The LAKER
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EAST PASCO EDITION
LAKERLUTZNEWS.COM
MAY 13, 2015
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bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
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Pasco County is preparing to implement a 10-year master plan to improve existing parks and add new ones. The plan was crafted with public input.
Pasco merges county departments By Kathy Steele
ksteele@lakerlutznews.com
Pasco County will merge its parks and recreation department and its environmental lands program and create a new division – the Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Department. The Pasco Commission approved the merger at its May 5 meeting. The restructuring comes as the county prepares to implement a master plan for county parks. The focus is on improving efficiency, better customer service and keeping up with the growth from new development. “It all comes down to funding really,” said Cathy Pearson, assistant county administrator for public services. The restructured department would have three managers for natural resources, fiscal and support services, and parks and recreation, who would report to a director of parks, recreation and natural resources. “We’re going through the budget now,” Pearson said.“It’s been a challenge.” The parks department has struggled since 2009 through lean times with budget cuts and job layoffs. To fill in financial gaps, the county began charging user fees four years ago at 11 of its parks, including $2 parking fees. Youth league teams, cosponsored by the county, including the Central Pasco Soccer Club, the Wesley Chapel Athletic Association and the Dade City Little League, also have been charged fees. Some commissioners would like to see an end to the parking and athletic participation fees. “We’re taxing things that we’re trying to encourage,” said Commissioner Jack Mariano. But losing revenues means more tough budget decisions. Parks and recreation employees have done a “tremendous” job keeping up with services, but Pearson said, “We’re really struggling. Hopefully we’ll come up with some creative ideas.” Revenues since 2009 have increased from about $840,000 to about $1.5 million
currently. But the department’s overall budget in that same time dropped from about $10 million to about $8.9 million. The loss of parking and athletic fees would mean about $440,000 in lost revenues, Pearson said. During public comment at the May 5 meeting, Jeff Olsen of the Wesley Chapel Athletic Association made a plea for commissioners to restore the parks and recreation’s budget to a level more in line with budgets prior to the recession. “A lot of money has been siphoned away from some important needs,” Olsen said. A job description for the newly created position of natural resources manager will be advertised in the next week or so. Along with the reorganization, Rick Buckman, the county’s current parks and recreation director, will take on a new role as park supervisor for Moon Lake Park, Robert Strickland and Robert Rees Memorial parks. He also will provide support during the transition, said Pearson, adding that finding a natural resources manager could take months. Another newly created position of program coordinator will not be filled until the manager is on board and can decide if the position is needed, Pearson said. The county has budgeted $160,700 for salaries and benefits for the two positions. The manager’s salary would be in the range of $70,000 to $85,000. The decision to step away from the director’s job was one that Buckman made on his own, said Pearson. “It was a surprise to me,” she said. Buckman’s new job as parks supervisor became available as the result of another employee’s retirement. “Rick Buckman has been a tremendous asset for the county, building a tremendous team, ” said Land O’ Lakes resident Sandy Graves. Chairman Ted Schrader also had praise for Buckman. “I think we all realize the work Mr. Buckman has done through trying times,” he said. “You never complained. You managed to get your job done.”
Patients and providers offered insights into obstacles relating to the treatment of people living with Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis during a recent roundtable hosted by U.S. Rep. Gus Bilirakis. Bilirakis, who is a member of the Energy and Commerce subcommittee on Heath, hosted a roundtable focusing on neurological conditions on May 6 at the Carrollwood Cultural Center. Bilirakis asked panelists and members of the audience to talk about challenges facing patients and their families, and obstacles thwarting U.S. Rep. providers. He also Gus Bilirakis asked those gathered to share information about clinical trials and breakthroughs. Ron Hall, who has Alzheimer’s disease told Bilirakis, “probably the biggest thing is the unknown —trying to figure out what you’re going to do to keep your life normal as possible.” The hard part, he said, is “just not knowing what’s coming your way. “With all of these other diseases out there, you can say, ‘I’m going to fight it. I’m going to beat it.’ With Alzheimer’s, there’s no beating it.” Hall’s wife, Diane, said “we’ve never been to a neurologist, just a geriatric doctor and had tests performed. “Sometimes, we think, maybe we should go, and then we ask ourselves: ‘Do you really want to know how far along you are?’ ” she said. Dr. Charles Brock, another panelist, told the couple: “I think visiting the neurologist is helpful. It’s empowering because that physician is likely to know there may be drug trials going on, there may be new treatments, there may be new supportive measures that would be helpful to you and at least give you the opportunity to make a decision about what you want, which gives you more control.” Dr. Jessica Banko, associate institute director for the University of South Florida’s Byrd Alzheimer’s Institute, agreed with Brock. “Having some of that knowledge of where in the journey you lie may open doors to additional measures, not always necessarily pharmacological,” Banko said. “There are caregiver interventions to minimize stress and burden, and improve quality of life; there are behavioral measures and other ways to get involved in, maybe in validating new diagnostic tools.” See HEALTH, page9A
State loan may help widen State Road 56 By Kathy Steele
ksteele@lakerlutznews.com
The Pasco Commission agreed that a low-interest state loan to fund the widening of additional lanes on State Road 56 is worth exploring, if developers take responsibility for paying it back. Commissioners voted unanimously to direct the county’s administration and staff members to gather details about the loan and prepare a letter of interest to be sent to the State Infrastructure Bank. The letter must be submitted by May 29 for state officials to consider granting a loan in its 2016 cycle. The infrastructure bank provides loans and other assistance to public or private entities for projects that qualify for aid under federal and state law. Commissioners are expected to vote on the matter at their May 19 meeting. “There’s a lot of details that need to be worked out on this,” said Assistant County Attorney David Goldstein. Goldstein and Richard Gehring, the county’s planning and development administrator, sought permission at the commissioners’ May 5 meeting to pursue the loan option. A lot of staff time will be needed, Goldstein told commissioners. “I think this is a regional road, not a local road, and will be a benefit for the entire county,” said Commissioner Mike Moore. “There may be options, many ways the loan can be packaged.”
‘I do have some reservations. People here believe growth should pay for itself.’
— Pasco County Commission Chairman Ted Schrader
But commissioners also had concerns about potential costs and who would be held accountable for repaying the loan. “I do have some reservations,” said Chairman Ted Schrader. “People here believe growth should pay for itself.” Gehring said the county would be the lead applicant for the loan but would collect repayment funds from developers through mobility surcharge fees and potentially special property assessments. County officials hope the city of Zephyrhills will agree to pay 10 percent of the annual loan payments not covered by developers’ contributions. The Zephyrhills City Council was expected to discuss the matter at its May 11 meeting. The state loan option arose out of a February town hall meeting to discuss transportation issues. Since then county officials, State Sen. John Legg, State Rep. Danny Burgess and state highway officials have had additional meetings on the loan plan. Current plans are to extend State Road 56 from Meadow Pointe Boulevard in
Wiregrass Ranch to U.S. 301 in Zephyrhills, as a two-lane road. Zephyrhills’ residents and city officials have pushed for the additional lanes as a boost to the area’s economy. They also have said it would be less costly to build four lanes now rather than later. Gehring said the agreement might be crafted along the lines of a similar one that paid for roadwork for the Villages of Pasadena Hills. In that instance, the Florida Department of Transportation and developers each paid for two of the four lanes built to accommodate increased traffic generated by the development project. If needed, other funding sources could be tax increment financing and gasoline taxes. However, Gehring cautioned commissioners that if these funds were used, the county might have to defer other road projects. Commissioners said developers should bear the burden of repaying debt from the project. “Other developers have already been paying,” said Commissioner Kathryn Starkey.