‘Mysterious’ Crosswalk Pops Up On Wiregrass School Rd. To Access 7-Eleven 

During the week leading up to Christmas break, crews were seen putting the final touches on a brand new mid-block crosswalk (with flashing beacons) on Wiregrass School Rd., directly in front of Wiregrass Ranch High (WRH), to the surprise of both parents and staff, who had no idea it was coming, or who was even installing it,….and it went up quick! 

It was like a surprise Christmas gift from a secret Santa had just appeared at the school’s doorsteps, literally. 

At the beginning of this 2024-25 school year, WRH principal Robyn White had sent an email out to parents about her concerns with students crossing mid-block, in order to get to the 7-Eleven on the other side of the road: 

“We need your help. I have noticed in the [morning], but more so in the afternoon, that students are crossing the road in front of traffic by the 7-Eleven. Please encourage your child, if they are a walker or bike rider, to use the crosswalk [at the signal] at Mansfield Blvd. The last thing any of us wants to see is a student get hit by a car or a bus. They think they are invincible and don’t hesitate to walk in front of moving vehicles and, as a parent, it is scary for me to watch. I appreciate your assistance as you discuss this safety concern with your children.” 

Since the 7-Eleven gas station opened in 2022, it’s been a very popular place for WRH students to grab a drink or a snack, as it is conveniently located just outside the school. 

But, the gas station was on the opposite side of Wiregrass School Rd. from the school, so students would just find gaps in the school traffic wherever they could, to cross anywhere from the sidewalk leaving the school property. There was no “designated” place to cross, except at the traffic signal, which was about 350 feet out of the way, and kids tend to take the shortest path possible. 

This new mid-block crosswalk is positioned perfectly to help with the problem, providing a well-marked and well-lit consolidated crossing point, located off the southern corner of the gas station, just outside the front gate for the school. 

The question on the minds of many residents and school administrators was, “How did it get there?” White and other staff members said they had no idea, since the new crosswalk was installed just outside of the school’s property. 

A keen eye would notice that the new sidewalk ramps for the crosswalk connect with the new sidewalk that was just laid around the property for the recently constructed Bay Paws Pet Resort (blue building in photo). Mallory White, the new Wesley Chapel Bay Paws manager (who previously was at the Trinity location), explained that Bay Paws provided the new crosswalk. 

“It was something that the county required, so our contractor worked with them on it over two weeks [to complete the crosswalk].” 

White also said that the crosswalk was one of the final steps in the Bay Paws site construction permit requirements, so the pet boarding facility could receive its Certificate of Occupancy (CO) to open, which she says she hopes will be by the time this issue reaches your mailbox. 

Over the past couple of years, Pasco County officials have been focusing even more on pedestrian safety and connectivity, with effective sidewalk networks, with all new construction permits. This new crosswalk is equipped with Rapid Rectangular Flashing Beacons (RRFBs) which are activated by a push button on either side of the street, similar to the ones recently installed on Mansfield Blvd and on County Line Rd in Meadow Pointe. 

There is no button in the median because the flashing sequence gives ample time to cross both sides of the street. The push button makes a loud chirp when pressed to let the pedestrian know that the flashing beacons have been activated.

S.R. 56 At Mansfield/Wiregrass Ranch Blvd. Gets Dual Left Turn Upgrade 

All approaches to the traffic signals on S.R. 56 and Mansfield Blvd. now have dual left turn lanes. The under-construction Orlando Health Hospital is seen here in the background. 

A major traffic pattern change has just been competed at the intersection of Mansfield Blvd./Wiregrass Ranch Blvd. and S.R. 56, as there are now dual left turn lanes in all directions. This change occurred rather quickly last month and only took a few weeks to finish. 

The change was a requirement of the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) and Pasco County permitting conditions for the new Orlando Health Hospital, being constructed at the northeast corner of the intersection. This means that the hospital paid for and completed the work in advance of its anticipated opening, which is still expected to be sometime in 2026. 

The change was required to help offset and accommodate the additional traffic the hospital is expected to generate at that intersection, which was laid out in Orlando Health’s traffic study, which was submitted in advance of the project for government review. These operational and safety improvements should keep the signal working efficiently long into the future. 

The S.R. 56 intersection with Mansfield/Wiregrass Ranch Blvd.

