The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

B.C. Manion

‘Safe Space’ stickers are barred from Pasco Schools

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Pasco School Superintendent Kurt Browning is standing behind his decision to order the removal of rainbow-colored “Safe Space” stickers throughout the school district.

He also has made it known that the school system does not condone the practice of its personnel engaging in private, personal conversations with students.

Browning made those positions clear — after a number of public speakers addressed the ‘Safe Space’ issue — during the Pasco County School Board’s Sept. 12 meeting.

The stickers came about because several organizations and school districts began posting stickers “to let students know they could talk to a trusted adult, if they had a sensitive topic they needed to discuss,” according to Steve Hegarty, public information officer for the school district.

Pasco County Superintendent Kurt Browning has ordered that these stickers be removed from district schools. (Courtesy of Pasco County Schools)

“Clearly, it included LGBTQ youth, but is not limited to them,” Hegarty explained, via email. “Rather than posting stickers that promoted one organization or another, we created our own with the district logo,” Hegarty said.

Browning sent out an email to district staff on Sept. 1 alerting them the district would no longer be designating safe spaces and the stickers would be removed.

Several speakers appeared before the school board, expressing their concerns about that decision.

Heather Adams, who said she has been an educator for 13 years, told board members: “I rise today in support of the Safe Space stickers.

“I believe that our schools should foster diversity, inclusion and acceptance. Safe Space stickers are an infinitesimally small measure that let all of our children know that they are welcome in our classrooms.

“They are not symbols designed to disenfranchise any part of a group of students who may dislike what the rainbow symbol stands for. Those stickers are a symbol that people who are different, who don’t think, dress, act or love like the majority of other students are just as welcome in our schools.

“A sticker is a small thing, but it is a symbol that we, as educators, will accept and treasure all our students, regardless of their beliefs.

“What is not a small thing is the 45% of the LGBTQ students, almost one in two, who will seriously consider suicide this year.

“This suicide prevention month, I implore you to consider what message the removal of these stickers sends to the at-risk youth, who view them as a reminder that they are valued in our community.”

Jessica Jucusko Wright, a former district educator, told the board: “We need to have systems in place that protect our kids, that they know there are adults they can go to, that they can report to, and that those reports will be heard, that they will not be mocked, that they will not be lost and that action will actually be taken.

“It does not matter how our staff may identify from a religious standpoint. We serve the public and we serve all of the public, regardless how we may feel behind closed doors. It does not matter,” the Land O’ Lakes woman said.

Beverly Ledbetter, a former district teacher, also weighed in:  “We like to think of our schools as a safe place for students to find structure and protection, but there are multiple reasons why a student might not feel accepted or understood at school.

“Safe Spaces helped the students who felt unaccepted for whatever reason regain their sense of belonging, where they can talk to other students who feel the same emotions. Safe Spaces can help those students feel empowered to speak up and receive the support they need to believe and to achieve. It gives them a sense of belonging and support, and not just support from the teacher, but from fellow students who come together as a kind of community.”

Ledbetter added: “A Safe Space sticker on a teacher’s door is a signal that bullying and harassment will not be tolerated.”

Others said the sticker conveyed a tone of acceptance and helped instill confidence in students, who sometimes are unable to be authentically who they are at home.

But Rebecca Yuengling, a frequent critic of the school district had a different point of view.

She spoke against the Safe Space stickers.

“No teacher has the right to tell my child to keep secrets. My child will decide. I will decide. Not the teacher, with my child, in private. They’re my children. I decide what they’ll be. No teacher is going to do that. Nobody in this district is going to do that. You don’t have that right, it’s out of your bounds, and thank God for the laws,” Yuengling said.

Superintendent Browning told those listening: “There’s decisions made by the state and then there’s decisions made locally. This decision, in large part, was made in Tallahassee.

He added: “I guess I wasn’t clear enough when I sent my email to district staff. So, let me see if I can clarify my email to district staff.

“This district has no choice, has no choice, because the law says, under the Parent’s Bill of Rights, that there are no such things as ‘safe spaces,’ as we’re defining safe spaces.

“Teachers are not permitted to have private, personal conversations with students any longer.

“Now, I know that runs counter to a lot of us. It runs counter to a lot of us,” he said.

But the superintendent said those who object to the law need to take their opposition to another venue.

“Who you ought to be talking to, about this law, are members of the Florida Legislature. You need to be talking to the governor of the state,” Browning said.

“Because for anyone to think that this district can pick and choose what laws we’re going to enforce and which laws we’re not going to enforce — that isn’t the way it works.

“Whether you agree or whether you disagree with the law, the law is the law, until it’s overturned by the Legislature or by a court of competent jurisdiction,” Browning said.

“Does this mean that we don’t care, because we’ve taken a sticker off a door? That we do not care about kids that identify as gay, or transgender, or lesbian?

“No, that is not what that means.

“All we want is for teachers to understand is they are prohibited by state law of having those private, personal conversations, with students,” the superintendent said.

School districts, and individual teachers, are subject to potential litigation — and the legal fees that arise — if they violate the law, Browning said.

School board member Alison Crumbley said “I understand the passion here and I understand how people feel, on all sides … But this district went through this for two years.

“Every school board meeting, we were bombarded and harangued and we stood for all of our students,” she said.

Parents and guardians are looking to the board “every single day to protect their students, every single day, regardless of their sexuality, anything.”

