The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

Diane Kortus

After 21 years, a new chapter begins

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The Laker/Lutz News announced on Nov. 9 that it had been sold to Street Media LLC, a group of about 40 employees headed up by Brian Calle, who will work with my team to extend our reach and influence by adding services we have just begun to touch on — in digital advertising content, marketing and other new media opportunities.

Brian shared with me before we closed on the newspaper’s sale that he marveled at what an amazing job we do producing such high-quality local journalism that is well-read and well-received throughout the communities we serve. It’s rare and unique, he told me, to see a thriving and growing local publication selling almost exclusively print ads to support it.

One of the reasons I selected Brian as the next steward of The Laker/Lutz News is because he understands our commitment to the print editions of our papers and because he understands that our readers want to receive their community newspaper in their driveway every week.

With our solid base of followers, Brian plans to expand our offerings and keep abreast of this area’s tremendous growth and to prepare for the thousands of new residents moving to Pasco County in the coming decades.

I’m proud of the readership we’ve built, including these impressive statistics recently reported by an independent circulation auditing firm:

  • 75% of households in our market area in Pasco and north Hillsborough counties read our newspaper on a regular basis
  • 75% frequently purchase products and services from ads seen in our paper
  • 79% have the paper delivered to their home
  • 75% keep the paper in their home for up to four days after it is delivered
  • 40% have household incomes over $100,000
  • 51% have graduated from college, including 20% with advanced degrees
  • 41% are between the ages of 35 and 54, which is 3% more than the U.S. census bureau reports for the zip codes we reach

Readers of The Laker/Lutz News dispel the mistaken belief that people born after 1980 do not read newspapers, and get all of their news online. That may be true in many places, but not here in Lutz, Land O’ Lakes, Wesley Chapel, Zephyrhills, Dade City and San Antonio.

You read The Laker/Lutz News because it provides you with pertinent and well-written stories that make a difference in your life. It’s because of this outstanding local news coverage that The Laker/Lutz News was recognized by the Florida Press Association as its 2021 Top Weekly Newspaper in its largest circulation division.

I am incredibly proud of this achievement, the high journalistic standards we continuously maintain, the connection that we have to the communities we serve, and the impressive list of businesses who advertise in our pages every week.

Making the decision to sell The Laker/Lutz News was difficult because I love what I do, and care deeply for my employees, readers, community and advertisers.

But there is more to who I am than just the owner of this newspaper. I am a mother, grandmother, sister and friend.

I need and want to spend time with Vic Anthony, my partner for 10 years; and with my daughter, Rachel, who lives in Tallahassee; my son, Andy, his wife, Erin, and my grandchildren who are ages 6, 4, 2, with a fourth on the way. I also want to spend more time with my siblings, who live in Gainesville and Minnesota, my home state.

I will be 67 in February, and hope to have another 25 years to embrace more closely those I love best, and to explore the world outside of Pasco County.

I am fortunate to have found Brian as your new publisher because he already shares my passion for The Laker/Lutz News. I believe he will be a good steward of my legacy, and will take what my team and I have built and create an even better community newspaper.

I want to express my gratitude for my talented and committed staff, who have stood alongside me all these years. They have brought me incredible ideas and shared their vision of what The Laker/Lutz News could be.

These folks do their jobs every week and back up their colleagues, regardless of hurricanes, pandemics and personal hardships. They make sure that every Wednesday you have a new edition of The Laker/Lutz News.

My team not only has contributed to the success of the newspaper, but they have been a source of inspiration, and have become my friends. Each of them has brought their unique talents to the paper, and I want to recognize them individually, here:

  • Mary Rathman, editorial, 19 years
  • Terri Williamson, sales, 18 years
  • Mary Eberhard, accounting, 18 years
  • Carolyn Bennett, sales, 17 years
  • Matt Mistretta, artist, 16 years
  • Stefanie Burlingame, artist, 13 years
  • B.C. Manion, editorial, 11 years
  • Kevin Weiss, editorial, six years
  • Kelli Carmack, marketing, two years
  • Mary Jane Weeks, sales, eight months
  • Trevor Lloyd, marketing, six months
  • Nicole Sanchez, marketing, six months

Although I will still be around the next several weeks during the transition, it’s time for me to say goodbye and to say thank you, to all of you. I will forever value your friendships and support, and it is my hope that you will embrace Brian, as you have me.

