The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

B.C. Manion

Her behind-the-scenes work saved millions for Pasco Schools

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Observers of Pasco County School Board meetings know her as the woman who breaks down the complex language of school finance into easy-to-understand English.

Her budget updates explained how much money the school district had available to spend in various categories — because when it comes to spending state and federal funding, there are often strings attached.

She also kept the board informed on how the district’s investments were faring, and how much interest the school system would have to pay on financing school construction projects, or buses, or other big-ticket items.

When it came to finances in Pasco County Schools, Olga Swinson has been the voice of authority, as the district’s chief finance officer since 2006.

Olga Swinson is stepping away from a 32-year career in Pasco County Schools. The chief finance officer is credited with steering the district through some financially turbulent times and for helping to save millions, which could be used to directly benefit teachers and students. (Courtesy of Pasco County Schools)

Her work in the school finance arena dates back to 1990, when she joined the district as an internal auditor. Next, she worked as superintendent of finance, then as director of finance, before assuming the role she will retire from on April 29.

Swinson served under superintendents Thomas Weightman, John Long, Heather Fiorentino, and finally, Kurt Browning.

Browning joined the district’s leadership staff and Pasco County School Board members during the board’s April 19 meeting in honoring Swinson’s service, expressing their gratitude for her financial leadership and congratulating her on her retirement.

Browning kicked things off, with a good-natured tone, by sharing an encounter he’d had with Swinson earlier in the day.

“She sent the board and leadership an email that was thanking us for giving her the opportunity to serve as chief finance officer, among other positions,” Browning explained.

When he saw Swinson, he told her: “I was just a little surprised at the tone of that email because it certainly didn’t sound like Olga. It was tender. It was caring,” he said, eliciting laugher from the room. “It was empathetic, sincerely grateful, for the experience she’s had in the Pasco district.

“As she’s looking at me, she’s wagging a finger. She says: ‘Don’t say a word tonight.’

“I looked at her and said, ‘I won’t say a word tonight.’

“And, as she walked off, I said, ‘I will say multiple words tonight.’”

Then Browning began describing Swinson’s many attributes.

“I count Olga Swinson, as being, in large part, the glue (in the district),” Browning said, noting the district’s success depends largely on its financial integrity and stability.

“There has never been a moment, not a single moment, in the 10 years that I’ve been superintendent, that I have ever had any doubts, any concerns, any questions, about our financial standing in this district.

“I will tell you, that speaks volumes,” Browning said.

Over the years, because of her tough budgeting skills and her ability to say, ‘No,’ Swinson developed the nickname ‘Nolga,” Browning said.

Deputy Ray Gadd continued on that theme.

“We give her a lot of grief, calling her NOlga, for ‘No,’ all of the time,” Gadd said.

But the truth is that because of her financial management skills, the district has been able to do far more than it would have without her, he said.

“She doesn’t get a lot of credit for how it (her work) benefits children — but her managing of finances in this district has greatly benefited the lives of children.

“It’s made us effective at what we do. And, when you compare our financial statements to some surrounding counties and other places throughout the state, we’re hard to beat,” Gadd said.

Her acumen is known in school finance circles
School board member Allen Altman said Swinson is known for the accuracy of her numbers, and that she has helped steer the district through financially turbulent times.

“Olga and I, I feel like, have some of the same battle scars,” said Altman, who has served on the board for 15 ½ years.

“We went through the Recession and laid off several hundred employees. And, we’ve been through the battles with the State,” Altman said.

When board members have to make difficult decisions, it’s important to know there’s “integrity behind the numbers,” Altman said.

Swinson’s “financial stewardship has saved this district millions of dollars of money that has been spent on children and employees, that wouldn’t have been, otherwise,” Altman said.

“I give her credit for that and thank her, for that,” he said.

Board Chairwoman Cynthia Armstrong agreed with Altman regarding the importance of having numbers the board could rely on.

“Our job is so much easier because we could trust, exactly, the numbers that you gave us —  so we know we were making the best decisions possible,” Armstrong told Swinson.

Board member Alison Crumbley said Swinson’s financial leadership has been unwavering.

“Mrs. Armstrong and I started (on the board) during the Recession. The first task was to make $55 million of cuts. Olga led the way. It was excruciating.

“We got through it, and all of the while, maintained a AAA Moody Bond Rating, somehow, through all of this, which has saved our district millions of dollars,” Crumbley said.

She also pointed out that when she was attending state school board training sessions people have frequently told her: “Oh, you have Olga Swinson. We’ve heard about her. You’re so lucky.”

Betsy Kuhn, assistant superintendent for support services, agreed that Swinson’s reputation for excellence is known throughout the state.

Kuhn said she’s had the opportunity to be part of the Florida Institute of School Finance, where she’s seen Swinson in action.

“It confirmed to me what I already know — Olga is a rock star in the world of school finance,’” Kuhn said.

Besides hearing words of praise, Swinson received a huge bouquet of roses and a standing ovation.

Her response was simple.

