Tampa Tribune
THONOTOSASSA, FLORIDA, June 10, 2004: The stretch of Fowler Avenue between Interstate 75 and U.S. 301 will one day be home to an intricate marble temple attracting thousands of Hindu worshippers every weekend. The number of practicing Hindus in the Tampa Bay area has grown rapidly over the past decade. Tampa’s first Hindu temple opened on Palm Avenue in 1992. Four years later, a second congregation formed in the Carrollwood area with over 2,000 members and is now undergoing a major expansion. Indians are among the fastest-growing population in the Tampa Bay area. In Hillsborough County, the Indian population increased from 2, 316 in 1990 to 6,329 in 2000. A third congregation began meeting in the Mango Recreation Center in Seffner. The Bochasanwasi Akshar Purshottam Sanstha (BAPS) Temple of Tampa is building Hillsborough County’s third temple. Construction will start this month on the $3 million education center that also will serve as a temporary temple. Long-term plans call for a $30 million campus, including a community center and a permanent marble temple modeled after some of the great temples of India, Temple President Suresh Patel said.