New Tampa Says ‘Goodbye, 2018!’ — Remembering Some Of Our Top Stories

One of the best things about working for a local publication are the stories.

Stories that are sometimes about your friends and neighbors and your children’s schoolmates, or the road you drive to work or your favorite local restaurant. And, there are the stories about people you didn’t know, but do now, and maybe you’ll share a wave at Publix that you wouldn’t have otherwise.

Some are happy stories, and some are sad. Too many sad stories, sometimes.

But, almost all of them are memorable, in one way or another.

Here are some of the most popular, according to Facebook and our website, and memorable stories we wrote this year, in no particular order:

CHAMPS!

Hey, everyone likes a winner, right, and in New Tampa and Wesley Chapel we definitely had our share in 2018.

Nelson Agholor

Like Nelson Agholor. It’s doubtful many people even knew the Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver attended Liberty Middle School until he made our cover, and to be honest, we didn’t know either until his Eagles won the Super Bowl.

But sure enough, he was a flag football legend back in the day — and a pretty good hoopster, too — before going on to become a football star and a Super Bowl champ.

And, let’s not forget a little way up the road at Florida Hospital Center Ice, where the U.S. Olympic women’s hockey team trained in preparation for winning their own championship, an Olympic gold medal in South Korea.

The nail-biting shootout win over arch-rival Canada was one of the most classic hockey finishes in Olympic history. Could they have done it without the warm weather and friendly hospitality of New Tampa and Wesley Chapel filling their souls with a strength unlike any other?

We’d like to think not.

And, who has a friend that had a child play on a team that won a championship this year, like the Turner-Bartels boys hoops team winning that school’s first title, or the boys and girls track team winning a first district title for Benito?

*Raises hand*

NEWS

There were so many stories we did on kids winning chess championships and math and debate competitions and starting their own clubs that we lost count (and by the way, keep those stories coming!).

But do you know what people really liked to read and comment on?

Traffic!

(Right?)

But mostly roads. So, which road do we start with?

We could start with Bruce B Downs, which we declared was Bruce B. Done, which was mostly true according to the county, until some paving issues arose, and those finishing touches that were supposed to be completed turned out to be more numerous than expected.

However….it’s still a dramatic improvement and soon, very soon, the big trucks and orange-vested fellows will be gone, and BBD’s completion really is the highlight of many people’s transportation year.

Now, about Kinnan-Mansfield…

Oh, never mind.

Even with 700 new homes okayed for neighboring K-Bar Ranch, Pasco County is standing firm in its opposition to connecting the two roads. It appears hopeless.

That leaves the folks in K-Bar with one way in and out, and that makes for a pretty bleak commuting future for those who can’t afford to put a helicopter pad in their backyards.

COMMUNITY

In with the new and out with old, they say.

Local voters nearly booted Ken Hagan off the Hillsborough Board of Commissioners, but while he survived, long-time resident and political representative Victor Crist did not. Same goes for fellow New Tampa resident Shawn Harrison.

State House District 63 candidate Fentrice Driskell.

But, fresh faces like county commissioner Mariella Smith (she defeated Crist) and State Representative Fentrice Driskell (she beat Harrison) should offer a fresh perspective and some new ideas. Hopefully, they will benefit New Tampa.

District 7 City Council member Luis Viera is running for re-election in 2019, and he had another busy year. We don’t want to say the guy is everywhere and at every event, but we actually saw him bagging groceries at Winn-Dixie, mowing our neighbor’s lawn, handing out programs at a Wharton orchestra event, helping someone find the right flooring at Home Depot, playing trivia at the Fat Rabbit and holding a townhall with three people at a bus stop.

And that was all in the same day!

We will say this — 2018 may have been as busy a year as there has been in terms of activism for bettering our area.

Hillsborough County School Board member Cindy Stuart (left) and Tampa City Councilman Luis Viera.

If you have a complaint, there’s a place for you in New Tampa. There is a New Tampa Council, there is a group that meets to fight for pedestrian safety, there is a group that argued against the re-naming of the New Tampa Library, there were multiple town halls, there were meetings at the library and there were forums and workshops and studies and presentations.