All of the signals at the intersection had always been designed to accommodate these extra left turn lanes, but they were striped out with paint until needed. The first dual left (from Mansfield Blvd. northbound onto S.R. 56 westbound) was added in 2018 when FDOT contacted Pasco to let the county know that vehicular traffic leaving the schools in the morning was causing backups on Mansfield Blvd., creating a concern — and sometimes long delays — for local residents. 

Safety has always been a concern here as well, as there have been multiple serious crashes involving younger drivers making left turns in front of oncoming traffic under the previous permissive left turn signal. Now, with the dual lefts, all left turns are protected, which means left turns are only permitted with a green arrow, greatly reducing the potential for crashes. 

There’s also still room to add a third through lane in both the westbound and eastbound directions on S.R. 56 in the striped-out area, when needed. 

Meadow Pointe Blvd. Still A Concern 

Meanwhile, safety and efficiency are still concerns with the down stream signal at Meadow Pointe Blvd. and S.R. 56. 

District 2 Pasco County Commissioner Seth Weightman has said that improvements are coming to this intersection as well, an item that the Board of County Commissioners (BOC) passed in July. 

Dual lefts will be added for eastbound traffic on S.R. 56 to turn north onto Meadow Pointe Blvd., which backs up badly during the afternoon rush hour, and dual lefts will be added for northbound traffic on Meadow Pointe Blvd. to turn west onto S.R. 56, which experiences bad back-ups during both the morning and evening rush hours. 

Cheesecake Factory Plans Move Forward At Tampa Premium Outlets 

Although we found other graphics submitted later by The Cheesecake Factory, this earlier map, which we only found on the Pasco County Development & Growth Updates Facebook page, has the most accurate representation of where the restaurant will be located in the current parking lot at the Tampa Premium Outlets. 

Just before the start of the New Year (on Dec. 31), preliminary site plans were submitted to Pasco County for the hotly anticipated The Cheesecake Factory restaurant, which is expected to be located in the current parking lot at the busy Tampa Premium Outlets on S.R. 56 (see map). 

We were able to talk with a source familiar with the project (but who asked not to be identified for the story) to get the inside scoop about a few more details with this plan. 

Probably the most important piece of information we’re sure everyone is wondering about is “When is The Cheesecake Factory anticipated to finish construction and open its doors?” 

Our source said that while the restaurant has not yet received the permits to begin building (so this is still mostly subjective), the restaurant’s ownership/development group is shooting to open during the third quarter of this year, which would likely put it opening just before the holidays — although that seems somewhat ambitious considering it hasn’t even begun building yet. 

Even so, when we asked, “Can you really get it done that fast?,” the response was a very confident “Yes!” Our source also said that the company expecting about a three-week turnaround to get comments back from Pasco County, which means that some site work could begin as soon as this issue arrives in your mailbox, if things go according to plan. 

In addition, while what was shown in the submittal on Dec. 31 was a building of a little more than 7,500 sq. ft., our source said that the plan has since been updated to be closer to about a 7,700 sq.-ft. building, which indicates that the company is still actively working on perfecting the layout even before getting comments back from the county. In addition to the indoor space, the restaurant’s outdoor seating area is shown to be about 1,500 sq. ft. 

What About The Parking? 

When asked about the parking situation, our source claimed that the net loss would only be about 20 spaces total for the mall — four of which are handicapped parking spaces that the source said would just be shifted over to the next parking aisle and not actually lost. 

But, our detailed review of the proposed construction plan indicates the net loss will be closer to 60 regular parking spaces, with the four handicapped spaces being shifted as explained. So, which parking space loss is correct — 20 spaces or 60? We’ll have to get back to you on that one. 

Meanwhile, the mall’s website states there are only about 40 handicapped-accessible parking spaces throughout the entire property, so any loss of handicapped parking would appear to be another problem. 

As for how The Cheesecake Factory will be situated in the current mall parking lot, the restaurant is still shown as being located near the “central” pedestrian front entrance of the mall, right off the northwest corner of that entrance’s roundabout, where the primary “Tampa Premium Outlets” sign is located. The main entrance of the restaurant and the outside seating area are both shown as facing that roundabout. 