She then cited a paragraph in the district’s bullying policy that she believes shows the board’s commitment to providing safe, supportive schools for every student.

“The five of us and the superintendent … we really mean this, for every kid. And I know sometimes it doesn’t feel that way, but we really do.”

Published September 21, 2022

Pasco County Schools approves $1.8 billion budget

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The Pasco County School Board has adopted a $1.8 billion budget for the 2022-2023 fiscal year.

Pasco Schools Superintendent Kurt Browning detailed some of the budget’s highlights prior to the board’s action, during its Sept. 12 meeting

Browning told the board that the general operating budget increased from $734.6 million to $850.1 million. The capital budget of $534.6 million is an increase of $195.4 million, over last year.

Browning said the district received an additional $57.2 million in state funding to accommodate its projected growth of 3,588 students and to pay for recurring expenses.

Don Peace, president of the United School Employees of Pasco, says this year’s economic package for district employees is the best it has been in several years. (Courtesy of United School Employees of Pasco)

The budget includes an increase of 115.4 school allocations, includes the cost of opening Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation and costs for the newly named Angeline Academy of Innovation, a 6 through 12 magnet school under construction in the massive new community of Angeline, which is developing in Central Pasco.

Other construction projects include continuing renovations of Hudson High School, continuing construction of the new Gulf High School, construction of the Kirkland Ranch K-8, and construction of a classroom wing at Starkey Ranch K-8.

Other projects across the district include cafeteria renovations, replacement of HVAC systems and other infrastructure upgrades at various schools

A more detailed look at the school system’s budget can be found on the district’s website, at Pasco.k12.fl.us.

In other action, the school board and United School Employees of Pasco (USEP) reported to the board that they had reached an agreement on proposed raises.

“On Aug. 31, the instructional and SRP bargaining teams of USEP and the district met and formally agreed to terms on economics,” said Don Peace, USEP president.

“This was something that we talked about at the end of last year, that we were going to prioritize and try to get money in people’s pockets early this year.

(Mike Camunas)

“Most instructional employees will receive an increase of 5.4%, the largest in quite some time.

“The union and district also agreed to an increase in the board contribution to the health insurance benefit package of $379.94, bringing the total benefits contribution to over $7,800 per employee,” he said. It also has maintained a ‘free-to-the-employee’ insurance plan.

The settlement for school-related personnel (SRPs) is a bit more complicated, Peace said.

“Each SRP who has a year of service credit will see a salary increase to $15 an hour, or 5%, whichever is greater,” he said.

They also will receive the same insurance benefits.

Once the negotiations are completed, USEP and the district will begin conversations on prioritizing the referendum funds.

Assistant superintendent Kevin Shibley told board members that “the salary increase for the district’s employees is the largest they have received since prior to the housing recession, back in 2008.

“Every employee is going to see at least a 5% base increase, if they had a year of service last year. The minimum teacher salary is increasing to $46,425.

“The minimum hourly rate for non-exempt employees is going up to $15 per hour, and in some cases more.

“We also have some targeted compression and market adjustments that were made to specific salary schedules, to try to remain competitive in those areas,” he said.

The district completely covered increases to the state’s required retirement contribution.

Shibley called the pay package an “an important first step in what we are trying to do and kind of take the lead in the (Tampa) Bay area, in terms of employee compensation.”

The district anticipates that salary increases will hit paychecks on Sept. 30. Shibley also expects the district to run a special payroll on Oct. 21, which would provide the retroactive pay to employees entitled to retroactive pay.

School board member Megan Harding also reminded board members about her request to send a letter to the Pasco County Commission, urging the county board to take swift action regarding the installation of sidewalks to give students a safe place when walking to school.

She read the proposed letter to her colleagues.

It is expected to get a few slight tweaks and then will be sent to the county board.

Board chairwoman Cynthia Armstrong also told her colleagues that she would like to see the Florida School Boards Association (FSBA) include the issue of protecting teachers from lawsuits added to that organization’s legislative agenda.

Armstrong said teachers shouldn’t have to fear being sued for something that may, or may not be substantiated.

The board chairwoman said she wants to be sure that FSBA considers that issue, when deciding its legislative priorities for the next session.

Published September 21, 2022

Various local projects receive state funding

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Florida’s Legislative Budget Commission on Sept. 9 approved a number of projects in Pasco and Hillsborough counties, as part of an $175 million appropriation for Local Support Grants.

The list of projects received approval with no changes, according to Ralph Lair, intergovernmental affairs officer for Pasco County.

Lair appeared before the Pasco County Commission at its Sept. 6 meeting to inform board members about the Pasco projects that made the list.

He explained that Florida Speaker of the House Chris Sprowls allocated $175 million during the legislative session to use for local support grants. There were 971 requests for the money and 238 projects made the cut, he said.

Pasco County received partial funding of $1 million for a Strickland Park project that involves a sea wall and additional beach sand, Lair said. It asked for an added boat ramp at Anclote, but that didn’t make the cut.

