Community Received Crime & City Budget Updates At Second Public Safety Meeting 

(l.-r.) State Rep. Fentrice Driskell, Tampa Mayor Jane Castor, City Councilman Luis Viera, TPD Deputy Chief Brett Owen & TPD Maj. Les Richardson were in attendance at the Town Hall meeting in Tampa Palms on July 30. 

Thankfully, the short, but scary violent crime wave that rocked New Tampa in June has calmed down. 

That fact was evidenced by the much-lower attendance at the second New Tampa Public Safety Town Hall meeting held at Compton Park in Tampa Palms on July 30, nearly five weeks after District 7 Tampa City Council member Luis Viera and the Tampa Police Department (TPD) co-hosted the first New Tampa Public Safety Town Hall meeting at the New Tampa Recreation Center on June 24. 

As we reported in our July 23 issue, the first Town Hall was attended by about 200 people, many of whom expressed fear after three separate shooting incidents in four days that left four people dead and one seriously injured in zip code 33647. 

At the July 30 meeting, new TPD Deputy Chief Brett Owen and recently promoted TPD Dist. 2 Major Leslie “Les” Richardson provided an update on one of the three cases, while acknowledging that one case, which was being handled by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) because it took place on Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. (a county road), was still not resolved. An arrest had already been made in the third case, as we also reported last issue. 

Just to review: The case that is still open was the first one, on June 17, when 24-year-old Wesley Chapel resident Kyle Prisco was shot and killed in broad daylight on BBD at Regents Park Dr., in front of the Chase Bank. Sadly, just as at the June 24 meeting, no one from HCSO attended the July 30 meeting to answer questions about that case. 

“Unfortunately, the Sheriff’s Office has not yet made an arrest in that case,” Dep. Chief Owen said, “but they are diligently working on it and hopefully in the near future, we’ll be able to give you some positive information on that case.” 

The case where TPD made an arrest was the one we reported last issue, when the body of 35-year-old Andre Dyke was found riddled with bullets on the morning of June 21, near the Metro Self Storage adjacent to the New Tampa Nature Park. The man arrested was 29-year-old Andre Aris, who TPD said dumped Dyke’s body, and was charged with first-degree murder. 

Dep. Chief Owen said that the third case, which happened a little later on June 21, was “solved.” Although he didn’t identify any of the people involved, Dep. Chief Owen said that after a man’s body was found on the ground near the entrance to the Portofino Apartments on New Tampa Blvd. in West Meadows, a suspect got into the back seat of the victim’s vehicle and pointed a gun at the driver. “They met up for a narcotics transaction and the two exchanged gunfire and ultimately the two suspects both succumbed to their injuries.” One suspect was pronounced dead at a crash site on Bearss Ave. near I-275, and the other later died after being transported to a hospital. 

Raquel Thompson (in tank top) asks for a crime update. 

One of the attendees at the July 30 Town Hall, Raquel Thompson, expressed her concern that even though she had scanned the QR code to receive TPD media releases in June, nothing had been reported about the “solved” case, “and I think people in this community have been so on edge about the recent crimes that I would think the police would want to let us know the case was resolved. But, why wasn’t that communicated to us?” Owen agreed and said he would look into why nothing was posted about it, but at our press time, no updated information had been released by TPD about the case. 

Owen did mention that, “we’ve had a lot of good work going on here in the neighborhood recently. Just in the last month, on June 26, we had five young men go into the parking lot at the Mezzo at Tampa Palms apartments. They were trying car door handles, but there was a citizen sitting in his car who blew his horn and scared them off, but not very far. They were at Building 3 when the citizen blew his horn, but they ran to Building 8, where our officers made contact with them responding to that call for service. It just goes to show that if you see something that looks out of place, call us and let us know and we can respond to it quickly and actually make something happen.” 

The new Deputy Chief also mentioned that on July 19, some suspects who came up from south Florida that were involved in a motorcycle theft ring, “stole two motorcycles up here in New Tampa and they were ultimately linked to a case that the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office had and another that Osceola County was working. Osceola had some good information that led to these suspects being arrested and the return of one of the motorcycles stolen from New Tampa.” 

He also mentioned that overall, “Our self-initiated activity is up over 55% year-to-date. Just in the last month alone, it’s up 66%, so that makes almost 7,000 calls year-to-date that were self-initiated, which means officers doing something in the community that weren’t called in by citizens. And, just this last month, we’re talking 1,000 self-initiated calls, so we are visible in the community and we’re working diligently to keep you all safe.” 

