Lutz NEWS
ee r F
LAKERLUTZNEWS.COM
Auto Accident? Slip and Fall? FREE CONSULTATION
No Fees Or Costs Unless You Win HOLLIDAY KARATINOS LAW FIRM, P.L. HelpingInjuredPeople.com Call Attorney
JIM HOLLIDAY 813-868-1887 “I Will Aggressively Fight To Protect Your Legal Rights” 18920 N. Dale Mabry Hwy Ste 101 Lutz, FL (Corner of Sunlake & Dale Mabry)
Walk-Ins Welcome
Get all your favorite local news stories online.
lakerlutznews.com
CALL TODAY FIXED TODAY!
SERVING LUTZ/ODESSA
Lutz Lake Fern Road gets smoother feel By B.C. Manion
bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
Motorists driving over the portion of Lutz Lake Fern Road from North Dale Mabry to near Oscar Cooler Sports Complex, had the sensation of driving on a washboard. But those driving the section heading east from that point to U.S. 41, rolled over a new, smooth road. That’s because the road was open to through traffic over the weekend, before crews went back to work this week to finish the resurfacing project. The road resurfacing project, about 1.7 miles long, is expected to be completed by March 20, weather permitting, according to Andrea Roshaven a spokeswoman for Hillsborough County. The project is partially due to a recently completed $5.4 million public works project to connect the Manors of Crystal Lakes subdivision to the county’s water distribution system. The water line project affected the eastbound travel lane of Lutz Lake Fern Road,
$495.00 Call for details • priCe per a/C system A/C LICENSE #CAC1816647 PLUMBING LIC. #CFC1428982
CornerstonePros.com
813-949-4445
B INSIDE, PAGE 1B
along U.S. 41 and Lutz Lake Fern Road. The new pipe also improved water flow, bringing it up to current standards for fire protection. The biggest change for customers is that the county’s water system uses chloramines in the final disinfection stages instead of chlorine. Customers should be aware that water that contains chloramines should not be used in home aquariums, fishponds or home kidney dialysis. Water used for those purposes should be treated or filtered to remove the chloramines.
ksteele@lakerlutznews.com
Donna Fernandez played soccer until she was forced to give it up because she had asthma. She wasn’t too disappointed. “I wasn’t very good at it anyway,” the 14year-old said. Her mother, Andrea Elbrecht, wanted her daughter to find a sport in which she could excel and have fun. She had no idea that would turn out to be bowling. “I didn’t know the first thing about bowling,” said Elbrecht, who lives in Land O’ Lakes. Chance — and a friend’s birthday party at a bowling alley — settled the matter. Fernandez found her niche. The teenager has had the highest average score in Hillsborough County in her age group for the past two years. She currently is topping her own previous records with an average 180 points a game. She and 15-year-old Jacob Kostoff, who lives in Trinity, will test their skills against hundreds of bowlers this summer, when they head to Chicago to compete at the national Jr. Gold Championship. Kostoff eased into bowling naturally by watching his father play in a local league. He rolled his first ball toward the tenpins
FRED BELLET/PHOTOS
Hall of Fame bowling champion Lucy Sandelin gets in a couple of frames prior to practice with her students at Royal Lanes.
She can’t beat the commute bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
Air Conditioning • Heating • Plumbing
requiring it to be refurbished. The public works department provided an additional $283,000 to refurbish the westbound travel lanes. The project involves milling and resurfacing. Local traffic can enter the area, but other motorists are being detoured. The Manors of Crystal Lakes project involved 4.5 miles of pipeline to create a looped system, giving Manors of Crystal Lakes’ residents a backup, in the event of any water line breaks or disruption. The 12-inch water pipe was installed
By Kathy Steele
By B.C. Manion
Winner 2012, 2013, 2014
B.C. MANION/STAFF PHOTO
Motorists driving along a 1.7-mile stretch of Lutz Lake Fern Road will have a smoother ride once a resurfacing project is completed. Hillsborough County officials expect the work to be finished by March 20, barring any weather issues.
Striking up some winning ways
See STRIKE, page 7A
Whole Home Duct Cleaning
MARCH 18, 2015
Melissa Huston used to spend 90 minutes each way, getting back and forth from work. She lives in Lutz and was commuting to a job in St. Petersburg. “It was debilitating, mentally,” Huston said. “There were days that were awful driving there.” She and her husband, Doug, have two children. Tyler attends McKitrick Elementary School and Brandon is in preschool. Besides getting stuck in traffic, Huston had the additional stress of not being sure she’d be able to pick up her children from child care on time. “You’re trying to get to your kids at night, and you’re watching the clock and you’re sitting in it (traffic) — and God forbid, there’s an accident and you’re panicking. “I don’t miss any of that,” said Huston, who has been working at home for Dell, since July 2013. Huston had worked for Home Shopping Network in St. Petersburg for many years and made the switch to a Tampa company, which announced that it was moving to St. Petersburg. At the time, Tyler was getting ready to start kindergarten, and Huston decided she would look for a stay-at-home job. “When they’re in preschool, they don’t have homework. They don’t have as many
Working at home is not for everyone
Melissa Huston, a Lutz mom who works at home, offers this advice for people who work at home: • Be sure to establish a routine. • Set up a separate office space — you need to be able to close the door, to work uninterrupted. • Be aware that while you have more flexibility, you still must meet work demands. • Know that working at home is not a good idea if you’re not a good time manager. • Be prepared to make an extra effort to stay in the loop with your colleagues.
activities,” Huston said. But she knew she wanted to be able to help with homework and attend school activities, and couldn’t think of a way to do that and still have a long commute. So, she began looking for stay-at-home work opportunities. She had heard about the scams involving work from home jobs. “That was my big concern: Are they legitimate?” she said. She had reason to worry. The Federal Trade Commission warns
B.C. MANION/STAFF PHOTO
When Melissa Huston wants to get some work done, she steps into her home office to tackle assignments.
consumers to be skeptical when checking out work-at-home opportunities. Many of them require an upfront investment, and many fail to live up to their claims. As Huston was researching stay-at-home jobs, she came across a website called FlexJobs.com. The company, which is a 100 percent, virtual remote company, was founded in 2007 in Boulder, Colorado, by Sara Sutton Fall, according to Kathy Gardner, the company’s PR Manager, who is based in Stamford, Connecticut. FlexJobs.com essentially offers a subscription service to provide information See COMMUTE, page 7A