Published November 17, 2021

The harder choice is usually the best choice

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A few weeks back, The Laker/Lutz News was named the best weekly newspaper in its class by the Florida Press Association. This obviously is a huge honor for our staff, and we greatly appreciate this recognition of our work.

I also believe it is an acknowledgment of how doing the harder thing is usually the right thing.

I have tried to live my life and manage my company by making decisions with a long-term perspective, while listening to my moral compass. I’ve learned that instant gratification often backfires, so the decisions I make are often the harder choice, and ones that take longer to see positive results.

I held true to this when COVID-19 hit last year, when many of our advertisers asked to pull out of the newspaper because they were forced to close their business. Since advertising accounts for 100% of our revenue, my staff and I needed to make decisions quickly to keep our newspaper going in a time when readers needed our news more than ever.

One of the first decisions we made was to increase our local news coverage, instead of cutting back. Editor B.C. Manion and her staff did an exceptional job explaining how COVID affected our local schools, government, businesses and just about everything else. Her team gave readers information they needed to be safe and prepared, and they shared heart-felt stories about people and community groups, and how they adapted to the COVID way of life.

It was this stewardship of local news that explored the impacts of COVID on the daily lives of our readers, along with continued excellence in coverage of the people and communities we serve, that led to the 27 awards we received from the Florida Press Association, for our work in Pasco and Hillsborough counties.

“It’s safe to say that all of our work was affected by COVID, as we shifted gears to cover just about everything differently than we did in the past,” Manion said.

As I’m sure it was for you, this past year has been very challenging, and I have never seen my employees work harder. In addition to Manion’s contributions, staff writer Kevin Weiss expanded our coverage in East Pasco through aggressive reporting on Dade City and Zephyrhills city government. At the same time, he continued providing outstanding stories about community sports and recreation.

When COVID shut down just about everything, Mary Rathman, our editorial assistant, responded by searching out ways for our readers to take advantage of myriad virtual activities, published in our What’s Happening section. She also alerted readers on ways to keep healthy, through the virtual lectures and activities we shared in Health & Wellness.

As our production days shifted, artists Matt Mistretta and Stefanie Burlingame responded by working many weekend hours to put together the paper’s layout with outstanding, award-winning design — making our stories inviting and easy to read.

Photographers also helped us to continue to tell the story of community life, despite the pandemic. That’s where readers played an important role. Their images showcased our local wildlife, community events and big moments.

In fact, contributions by photographers Lillian Cucuzza and Steve Vinik were so outstanding, they received Florida Press awards.

When restaurants began to reopen, our marketing team of Kelli Carmack and Katie Fernandez highlighted them through Foodie Friday, a weekly video series about area restaurants. We share those videos on Facebook and Instagram, so be sure to look for Season 2 of Foodie Friday, which kicks off on Aug. 6.

Besides retaining robust news coverage, other decisions we made using the “harder choice” philosophy included preserving our circulation, offering flexible sales programs to businesses and hiring employees to expand our social media programs — giving readers the choice to receive our news in print, on our website and on our social media platforms.

I never faltered in the belief that readers want and need The Laker/Lutz News.

I am so pleased that the temptation to save money by reducing news coverage or cutting circulation did not carry the day.

By making those hard choices then, our company is stronger now than it has ever been.

Being named the best weekly newspaper in Florida is a gratifying honor — one that we happily share with our readers.

Published August 04, 2021

Saying Goodbye To My Family Homestead After A Lifetime Of Looking For A Home That Feels Just Like It  

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We have been publishing a monthly Home Section in The Laker/Lutz News for several years, and each month I write the stories you read in this section. I’ve learned much about the developers and builders behind many of Pasco County’s master-planned communities, and enjoy telling their stories and those of the people who live in these new neighborhoods.

