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KRATE begins taking shape at the Grove
By B.C. Manion bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
An attraction that will offer a new and unique retail and restaurant experience is beginning to take shape — as crews set down shipping containers that will house the businesses at KRATE, in the Grove at Wesley Chapel. While crews work at the site, the developers also are proceeding with a unified sign plan for the district, with the Pasco County Planning Commission reviewing
See KRATE, page 9A
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COURTESY OF THE GROVE AT WESLEY CHAPEL
This shipping container is being maneuvered into place where a new shopping and restaurant experience will be arriving by the end of the year at the Grove at Wesley Chapel.
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Zephyrhills to update stormwater master plan By Kevin Weiss kweiss@lakerlutznews.com
The City of Zephyrhills is updating its stormwater master plan for the first time in more than 20 years — an undertaking that will pinpoint the city’s most prone flooding areas and provide recommendations for addressing drainage issues. The Zephyrhills City Council on Nov. 9 unanimously approved a project work order with planning/engineering firm Kimley-Horn Associates, for the master plan. The contract calls for the work to be done in 11 months, and provides a lump sum fee of $249,820.The project is being paid for with city revenues and with Penny for Pasco dollars. The finished master plan will create a tool to determine flood risk, evaluate the level of service, and develop best management practices to reduce flooding and improve water quality. The update also will include a GISbased schema that will facilitate a plug and play approach for future updates. More specifically, the plan includes these components: • Conducting an inventory of the primary drainage infrastructure throughout the watershed with detailed analysis of infrastructure in the vicinity of identified flood-prone areas • Developing a detailed hydrologic and hydraulic model to characterize runoff responses throughout the watershed and flood conditions in the vicinity of identified flood-prone areas • Developing updated floodplain maps • Conducting a surface water quality assessment • Identifying and evaluating alternatives for improving flooding and water quality in the watershed Kimley-Horn representatives discussed the scope of work during the council’s session. Of note, they mentioned the industry standard is to complete a stormwater master plan update every five years, particularly for municipalities like Zephyrhills, which has undergone numerable land annexations over time. The master plan won’t do much in the way of full-blown construction plans or permitting through SWFWMD (Southwest Florida Water Management See STORMWATER, page 9A ee Fr
ee Fr
The LAKER WESLEY CHAPEL/NEW TAMPA EDITION
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FEBRUARY 3, 2016
Amici Pizza plans stand-alone location By Kathy Steele ksteele@lakerlutznews.com
of heading toward a construction start Amici Plaza in spring with an opening likely
by the end of 2016. Pasco County records show a conceptual Owners of Amici Pizza & Deli are planthe plan with about 3,000 square feet for ning to build a new stand-alone restaurant, for restaurant, and about 1,800 square feet with additional retail space, on Wesley retail. Chapel Boulevard. “We’d like to have our own building and The new restaurant is a short distance a bigger kitchen,” said Andrea Mannino. from the existing Amici restaurant in Grand No decisions have been made on the adOaks Square, at Wesley Chapel and Pet Lane. ditional retail space, he said. Andrea and Josephine Mannino, are
The site is located at the corner of Magnolia Boulevard and Wesley Chapel Boulevard, which is also known as County Road 54. Pasco County is moving forward with acquisition of right-of-way along County Road 54 to prepare for the expansion of the twothe lane road into a four-lane road at 54 junction of State Road 56 and State Road See PIZZA, page 13A
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813-868-1887 “I Will Aggressively Fight To Protect Your Legal Rights”
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FLORIDA STRAWBERRY FESTIVAL
EDITION
JANUARY 27, 2016
Pasco administrator to retire in
By Kathy Steele
ksteele@lakerlutznews.com
Pasco County Administrator Michele Baker expects to be very busy over the next year and a half. She’ll be crossing off a to-do list, one by one, before leaving in 2017 to go on a lengthy road trip with her husband. The couple will hit the road with their recreational vehicle and their motorcycles, on a tour of as many baseball parks and national parks as they can squeeze into a year. “That’s been our dream,” Baker said, so letting her contract lapse in July 2017 makes sense. But, don’t expect a lame duck administrator. “There’s no kicking back here,” Baker said.“This isn’t me slowing down. ” Baker has told Pasco County commissioners she won’t seek renewal of her current two-year contract, which makes her
last day July 9, 2017. By then, Baker will have worked 35 years in public service, 24 of those years with Pasco County. Her to-do list, in short form, includes: • Completing masMichele Baker ter plans and updates for storm water, solid waste and tourism • Funding and building a diverging diamond road design to ease traffic congestion at State Road 56 and Interstate 75 • Completing the State Road 56 extension • Nurturing SunWest Park, the county’s fledgling aqua park • Replacing and repairing aging infrastructure and roads damaged by the summer flooding • Making progress on the expansion of
2017
the jail and construction of new fire stations • Relocating more government offices to central Pasco
Baker also plans to fill vacancies for a few key leadership positions that remain, cluding an assistant county administrator infor public safety and administration. Progress has been made, Baker said, but government services still could be more customer-friendly. A culture that was decades in the making is being changed, she said.“You don’t get to turn a canoe.You’re turning a ship. ” Public service wasn’t Baker’s first career choice. Over the years she worked as a waitress, flight attendant and a theater manager. also served in the U.S.Air Force Reserve. She Her undergraduate degree was in business administration. It wasn’t until she accepted a secretarial See RETIRE, page 11A
Kumquats reign supreme at area festival
By Kathy Steele
ksteele@lakerlutznews.com
®
Saturday, January 30, 2016 9 AM - 5 PM Historic Downtown Dade City
FREE ADMISSION KATHY STEELE/STAFF PHOTOS
©
WESLEY CHAPEL/NEW TAMPA
Auto Accident? Slip and Fall?
