Fresh off another successful Adult Spelling Bee, the Rotary Club of Wesley Chapel (WC) Noon is proud to invite everyone in the Wesley Chapel and Central Pasco areas to its first-ever “Duck Derby,” which will be held Saturday, May 21, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., “lakeside” at Hungry Harry’s Bar-B-Que, which is located minutes from Wesley Chapel at 3116 Land O’Lakes Blvd. (aka U.S. Hwy. 41), Land O’Lakes.
WC Noon Rotary Club Duck Derby organizers John Jay (the DJ) and Vicki Hamilton of Smart Health Inc. say the Duck Derby is a fun, family-friendly event where attendees “purchase” anywhere from one duck for $5 to a flock of 25 ducks for $100. The ducks are numbered on the bottom and loaded into a body of water to “race.” If your duck finishes in a high enough position in the Derby, you win a great prize — and all to support the selected charities supported by the club, including its own 501(c)(3c) nonprofit foundation — the “Rotary Club of Wesley Chapel Noon Fund.”
“It’s such a fun day for everyone, no matter what age you are,” says John. “We have live musical entertainment lined up, a fun Kids Zone (with inflatables, games, face painting and more), great Hungry Harry’s food for sale and some really great prizes.”
Among those prizes are an all-day fishing trip for 5 with a charter boat captain (a $600+ value); a weekend (2-night) stay at Saddlebrook Resort Tampa ($500); a free weekend rental of a Ford Mustang convertible donated by Parks Ford of Wesley Chapel; a $250 certificate for auto repairs from TWA Firestone; a handmade fishing rod by WC Rotarian Jimmy Mason ($300), restaurant gift certificates and more.
This year’s Duck Derby Big Bird Sponsor ($4,500) is Fun Services of Land O’Lakes, owned by WC Rotarian Jodi Sullivan (FuntasticEvents.com). The Donald Duck Sponsor ($1,000) is Sam’s Club of Wesley Chapel and the Rubber Ducky Sponsor ($250) is Cash 4 Gold of Wesley Chapel (Kash4Gold.com). See you there!
West Palm Beach-based commercial developer John Dowd played a pivotal role in the development of the Wesley Chapel and Wiregrass Ranch area near S.R. 56 when, with the stalwart help of JCPenney as the lead anchor, he helped spearhead the birth of The Shops at Wiregrass mall.
Dowd admitted that it wasn’t easy. Right before the mall finished, the economy started to slow. Had it been six months later, Dowd doesn’t think the mall would have ever been built. “We had tenants come to us who had literally just signed leases and wanted out,’’ he said. “Everybody was so afraid of what was going to happen to the world.”
But, thankfully, the world did survive. And, so did the mall.
John Dowd shows a map of the Wiregrass Ranch DRI and where some of the planned construction will take place.
Dowd is back in the area, and is again teaming up with local landowner/developer JD Porter to help give the Wiregrass Ranch Development of Regional Impact (DRI) another economic shot in the arm.
At the Wesley Chapel Economic Development meeting at Mulligans (inside New Tampa’s Pebble Creek Golf Club) on April 28, Dowd and Porter regaled a crowd of more than 100 local business leaders with tales from the past, but mostly of a future they see as bright and bustling.
The Wiregrass mall, which Dowd said didn’t have the start everyone had hoped when it opened in 2008, is now enjoying the kind of success that was expected. That is triggering further development in the area, as the Porter family carefully and judiciously parcels out its land to businesses and developers who fit into their long-range plans.
Dowd said he was attracted to working with the Porter family because of the family’s deliberate style. Unlike many landowners, JD Porter said he is no rush to sell to the highest bidder and turn an instant profit. Instead, the Wiregrass Ranch DRI continues to only greenlight projects the Porter feel add value to the entire area.
Wiregrass Ranch Set To Expand
Here’s some of those plans Porter and Dowd shared at the Economic Development meeting:
1. On S.R. 54, just down the road from Walmart, the first project between Dowd and Porter will be a 12,600-sq.-ft. strip center, with two nicely designed buildings. Two restaurants are already signed up, with two more close to coming aboard as well. The project will feature a typical mix, including a cell phone store, nail and hair salons, restaurants and “good neighborhood use” businesses.