“I will miss all of you, and it’s been a rewarding career,” Swinson said.

Olga Swinson
Olga Swinson ends her 32-year career with Pasco County Schools on April 29.

Here’s a snapshot of her roles in the district:

  • Chief Finance Officer, 2006 to 2022
  • Director of Finance: 1997 to 2006
  • Superintendent of Finance: 1993 to 1997
  • Internal Auditor: 1990 to 1993

Swinson served under superintendents Thomas Weightman, John Long, Heather Fiorentino and Kurt Browning.

Published April 27, 2022

Pasco firefighters keep pressing for more personnel, equipment

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Pasco County’s professional firefighters are continuing to call attention to the need for more personnel and equipment to keep the county safe, and to meet its burgeoning emergency needs.

Jesus J.J. Martinez, vice president of Local 4420, appeared before the Pasco County Commission on April 19, to continue the quest to secure more resources. His remarks followed the appearances of two others representing firefighters who spoke at the April 5 meeting.

Martinez began by thanking the county and county board for what has been done so far.

“Pasco County is growing at an alarming rate,” he said. “We are being told that Rescue 230 will be in service by the first week of May, and Station 9 by the end of the summer.”

But, Martinez added: “Rescue 230 and the four new stations on the G.O. (General Obligation) Bond that the citizens voted on, were needed four years ago, when they were voted on.

“With that said, I’m asking you for help,” he said.

Additional fire stations and rescue vehicles are needed, as well as more personnel, he said.

“Our 37 new hires is now down to 32, as many of them have left for other departments, with better pay and better benefits.

“We lost seven experienced firefighters because they are simply burned out from the large call volume, and relief is nowhere in sight.

“The county will continue to grow and the amount of emergency calls is increasing faster than we have all expected,” Martinez said.

“We worked with our administration to do what we can to help with these issues,” he said.

He continued: “Pasco firefighters are a proud breed.

“We love our job. We love this county and we love the citizens in it.

“But we are human.

“Humans break.

“I got a call from a friend of mine, in the Wesley Chapel area. He was responding to a call. “They’d just pulled in the station. They came from a call, rescue was transporting.

“They got another call. They were in and out of the station in 30 seconds.

“The GPS said they were 18 minutes away. Within 17 minutes, the patient stopped breathing. It took 18 minutes to get there. Their ambulance, took 23 (minutes), from their station.

“All this firefighter could think of: ‘What if I got there sooner? What if I could make a difference?

“We have the tools. We have the knowledge. We just need to get there sooner.

“This is just one example of what is going on in our county.

“We are here today because this story haunts us.

“It’s time to do better, and our residents deserve better.

“We’re willing to work with you for our citizens,” Martinez said.

Board approves Fire Rescue items
Later in the meeting, Commissioner Mike Moore pulled three items from the board’s consent agenda to call attention to them.

“I think I’ll probably pull every item relating to Fire Rescue going forward because we have lots of questions,” Moore said.

“There’s questions from the team members that are out there. J.J. spoke today. So, I think for the best interest for the people who work for Fire Rescue, as well as our citizens, it’s important to talk about these things that are on the agenda.

“Normally, these are on consent because they are items we feel are not going to be deliberated. They get through with no problem and they’re not controversial. They’re for the good of all,” Moore said.

Because of questions raised recently, though, Moore said: “I think we need to pull these, discuss them, and discuss how they are going to assist them with their jobs and better call times.”

Moore asked Jeremy Sidlauskas, deputy chief of administration for Pasco County Fire Rescue, to provide some details on the agenda items.

One item relates to adding eight fire inspectors, who will conduct inspections of existing commercial uses.

The county plans to hire 11, the deputy chief said. “Once that (the first eight) becomes cost neutral based on fees and other things, we’ll hire the remaining three.”

Another item calls for using Penny for Pasco funds for a decontamination unit, to provide a  “premiere state-of-the-art, on-scene decontamination program, unlike anything that happens in the whole world,” Sidlauskas said.

Currently, a lot of gear must be sent out for cleaning, he said.

The Decon unit provides Pasco County firefighters with clean gear after every fire, Hazardous Materials incident and significant EMS incident, before returning to the station.

Another item related to replacing three ambulances and adding one new one.

Some vehicles that normally would be considered surplus are being kept for parts because of supply chain issues.

Part of the delay in putting an additional rescue has been related to staffing.

“This class that is just finishing their orientation should be done right around the end of the month,” Sidlauskas said. That’s why Rescue 230 is expected to go into service on May 1, he added.

The board approved all three agenda items.

Moore also asked the deputy chief to verify some numbers: “From fiscal year 2017 to fiscal year  2022, there was a 31% increase in engine count; a 39% increase in rescue count. Is that correct?”

Sidlauskas responded: “Yes, sir, some of that includes spare vehicles that we have to keep for maintenance.”

After the deputy chief’s remarks, Commission Vice Chairman Jack Mariano addressed the county’s firefighters, paramedics and first responders.