Next, Maj. Richardson said he just got promoted when Owen became Deputy Chief and he said, “I’m actually looking forward to working here in District 2. I’ve spent the majority of my career in East Tampa (TPD) District 3, which includes downtown and Ybor, and I’ve only been here about two weeks now. But, after looking at the numbers in District 2, I’m excited to be working here and I look forward to working with each and every one of you.” 

In response to a question from resident Al Fernandez about speeding on BBD, Owen said that, “Our traffic unit is doing an initiative on Bruce B. Downs in New Tampa this month because this is one of our problem areas.” 

Another local resident asked if the west side of Tampa Palms Blvd. could be repaved, now that the repaving on the east side of Tampa Palms Blvd. has been completed. Mayor Castor said she would have to look into it, and that passing the continuation of the half-cent Community Investment Tax would help, while Viera also mentioned that there is $550 million sitting in Tallahassee from the overturned Transportation Sales Tax referendum, “some of which will come back to the city, and zip code 33647 voted overwhelmingly for that tax.” Viera also noted that the city’s road repaving budget is only about $5 million a year, and “just to keep our roads the way they are now is about $16 million. That’s what that penny sales tax was for. But, Tampa Palms Blvd. and New Tampa Blvd. repaving are first in my mind for repaving, so we’ll get there eventually.” 

Mayor Castor added, “It’s important to get these repaving projects done as quickly as possible so you don’t have to tear the entire road up, which will cost three times as much as repaving.” 

About The Budget 

After Viera introduced everyone sitting in front of the 50 or so people (photo above) in attendance at the July 30 meeting, Mayor Castor provided an update on the City of Tampa’s Fiscal Year 2025 (which begins Oct. 1) budget. 

“We recently presented our 2025 budget to City Council, which is about $1.8 billion,” Mayor Castor said. “We very conservatively estimate what we are going to receive in property tax revenue, and that is the majority of our operating budget. But, where we’re at is sort of a status quo budget. We are maintaining our high level of service, we’re taking care of the issues that need to be taken care of, but there aren’t going to be any major projects (funded) that weren’t already on the boards. We’re in great shape financially; we have one of the best credit ratings for a city in the U.S. We have so many ‘As’ and ‘A+s’ on that credit rating that I wish I had those grades in high school.” She added that public hearings on the Mayor’s proposed 2025 budget will be held in September. 

She also mentioned that, based on a Community Values Survey the city conducts every year, “to ensure that we’re doing what you want, I’m very pleased to say that we have over a 90% approval rating on the citizens’ trust in city government.” 

At the end of the meeting, Mayor Castor lauded Councilman Viera for his efforts on New Tampa’s behalf. “This guy really fights for you,” she said. “Your needs in New Tampa are very well represented.”

City’s K-Bar Ranch Park Will Likely Include A Cricket Pitch 

K-Bar Residents Also Offer Suggestions Regarding Traffic, Safety, Lighting & Natural Preservation 

The planned City of Tampa park in the K-Bar Ranch community is adjacent to neighborhoods in the community, so the city will be including two access points (in purple) with a gate at the western entrance for neighborhood access & emergency use only to keep the park traffic coming in & out of the main (east) entrance only. See the map below for more information (Source: City of Tampa)

 District 7 Tampa City Council member Luis Viera told a crowd of 50-60 people — most of whom were K-Bar Ranch residents — that he has been working to build a city park in K-Bar Ranch almost since the day he first took office in 2016. 

Viera hosted yet another of his ever-present New Tampa Town Hall meetings on Aug. 7 to discuss the park, which is located completely in K-Bar and which the city now has about $1 million in its fiscal 2025 budget for the park’s design. 

In addition to Viera, Brad Suder, the superintendent of the city’s planning design natural resources division, and city manager Heather Wolf-Erickson also were on hand, representing Tampa’s Parks & Recreation Department. Co-hosting the meeting with Viera was Dist. 67 State Representative (and Florida House minority leader) Fentrice Driskell, who will try to secure some state funding for when the park is ready to be built. 

The meeting was held at the Mahadevia Education Center on Highwoods Preserve Pkwy., in the West Meadows community. 

