Plumbing Along Riverhills Drive and the River Bluff
Riverhills is not one subdivision. It is the North and South Riverhills Drive corridor along the Hillsborough River, a name that goes back to Bertha Palmer's roughly 19,000-acre ranch, which she called Riverhills about 1910. County records list 308 single-family parcels with a Riverhills address, and they are the largest in the city: 2,614 square feet and 2.62 baths on about 0.44 acre.
Median build year is 1974, but that average hides two groups. Of the 308, 42.2 percent were built 1950-69 and 43.5 percent in 1970-89, so a single street can put cast-iron-and-galvanized houses next to copper-and-PVC ones.
One Road, Three Jurisdictions
County records classify 72.1 percent of Riverhills Drive parcels as City of Temple Terrace, 21.1 percent as unincorporated and 6.8 percent as City of Tampa. The south end of the road sits where a county map check touches both Temple Terrace and Tampa water and sewer service areas, so two neighbors may call different utilities.
Before blaming the main, find out whose bill you pay. Our who-to-call guide lays out the three utilities, and we confirm by address. Mixed eras on one road are explained in our older-homes guide.
Work We Do on Larger Riverfront Homes
- Emergency Plumbing Repairs — In a 2,600-square-foot house a burst line can reach several rooms, so the first job is the shutoff, then a written price for the fix.
- Plumbing Repairs — More fixtures per branch means more stops, valves and cartridges to wear out, each repaired as a unit rather than all at once.
- Plumbing Installation — Added baths and kitchen work on large lots are priced after we trace the existing runs and venting.
- Leak Detection — On a 0.44-acre lot, a yard-line leak is plausible, and a pressure test tells us whether to look inside or outside.
- Water Heater Repair & Replacement — Heater size is a real decision at 2.6 baths, and a second unit or tankless option gets priced next to the tank swap.
- Repiping (PEX) — Mixed eras on one road mean the 1950s houses are repipe candidates while 1980s neighbors may need nothing.
- Drain Cleaning & Hydro Jetting — Mature river-lot trees mean roots in laterals, and a camera pass shows the damage before we jet.
Larger Houses, Longer Runs, Older Trees
More than 2,600 square feet and 2.6 baths means longer supply runs, more fixtures per branch and a lateral that may cross a long, tree-lined lot. Roots near buried lines are a standard cause of slow drains on mature river lots, and drain cleaning with a camera settles whether roots are the cause. Heater sizing at 2.6 baths is a water heater repair question as well.
Elevation at the south center is about 47.9 feet, lower than the golf-course core, and riverfront parcels sit near AE and floodway polygons on the county's flood map. Riverhills Park, Riverside Park and Scout Park lie along the road. The Temple Terrace Riverside plat is the neighbor at the south end.
Plats Strung Along Riverhills Drive
Riverhills Drive is a road corridor rather than a single subdivision, so each plat beside it has its own build years.
- Temple Terrace Estates Sections 19-28 — 43 homes along the drive, built 1954-2007 and averaging 1967, mixing older and newer lines.
- Temple Terrace Estates main plat — 27 homes on the drive built 1926-2020, averaging 1977, with a wide spread of ages in one plat.
- Estates Replat of Block A-25 — 24 homes along the drive built 1974-80, a short 1970s infill within the larger Estates plat family.
- Riverhills Park Unit No. 1 — 16 homes built 1952-2024, averaging 1970, sharing the name of the nearby river park.
- Estates Replat of Blocks A-10, A-21, A-22 and A-24 — 13 homes built 1970-84, a small 1970s-80s infill replat along the drive.
- Temple Terraces Townsite — 12 homes on the drive built 1957-2007, so original and replaced plumbing both appear.
- Temple Terrace Riverside Subdivision — 12 homes on the drive built 1955-2020, part of the mid-1950s Riverside plat to the south.
- River Terrace Estates — 11 homes built 1983-2006, a smaller and newer group along the river drive.
- Andrews Subdivision and the Tract 34-37 replat — 7 homes built 1981-95 in Andrews Subdivision, plus 8 homes built 1976-78 in the Tracts 34-37 replat.
