Phil Bourquardez Park

Here's and update no our previous posting about this park.

TAMPA HEIGHTS - Phil Bourquardez Park had appeal when the Tampa Police Department headquarters and the Free Library were nearby.

Today, it's a little empty spot. But as the area around it begins to change, the park could develop into something special, said Jeff Warren, president and co-founder of the Bush Ross law firm.

Warren's firm recently moved into its new office, 1801 N. Highland Ave., adjacent to the park.
Bush Ross purchased the property from the city with an agreement that it would rehabilitate the city park and help pay to maintain it for 10 years. The firm spent about $10 million buying the land, building its office and improving the park, 1810 N. Tampa St.

The park, which will be rededicated at 10 a.m. Friday, has new benches, trees and a walkway. A waterfall was removed from the 1 1/3-acre park, which was dedicated in 1962 and closed in March for construction of the Bush Ross building.

Bourquardez, a descendant of one of the city's first families, was born in 1885 in Tampa and died in 1958.

He was elected city clerk and served from 1933 to 1955. He also was a county jailer and bought property in the city and county, including near Fowler Avenue and 56th Street.

Bourquardez's family said they are proud of the park rededication.

"He was a wonderful man," said his daughter Phyllis Gates, 83, of Tampa. "He would go out of his way often. He was always helping people."

Bill Gates Jr. of Tampa said his grandfather was reserved, but people took notice of him.
"When he said something, people listened because he had something to say," said Gates, 63.

Bourquardez was 6-foot-4 and wore size 14 shoes. Around 1918, he took three years to build a home on Branch Avenue in Seminole Heights. People called him "Mr. Phil." It might have been because they couldn't pronounce Bourquardez, which sounds like Bacardi, Phyllis Gates said.

"If anyone deserves it, he does," she said. "Tampa was his home. That was all he knew."

Warren said the park will enhance the area. It is next to the Stetson University College of Law, 1700 N. Tampa St., and near the future home of the Hillsborough County Bar Association and Hillsborough County Bar Foundation.

"It is a beautiful park," Warren said. "When the trees mature in the spring, I think it will be really nice."

Bush Ross will also celebrate a ribbon cutting Friday to recognize its new building. Last month, it moved its 40 lawyers and 50 administrative employees from Franklin Street to the three-story, 34,000-square-foot building.

"It is a wonderful building," Warren said. "It is very attractive, very functional for us as a law firm."