Month: August 2019

Will A Winter Wonderland Be Just A Snowball’s Throw Away?

It’s no secret that a large portion of our population is here because they were eager to trade the frosty inconvenience of snow for the year-round warmth of the Florida sun.

Be honest, though. You miss it sometimes, don’t you?

Well, for at least part of the year, you may be able to relive some of the winter’s better moments, as a proposed snow park in Pasco County recently got the green light from Pasco’s Board of County Commissioners (BOC).

The park will be located at the corner of St. Joe Rd. and Bellamy Brothers Blvd., roughly 15 miles north of the Shops at Wiregrass, adjoining Treehoppers Aerial Adventure Park and Scream-A-Geddon Horror Park.

The BOC unanimously approved a conditional use permit on Aug. 6, allowing Point Summit, Inc., which runs Treehoppers and Scream-A-Geddon, to build Florida’s first snow park on 58 acres in Dade City it purchased last year.

The park will have a snow tubing hill, a snow play area and other winter-related activities, and is expected to be another feather in the area’s ever-growing tourism cap.

The snow park is permitted to operate 120 days a year, from 2 to 7 days a week, depending on the weather. Clarke Hobby, the lawyer for Point Summit, Inc., said based on recent winters and the temperature needing to be under 80 degrees for the snow concept to work, “something tells me it’s going to be (open for) more like 45 days (a year).”

The proposed park will not operate on the same day as Scream-A-Geddon (or the fall festival the “horror park” operates in unison with), which has a temporary-use permit to run 56 days (this year, it opens Sept. 13 and runs through the first week in November).

Denise Hernandez of Pasco’s planning and development department said a neighborhood meeting was held in May, with 32 residents in attendance, and only one letter of objection was filed.

“We have worked with the neighbors in coming up with a series of conditions that almost everybody is happy with,” Hobby said.

Some of those conditions include not allowing access to the park off Bellamy Brothers Blvd., planting more than 1,000 six-foot red cedar trees to, according to Hobby, “create an evergreen condition that will be a great noise and visual buffer for our neighbors” and creating a 400-foot setback for all structures.

Some residents, however, weren’t quite satisfied, expressing concern that the county was sacrificing more of its rural areas.

During public comment on Aug. 6, Judy Geiger submitted a stack of red manilla folders that she said included 33 letters of objection, among other documents, and yielded her remaining time to Bob Hunter, a former Hillsborough County planning commissioner.

According to Hunter, the conditional use sought by Point Summit was not consistent with Pasco’s land development code, which protects against rural decline.

“A snow mountain and a haunted house are certainly not consistent with the surrounding area,” Smith said.

Two other residents also spoke, but District 2 commissioner Mike Moore noted that some of the complaints were coming from people who lived a good distance away from the proposed park, and seemed satisfied with the efforts of Hobby and the park owners to appease the concerns of the local residents.

“What I’m seeing are not rejections from people living right across the street,” Moore said. “And, I like the 400-foot buffer (plan).”

District 5 commissioner Jack Mariano agreed.

“This will be a nice amenity, as well as helping tourism,” Commissioner Mariano said before voting yes.

The North Tampa Bay Chamber’s 20 Years Celebrated At Breakfast!

I have known North Tampa Bay Chamber (NTBC) president & CEO Hope Allen since the day she took over the leadership of the former Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce in 2013.

I and the Neighborhood News also have been strong supporters of the Chamber since it first formed back in 1998, so I have seen all of the changes the Chamber has gone through during its 20-year history.

Therefore, the Chamber’s monthly Business Breakfast at Pasco Hernando State College’s Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch on August 6 was a great trip down memory lane for me, as Hope was the featured speaker and she definitely hit the highlights of the still-growing Chamber’s incredible 20-year journey.

Fresh off her first major vacation away from the Chamber she leads and loves, Hope’s Power Point presentation at the breakfast told the tale of a fledgling Chamber that first met in one of its then-65 members’ garages in July 1998.

