Fish Hawk (or FishHawk) is an
unincorporated area
An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...
and
census-designated place
A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only.
CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...
(CDP) in
Hillsborough County,
Florida
Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
, United States. It is a suburb of
Tampa
Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...
, and includes a portion of the community of
Lithia. As of the
2020 census, the CDP had a population of 24,625. The place name is derived from Little Fishhawk Creek, a tributary of the
Alafia River
The Alafia River is long, with a watershed of in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States, flowing into Tampa Bay. The watershed contains ten named lakes and ponds, and 29 named rivers, streams and canals. During the rainy season, excess w ...
that joins the Alafia just west of
Lithia Springs.
Geography
FishHawk is located in east-central Hillsborough County, bordered to the north by the Alafia River, which separates it from
Valrico to the north and
Bloomingdale to the northwest. Boyette road borders Fish Hawk from the south and
Riverview to the southwest. FishHawk is southeast of
downtown Tampa
Downtown Tampa is the central business district of Tampa, Florida, Tampa, Florida, United States, and the chief financial district of the Tampa Bay Area.
It is second only to Westshore, Tampa, Westshore regarding employment in the area. Compani ...
. The older community of
Lithia is in the eastern part of the CDP.
According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the CDP has a total area of , with of land and , or 1.03%, of water.
Description

FishHawk Ranch by Newland Communities is a planned community composed of several distinct villages over 3,000+ acres. FishHawk Ranch contains several public common areas including the Park Square Town Center, the Lake House, the Palmetto Club clubhouse, the Osprey Club, the Aquatic Center, biking/walking trails, community swimming pools, gym facilities, tennis courts, lakes, and ponds. FishHawk Ranch was the first certified green new-home community in Hillsborough County. The community is part of a Community Development District and residents pay a CDD fee for their respective CDD designation or subdivision.
The FishHawk area is also noted for its high-ranking, A-rated schools.
History
FishHawk Trails and FishHawk Ranch formerly operated as a ranch; these two subdivisions were built by two different companies in the 1990s.
Before these subdivisions were constructed, FishHawk Trails was a wooded location through which a
CSX Transportation
CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of track, it is the lead ...
rail track path passed. The rail tracks were removed in the late 1980s. There was once a train station in the FishHawk area that was the main import/export area of supplies, mail, and food for Lithia residents.
Environmental impact
Starling at FishHawk and The Preserve were previously an undeveloped wildlife habitat. The Florida Green Building Coalition has named FishHawk as a "green" community, the first in Hillsborough County and the largest in the Tampa area. In 2003, the National Arbor Day Foundation honored the FishHawk community preservation efforts.
Demographics
2000 census
At the time of the
2000 US Census,
there were 1,991 people, 678 households, and 581 families residing in the community. The population density was . There were 798 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the community was 91.41%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 4.12%
Black
Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
, 0.15%
Native American, 0.80%
Asian, 2.06% from
other races, and 1.46% from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or
Latino of any race were 6.08% of the population.
There were 678 households, out of which 43.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 76.0% were
married couples
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 14.3% were non-families. 10.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 2.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.94 and the average family size was 3.16.
In the community, the population was spread out, with 29.6% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 35.7% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 6.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.4 males.
The median income for a household in the community was $65,857, and the median income for a family was $67,286. Males had a median income of $42,321 versus $35,662 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year.
In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the community was $26,540. About 2.0% of families and 3.3% of the population were below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 3.6% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, there were 24,625 people, 7,745 housing units, and 7,419 families in the CDP. The population density was 1,518.7 inhabitants per square mile. The racial makeup was 77.8%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
(17,600 people), 8.4%
African American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
(1,142), 0.1%
Native American (52), 5.0%
Asian (1,562), 0.0%
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
(12), and 6.8% from
two or more races (3,438). Those of
Hispanic or Latino origin made up 16.1% (3,872 people).
The ancestry of Fish Hawk was 10.8%
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany, the country of the Germans and German things
**Germania (Roman era)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
, 8.5%
English, 7.6%
Irish, 6.7%
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
, 2.5%
Polish
Polish may refer to:
* Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe
* Polish language
* Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent
* Polish chicken
* Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...
, 2.5%
Scottish
Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including:
*Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland
*Scottish English
*Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...
, 2.2%
French, 2.0%
Norwegian, and 0.3%
Sub-saharan African
Sub-Saharan Africa is the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lie south of the Sahara. These include Central Africa, East Africa, Southern Africa, and West Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the list of sovereign states and ...
.
The median age was 33.6 years old. A total of 7.5% of the population were 65 or older, with 5.0% between the ages of 65 and 74, 2.2% between the ages of 75 and 84, and 0.4% 85 or older. A total of 35.7% of the population were under 18, and 8.1% were under 5. The gender makeup was 52.3% female and 47.7% male.
The median household income was $119,946, with families having $127,659, married couples having $142,572, and non-families having $65,000. A total of 8.7% of the population were in poverty, with 9.9% of people under 18, 8.7% of people between the ages of 18 and 64, and 3.1% of people 65 or older were in poverty. The per capita income was $44,431.
The area was transformed by development throughout the following decade, with the population growing over 700%, from under 2,000 to 14,087 in the
2010 US census, while the median household income also increased dramatically from $65,857 to $107,250.
To accommodate the rapid growth, the
Hillsborough County School District opened several new schools in the area, including
Newsome High School in 2003.
Education
Schools:
*Barrington Middle School (Public, 6-8)
*Bevis Elementary (Public, K-5)
*
Bell Creek Academy (
Charter
A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...
, 6-9)
*FishHawk Creek Elementary (Public, K-5)
*
Foundation Christian Academy (Private,
Churches of Christ
The Churches of Christ, also commonly known as the Church of Christ, is a loose association of autonomous Christian congregations located around the world. Typically, their distinguishing beliefs are that of the necessity of baptism for salvation ...
, K-12)
*Lithia Springs Elementary (Public, K-5)
*
Newsome High School (Public, 9-12)
*Pinecrest Elementary (Public, K-5)
*Randall Middle School (Public, 6-8)
*St. Stephen's Catholic School (Private,
Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
, K-12)
* Dick Stowers Elementary (Public, K-5)
*Valrico Lake Advantage Academy (Charter, K-5)
References
External links
{{authority control
Census-designated places in Hillsborough County, Florida
Census-designated places in Florida
1990s establishments in Florida
Populated places established in the 1990s