Tampa Bay Economic Prosperity Foundation

Fiscal year 2023 was a watershed year for the still relatively new Tampa Bay Economic Prosperity Foundation. The team made rapid progress with our inclusive Economic growth initiatives and received several significant gifts that brought us within striking distance of our capital campaign goal.the Foundation granted funding in support of a transformational redevelopment plan for an industrial corridor in east Tampa. Informed by business and landowners in the district, dozens of community partners, and the Tampa Bay Economic development council's investor-led community development working group, the plan includes a strategy for public improvements, catalytic projects, and new programs to enhance job creation and startup activity. The Foundation also supported the startup costs for the creation and administration of opportunity Tampa Bay Inc, or otbi. This entity will provide investment capital and Economic development services in low-income areas throughout hillsborough county, lead the charge on the east Tampa industrial district, and engage more partners to invest in the project.the Foundation's certup career awareness campaign successfully completed its first-year pilot campaign. Late last year, billboards and bus shelters throughout east Tampa, central park and ybor city neighborhoods encouraged career seekers to make more and be greater by finding a short-term certificate or degree program that could change their life.the fall 2022 and spring 2023 campaigns generated more than 33 million impressions and a thousand hits per week to the certuptampa web site. Blanketing east Tampa with billboards, bus shelter ads, and digital advertising helped to completely fill the august welding program cohort at hcc's postsecondary adult vocational program center in east Tampa. The Tampa Bay Economic Prosperity Foundation received several major gifts from new donors including the mosaic company, truist, and google, as well as additional support from hillsborough community college. These gifts have allowed us to accelerate our campaign deployment and fueled momentum for our redevelopment initiatives.