Pollo Tropical on the way?

PolloTropicalPasco County’s planning staff is scheduled to meet next week with project engineers looking into building a Pollo Tropical restaurant at the Cypress Creek Town Center Development of Regional Impact (DRI, across from the new Tampa Premium Outlets mall) at the Northeast corner of State Road 56 and Wesley Chapel Boulevard.

The permit pre-submittal meeting is scheduled for Nov. 2. “Right now, it is just conceptual,” said project engineer Zach Thornton.

The permit proposal is looking at a 3,600-square-foot restaurant and a drive-through lane”. A pre-application conference was already held Feb. 18 regarding the site plan but, according to the meeting request form, changes have been made since that meeting.

The Pollo Tropical chain was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Kendall in Miami-Dade County, and is best known for its flame-grilled chicken.  It has more than 180 locations and more than 3,000 employees mostly across the southern United States.

Wesley Chapel man killed in crash

fhp-150x1501Robert Michael Rudman, 33, of Wesley Chapel was killed early Friday morning  when his 2006 Honda Civic collided head-on with a semitrailer truck on SR-50 (Cortezx Blvd.) west of Richloam Clay Sink Road in Hernando County.

Rudman was traveling westbound shortly after midnight when, for unknown reasons, he crossed into the wrong lane and into the path of 50-year-old Jose Antonio Moux Rivera of Orlando. The two vehicles collided into each other, proving fatal for Rudman who died at the scene of the crash. Rivera suffered serious injuries and was transported to Dade City Hospital..

 

2nd 'Trick's Kicks' Tourney Nets nearly $11K!

KICK2Kingshyre at Cross Creek residents Dick & Kathy Strom, who lost their son Patrick to a single-vehicle accident a little more than three years ago, are proud to report that the second annual “Trick’s Kicks” golf outing at Heritage Isles Country Club on Oct. 17 raised about $10,800.

Dick says that amount is about $3,500 more than last year, which will buy, “a lot of sneakers for a lot of needy kids in our area.”

Trick’s Kicks is a nonprofit organization started by the Stroms and their friends in honor of Patrick (who was called “Trick” for short), who loved to collect athletic shoes (“kicks”). Since starting the organization, Trick’s Kicks has donated dozens of pairs of sneakers to kids in need, including 35 pairs donated to the kids at the Everyday Blessings orphanage in Thonotosassa.

Dick says that a full field of golfers, increased sponsorships and promotion in the Neighborhood News all helped the second tourney beat last year’s total, and he says the hope is that “we can do even better again next year.”

Food was provided for the event by Hoosier’s Gille, the restaurant located inside Heritage Isles CC. Among the prizes given away was a 55-inch flat-screen TV, which was won by Kyle Taylor, the last entrant in the event’s putting contest and the only contestant to sink the 60-footer.

For more info, visit Facebook.com/Trick’s Kicks.

 

Neighborhood Nibbles and Business Bytes

Capital Tacos Opens, Kinda

CapitalTacologoWEBCapital Tacos, the hugely popular local eatery with an original location at 6765 Land O’Lakes Blvd. (U.S. 41) in Land O’Lakes, has opened its second restaurant in the former location of Café Fresco at 27209 SR 56, in the plaza next to Sports + Field.

As the budding business transitions to having two locations, the hours of the SR 56 location are currently from 2-8 p.m. Friday through Sunday until further notice. You can follow facebook.com/CapitalTacos for the latest changes in the new location’s schedule.

The Land O’Lakes location is always packed, even at night, and the buzz on the Wesley Chapel Community Facebook page is that most of the local community is ready to embrace Capital Tacos’ affordable, tasty fare.

For more information, visit CapitalTacos.com or call 973-3777.— GN

Russell’s Western Wear Coming to S.R. 54

RussellsWEBIf you’ve been looking for a place to stock up on all of your favorite western gear close to home, look no further than the former RaceTrac convenience store located just east of I-75 on S.R. 54 in Wesley Chapel, which will become the fifth Florida location of Russell’s Western Wear.