Mark Pizzurro, Joe Traina and Peter Abreut
anticipate
Lakes in spring. opening their craft brewery in Land O’
I th
The first kumquat tree in St. Joseph took root more than 100 years ago, when C.J. Nathe planted it in his backyard. He added a few more, and soon he had small grove on an acre of fertile ground. a The kumquat king, as Nathe was later dubbed, transformed a quiet back road community into the Kumquat Capital of the World. An open house will take place on Jan. and Jan. 29 at the Kumquat Growers 28 pack- Margie Neuhofer and her i h h b dJ d
KATHY STEELE/STAFF PHOTO
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KELLI CARMACK
Checking out a winter wonderland Who says you have to go North to enjoy some wintry fun? Snowcat Ridge Alpine Snow Park offers locals, and tourists alike, a chance to go snowtubing, have snowball fights and sip hot cocoa near a fire. To find out more, please turn to page 1B.
KELLI CARMACK
Snowcat Ridge CEO Benjamin Nagengast speaks at the theme park’s Nov. 20 ribboncutting and grand opening ceremony in Dade City. The Nagengast family also owns nearby TreeHoppers Aerial Adventure and Scream-A-Geddon Horror Park.
KEVIN WEISS
This is the main entrance to Snowcat Ridge Alpine Snow Park in Dade City. The 20-acre property is promoted as the first-ever snow park in Florida. The seasonal facility will generally be open between November and March each year.
Florida is closing in on Pasco County 1 million COVID-19 cases commissioners By B.C. Manion bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
Experts are predicting that Florida will hit the 1 million mark in positive COVID-19 cases this week, and there are concerns nationwide about the impacts from potential spread that may have occurred during the Thanksgiving holidays. The Florida Department of Health had recorded more than 992,660 positive cases of COVID-19, including 976,944 positive residents, according to health department figures available on the morning of Nov. 30. The death toll stood at 18,500 for Florida residents and 236 for non-residents, according to the same report. Hillsborough County had 57,673 positive cases, involving county residents, and 419 cases involving non-residents. The county has recorded 929 deaths related to COVID19. In Pasco County, there were 14,643 positive cases involving residents, and 140 involving non-residents.The death toll stood at 271. The latest figures for the Pasco and Hillsborough public school districts had not
Help prevent the spread of COVID-19 Avoid these high-risk activities: • Shopping in crowded stores • Attending large indoor gatherings with people from outside of your household • Using alcohol or drugs that may alter judgment and make it more difficult to practice COVID-19 safety measures. Follow these safety protocols: • Stay 6 feet away from others • Wear a mask when social distancing isn’t possible • Wash hands frequently
delay hiring decision
They want county to advertise the opening. By B.C. Manion bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
yet been updated, since the districts were out for the Thanksgiving break. The most recent figures from those districts show that there had been 475 student cases and 177 staff cases in Pasco County
The Pasco County Commission wants the county to advertise a top administrative position before deciding who should get the job. Commissioners made that decision during their Nov. 17 meeting, when they were asked to confirm the selection of Gary Joiner to be the director of administration in the county’s building and construction services department. The job pays $125,000. Sally Sherman, assistant county adminis-
See COVID-19, page 9A
See HIRING, page 9A
Source: Florida Department of Health