This month, I thought I would share with you my personal story about home ownership, and why a home means so much more to me than just its physical structure.

My first home, of course, was my childhood home in St. Paul, Minnesota. I was the fourth child in my family, and was 9 months old when my parents bought a farmhouse built in 1885 on five acres just outside the city limits. Six more children were born in this house, and it became our family homestead for the next 65 years.

This farmhouse, built in 1885, was the childhood home for Publisher Diane Kortus and her nine siblings in St. Paul, Minnesota.

I left Minnesota for Florida when I was 25, and when I went back home to visit once or twice a year, I always stayed at my childhood home. After my father retired, the house became his primary hobby, and Dad loved showing off his most recent home improvement projects to me, not long after I walked in the door.  As we became adults, the house remained the gathering place for all family occasions, and the house, my Dad and my siblings became forever intertwined.

After my father died in 2016, our stepmother stayed in the house until she decided she didn’t want to go through another Minnesota winter in a 135-year-old farmhouse. So, this summer she moved to a senior community with lots of activities and no worries about the furnace going out or waiting for the driveway to be plowed.

A few months later, our family home was sold to a young couple who “wanted to raise their children in an old home with character.” While we were happy a new generation would be making new memories in our family home, selling it was very emotional because it was the last physical connection with our Dad, and there would no longer be a place for large family gatherings.

For me, that old farmhouse symbolized the love and stability of my family. As a child, I always imagined that when I grew up, I would buy a house just like it to raise my children and live in forever.

Well, things didn’t quite work out that way. Over the course of my life, I have owned six homes, never living in any one of them for more than seven years.

But, I have never given up my fantasy of a forever home. When it was time to move and look for the next house, I always searched for what I believed would be the perfect home to live in for the rest of my life. And, when it was time to move again a few years later, I was always sad to say goodbye and begin the search for our next home.

As I got older, and my children went off to college and then their own lives, I began to spend more time gardening and taking care of my shrubs and plants. I have even added orchids to my landscape, and when they bloom, I send pictures of the flowers to my sisters, as I once sent photos of my kids.

I would rather be home than anyplace else — it’s a retreat that protects me and envelops me in serenity. It’s a place to display and enjoy family photos, favorite books and artwork from my daughter and local artists.

My current home in Land O’ Lakes is my all-time favorite — but then I’ve said that about every home I’ve owned. It’s the first brand new home I’ve bought, and I’ve lived here already for over three years. Right now, I see myself staying here forever, but I know from my personal history that I will likely be moving again.

Perhaps that is why I enjoy writing stories for this Home Section, because it lets my mind drift to the newest master-planned community coming to Land O’ Lakes or Wesley Chapel. I get to  learn firsthand the latest in home design with flowing floor plans, new trends in finishes and the adaption of digital technology for the home.

I hope that you, too, can close your eyes and visualize living in one of the communities or homes I have written about in this Home Section. Even if you are not looking to buy a home today, I hope that reading about what’s new in housing locally will help you find your next home, which perhaps will become your forever home.

Published November 25, 2020

So proud to receive the Excellence in Integrity award

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In 2021, The Laker/Lutz News will be 40 years old, and I have had the opportunity to be its owner for the past 20 years. Over the years, we have received many awards from newspaper organizations for our editorial excellence and ad design, as well as recognition from local chambers of commerce, civic groups and economic development agencies.

My staff and I are always honored to accept these awards, and we proudly display them at our Land O’ Lakes office. But, no award has been as emotionally satisfying as the one we received last week from the North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce.

At last week’s Celebrating Excellence in Business event for the North Tampa Bay Chamber: (front row, from left) Diane Kortus, Mary Eberhard, B.C. Manion, Terri Williamson; (back row, from left) Kelli Carmack, Katie Fernandez. (Staff members not pictured are: Stefanie Burlingame, Matthew Mistretta, Steve Mistretta, Kennedy Murdock, Mary Rathman and Kevin Weiss.) (Courtesy of Paula O’ Neil)

We learned in early October that we were nominated for the Chamber’s 2020 Excellence in Integrity award. This was exciting, of course, but when we were notified a few weeks later that we were one of four finalists, we were extremely gratified.

