The Sponge Exchange Shopping Village Entrance, Tarpon Springs

The Sponge Exchange Shopping Village sits along Dodecanese Boulevard in Tarpon Springs, the sponge-diving town settled by Greek immigrants in the late 1800s. The complex occupies a former sponge warehouse district, where buildings once used for processing and packing natural sea sponges have been converted into retail space. Tarpon Springs still supplies a share of the natural sponges sold in the United States, a trade that dates back to Greek divers recruited to the area starting in 1905. Shops within the village sell sponges, Greek imports, and local goods to visitors drawn to the town's sponge docks and Greek heritage sites.

Photo taken in December 2019.