Congratulations to local artist and filmmaker Antony Capers (photo, below) for the debut of the newest episodes of his supernatural YouTube serial “Grand Hampton The Movie Series.”
What started as a pandemic project with his family and neighbors in their New Tampa neighborhood has grown into a multi-year endeavor with a loyal cult following. The series takes place in Capers’ upscale Grand Hampton neighborhood that — the viewer soon discovers — was built by “The CONNECTED” solely for the purpose of housing citizens within the government’s witness protection program. The community has been experiencing some very odd occurrences, and — even more alarming — extraterrestrial beings have been seen roaming the quiet neighborhood’s streets.
Beginning with Season 3, the series began branching out to discover the dark stories of so many of Grand Hampton’s residents. And, on Wednesday, October 18, or only a day or so after this issue reached your mailbox, the historic Tampa Theatre (located at 711 N. Franklin St. in downtown Tampa) will host the premiere of an “ANTHOLOGY” of new chapters that bring three of these stories to life. Attendees will find out what happens in the world’s craziest house in “ABBY.” Then, witness the bond being broken between two brothers as they become part of an experiment in “PLACEBO.” And finally, we get to play a game of “SPIN THE BARREL,” where the winner actually loses.
After the screening, Capers, the “Grand Hampton” creator, and members of his cast will discuss the project and answer audience questions.
The doors of the Tampa Bay area’s oldest movie theater will open at 6 p.m. and there will be a social hour prior to the screening of the new trilogy, which is part of the Tampa Theatre’s annual “A Nightmare on Franklin Street” film series.
“Grand Hampton The Movie Series,” which was invited to participate in the Orlando International Film Festival (OIFF) in July, has been at the Tampa Theatre before, as Capers and his crew of talented actors not only got to present his “Super Vita” episode but also film a portion of it there.
Among those who have provided cameos in the series to date include New Tampa’s District 7 Tampa City Council member Luis Viera and former Tampa Bay Bucs offensive lineman and local radio/podcast host Ian Beckles.
“I also definitely want to thank my sponsors for the premiere,” Capers says, “including EmployEZ, UES-United Employment Solutions, Done Deal Promotions and ‘Aliens of the Metaverse.’ Without all of them, this event would not be happening.”
Tickets to the premiere of “ANTHOLOGY” at the Tampa Theatre on Oct. 18 cost just $10. To order, call the box office at (813) 274-8286 or visit TampaTheatre.org/movie/grand-hampton-the-movie-anthology. All “Grand Hampton The Movie Series” episodes are available on YouTube.
After a few delays, which certainly isn’t unusual here in Pasco County, Slim Chickens (at 27244 Wesley Chapel Blvd.) is finally open and the Arkansas-based chain with 225+ units and many more on the way is definitely worth a try..
The trio of partners who opened the Wesley Chapel Slim Chickens — Patrick Lee, Jared Blair and Charlie Blumberg — also have five additional units in development, with the closest planned for Mirada.
Jannah, Charmaine and I all enjoyed our sampling of the Slim Chickens menu two days before it opened. We loved the hand-breaded chicken & waffles, the crispy and aptly-named chicken tenders (photo, above), the garlicky Texas toast, the super-crisp wings with multiple different sauces (our favorites so far were the honey BBQ and garlic parmesan) and the signature mason jar brownie dessert. And yes, you can take home the mason jar!
If you’re like me and crave delicious coffee from someplace other than the “S” word, I definitely recommend visiting the new Bad Ass Coffee of Hawaii, located inside the same Shell gas station that already is home to a Taco Bus location, at 25195 S.R. 54, where it meets S.R. 56 and Wesley Chapel Blvd. in Lutz.
Owners Jillian (with Minnie Mouse, the Sicilian mini-donkey, in the photo, left) and Christopher Bruckner, who also own the adjacent Taco Bus, are excited about the response so far from the community.
And, please don’t be offended by the name. Born on the shores of The Big Island in our 50th state, the coffee is named for the stubborn donkeys who originally carried the coffee down the steep mountains.