The announcement that we had won came during the Chamber’s 2020 Celebrating Excellence in Business event. This virtual event was well done, with hosts Hope Kennedy and Kevin O’Farrell keeping the commentary energetic and fresh.

Most people participated by watching on the Chamber’s website or via its Facebook page, while several area businesses had small “watch parties,” with safe social distancing. We were invited to a small gathering at The Hilton Garden Inn in Lutz, and six of us from The Laker/Lutz News were able to go. It was fun to be out together, and to watch the show with other chamber members.

We were fortunate that the Integrity category was the first award to be announced — allowing us to relax and enjoy the rest of the show, and cheer on other finalists and winners. Every business nominated for these awards is to be congratulated and honored for the outstanding work they do, and their outreach in the community (see related story).

Receiving the Excellence in Integrity Award is especially meaningful in a year of so many challenges. What began as a strong first quarter, as we welcomed Pasco County’s many new businesses and residents, dramatically changed in March with the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

Like many businesses, our revenue plunged after most area businesses and institutions closed. We responded by reducing expenses significantly, but were careful not to make cuts that would negatively impact the quality of our news coverage, or reduce the number of papers we print and deliver every week.

We believe people want and need local news more than ever during a worldwide health and economic crisis. And, because we are the only weekly newspaper in central Pasco and north Hillsborough, we also believe that local businesses still in operation and those reopening need our local audience to market their products and services.

We are successfully navigating through this difficult year because of our commitment to our community, optimism that our local economy will rebound, and the hard work and integrity of my staff.

With the help of my employees, we have moved our company forward and have made — and continue to make — changes that we believe are best for our readers, advertisers and community.

Making good decisions begins with integrity. It means living your life personally, and professionally, with honesty, commitment, selflessness and empathy. Those core values are exemplified by every employee at our newspaper.

I want to thank the North Tampa Bay Chamber for honoring our newspaper, and I want to close by sharing with you a note I received from our editor, B.C. Manion. She captures perfectly why this Integrity Award means so much to our team, and why we are so thankful to receive it.

B.C. wrote: “I am so proud of our newspaper, Diane. I can’t imagine receiving an award that means more than receiving an award for integrity. It came at a good time, too. It’s been a tough year, with lots of demands. But, we are working our way through it and we will come out the other side, an even stronger and better company than we are right now. So, congratulations for leading a newspaper that means so much to the community.”

Published November 18, 2020

An invitation to join our ReaderSHIP Club

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I am writing this column to personally invite you to join our new ReaderSHIP Club.

We started this club to give us a direct line of communication with our most important customer base  — local residents like you who read The Laker/Lutz News every week.

We also established the club to thank you for your loyalty and patronage by sending you club goodies, shown in the above photo with our mascot, Buddy the Beagle (who is also my 14-year-old rescue dog).

It’s been just a few weeks since we launched our ReaderSHIP Club, and we already have a few hundred members. There is no cost to join — all we ask for is your physical and email addresses so we can stay in touch and send you our club e-newsletter and postcards, and little surprises from Buddy.

People who join our ReaderSHIP Club care about our community, their neighbors, local community organizations and area businesses — the people and groups we cover in The Laker/Lutz News through stories, photos, news items, announcements and advertisements.

Need more reasons to join?

  • You get to interact with our staff at The Laker/Lutz News and fellow readers. We’re a family, of sorts, who celebrate each other’s milestones, family photos, personal stories, even recipes.
  • Every month I share my favorite stories and photos, and why I chose them as our best.
  • Become our Reader of the Month, too! This is a fun way to thank our most loyal readers and reward them with fun prizes for sharing their story with fellow members.
  • Receive personal invitations to private special events, just for club members.
  • Get on Buddy’s mailing list for regular postcards and giveaways.
  • Participate in focus groups and research that help guide the direction of The Laker/Lutz News as we grow with our community.

