The neighborhoods of Cromwell Heights and Fruitland Heights bear no shortage of places to worship. The following list includes churches within the neighborhood and those on its edge. Phone numbers are listed where available.
  Bible Truth Deliverance Church
931 22nd Ave. S., (727) 821-4337
City of Out Lord
1324 18th Ave. S., (727) 823-1167
Faith Memorial Missionary Bapist Church
1800 18th Ave. S., (727) 896-035
Lakeview Presbyterian Church
1310 22nd Ave. S., (727) 822-0789
New Hope Missionary Baptist Church
2120 19th St. S., (727) 896-5228
New Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church
1717 Tangerine Ave. S., (727) 823-7020
Reach the Unreached Church
1315 18th Ave. S.(727) 821-2081
True Love Pentecostal
1214 18th Ave. S.

 

 

 

Shashi's Island Grille and Grocery, 1600 18th Ave. S., offers tasty homemade Caribbean delights such as sweet potatoes and chicken curry and rice. Owners Sayyid and Linda Jibrael sell everything from hair extensions to bottled water in this small store, which opened two years ago. Food Max, 1400 18th Ave. S., is another small operation that offers groceries and a deli with sandwiches made to order. And the 18th Avenue Supermarket, 1856 18th Ave. S., has a convenient store feel, but also features a butcher and produce section.
The neighborhood has only one fast food franchise - Kentucky Fried Chicken, 1760 9th St, S. - but has a couple of family-owned operations worth checking out. The By-Faith Seafood Café, offers tasty yet inexpensive seafood dishes like the Off-The-Chain Pasta, which combines spaghetti noodles, crab and shrimp. Click on this link for more on By-Faith, http://www.poynter.org/points
south/fellows/_project2wfellows/
_basestoryserna.htm. Atwater Cafeteria, 895 22nd Ave. S., is the neighborhood "soul food" joint. In operation since 1974, no visit to the neighborhood is complete without a stop here.
 
 
One of the most significant events in this area in recent years, was the shooting death of TyRon Lewis, near the intersection at 18th Avenue South and 16th Street S. Lewis, an 18-year-old black motorist, was shot by a white St. Petersburg police officer in 1996 during a traffic stop. The surrounding communities responded with a wave of riots that left numerous people injured and many businesses damaged. In November of that year, when a grand jury found that the officer broke no laws, the riots were repeated.
The Enoch Davis Community Center, which houses the James Weldon Johnson Library, also features an auditorium, meeting rooms and offices for various human services agencies. Community programs, workshops and classes are the types of activities held inside the meeting rooms and auditorium. For more information, visit their Web site at http://www.stpete.org
/enoch.htm or call (727) 893-7134.		  
 
Within the neighborhood is a library and a branch of Head Start, which is a child care program for low-income families run by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Visit the Head Start web-site at http://www2.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/hsb/ or call the branch located at 1900 12th St. S. at (727) 867-4133. At the James Weldon Johnson Library, 1111 18th Ave. S., you can browse through books, the internet and even check out a movie. For more information call (727) 893-7113.

While this neighborhood may lack a public park for recreational gathering, locals don't let it stop them from having friendly conversation. In the heat of the summer, groups can often be found taking a place under the shade of large, sun-shielding trees. Fishing opportunities and other watersports exist at nearby Lake Maggiore and Tampa Bay.

 
 
The Fruitland Heights/Cromwell Heights neighborhoods are situated in south St. Petersburg. Teeming with family-owned businesses, the only franchises within its boundaries are a Walgreen's drug store and a Kentucky Fried Chicken across the street. The neighborhood is dominated by single family homes, with a handful of churches dotting the landscape. These neighborhoods have had their share of problems. In 1996, black motorist TyRon Lewis was shot and killed by a white St. Petersburg police officer within the boundaries of Fruitland Heights. These neighborhoods were among a handful of others that responded with a flurry of rioting. Some residents say the neighborhood hasn't been the same since.