Since the restaurant was first announced, many people have wondered about how a mega restaurant like this could be getting built at this already-packed location. 

According to public information on Pasco’ County’s permitting website, this restaurant development still falls within the mall’s total entitlements (the total amount of commercial space that is allowed to be built) that were approved by the county’s Board of County Commissioners in the latest rezoning for the Cypress Creek Town Center Master Planned Unit Development (MPUD) in which the Outlet Mall is located). Those entitlements were approved back in February of 2019. 

New Kenton Rd. Development Plan Means More ‘Connected City’ Growth 

The current intersection of Kenton Rd. and Elam Rd. in northern Wesley Chapel. 

In our front page article from our Nov. 26, 2024, issue entitled, “Will Historic Flooding from Milton Impact Pasco’s Future Land Use Decisions?,” we talked about a potential mixed use development off the north end of Kenton Rd., just on the north end of Wesley Chapel, part of what is planned as Pasco County’s “Connected City.” 

Two maps showing the proposed 10-acre commercial project (above) project site and future Kenton Rd. improvements (below).

Kenton Rd. will end up being an important travel corridor of this ‘new city’ and many of the properties along it have been gearing up for major redevelopment. 

The latest one, at the very opposite south end of Kenton Rd. and Elam Rd., on the northwest corner of the intersection, is a currently overgrown rural site of just under 10 acres, with an old, unkempt and boarded-up house, a blown-down fence, a barn, a dirt road and an unfinished concrete block building that is rumored by locals to possibly have a few old cars in it. 

On Dec. 19, a rezoning request was filed for this property to take it from an agricultural designation to become a commercial Master Planned Unit Development (or MPUD) and, according to Pasco’s website, “to allow for the development of a maximum of 10,000 sq. ft. of Commercial/Retail/Office Space, 90,000 sq. ft. of Self-Storage facility and 120 hotel rooms.” 

While that request may seem out of character for this currently rural area, the request may be exactly what Pasco County officials have in mind for the location, given what else is coming along Kenton Rd. and the near-future road widening plans currently under county review that extend a mile north, but would eventually go another half mile up to Tyndall Rd. (right map), changing the dirt Kenton Rd. into something much more suburban in nature. 

A plan first submitted in 2022 showed Kenton Rd. becoming a two-lane divided roadway with a median, and Elam Rd. to be widened to accommodate a left turn lane onto Kenton Rd. This widening is planned to serve traffic for a roughly 100-acre development on the east side of Kenton Rd. just north of Elam Rd. That plan made it through to Dec. 2023, with a Notice of Intent (NOI) issued from the county. 

Phase 2 of the Kenton Rd. widening was submitted later, and would serve a 150-acre mixed-use project on the northwest end of Kenton Rd. Plans for this road work were submitted as recently as Nov. 2024 and are actively moving forward. 

The developers of this new 10-acre commercial project (labeled “PROJECT SITE” on left map) plan to time their project to take advantage of all this widening, because their “Substandard Road Application” references the road work being done by the other developments. 

Since this is a rezoning request, it will still require public hearings with both the Pasco Planning Commission and later with the Pasco Board of County Commissioners for approval, with those dates still to be determined. 

The Townes At Cross Creek Townhomes Are Filling Up Quickly! 

The Townes at Cross Creek townhomes by Lennar Homes (on Cross Creek Blvd., across from the main entrance to Heritage Isles) offer a more affordable alternative then most single-family homes in the New Tampa area. (Photo by Joel Provenzano) 

A little over a year ago, in our Sept. 23 New Tampa issue, we told you about an upcoming townhome community that Lennar was getting ready to build, called the Townes at Cross Creek. 

The unique thing about this development is the fact that it is new residential construction, in the heart of what was otherwise an entirely built out and established Cross Creek Blvd. corridor, something that hadn’t been seen in years. 

For the past couple of years, townhomes have been extremely popular with buyers — especially with rising real estate prices —as a mostly less-expensive option to traditional single family-homes, while still offering the living space, garages and floorplan options buyers desire, just with less land. 

And, that’s been great for Lennar, as the construction giant has been actively building a large portion of the new townhome market around the Tampa Bay area, typically at the lowest price point compared with their competitors, with DR Horton being Lennar’s closest rival. 

