The LAKER
ee r F
EAST PASCO EDITION
LAKERLUTZNEWS.COM
JUNE 3, 2015
Wildlife corridors on agenda By Kathy Steele
meeting at the Land O’ Lakes Branch Library for an “informational” presentation that outlined the goals and routes for seven A mandated but long-delayed ordinance proposed corridors. to create wildlife corridors is again winding The county has been slow to act on this its way through public meetings, hearings issue. and possible adoption by the Pasco County A proposed 2008 ordinance was postCommission. poned. Two public meetings were held in New A second deadline of 2010, included in Port Richey and Land O’ Lakes in May. the county’s land use plan, came and went There will be a final meeting June 4 at 6 without county action. p.m., at the Dade City Courthouse. It is important to the county’s conservaThe next steps will include two public tion efforts to adopt an ordinance, said Keith hearings, and by late summer, a scheduled Wiley, program manager for the vote by commissioners. Environmental Lands Acquisition and About 10 people attended the May 28 Management Program, also known as ELAMP.
ksteele@lakerlutznews.com
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“Development is coming. We know it happens,” he said. “If we don’t do it (preserve wildlife corridors) now, we’re going to miss the opportunity.” Conservation brings a host of benefits, including clean air and water, flood control and carbon storage,Wiley said. But it also has economic benefits from increased property values and revenues from eco-tourism, he added. “It’s not about moving bugs and bunnies from one area to another,” said Wiley. To date, the county has acquired more than 3,000 acres through ELAMP. Some of those See WILDLIFE, page9A
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Pat Gavros, who lives in Dade City, spent 21 days on the road delivering a message of gratitude to the nation’s veterans and first responders during her Gratitude Journey in May.
Going the extra mile to express gratitude By B.C. Manion
in Dade City. She said she made the trip because when it comes to patriotism, she considers Pat Gavros set off on a journey last the word to be more of a verb than a noun. month, in a personal show of gratitude to “Talk is cheap,” Gavros said, adding, in the nation’s veterans and first responders. matters of gratitude, actions are what count. It was a 21-day trip that took her through “I just am passionate about honoring our 19 states, with stops at veterans’ homes, po- veterans. I thought, why don’t I drive to diflice and fire stations, and memorials. ferent states and visit different veterans’ Along the way, Gavros handed out homes and bring some kind of a little token plaques and cards, thanking the men and of my gratitude. women she met for their service. “Then, when I started thinking about it, I She made the trip alone. She ate inexpen- thought, ‘You know what? Our first responsive meals and carried apples, bananas, ders – those people in uniform — they’re yogurt and water in the car. part of our patriotic fabric. The people that She had scheduled many of the visits she keep us safe. They allow us to live the made during her travels, but there were lifestyle without ever giving it a thought. You spontaneous stops, as well. never think, ‘Oh, if my house burns, who can Gavros is a 67-year-old woman who lives I call?’ ” she said.
bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
Gavros began planning the trip in January, choosing a path that included important memorials and was compact enough she could make it happen. And, she began seeking supporters. “My biggest supporter, who gave me a beautiful 2015 RAV 4 to drive, was Wesley Chapel Toyota. They saw the vision, and they supplied a nice, safe car for me,” said Gavros, who recently reluctantly returned the vehicle to the dealership. “I had a couple of hotels that gave me a few nights’ lodging,” she added. But the financial support she’d been hoping to attract failed to materialize. That didn’t dissuade Gavros. She began her journey with a stop in See GRATITUDE, page 9A
Save-A-Lot opening at Zephyrhills Plaza By Kathy Steele
813-868-1887 OR
352-597-0009
B INSIDE, PAGE 1B
ksteele@lakerlutznews.com
Save-A-Lot grocery store will move into the vacant anchor spot at Zephyrhills Plaza on State Road 54. Sunshine Partners Development Corp., has filed a conceptual plan to redevelop the plaza, county records show. Save-A-Lot, and potential additional retail tenants, could give the plaza a new start. The approximately 52,000-square-foot discount grocery store will replace the former Sweetbay grocery store that closed in 2014. The closure was part of an agreement with the Federal Trade Commission following the purchase by Bi-Lo Holdings of more than 150 Sweetbay, Harveys and Reid grocery stores from the Delhaize Group. The intent was to operate the stores under the Winn-Dixie brand. But to encourage local competition, the federal agency ordered Bi-Lo to close more than a dozen stores in Florida, Georgia and
South Carolina. They were considered too close to stores already under Bi-Lo control. Two of those stores were in Zephyrhills and Dade City. A tentative opening for Save-A-Lot is scheduled for late October with remodeling likely to begin in midsummer, said Save-ALot spokeswoman Chon Tomlin. Save-A-Lot operates more than 100 stores in Florida, and more than 1,300 nationwide. Bill Moran founded the company when he
opened his first grocery store in Illinois in 1977. “We have a really solid footprint in Florida,” Tomlin said. “Our model is well-established in the state.” Store officials look for established neighborhoods with a customer base that want to have a grocery store close to home, Tomlin said. “It’s really about being a community grocery store,” she added.