If you really want to know, there’s no excuse not to. It was a good year for New Tampa, as work continues on traffic issues, roads and sidewalks are being studied and the New Tampa Rec Center expansion and autism park steam towards completion — all items that continue to be pushed at the multitude of public events in New Tampa.

EVENTS

A beer tasting event in an event center at Catholic church?

Sign us up!

Seriously, the New Tampa Brew Fest was arguably the best event we attended all year, and not just because they had to kick us out at the end of the night.

Twice.

While there is plenty of room to improve, and we hope they stick around and give it a second shot because New Tampa needs more events like this.

The Taste of New Tampa was, as usual, another wonderful event as well, and nothing beats doing it indoors at the largest skating facility south of New York.

We want more, people. Get to work.

SADNESS

New Tampa has had its fair share of awful tragedy over the years, often making national news, and 2018 was no exception, as sadness gripped the area following the death of West Meadows resident Pedro Aguerreberry in June.

Riding bikes with his 3- and 8-year-old sons, 42-year-old Pedro was struck and killed by mentally ill Mikese Morse (who has since been declared unfit to stand trial).

It was a devastating loss for his family and friends. Pedro was universally loved by everyone who knew him.

And, while we didn’t, we certainly wish we had.

New Tampa Residents Send Help To Panama City In Michael’s Wake

Susan Harrison (left) rented a U-Haul and delivered 100 gift bags to families in her hometown of Panama City who are still reeling from Hurricane Michael.

While it’s now been nearly three months since Hurricane Michael ravaged Florida’s panhandle on October 10, many of its residents are still homeless and very much in need.

New Tampa resident Susan Harrison’s hometown of Panama City was devastated by the storm and she wanted to do something to help.

Harrison is the wife of former Florida House District 63 Representative Shawn Harrison, who lost his re-election bid in November.

“Right now, 75 percent of the structures in Panama City have been destroyed,” Susan says. “It’s the weirdest thing to have to use my GPS to get around my hometown. I don’t recognize anything.”

Right after the storm, Susan collected about 100 blankets and sleeping bags from friends and neighbors and delivered them directly to the schools that were being used as shelters.

At that time, she says she and her sister looked at all the kids who are now homeless — she says 3,800 school kids are still living in tents in the panhandle — and said to each other, “We need to get these kids some Christmas.”

Susan says she believed there were people back in New Tampa who would like to help, so she decided to reach out to them.

When Susan shared her idea with her Bible study and posted it on Facebook, she says the idea took off.

Her friends and fellow New Tampa residents Sharon Kaelin, Tracy Guice and Lori Bleckley all jumped in to help, and their efforts spread exponentially.

“So many people have come together to donate things to make this happen,” says Susan. “Probably 60-70 people have donated and made it what it is.”

“We had 100 bags filled to the brim,” she added, and delivered them to Panama City just before Christmas.

They packed large shopping bags full of both essentials and things people would want. There are some for women, some for boys and some for girls, including babies, toddlers, kids and teenagers.

“Each one had a blanket, socks, hat, gloves, toothbrush and toothpaste,” she says, “and then the kids’ have toys such as soccer balls, baby dolls, footballs and cars, while the women’s bags have makeup, lotion and soap.”

Lori’s Bible study, called Community Bible Study, which is held at St. James United Methodist Church, donated a devotion book and wrote Bible verses and tied them to the outside of the bags for encouragement.

Sharon came up with the idea to ask kids from the Young Life club at Wharton High to donate candy bars, so that people of all ages had a hand in contributing gifts to the kids of Panama City. About 100 candy bars were donated by high school students from Wharton for the effort.

Making The Connection

To distribute the bags to those in need, Susan connected with an organization in Panama City that typically helps pets. When the storm hit, the organization’s founder, Lisa Jackson, quickly found homes for many pets whose families could no longer care for them because they lost their homes.

Once she had the animals settled in temporary homes while their owners tried to re-build their lives, Lisa realized that the only way to get the pets home was to help the people.