“We greatly appreciate your service. We share the same passion you do, to serve the citizens out here, every step of the way.

“What you do in the field, with the resources you have, currently, is fantastic.

“We’re working to help you get it better, every step of the way, as fast as we can, we’re going to keep on working.”

“From all my years, the communication that we’ve had back and forth, has led to more and more improvement,” he said.

The county board wants to continue to work with the emergency responders.

“If that means we need to do a workshop, we want to do that as well,” Mariano said.

“But I encourage you, stay in communication with us. Let us work with you. Let us try to help you, so you can be in a situation where you’re proud of being where you’re at, and a sense of knowing all the resources that are going that way.

“We don’t want to see a situation where you show up a minute after, when needed,” he said.

“We want to make sure you have that job satisfaction. Keep working with us; we’ll keep working with you,” Mariano said.

Published April 27, 2022

Audit approved, as Pasco prepares to shift jail operations

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The Pasco County Commission has approved spending $150,000 on a transition audit, as the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office prepares to shift operation of the county’s jail to the county’s administration.

The county will assume financial and administrative responsibility for operating the jail as of Oct. 1.

As it prepares for the conversion, a transition audit will be performed by an external auditor to review assets and liabilities.

The audit was recommended by Pasco County Clerk & Comptroller Nikki Alvarez-Sowles, during the board’s April 5 meeting.

The clerk’s office will negotiate contract terms and sign the contract once the terms are finalized and a vendor is selected, according to backup materials in the county board’s April 19 agenda packet.

When Alvarez-Sowles suggested the transition audit, she told the board: “You want to know, as a county board, what you’re getting with that transfer of a major function for the county.

“It’s important to know what we’re getting, as a county, from the sheriff, from Day One.”

County Administrator Dan Biles also touched on the topic of shifting jail operations to the county’s control.

Biles said there have been several meetings over the last few weeks between the county’s team and the sheriff’s team.

He said he wasn’t ready to provide an update yet, but expected to be able to provide some timelines soon.

Biles said the county attorney has provided a couple of attorneys to work on the issue and that the clerk has been involved in those meetings.

“There’s a lot that’s been happening behind the scenes. HR (Human Resources) has been in the jail several times to talk to all of the existing employees about working for the county and what that means to them.

“We’re working through it, we just don’t have a whole lot to report today,” Biles said.

The clerk thanked the county board for approving the budget amendment to pay for the audit.

“My inspector general is reaching out to various auditing firms to help us with the transition audit,” she said.

The clerk said the audit is intended to “look at what assets they have, to verify those assets and also to do a reconciliation of the assets, as well as any liabilities.”

She told the board she would let them know when a contract has been signed.

Published April 27, 2022

Plans moving forward in Angeline community

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Pasco County Schools has begun construction on a $52.7 million magnet school in the Angeline community, which is expected to offer an array of new opportunities for students in grades six through 12.

Ray Gadd, deputy superintendent of Pasco County Schools, offered a brief update on the project during the Pasco County School Board’s April 19 meeting.

Work has begun on putting up the stem walls on the project, Gadd said. “We’re on time, despite supply chain issues,” he said.

“It’s going to be another great facility in Pasco County,” the deputy superintendent added.

The school board approved a contract in November with Ajax Building Company, to construct the building on an 18.8-acre site in the new Land O’ Lakes development, which is being billed as a wellness community.

Angeline will emerge on thousands of acres of land, east of the Suncoast Parkway and south of State Road 52. The area includes Moffitt Cancer Center’s planned Pasco County campus.

County Administrator Dan Biles anticipates the cancer center’s presence in Pasco to spur what he has described as “generational change.”

The project is expected to include a massive research and corporate innovation district.

It has site entitlements that encompass 24 million square feet, and include plans for a hospital, research and development space, office, manufacturing, laboratories, pharmacies, educational facility/university, hotel, and commercial space. The multiyear, multiphase project is expected to create 14,500 jobs.

At previous school board meetings, Gadd has reported that the school district, Moffitt and Pasco-Hernando State College are collaborating to create a magnet school, featuring unique offerings and opportunities for students.

The school is designed for 1,700 students. Its plans call for a facility with 186,882 gross square feet.

The project is expected to be substantially completed in April 2023, with final completion in June 2023.

In an unrelated action, the Pasco County Commission has approved earmarking $50,000 for a park project in Angeline.

County board members approved the expenditure during their April 19 meeting, allocating the money to be used for a stormwater and flood plain engineering analysis related to a future park.

Published April 27, 2022

Pasco transportation planning board talks priorities

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The Pasco County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) has adopted a draft of its transportation improvement plan for fiscal years 2023 to 2027.

The board, which is made up of elected leaders from Pasco County, Port Richey, New Port Richey, Dade City and Zephyrhills, gave preliminary approval to a draft brought to them at their April 14 meeting, by the MPO staff.