Keeping Pace 

According to sales rep Carlos Torres and construction manager Fernando Ospina, the Townes have been going absolutely gangbusters since they began being built in June of this year. And, that’s without even having an onsite sales office open yet! 

The Townes at Cross Creek are divided into two phases. Although there is no “Phase A” or “Phase C” (and we have no idea why), “Phase B” consists of 60 units (located directly across the street from the entrance to the Heritage Isles community); and “Phase D,” consists of 35 units further to the east, being built almost simultaneously together, but oddly about a half mile from each other on two completely separate parcels of land. 

As of Nov 25, 27 of the 60 units in Phase B were already, according to Lennar’s website, and the Lennar team told us a few more were working towards closing, including the “model,” where the garage space was actively being built into the on-site sales office for the development (but it was not yet open as of our press time). 

We were told that the buyer for the model was itching to close because, when the model sells while still being used as a model, the builder will do a lease-back to the buyer, effectively paying the buyer rent until Lennar is done using it and will then convert the sales office back into a two-car garage. 

When Ospina, was asked why the on-site sales office wasn’t finished yet, he explained that, “It took longer than expected to get the needed permit, but it was received Nov. 16,” where they promptly started the build-out, and are now close to adding furniture. He chuckled and said the delay was due to, “The City of Tampa, you know, being the City of Tampa,” eluding to the always- arduous permitting process. 

Other than that, he said construction had been going really well, with the number of days for each townhome building completion (under his purview) being only about 129 days, a full month faster than the average for his company. 

“Even though we’ve been doing great, we could ideally use another construction manager to help keep pace,” Ospina said as he flipped through the multi-page checklist he had in his hands, detailing inspection item after inspection item, everything that needed to be perfect before a unit could be finished. 

Details & Pricing 

The day we showed up to look at the community, three other groups of people also pulled up (one of whom had an appointment), but Torres was able to effectively split up his time, making sure everyone’s questions were answered. 

Torres said that they’ve been so busy that they wondered if they would really even need to open the on-site sales office at all. He’s been driving out and meeting people with appointments on-site, and currently any customers who want to sit down and discuss numbers or go over paperwork have met him at Lennar’s Two Rivers office in Zephyrhills, about 10 minutes away, at: 35027 Brackett Bend Rd. 

Ospina said that most of the buildings will be done over the next five months, with occupancy for Phase D being ready in March, April, and May. The very last building on the project schedule is actually a 6-unit building across from the future on-site sales office in Phase B, to be ready for occupancy before the fall of next year. 

As construction progresses, units are only being released for sale in very small handfuls. Lennar’s online transparency makes seeing the inventory quick and straightforward. The website for the community actually shows which units have sold, which are currently for sale (with exact current prices) and which ones are upcoming on an interactive map, along with the floorplans. 

All three floorplans feature 3 bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms with usable covered patios that can easily be screened. All units also have large kitchen islands (above), as well as a second-story loft, which even the in the small plan was still a usable size and layout. Here are the three units at the Townes: 

Allegiance – 1,597 sq. ft., with a 1-car garage; being offered at $319,990 

Constitution – 1,760 sq. ft., 1-car garage; being offered at $339,900 

Declaration- 1,807 sq. ft., 2 car garage; being offered at $364,900 (this is the model and the end units on each building) 

These were the advertised online prices at the time of writing the article and are subject to change), but Torres said that additional discounts may be offered at various times, and the prices for the Declaration plan may go all the way up to around $410,000, depending upon the lot. 

The prices seem very competitive to whats being offered in other Lennar communities, especially considering these are being built in the desirable and geographically well-positioned New Tampa. Prices are even similar to what was being sold by Lennar up in Connerton, a community on the north end of Land O’ Lakes, but these New Tampa units do come with some drawbacks. 

The $384 monthly homeowner association (HOA) fee is definitely on the high side, especially considering that this community has no amenities. Torres also says that no utilities are included in the HOA fee, but that it does cover outside maintenance and insurance. The units at the Townes also have tiny backyards — noticeably smaller than other recent townhome communities we’ve toured. 

Torres asked that anyone interested in seeing the community should make an appointment, and check to see if the on-site sales office has been opened yet. The phone number is (888) 211-6153. Carlo Torres also can be reached by email at carlo.torres@lennar.com.