In coming months we will be asking you to share ideas on how to enhance our community newspaper, website and social media platforms. We want to be more relevant and engaging, and ultimately, a more valuable resource for you and your neighbors.

Fortunately for our company, Gov. Ron DeSantis ruled newspapers an essential business at the beginning of the COVID-19 shutdown. We’ve continued to write stories, deliver the newspaper and help businesses reach our readers through advertisements, which are especially important now as businesses work hard to reopen their doors and adapt their business plans.

We are fortunate that many businesses continued to advertise in The Laker/Lutz News through the coronavirus crisis, thereby allowing us to avoid cutting back our circulation. We are very proud that we continue to print and deliver 47,395 papers every week in Lutz, Land O’ Lakes, Wesley Chapel, Zephyrhills and Dade City.

This is especially important today, because we are the primary source for many residents looking for local information about COVID-19 and other timely issues.

I believe that newspapers like The Laker/Lutz News are the original social medium — the glue that holds a community together. It is my hope that our new ReaderSHIP Club provides a vehicle so that your voices are more clearly heard in the pages of our newspaper.

I want to thank the inaugural members of our ReaderSHIP Club, and encourage you to become a new member by signing up at tinyurl.com/y74gjrf8, emailing me your interest at , or calling our office at (813) 909-2800. I truly look forward to hearing your thoughts and meeting you personally when we begin to have club get-togethers later in the year.

Published June 10, 2020

Share your thoughts to help improve The Laker/Lutz News

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One of the few positive things about the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) crisis is that most of us have more time on our hands at home and on the job.

Having this additional time provides an opportunity to reflect on what is most important to us, and then make changes that will improve our lives personally and professionally.

It has allowed me to step back and reflect on what we do well at The Laker/Lutz News, what we could be doing better, and what new things we could offer our readers and advertisers.

To help us improve our community newspaper, we need your help, and are asking you to complete an online readership survey at www.research.net/r/150911. This survey is just 17 questions, and will take less than 10 minutes to complete. It asks you questions about what kinds of stories are most important to you, has a few demographic questions, and also asks what types of products and services you will be looking for as our economy continues to reopen.

To thank you for taking the time to complete the survey, we are giving away a $100 gift card to Publix, with the winner being randomly chosen in early June. We truly want your suggestions on how we can make our newspaper even more relevant to your life.

Fortunately for our company, Gov. Ron DeSantis deemed newspapers an essential business, and we’ve continued to write stories, deliver the newspaper to your home and help businesses reach our readers through advertisements.

Unlike many publications, we have not cut back on our circulation. We continue to print and deliver 47,395 papers every week in Lutz, Land O’ Lakes, Wesley Chapel, Zephyrhills and Dade City. In these communities, we are often the only weekly publication that gives readers pertinent information on how COVID-19 is impacting their lives in north Hillsborough and central and east Pasco counties.

Because there has been so much local news about COVID-19, we have expanded our Facebook presence with timely news that cannot wait until our next issue, and have taken great pleasure in sharing heartwarming stories and videos about neighbors helping neighbors, and letting you know how you can help, too.

It’s been said that newspapers are the original social medium — the glue that holds a community together. We provide credible reporting that you can trust on topics from government to prep sports. Plus, nothing replaces the photos you can cut out and tape to your refrigerator, or slip in an envelope and mail to someone you love.

While it’s true that regional, national and international news is easily found on the Internet, that’s not true when it comes to local news in your neighborhood. While The Laker/Lutz News has a robust website and active Facebook presence, our coverage of your community begins with our printed paper that is delivered every Wednesday to your home.

Please complete our survey so we can do an even better job of serving you.

Published May 20, 2020

Share your thoughts to help improve The Laker/Lutz News

By

One of the few positive things about the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) crisis is that most of us have more time on our hands at home and on the job.

Having this additional time provides an opportunity to reflect on what is most important to us, and then make changes that will improve our lives personally and professionally.

Publisher Diane Kortus

It has allowed me to step back and reflect on what we do well at The Laker/Lutz News, what we could be doing better, and what new things we could offer our readers and advertisers.

