PLANT CITY TIMES &
Observer
Meet the pool champ.
SEE PAGE 12
YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
VOLUME 4, NO. 22
FREE
YOUR TOWN
The Tire Shop of Plant City is
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2016
COMMENTS AND CONCERNS
GAINING TRACTION Rick and Sara Johns bought Vaughn’s Tires almost two years ago. With new ownership and a new name, they’re hoping to gain more customers. SEE PAGE 5
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Wedding Bells
The Florida Department of Transportation is accepting comments about the proposed project through Monday, Dec. 19. SUBMIT BY MAIL: Kirk Bogen, P.E., Environmental Management Engineer Florida Department of Transportation, District 7 MS 7-500 11201 N. McKinley Drive, Tampa, Florida 33612-6456 Email: Lilliam.Escalera@dot. state.fl.us
FDOT hosts U.S. 92 hearing
Mr. and Mrs. Roberto L. Paradela are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Zuly Paradela, to Clinton Allen Stearns, son of Mr. and Mrs. Stacy D. Stearns. The bride-to-be is a graduate of Chamberlain High School in Tampa. She attended Saint Leo University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in criminology. She later earned her master’s degree from Liberty University. She currently works at the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office as a detective and polygraph examiner. The future bridegroom is a longtime Plant City resident and a graduate of Plant City High School. He earned his bachelor’s degree in criminology from the University of South Florida. He is currently a law enforcement deputy for the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. The couple plan to marry this spring.
With the public hearing complete, design acceptance is slated for spring 2017.
EMILY TOPPER MANAGING EDITOR
Courtesy photo
BayCare welcomes new physician Dr. A. Mosharraf Hossain, M.D., M.P.H, joined BayCare Medical Group at 1601 W. Timberlane Drive in December. He is accepting new patients, ages 18 and up. Hossain is board certified in oncology and internal medicine with clinical interests in both solid and liquid tumor treatment and bone marrow transplant. He has been published in multiple journals, including the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Blood Cancer Journal and American Journal of Psychiatry. Prior to his position with BayCare, Hossain served as an associate professor and medical director for the division of hematology and oncology at the Univeristy of Missouri in Columbia. Hossain is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American College of Psychiatry, the American Society of hematology and the American Association of Public Health. Hossain received his doctor of medicine from Dhaka Medical College of Dhaka University in Dhaka, Bangladesh. He completed internal medicine and psychiatry residencies at the University of West Virginia School of Medicine in Morgantown. He later completed a hematology and oncology fellowship at the Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center in Morgantown. In addition to English, he is fluent in Bengali, Hindi and Urdu.
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Emily Topper
After working for Vaughn’s Tires for over a decade, Rick Johns purchased the North Wheeler Street shop. He now operates The Tire Shop of Plant City with his wife, Sara.
Paved shoulders, sidewalks and improved walkability for pedestrians are all cited in the Florida Department of Transportation’s plan to widen 18.1 miles of U.S. Highway 92. A public hearing for the project, which is part of a five-year plan, was held Thursday, Dec. 1, at the John R. Trinkle Center at Hillsborough Community College. The goal of the road improvement project is to prepare for further growth in Hillsborough County. FDOT plans to widen U.S. 92 from east of Interstate 4 to east of County Line Road. Existing lanes will be widened from two to four lanes, with the exception of Mobley Street to Maryland Avenue. The project will exclude lane widening and road work in Historic Downtown Plant City, with the exception of routine maintenance. Though Plant City has been taking part in Hillsborough County’s growth spurt — including the development of the County Line Logistics Center at Fancy Farms near the County Line Road and Rice Road intersection — some business owners along U.S. 92 are concerned about what the expansion means for their storefronts. Sam and Sandy Sidoti, who have lived in the area for the last 16 years, are among them. “We own property next to the bowling alley on U.S. 92,” Sam Sidoti said. “It looks like (the expansion) is going to take most of it. The whole front of the property would be gone ... there’s no place for cars. I don’t think it’s warranted at this point, but they’re thinking about 10 years down the road.” According to Kirk Bogen, environmental management engineer at SEE FDOT PAGE 5
Changing Tune Dark Horse Music Store will move into Historic Downtown in early 2017. EMILY TOPPER MANAGING EDITOR
It began as a way to earn gas money. At 16, Michael Wilson began offering drum lessons to Plant City residents. With no studio space of his own, he traveled to his clients’ homes. Seven years later, Wilson, the founder of Dark Horse Music Store on Wheeler Street, is still offering lessons to students — along with instrument rentals, repairs and SEE DARK HORSE PAGE 3
THE NEW DIGS DARK HORSE MUSIC STORE Address: 108 N.E. Drane St., between The Original Big Dog’s Patio and Neumeister’s Candy Shoppe Hours: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Friday; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday Contact: Dark Horse Music Store, (813) 754-5269 Website: DHMusicStore.com
Emily Topper
Michael Wilson began offering drum lessons seven years ago. Now the owner of Dark Horse Music Store, Wilson’s business will be moving into Historic Downtown Plant City at the start of 2017.