“Lisa has so many great connections and got people to come from all over to come and take the dogs and cats out,” Susan explains. “She has a big storage unit she usually uses for dog food, but now she’s using it to help get people back up and running, so the dogs and cats can go back home.”

Susan says the devastation in Panama City is a truly long-term problem that will need attention in the months to come. She explains that even families who have insurance on their homes may be stuck, as their jobs have disappeared and they can’t afford the deductible to rebuild their homes, which can easily cost $10,000 or more.

At least during the holidays, though, many of those families were brought a little Christmas cheer, thanks to the generosity of people who live more than 300 miles away.

“It’s an opportunity for people to realize that Christmas is really about giving, and that people are hurting,” explains Susan. “As hard as life as can be for us, there are people who are without basic needs, people who did everything right. Mother Nature is Mother Nature. She came through and she doesn’t discriminate.”

After receiving bags for her family, a mom in Panama City sent Susan a text message that said: “Thank you so much for the gift bags. There’s definitely something for everyone in them. I just wanted you to know how much I appreciate what you’ve done for my family, so thank you again from the bottom of my heart.”

S.R. 56 Interchange To Begin Building In January

In what could be considered an early Christmas gift to local holiday shoppers, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) decided to hold off on beginning construction of the diverging diamond interchange (DDI) planned for the intersection of S.R. 56 and I-75.

Construction of the three-year, nearly $40-million project was originally supposed to kick off in November.

“In my opinion, it was a good idea,” said Ryan Forrestel of American Consulting Engineers (ACE), the design project manager for the project. ACE holds the patent on the diverging diamond design.

Although he adds that he wasn’t involved in the decision to delay the project, “it was a good idea to avoid the holiday.”

The delay may have saved shoppers this month, but in January, the project will begin in earnest and drivers can expect to begin experiencing slowdowns, Forrestel said.

The DDI  was originally slated to begin in 2024 before getting moved up, so the delay is minor by comparison.

With its crossover pattern, switching traffic lanes and timed lights, the DDI is expected to ease congestion at the busy intersection, which is near the Tampa Premium Outlets and a dozen or so restaurants, while also serving as primary gateway for those heading to, or home from, Tampa.

DDIs are growing in popularity nationwide, and last year one opened to great reviews in Sarasota, the first DDI in Florida.

There are also plans to build one at the I-75 and MLK Blvd. interchange in Tampa.

S.R. 54 Commercial Development Is Heating Up, Too!

For the last few years, when people have talked about the growth in Wesley Chapel, they mainly have focused on the S.R. 56 corridor, from west of I-75 all the way east to the Wiregrass Ranch Development of Regional Impact (DRI).

Now, however, it appears that the portion of S.R. 54 from near I-75, east to Morris Bridge Rd./Eiland Blvd., also is heating up, as a flood of new meetings, permits and construction are ready to transform the one-time sleepy road that cuts through the middle of the county from Zephyrhills to New Port Richey.

In Wesley Chapel, the aforementioned segment of the S.R. 54 corridor has been sparsely populated with businesses and restaurants. But, with the widening of the road all the way to Zephyrhills, as well as a house-building boom taking place on the north side of 54 (in addition to the growth of the northern portion of Wiregrass Ranch), Wesley Chapel’s portion of S.R. 54 is taking its turn as a fast-growing area.

“I think it will be the next area where you see some things happening,” said Hope Allen of the North Tampa Chamber of Commerce. “There are a lot of things coming to that corridor.”

And, it’s not just businesses.

On the north side of S.R. 54, Avalon Park West and WaterGrass (on Curley Rd.) are still building hundreds of homes and even smaller communities like Saddleridge Estates are still adding new homes.

In between those soon-to-be larger developments, the massive high-tech Connected City project, which is starting in Epperson, features the first Crystal Lagoons® amenity in the U.S. (which is finally open), and soon in Mirada, which also will be home to a lagoon.

The nearly 8,000 acres of the Connected City are bordered by S.R. 52 to the north and Overpass Rd. to the south, and from I-75 to the west and Curley Rd. to the east.