To help us improve our community newspaper, we need your help, and are asking you to complete an online readership survey at www.research.net/r/150911. This survey is just 17 questions, and will take less than 10 minutes to complete. It asks you questions about what kinds of stories are most important to you, has a few demographic questions, and also asks what types of products and services you will be looking for as our economy continues to reopen.

To thank you for taking the time to complete the survey, we are giving away a $100 gift card to Publix, with the winner being randomly chosen in early June. We truly want your suggestions on how we can make our newspaper even more relevant to your life.

Fortunately for our company, Gov. Ron DeSantis deemed newspapers an essential business, and we’ve continued to write stories, deliver the newspaper to your home and help businesses reach our readers through advertisements.

Unlike many publications, we have not cut back on our circulation. We continue to print and deliver 47,395 papers every week in Lutz, Land O’ Lakes, Wesley Chapel, Zephyrhills and Dade City. In these communities, we are often the only weekly publication that gives readers pertinent information on how COVID-19 is impacting their lives in north Hillsborough and central and east Pasco counties.

Because there has been so much local news about COVID-19, we have expanded our Facebook presence with timely news that cannot wait until our next issue, and have taken great pleasure in sharing heartwarming stories and videos about neighbors helping neighbors, and letting you know how you can help, too.

It’s been said that newspapers are the original social medium — the glue that holds a community together. We provide credible reporting that you can trust on topics from government to prep sports. Plus, nothing replaces the photos you can cut out and tape to your refrigerator, or slip in an envelope and mail to someone you love.

While it’s true that regional, national and international news is easily found on the Internet, that’s not true when it comes to local news in your neighborhood. While The Laker/Lutz News has a robust website and active Facebook presence, our coverage of your community begins with our printed paper that is delivered every Wednesday to your home.

Please complete our survey so we can do an even better job of serving you.

Published May 20, 2020

Helping one another

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Coronavirus disease 2019, otherwise known as COVID-19 has upended life as we know it.

It remains unclear how bad it’s going to get, or how long it’s going to last — and that’s causing stress and anxiety.

Still, in the midst of the illness and deaths, shutdowns, cancellations and lay-offs — we know that our communities are filled with good-hearted people.

We have witnessed, for years, how these kind and generous souls have helped others in myriad creative and wonderful ways. We know this is happening now.

Please help us tell those stories. Email us a synopsis of the particulars, along with contact information, to .

Published March 25, 2020

Automotive section launches today

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This week The Laker/Lutz News is expanding our business coverage with a new automotive section that we’re calling “autoMOTIVES.”

We emphasize the word “MOTIVES” because we believe this section’s outstanding content will educate and motivate you to keep up with the latest automotive trends, and help you decide what is the best vehicle for you and your loved ones.

Our editor is Nitish Rele, an accomplished automotive writer who lives in New Tampa and is under contract with several automobile manufacturers to test drive and write stories for industry publications and blogs.

Rele has been writing product reviews, test drives and reporting automotive news for more than 20 years. He will be doing the same for The Laker/Lutz News, but with a heavy emphasis on local automotive and dealer news for our readers in Pasco and north Hillsborough counties.

Rele is also the founder and publisher of Motoring Tampa Bay, a comprehensive auto enthusiast guide in print and online since 2009.  Also notable, Rele was at The Tampa Tribune from 1989 to 2009 and was the weekly automotive columnist for his last 11 years there.

Rele received his master’s degree in journalism from the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri, and has been a Tampa Bay resident for nearly 30 years. I’m proud to add that he is a longtime, regular reader of our newspaper.

“Buying a vehicle is one of the biggest expenses a family incurs,” said Rele. “Our goal is to give readers timely and informative automotive news and professionally sanctioned test drives to help local people make informative decisions about their next vehicle.”

It is interesting to note that according to our 2017 readership buyer’s survey, 38 percent of our readers plan to purchase a new or used vehicle in the next 12 months —or 13,557 vehicles.

“We want to educate readers early in the buying process — when you are still considering your top vehicle choices and deciding how much you want to spend,” said Rele.

