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FEBRUARY 10, 2016
Care center to open in August By Kevin Weiss kweiss@lakerlutznews.com
A new $13 million assisted living center in Lutz is under construction, and set to open in August. Angels Senior Living at Lodges of Idlewild, located at 18440 Exciting Idlewild Blvd., in Lutz, will have 94 units to serve about 100 residents, according to Daniel Almendares, corporate operations manager at Angels Senior Living. The 85,000-square-foot facility expects to
COURTESY OF ANGELS SENIOR LIVING
See CENTER, page 11A
Once it is complete, the assisted living center should look similar to this prototype. The senior living center is set to open in August 2016.
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Skilled laborers in high demand By B.C. Manion bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
It’s no secret that when the economy tanked, construction companies and related industries were hit hard. “When everything crashed, we all had to really pare down. Our staff went almost in half,” said Linda Cox, CEO of Cox Fire Protection Inc.“Construction just came to a screeching halt.” The economy has been picking up, but there’s a shortage of skilled laborers, said Cox, whose company has been involved in numerous northern Hillsborough and Pasco county projects. Now that construction is moving again, opportunities for work are increasing, Cox said. “Projects that had been put on hold, now have funding again,” she said.And, there are new initiatives, too, across the Tampa Bay region, she said. “If you ride downtown (Tampa) and look at the tower cranes, that’s just a really good indication of how the industry is going. There’s a lot of really exciting stuff happening in Pasco County, too,” said Cox, whose company does sprinkler systems and alarm systems, primarily in commercial construction projects, including hospitals, schools and other large construction projects. “We work primarily through general contractors, or directly for owners,” she said. But now, companies like hers are facing a different problem. “We’re just not replacing the skilled work force as quickly as people exited it,” Cox said. After the economy crashed, she said,“a lot of Baby Boomers said, ‘Well, OK, I’m outta here’” and retired. Others switched to different lines of work and haven’t re-entered the construction force, she said. “Over the summer, we actually had to tell our sales team, don’t bid any more work, because we can’t staff it. We could have sold more work than we had crews to staff – which is a wonderful thing and a terrible thing,” Cox said.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF LINDA COX
Jimmy Roberts, an apprenticeship graduate, is shown here during a statewide competition during the final year of his apprenticeship.
Johnny Dover, works on a ladder at a job site. The shortage of skilled laborers is creating issues for companies that are unable to pursue additional work, because they don’t have enough people to complete the work, says Linda Cox, CEO of Cox Fire Protection.
The problem isn’t limited to the Tampa Bay region. The Construction Labor Market Analyzer offers projected employment needs, by state, in numerous categories through October 2018. Here are some of the projected needs for Florida: • Boilermaker, 15,349 • Carpenters, floor covering: 17,933 • Carpenters, scaffold builder: 16,897 • Concrete finisher: 19,097 • Electrician: 18,841 • Plumber: 15,485 • Roofer: 18,147 • Pipefitter, sprinkler system: 8,211 To help address the labor shortage, there’s a push on to try to increase appren-
ticeships, Cox said. Cox said her husband, Ron, recently has been appointed by Gov. Rick Scott, to sit on the Governor’s Apprenticeship Council. The Associated Builders and Contractors is very active in the apprenticeship arena, running a large program that involves apprenticeships available in areas such as electrical, plumbing, masonry, heating ventilation and air conditioning, and fire protection, Cox said. There’s also a need to raise awareness about opportunities available for skilled laborers, she added. To that end,“The Associated Builders and Contractors is working with local districts to ensure our industry is represented as a valuable career path for students entering the work force,” Steve Cona III, president/CEO of Associated Buildings and Contractors, Florida Gulf Coast, said via email. It’s a message that needs to be reiterated, Cox said. “In our generation, a lot of kids just sort of followed along in the family footsteps, and construction was just sort of a viable option for a lot of young men,” she said.“And then, the trend really in high school began to be,‘If you are a bright student, college is the right pathway for you.’” But, the message that needs to be shared now — with young men and young women — is that college isn’t the only path to a bright future, Cox said. “There are some other equally lucrative, professional kind of avenues that don’t require four years of college and $100,000 of student debt,” she said.
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The license plate on his car reads “BigCats.” But, when it comes to cats, Denny Mitchell doesn’t care whether they’re big, small or medium. He loves them all. And, he wants to persuade others that they should love the furry felines, too. While dogs may be a man’s best friend, the way Mitchell sees it:“Cats are our best companions.” Two years ago, Mitchell took his passion for cats on the road. He educates and entertains audiences, generally from age 8 and older, at libraries, senior centers and civic groups with his musical tribute “All About Cats.” On Feb. 27 at 2 p.m., he will bring his musical show to the Lutz Branch Library, at 101 W. Lutz Lake Fern Road in Lutz. The Friends of the Lutz Branch Library is sponsoring the event, which has free admission. Mitchell, owner of Meowser Productions, spent more than a year composing music and lyrics, and crafting a slide and video show to cover the history and habits of cats. He brings his keyboard and sound sys-
You can see live cams of Big Cat Rescue’s kitten rescue operation by going to Explore.org/bigcatrescue. You can also visit Denny Mitchell’s website, MeowserProductions.com, to find links to area nonprofits and about adoption events.
KATHY STEELE/STAFF PHOTOS
Denny Mitchell is a devoted cat aficionado who sings the praises of cats – literally – at his musical tribute show, “All About Cats.”
tem. A robotic, white-furred cat, named Tallulah, also accompanies him – arriving in a pink cat carrier. Tallulah rests regally atop a purple pillow, where she purrs, meows and washes her face with slow paw swipes. “She sets the mood,” Mitchell explained.
He sprinkles his performance with humor and original songs — though sometimes he also sings “Memory,” the show-stopping tune from the musical “Cats.” Mitchell researches his facts. Among his nuggets are: • Cats date back 35 million years. • The Egyptian word for cat is mao, meaning “to see.” In ancient Egypt people were fascinated by a cat’s eyes. • Cats, per pound, are 12 times stronger than humans. • Adult cats have 244 bones; humans, 206. • A cat’s field of vision is about 200 degrees. See CATS, page 11A