We, the residents, workers, artists, and community members of Tampa, urge the City of Tampa to reject the proposed Live Nation venue planned for 1419 E 4th Ave and 1402 N 15th St in Ybor City. This project requires a variance and the removal of a mature grand oak. It also threatens what remains of Ybor’s independent music culture, a culture that has already been pushed to the edge.

This is not opposition to change. It is opposition to irresponsible development driven by a corporation that already dominates the national live music industry. Ybor has lost too many of its independent venues in recent years. New World was forced out. The Orpheum left. Czar closed. The Bricks has been sold. Crowbar, the last of the old guard, is closing. What remains is fragile. To say it survives at all is generous.

Live Nation is seeking to expand into the middle tier of music venues, the very tier where independent venues are supposed to grow and sustain themselves. This strategy does not benefit Ybor. It does not benefit local musicians or the creative ecosystem that has defined this district for generations. It benefits a monopoly.

A 75,000 square foot, three story corporate venue will not strengthen Ybor’s cultural identity. It will replace it. It will accelerate the displacement of the small, local, and independent spaces that make Ybor unique. It will further shift the district toward a model that prioritizes corporate profit over community character.

We call on the City of Tampa to protect what remains of Ybor’s music and cultural landscape. Reject the variance. Reject the removal of the grand oak. Reject the idea that Ybor’s future should be handed over to a corporation that has already absorbed so much of the national live music economy.

We ask all who care about Ybor to take action.

Attend the public hearing: Tuesday, May 26, 2026 9:00 AM Old City Hall 315 E. Kennedy Blvd, Tampa, FL 33602

Submit written comments to: historicpreservation@tampagov.net Reference: BLC 26-0000117

Ybor deserves thoughtful, community centered growth. Not another step toward homogenization. Not another loss of what makes this place irreplaceable.

We sign this petition to protect the culture, history, and creative life of Ybor City.