Here’s a listing of projects in Pasco County and a partial listing of projects in Hillsborough County that secured funding, according to information published as part of the Legislative Budget Commission’s agenda packet:

Pasco County

  • Agricultural Learning Center at Academy at the Farm: $13.5 million
  • AmSkills pre-apprenticeship recruitment/expansion and industry micro-credentials: $350,000
  • Cyber Security and Critical Infrastructure Security Training Center: $1.5 million
  • EPIC Center at Angeline: $1 million
  • Pasco County Sheriff’s Office Firearm Range Expansion: $1.1 million
  • Sarah Vande Berg Tennis Center: $2.75 million

Hillsborough County

  • Behavioral health workforce development planning: $250,000
  • Computer-assisted rehabilitation for veterans: $700,000
  • High school workforce development: $400,000
  • Hillsborough Transit Authority: $400,000
  • Tampa Bay Water Morris Bridge Wellfield improvements: $750,000
  • Tampa Jewish Community preventative security initiative: $352,000

Published September 21, 2022

New Pasco school will be known as Angeline Academy of Innovation

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About 200 possibilities were suggested, but in the end, the Pasco County School Board chose to name a new 6-12 magnet school rising in Central Pasco after the community where it is being built.

The board also decided to use the phrase “academy of innovation” as part of the name because it’s in keeping with the description the board gave to the most recent school the district opened, the Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation.

The new 6-12 STEM magnet school expected to open in the 2023-2024 school year has been named the Angeline Academy of Innovation. It is a four-story building under construction near the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center’s planned Pasco Campus, in Central Pasco. (File)

Both schools, board members reasoned, prepare students for future careers — albeit the Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation, a magnet school in Wesley Chapel, has an emphasis on technical careers. Angeline Academy of Innovation will have a greater focus on careers aligned with science and medicine.

The Angeline Academy is under construction on an 18.8-acre site, south of State Road 52, north of the Ridge Road extension and west of Sunlake Boulevard.

The school will be situated in a community that will be home to H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center’s planned Pasco County 775-acre campus. The campus is entitled for up to 24 million square feet of planned clinical and research facilities.

Moffitt’s footprint is larger than downtown Tampa, and the multi-year, multi-phase project ultimately is expected to generate 14,500 jobs.

It also is expected to attract leading-edge cancer researchers and life science companies.

The Angeline Academy of Innovation will be in the heart of  the community, which will officially become known as Angeline Florida, Ray Gadd, the school district’s deputy superintendent, told the school board.

Gadd and other school district officials have been working closely with Moffitt on a partnership to create world-class learning opportunities for students.

Suggested names for the new school included naming it after various singers, scientists, politicians, place names, educators and local leaders.

Choices included Marie Curie, Nikola Tesla, Charlie Daniels, Johnny Cash, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Ronald Reagan, Ron DeSantis, Central Pasco High, Serenova STEM school, Suncoast Academy, Land O’ Lakes STEAM School, Ambition Academy of Angeline, and scores of others.

In another action relating to Angeline, the board amended an agreement with Dayspring regarding a new elementary charter school for the community. It is planned for a site in an area just south of State Road 52 and west of Sunlake Boulevard.

Dayspring and the school board have agreed to fund the project through impact fees. The school will serve 600 kindergarten through fifth-grade students.

The school district and charter school are working together to blend the charter school program and curriculum to prepare students to attend the 6-12 STEM magnet.

The goal is to open the elementary charter in 2024.

At the school board’s Sept. 12 meeting, the board amended its agreement with Dayspring to include construction of athletic facilities at the site, noting that the charter school and school district will share use of the facilities.

Published September 21, 2022

‘Work at home’ option is playing out in housing market

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There’s barely a news cycle that goes by without someone trying to pin down what’s happening in the housing market.

One thing’s for sure, though, the option to work remotely has had an impact on housing markets, according to Brad Phillips, a senior vice president for American Mortgage Service Co., based in Cincinnati.

Phillips recently was in the Tampa Bay region to give a talk at a breakfast meeting of the North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce.

“Working from home caused a mass migration in a lot of cities. You didn’t have to live in California anymore, to work in California,” Phillips said.

Brad Phillips, senior vice president for American Mortgage Service Co., recently shared some of his insights about the real estate market with members of the North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce. (B.C. Manion)

Besides giving people more personal freedom, it also had an impact on housing costs, he said.

For instance, Phillips said: “Austin has the great California migration. What occurred there was so many Californians came in — they’re used to paying $1 million for a 750-square-foot apartment — so when they came in and found a house, which was overpriced, it was still a great deal.

“They started buying up everything in Austin, which was causing the Austin population to have to press out. They couldn’t afford to keep up,” he said.

With the shift to remote work, homebuyers found themselves in a new dynamic.

“You are no longer competing with local salaries,” Phillips said.

Consumers also can choose where they prefer to live, not just close to where they work, he said.

In Tampa, he said, “there was a youth boom down here. You guys were second or third, in the fastest-growing under-28 crowd.”

He thinks nostalgia played a role.

“Those kids came down, and visited grandma and grandpa. They have the memories of the excitement level of this area, and Florida, in general.

“So, what happens when they can live anywhere they want?

“They came. And, they came in droves,” he said.

Prices in different markets also have been influenced by foreign investors, who have driven up prices in places such as New York and California, which has prompted consumers from California to move to Texas or Montana, while New Yorkers move to Florida.

Phillips talked about other impacts on home prices and availability.

There was a point in recent years when the housing market faced “the perfect storm,” he said. Housing inventory was low, interest rates were low, building material costs shot up and supply chain issues slowed construction, he said.

When a house hit the market, bidding wars broke out.

