavaween. All of long time Tampons, know that it was a wise decision even though we miss the festival parade. At least I can say, I was there when it happened. If you want that kind of crazy parade now, you'll have to go to New Orleans for Mardi Gras or New York City for the Gay Pride Parade. Guavaween was in the league of that craziness. It was for the crazy adults who just never get sick of Halloween costumes and trick or treating. The Great Pumpkin and Jack and I were all sad when Guavaween was over.

Still, Ybor City looks great today in 2024. The mall and movie theater are still doing well. Other little restaurants and pubs are still thriving. Although Masquerade and Tracks are no longer there, The Ritz is still standing. Although some little pizza shops came and left and came again, The Columbia Restaurant and The Spaghetti Warehouse are still there to remind the Tampons who have been here as long as them that some things change and some things don't.

Ybor City is a great success story with a rich and interesting history. I believe that historians or lovers of Tampa history will find the stories there enriching and educational. I also think that any business or city planner could learn amazing things by researching what stood the test of time in Ybor City as opposed to what came and left and did not return.