Scott Ferry, a transportation planner for the MPO, outlined some of the major improvements included in the draft TIP. They are:

  • The widening of State Road 52, from east of U.S. 41 to Bellamy Brothers Boulevard: $121.5 million
  • Interstate 75 to Interstate 275 corridor improvements, from County Line Road to State Road 56: $57.6 million
  • U.S. 98 Bypass, around Dade City: $35.8 million
  • U.S. 41/State Road 54 interchange design and right of way acquisition: $33.6 million
  • Pedestrian overpasses over the Suncoast Parkway, at State Road 54 and State Road 52: $18.7 million
  • Roadway lighting projects on State Road 52, State Road 54 and U.S. 301: $4.7 million

A final approval is not expected until the board’s meeting in June. Once adopted, the TIP, as it’s known, will become effective July 1.

Ferry also told the board that Pasco has been faring extremely well, in terms of funding from the Florida Department of Transportation.

“Comparing funding levels with the current TIP, with the draft TIP, we see that funding is increasing by 68% in fiscal year 2023; 9% in (fiscal year) 2024; 145% in fiscal year 2025; and, 56% in (fiscal) year 2026.

“Comparing current total funding, with the draft TIP funding, spending is projected to increase by an overall amount of $154 million, for an increase of funding of almost 50% over a five-year period.

“This very large increase reflects the Florida DOT’s commitment to Pasco County and the recognition of the many transportation improvements that exist in the county. The MPO and the county are very grateful to the Florida DOT, for their strong commitment to their partnership with the county.

“It goes without saying, it’s very significant to the county and it’s going to go a long way toward addressing a great many unmet needs,” Ferry said.

Before he shared some of the high points, Ferry provided an overview regarding why adopting the TIP is both significant, and essential.

Without it, Ferry said, federal funds could not be spent on projects within the county.

“The TIP is a five-year schedule and program of federal, state and locally funded transportation projects in Pasco County. It reflects the Pasco MPO’s short-term transportation programming priorities,” Ferry said.

Developing the TIP is required by federal law and it must be updated annually, under state law, he said.

“The TIP is required to be fiscally constrained, which means the amount that is planned to be spent on the projects in the TIP cannot exceed the estimated amount of funding that’s available during the five-year period.”

It includes a list of all transportation programs and projects funded by federal and state funds, and includes all regionally significant projects, regardless of the funding source.

“That includes any projects that are county funded or privately funded, that are deemed to be regionally significant.”

Categories that are included among the priorities in the TIP include:

  • MPO planning efforts
  • Traffic operations and safety improvements
  • Intelligent Transportation projects
  • Additional roadway capacity improvements
  • Resurfacing projects
  • Bicycle and pedestrian improvements
  • Transit projects

It also includes funding for improvements to the Suncoast Parkway.

The agenda backup materials also included maps for:

  • Proposed highway capacity improvement projects
  • Bicycle and pedestrian improvement projects locations
  • Safety improvement projects
  • County capital project locations

On another note, Commission Kathryn Starkey offered a shorter-term solution, to address congestion on State Road 52, before the final segment of that roadway is widened in Pasco.

“I drive it all of the time to get here (to Dade City), Starkey said.

“I was wondering if it is possible to at least get a passing lane, because it is full of construction trucks, pulling in and off.

“And, if we could get some passing lanes here and there, that would make a huge difference in that five years.”

“A few passing lanes in the meantime would make a huge difference to commuters on that road, especially as more and more construction trucks, with Angeline and other projects coming on there.

“It’s going to be stop-and-go, and someone is going to get hurt, like me, trying to zip around those cars and trucks.”

Published April 20, 2022

Pasco looking to adopt updated landscaping regulations

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Pasco County is considering changes to update its landscaping code — addressing such issues as tree preservation and placements; landscaping and buffering; and planting in rights of way, in residential subdivisions.

Patrick Dutter, a county senior planner, explained the proposed changes to the Pasco County Planning Commission, during its April 7 meeting.

“Probably two years ago, now, we were asked by the Tampa Bay Builders Association (TBBA)  to look at amending some of our policies and our land development code, to clean up some items,” Dutter said.

A task force was formed, including county staff, TBBA representatives, experts in landscape architecture, an arborist, and a representative from the University of Florida/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS)/Pasco County Cooperative Extension.

The group looked at some issues raised by TBBA, but a number of other items also surfaced during the review.

One of the changes being proposed deals with how tree replacements are calculated, Dutter said.

Instead of measuring every tree on a project site, representative samples would be allowed, he said.

Dutter explained: “Let’s say you have a 100-acre project and there’s a whole bunch of trees on that. Someone has to go out and measure each individual tree, to figure out, OK, if you’re taking down trees, how many inches do you need to replace over time?

“That can be quite time-consuming.

“So, what we’ve done in the past is, we’ve allowed people to sample certain areas, with county approval,” Dutter said.

This change would allow the sampling to occur, without having to go through an Alternative Standards process.

The update also provides definitions for what constitutes a shade tree and what constitutes an ornamental tree, Dutter said.

It also addresses a requirement that said that 70% of buffers needed to have landscaping in them.

