Living in Ybor - The Basics
You’ve probably visited the raucous (or not so raucous depending on the time of day!) 7th Avenue in Ybor City, and thought this is what all of Ybor is about. Maybe you’ve considered living near the action, but don’t really know where to look. Or maybe the general eclectic, artistic vibe of Ybor jibes with your inner soul, but you’re unsure because you don’t know the layout of the land.
In this blog, I am going to provide you with a general overview of the Ybor neighborhoods so that YOU can decide if you’d like to explore this area further.
I’m also going to let you in on Ybor’s Best Kept Secret.
The 5 Ybor Neighborhoods
There are 5 neighborhoods that comprise Ybor, Historic Ybor or Ybor City, East Ybor Historic, North Ybor, Vicente Martinez Ybor, or V.M. Ybor, and Ybor Heights. All of the Ybor neighborhoods were once one area until the great idea of urban renewal came about and I-4 was run right down through the middle.
The main zip code of Ybor is 33605, although there is a smidgeon at the very north end in Ybor Heights that is located in 33603.
Ybor Basics
Ybor is not all about entertainment and bars. There’s actually quite a few architecture firms and technology companies - even a furniture company! - headquartered in Ybor City. The entertainment area of Ybor really only spans roughly 30 blocks, which is only a small percentage of the whole area.
The greater part of the Ybor neighborhoods are part of the National and Local Ybor historic districts, which I will describe in more detail in a future blog, as well as let you know what this means to you as a property owner.
Ybor City was founded in 1886 and was considered the cigar capital of the world by 1900, although you will find that most homes in the area were built in the early 1910s and 1920s.
The area has always been very diverse with a ⅓, and a ⅓, and a ⅓ of something, and remains so today.
Ybor Homes
Ybor as a whole has an incredible historic fabric, which includes mostly casitas and bungalows, not the Victorians that you would find in Tampa Heights or Hyde Park.
The homes in Ybor fit a purpose. The smaller casitas and shotgun houses were where the cigar makers mostly lived. They tend to be located closer together and had shared backyards where families could help support each other.
The bungalows in Ybor range in size, with some built for the cigar factory managers, the readers, or Lectors, who read the daily newspapers and other literature to the cigar makers as they worked, the cigar factory owners, and even a 5 bedroom, 2-story bungalow on Columbus Drive that housed a consulate and his 5 children.
The bungalows tend to be on larger lots, while the casitas and shotgun houses on smaller, more narrow lots.
Location
North Ybor, V.M. Ybor, and Ybor Heights are all located north of I-4 and tend to be more residential, with Nebraska Avenue being the main commercial corridor.
Historic Ybor and East Ybor Historic are both located to the south of I-4, with East Ybor Historic tending to be mostly residential, with some industrial on the east and south sides. The infamous 7th Avenue is located within Historic Ybor.
Ybor’s Best Kept Secret!
And now for Ybor’s best kept secret, but not so secret among older Tampanians - Cuscaden Pool in V.M. Ybor. This above ground pool was built in 1937 as part of the Works Progress Administration, which was established at the end of the Great Depression to provide employment. Many older Tampanians have fond memories of Cuscaden Pool because this is where they learned to swim. The pool is located on the National Register of Historic Places, and is open year round because of the state-of-the-art heating system that was installed when it was recently renovated. It is an absolutely beautiful oval pool that has a large deck surrounding it with shaded canopies. It also has fountains and a splash pad for the kids, and dedicated swim lanes at the center. This city pool is definitely worth checking out!
Cuscaden Pool in V.M. Ybor