The old Wesley Chapel Chamber unveiled its first logo in January 1999, and held its first awards banquet and hired its first part-time employee later that year. In January of 2000, the Chamber unveiled its first website and held its first Community Festival in March 2001.

And, even though there was a 12-year gap in her presentation between 2001 and 2013 (when Hope took over as executive director), as someone who attended most of the Chamber’s ribbon cuttings and events prior to 2013, I can assure you that things didn’t really start to take off for the old Wesley Chapel Chamber until Hope arrived on the scene.

“The Chamber evolved over time, as it has to, in order to serve the needs of the businesses in the community where it is situated, and we certainly have,” Hope said at the breakfast. “In 2013 (when the Chamber had about 300 members), the Board decided that we were going to switch our focus from being into parties, pageants and parades, to being the connector, convener and catalyst for businesses. We wanted to be the best, the go-to organization, for local businesses.”

In February of 2014, the Chamber unveiled its official Facebook page and in 2015, it acquired the faltering New Tampa Chamber and its primary asset — the Taste of New Tampa, which wasn’t held for several years because of that defunct Chamber’s issues.

“That’s when we really started to grow,” Hope said of the merger with New Tampa. “More businesses started to reach out to us on both sides of the county line.”

Hope also told those in attendance that she was particularly proud of the fact that the Wesley Chapel Chamber earned the Florida Association of Chamber Professionals (FACP) Certified-Plus designation and that she has earned her Florida Chamber Certified Professional (FCCP) certification.

“Of more than 300 Chambers of Commerce throughout Florida, only 18 have earned certification and only seven are Certified-Plus Chambers with a CEO who also is certified,” she says, adding that it takes five years of consecutive senior leadership to become FCCP-certified. “And you have to have three peer reviews and submit a dissertation.” Hope’s dissertation was on the fiduciary responsibilities of a Chamber.

And Still More Changes…

During her presentation at the breakfast meeting, Hope also talked about her Chamber’s 2017 asset acquisition of/joining forces with the former Greater Pasco Chamber, which helped the NTBC increase its membership by more than 200 businesses, although it also brought with it a fresh set of new challenges for Hope and her small staff.

The Greater Pasco Chamber’s membership was mostly on the west side of Pasco County (it also had some western Pinellas members). One of the challenges was trying to host networking and other business events on both sides of the Suncoast Pkwy.

But, perhaps the biggest challenge was to come up with a new name for the Chamber, which now had members in Pasco, Pinellas and Hillsborough.

Many Wesley Chapel Chamber members, including yours truly, were concerned that unless Wesley Chapel was still in the Chamber’s name, some members might defect and the Chamber could lose its identity altogether.

The North Tampa Bay Chamber name was officially adopted in January 2018 and neither Hope nor her staff has taken a backwards step since then.

In fact, the Chamber moved its office from The Grove in Wesley Chapel to just off S.R. 54 in Lutz and has grown to 730 members and four full-time employees.

Although I personally haven’t attended many events on the west side, my understanding is that they also are well-attended, and the ribbon cuttings, breakfasts, Final Friday and coffee events continue to attract new faces in our area.

Hope and the NTBC also have continued their advocacy efforts regarding transportation in our area, including the Diverging Diamond Interchange at I-75 and S.R. 56, the S.R. 56 expansion to U.S. Hwy. 301 in Zephyrhills, the planned Overpass Rd. exit off I-75 and others.

“Our Vision is to be the trusted leader and driving force for the growth and success of our business community,” she said. “And our Mission is to provide valuable services to our members, advocate for a positive business community and sustain and further develop a thriving economy for the North Tampa Bay Region.

All I can say is mission accomplished…so far…and keep it going!

For membership & other information, visit the NTBC at 1868 Highland Oaks Blvd., Lutz, or at NorthTampaBayChamber.com, or call (813) 994-8534.

chamber

A Playground For Everyone

Mike Moore spends a lot of time at the Wesley Chapel District Park (WCDP) on Boyette Rd.

