Former USF football star Jay Mize, who already has four successful Irish 31 restaurants (in Hyde Park Village, Westshore, Westchase & at the Amalie Arena), says he hopes to open his fifth & sixth locations by the end of 2016.One of those new locales is on Clearwater Beach & the other is in The Shops st Wiregrass mall, in a shared building that just began site work next to Panera Bread.
Mize says the Irish 31 at Wiregrass will be 2,800 SF & will feature the same great chef-inspired (I call it ‘Irish-plus-gourmet’) cuisine as the other Irish 31 locations.
“It’s sort of a race to see which of our new stores opens first,” Mize says. “But we hope both will be open by the end of 2016.”
Mize noted that he couldn’t disclose the business that would share the building at our press time, but, “we know it’ll be good for us because we’re compatible with everyone.”
Congratulations to Tampa Palms resident and Liberty Middle School sixth grader Christian Breslin, who sparked the idea for the bill Rep. Shawn Harrison selected as his favorite in his recent “That Should Be A Law” contest.
Rep. Harrison says he was proud to present House Bill 1143 on Jan. 6, a proposal that will regulate the use of e-cigarettes and “vaping” devices under the Florida Clean Indoor Air Act. Thanks in part to Christian’s presentation before the legislative committee (photos), the bill passed its first committee by an 11-2 vote.
“The best part is that this idea came to me from a young constituent in my District as a result of my contest,’’ Harrison said. “And, it’s actually good public policy because there currently is no regulation (in Florida or the U.S.) about what chemicals can go in these things.”
Harrison also noted that many of the proposed bills he considered for the contest were about smoking, “but Christian’s was the most innovative. Until they (e-cigs) are regulated by the Federal government, I think it’s best to err on the side of caution and regulate their use (in Florida), just like regular cigarettes.”
We’ll keep you posted about the bill’s progress in the legislature.
Judging by all of the new “stuff” that’s still coming to Wesley Chapel (see page 14, current issue), it’s easy to understand why the longest continuously published (by the same owner) publication directly mailed to all of the single-family subdivisions (and many of the multi-family units in the same communities) in Wesley Chapel continues to break through barriers in terms of local advertising sales, readership, popularity and ability to help the local businesses who choose to advertise in these pages.
Although we have been directly mailed to Wesley Chapel since I purchased the Neighborhood News in February 1994, our separate (and separately-mailed) Wesley Chapel edition has not yet reached double digits in years. Even so, the reason I split it off from what used to be two issues per month mailed to both New Tampa and Wesley Chapel was because I saw how quickly the Wesley Chapel area was growing between 2005-08 and I was also the only local publisher regularly following — and providing updates in print and on-line about — everything that was still to come to Wesley Chapel, which once had a concrete barricade on Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. separating Wesley Chapel from what is now called New Tampa at the Pasco County line.
Even so, I couldn’t in my wildest dreams imagine the kind of growth I’ve seen while doing the same job since Feb. 1994 — much less the last ten years — in U.S. Postal zip codes 33543, 33544 and 33545.
And yes, it’s still coming, which I know has many of us concerned about the traffic and other issues all the continuing growth will bring, but it certainly also has helped your direct-mail community news magazine continue to grow along with Pasco County’s fastest-growing community.
A case in point is this issue, which is the first time we’ve had to expand to 48 pages in the shorter history of our Wesley Chapel issue — which we both split off from New Tampa and switched both editions from their one-time quarter-folded newspaper style to their current oversized magazine format — back in 2008.
In a little less than eight years, the Wesley Chapel edition has grown from its original 28 pages back then to average more than 40 pages the last two years, including our previous high page count of 44, a barrier we had reached several times in both 2014 and 2015, but had never had quite enough advertising to warrant a 48-page issue.
That is, until this edition. But, everyone who works with us knows that no matter how many ads we sell, if we don’t continue to do the little things to help as many of you keep reading every page of every issue — and keep those advertisers as happy as we possibly can by continually improving and refining our finished product every two weeks (our next New Tampa issue will hit mailboxes in 33647 on Jan. 28-29) — it all can go away…in a hurry.
My 22-year commitment (as of next month) has been and continues to be to bring more news and information that’s pertinent to the lives of our readers in both of our markets to keep you reading, not just the “advertorials” that are still part of what we do, but certainly not the only or even the most important thing we do. Anyone can tell you about a local business, but we believe it takes theNeighborhood News to keep the people in both of our distribution areas informed about what’s happening in those areas — and maybe even entertained a little.
As always, I thank you again for the unique opportunity and privilege I have to serve our wonderful readers and advertisers.
