Tampa’s MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre loses roof to Hurricane Milton

Hurricane Milton’s winds ripped down chunks of the MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre’s clamshell-like roof.

The Live Nation-operated concert venue at the Florida State Fairgrounds has a 135,000-square-foot roof that covers about 10,000 seats, or half the venue’s capacity. Parts of the roof appeared to have fallen on the seats.

The roof is made from an architectural fabric called PVC tensile membrane, according to Birdair, the New York company that replaced it in 2017. The company states that the material is good for 10 to 15 years in hot, Southern states like Florida, and “meets numerous energy code standards.”

The amphitheater’s roof was originally developed by a Citrus County company that had worked with NASA. It opened in 2004.

The venue has no concerts remaining on its 2024 calendar. A Sept. 25 show by Staind and Breaking Benjamin was postponed at the last minute by Hurricane Helene, but no makeup date had been announced. Its next scheduled show is Primus, Puscifer and A Perfect Circle on May 8.

It’s the second Tampa Bay landmark to lose its high-tech fabric roof to Hurricane Milton. Tropicana Field, the St. Petersburg home of the Rays, saw its roof ripped to shreds as high winds entered Pinellas County Wednesday night.

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