Demolition of Tampa's Robles Park Village underway

Catch up quick: The housing project opened in 1954 on land that, as the Tampa Bay Times revealed in 2019, was the city's first African American burial ground.

Driving the news: The redeveloped Robles Park will feature 1,250 affordable rental units, 600 market-rate units and a Zion Cemetery Memorial and Genealogy Center to honor those buried there.

• Robles Park is the latest public housing site to undergo redevelopment by the Tampa Housing Authority, after similar work at Central Park Village and North Boulevard Homes.
• Kicking off the first phase of the development, the demolition will make way for 233 residential units. Former residents with Section 8 vouchers will have the opportunity to return, per Fox 13.

What they're saying: "To take this down and be able to replace it with an incredible mixed-income development is just beyond exciting for our entire community," Mayor Jane Castor said at Monday's ceremony.

• "This is a long time coming," Dan Coakley, principal of PMG Affordable, said. "When we came into this, the residents embraced us with open arms. They wanted to see something new and beautiful... here."