Combined, Epperson and Mirada will have nearly 6,000 new homes and 1,500 apartments.

“First come the homes, then the     commercial,” says Bill Nye, founder of Century 21 Bill Nye Realty, Inc.

Nye has been in real estate in the area since 1974, long before there was anything on S.R. 54 and when Pasco’s C.R. 581 (now called Bruce B. Downs Blvd., or BBD) was nothing but a dirt road. Over the years, Nye has watched the Porter family ease along the development of Wiregrass Ranch, and seen the Sierra family’s vision for the western portion of S.R. 56 come to fruition.

He says that most of the property on S.R. 54 isn’t owned by a Porter or a Sierra. Instead, a hodgepodge of owners are now cashing in. Nye says the “For Sale” signs along S.R. 54 are snowflakes — “You don’t see any two signs that are from the same owner,” he says.

A majority of the traffic emanating from all those new homes is likely to pass right through the intersection of BBD and S.R. 54, and local drivers will soon have new places to stop for gas, coffee, lunch, dinner, groceries and more.

And there is still a wealth of options coming along S.R. 56 from the Lutz area past the Shops at Wiregrass mall.

“I think everyone is growing together,” says District 2 commissioner Mike Moore, who along with District 1 commissioner Ron Oakley, represents the Wesley Chapel area on the Pasco County Board of Commissioners. “One thing comes, and then more things come.”

Here’s what is under construction, in permitting or proposed for the area along S.R. 54:

1. Nye Commons:

This little strip center recently hosted a ribbon cutting for its six businesses, including the popular O.T.B. (“Only the Best”) Café, which has moved right up the road from its previous location across BBD from Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel.

For more about the tenants at Nye Commons, see “Nibbles & Bytes” on pg. 42 our our current issue.

2. Twistee Treat

3. This will be Wesley Chapel’s third Wawa, joining two locations on S.R. 56. After a seemingly endless stay in permitting, the new store is going up quickly.

4. Chick-fil-A gained final approval in July. Ground should be breaking soon.

5. Dunkin’ Donuts is still under construction, and Dental Care at Quail Hollow is all but complete, and there may be additional retail coming to what is called the Scherer Center.

6. The Publix at Hollybrook Plaza (on the corner of BBD and S.R. 54) is escaping the traffic and moving closer to the new Wal-Mart. Publix closed on the land for its new location in October.

7.  Parks Ford of Wesley Chapel is in the middle of a major expansion that is expected to be completed by early spring 2019.

8. As part of the development of the northernmost portion of Wiregrass Ranch, a new strip center is going up that could be home to two new restaurants. They’re not named in the county filings, but the 5,610- and 6,995-sq.-ft. spaces are both labeled for retail/restaurant.

9. Already under construction, the RaceTrac will give local travelers four options for gas and snacks. Also under construction immediately to the west of RaceTrac is Bay Breeze Car Wash’s 10th location in Tampa Bay, and first in Wesley Chapel.

10. The Pasco C-Center: According to a conceptual plan filed with the county, this center is proposing a fast food restaurant with a drive-through, a 14,698-sq.-ft. pharmacy with a 4,000-sq-ft. retail building divided for three businesses, and a 5,500-sq.-ft. retail building divided for four occupants.

Local ‘Wreaths Across America’ Group To Lay 30,000+ Wreaths At Florida Nat’l. Cemetery

Wesley Chapel resident Randy Lewer has led volunteers in placing wreaths at the graves of thousands of U.S. military veterans buried at the Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell since 2006.

Before Christmas every year, volunteers across the country visit national cemeteries where U.S. military veterans are buried to honor them by placing a Christmas wreath on their graves, in an effort called Wreaths Across America.

One of the largest Wreaths Across America programs in the country takes place tomorrow morning just a short drive north of Wesley Chapel at the Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell (which is located in Sumter County, northeast of Brooksville).

Florida National Cemetery is the final resting place of more than 100,000 U.S. military veterans and 30,000 spouses.