Whether you love the name or hate it, the chain’s 30 locations serve delicious coffee and other beverages as well as a variety of breakfast and dessert items. My favorite beverage so far is the hot Caramel Wave with both caramel and vanilla flavors, while Jannah is partial to the iced blended Chai tea. We both enjoyed the cinnamon Malasada donuts and bacon, egg & cheese breakfast sandwich. We haven’t yet sampled the lunch sandwiches. For more information about Bad Ass Coffee, call (813) 949-2428 or visit BadAssCoffee.com.
Sorbo Opens On BBD!
Those who have more upscale taste in coffee and tea but also are partial to baked goods and wine can check out the new Sorbo at 2653 Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. Owned by the same owners as Umu Japanese & Thai in the same plaza across from Advent Health Wesley Chapel, Sorbo (right) specializes in Matcha teas, espresso beverages and Refreshers. We’ve only sampled the tasty cappuccino and green matcha tea so far. For info, visit SorboWesleyChapel.com or call (813) 428-5396.
Shuckin’ Shack: Now Serving Fresh American Seafood!
The only people who have been waiting for the opening of the 20th Shuckin’ Shack Oyster Bar (at 25026 Wesley Chapel Blvd. extension) longer than yours truly are the people in the top photo — (l.-r.) co-owners Bill DiPaola and Brad Harper, GM Alie Ragsdale, manager Shane Cllett & kitchen manager Hunter Tilton.
Well, the wait is over and all I can say is that I genuinely like the North Carolina-based chain. The casual new eatery had only been open a couple of weeks at our press time, but Jannah and I had already sampled quite a few tasty — and properly priced — items, including (left) excellent steamed snow crab legs, (bottom, right) blackened mahi-mahi tacos and steamed local clams. Photographer Charmaine George said the “Greggah” lobster roll sandwich also was spot on. But, my favorite item so far has been the clam-loaded New England-style clam “chowda.” Trust me, this is not just potato soup with a bite or two of clams. So good!
Jannah and I already feel very much at home at the spacious bar (below left), which has plenty of TVs, full premium alcohol and specialty drinks, as well as beer and wine, just in time for football and hockey seasons! For more info, visit TheShuckinShack.com or call (813) 949-0016.
Although The Grove at Wesley Chapel already has a Michael’s Arts & Crafts and there also is a Hobby Lobby store on the north side of S.R. 56, a lot of locals are excited that HobbyTown USA is opening in The Grove.
Whereas Hobby Lobby and Michael’s are both much more crafts-oriented, HobbyTown USA is a much more male-skewing hobby store, focusing mainly on model airplanes, boats, cars, trucks, drones, helicopters, rockets and toys.
Hobby Town USA, which has more than 125 stores in 39 states (with the closest location being on N. Dale Mabry Hwy. in Carrollwood; photo left), will move into the former Bed, Bath & Beyond space at The Grove. We had not yet heard of an opening date for the Wesley Chapel location.
Esthetics813 Cuts A Ribbon At The Spa At Saddlebrook
Although, as we reported several issues ago, Saddlebrook Resort is currently undergoing major renovations, we send out our congratulations go out to Esthetics813 (located at 1051 Bruce B. Downs Blvd.) at owner Kyymara Rosey, who recently reopened the long-dormant 7,000-sq.ft. Spa at Saddlebrook Resort (5700 Saddlebrook Way).
Kyymara and her husband Kurt Wickiser hosted a well-attended North Tampa Bay Chamber ribbon-cutting ceremony on Sept. 8 (top photo), with tours of the many treatment rooms, where both hotel guests and locals can receive a variety of luxurious spa services — from massages, facials and skin treatments to waxing services, microdermabrasion, brow sculpting, spray tans and many more. There’s even a Far Infrared Wellness Sauna (right), hair salon cuts and blowouts, separate men’s and women’s dressing rooms and much more.
For more information about the The Spa at Saddlebrook Resort, call (813) 474-4486 or visit spa-at-saddlebrook—esthetics813.square.site and please tell Kyymara and her crew that we sent you! — GN
Although there are other ways to determine the boundaries of an unincorporated community, the Neighborhood News has always considered the boundaries of Wesley Chapel to be the communities within zip codes 33543, 33544 & 33545 only.
