Tampa Heights Methodist Church, 503 East Ross Avenue, on corner of Ross and Central Avenues

Tampa Heights Methodist Church at 503 East Ross Avenue, on corner of Ross and Central Avenues. 1923. Burgert Brothers. Courtesy, Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library System

Sanctuary Lofts, 503 East Ross St. 2021. © Chip Weiner

Tampa Heights was the city’s first residential suburb. Tampa had grown from a village to a city, and wealthier merchants wanted to escape its core. The Tampa Heights Methodist Church was one of four religious buildings in the area in the 1920s. The church, also known as Tyre Temple, was constructed in 1911 in a three-story Greek revival style, with five columns in front.

The church was later renamed the Hyde Park Methodist Church and eventually closed its doors in the 1980s as the neighborhood declined. In 2003, the building was converted into Sanctuary Lofts, an urban loft apartment. The living quarters feature nine-foot windows, lofted ceilings, and walk-in closets and come in several different floor plans as the owners sought to honor the original structure with little modification.

 © Chip Weiner. All rights reserved

From Burgert Brothers: Look Again, Vol.2