Wesley Chapel resident and Vietnam veteran Randy Lewer has been leading the charge to honor the men and women buried at Florida National Cemetery since 2006. Back then, he and a couple of his buddies from the U.S. Military Vets Motorcycle Club held a small, brief ceremony, where just a few people gathered in the rain.

Now, Randy continues to spend his time, energy and resources every year to be sure that as many people as possible have the opportunity to live out the mission statement of Wreaths Across America, which is, “Remember our fallen U.S. veterans, honor those who serve, and teach your children the value of freedom.”

Last year, more than 8,000 volunteers helped Randy place 27,000 wreaths throughout Florida National Cemetery.

This year, he says, the goal is to place 30,000 wreaths, and up to 10,000 volunteers are expected to help place them on the graves, then participate in a ceremony that honors and remembers U.S. military service men and women.

Since Lewer hasn’t ever received enough wreaths to place one on each and every grave in the cemetery, ceremonial wreaths are presented during the ceremony to honor all members of the military. Seven ceremonial wreaths honor the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Air Force, POW (Prisoners of War)/MIA (Missing In Action) and Merchant Marines.

This year, an additional ceremonial wreath will be placed by “Gold Star” families, which are families who have lost a loved one during their military service. While the wreath will honor all veterans, it is a special tribute recognizing those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our country.

Collecting the funds to purchase 30,000 wreaths is a year-round undertaking for Randy. As of our press time, about 28,000 wreaths have been sponsored.

“Since we started in 2006, we have always grown from the prior year,” Randy says. He says he wasn’t sure they would be able to top last year’s number, but this year’s sponsorships have now surpassed 2017’s.

Many local organizations and community groups, such as the Boy and Cub Scouts, Civil Air Patrol, and even companies, ask friends, family and neighbors to sponsor the wreaths for $15 each.

A Family Tradition…

Monica Riley is the coordinator for American Heritage Girls (AHG) Troop FL2212 at Faith Baptist Church in Wesley Chapel. Her troop sold 75 wreath sponsorships to support Wreaths Across America.

“Placing wreaths on the graves of soldiers is an amazing way to teach our girls to remember our fallen heroes,” she says.

Monica, who has lived in Wesley Chapel for 13 years, says she will be attending the wreath-laying event this year for the third time.

“My father-in-law was on the Battleship Texas on D-Day,” says Monica, explaining why her family first got involved with Wreaths Across America, “so it was important for us to teach our daughter, who was then 11, about his sacrifice by honoring him with a wreath.”

Randy says groups like Monica’s are essential to the massive effort that it takes to purchase that many wreaths for the graves.

“People think, ‘My one wreath won’t make a difference,’ but the one-wreath-at-a-time sponsorships account for at least 90 percent of what we bring in,” says Randy.

He says he gets a couple of corporate donations that purchase a thousand wreaths at a time, but most wreaths are purchased by individuals or groups that typically solicit sponsorships one or a few at a time.

Randy hopes that after people sponsor a wreath or two, they’ll come out to see the wreath-laying and the ceremony for themselves to help them really see what happens on this special day.

“When I was in the service, I was in the color guard and participated in funerals,” explains Randy. “The saddest ones were when there was no one there except a funeral director. That stuck with me.”

He adds that members of “the greatest generation” from World War II may be no longer remembered because they have no surviving family members, or that their families are too far away to visit them.

“So it’s kind of sad, but it’s also kind of cool that we can do this,” Randy says. “We can honor them so they are not forgotten.”

Wreaths can be sponsored year-round. Wreaths purchased now would start the fundraising toward the event in 2019, which Randy says would be a huge help to kick off the efforts and ensure the event is successful next year.

 

This year’s event takes place on Saturday, December 15, at Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell (6502 SW 102nd Ave.). Wreath-laying begins at 10:30 a.m. and the hour-long ceremony starts at 11:45 a.m. Event organizers encourage guests to arrive between 9 and 9:30 a.m., due to heavy traffic into the cemetery.

For additional information about Wreaths Across America or to sponsor one or more wreaths, visit WreathsAcrossAmerica.org/FL0021.