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SEPTEMBER 23, 2020
New schools coming to Pasco County
By B.C. Manion bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
A groundbreaking was held Sept. 9 to begin work on a new career and technical school off Curley Road, in East Pasco County, across from a sizable development called Epperson. Then, at the Sept. 15 Pasco County School Board meeting, a contract was approved for preconstruction work on a new 6-12 School in the emerging Angeline community in Land O’ Lakes. Meanwhile, work continues on the construction of the new Starkey Ranch K-8 in the Starkey Ranch development, a growing Pasco County community. During the groundbreaking ceremony and at the board meeting, Pasco School Board members and school district officials expressed enthusiasm about expanding educational opportunities for district students. The 184,000-square-foot Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation, being built at 9100 Curley Road, is expected to serve 1,000 stu-
COURTESY OF PASCO COUNTY SCHOOLS
A rendering of the exterior of the new Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation.
dents and is scheduled to open for the 2022-2023 school year. The school will prepare students for high-salary, high-skill careers in high-demand areas such as digital multimedia, engineering and robotics, biomedical sciences, building construction, and cyber security, according
to district officials. School board member Allen Altman is delighted with the new school, as he has been pushing for years to expand educational opportunities in East Pasco. See SCHOOLS, page 9A
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INSIDE, PAGE 1B
COURTESY OF PASCO COUNTY SCHOOLS
After pushing for years to expand opportunities for East Pasco students, school board member Allen Altman is delighted about the construction of Kirkland Academy of Innovation, a new high school being built off Curley Road.
Zephyrhills budget decreasing in 2020-2021
Local woman hopes to make faith-filled impact on national level
By Kevin Weiss
By Joey Johnston
kweiss@lakerlutznews.com
Special to The Laker/Lutz News
Zephyrhills resident Michele Bowman, raised in the Catholic Church, has always embraced faith as her life’s foundation. “Really, it has given me everything,’’ Bowman said. Now, she has a rare opportunity to give back. Bowman recently was elected as one of nine National Directors for the Catholic Daughters of the Americas (CDA), an organization that promotes spiritual growth, charitable giving, community service and sisterhood. In the CDA’s 117-year history, Bowman is the fourth National Director from Florida. Bowman, who worships at St. Joseph Catholic Church, has been active as a charter member of the 43-woman Court Mother Teresa in Zephyrhills.The chapter is one of CDA’s 1,150 local chapters. She has held several CDA positions on the state and local level, but said she’s looking forward to making connections on the national level. She’s beginning a two-year term. “It’s a big deal and quite an honor for Michele,’’ said Kathy Brady, a regent with Court Mother Teresa. “She will be able to give her opinion and be a liaison at the highest level of our organization. She will be hands-on with a lot of big issues, and it’s going to be a great experience.’’ Bowman grew up in North Tampa, where her home parish was St. Mary Catholic Church in the Lake Magdalene area. During her initial time as a Zephyrhills resident, she attended Our Lady of the Rosary in Land O’ Lakes when it was a small church, then saw it grow exponentially as the area’s population increased. For nearly three decades, she has called St. Joseph home.When she first heard about the formation of Court Mother Teresa, she joined immediately. It became an important factor in her spiritual maturation. “It appealed to me to be around a group of Catholic women, to grow in faith, to be of service to the community,’’ said Bowman,
COURTESY OF MICHELE BOWMAN
Zephyrhills resident Michele Bowman recently was elected as a National Director for the Catholic Daughters of the Americas, becoming the fourth Floridian to reach that level in the organization’s 117-year history.
who was elected by mail voting as part of the CDA’s 58th Biennial National Convention, which was scheduled for Dallas but held remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “It was a great way to meet people in my parish. I thought the faith-based emphasis, plus the service and social aspects, were really nice,” Bowman said. “But, it became more than I would have imagined. It has really extended my self-confidence in speaking to people and meeting new people. At one time, I could look around my church and hardly not know anyone. Now, I look around and I know so many people, their stories, their backgrounds. I will now get a chance to do that on a national level. I wasn’t super shy, but this sort of involvement has made me more outgoing.’’ It has also given Bowman ideas about growing an organization. At Court Mother Teresa, the group has worked with Meals on Wheels and the Trinity Cafe. It has organized a Christmas Toy Drive for children of migrant workers. It has held yard sales and bunco games to raise money for charities. Fundraising is good. Charity is good. But, Bowman wants to expand those concepts.The membership must grow.And, it needs a youth movement. Court Mother Teresa is one of only seven courts in Florida. See FAITH, page 9A
The City of Zephyrhills has adopted its tentative budget for the upcoming fiscal year — and it comes in slimmer than the current year, at $60,412,293. The roughly $60.4 million budget for fiscal year 2020-2021 represents nearly an 8.8% decrease from this current fiscal year’s budget of $66,293,613. However, it’s slightly greater than the city’s budget two years ago of $59,433,368. The Zephyrhills City Council had its first reading of the ordinance and first hearing on the proposed budget in a Sept. 14 regular meeting. The council gave first-round approval, and will have a second reading and final reading before the new budget takes effect on Oct. 1. The proposed budget is based on an approved 6.35 millage rate, assessed on taxable value of property within the city. At least one area where the city will begin to see marked savings is the merger of its fire department with Pasco County Fire Rescue. Savings in the first year of the interlocal agreement are tallied at $551,890 compared to the 2019-2020 budget of a fully-funded municipal fire department. The agreement (as well as extended employee benefits) will cost the city roughly $5.5 million total, generally spread out over a period of seven years. After fiscal year 20262027, the city won’t have to pay the county for fire rescue services — as it’d be solely propped up by an MSTU assessed to city residents and commercial entities, similar to how Dade City receives such services. Here’s a rundown of some other proposed budget highlights by the city’s various departments:
ADMINISTRATIVE/HUMAN RESOURCES:
• 3.5% increase to total health care costs • 3% pay increase for employees won’t take effect until April 1, to give the city time to review revenues sources that may decrease as a result of COVID-19 See BUDGET, page 9A