“Now that we have the design in the budget,” Councilman Viera said, “the next step will be to get community’s input, to see what facilities the residents want to see included in the park.” 

One of the features Viera said was already being talked about being included in this park is a cricket field, “and now is the time to push for that issue.” 

To that end, many of the residents who attended the meeting were there in support of cricket, a sport that originated in England that is hugely popular not only in India, but with New Tampa’s sizable Indian population, which Viera said has been pushing him to include a regulation cricket pitch and facility in the K-Bar park’s design “basically since I was elected.” 

Among those in attendance were Nagesh Nayak and Prahlad Madabhushi, the president and managing director, respectively, of the Tampa Premier League (TPL), which currently is based at the Wesley Chapel District Park on Boyette Rd., but which doesn’t have an actual cricket pitch. 

To start the discussion, Viera touted the $9- $10 million total he has gotten for recreation facilities in New Tampa since taking office eight years ago, including the expansion of the New Tampa Recreation Center, the expansion of the recreation facilities behind Liberty Middle School (working with the Hillsborough School District) and the City of Tampa All-Abilities Park. Viera said, “I couldn’t have done this without the help of these folks — Brad Suder and Heather Wolf-Erickson.” 

Wolf-Erickson said that designing a park is, “a long process that won’t get accomplished tonight, but when it’s built, that’s when it gets handed over to my team and we do the operations, to keep the park beautiful and packed, and handle the waiting lists and all that we do for the (city) parks here in New Tampa.” 

She added that, “The design phase is such fun, so I hope you all will sit back, relax and enjoy that design phase, but just realize that whatever you think (the park) is going to be, it’s going to be a hybrid of what everybody wants. That’s the beautiful part about it. It will represent the whole community.” 

Wolf-Erickson also said that Suder, who was involved in the design of every city recreation facility in New Tampa, also was responsible for the design of the Tampa Riverwalk downtown and so many other facilities city-wide. 

“Luis didn’t mention the New Tampa Nature Park (near I-75), but it is one of my favorite parks that I’ve designed,” Suder said, “but these are all labors of love. And, I’ve been working on the K-Bar park since 2012.” 

Suder added that the K-Bar park started out as a county-city cooperative. It was supposed to be in the northern portion of the community, “but we ran into some issues where we couldn’t accept what the developer wanted to give us. The county went to a different site and the [K-Bar] park went silent for a while. I knew K-Bar was building and building, but we were promised park land. We were originally only offered a donation of 15 acres with an option to purchase 15 more at market value. But ultimately, we were offered this 65 acres, which was originally a borrow pit, but because of the lakes that were dug in K-Bar, we ended up with hundreds of thousands of cubic yards of soil — and we tested every truckload of that soil — and we ended up with a suitable park site to start the design process.” 

What About Cricket? 

“We have heard that cricket is a very popular and desired amenity to have at this park for New Tampa,” Suder said. “The problem is that most of our parks don’t support the square acreage that’s needed for cricket. But, in this case, we believe we have the acreage to make it work in this park, along with the other needs that we hear about tonight.” 

He added, “Councilman Viera calls me a friend, but he did fight to get this going and I applaud him for that. And now, we’ve got it going.” 

Suder also noted that once the money for the park’s design becomes available and the city can hire a consultant to work with, “We will start the public participation process, so we can hear all of the elements the community wants — the community as a whole. It can’t focus only on K-Bar residents, but that is a part of the discussion.” He did say, however, that the design funds probably won’t be available until late November, or several weeks after the fiscal year begins on Oct. 1. “Then, it will take several more weeks to hire the consultant. And, the actual design phase will likely take a little more than a year to complete.” 

Brad Suder (left) & Heather Wolf-Erickson of the City of Tampa attended the meeting to get input from the residents in attendance about the K-Bar Ranch park’s design at a Town Hall meeting on Aug. 7.

Viera noted that there is no money in the current city budget for construction of the park. “We really need that half-cent Community Investment Tax to continue,” Viera said. “That’s where the money to build the park would most likely come from.” 

Suder then mentioned that, “We envision asking for about $5 million, maybe a little bit more, in a couple of years, when the design process is done, for what will essentially be Phase 1 of the park.” 

