Parking in downtown Tampa can be a challenge, especially when there are multiple events going on at different venues. Recently, Straz Center for the Performing Arts President and CEO Judith Lisi sent out a message giving an update on the center’s efforts to improve parking for their patrons.
Dear Valued Guest,
For the past year and a half, our Parking Task Force has been working diligently with the City of Tampa and our private partners to improve the Straz Center’s parking opportunities. As our 2018-19 season approaches, we are excited to inform you about two new developments that will further enhance your parking experience:
- Novel Riverwalk Garage (109 W. Fortune Street, next to the Barrymore Hotel parking lot). The Straz Center has secured 319 parking spaces in this new garage that will be available to our guests every Monday-Friday after 6:00 p.m. and all day every Saturday and Sunday. Straz guests can pre-purchase parking at the Novel Riverwalk Garage for select events at the current special rate of only $7.17 (event parking rates at the garage will vary depending on Straz and nearby City events). Please visit here to see if pre-paid parking is available for your event.
- For our upcoming Broadway season*, we have partnered with Pirate Water Taxi and Armature Works to allow our guests to park at Armature Works (1910 N. Ola Avenue) and enjoy the river by taking an exclusive, Straz-only Pirate Water Taxi to The Straz.
- Parking at Armature Works is free Monday – Thursday. On Friday – Sunday, parking is $5.00, but guests will receive a $5.00 voucher to be used for food or drink at any of the vendors within Armature Works (1 voucher per vehicle). In addition, guests can present their show tickets to receive a free appetizer at Steelbach restaurant (1 appetizer per couple, reservations required) or a free drink at Fine and Dandy.
- Round-trip fare on the Pirate Water Taxi is only $6.00 per person (this rate also applies to Pirate Water Taxi season passholders). Pre-show departures will be from the Armature Works/Ulele dock, and you can pre-purchase your departure time by visiting here (ticket is required for boarding). Return trips are first-come, first-served until all guests are returned to the Armature Works/Ulele dock.
- *Seven shows only: The Play That Goes Wrong; Hello, Dolly!; A Bronx Tale; Hamilton; Dear Evan Hansen; Anastasia; and Come From Away
In addition to these new developments, we wanted to inform you about several other improved parking options as you plan your visit to The Straz (a full list of our parking options and map can be found on the parking page of our website at www.strazcenter.org/parking):
Pre-paid Parking – To provide our guests with the security of knowing where they will park before arriving at The Straz, pre-paid parking is available for select events at the Novel Riverwalk Garage (described above), Poe Garage, Royal Regional lot and Rivergate Tower Garage.
Visit The Straz’s website to see if pre-paid parking is available for your event. Please note that if your show is not listed but another show is listed at the same date/time, you may take advantage of pre-purchased parking for that listed show. Also, you can pre-purchase parking for the entire season by adding each of your parking choices to the cart and purchasing all of them in one transaction.
Please be aware that pre-paid transportation on the Pirate Water Taxi must be made through the separate Pirate Water Taxi link provided above.
Royal Regional Lot – The newly renovated Royal Regional lot is now equipped with new pay stations, improved signage, Parkmobile service and an improved crosswalk at N. Tampa Street. This City lot is the most affordable parking option for our guests and is only a six-minute walk to The Straz.
Poe Garage – The Straz has been working with the City of Tampa to significantly improve ingress, egress and traffic circulation at the Poe Garage. The Cass Street entrance is now open for major Straz events, the gate arms are raised upon exit for major concurrent Straz/City events and additional staff has been employed to direct traffic inside the garage.
Rivergate Tower Garage – This garage provides our guests with the greatest availability and is only a six-minute walk to The Straz along the Riverwalk or north on Ashley Drive. The least expensive event rate (currently $7.00) is only available by pre-purchasing.
For a truly stress-free experience, you might consider taking a Lyft or Uber to the Straz or exploring other alternatives to driving. Please see www.strazcenter.org/parking for our recommended alternatives.
As always, we will continue to provide you with up-to-date traffic and parking information by email and/or automated phone calls. If you have purchased tickets for others or know of others who should receive our advisories, we would appreciate it if you would share this information and encourage them to visit our website at strazcenter.org, scroll to the bottom, and click on “Sign Up For Email Updates.” For questions about signing up, please contact the Ticket Sales Office at (813) 229-7827.
Thank you for your loyalty and support as we continue to work to provide you with an exceptional experience before, during and after every event at The Straz. We are excited to share our upcoming season with you, and we hope that our expanded parking options will make your future visits more enjoyable.
Sincerely,
Judith Lisi
President and CEO
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