Bass Pro coming to Tampa???

This has been rumored many times before. We shall see if it happens or not

Bass Pro Shops may be sniffing for a Tampa site

By RICHARD MULLINS | The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 16, 2010

Updated: 34 min. ago

TAMPA - Tampa may be a step-closer to winning one of the nation's top tourist destinations. But it's not like a new Disney World or Busch Gardens. It's a Bass Pro Shops. And county officials say they have reason to be excited about an outdoor equipment store.

Normally, such Bass Pro locations are mini theme parks, with a retail store rivaling a Walmart Supercenter
in size, with waterfalls, restaurants, and indoor ponds with live fish up to 17 pounds apiece. Oh, and thousands of guns, fishing poles, canoes, backpacks, knives and other outdoor gear.

Outside, many stores feature several acres of nature preserves with hiking trails and outdoor education centers – each customized to the natural surroundings of the region.

No deal is final, and county officials say these are only preliminary stages. But they confirm there's a potential project in the works for a Bass Pro complex near the intersection of Causeway Boulevard and Falkenburg Road in Brandon.

Stores

Unlike many retailers that are fast scaling back operations and closing locations, Bass Pro is expanding. With more than 50 locations now, the company plans at least six more U.S. locations.

The closest store to Tampa is in Orlando.

The company began in 1972 when founder Johnny Morris started selling fishing gear in his father's Springfield, Mo. liquor store. Now, the Springfield store has more than 330,000 square feet, roughly two times the size of a Walmart Supercenter. More than 400 radio stations air the company's "Outdoor World Radio" program and 150 million people receive the Bass Pro catalog.

The company claims more than 100 million visitors or shoppers per year, rivaling theme parks like Disney and Universal Studios, and it operates an outdoor resort and conference center in Missouri and a 10,000-acre nature preserve.

Status

No final deal has been signed yet for a new store in Tampa, county officials say. But a project for one could hinge on how residents vote on a ballot amendment this fall. As an economic development tool, a proposed amendment would give the County commission power to waive up to 10 years in property taxes as an incentive to businesses that locate or expand here.

Like many economic development perks to potential employers, such moves would shift more of the potential tax burden on current residents, and cut into the county's resources for everything from schools to roads. But in theory such tax waivers help boost the economy by creating jobs and commerce, and if the companies did not expand, there would be no taxes to collect.

County Commissioner Ken Hagan told the Tampa Tribune this week that Tampa missed out on a Bass Pro Shops to Fort Myers years ago when the retailer was considering a new Florida location.

Now, Hagan said Bass Pro officials are looking at Tampa again for a new location, and signed a letter of intent with local landowners for a new store. Part of the deal could hinge, he said, on whether the county approves a proposed ballot measure that could open up new perks for locating new commercial projects here.

To Bass Pro officials, Hagan said the tax incentive program "will make the difference in the coming year," and help recruit "an economic powerhouse."

Next step

County public works director Bob Gordon also confirmed that a letter of intent had been signed between Bass Pro and a landowner, but because the county wasn't a party to the correspondence, they don't have a copy to release. County officials did not disclose the name of the landowner.

Bass Pro Spokesman Larry Whiteley said he could not comment on any planed stores that the company hasn't officially announced.

Such a project would be a big boost to local shopping as retail outlets in general have been struggling amid a sluggish economy. Many of the new store openings recently have been what brokers call "opportunistic" projects that take over space left open by another store's departure.

Meanwhile, the Channelside Bay Plaza shopping complex in Tampa has fallen into receivership, and a potential Cypress Creek Town Center complex in Wesley Chappel is on hold amid environmental and economic issues.