“At the time, it looks great. It feels wonderful — especially, if you’re a person selling a home,” he said. Some sellers were getting 15 offers in 5 minutes, and they were all over list price.

But that situation is not a good thing for the housing market, overall, Phillips said.

He expects negative impacts from those sales to become apparent over time.

“People bought homes that they just didn’t know. There were a lot of ‘as-is’ purchases,” he explained.

“The mortgages themselves did not bend. We were too regulated after ’08 and ’10. And, I can tell you that though regulation is tough, 1000% warranted, and a great thing that it occurred.”

But Phillips added: “The appraisals started going haywire again, not needing them, getting property inspection waivers.

“There’s going to be a mass amount of people that got burned. They just don’t even know it,” he said. “They have overpaid, in most cases. They have maybe bought a property that was not up to par to what we, or someone else, would deem suitable.”

Prices dipping, houses staying on market longer
Phillips said the housing market is beginning to stabilize.

“We have three straight months that we’ve had an increase in listings. That means houses aren’t going off the market as quickly as they possibly could,” he said.

Plus, listed houses have been dropping their prices.

Sellers may view that as a negative, but overall, it’s a positive, because it indicates that the market is shifting back into alignment, Phillips said.

Looking forward, he said, “expect a period of slow.”

“Those home values can’t drop 50% overnight. They’ve got to come down 8%, 11%, the rest of this year. They’ll need to drop about 8 (%) or 10% next year. Then, (interest) rates will have stabilized. That will help,” he said.

As more houses come online and prices stabilize, buyers have better opportunities to shop for the house that they want, Phillips said.

Experts are predicting that 2025 will be a buyers’ market, he added.

“It’s going to be poised to take off again and it’s going to be exciting,” Phillips said, then, it’s likely something will happen to slow it down again.

“You never stay on top, you never stay on bottom,” Phillips said.

While people may have overpaid for their homes recently, he still thinks a home purchase is a good investment — if the buyer can hold onto it long enough to ride out any economic storms.

“If you look at it as a long-term play, mortgage is still the financial right decision in the grand scheme of things,” Phillips said.

Published September 21, 2022

PHSC: 50 years of building brighter futures

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Pasco-Hernando State College grew out of humble origins.

“We were known as ‘College without Walls,’” said Dr. Timothy Beard, the college’s current president. “We didn’t have a building. All we had, for the most part, was a dream and an idea.

The Pasco-Hernando State College’s Instructional Performing Arts Center, also known as IPAC, has a unique design. The center, at 8657 Old Pasco Road in Wesley Chapel, is a teaching facility but also a venue for community events and performances. (FILE)

“They would have classes with whoever would have us, whether it was a storefront. We would recruit in the back alleys,” he said.

“We were the last of the Great 28,” Beard added, referring to Florida’s system of 28 community colleges.

Dr. Robert Judson — the man who would become the college’s second president and the first black college president in Florida College System— was involved in those early days, as a teacher and as a recruiter.

Over the years, Pasco-Hernando Community College transitioned to Pasco-Hernando State College. It has added campuses, increased staff, expanded programs, and continues to grow and evolve.

The college now has about 100 career program options and offers two bachelor’s programs, associate’s diplomas and various certifications.

In the early days, the college had strong ties with the faith communities in Pasco and Hernando counties, helping it to attract students, Beard said.

In recent years, it has revived relationships with faith-based institutions.

“About five years ago, maybe six, we started a program called LIFE, that’s an acronym for Linking in Faith and Education. That program really took off overnight.

“The idea was to allow the faith-based institutions to assist us in educating our community.

“Because word got out about our success, we also started to include partners in the healthcare area. A number of healthcare agencies got involved,” the college president said.

Jamal Roberts became the first student to gradu- ate from Pasco-Hernando State College with a bachelor of applied science in supervision and management. He took advantage of one of PHSC’s two four-year programs. Roberts received his diploma from Dr. Timothy Beard, the college’s president, in December 2015. (FILE)

For instance, BayCare and AdventHealth both provide scholarships to nursing students who are willing to work in the community after they graduate, he said.

The college also collaborates with the Pasco and Hernando public school districts.

In addition to dual enrollment programs, which allow high school students to earn college credits, PHSC also has been involved in partnerships on construction projects.

In Pasco County, for instance, the school district donated the site where the Instructional Performing Arts Center was built, at 8657 Old Pasco Road. It shares a campus with Cypress Creek High and Cypress Creek Middle in Wesley Chapel.

Pasco students also can take advantage of IPAC programs and facilities.

In Hernando County, PHSC has been involved in a partnership for a project known as the Corporate College.

“We’re in the process of building a Corporate College, out of a partnership with Hernando County Schools, as well as the county administration there,” Beard said.

Meanwhile the college continues to add facilities to its existing campuses.

The college received a state allocation of around $25 million to construct the STEM Student Success and Community Engagement Center on its East Campus, in Dade City.

The design work is happening now, with actual construction expected to begin in January and the project’s completion slated for early 2024, Beard said.

The 51,000-square-foot building will have an auditorium, house various student services and academic support programs and have a STEM center, he said.

The college also is adding a new Fire Academy Center to train firefighters, also at the East Campus, Beard said.

A spacious music studio gives music director, Justin Baggett plenty of room for students. Here, he leads a student quintet practicing a piece by Mozart.

Over the years, the college has hosted public speakers, local events, summits and other activities to share its facilities with the broader community.