And, even though the county had envisioned a sports megaplex, Suder said that with the new site, “We realized that a megaplex for sports probably isn’t the idea here, for many reasons — one is public safety, including concerns about getting fire rescue in there if anything happens and clogging up the roads with, say, 18 teams for a tournament. That just wouldn’t work — we don’t want that much traffic going through there.” 

So, Suder and his team came up with what he calls a “hybrid” model, “with one part neighborhood parks with passive uses like picnicking and enjoyment of nature, one part active, essentially sports, and a really nice playground for all of the families that live near here.” 

The fourth component of the park Suder said he envisions is conservation. 

“A lot of this property is old pasture land for cows, and we hope to add a lot of trees, with walking trails, to make something really nice.” 

Viera then asked Prahlad Madabhushi to speak about cricket, “because Tampa is a very pluralistic city and the fact that we have many people asking for cricket speaks to that. And, the fact that the HOAs and CDDs in New Tampa are all supportive of it is another reason why New Tampa is so awesome.” 

Madabhushi first gave a brief description of cricket and its origins in England, dating back to the 16th century, that is similar to baseball, “and a lot of people love it. If you ever come to watch a game, you will fall in love with it, too.” 

Madabhushi also mentioned that with Florida’s climate, “We can play 11 or 12 months a year, which you can’t do in the northeast and other places.” 

He also said that the TPL that he and Nayak run also has hosted tournaments, with players even coming from other countries to play, “Which could really put New Tampa on the map.” 

Several of the K-Bar residents in attendance mentioned that they hoped the cricket pitch at the K-Bar park would not be used for tournaments, because of the neighborhood safety and traffic concerns Suder had mentioned. 

Wolf-Erickson asked about what the needs would be to have the “proper” cricket pitch Madabhushi talked about during his presentation. 

He said that the total size needed for one field would be about five acres. “If you can imagine two full-size football fields next to each other and draw a circle around it, that’s the size of a cricket pitch, Madabhushi said. “Soccer could be played there when it’s not being used for cricket. If you have enough flat ground and possibly lights, that would work.” 

Having lights for playing cricket at night was a concern for some of the K-Bar residents. 

But, Suder countered that the LED lights being used in new facilities being constructed today would not shine into the nearby houses. 

K-Bar Ranch Homeowners Assn (HOA) president Patrick Leduc said that his community does support cricket at the park, “but if you could keep it low-density, without lights and without fencing it in, that would be fine. I think a fitness track around the outside would work. The thing that’s unique about this piece of land is that it’s open. There’s actually an absence of trees, which I call ‘Big Sky Country.’ You could widen the lake out there and use the dirt to make hills for the fitness track for kids to ride bikes and skateboards. I think it could be a unique place in the city’s park system.” He also noted that his ideas came from HOA discussions, “I didn’t come up with them myself.” 

State House minority leader Fentrice Driskell (4th from left) and Tampa City Councilman Luis Viera (5th from left) were joined for a picture by local residents interested in adding a cricket field to the city’s planned park in K-Bar Ranch.

Leduc also mentioned that it would be important to control ingress and egress, especially at dusk. “All of the communities near the park are gated except Bassett Creek,” he said. “So, we’d like it if you could gate it and keep the ‘look’ of the park entrance similar to the community’s gated entrances.” He also said that if the lake could be widened and allow fishing, since no fishing is allowed at other lakes and ponds in the community, “I think the kids who live here would love it.” 

One K-Bar resident, who said his home backs up to the park, said he appreciates that the park will be low-density because of the nature and animals that are out there now. 

“I can look out at that property and see bald eagles and 20 deer at a time,” he said. “That is so special in an area that is growing so quickly. It needs to be preserved.” 

Another resident asked about the possibility of tennis or pickleball courts being included at the park, but Leduc said that K-Bar is getting pickleball at its Amenity Center, “and we want there to be a synergy between what we have in K-Bar and this city park.” 

Other residents expressed concerns about the traffic, but Viera promised that before the design is improved, Tampa’s Mobility Dept. will be brought in to assess the ways to control the traffic at the park. “That’s all a part of this process.” 

Suder added, “The signage will emphasize the main entrance (see map above), so that the other entrance will be for residents and emergencies only.” 

And, although she spent most of her time at the meeting just listening, Rep. Driskell aid, “We will get this project over the finish line together.” 

