This photo is captioned the “Palm Ave. Methodist Church at 203 East Palm Ave.” in the Burgert ledger at the Hillsborough County Public Library. Research by the author shows that there was never a church by that name. 203 Palm Ave is the location of the Palm Ave Baptist Church, erected in 1912 with additions in 1925. The Tampa Heights Presbyterian Church was a block away at the corner of Ross and Central Avenues (503 Ross Ave). Both photos were taken in 1923, so perhaps there was some confusion on the part of the photographers or the ledger recording clerk. The Tampa Heights Presbyterian Church, shown here, was built starting in January 1923 for $18,000.

 The building, whose current address is 2005 North Lamar Ave., has been the subject of some controversy. The building was sold in 1964 to the Faith Temple Baptist Church for $45,000. In the late 1960s, Interstate 275 was constructed next door as part of an urban renewal project, severing Tampa Heights from Ybor City. The church played a key role in rectifying tension during the 1960s race riots following the police shooting of a young Black man during a robbery investigation. It became central to the Black community in the decades that followed, acting as a place for voters to register and opening a counseling center next door. By the late 1980s, attendance in inner-city churches had begun to dwindle.  In 1989, in a fight to drive drugs and crime from the neighborhood, the members of the church mortgaged it to renovate a crack house next door. Named the Faith House, it became a nationally recognized program for placing black cocaine-addicted and AIDS-infected babies into loving foster homes. In 2006, the Florida Department of Transportation acquired the building, planning to demolish it as part of a $1.8 billion interstate expansion. In 2010, FDOT leased the building to the Tampa Heights Junior Civic Association for temporary use as a community center. By 2016, the civic association was trying to have the building moved with funds from the state as plans were continuing to demolish it. That issue remains unresolved.

 © Chip Weiner. All rights reserved