“Essentially, what that ended up doing is most of our buffers would have ground cover plantings and they would have mulch. Those ground covers generally don’t survive very long, so you’ve got most of your buffer basically being mulch and a little bit of landscaping,” Dutter said.

“We tweaked that requirement a little bit, too, rather than have that 70% rule, we added some additional landscaping, specifically in our buffering requirement,” he said.

The update also proposed a change in the vehicle dealership buffer.

“The original vehicle dealership buffer called for it to be 75 feet wide, which is quite a large buffer space,” Dutter said. “The code currently doesn’t even have a visual screening component for it, which is probably the most important thing you want, when  you’re having a vehicle dealership abutting a residential project.

“So, we shortened that buffer width and we added the visual screening component to it, as well. So, we kind of made that swap,” he said.

The proposed code also updates links to outside resources that had become outdated, Dutter said.

It also has a link to an invasive species list.

The tree list that had been presented as part of the code has been moved to the development review manual, so it can be updated on a timelier basis, Dutter added.

Also, the cooperative extension representative and the tree arborist went through the list of trees, found the appropriate spacing requirements, called out where mitigation measures would be needed and where they wouldn’t be needed, Dutter added. The tree list calls out where different types of trees should be placed.

Planning Commissioner Jamie Girardi applauded the task force’s work and resulting recommendations.

“I think this is a very thorough job, and I think there’s a lot of changes that are included in here that needed to be done and were probably long overdue,” he said. “And, I think it was a very good job, putting it together.”

But he also noted: “Simple changes with increases to landscape island widths have pretty substantial impacts.”

The ordinance will be adopted in coming weeks, he said.

“I have several clients out there that purchased property and we’re ongoing in preparing construction plans, and frankly, I don’t know if we can beat those dates,” he said.

Dutter explained the rationale for the change to the planning board.

 “Our current dimension for those islands that we’re talking about is 8 feet wide.

“We spent some time putting together our tree list with our arborist and landscape experts. Most trees to be successful need a little bit more room than that. So, we bumped up that island width from being 8 feet wide to being 10 feet wide, just to give it a little bit room,” Dutter said.

Girardi responded: “Admittedly, the 8-foot width limits what you can actually plant in those islands.”

The issue of landscaping requirements has come up repeatedly during Pasco County Commission meetings, with Commission Chairwoman Kathryn Starkey and Commissioner Ron Oakley making persistent calls for changes that would promote better-looking development in Pasco.

The Pasco County Planning Commission voted to recommend the proposed changes be adopted. The Pasco County Commission has final jurisdiction on planning and land use matters.

Proposed changes to the Pasco County landscaping code would:

  • Enable representative samples to be taken, on a property relating to requirements involving calculating requirements relating to tree removal, subject to the county’s discretion
  • Remove the requirement to submit an Alternative Standard Application, when making use of existing trees and shrubs, as part of the landscape buffer.
  • Reduce the requirement that 70% of the buffer be non-grassed
  • Add language that addresses “right tree, right place”
  • Define shade trees
  • Define ornamental trees
  • Clarify the use of palm trees
  • Update ground cover planting requirements
  • Update tree diversity requirements
  • Add language about the proper maintenance of trees
  • Add language about keeping future planting areas free of debris
  • Add a requirement of one shade tree in the front yard of single-family homes
  • Update and clarify requirements in vehicle use areas
  • Require landscape islands to be 10 feet wide (they were previously required to be 8 feet wide)
  • Add requirements for large vehicle use areas (VUA)
    • Clarify plantings adjacent to building perimeters
    • Revamp the Buffer Requirement Table
    • Revamp the Buffer and Screening Requirements Table
    • Adjust the Vehicle Dealership Buffer
    • Add standards for ponds adjacent to rights of way
  • Changes the order of some chapters and moves some elements into the land development manual, which is updated more frequently.

Source: April 7 agenda materials for the Pasco County Planning Commission

Published April 20, 2022

State studying widening project on U.S. 301

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The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) is studying a widening project, which would add capacity to U.S. 301, from Fowler Avenue in Hillsborough County to State Road 56 in Pasco County.

Amber Russo, a project manager for FDOT, provided an update to members of the Pasco County Metropolitan Planning Organization, at its April 14 meeting.

The project’s purpose it to improve safety for motorists, and to improve mobility for pedestrians and bicycles, Russo said.

“Safety is a key element for this project,” Russo said.

“During the five-year period that we studied, from 2015 to 2019, there were 464 crashes, which involved 16 fatalities, 338 injuries, 24 head-on collisions, and five crashes involving a pedestrian.

“A portion of this project, the southern end, the crash rate is almost double the state average,” she said.

She also noted that based on the 2040 projection — which puts the volumes at 29,000 to 48,000 — the road would be operating at a Level of Service F in both directions, during peak hours.

Justin Hall, also from FDOT, noted the current volumes on the road are 12,000 to 14,000.