Ashington Estates At Tampa Palms Neighborhood Watch Program Off To A Good Start 

Tampa City Council member Luis Viera (2nd from left) was among those who attended the organizational meeting for the Ashington Estates at Tampa Palms Neighborhood Watch program. (Photos by Charmaine George)

When Tampa Police Dept. (TPD) Chief Lee Bercaw and District 7 Tampa City Council member Luis Viera co-hosted the New Tampa Public Safety Town Hall meeting on July 1, Chief Bercaw told those in attendance that if they want to be an even greater asset to their local law enforcement officials, they should join their community’s Neighborhood Watch program — or start a new one if their neighborhood didn’t already have one. 

Ashington Estates at Tampa Palms resident Kevin Kelly took that advice to heart, as he immediately began to organize a new Neighborhood Watch group for his subdivision of about 100 homes. On July 5 — the Friday afternoon of the 4th of July holiday weekend and less than two weeks following the TPD Town Hall — there were ten TPD officers, Viera and several of Kelly’s fellow residents meeting inside the gates of Ashington Estates, only a few weeks after the series of violent crimes that touched New Tampa. 

And, although the TPD officers outnumbered the number of Ashington residents who stopped by the organizational meeting while yours truly and photographer Charmaine George were on hand, Kelly said he was encouraged by the turnout and support that day. 

“We had about 14-15 residents in attendance overall, including drive-bys,” Kelly said after the meeting. “We currently have 21 in our neighborhood watch group and two of those signed up for our Facebook group since the roll call.” 

As his community’s new Neighborhood Watch coordinator, Kelly also said he was, “very pleased with our police turnout. It shows their interest in Neighborhood Watch groups and the synergy those groups bring to the Police Department. I honestly only expected about 10 neighbors for this first roll call, so we surpassed that by a little.” 

Those who did attend basically heard the TPD officers recap what happened during New Tampa’s week of three violent events that left four people dead and two others injured, with only one arrest having been made. The officers explained that the incident that occurred on Bruce B. Downs Blvd. on June 17 was being investigated by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO), but that TPD always works closely with HCSO and was being updated on that case. 

Meanwhile, the Ashington Estates neighbors talked about things like people from other neighborhoods fishing in their pond, as there had never been any actual crime reported in their community, but TPD Major Brett Owen explained that hosting regular Neighborhood Watch meetings and occasional events will help keep the police — and the community — informed about anything that does happen inside those gates. 

As to how Kelly hopes to increase participation in the program, he said, “I’m trying to get some work parties together for small jobs in the neighborhood’s common areas (trimming, painting, etc.), which I’ve already suggested to our Homeowners Association’s president.” 

Kelly also said that he hopes to see, “more social media interaction within our group. It’s been a bit slow up to this point, so regular interactions should generate interest. Our information mechanisms of choice currently are Facebook and WhatsApp.” 

Kelly also said that the Neighborhood Watch’s next meeting has not yet been planned, but that there were now “tentative plans” to do something for National Night Out (Tuesday, August 6), but that nothing specific had yet been planned at our press time. 

City Councilman Luis Viera Provides Updates On Crime, Fire Response Times & More 

Dist. 7 Tampa City Council member Luis Viera (left) and Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw at the Public Safety Town Hall meeting in Tampa Palms on July 1. (Photo by Charmaine George)

I wanted to update the New Tampa community about what is happening at City Hall. 

Homicides in New Tampa 

As everyone knows, the New Tampa community has been rocked by a number of recent homicides. Public safety is always issue number one with me. I have always proudly stood with our police and fire departments even in tough political times, with hits from both left and right. 

On July 1, 2024, I put together a town hall in New Tampa where Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw briefed the community. The turnout showed that New Tampa is united against crime and that we are ready to respond. Our cops in New Tampa know we support them. I will continue to support our cops and push for a Public Safety Master Plan. 

We will be having a follow up town hall on Tuesday, July 30, 6 p.m., at Compton Park in Tampa Palms. I hope to see you there. 

New Tampa Fire Response Times 

Next is the Tampa Fire Rescue (TFR) Department. Since I took office, we have built two new fire stations for North and New Tampa — with a third coming for North Tampa. The problem for New Tampa is not call volume, but response times — especially for K-Bar Ranch. 

I have been working with TFR for a plan for New Tampa. I favor a modular station for K-Bar Ranch — something the Administration opposes. So, if I can not get a home run, I will fight for a double. That means another vehicle for Station 22 for response times. And (as reported a couple of issues ago), working on a potential “cut through” on Morris Bridge Rd. to provide easier access to K-Bar Ranch from TFR Station No. 22 on Cross Creek Blvd. 