One of the debates that has raged for at least ten years in our area has been over the boundaries of the community we love — Wesley Chapel.
According to us, and how we direct-mail this publication, Wesley Chapel has, for nearly 30 years now, included only the communities within zip codes 33543, 33544 & 33545. The mail delivery of all three of those zip codes is still handled by the Zephyrhills Post Office, even though most of Wesley Chapel is 20-30 minutes (or more) from it. Our version of Wesley Chapel now includes more than 33,000 homes, apartments and businesses and, according to the Post Office, a little more than 90,000 people.
However, our editorial researcher and current Realtor (with Florida Executive Realty in Tampa Palms) Joel Provenzano, who previously was a transportation engineer with the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), says that the zip code map on this page isn’t the only way to determine the boundaries of Wesley Chapel.
In fact, Joel was put smack-dab in the middle of this controversy ten years ago when, as part of his job with FDOT, he was responsible for placing a road sign that said simply “Wesley Chapel” on the east side of Wesley Chapel Blvd., a little bit north of S.R. 56.
The problem was that since the zip code of the land upon which the sign sat was in Lutz’s 33559 zip code (as is everything west of I-75 on both sides of S.R. 56, including the Tampa Premium Outlets, see map), our friends from Lutz basically insisted that FDOT remove the sign — which today no longer sits at that location.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, all of the Pasco areas in orange on the map above are considered to be part of Wesley Chapel, even though everything in orange located west of I-75 is in Lutz’s 33559 postal zip code. (Neighborhood News map by Valerie Wegener)
However, Joel says that although the zip code in that area says Lutz, the U.S. Census Bureau’s list of Census Designated Places (CDPs) includes portions of both Lutz and Land O’Lakes within its Wesley Chapel boundaries (see map, left). Interestingly enough, there also are portions within zip codes 33543, 33544 & 33545, which is what I always have called “Wesley Chapel proper,” that aren’t included in the Census Bureau’s Wesley Chapel CDP. In fact, according to the 2020 U.S. Census, the population within the boundaries of the Wesley Chapel CDP was only about 60,000 people, because of the communities that are and are not included in the CDP boundaries.
So, depending upon whose boundaries you use, one person’s Wesley Chapel is another person’s Lutz and vice-versa.
Although the name “Wesley Chapel” seemed relatively new to those of us whose families haven’t lived in this area since before “The Chap” became one of the fastest-growing communities in the U.S., according to the super-interesting book Images of America: Wesley Chapel by historian Madonna Jervis Wise, the name “Wesley Chapel” actually dates back to before the Civil War and much of the land that today is known as Wesley Chapel was at one time owned by a land trust headed by none other than the financier John D. Rockefeller.
Although it became more commonly known as “Wesley,” as shown on the map below from 1917, Wesley Chapel was a small community located due west of Zephyrhills and east of the adjacent town of Godwin. It extended south basically to the Pasco/Hillsborough county line, where it met up with the community of Branchton, or what we more commonly refer to as New Tampa today.
Historic map of Wesley Chapel & Godwin (Source: History of Pasco County: Wesley Chapel, Fivay.org, Aug 2020)
In fact, according to a map in Wise’s book, most of the area west of what is now called Old Pasco Rd. likely wasn’t considered part of the original town of Wesley Chapel as, dating back to the 1840s, the property owned by four families — the Boyett(e), Gillett(e), Godwin and Kersey families (see marker signs below) — only encompassed the area between Old Pasco Rd. to the west, the county line to the south (when all of what is now Pasco County was considered to be part of Hernando County), “Over Pass Rd.” to the north and Handcart Rd. to the east were included in the homesteads of those families.
But, in the mid-1900s, several other ranch/farming families ended up buying up most of the land the Rockefeller-Weyerhauser Trust owned, including 15,000 acres purchased by James Barney Porter, the father of James H “Wiregrass” Porter, in 1937.
But, it wasn’t until former publishing magnate Tom Dempsey purchased (around 1979) a few hundred acres on the south side of S.R. 54 (which was, at the time, nothing more than a two-lane country road that connected New Port Richey on the west side to Zephyrhills on the east side) to develop into Saddlebrook Resort (which opened in 1981) that anyone other than those ranching old timers really used the name Wesley or Wesley Chapel at all.