‘Taste-y’ News Coming Soon?
I know I’ve teased this a few times before, but yes, there should soon be news about the return of what was once my favorite annual local event, the Taste of New Tampa! I can’t say any more right now, but I will be involved and I will be excited to provide more info…as soon as next issue!
Jennifer Guggemos (left) with Tampa Fire Rescue District Chief Susan Tamme.
Jennifer Guggemos is a junior at Freedom High working toward the highest honor a Girl Scout can receive, known as the Gold Award. To earn this prestigious award, the young member of the Sunset Scouts Troop 795 (which has been meeting at the McDonald’s in Tampa Palms for eight years) must dedicate at least 80 hours to a project that provides a “lasting, sustainable benefit” to her community.
So, Guggemos is teaming up with Tampa Fire Rescue (TFR) District Chief Susan Tamme to create a museum exhibit called “Women of TFR,” to show girls the career paths available to them in the fire department, and to honor the women who serve Tampa in this capacity.
Tamme oversees five fire stations, including New Tampa’s three stations (TFR Station Nos. 20, 21, and 22). She has worked for TFR for more than 20 years. Nearly two years ago, she became the first and remains the only female fire chief in the history of the department.
“It’s a fantastic career,” says Tamme, who cites the schedule (one day working, then two days off), the “stable, consistent” pay, the camaraderie of the firefighting “family” and the rewards of helping people as reasons why she would encourage her own daughter — and other girls like her — to consider a career with the fire department.
“It’s not just running into burning buildings,” Tamme explains.
The museum display will highlight 10 different career opportunities available, including fire prevention (inspectors), emergency medical services, and even tactical medical response teams to support police operations.
“If someone is interested in business or management, they can work toward a career as an officer, like my job,” says Tamme. “I now manage 50 people.”
Guggemos teamed up with Tamme after working with the fire department on an earlier service project. To earn her Silver Award, Guggemos collected more than 1,200 stuffed animals for the fire department to provide to children during emergency situations.
Tamme says she’s excited to partner with the Girl Scouts for this project, hoping that the partnership will allow many girls to come through the museum, see the display, and learn about the career opportunities available to them.
Tamme has already reached one young woman with her message — Guggemos herself, who says she had no idea so many different career paths were available at the fire department.
“I’ve learned a lot,” says Guggemos. “I’ve really enjoyed being around firefighters and it’s so cool to see what they do.”
She says the female firefighters she’s spoken with often tell her their stories, and there’s one she’s heard that is particularly inspiring.
“People told me I couldn’t do it,” Guggemos says one female firefighter told her. “But, here I am.”
Guggemos says she is learning leadership skills as she works with three different committees to put this exhibit together.
The museum display is expected to open in March, which is widely recognized as Women’s History Month. It will be part of the Tampa Firefighters Museum, located at 720 E. Zack St. in downtown Tampa.
Guggemos and Tamme are currently raising funds to make their plans a reality. The Tampa Firefighters Museum has agreed to match whatever funding is raised for the project, which Tamme estimates could cost $15,000.
It will include an artistic display with photographs and videos about each of the 10 different careers available within the Tampa Fire Department. It also will include brochures to be available to museum visitors.
For information about the Tampa Firefighters Museum, visit TampaFireMuseum.com. To learn more about supporting the fund-raising efforts for the “Women in Tampa Fire Rescue” museum display, contact Guggemos at TampaFireExhibit.GoldAward@yahoo.com.
Pasco County District 2 Commissioner Mike Moore could barely hide his joy as the vote to approve funding to extend SR 56 neared.
“It’s been a long time coming,” he said.
A few minutes later, the Pasco Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) voted unanimously to approve funding which will go toward extending SR 56 from Meadow Pointe Boulevard to U.S. Highway 301/State Road 41. What was once discussed as a two-lane road will now go forward as a four-lane project using State Infrastructure Bank (SIB) funds. The project is a complicated one, involving partnerships with the City of Zephyrhills and four corridor developer/land owners.
The BOCC will now submit the SIB Loan Agreement Package to the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) for approval.
Funding for the project, which will cost roughly $65-million, is being provided by FDOT, Pasco County, City of Zephyrhills, Wesley Chapel Lakes, Wyndfields, River Landing, and Two Rivers Ranch. FDOT is expected to contribute $35.1-million.
The road, which is expected to be delivered in its entirety by 2019, was touted for its expected enhancement of economic development opportunities and tax base in Zephyrhills and southeast Pasco County, as well as relieving traffic and making access to I-75 easier.