“We already have more interested tenants than we have space for,’’ Dowd said.
2. On S.R. 56, east of the Wiregrass Mall expansion (which will include restaurants, a movie theater and a grocery store), Porter and Dowd are doing is having site work done at another shopping center, to be called Wiregrass Commons at 56, which will include a “green” or specialty grocery store.
Nothing has been signed yet, Dowd said, and “we’re not doing any of the small stuff until we get an anchor signed up. Once that happens, that will be a 50,000-60,000-sq.-ft. project in total and a nice addition to the area.
3. Porter also said a hotel would be finalizing a deal within 30 days, and that is expected to also immediately east of the Wiregrass Commons at 56 project. He did not say which hotel, but we have heard rumors it will be a Marriott Fairfield Inn.
4. Even further east on S.R. 56, the long-awaited Raymond James Financial campus is close to officially announcing its arrival.
No, seriously.
JD Porter (left) says big things are coming to Wiregrass Ranch, including Raymond James.
Porter joked that he was sick and tired of talking about the long-rumored project, which some had begun to doubt. But doubt no more.
“We got good news (April 27) and I truly believe within the next 2-3 weeks we’ll have a permit,’’ Porter said. “Having that permit triggers the closing. Having that closing means the other two or three office users, which we are we are talking to right now — anywhere from 600,000 square feet to another 1.2-million-sq.-ft., Fortune 50 companies — they close, and I would suspect we’re going to see movement within the next 4-6 months after that.”
Porter said Raymond James will add between 4,000-6,000 jobs, and that you can double that total to 8,000-12,000 jobs with the other unnamed businesses set to follow.
That will also begin to create some of the day traffic that Dowd says is necessary if the area is going to attract more quality restaurants, as well.
5. Porter said they will be closing on an assisted living facility, “in the next 45-60 days”. Porter didn’t disclose any other information, but the facility will be called Beach House at Wiregrass Ranch Assisted Living & Memory Care, which is owned by the Prevarian Companies.
The facility will be multiple stories when completed next to North Tampa Behavorial Health, which also is expanding and will be adding 48 rooms by the end of the year.
6. As part of trying to force vertical integration into the development plan, Porter said that in 30-45 days construction also should begin on a condo project, called Altis at Wiregrass, which will be located directly north of Wiregrass Commons at 56.
“If I would’ve said condos in Pasco County 3-4 years ago, you probably would have told me to get the hell out of here,’’ Porter said. “Well, it happened.”
Porter hinted at four-story structures, with rooftop pools and verandas. “Something typical of Hyde Park and South Tampa,’’ he said. “But not typical Pasco County.”
The condos, which according to site plans will include 394 multi-family dwellings in 15 separate buildings, are part of Porter’s plan to build new and different projects in the area. “If you wanna play in the sandbox, you have to step it up,’’ he said. “We are very fortunate to be in the right area. If people want to be here, bring something new to the table.”
Just The Beginning Of New Phase For Wiregrass Ranch
Porter promised other major announcements concerning major retailers still to come. But for now, he is pleased with the area’s progress, citing the proximity of an expanding hospital, a state college with room to grow into a full-fledged university and more retail in the area. He also expects an increase in new homes as well, and once the residential areas mature a mixed-use town center can be developed.
Members of the Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce Board, including past President Jeff Novotny (holding plaque) were honored to present the plaque that will adorn the boardroom at the WCCC office in The Grove named for the late Don Porter to Don’s son JD and daughter Quinn (center), during the Chamber’s Economic Development briefing at which JD and commercial developer John Dowd spoke about Wiregrass Ranch.
Porter also said his family is rethinking its commitment of donating 120-acres to the county to build a park in the area. A tennis center fell through more than a decade ago, as did a proposed baseball complex on the site last year. In November the county announced it would be seeking partners in a public-private relationship to build an indoor facility on land that also would include outdoor fields.