Sometimes he is coaching. Other times he watches his three kids participate in other activities. And other times, he has noticed the absence of children with disabilities, who don’t get the same opportunities his kids do.

“A void,” he calls it.

A few years ago, Moore, the Pasco County Commissioner for District 2 and Seven Oaks resident who represents most of Wesley Chapel, started out on a mission to fill that void.

On Aug. 6, Moore revealed his work to his fellow county commissioners, as plans to build an inclusive playground that is welcoming to those with physical disabilities — and to those who care for them — sprang to life.

“I’ve been doing a lot of research the last couple of years, looking at other inclusive parks around the country,” Moore says. “I thought it was something we should do here. I wanted to figure out a way to make that happen.”

With help from the local community, including the Rotary Club of Wesley Chapel, AdventHealth Wesley Chapel and the Lennar Foundation, the county commission accepted a total of $120,000 in contributions towards building the new playground — with $5,000 more in contributions expected — and agreed to kick in $215,000 of public money as well.

The $340,000 is expected to cover the entire cost of building the inclusive playground.

Moore says that work could begin on the park in about six months.

The response from the community since the announcement has been overwhelming, Moore says, noting that he has even received calls from others looking to make donations, and parents of children with disabilities who are overjoyed.

The playground is not just for children with disabilities. The goal is to build a playground that is available to everyone, and isolates no one. It will be the first of its kind in Pasco County, but not the last, Moore hopes. He says that for every 1,000 children in Pasco County, there are 85 who have some type of special needs. The Pasco County School District says there are 16,000 children with special needs countywide.

“We want a place where kids have the opportunity to participate and not just sit on the sidelines, no matter what their abilities are,” Moore says.

While many area parks may be compliant with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) guidelines, few truly meet the standards of what proponents consider to be inclusivity.

To meet those inclusive standards, many of these playgrounds incorporate wider pathways and easier-to-navigate surfaces, activity panels that are at ground height, larger swings with more back support and sensory elements that include touch and music.

While the local playground may focus on physical activities, Moore says promoting socialization is a significant benefit of inclusive playgrounds, which bring kids who might otherwise shy away from others due to their disabilities together by promoting active play.

“We want a place that takes away the social barriers and gives parents an opportunity to participate as well,” Moore says. “Parents don’t always feel they are part of something, because their kids can’t take part.”

Getting The Ball Rolling

Once Moore hatched the idea, he went to Keith Wiley, the director of the county parks department. With a new indoor recreation center on the way to the WCDP as well, Moore had synergistic goals.

Wiley’s reaction? He says he was thinking the exact same thing.

“Our team realized the need for more special needs summer camps, but where would they go?,” Wiley says. “That I got that call (from Moore) was an amazing coincidence.”

There are few offerings within 30 miles for area residents to take their children to. At the park at the New Tampa Recreation Center, some swings were outfitted last year to accommodate children in wheelchairs. And, in another part of Tampa Palms, an autism-friendly sensory park is in the design phase, although no money was included in the recent fiscal 2019 City of Tampa budget to begin construction.

To help raise the needed funds, Moore reached out to some reliable community partners.

As a former member of the Rotary Club of Wesley Chapel (and still an honorary member), Moore presented a proposal to the club, whose Board thought it was in line with their mission and agreed to donate money from a special charitable fund the club created.

“Years ago, when I was president, (former club president) Dane Parilo, Mike and I got together, and we had this vision — what if we could (start a special fund); what if we could raise money for future projects?,” says Eric Johnson, the past president of the Rotary Club. “And, it’s all coming to fruition right now. We are very excited about this opportunity.”

According to Johnson, Rotary District 6950 (which includes about 40 Rotary Clubs) is giving a $10,000 grant to match the Wesley Chapel Rotary’s donation of $35,000, and the club plans on donating $5,000 more to be raised from their Casino Night fund raiser being held tonight at Lexington Oak Golf Clubs, bringing their total donation to $50,000.

