J. C. Penney Department Store, 800-806 Franklin Street

J. C. Penney Department Store at 800-806 Franklin Street

J. C. Penney Department Store at 800-806 Franklin Street, northwest corner of Polk and Franklin streets. 1950. Burgert Brothers. Courtesy, Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library System

Element Tampa, 808 Franklin Street-2021. © Chip Weiner

In 1933, JCPenney joined the retail boom in downtown Tampa by opening its nearly 1500th outlet on the northwest corner of Franklin and Polk streets. James Cash Penny opened his first store in 1902. They acquired this building from Bellas Hess Department Store after it went through a reorganization in 1932. In the 1940s, Penny also had a store in Ybor City next to the Kress Building on the 1600 block of Broadway (now 7th Ave).

With suburbanization in Tampa and the opening of shopping malls in the 1960s, Penny moved from downtown to open larger stores. Like many retailers such as Sears and Macy’s, J. C. Penny has struggled to compete for years with the popularity of online shopping increasing and a growing number of other retailers such as Target and H&M. It has closed many underperforming stores and filed for bankruptcy protection in 2020. In 2007, ground was broken for the 34-story, 395-unit condominium Element. In 2008, a recession hit the real estate market hard and the project was re-zoned for apartments. It opened in 2009.

From Burgert Brothers: Look Again, Vol. 1