Presently, this stretch of U.S. 301 is a two-lane, undivided roadway, with a posted speed varying from 50 mph to 60 mph, through the corridor, Russo said. The existing right of way varies from 100 feet to 200 feet wide.

“U.S. 301 is an important north-south corridor,” Russo said. It connects regionally significant corridors, such as I-75, I-4 and state road 56, 54 and 52.

“It also connects regional centers in Zephyrhills and Temple Terrace to the Tampa Bay area,” Russo said.

The proposed project, which would cost an estimated $200 million, has not yet been funded.

Proposed improvements are divided into two segments.

The southern portion would be from Fowler Avenue to Stacy Road.

“This is a suburban, typical section: with widening to four lanes, divided with a raised 30-foot median. We also have paved 5-foot outside shoulders, a 6-foot sidewalk on the east side, and 12-foot shared-use path along the west side,” Russo said.

The design speed for that segment is 55 mph. The total right of way varies from 169 feet to 200 feet wide.

The north portion of the project would be Stacy Road to State Road 56.

This would be a more-rural section of the road. It would be a four-lane divided road, with a 40-foot depressed median.

It would have 5-foot paved shoulders and a 12-foot shared-use path on the west side.

The design speed would be 65 mph. The total right of way width would be 235 feet.

Russo told the Pasco MPO board that some changes are expected, based on public comments.

Hall said those issues essentially fall into three categories: environmental concerns, concerns about widening the road beyond Hillsborough’s urban service area, and questions about increasing capacity on a rural highway.

Pasco County Commissioner Mike Moore said apparently Hillsborough is not aware of the planned projects near U.S. 301 and State Road 56, on both sides of the county line.

Moore noted that he used to frequently travel U.S. 301, when he had a private business.

“Wow, that was scary,” Moore said. “If you go off the shoulder, you’re in a ditch and you definitely don’t want to cross the center line.”

He thinks it makes perfect sense to widen U.S. 301.

“We’re at the point in this region where we need to get ahead. All we hear from our citizens is, ‘Why didn’t you do this before?

“Well, here’s that perfect opportunity. Let’s get ahead of the game, because it’s coming. It’s already coming.”

Commissioner Ron Oakley agreed.

“I’ve already gotten emails from people about congestion, when they go to (U.S.) 301, from (State Road) 56. It’s crowded. It’s terrible.

“If this road had already been done … a person would not have died this morning at 2:45, when they had a head-on collision and they closed 301.”

Hall said there were actually two fatalities in that crash. He also told the MPO board that the state roads department plans to proactively address some intersection signaling needs along U.S. 301.

Published April 20, 2022

Proposal calls for modernizing county code

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Pasco County is considering updates to its landscaping code — and, while doing so, is contemplating how to deal with electric charging stations for cars and for carports within parking lots that have solar panels on top.

David Goldstein, chief assistant county attorney, asked county planners and the Pasco County Planning Commission to consider including the electric charging stations and solar-paneled carports, as the county amends its code.

He made the suggestion during the planning board’s April 7 meeting.

The attorney said he’d been out West recently, where he saw that in many parking lots, “they have these, what I’ll call solar car ports.”

They provide shade for the cars, while also generating solar energy for businesses, Goldstein said.

“As I saw them, I was thinking: ‘Is that even possible to do in Pasco and still comply with our landscape ordinance?” Goldstein said.

“What I noticed was where these solar panels were, the footers that were holding them up were basically where we would normally have these landscaped islands,” he added.

Patrick Dutter, a senior planner for the county, told Goldstein that the code amendments didn’t address those particulars.

But Dutter added: “The main goal of those trees (required in the landscape code) in those vehicle use areas is to provide shade, right. And, if those carport structures are doing that, it’s meeting the main intent. So, staff would probably be OK with approving an alternative standard.”

Goldstein, however, suggested adding the solar carports to the list of exceptions included in the proposed code.

“I’d just hate to see someone have to go through an alternative standards process for something that we probably would encourage, because it’s providing shade, it’s providing solar energy. Why not write it into the code, as opposed to saying, ‘You’ve got to go through an alternative standards process?’” Goldstein said.

He continued: “If it is providing just as much shade as the landscaping and it’s encouraging solar, I would think we want to encourage that.”

Brad Tippin, the county’s development review manager, responded: “I think that is something we could probably add to that list of exceptions, with a caveat that the county sees to what’s being proposed, to see if it actually meets that.

“We may also want to address things like electric charging stations,” Tippin said.

Goldstein responded: “That was going to be my next question.

“A logical place to retrofit putting in an electric charging station is in the landscape islands, and I wouldn’t want us to preclude those,” Goldstein said.

“I think there should be some allowance for that,” the attorney said, providing the planning board approved that direction, which it did, later in the meeting.

Tippin said county staff will draft language to address those issues, before bringing the proposed landscaping update to the Pasco County Commission for a vote.

Goldstein said it makes sense to include the changes in the code update.

“We don’t amend the landscape code very often,” he said.