I tell people: whether it is a new station, a cut through, another vehicle or 10 Our Fathers and 10 Hail Marys, I will work for any solution that addresses this problem. 

K-Bar Ranch Park 

In this year’s budget, I asked for design funding for a multi-acre city park in K-Bar Ranch. This will set up this project for construction funding in the coming years. 

I hope this will create a pathway for a cricket field presence in New Tampa, something the Indian-Americans in our area have long lobbied for. If we secure the design money, then the public engagement process begins, and I will push hard for a cricket presence in this space. If this passes, it will likely be built after I leave office — but I want to make sure that this moves forward now for K-Bar Ranch. 

We need to make sure City Hall knows that New Tampa – the Alaska of Tampa – exists and has needs. 

About The 2024 Elections 

We’ve all got a big election coming up. People have their opinions — God knows I have mine — but I tell everyone this: Do not empower the idea that we are one another’s enemies because of our mainstream differences. 

As an elected official, I work with anyone who will help me improve the lives of my constituent — Republican or Democrat. 

Let’s see the best in one another as Americans. In this acute time, there is no greater American challenge than to build bridges with one another — and build back normalcy. Ever wonder how extreme movements like “Defund the Police” or “Stop the Steal” on January 6th get so much oxygen? They happen when we let politics become our identity. So, stop yelling at MSNBC or Fox and instead go to church, go for a walk or chat with your neigh bor about baseball or something. 

Tampa City Council Pay Raises 

Lastly, I have received many calls and seen many comments about the recent Tampa City Council pay raise, where my fellow Council members voted 4-3 to give us all a 40% pay raise. I wanted to explain my “No” vote. 

Here is my view: a pay raise makes sense. But, it’s the timing that kills me. The 27th Amendment of our Constitution mandates that Congress first vote on a pay raise, then have an election, then get the benefit of it. If this formula is good enough for Congress, then it should be good enough for City Council, too. 

A higher salary will allow more people from different backgrounds to run for Council — a good result. But, why have us benefit before voters have their say on who gets this amount? Makes sense to me and, I bet, to many of you, too. 

Conclusion 

Know what a pleasure it has been to represent you. I have been in office almost eight years with political ups and downs, but with my constituents it has always been a pleasure. 

Also know that I always remain available at luis.viera@tampagov.net. 

Saffron Closes; Bamboo Sushi Bowls To Open 

After nearly two decades in New Tampa, with one name change and a move to a new location, Saffron Indian Cuisine, located inside the convenience store at the Mobil gas station at 10865 Cross Creek Blvd., has permanently closed. 

The restaurant, which was first opened in our area by the husband-and-wife team of Nimesh and Sunita Chheda in the Cross Creek Center plaza on Cross Creek Blvd. at Kinnan St. (that location is now occupied by the Nepalese restaurant Gorkhali Kitchen) more than 17 years ago, enjoyed some success, despite being located inside a gas station convenience store, but Nimesh had told me several months ago that he and Sunita were planning to retire, he just didn’t say when that would happen. Unfortunately, I was unable to reach either of them for comment for this story. 

In the good news department, however, I spotted a new sign in the Pebble Creek Collection (at 19651 BBD Blvd.) that a new restaurant called Bamboo Sushi Bowls was moving into the space (Suite D1) previously occupied by 35 Below ice cream, which closed several months ago. 

Although a Google search of the name said that the restaurant was already open, the website BambooSushiBowls.com still correctly says that the restaurant is “Coming Soon” and is “Now Hiring.” 

I will say that the pictures of the food shown on the website (and in the photo, above), and the menu itself, look quite promising. 

Calling Bamboo “Your new go-to spot for delicious deconstructed (and customizable) sushi bowls that blend traditional flavors with a modern twist,” the restaurant’s menu has tempura-style sushi rolls, miso soup, fried chicken dumplings, edamame, summer rolls, create-your-own and named (like the “Twister,” with tuna, salmon, squid salad, icrab stick, cucumber, carrots, edamame, takun, bamboo sauce, mango and mandarin ginger dressing sushi bowls and more. We do not yet know Bamboo’s opening date, but we’ll keep you posted. Visit the website to get on their email list. — GN