That is one of the club’s biggest donations to date.

The Rotary Club will maintain a butterfly garden adjacent to the playground.

The Lennar Foundation also is donating $50,000.

“We are very excited and grateful (to be involved),” said Arcadia Solesky, director of marketing for the Lennar Foundation.

Meanwhile, AdventHealth contributed $25,000 to the project.

“Our brand promise is to feel whole,” says AdventHealth chief financial officer Tyson Davis. “I can’t think of a better way to apply that brand promise in our community than being a part of this project.”

Perhaps no one, however, was more pleased than Moore. He says the inclusive playground will go down as one of the highlights of his career.

“It’s not always the government doing things, it’s the community coming together for the betterment of all of our kids,” he said. “After this project is done and complete…this will rank as one of the top things we’ve ever done.”

inclusive playground wesley chapel district park

Football Preview 2019: Wiregrass Ranch

Keith Walker is a big playmaker for the Bulls.

Like overcoming injuries or a lack of depth, losing players to other schools has become another one of the problems facing high school football coaches across the country these days.

Wiregrass Ranch High (WRH) coach Mark Kantor knows that more than most others. When the Bulls, 7-4 last season, open their season tonight at 7:30 p.m. at home against Zephyrhills, they will do so without two of their spring standouts — quarterback Hunter Helton and receiver Noah Biglow — both of whom have transferred to Armwood.

That will change some things for the Bulls, but it won’t change everything. Kantor says his team is rallying around new QB starter Rocco Becht, and still plans to make it to the playoffs for the fourth straight season.

Can the Bulls do it again? Let’s take a look:

QUARTERBACK: The plan was to prepare Becht for the starting role next season. But, the son of former Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Anthony Becht and last year’s junior varsity starter, where he did well, has now been thrown into the varsity fire.

RUNNING BACK: Seniors Nate Miller and Keith Walker will be the starters in the backfield. Miller led the team in rushing last year with 468 yards and was tied with Walker with seven touchdowns.

WIDE RECEIVER: Walker (pictured, right) is a playmaker in the backfield and in the slot, where three of his five touchdowns in the spring game came on receptions. He will be a valuable weapon on offense. Juniors Tyler Brueckner and Broden Guirl, who is a big target at 6-foot-3, spent last year catching Becht’s passes on JV and will both be varsity starters in 2019. Senior Julian Gonzalez, who tied for the varsity team-high in 2018 with 16 catches, is back as well.

OFFENSIVE LINE: The Bulls have a wealth of experience up front. Connor Lenczden (the biggest lineman at 6-7, 275) and Robert Gibb will start at tackle, Daniel Thompson and Josh Hood will start at guard and Barit Dhugana handles the duties at center. All are seniors.

“When they get after it, they can be as good as any offensive line I have ever coached,” Kantor says.

DEFENSIVE LINE: Seniors Tyler Hayes and Dylan Ridolph are linebackers who come up and play on the ends for the Bulls — they had 33 and 21 tackles for losses, respectively, in 2018 — and both are excellent pass rushers. Senior Gabe Thompson also will see time at defensive end, while Isaiah Miller, Andres Jimenez and Ian Alford all play inside. Like the offensive line, the Bulls starters are all seniors.

LINEBACKERS: Kantor has a solid crew, consisting of seniors Nick Graziano, Tyler Mesnekoff and Mark Kieper, as well as junior Craig Kailimai, but the best of the bunch and the squad’s leader is Ridolph, who had 82 tackles and 22 sacks in 2018.

DEFENSIVE BACK: Senior Jonavon Tillis is a big corner at 6-3, and he will start alongside junior Larry Gibbs. Junior Grady Clower is the strong safety, and senior Julian Gonzalez is the free safety.

KICKER: Adam Mihalek takes over as both placekicker and punter for two-year starter Hayden Wills.