The only other part of Wesley Chapel already developed before Saddlebrook was Williamsburg, a small community with still fewer than 300 single-family homes that was originally intended (in the 1970s) to be a retirement community to be called “Levittown Florida,” after developer Abraham Leviitt, (and his sons), who developed the original (and much larger) Levittown on Long Island, NY.
The two-sided marker sign near what is now the First Baptist Church of Wesley Chapel (formerly Double Branch Church) on S.R. 54 tells part of the story of Wesley Chapel’s history.
Fast forward almost two decades later, as other portions of the former ranch lands in Wesley Chapel began developing (beginning with Meadow Pointe in the early 1990s), the name Wesley Chapel still didn’t really catch on. In fact, the first shopping center built in Meadow Pointe was called “The Shoppes at New Tampa,” as the developers tried to capitalize on the more-developed and better-known community located south of the county line. The shopping center’s name was changed to “The Shoppes at New Tampa of Wesley Chapel,” as people who lived in the newly burgeoning community north of the county line resented being referred to as “New Tampa.”
Is it Lutz Or Wesley Chapel?
But, the reason there’s even a story to tell here is primarily because the developers and the businesses located within those developments had different goals than the people who already lived in those areas.
The greatest example of this had to do with the long-awaited construction of the Cypress Creek Town Center, which is located west of I-75. To that end, the mall and all of the businesses that have popped up around it have Lutz zip codes, even though those businesses often referred to themselves (and still do) as being located in Wesley Chapel. This problem was definitely exacerbated by the fact that not only did many of the people who lived in the more rural Lutz not want their community to become part of the sprawl they saw happening in Wesley Chapel, there also were two chambers of commerce serving that area — the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber (which was renamed and rebranded as the North Tampa Bay Chamber, or NTBC, in 2018) and the Central Pasco Chamber (which was renamed the Greater Pasco Chamber, or CPCC).
The Central Pasco Chamber fought along side the long-term residents of Lutz to not only prevent anything located in a Lutz zip code from being considered part of Wesley Chapel, they also resented that what had long been referred to as “Old C.R. 54” being renamed Wesley Chapel Blvd., and that the sign saying “Wesley Chapel” had been placed on property with a Lutz zip code.
But, according to both our editorial researcher Joel Provenzano, who worked for the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) at that time, and Hope Kennedy — who was the president and CEO of the former Wesley Chapel Chamber who now holds the same titles with the NTBC — neither of them had anything to do with the sign being placed at that location.
“FDOT put the sign where it was on Wesley Chapel Blvd. because the U.S. Census Bureau said that everything east of Old 54/Wesley Chapel Blvd., was part of the Wesley Chapel Census Designated Place (or CDP),” Joel says. “In fact, the Census Bureau never recognized that the community of Lutz, which was historically only part of Hillsborough County, as even extending north of the Pasco County line. The Pasco portions of Lutz are part of the Central Pasco CCD, or Census County Division.”
In other words, just as the people who lived in Wesley Chapel didn’t want to be part of New Tampa, the people of the Pasco-based portions of Lutz did not want to be thought of as Wesley Chapel, no matter what the Census Bureau, the county or the State of Florida thought about it.
In fact, Hope says she remembers when the Central Pasco Chamber tried to not only get the name “Wesley Chapel Blvd.” removed from the roadway that currently provides some of the zip code boundaries between Lutz, Wesley Chapel and Land O’Lakes, but also from the Wesley Chapel Blvd. extension that one day will extend to the Pasco-Hillsborough county line (as we reported in the Feb. 12, 2016 edition of the Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News), with new developments already planned in that area (that we plan to update you about in a future issue).
The Central Pasco Chamber and Lutz community also fought against a plan for Wesley Chapel to incorporate as its own city that never gained enough traction to be brought before the Pasco Board of County Commissioners (BCC). Hope says that part of the reason that idea failed was because neither side could get the county to come to an agreement as to what areas the boundaries of the “City of Wesley Chapel” should include.
Hope also says that she was told that the Census Bureau tries to use “natural” boundaries whenever possible to create census tracts, but even that methodology failed when it came to establishing the Wesley Chapel CDP.
