Some Tampa places win you over quietly. Water Works Park, the leafy riverfront park in Tampa Heights at the northern end of the Tampa Riverwalk, is one of them: five green acres along the Hillsborough River where a real Florida spring bubbles up in the middle of the city.
The park’s heart is Ulele Spring. Capped and diverted for decades, the spring was restored through a partnership between the City of Tampa, the Southwest Florida Water Management District and the Ecosphere Restoration Institute, and rededicated with the park in August 2014. Its clear water now winds through a restored wetland planted with native vegetation before joining the Hillsborough River, creating a sheltered inlet where fish gather — and where manatees visit in the cooler months.
Around the spring, the park packs a lot into its five acres: a wide festival lawn and performance pavilion, a playground and a splash pad crowned by a giant tipping bucket, shaded picnic shelters, a boat dock and a canoe and kayak launch, and a fenced dog park for four-legged visitors. A memorial garden honors Clara Frye, the pioneering Tampa nurse, and benches along the Riverwalk offer front-row views of the water.
Best of all, it is an easy, free outing. The City of Tampa lists the park at 1710 N. Highland Avenue, open daily from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Stroll in from the Riverwalk, bring a picnic, and let the kids claim the splash pad while the spring does its quiet, sparkling work.
Photo: CaptainMikeAllen / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