“Our goal is to give you information to make intelligent automotive decisions, and to help you find your next vehicle close to home at a dealership that is convenient and which provides service, body and warranty work.”

The Laker/Lutz News is able to add automotive news to its coverage because of the support of our inaugural advertisers — Christian Brothers Automotive, Maus Family Chevrolet, Parks Ford of Wesley Chapel and Wesley Chapel Toyota/Lexus/Honda.

All are locally owned, family businesses, just like we are at The Laker/Lutz News.

My staff and I sincerely thank these advertisers for their support, and if you have an opportunity to visit these neighborhood businesses, please be sure to thank them for bringing automotive news to your community newspaper.

Published December 12, 2018

Asturia’s Uniquely Smaller Size

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More of a neighborhood than a sprawling development

Asturia, a new home community in Odessa, stands out among other planned developments along State Road 54 in Pasco County because of its uniquely smaller size.

At build out in the next few years, Asturia will be a community of just 670 homes, while nearby master-planned communities have between 1,500 and 6,500 homes planned over several years of construction.

“Asturia feels more like a neighborhood than a sprawling community,” said Lane Gardner, managing director for Hines, Asturia’s developer that is based in Jacksonville.

“Our nature trails, pocket parks, first-class amenities and community events encourage residents to get to know their neighbors,” he continued. “Families choose Asturia because it is a friendly, walkable community that promotes a healthy, active lifestyle.”

Asturia’s builders offer a variety of home sizes and prices, making it ideal for families looking to buy their first home, and for growing families with school-age children that need larger homes. The community also attracts empty-nesters and seasonal residents who are downsizing to a smaller home, and want the latest in technological upgrades and energy efficiencies.

Asturia also stands out because its developer sponsors community events almost monthly to provide opportunities for residents to get to know their neighbors, and non-residents to see what it would be like to live in Asturia. Recent events include a 4th of July Pool Party, Hawaiian Spring Luau, and Dog Day Afternoon for people and their four-legged friends.

Since Asturia opened in February 2016, over 200 homes have been sold in its first two phases. Hines is launching a third phase later this year, which will add townhomes for the first time to its mix of homes.

Ryan Homes, one of the nation’s oldest builders with communities in 14 states, is building the townhomes, which feature garages in the rear of the home. Townhomes will sell in the mid $200,000s, and are being constructed near the front of the community, walkable to Asturia’s Amenity Center.

Later in Phase 3, Ryan Homes will also build traditional single-family homes.

“We’re looking at townhome models opening toward the end of the year, or early in 2019,” said Gardner. “We are very pleased that Ryan Homes has joined us as a builder in Asturia, complementing our longtime builders — David Weekley Homes, Ashton Woods and ICI Homes.”

While infrastructure work is underway in Phase 3, home construction continues in Asturia’s Phase 2, which is tucked against pristine conservation and cypress-lined wetlands.

“All of our Phase 2 home sites offer privacy and peaceful, quiet surroundings,” said Gardner. “Some of the prettiest and most private lots in the community are still available.”

Award-Winning Amenity Center
Asturia’s distinctive, 5,800-square-foot Amenity Center and Clubhouse has earned the prestigious Silver Aurora Award for the Best Recreational Facility from the Southeast Building Conference, as well as Best Mixed-Use Community of the Year.

This contemporary-design Amenity Center includes a fully equipped, modern clubhouse; covered outdoor dining areas; a luxurious, beach-entry, resort-style swimming pool; and an expansive event lawn for outdoor games. In the playground areas, there is a Kompan climbing dome, swings, slides, and spinners for youngsters to explore and enjoy.

Make Asturia your new home by visiting its models, registering at the community’s website, AsturiaFlorida.com, or by calling (813) 227-4148.

Townhomes Coming Soon
Builder – Ryan Homes
Open concept floor plans
1,600 to 1,700 square feet
Rear-load, 2-car garages
From the mid $200s
Tentative opening – late 2018
Low maintenance, hassle-free living
Register for VIP List at RyanHomes.com
(813) 501-6225 for more information

Published August 22, 2018