NEW TAMPA — It took nearly a decade of planning and three years of construction, but Cross Creek Park, at 19019 Basset Creek Drive, is now fully transformed.
Hillsborough County and Parks Department officials cut the ribbon June 29 on a new 16,000-square-foot recreation center with a full-size gymnasium, fitness room, multipurpose room and classrooms.
The $8.6 million project also replaced the old playground with a state-of-the-art play area and added a parking lot, pavilion, shelter and green space. New outdoor basketball courts, shade structures, landscaping and a walking trail with benches were installed as well, along with upgraded stormwater management.
At the suggestion of two local children, the 15-acre park also added two osprey nest platforms. A sign on one of the poles dedicates it to sisters Sloane and Bellamy Dera, who asked whether the platforms could provide homes for native ospreys.
Hillsborough County District 2 Commissioner Ken Hagan said he was “blown away by the transformation.”
“It truly is the first community gym for the area and a true destination for New Tampa,” Hagan said.
Cross Creek Park is open daily from dawn to dusk. The recreation center opened July 6, with hours of 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday.
Sports, classes and summer camps start this week, with the camps already full.