And now, as it commemorates its golden anniversary this academic year, it is inviting the public to join in the celebration.

Festivities kick off on Sept. 17, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the East Campus, 36727 Blanton Road, in Dade City. It’s fitting to begin there because the college has its roots in East Pasco, Beard said.

The college president also said there’s good cause for celebration.

“I am so proud of this institution and its history, and those in the community that have supported us, as a college,” Beard said. “It has been a gem in our community that has made the difference and transformed the lives of so many students.”

50th ANNIVERSARY FESTIVITIES
Pasco-Hernando State College (PHSC) has scheduled several celebration to mark the college’s golden anniversary year. (Note: Any prospective student filling out an application on a campus during the anniversary festivities will have the application fee waived.)

Here are the scheduled events:

  • Sept. 17, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the East Campus, 36727 Blanton Road, in Dade City. This event, during Hispanic Heritage Month, will feature the flavors and sounds of Latin culture. Guest speakers will explore local history and Hispanic culture, and there will be entertainment, family activities and food.
  • Nov. 5, 10 .m. to 2 p.m., in the Quad at PHSC West Campus, 10230 Ridge Road, in New Port Richey: This event will have a fall festival vibe with music from DJ Jose Nix, a photobooth, activities, food, treats, goodie bags for children, and a casual mile-long walk on the tree-lined trail circling the campus.
  • Feb. 25, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.: Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch, 2727 Mansfield Blvd., in Wesley Chapel. View an exhibit of Florida Highwaymen Painters’ collection and learn about the Florida Community Colleges. There will be food, children’s activities and more. This event coincides with Black History Month and will highlight African-American medical innovations.
  • Feb. 25, 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Instructional Performing Arts Center, 8657 Old Pasco Road in Wesley Chapel. Take tours of the theater, dance, music and digital design programs and enjoy an evening of music and entertainment. The University of South Florida Jazz Under The Starz will pay tribute to Florida’s African-American entertainers and Tampa’s famous Jackson House entertainers. Light refreshments will be served.
  • March 18, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., PHSC North Campus, 11415 Ponce De Leon Blvd, in Brooksville. A carnival setting featuring “fair food,” a bounce house, games, prizes and music make this event family-friendly. This event coincides with Women’s History Month and will feature a panel discussion on the countless contributions made by courageous women throughout the ages.
  • April 1, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., PHSC Spring Hill campus, at 450 Beverly Court. There will be entertainment by local theater and dance groups, campus tours, tours of student art exhibit and the butterfly garden and presentations about Florida sustainability and gardening. Free native Florida plant seeds will be distributed.

A few key milestones
1972: Pasco-Hernando Community Colleges opents. It becomes the last of Florida’s system of 28 community colleges
1972: Milton Jones is named the college’s first president
2014: College opens Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch, on land donated by the Porter family
2014: Pasco-Hernando Community College transitions to Pasco-Hernando State College. It also adds two four-year bachelor’s degree programs
2021: The Instructional Performing Arts Center, at 8657 Old Pasco Road, begins operation on the campus of Cypress Creek High School and Cypress Creek Middle, in Wesley Chapel.
2022: College breaks ground for its new STEM Center for Student Success and Community on its East Campus, in Dade City

BY THE NUMBERS
4: Presidents during the college’s history (Milton Jones, 1972 to 1994; Robert Judson Jr., 1994 to 2005; Katherine Johnson, 2005 to 2015; and, Timothy Beard, 2015 to present)
6: Campus locations: New Port Richey, Dade City, Spring Hill, Brooksville and two in Wesley Chapel (Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch and Instructional Performing Arts Center)
$450 million: Contributed to the regional economy annually
100-plus: Degrees and certifications offered
1.000: Approximate number of full-time, part-time and adjuncts
14,000-plus: Students served annually
60,000: Number of diplomas and certifications awarded since the college’s inception

Source: Pasco-Hernando State College

Published September 14, 2022

This 100-year-old veteran wanted a party, and he got one

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Frank Charles hit the big 1-0-0 on Sept. 6, and he celebrated hitting the century-mark in grand fashion.

Jennene Colky, Frank Charles and Debbie Charles take a break from their masks to pose for a photo in the courtyard at the Baldomero Lopez State Veterans’ Nursing Home in Land O’ Lakes. The photo was taken on Sept. 6, the day that Frank celebrated hitting the century-mark. (Courtesy of Frank Charles’ family)

There was live music, visits from family members, appearances from dignitaries and a gathering — along with a cake and balloons — at the Baldomero Lopez State Veterans’ Nursing Home, 6919 Parkway Blvd., in Land O’ Lakes.

In the weeks leading up to the event, Frank — a veteran of the U.S. Air Force — talked about his upcoming party.

He was looking forward to the cake, the gathering and seeing his daughters, Debbie Charles, who lives in Gainesville, and Jennnene Colky, who lives in Denver.

Debbie’s in-laws — Madison Welch, Bob Welch and Colleen Welch, of Tampa, and June Russell, of Lutz — were also at the birthday bash.

“The nursing home and the FDVA (Florida Department of Veterans Affairs) did an outstanding job of making my father feel special on his 100th birthday,” his daughter, Debbie, said in a telephone interview, following the event.

“They did a marvelous job of decorating with balloons,” she added, and those attending were able to enjoy their choice of a piece of chocolate or white cake from a sheet cake she brought to the party.