Although it is not shown on the map above, Cypress Creek runs from south of where I-75 meets the Pasco-Hillsborough county line, to the north and slightly to the west of Wesley Chapel Blvd. But, if Cypress Creek was used to establish the Wesley Chapel CDP boundaries, Lexington Oaks and The Grove, which have Wesley Chapel zip codes, would be included within its boundaries, instead of in the Central Pasco CCD (see map).
Speaking of not being included, also not within the boundaries of the Wesley Chapel CDR are Chapel Crossings and New River Township/Avalon Park Wesley Chapel. At our press time, we had no idea why these Wesley Chapel communities are not included in the Wesley Chapel CDP.
We also were surprised that other communities located north of S.R. 54 and east of Curley Rd., especially Watergrass, are considered by the Census Bureau to be part of the Pasadena Hills CDP. I always thought of Pasadena Hills as being more of a Zephyrhills-area development, with most of the CDP located east of Handcart Rd./Eiland Blvd., and had no idea that Watergrass was considered part of it, even though Watergrass does extend all the way east to Handcart.
The exclusion of these large-scale developments from the Wesley Chapel CDP boundaries explains why the Census Bureau believes there are so many fewer residents — 60,000 compared with our zip code count of just over 90,000 in 33543, 33544 & 33545.
What it unfortunately doesn’t clarify is where the boundaries of Wesley Chapel really are or should be. So, I admit that this article has been something of an exercise in futility, even though it definitely has been an extremely interesting one — at least to yours truly.
BayCare Health’s proposed YMCA (two black outlines at center left) and medical office building (top rectangle close to BBD).
As reported by Kelly Gilroy on her outstanding “Pasco County Development and Growth Updates” Facebook page on Aug. 24 — after no updates since representatives from the YMCA first started attending local meetings a couple of years ago — BayCare Health Systems is having a pre-application meeting with Pasco County staff to propose 52,391-sq.-ft. YMCA and a 100,000-sq.-ft., two-story medical office building. The plan includes parking lots, a “New Drive” roadway and a curb-cut connection at the southwest corner of Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. and Eagleston Blvd., next to the new BayCare Wesley Chapel hospital. We’ll update this story once we have additional information.
Home Sense Opens Next To Bealls
On Aug. 10, a new Homesense store opened in the Shoppes at New Tampa of Wesley Chapel, between the also-still-new Bealls Outlet and Flip Flop Shops stores in the plaza on BBD Blvd. south of S.R. 56.
Homesense — the off-price home store featuring high-quality furniture and accessories that is the newest retail banner of The TJX Companies, Inc. — now operates 50 stores in the U.S. TJX is the leading off-price retailer of apparel and home fashions in the U.S. and worldwide. The company operates nearly 5,000 total stores in nine countries, including 1,304 T.J. Maxx, 1,189 Marshalls, 901 HomeGoods, 81 Sierra, and now 50 Homesense stores.
I visited the new store the day it opened and it was packed with not only people, but as-advertised great prices on everything from couches to wall art to Halloween knickknacks (photo above). For more information, visit us.homesense.com or call (813) 991-0249.
Subaru’s Grand Grand Opening!
Although the dealership has been open for several months, we want to thank Subaru of Wesley Chapel (located at 26570 Silver Maple Pkwy., just south of S.R. 56) owner Scott Fink and his entire staff for hosting one of the greatest Grand Opening and North Tampa Bay Chamber ribbon-cutting (top photo) events in recent memory on Sept. 7.
An estimated crowd of at least 300 people attended the dog-friendly event (the dealership is a supporter of the Humane Society of Tampa Bay), which included three food trucks, lots of amazing raffle prizes (including a mountain bike, kayak and paddleboard) and lots of happy dogs, some up for adoption, others with their owners and some with their Pasco Sheriff’s Office handlers (photo, below).
“Scott Fink and his Fink Auto Group definitely know how to throw a party,” said NTBC president & CEO Hope Kennedy. “We appreciate the opportunity to be here to cut the ribbon.” For more information about Subaru of Wesley Chapel, call (813) 618-5051 or visit SubaruWesleyChapel.com.
