The New Tampa Sensory & Autism Friendly Park, which originally was earmarked to be built on five acres of land behind the BJ’s Wholesale Club on Commerce Palms Dr. in Tampa Palms., is headed to a new site.
Now, the park will be constructed in the nearby New Tampa Community Park (NTCP).
After concerns were raised by members of the Stafford Place community about parking and noise, Tampa City Council member Luis Viera, who represents New Tampa as part of District 7, began the search for a new site.
The sensory-friendly park has been one of Viera’s pet projects since he was elected to the council in 2015.
Viera, whose older brother Juan has autism, successfully fought to get $90,000 included in former Mayor Bob Buckhorn’s 2018 Tampa city budget for Phase 1 of the project, which was allocated for a study and design of the park.
Now, that design will be used at the NTCP.
Viera said he will make a budget request to finally have the park constructed.
He estimates the cost at $1-1.4 million, less than he had originally anticipated.
“There are sites located in the New Tampa Community Park that not only get the job done, but due to the presently available parking and other infrastructure, reduce the cost of this effort substantially,” Viera says. — JCC
Matt Sanchez stands inside his Heritage Isles home, 10.9 yards from his practice target (blue arrow). (Photo: John C. Cotey)
Wharton High senior Matt Sanchez has more than just Olympic dreams. Earlier this month, those dreams nearly came true.
Competing at the Air Rifle U.S. Olympic Trials Feb. 7-9 in Colorado Springs, CO, Sanchez battled against 16 of the sharpest shooters in the country, and briefly toyed with making the Olympic team, before falling four points short and settling for third place. He is instead the first alternate for the squad if either of the shooters who finished ahead of him can’t make the trip.
The top two finishers – 2016 Olympian Lucas Kozeniesky and University of Kentucky sophomore Will Shaner – will make up the U.S. Olympic Air Rifle team. As the first alternate, Sanchez will only go if either Kozeniesky or Shaner can’t make the trip to Tokyo for the Games, which run from July 24-Aug.9.
This Colorado Springs trip was the second part of the Olympic Trials. The first part was held last fall, and Sanchez actually entered the second part in seventh place.
“The top two people were way ahead of everyone, so it looked like they were pretty much going to make it,” Sanchez said.
However, the second-place shooter from Part I had a terrible first day, and Sanchez was excellent. Shooting at a target the size of a size 12-point font period from 10.94 yards away from a standing position, he scored a 627.5 (out of 654), and made a big move up to third-place overall. Sanchez made up four points on the first day, and needed to do it again the final day to possibly nab the second spot on the team.
“I didn’t expect to make the team, honestly,” Sanchez says. “But then, things got a little crunchy going into the second day. I thought if I shoot the same thing, I could make it into second place.”
Sanchez admits he may have been overthinking on Day Two, and he shot a 624.1, and finished four points behind second-place Shaner. Kozeniesky tied a world record on Day 2 with a 633.5.
“It was a little bittersweet, to be honest,” Sanchez says. “If it was a year ago, and I made third place, I’d be really happy — ‘Oh hey, I got third place at a national competition, I did really good’ — But, seeing that I was only four points away from making an Olympic team and getting to go is a little bittersweet.”
Being first alternate is still quite an accomplishment, especially for a 17-year-old balancing high-level national competition with graduating from high school. Sanchez already has signed a scholarship to attend college-shooting powerhouse West Virginia University in Morgantown in the fall.
Sanchez took his first shots at age 9 at a gun range in Las Vegas while visiting his grandmother. From those first eager moments, he has evolved into a finely-tuned technician. In most air rifle competitions, you fire 60 shots in a 75-minute time limit, not the steady rat-a-tat shooting at a range you might be more familiar with. It takes an amazing amount of precision and training.
Sometimes, your heartbeat or a vein is pumping enough to jostle your sights. Sometimes, Sanchez says you need to move the rifle off a vein, or shoot between heartbeats.
Boom…boom…click…boom.
“His biggest attributes are his patience and his attention to detail,” says Matt’s father Freddy. “He does everything at 100-percent maximum. He is a very patient individual. My patience gets tested just watching him.”
Sanchez, unlike much of his competition, doesn’t have the benefit of a college or Olympic facility at which to train. The nearest specialized facility is in Orlando, and he also travels to south Florida to train with his coach, 1996 and 2000 Olympic team member Jayme Shipley.