“They played Elvis, and they sang Happy Birthday and God Bless America. It was wonderful,” Debbie added.

Rebecca Pinson, social services program manager at Baldomero Lopez, recounted some of the party highlights.

Frank Charles trained to be a pilot and then a navigator, but didn’t do either of those jobs. Instead, he served as a gunner in a ball turret on a B54 and lost consciousness when his oxygen was cut off, according to his daughter, Jannene Colky. He was just 22 when someone rescued him. (Courtesy of Frank Charles’ Family)

She said Frank received a service medal from Bob Asztalos, deputy executive director of FDVA, and an award from Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley. Pasco County Tax Collector Mike Fasano and Marlies Sarrett, the nursing home administrator, congratulated Frank, too.

Frank’s daughter, Jennene, provided some background about her dad, during a telephone interview.

She said he grew up in Philadelphia, where he lived before enlisting in U.S. Air Force.

“He was initially trained as a pilot, in Texas. They decided they didn’t need any more pilots, so they trained him as a navigator. They decided they didn’t need any more navigators. By time he got into the war, it was September 1944, and the poor guy was a ball turret gunner.”

Somehow, while he was in the ball turret, his oxygen lines were cut and he passed out, she said. Fortunately, someone saw what happened and he was rescued.

Frank was just 22 at the time.

Frank Charles received an award from Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley, who thanked Frank for his service. (Courtesy of Rebecca Pinson)

After the war, he returned to Philadelphia where he went to work for the Philadelphia Electric Company, as a machinist.

He later made a trip to Florida, where he fell in love with the weather. He decided to move his family to Ft. Lauderdale, where he went to work as a machinist for Florida Power & Light.

Later, the family moved to Vero Beach, and then, Frank and his second wife moved to Gainesville, to live closer to Debbie.

After his second wife died, Frank remained in the Gainesville area until he moved to Baldomero Lopez about 14 months ago Debbie said.

Besides his two daughters, Frank has three grandchildren who live in Colorado and one who lives in Pennsylvania.

During a recent interview, Frank said his usual routine at the nursing home typically includes a breakfast of scrambled eggs and orange juice, followed by exercise and then cruising around the nursing home in his wheelchair.

He said he enjoys watching television, especially old westerns and episodes of M.A.S.H.

His daughter, Debbie, said her dad seems to be in his element.

“He’s totally happy there. He’s been there for more than a year. It’s his home,” she said.

Published September 14, 2022

Proposed land use change sparks debate

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The Pasco County Planning Commission has rejected an argument that the county should preserve two lots along Ridge Road for industrial use, rather than allowing them to be converted for commercial development.

The 3.47-acre plot at Galen Wilson Boulevard and Ridge Road in Port Richey has been discussed as being converted to commercial use, but Pasco County Planning Commission rejected that idea on Sept. 1. (MIKE CAMUNAS)

The county’s planning staff had recommended denial of the proposed land use change, but the planning board dismissed rationale used by planners and recommended approval, instead.

The 3.47 acres at issue are east of Galen Wilson Boulevard and south of Ridge Road, according to information in the Pasco County Planning Commission’s Sept. 1 agenda packet.

Planners said the request is inconsistent with policies within the county’s comprehensive plan. They argued that the current light industrial designation should be preserved because it has the prospect of producing more and higher-paying jobs, than commercial uses would generate.

An email from David Engel, the county’s economic growth director, is included in the planning board’s agenda packet. Engel says the industrial designation has the potential to generate 41% more jobs, and that industrial jobs, in general, pay more.

But planning board member Jon Moody was skeptical.

Moody said he takes issue with the information provided.

“There’s nothing to back it up,” Moody said. “These are nebulous statements.”

Moody questioned the reasoning that industrial uses are big job generators.

The numbers don’t bear out that industrial creates more jobs than commercial, Moody said, noting that Pasco’s “second-largest employer is Publix.”

Planning board chairman Chuck Grey raised objections, too.

“We’ve got blinders on, in this particular instance,” Grey said, explaining he’s familiar with the applicant who has assembled 20 acres of light industrial.

“He’s asking for two acres,” Grey said.

The chairman also asked planners: “Where’s all of the industrial, if there’s such demand?”

Grey went on: “We’re really involved in the Ridge Road development, personally, on the business side. I don’t see any demand for industrial development in that corridor. I haven’t got one question for it. Not one phone call. It’s all retail.”

The planning board chairman also noted there are a number of other nearby commercial uses.

The recommendation for denial, Grey said, “seems very subjective to me.”

Attorney Steve Booth, representing the applicant, told the planning board: “We have to look at the forest, rather than the trees, on this. Everything around there is commercial.

“The frontage, right on Ridge Road, is really only appropriate for commercial,” Booth said.

“Quite frankly, with due respect to staff, it’s laughable when we talk about economic issues with two small lots,” Booth added.

With the current industrial designation, support commercial uses would be possible, but the list of potential uses in that category doesn’t mesh with the demand, Booth said.

“I would respectfully request that you look closely at the map we have here, that shows the actual uses of property surrounding it, and would say it’s totally appropriate for these two lots.”

His client wants to be able to market it to get something that’s more reasonable, Booth said.

Moody also noted that before the meeting began, he checked to see how much activity was happening in the area.

“There’s only one active permit application and it’s by the applicant himself,” Moody said.