Russell’s, a one-stop shop for cowboy boots, hats, jeans and apparel with stores in Ocala, Lakeland, Dover and on N. Dale Mabry Hwy. in Carrollwood, is expected to be open before the holidays, says marketing manager Chloe Gray. “We don’t have a specific date yet because we’re still working through the permitting and construction process,” Gray explains.

She says that a Wesley Chapel store made sense to reach the customers in between the Ocala store and the regional headquarters in Tampa.— MW & GN

Florida Orthopaedic Inst. Coming To Shoppes Of WC

Although the Shoppes of Wesley Chapel (on Bruce B. Downs {BBD} Blvd., across from Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel) doesn’t yet have a restaurant tenant to fill the former D’Alessio Restaurant location, Shoppes leasing agent Barry Jackson of Momenta Real Estate says that the Florida Orthopaedic Institute has leased the remaining 6,000 sq. ft. of space (everything not already leased by Samantha Taylor’s Pure Health Fitness Studio) on the second floor of the plaza.

“It’s official, and we’re really excited,” says Florida Orthopaedic Institute’s director of marketing Donna Bossuyt. “We plan to open sometime in December.”

The Shoppes of Wesley Chapel office will be the 10th location for the medical group and will feature state-of-the-art X-ray technology, physical therapy and rehabilitation treatment, as well as at least three sub-specialty surgeons. Surgeries will not be conducted at the new location.

For more information, please visit FloridaOrtho.com.

Señor T’s Taking Over  Macaroni Grill Location

SenorTsWEBThe long-vacant former New Tampa Macaroni Grill, located on BBD, in front of the also-vacant former Sweetbay Supermarket has not been occupied for more than a year, but that’s about to change, as Señor T’s Mexican Restaurant is getting ready to move in.

A Señor T’s spokesperson says the new Mexican eatery will be the first link in a small, planned start-up chain of about seven locations, with a second location rumored to be moving into the former Macaroni Grill location on N. Dale Mabry Hwy. in Carrollwood. While the inside of the restaurant still is being renovated at our press time, Señor T’s plans to open on November 15. Once open, the restaurant will feature indoor and outdoor seating, a full premium liquor bar and mid-priced Mexican fare. — MW & GN

VIP Elite Barbershop’s Community VIP Event

VIP_WEBIf you’re looking for a great haircut at a great price, I can personally recommend VIP Elite Barbershop (20309 BBD, next to Bruster’s Ice Cream), even though I’ve never personally had a “fade” or any other razor cut before.

I took part in VIP’s “Community VIP” event on October 14, when men’s and kids’ haircuts were just $10, and you could even get the VIP Elite logo design in your cut (photo below; although I chose to not have that done) at no extra charge.

“We had some guys get Tampa Bay Lightning bolts, too,” says VIP co-owner Joanne Rivera, whose husband and Master Barber Omar cut my hair. “We had free food and beverages, provided by a number of sponsors. It was just one of our ways of giving back to this community we love.”

VIP is open seven days a week, but you can get the same, outstanding haircut I got from Omar — or any of VIP’s well-trained barbers — for just $10 on any “Ten Dollar Tuesday.” You also can get $5 off any haircut or hot shave with the coupon from the VIP Elite ad on page 34 of this issue.

Walk-ins are always welcome at VIP, or you can make appointments at VIPEliteBarbershop.com or by calling 994-4057. — GN

Tarek’s Cafe & Grill

TareksGrilleWEBA new breakfast, lunch and dinner restaurant is coming to the Shoppes at Amberly shopping plaza off Amberly Dr. in Tampa Palms, in the space we once called the Neighborhood News headquarters.

Tarek Elsayed, who has owned and operated Tarek’s Café & Grill on the University of South Florida (USF)’s Tampa campus for the past 23 years, is set to open a second location, which will take up not only our old offices, but also the former Spices of India market next door, totaling 4,300 sq. ft.

“I’ve been thinking about a second location for years,” Elsayed says. “The opportunity never came. But the location became available.”

Elsayed says the café at The Shops will serve all three meals in 150 seats and will feature an open-kitchen design. The restaurant also will offer vegan options, but will not serve alcohol. Elsayed says he hopes to officially open in early December.