“This is probably the first time in 15 or 20 years. I just don’t want to have to wait another 15 or 20 years to amend the code, and allow for electric charging stations and solar facilities.

“We should anticipate the future that these things are probably coming, and we shouldn’t have our code preclude them,” he said.

Published April 20, 2022

Pasco’s emergency response times under fire

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It often takes too long in Pasco for responders to get to fires and medical emergencies, two men representing the county’s professional firefighters told the Pasco County Commission at its board meeting earlier this month.

Robert Fuerst and Dixon Phillips — spoke during the public comment portion of the board’s April 5 meeting, and they had plenty to say.

Fuerst told the county board that “41,365 calls for service in 2021 exceeded the 10-minute threshold to get the first unit on the scene.”

He continued: “That means it takes more than 10 minutes to get a fire engine on a scene in a day and age where houses can be fully engulfed in flames in less than 5 minutes.”

Additionally, nearly 10,000 of the 89,447 calls for service in Pasco County last year took 15 minutes to get the first paramedic on scene, Fuerst added.

“Imagine having to perform CPR or rescue breathing for one of your loved ones for that period of time and then having to possibly wait longer (for the ambulance to show up), while the fire engine does the same thing you did for the past 15 minutes,” he said.

Fuerst also told the board that between Jan. 1 and March 13, of this year, Pasco Fire Rescue declared Signal 40 — meaning no ambulance was available on one side of the county, or the other side, or both — for a grand total of 1,586 minutes.

That equates to a total of 26 hours in a period of roughly 100 days, he said.

“As staggering as this statistic is, it’s only the beginning. How many minutes was there only one ambulance, or two ambulances to send in Pasco County? How long was the response to the next 9-1-1 call for that ambulance. What was the preventable, negative effect on that person or that house that we were trying to protect from a fire?” he asked.

County’s rapid growth affecting response times
Normally, the annual increase in calls is around 5%, but Pasco’s was 16% in 2021, he said.

“We attribute it directly to the growth, the unfettered growth, in the county,” he said.

“We need more funding to perform essential services we are tasked with providing. We need this board to be the public safety advocates they claim to be and provide the funding we so desperately need,” he said.

Dixon Phillips, the District 3 representative of IAFF Local 4420, reminded board members that he and other union members had appeared before the board in July requesting an increase in the Municipal Services Taxing Unit to increase support for fire and rescue services.

“We told you that response times were longer than ever and we were experiencing an increase in call volume that this county has never seen.

“You ignored us,” he said.

He said the National Fire Protection Association has a standard that calls for an advanced life support unit to arrive on scene in less than 8 minutes, on 90% of all incidents.

He said Pasco isn’t meeting that standard.

“Earlier this year, a witnessed cardiac arrest occurred in Pasco County. It took 8 minutes after the 9-1-1 call was received to find units available to send. Ladder 37, which services the Sunlake area, came in service and was dispatched to the call. It took 14 minutes for Ladder 37 to arrive on scene, where unfortunately the patient was deemed dead on arrival.

“This is not the first time this has happened and, unfortunately, it won’t be the last for the foreseeable future,” Phillips said.

Besides the potential for a patient to die, there’s also the possibility of patients suffering brain damage if it takes too long for help to arrive, he noted.

Phillips also reminded the county board that County Administrator Dan Biles said that two new fire stations would be coming online and that a station that services New Port Richey would be getting another rescue.

“Well, commissioners, here we are, nine months later and we have no new stations in service, no new engines in service and no new rescues in service.

“Rescue 230, which has a station waiting for it, has sat outside of Wesley parked for months.

“Until Fire Rescue is given what it needs, civilians, both young and old, will continue to die unnecessarily. Maybe one day soon, we’ll be able to call Pasco County safe,” Phillips said.

Biles told board members that Rescue 230 is waiting for trainees to get through their training.

He also said that “Station 3 will go out to bid and start construction here, shortly, within the next quarter.”

Biles said the county is working on the next budget.

He also noted that Station 2 and Station 4 are both bond-funded fire stations and will be under construction in the next 18 months, which would include two new rescue units.

“There is a lot of stuff going on. Over the past five years, the board has increased the rescue piece of the budget almost 120%, which dwarfs just about any other increase in the county. So, there is a lot going on,” he said.

He also noted that during COVID, a lot of fire schools shut down, so the county is playing catch up.

“For a while, we had more vacancies than we had applications for. I think we have on the order of 20 to 30 firefighters going through our current training program and onboarding, in the training center, and then there’s another group after that, which should get us close to about the 20 vacancies that are planned for Station 3. They’re budgeted but won’t be filled until we’re ready to permit that station,” Biles said.

Published April 20, 2022

Business Digest 04/22/2022

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Effective Facebook strategy
The North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce will host a lunch and learn on April 21 from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., on the topic of creating an effective Facebook strategy. The session will focus on overall brand recognition, and establishing trust between your company and potential clients. Lunch is $15, provided by Outback. There is limited seating, so register by 10:30 a.m., on April 20, by emailing .