“I can tell you as a practicing engineer in the area, I’ve done a dozen layouts in that center and none of them have come to fruition yet. So, right now, the center’s not generating any jobs,” he said.

Pasco working to preserve industrial land
Nectarios Pittos, the county’s director of planning and development, said an analysis on industrial land by the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council has identified sites of 20 acres or more as a good size to target for industrial uses.

“To parcel them off, well, that’s what Pasco County has done in the past. And that’s what we’ve been directed not to continue doing,” Pittos said.

The county board wants to preserve sites that are deemed for employment-generating uses, such as light industrial, heavy industrial and employment centers, Pittos said.

In this case, though, no one on the planning board stepped forward to support the planners’ position.

About 3.47 acres of land at Galen Wilson Boulevard and Ridge Road in Port Richey has been designated for industrial use and is located across the street from Chasco Elementary and Chasco Middle. (MIKE CAMUNAS)

“Personally, I think the location just makes sense for commercial uses, especially for a parcel this size,” said planning board member Jaime Girardi.

Peter Hanzel, also on the planning board agreed: “Ridge Road is a major road. I can’t see why those two lots can’t be commercial. In fact, that’s what they should be. You’re on a major road.”

But Pittos countered: “Pasco is seeing a higher interest in industrial land development. We recently completed the Ridge Road connection to the Suncoast Parkway, and I would say in a number of years, there will be a connection all of the way to U.S. 41, so Ridge Road is going to connect with the strategic intermodal system for Florida. And so, when we have established LI (light industrial) … the default position that we’re going to take is to preserve them.”

Pittos also noted the current plan says that this particular segment of Ridge Road should be an employment-generating area.

David Goldstein, chief assistant county attorney, also told Moody the issue isn’t just the quantity of jobs.

“As a general rule, industrial (jobs) are higher-paying jobs than a Publix,” the attorney said.

Goldstein also noted that the county’s comprehensive plan considers not only current circumstances, but future need, as well.

Goldstein said the planning board cannot approve a request that is inconsistent with the comprehensive plan’s policies. However, he said the board could approve it, if it determined the request is consistent.

Ultimately, the board members passed a motion declaring the request does not violate the county’s policies, and voted to recommend approval.

The request now goes to the Pasco County Commission, which has final jurisdiction in land use and zoning issues.

Published September 14, 2022

Senior athletes are focused on competing, and then on having fun

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When the Florida Senior Games come to Pasco County in December, spectators at the games will be able to watch athletes age 50 and older competing intensely to demonstrate their skills.

Senior athletes will be competing in such sports as basketball, volleyball, table tennis, bowling, powerlifting, racquetball, tennis and shuffleboard.

But after the athletes are done competing, chances are people who live and work in the county will notice a stream of visitors who are out and about enjoying what Pasco has to offer, said Nick Gandy, a media consultant for the Florida Sports Foundation.

The Florida Sports Foundation has selected Florida Sports Coast — the county’s tourism arm — to host the games at venues throughout Pasco County during the first two weeks of December in 2022, 2023 and 2024.

Gandy briefed the Pasco County Commission about the upcoming games during the board’s Sept. 6 meeting.

Adam Thomas, director of tourism for Florida Sports Coast, told board members: “We are excited to have not just one, not just two, but three annual Florida Senior Games here in Pasco County.”

Thomas also credited Consuelo Sanchez, the sports development and tourism manager on his team, for helping to make it happen.

This year’s games are scheduled for Dec. 3 through Dec. 11, with a roster of 22 sports.

Athletes will be competing in such sports as basketball, volleyball, table tennis, bowling, powerlifting, racquetball, track and field, tennis, archery, cycling, padel and Footgolf.

Pasco is the ninth community in Florida to host the games for more than one year, since the games began in 1991.

Since the games’ inception, more than 50,000 athletes have competed, including three who were 100 years old, Gandy said.

The competitions will be held at area venues across Pasco County, including the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus and Saddlebrook Resort, in Wesley Chapel, the Sarah Vande Berg Tennis & Wellness Center, in Zephyrhills, and Fox Hollow Golf Club, in Trinity.

Gandy said the timing of the Florida Senior Games likely will prompt a greater number of competitors because the games are the final qualifier for athletes hoping to compete in the 2023 National Senior Games, to be held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

But even without that consideration, the competition enjoys widespread appeal, Gandy said.

The Sarah Vande Berg Tennis & Wellness Center in Zephyrhills is one of the venues for the upcoming Florida Senior Games, which will be held in Pasco County in 2022, 2023 and 2024. (FILE)

“We’ve had athletes from over 40 states come to compete in the Florida Senior Games.

“Cities from Alachua to Zephyrhills are represented in the Florida Senior Games. I’ve counted over 200 cities, where athletes have come, for the Florida Senior Games. We’ve even had athletes come from the Caribbean Islands; there’s track teams from Barbados and Jamaica that come,” he said.

Plus, the games are more than just a place to compete, Gandy said.

“The Florida Senior Games is also about fellowship among the athletes.

“Once these athletes are done competing … they come to spend time together. They’ll be hanging out together in the hotel, catching up with one another, going out for dinner, taking in a lot of the amenities that the county has to offer. So, the fellowship part and the camaraderie of the Florida Senior Games is going to spread, over the next three years,” Gandy said.

He also noted many of the 65-and-up athletes have worked their careers and raised their families.

