TAMPA — Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik on Wednesday morning unveiled his plans for Tampa’s Chanelside.
Working with financial backing from Microsoft owner Bill Gates, Vinik plans to turn Channelside into the “ultimate place to live, work, stay, and play.”
The entertainment district will eventually connect Channelside from the Convention Center to the Aquarium, Vinik hopes.
He told Hillsborough County Commissioners that this new development will have a $900 million economic impact every year. It will also generate $35 million more for the county each year in local taxes, according to Vinik. This plan includes 3 million square feet of development and about $1 billion of that will be new construction.
Vinik says his goal for 2015 is to attract a major anchor to the Channelside district and create new jobs by having that anchor relocate its corporate headquarters.
The project is expected to take 5-7 years.