But Porter, frustrated with the county’s inability to move forward on donated land, says he may take back some of it back by the end of the year and build the park privately, as part of his long-range plan to provide the area with “synergy”.
“We are looking to create something we can be proud of out here not just tomorrow, but 10-50 years down the road,’’ he said.
Three hooded and gloved suspects knocked a hole in the Grey Wolf Armory wall and made off with more than 30 weapons early Sunday morning, the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office said.
The PSCO says that between 2:53 and 2:57am, the suspects entered through the east side of the Wesley Chapel gun shop, located at32733 Eiland Blvd., after smashing the exterior lighting and taking advantage of the fact that that side of the building is obscured by hedges.
The suspects made off with 30 hand guns, two long guns and one sniper rifle, leaving in an unknown direction. Other more expensive guns were left untouched.
The business has an alarm, but it was never activated, and the suspects crawled around to avoid surveillance camera and motion detectors, the PCSO said.
This is the second time in two months the Grey Wolf Armory has been broken into. According to a post on the business Facebook page from March 14, someone broke in and damaged a half-dozen guns while smashing a glass display unit, but was only able to make off with a single hand gun thanks to the PCSO’s quick response.
“If I was a conspiracy theorist, I would wonder if someone had it in for us,” a post reads on the Facebook page of the Grey Wolf Armory. The new post suggests that the Sunday break-in was orchestrated by the same people from March, because they tried to break in at the same point as March but found the walls had been reinforced and moved to a more vulnerable spot. They also, the post says, took several guns Sunday that they tried but failed to take the first time.
Anyone with information is asked to call investigators at (800) 706-2488.
The New Tampa Family YMCA will host Healthy Kids Day on Saturday, April 30, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. For 25 years, this event has been celebrated at YMCAs across the nation. This year, the focus of this free event – open to everyone in the community – is to inspire more kids to keep their minds and bodies active, especially as the summer months approach.
This year, after several years of participating in one central event for all nine Tampa Metropolitan Area YMCA branches, the New Tampa Family YMCA will host its own Healthy Kids Day celebration. Located just off Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. next to Compton Park in Tampa Palms, the New Tampa Y will open its doors to the community for a variety of fun activities, all encouraging families to focus on an active lifestyle.
“The New Tampa YMCA is here to support families in healthy lifestyle choices,” says membership director Jill Godfrey Rupp. “Everything you will see and experience at Healthy Kids Day will reflect that.”
Godfrey Rupp says there will be a bounce house, face painting and lots of crafts and activities for kids. They can sample activities to get a feel for some of the Y’s summer day camps, as well as camps offered by vendors, including LEGO learning activities provided by Bricks 4 Kids.
There also will be games led by camp counselors, and sports led by youth coaches. The day will include water safety information and activities, and the chance for families to sample wellness classes, such as the popular “family boot camp” classes. The childcare area for infants, toddlers and preschoolers, known as the “Kid Zone,” will have a parachute activity for those ages.
Vendors such as doctors, dentists – including New Tampa Pediatric Dental – and even the New Tampa Regional Library, will help families see how to make healthy choices in many areas of their lives.
“We look at it from a whole healthy lifestyle perspective,” explains Godfrey Rupp, saying that healthy kids need to both be active and make healthy food choices, and also be actively engaged in learning in a way that’s fun. “We want to show families how they can make those choices.”
Since Healthy Kids Day is open to the entire community, non-members can get a glimpse of the amenities available to those who join the New Tampa Y. Members were recently emailed a survey asking about their experiences and the improvements they would like to see. Last year, those survey results led branch leadership to add an additional group exercise room and expand group exercise classes to include Barre, boot camp, Active Older Adults and more. This year’s survey will help drive the next round of improvements at the Y.
The New Tampa Family YMCA will host Healthy Kids Day on Saturday, April 30, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. For 25 years, this event has been celebrated at YMCAs across the nation. This year, the focus of this free event – open to everyone in the community – is to inspire more kids to keep their minds and bodies active, especially as the summer months approach.