For more information, please visit TareksCafe.com. — MW

 

Vision 54/56 Initiative To Study Congested Corridor

5456WEB2
Transportation planner Ali Atefi shows some of the latest plans for the S.R. 54/56 corridor.

It’s no secret that the S.R. 54/56 corridor is a difficult drive. Whether you’re going a few miles from Wesley Chapel to Land O’Lakes, or all the way to New Port Richey, the 25-mile stretch from Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. to U.S. 19 can be a nightmare to traverse, and Pasco County transportation planners are looking into ways to improve the corridor with a new initiative called Vision 54/56.

During the next seven months, the Pasco County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) is holding meetings at Rasmussen College (18600 Fernview St. in Land O’Lakes) to gather input from the public to use while coming up with alternatives to improve the S.R. 54/56 corridor during the next two decades.

A part of the MPO’s “Mobility 2040” Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP), the Vision 54/56 study will be conducted using two “Task Forces,” one to study the corridor east of U.S. 41 to BBD (which includes the Wesley Chapel area) and another to study the area from U.S. 41 west to U.S. 19.

Each Task Force is comprised of nine individuals from local chambers of commerce and civic groups. The task force that will represent Wesley Chapel includes Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce (WCCC) CEO Hope Allen, Sandy Graves of the Central Pasco Chamber of Commerce, Steve White of the Pasco Alliance of Community Associations, the Pasco Economic Development Council’s Brent Nye, project developer Joe Cimino, MPO Citizen Advisory Committee members Christie Zimmer and Cliff McDuffie, as well as citizens-at-large Debby Catanzaro and former Wesley Chapel Noon Rotary president Kelly Mothershead.

The Force is tasked with coming up with a total of six alternatives for improving transportation along the S.R. 54/56 corridor, which is the same stretch of road for which a private developer proposed an elevated toll road in 2013. However, that idea officially was abandoned last May. Phase one of the Task Force aims to educate the public and facilitate possible solution alternatives, which will be presented to the MPO Board. Regardless of the alternative ultimately chosen, the corridor will not be widened further than six lanes, which already exists in many sections, including S.R. 56 through Wesley Chapel.

The first meeting of Phase One was held on Sept. 24. In addition to Task Force members, Pasco Transportation Manager Jim Edwards, chief assistant county attorney David Goldstein, transportation engineer Ali Atefi and other members of the MPO and county staff also were in attendance.

54:56WEB“We’re not reinventing the wheel,” Edwards told the Task Force. “There is a litany of alternatives out there, probably about 19, and we’ll be narrowing those down.”

Edwards said that he hoped the Task Force would be visionaries and report what the citizenry thinks should be done

As Edwards and staff went through a presentation of many of the alternatives that already have been identified—including raised express lanes, overpasses, express bus lanes, light rail and other options, Atefi said that Pasco’s population is expected to grow to 905,000 by 2040 (an increase of more than 446,000), with 135,000 people moving into the S.R. 54/56 corridor.

“That’s 35-percent of the county’s growth,” Atefi said. “Imagine if development moves faster.”

Executive planner Matt Armstrong also addressed the Task Force, encouraging members to take the job seriously and try to really look ahead.

“We can’t go backwards in development,” Armstrong said. “We have to make these decisions now. (Pasco is) not urban yet, but (it) will be. As urban planners, we try to look at the crystal ball and be ready.”

Phase Two will evaluate the alternatives submitted in Phase One and gather more public input about the alternatives. The Task Force will then select a preferred alternative and develop an implementation plan to present to the MPO.

“The first meeting was primarily an educational session to give everyone background on the challenges already addressed on the corridor and some previously proposed solutions,” Allen says. “I learned a lot and the county has done a lot of work to prepare for the future of that corridor.”

Allen explains that she and her fellow Task Force members have been armed with a lot of information to review about previous proposed projects, possible solutions and corridor studies. She says that a much more in-depth conversation about the alternatives and possible solutions will take place at the next meeting, scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, December 1, again at Rasmussen College in Land O’Lakes. The public is welcome to attend and provide input to the Task Force.

For more info, please visit Vision54-56.com.