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SEPTEMBER 8, 2021
Ending pandemic requires a unified effort
By B.C. Manion bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
Doctors are continuing to urge those who are eligible to get vaccinated, to mask up, to keep a social distance from others and to practice good hygiene — in a layered effort to stop the spread of COVID-19. Doctors from the University of South Florida, BayCare and AdventHealth delivered that message in two separate virtual sessions
held last week. “As we opened the school year, it was truly what I call the perfect storm,” Dr. Christina Canody, pediatric service line medical director for BayCare said, during a Zoom call arranged by U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, who represents Florida’s 14th congressional district. “Last year, when we opened, we had mandate mask requirements, we had some of the lowest rates of infectivity, positivity and
prevalence that we had seen during the pandemic,” Canody said. “This year, we were at absolute opposite ends of the spectrum. “We were at very high prevalence and positivity rates, and we continue to see a large number of children impacted,” Canody said. She emphasized that despite the tremenSee PANDEMIC, page 7A
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Pasco aids Hurricane Ida rescue dogs Waiting for a new home, Blaze, a 44-pound mixed-breed male, came to Pasco County Animal Services in a group of dogs rescued from Gulfport, Mississippi. The Pasco shelter took in the dogs to help the Charleston Animal Society, which pulled dogs from the Humane Society of Southern Mississippi, due to Hurricane Ida. See the story, page 3A.
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Waffle, a mixed-breed male, is awaiting his new family.
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Pasco commissioner calls Request for mixed for better design standards uses aims to wrap up Wesley Chapel project
By B.C. Manion
bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
www.lakerlutznews.c com
B INSIDE, PAGE 1B
This mixed-breed male vies for attention — hoping to entice a new owner to take him home. He’s trying to feel for something under the door.
Pasco County Commissioner Kathryn Starkey is calling for better design standards, relating to the appearance of distribution centers. She raised the issue during the Pasco County Commission’s Aug. 24 meeting, showing her colleagues photos to illustrate her point. The photos revealed a distribution center with a large blank wall and sparse landscaping. “This is really not a good thing for the neighborhood,” Starkey said. “We have some design standards for large, big-box buildings, but it left out these kinds of buildings. I guess we weren’t anticipating these kinds of buildings,” the commissioner added. She called upon the county to require the same types of design details for distribution centers as it has for large-scale commercial retail buildings and large-scale commercial development projects. “Do not have unbroken blank walls,” Starkey said. More landscaping is needed, too. “One tree for every 60 feet — I think is what we have going on there. I definitely want to see us do better,” she said. The county can do better and, she added, if it raises its expectations, it will get better results. “They (developers) will do better if we
ask them to, because I’ve seen that in other counties,” Starkey said. Nectarios Pittos, the county’s director of planning and development, said one possibility would be to add a section to the county’s big-box ordinance to specifically address distribution centers. Another option would to be make these requirements on a case-by-case basis, when individual requests for master planned unit developments (MPUDs) come in, Pittos said, because most of these developments fall into that category. County Attorney Jeffrey Steinsnyder said he would prefer to see a code change,“so that everybody knows the rules coming in.” In the meantime,“if there are MPUDs in process that have these types of uses, that would be something that the planner that is reviewing them considers,” the attorney said. Starkey added:“We would like the planner to know that we want to see better building, so you can start dealing with that in your meetings, not in my meetings.” On another topic, Starkey pushed the county to seek greater diversity in housing choices, within subdivisions. “We should be asking for a mix of 40-, 50, 60-foot product,” she said, noting she wants to avoid cookie-cutter subdivisions. “I’m not going to be OK with any more only 40-foot lots,” Starkey said.“I’m not going to approve any more. See DESIGN, page 7A
By B.C. Manion bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
The Wesley Chapel Lakes project has been on the books for decades, but now the developer is seeking an amendment to its master planned unit development (MPUD) to pursue entitlements at three intersections within the community. The project is located south of, and adjacent to State Road 54, about 3.5 miles east of Interstate 75, and extending south to the Pasco County line. The developer, M/I Homes of Tampa LLC, is seeking entitlements for vacant parcels within Wesley Chapel Lakes that are consistent with market demands, according to information contained in the Pasco County Commission’s Aug. 26 agenda materials. The proposed uses will not generate more vehicle trips from the development than were previously approved and that have already been addressed through mitigation (which normally includes impact fees and/or transportation improvements), according to the agenda background materials. Most of the residential component of the project has been developed. Now, the applicant is seeking approval of entitlements along three nodes on Meadow See PROJECT, page 7A