Otherwise, Matt’s training takes place at a makeshift and poorly lit set-up at his Heritage Isles home. His garage isn’t quite big enough, so while the target is set up on one of its walls, to get 10.9 yards away he has to open the door and shoot from inside the home’s foyer.
“It’s been a real blessing to see him progress to this level,” Freddy says. “To be able to shoot in the garage and get a spot as an Olympic alternate, I can’t ask for anything more. He has a college scholarship, pretty much a full ride, he’s a member of national teams, he travels the world – China, Korea, Germany, you name it.”
Freddy rubs his left forearm.
“I’m getting goosebumps just talking about it.”
Sanchez might be too cool for goosebumps, but he is now more homed in than ever on making the 2024 Olympic team.
By then, he’ll have had four more years of training, this time at top-notch facilities at WVU and the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, and the memory of 2020 pushing him.
“I would have loved to make the Olympic team, but I’m happy with where I am right now,” Sanchez says. “This experience has really pushed me and given me a drive to be a really, really good shooter. I know I need to ensure that, at the next Olympic trials, I won’t miss making the team by a couple of points.”
Owners John Kuemmel and Shawn Diehl have done exactly what they wanted to do when they decided nearly three years ago to fulfill a 25-year dream they shared of opening their own bar. In the heart of Tampa Palms, they have spun an inventive menu, ice cold beer, premium liquor and a unique atmosphere into our readers’ favorite bar in New Tampa to enjoy a night out.
What’s not to like (other than the ridiculously hard questions on Tuesday Trivia Nights)?
A bar that has outstanding food — and The Fat Rabbit finished just behind Acropolis as our readers’ sixth favorite restaurant in New Tampa, too — is never a bad thing.
The chicken wings are arguably the best around — make sure you check out the Buffalo Garlic Ranch — and there’s even a Real McCoy burger named after former Tampa Bay Buc and Tampa Palms resident Gerald McCoy and a fresh Catch of the Week. And, the crispy tater tots are truly divine.
The Fat Rabbit now even brews a Transplant IPA and Concrete & Gold Pilsner in-house, with more tanks on the way.
And, the decor gives the Fat Rabbit an elegant look with a comfortable neighborhood feel that keeps you coming back for more. — JCC
2. Stonewood Grill & Tavern has been among New Tampa’s favorite places to drink since the moment it opened, and since our readers obviously also love the food (see previous page), too, there’s no doubt that Stonewood is here to stay.
3. Mr. Dunderbak’s has never had a full-alcohol bar, but its huge variety of beers from around the world, unique German-inspired menu, gifts and even chocolates keep it one of our readers’ favorite bars year after year, which often makes it hard to find a seat at that bar.
4. Chili’s Grill & Bar in New Tampa continues to receive lots of votes in our Reader Survey every year. Even though it’s a chain, there’s no easy access to it from BBD and the restaurants next door to it keep going out of business, it keeps on rolling. ‘Nuff said.
5. Peabody’s in the Shoppes at Amberly plaza in Tampa Palms is another long-time favorite bar that also has great food (especially pizza & wings). Plus, it’s New Tampa’s adult play place, with tons of TVs, pool tables, darts and a younger-skewing crowd.
From left to right: Sam Becker, a USF graduate student in the School of Urban and Regional Planning, Tampa Mayor Jane Castor and City Councilmember Luis Viera.
A standing-room-only crowd packed Compton Park in Tampa Palms on Feb. 3 for the unveiling of the initial results of a New Tampa business study, and while the presentation did seem to assuage some of the concerns of those in attendance, the results of that survey are far from conclusive.
In fact, because many of the area businesses along Bruce B. Downs Blvd. south of I-75 — meaning Tampa Palms — have not reported data, like earnings and number of employees, to the City of Tampa, the study was only based on businesses along BBD from the I-75 interchange north to County Line Rd.
University of South Florida School of Public Affairs director Ron Sanders said the data the study did find south of I-75 “looked funny.”
That meant that the closings of Staples, HH Gregg, Bed Bath & Beyond and Casa Ramos, which played a central role in triggering the study, were not included in any conclusions by the USF study, which included input from New Tampa (morning) Rotary Club and North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce members, as well as other local business leaders.
