"Our building shows that everyone is welcome in Tampa."
Over the years, developers made plenty of offers to buy Rodeph Sholom’s property at 2713 Bayshore Blvd. Each was rebuffed.
“We had no interest,” said Lloyd Stern, president of the 119-year-old conservative synagogue.
That changed in June when Rodeph Sholom agreed to sell to the Related Group. What was different?
“They had a mixed-use idea that would allow us to remain at our existing location,” Stern said. It’s not so much that Rodeph Shalom did not want to sell. “We had no desire to move.”
Bayshore Boulevard is one of Tampa’s most scenic roadways and having a building topped with a giant menorah hovering over it, Stern said, shows that “Tampa is welcoming of all people and that there is a vibrant Jewish community here that we can be proud of.” He said it’s a pointed message at a time when antisemitism is prevalent.
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