THE FINAL WORD: Losing your quarterback less than a month before opening night can be a devastating loss, but the Bulls’ schedule may be an even bigger obstacle to overcome. WRH has six teams on its schedule that made the playoffs last year, and three of those teams won 11 or more games. Not a single 2019 opponent had a losing 2018 record, and the combined winning percentage of all 10 teams was a whopping .710. Yikes.

football Wiregrass Ranch High Football

Football Preview 2019: Cypress Creek

When Cypress Creek Middle/High School (CCH) head coach Mike Johnson looks out across the field during a typical practice these days, he can’t help but harken back to just three years ago.

Then, he had little more than a handful of kids show up for his first practice. Now, he sees more than 50.

“It’s amazing,” says Johnson, who is 3-17 in two seasons at the helm of the Coyotes. “I think this is a year we can definitely break out of that ‘You’re a first-year program’ image. We are ready to turn that corner and start climbing that mountain to run with all these other teams.”

Here’s how the Coyotes, who open their season tonight at Wesley Chapel at 7:30 p.m., are looking for Year 3:

QUARTERBACK: Jehlani Warren is the old man at quarterback this season — the senior is the only QB among Wesley Chapel’s three high school football teams that already has had any varsity starts entering 2019. Last year, Warren was 81-for-142 passing (57 percent) for 1,163 yards and eight touchdowns. This year, Johnson expects him to better those numbers.

“He had a decent year,” Johnson says, “and I think he’s really ready to (break out).”

Junior Justin Lavine and sophomore Owen Walls will provide depth under center.

RUNNING BACK: Senior Jovanni Anderson (156 yards, 2 TDs) is the top returning rusher and will start. His ground-and-pound style will be complemented by sophomore scatback Andrew Burgess (photo), and junior Issac Walker is a combination of both styles.

WIDE RECEIVER: Explosive senior Jalen Warren, Jehlani’s twin brother, returns after leading the team with 32 catches, 498 yards and six touchdowns last season. The Coyotes may have graduated four players who combined for nearly 1,000 receiving yards last season, but sophomores Dontrell Clerkley and Merrick Simmons are expected to replace those stats this season. Junior Brycen Hernandez will slide into the slot after playing fullback last season, and junior Colin Ostapchuk will contribute there as well. “It’s a deep group,” Johnson says.

OFFENSIVE LINE: Senior Kyle Cantwell (6-3, 250) can start at either tackle position and will anchor the line. Junior Paul-andre Tre’ also is a versatile tackle. Junior Jake DiMarco is the starting center, and seniors Kyle Florey and Noah Smith “have come a long way,” according to Johnson, and will start at guard, with junior Matt Lodge pressing hard for one of those spots as well.

DEFENSIVE LINE: Cantwell will start at tackle, and Hernandez and senior Brody Gommier will be the starters at defensive end, but Johnson’s hope is that he won’t have to play his offensive line starters too much on the other side of the ball.

LINEBACKERS: Jalen Warren and Addison will be the starters at outside linebacker, and are coming off a season in which the duo finished 1-2 in tackles (77 and 73 respectively) for the Coyotes. Nine of Warren’s tackles were for a loss of yardage. Sophomore David Willins has earned one of the middle linebacker jobs, along with senior Sebastian Bramonte. Defensively, Johnson says his unit is coming together and playing faster and reacting this season instead of overthinking their assignments.

DEFENSIVE BACKS: Simmons, Clerkley, Jehlani Warren, Ostapchuk Walker and junior Jonathan Garcia can all play defensive back, and Burgess and Clerkley will split duties at safety.

KICKER: Senior Trace Wolden and junior Colton Corrao will handle the kicking duties.

THE FINAL WORD: The Coyotes graduated many of their playmakers, so guys like the Warren brothers and Burgess will play have to play bigger roles on both sides of the ball. Johnson isn’t ruling out a playoff berth, but a more realistic goal might be a .500 season, even though the Coyotes’ schedule only includes two teams (Wesley Chapel and Mitchell) that won more than four games last season and six opponents that won three or fewer.

cypress creek football