New MOSI president and CEO
John Graydon Smith has been named the new president and CEO of The Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI).

The museum announced Smith’s appointment on April 13, following a national search. He is a veteran of the museum and nonprofit industries. Although he has joined MOSI’s staff, he will be splitting his time between Pennsylvania and Tampa Bay, until the conclusion of the school year. His contract with MOSI runs through 2025, according to a news release.

In the release, Bret Feldman, chair of the MOSI board of directors said: “We are thrilled to have a leader with the experience and museum knowledge John brings to MOSI. He has a grand vision, and the leadership skills to help us make it a reality.”

Smith replaces Julian Mackenzie, who retired from the CEO position last year, and his transition into the role will be supported by Brynne Anne Besio of Carter Global, a consultant who has served as interim director for the past several months.

Employment information sessions
CareerSource Tampa Bay is hosting in-person Amazon employment information sessions to help job seekers who are interested in being hired by Amazon.

Amazon is looking to hire more than 100 candidates for warehouse associates and warehouse team members. The jobs pay $15.50 to $16.50 per hour. Amazon also offers flexible schedules, and career planning & development. All job seekers must complete an Employ Florida Registration on EmployFlorida.com, before attending.

The sessions will take place from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., as follows:

  • April 20: CareerSource Tampa Bay Brandon Center, 6302 E. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Suite 120, in Tampa.
  • May 4: CareerSource Tampa Bay Ruskin Office, 201 14th Ave., S.E., in Ruskin

Let Pasco County help you land a job
Pasco County and CareerSource Pasco Hernando are working together to help job seekers find their next job.

Pasco County Libraries and the Pasco County Office of Economic Growth, in coordination with CareerSource Pasco Hernando, are offering re-employment assistance services on Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 10 a.m. to noon, now through May 31.

The help will be provided at Centennial Park Library, 5740 Moog Road, in Holiday.

The team will focus on employment searches, resume writing, applications and interview preparation.

The free services are being supported with funding obtained through the Penny for Pasco surtax referendum, according to a Pasco County news release.

Council has two openings
Pasco County’s Destination Management Organization — Experience Florida’s Sports Coast — is seeking to fill two openings on the Pasco County Tourist Development Council (TDC).

Applications are being accepted through April 29, at bit.ly/2gWcaXt.

The TDC is an advisory council to the Pasco County Commission. It is made up of elected officials and tourism industry professionals, who provide recommendations to the staff of Experience Florida’s Sports Coast on promotions and marketing opportunities. They also provide oversight of tourism tax expenditures.

  • One opening must be filled by an owner/operator of a motel, hotel, recreational vehicle park or other tourist accommodation in the county that is subject to the tourist development tax.
  • The other opening can be filled by a tourism industry professional committed to advocating Pasco as a destination.

The TDC members serve staggered, four-year terms. The positions are voluntary, with no financial compensation. The council typically meets every other month, alternating meetings between Dade City and New Port Richey.

Applicants must live and be registered to vote in Pasco County.

For more information about the Pasco County Tourist Development Council, including members and the 2022 meeting schedule, visit bit.ly/PascoTDC.

Building trades career fair
Hillsborough Community College will host a Building Trades Career Fair on April 20 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the college’s Dale Mabry Campus.

The event will be in the DTEC Courtyard, on the campus, at 4001 W. Tampa Bay Blvd.

The career fair will include industry employers and representatives from Associated Builders and Contractors, Independent Electrical Contractors Florida West Coast Chapters, Plumbers and Pipefitters U.A. Local 123, Fire Protection Sprinkler Fitters U.A. Local 821, and many other employers affiliated with construction and building trades.

Representatives will be on hand to interview applicants for apprenticeships in commercial electrician, plumbing and pipefitting, and fire sprinkler protection. Attendees will have the ability to interact with employers, ask questions, and receive information on career training, job opportunities and hiring requirements.

For more information, email John Meeks at .

Understanding financial statements
A free webinar, presented by Jose Melgar, on behalf of Pasco-Hernando SCORE, will give participants the tools for extracting the essential points from financial statements. It also will teach the basics of business language. The seminar is set for April 21 at noon. Register at PascoHernando.score.org.

Get free business help
Pasco-Hernando SCORE offers free individual, confidential small business mentoring. Volunteer experts provide the assistance to help small business owners to solve their problems and grow their business. To find out more, visit PascoHernando.score.org.

Chicago’s Best Burgers ribbon-cutting
The North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce announced the ribbon-cutting for Chicago’s Best Burgers, which was April 14, at 19255 N. Dale Mabry Highway, in Lutz. There were giveaways, and a chance to sample food and refreshments.

New David Weekley Homes
David Weekley Homes, one of the largest privately held national homebuilders, soon will begin building in the Westbury section of the master-planned community of Chapel Crossings, in Wesley Chapel.

The builder recently broke ground on its model home, The Whaler.

Chapel Crossings will offer buyers professionally designed quick move-in homes from a selection of five open-concept, one- and two-story floor plans.