The Tampa Bay Times is shrinking its office footprint in a move from its downtown home.
The newspaper will relocate to a low-rise flex building, at 5505 Johns Road, north of Tampa International Airport, the Tampa Bay Business Journal reported, citing a column by Conan Gallaty, chairman and CEO of Times Publishing Company.
It’s unclear how much space the newspaper will occupy at the Johns Road location, but it can accommodate about 20 workers at a time, compared to 100 at the downtown site.
The lease marks the end of the newspaper’s 32-year stint in the downtown Tampa Bay building.
The Times is exiting its occupancy of the entire seventh floor at 100 North Ashley Drive, which comprises 18,250 square feet and is being marketed for sublease. Naming and signage rights are also up for grabs in light of the newspaper’s departure.
The newspaper still has about 100 journalists on staff and an office at 490 First Avenue South in St. Petersburg.
“We’ve embraced more hybrid work options for our employees,” Gallaty said. “We don’t need the office space that we did before. We still cover Hillsborough County vigorously and have decided on a different office space in Tampa that better suits our needs.”
The relocation reflects broader challenges facing the newspaper industry, with declining advertising revenues and the struggle to establish profitable business models. The Times’ history reflects this trend, including relinquishing naming rights to the Amalie Arena in 2014, followed by purchasing and closing the Tampa Tribune in 2016 in hopes of bolstering profitability.
The company has also reduced print production and sold off printing facilities, the outlet said.
New Jersey-based Denholtz Properties, owner of the Ashley Drive property, plans to invest a significant amount of capital on improvements to the building. It will provide more details on the renovation project, as well as rebranding, in the coming months, the outlet reported.
—Quinn Donoghue
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