“And, this is now what they do. They compete in athletic competitions in the Florida Senior Games,” Gandy said.

In fact, during the 30th anniversary games, nine athletes received lifetime achievement awards.

They received that distinction because each had competed in at least one senior games in the 1990s, 2000s, 2010s and 2020s.

“Now, that’s a commitment,” Gandy said.

Registration for the Florida Senior Games is now open until Nov. 15. For more information, visit FloridaSeniorGames.com, or check out the Florida Senior Games Facebook page.

Published September 14, 2022

Proposed towing operation meets resistance

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Neighbors to a proposed towing operation in Land O’ Lakes made it clear at a recent Pasco County Planning Commission meeting that they think the business should set up shop elsewhere.

A proposed towing operation in Land O’ Lakes is meeting resistance from neighboring locals. The 0.62-acre site would be on the east side of Land O’ Lakes Boulevard, about a mile north of State Road 54.

Christopher Brown, who is seeking permission for the proposed towing service, wants the county to allow him to operate on a 0.62-acre site on the east side of Land O’ Lakes Boulevard, about 1 mile north of State Road 54.

Ray Gustafson, of Gustafson Engineering, appeared at the planning board’s Sept. 1 meeting to provide details on the request.

The site would include a small modular office, and parking would be provided on the front and a secured impound yard would be in the back, according to a narrative included in the planning board’s agenda packet.

Gustafson said the towing company tows cars that are parked at locations without proper permits, and also removes cars illegally parked on roadsides.

He estimated about 30 vehicles to 40 vehicles would be towed each week.

Brown told the planning board that the office hours would be between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., but the cars typically are towed onto the lot after midnight.

They also can be picked up after-hours, but there is an extra charge for doing that, he said.

Gustafson said the cars will be stored on the back of the property and there will be a heavy buffer wall.

County planners recommended approval of the request, along with a set of conditions.

But neighbors are vehemently opposed.

John Miller, who lives nearby, said a proposed towing operation and impound yard is not a good fit.

“I beg of you to please take into consideration compatibility,” Miller said.

“This is a very intense use, which is not compatible with the Swan Lake subdivision,” he said, noting there are 54 families and also small children who play outdoors.

“It’s an increase of noise and commotion,” he said, noting it’s a 24-hour operation.

“It’s a very lucrative business. They tow cars all of the time,” Miller said.

“The other issue is appearance. This is a junkyard. It’s basically what it is.”

He also noted that U.S. 41, also known as Land O’ Lakes Boulevard, is in transition.

Another neighbor, Mike Ford, said the county should be encouraging a better form of development along U.S. 41.

“Anybody can agree going on U.S. 41, from (State Road) 54 to (State Road) 52, it needs to be cleaned up.

“We need to do something about (U.S.) 41. Let’s improve (U.S.) 41. The middle of the county has been left behind,” he said.

Neighbors also raised concerns about noise from tow trucks dropping off cars, at all hours of the night and about a potential glare from outdoor lighting.

Brown told the planning board his business is under contract with apartment complexes and homeowner associations to remove cars that are double-parked, parked in fire lanes, or parked on properties without permits.

The company also will tow from Pasco roads, in areas where parking on the road is not allowed, he said. Cars typically will be brought to the impound lot between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., he said.

The company doesn’t have any current contract with law enforcement, he said.

Planning board member Chris Poole asked about potential problems of stacking on U.S. 41, as people come to retrieve their cars, or tow trucks to bring in vehicles.

Conditions intended to provide protections
Chief Assistant County Attorney David Goldstein said the county planners’ proposed conditions prohibit parking, stacking, loading or unloading on the public right of way.

Other conditions address neighbors’ concerns, he added.

For instance, there’s a condition that requires an 8-foot tall buffer to protect the neighbors from visual blight. Plus, the applicant must shield the view from the street, the attorney said. “I’m sensitive that this area’s in transition,” Poole said. However, he added: “You’re not going to see cars from the road, it’s all going to be shielded.”

Planning board member Jaime Girardi added: “If they don’t, code enforcement will shut them down.”

Poole interjected, “or the conditional use will be revoked.”

To make sure the applicant understood the conditions, Goldstein asked Brown: “You understand you cannot have any vehicle that’s more than 8 feet in height.

Brown responded: “Yes, I understand.”

To address the neighbors’ concerns about noise, the planning board added a condition referring to the county’s noise ordinance. It also noted that violating that ordinance could trigger a revocation of the conditional use.

Poole said he frequently drives by the site and will be quick to make a report to code enforcement.

Girardi said he was struggling with how to vote on the request.

“This one is difficult,” Girardi said.

U.S. 41 is transitioning, he said, adding that he’s not sure this type of operation represents a transition in the right direction.

Planning board chairman Charles Grey agreed: “If we’re trying to improve our major corridors, I’m not sure it improves it.

“If I lived there, would I want it there, on the other side of the wall? I’d have to say, ‘No, I wouldn’t.’

“When you drive by and you see a towing operation next to a nice development, it tends to bring down the value of that development,” Grey added.

On a roll call vote, the motion to recommend approval passed on a 4-2 vote, with Girardi and Grey voting no.

Planning board member Chris Williams did not vote on the request because he sits on the planning board as a representative of the school board and this application has no impact on school enrollment.

The request now goes to the Pasco County Commission, which has final jurisdiction on land use and zoning matters.

Published September 14, 2022