“You have to take some of the quantitative analysis (from the study) with a grain of salt,” Sanders told the crowd, which included Tampa Mayor Jane Castor and Tampa City Council member Luis Viera. “It’s limited by the data, and it is what it is. It had to be balanced by some of the real-life observations and anecdotal (evidence).”
While the study was spurred by community concerns about business closings in Tampa Palms that were pointed out to Viera (as well as to Mayor Castor while she was running for office), at least north of I-75, seems to paint a rosier picture.
According to Sam Becker, a USF graduate student in the School of Urban and Regional Planning, a total of 57 businesses closed in New Tampa north of I-75 between 2015-18, losing an annual sales volume of roughly $122 million.
However, in that same period, 94 new businesses opened, generating nearly $181 million in sales.
That produced a net gain of 37 new businesses, $59 million total sales volume and 1,651 employees.
But without data from south of I-75, Sanders says “it is hard to draw any conclusions” about the New Tampa area as a whole.
And, since the study began, the once-vacant HH Gregg and Staples spaces in the Market Square at Tampa Palms plaza have new tenants, and a handful of new restaurants have opened or will be open by the summer, including more than a dozen new businesses in the Village at Hunter’s Lake development.
The study made a host of recommendations, including creating a chamber of commerce-esque Business Retention & Expansion committee, attracting non-chains and marketing and branding New Tampa.
A community slogan — “Something For Everyone” was floated as an example — as well as signage would let people passing through know they are in New Tampa.
“I still think it comes down to having a community identity that is amenable to everybody here in New Tampa,” Viera said. “It’s something we should work on, as the study pointed to.”
The study’s results, while inconclusive, seemed to be met with enthusiasm by most of the 100 or more people in the crowd at Compton Park.
“I still miss my Bed Bath & Beyond, but I do feel better about the business climate,” said longtime Arbor Greene resident Noreen Luetteke. “I think it’s improving. I just hope it stays that way.”
Nothing Bundt Cakes arrived in Wesley Chapel quietly in March of 2017.
It was that day that its unique offering of tiny, moist bundt cakes with mouth-watering cream cheese icing nearly stole the show at the Taste of New Tampa. Competing against more than 35 restaurants, Nothing Bundt Cakes finished third overall in attendee voting.
The next year, Nothing Bundt Cakes opened at the Shops of Wiregrass, and now, the shop is your choice for best dessert in Wesley Chapel.
“That is great,” says Tammy Mencia, who owns the Wesley Chapel and Carrollwood locations of the dessert franchise with her husband Ralph. “We have had a great reception from the community since we opened.”
The franchise was started 22 years ago in Las Vegas, with bundt cakes made with all fresh ingredients and the best butter and cream cheese available.
The store, according to employees Amanda Burden and Anissa Rivera (pictured above), is always busy. The chocolate chocolate chip is the best seller, but no matter which of the 10 flavors you choose, or what size — bite-sized bundtinis, miniature bundtlets or full-sized or special order bundt cakes — you are guaranteed a moist, delicious treat that will leave you smiling.— JCC
2. Happy Cow Frozen Yogurt Happy Cow continues to outpace other local frozen yogurt shops in our annual Reader Survey, and among the items that distinguish this make-your-own frozen yogurt shop from others are its delicious, house-made brownies and chocolate chip cookies and its varieties of flavors & toppings.
3. Culver’s Culver’s started in Wisconsin, where they take their frozen custard seriously. The burgers and cheese curds are divine, but a shake, pint of frozen custard and the Concrete Mixers are worth the stop all by themselves. Wesley Chapel has two locations, so from one Cheesehead to the rest of you: you’re welcome!
4. Dairy Queen DQ doesn’t do anything special with its desserts, and maybe that’s the charm for locals — you know what you’re getting. The ice cream is good, the Blizzards are way better than McFlurries, and ice cream sundae, parfaits are easy choices and delicious ice cream cakes are always a treat.
5. Batter n Dough BnD on S.R. 56 specializes in topping trendy liege and other waffles with everything from ice cream to eggs & bacon, all with delicious flair. The ice cream waffle sandwiches are equally delicious with sweet or savory waffles. And, in less than two years, Batter & Dough has made our readers’ top-5!
6. Ice Dreammm Shop 7. 365 Caffe Italiano 8. Buttermilk Provisions 9. Jenny’s Mini Donuts 10. Le Macaron
