Lutz, Florida

Lutz began with the construction of a small train depot on the Tampa Northern Railroad. The area surrounding the depot officially became known as "Lutz" when the U.S. Postal Service authorized a post office. The community was named for W. P. Lutz, who was credited with bringing the railroad to town.[4]

As people moved to the rural community from Tampa, the Lutz area continued to grow until it no longer depended on the "Lutz Junction", which was demolished in the late 1960s.

In 2000, a replica of the depot was rebuilt in the approximate location, which is now at the intersection of Lutz-Lake Fern Road and U.S. Highway 41. The post office's structure is still in the same place today, although it is now an art gallery. A public library is located behind the train depot replica. This area is known as "Beautiful Downtown Lutz".[5]

Part of the movie Edward Scissorhands was filmed on Tinsmith Circle in the neighborhood of Carpenter's Run in north Lutz in Pasco County. In the credits the town is named in the "Thank you" section.[6]

Lutz is located in northwestern Hillsborough County at 28°8′22″N 82°27′43″W (28.139428, -82.462028).[7] It is bordered to the east by the city of Tampa, to the south by the Lake Magdalene and University unincorporated communities, and to the west by unincorporated Northdale and Cheval, all in Hillsborough County. To the north, Lutz is bordered by Land O' Lakes and Wesley Chapel in Pasco County.

Interstate 275 runs through the east side of Lutz, joining its parent highway Interstate 75 in the northeast corner of the community. U.S. Route 41 runs through the center of Lutz, and Florida State 597 forms part of the western border. Downtown Tampa is 14 miles (23 km) to the south.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the Lutz CDP has a total area of 27.1 square miles (70.2 km²), of which 24.6 square miles (63.8 km²) are land and 2.5 square miles (6.4 km²), or 9.06%, are water.[3]

ZIP codes which serve Lutz and the surrounding areas are 33548, 33549, 33558 and 33559. These ZIP codes extend north past the Hillsborough County line to State Road 54 in unincorporated southern Pasco County. That area is also called Lutz, and often referred to as "Pasco Lutz" by residents and newspapers.[8]

As of the census of 2010, there were 19,344 people, 7,250 households, and 5,405 families residing in the community. There were 7,822 housing units. The racial makeup of the community was 88.8% White, 4.8% Black, 0.4% Native American, 2.5% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.4% some other race, and 2.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 12.8% of the population.[9]

Of the 7,250 households in the community, 33.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.7% were headed by married couples living together, 8.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.4% were non-families. 19.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.4% were someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65, and the average family size was 3.04.[9]

In the community 22.5% of the population were under the age of 18, 8.0% were from 18 to 24, 22.2% from 25 to 44, 35.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.3 males.[9]

For the period 2011-15, the estimated median annual income for a household in the community was $67,847, and the median income for a family was $88,024. Male full-time workers had a median income of $55,180 versus $42,122 for females. The per capita income for the community was $35,035. About 4.2% of families and 6.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.8% of those under age 18 and 2.8% of those age 65 or over.[10]

Lutz is served by Hillsborough & Pasco County Public Schools through the following:

• Schwarzkopf Elementary School
• Lutz Elementary School
• Maniscalco Elementary School
• Mckitrick Elementary School
• Miles Elementary School
• Buchanan Middle School
• Martinez Middle School
• Walker Middle School
• Ben Hill K-8
• Freedom High School
• Gaither High School
• Steinbrenner High School
• Sickles High School
• Sunlake High School

• Lutz Civic Association
• History of Lutz