TAMPA — After decades of growing out, Hillsborough County now wants to grow from within.
To get there, the county is jumping onto the latest trend in urban planning: building an innovation district.
Hillsborough’s proposed 2016 budget includes $2 million to create a master plan for redeveloping the area around University of South Florida. The so-called innovation district would link the economic engines in that region — like USF, Busch Gardens, Florida Hospital and Moffitt Cancer Center, among others — to try to resurrect nearby transient, high-crime neighborhoods.
The county is moving forward with the plan even though Gov. Rick Scott vetoed a $2 million matching grant. Hillsborough’s budget won’t be finalized until September.