Riverfront Parks and River Frontage on Riverhills Drive
Most of Riverhills Drive is described by the parks that line it, from Scout Park at the south end to the Billy Graham Garden near the college.
- Riverhills Park — Spans 10.93 acres at 329 S Riverhills Dr and includes tennis courts and a playground.
- Riverside Park — 201 S Riverhills Dr, 1.9 acres; the city plans a roughly 9-acre combined riverfront park costing $4 million to $5 million.
- Scout Park — A 30.49-acre park at the south end of Riverhills Park.
- Ben Lomond Park — At the corner of Ben Lomond Dr and N Riverhills Dr.
- Biltmore Park — On Biltmore Ave between S Glen Arven Ave and Riverhills Dr.
- Billy Graham Garden — A preservation park on N Riverhills Dr at Florida College.
- Hillsborough River — Borders the river-front lots; some parcels sit near mapped AE and floodway polygons.
Riverhills Lot Size, Jurisdiction Split and Elevation Figures
A river road that crosses three jurisdictions needs its own numbers, and parcel records supply them.
- 308 single-family homes carry a Riverhills address, with a median build year of 1974, and 75.0% were built before 1980. Three-quarters of the homes are 45 or more years old, so aging lines are common.
- The average Riverhills home is 2,614 square feet with 2.62 baths on 0.44 acre. Large homes and long lateral runs mean more fixtures, more places for leaks and more tree-root exposure.
- Of the parcels on Riverhills Dr, 72.1% are inside the city, 21.1% are unincorporated and 6.8% are in the City of Tampa. The same road can mean three jurisdictions and different utilities, so the water bill tells us whom to call.
- Ground elevation is 47.9 feet at the south Riverhills center point. River-edge lots sit lower than the golf-course core at 66.3 feet, where wet soil can hide slab and supply leaks.
- The south Riverhills area touches 2 water service areas and 2 wastewater service areas, belonging to the City of Temple Terrace and the City of Tampa. A backup caller may need the Temple Terrace or Tampa sewer line, so that is sorted out before blaming the main.
- 42.2% of Riverhills homes were built from 1950 to 1969 and 43.5% from 1970 to 1989. One street can have cast-iron drain work next door to newer copper-piped homes, so each address gets its own assessment.
Riverhills 33617: not sure which utility bills you?
Send us the street number and a photo of the water bill's header. We tell you which utility to call for the street, and what we can do inside the house the same day.
CALL 813-733-7188Riverhills Questions About Big Houses and Mixed Boundaries
A camera shows whether the line is intact and where roots enter. Jetting or cabling clears them, and a clog from roots recurs if the pipe is cracked. If the pipe is broken, we say so and refer you to a licensed underground utility contractor for the repair.
It can change who handles the street, never what happens inside the house. About a fifth of Riverhills parcels are unincorporated, and a few are Tampa. Check which utility bills you, then call us for anything after the meter.
Usually a 50-gallon tank or a tankless unit, depending on peak demand. Tank swaps run $1,200-$2,500; tankless installs $2,200-$3,500. We ask how many people shower at once and where the heater can go before we recommend either.
Long runs are a cause. A recirculation setup or a second heater near the far end are options, and sometimes the fix is simply a clogged aerator or a failed check valve. We trace first, then price the cure, so you do not pay for the wrong one.
Because one house may be a 1958 galvanized ranch and the other a 1984 copper house. Build year, pipe material, slab or raised floor and access change the scope. A written quote that lists the material is the one to compare.
Along the River and Into the Plats
Golf & Country Club Area
A few blocks inland, the historic core with the oldest mains and the highest share of pre-1950 houses.
Temple Terrace Estates
The plat family that fronts much of Riverhills Drive, with mid-century ranches beside later replats.
Temple Terrace Riverside
The 1950s plat to the south along East and West River Drive, on the lowest ground.
Temple Crest
A Tampa neighborhood west of the city line, with the Hillsborough River as its southern edge.