The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

Mike Camunas

Land O’ Lakes High inducts star-studded HOF class

By

In a decade’s time, nearly 50 former student-athletes, coaches, administrators, program supporters — and one team — have been inducted into the Land O’ Lakes High Hall of Fame.

The annual Hall of Fame tradition began in March 2013 when the Land O’ Lakes Gators Athletics Foundation was formed as a 501(c)3 nonprofit to raise funds through donations and events to benefit the school’s athletic programs.

Shannon Aitken, class of 2003, speaks to a crowd at Land O’ Lakes following her induction into the school’s Hall of Fame on Oct. 3. During her junior season, she was goalkeeper for the Gators girls soccer team that would go on to win the Class 2A state championship. She would then attend the University of Tampa and also put together a Hall of Fame career for the Spartans. (Mike Camunas)

Since then, the Foundation has had nine Hall of Fame classes — with no inductions in 2020 and 2021 because of COVID. The monies raised have been used for uniforms, equipment, facilities transportation and other items.

Now, Foundation board member John Childers says it’s time to have an actual Hall of Fame section, with funds raised from the Oct. 3 Induction Dinner and Silent Auction, plus any donations from boosters, allocated to create an extension of the fieldhouse at John Benedetto Stadium.

“When I started the foundation, I went to John Benedetto and he helped me select the first class, pretty much told me where to start,” Childers said. “It’s been amazing that we’ve been able to do this for 10 years now.”

Benedetto suddenly passed away in April 2013, prior to the induction of the first Hall of Fame class. He’d been coaching the Gators for 32 years.

He was posthumously inducted the next year.

With each passing year, more locally famous alumni are brought into the Hall of Fame, each with storied histories of accomplishments and contributions to Land O’ Lakes High’s athletic programs.

Here are the members of the 2023 Class:

Shannon Aitken, girls soccer, Class of 2004
Arguably one of the most decorated student-athletes ever for the Gators, Aitken was a three-sport athlete, but it was soccer that brought her fame and glory. A four-year starting goalkeeper, she was integral to the Gators girls soccer team winning the Class 2A state championship in 2003 — a team that was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2016. She won every award, including the Sunshine Athletic Conference Player of the Year and being named to the Class 5A All-State team as a senior. She had the Pasco County record for saves (551) and shutouts (70) during her high school career.

Brad Baisley (Courtesy of Land O’ Lakes Gators Athletic Foundation)

She then moved on to the University of Tampa (UT) and became the Spartans most decorated goalkeeper in program history. In 2007, she was named National Player of the Year as keeper for the Division II National Championship Team. After 59 wins and 197 saves in college, she was inducted into UT’s and the Sunshine State Conference Hall of Fame in 2014 and 2018, respectively.

Aitken is now entering her ninth season (106-34-8) as Steinbrenner High’s girls soccer coach.

Brad Baisley, baseball, Class of 1998
As a three-year letterman in both basketball and baseball, Baisley scored 1,320 points (fourth all time) in the former and was the SAC Pitcher of the Year armed with a 90-plus mph fastball. After graduation, he passed on scholarship offers from Tampa, the University of Miami and the University of North Carolina and signed a baseball/basketball scholarship with the University of South Florida. He was then drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies with the 44th overall pick in the 1998 MLB Draft, being ranked the No. 18 prospect at the time.

In 1999, he pitched a no-hitter for the Phillies single-A affiliate, the Piedmont Boll Weevils in the South Atlantic League, then went on to play seven seasons with the Phillies’, Los Angeles Dodgers’ and New York Yankees’ organizations.

Darrin Wayne Horne

His father is legendary baseball coach Calvin Baisley, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2022, and his son, Logan, is a senior pitcher on the Gators baseball team.

Darrin Wayne Horne, Lifetime Service Award, Class of 1985
Horne has served 14 years as a member of the Land O’ Lakes Booster Club, including time as vice president and director. In addition to his involvement with the Booster Club, he also has previously served as vice president and director of Swampfest. While at Land O’ Lakes, he was a standout football and baseball player, playing for such coaches as John Benedetto (2014), Al Claggett (2017), Bill Gebauer (2018) and Jerry English (2016).

Horne is a constant staple at various sporting events, including managing the concession stands and coordinating the parking facilities. He has helped raise well over six figures for academic scholarships.

Dave Puhalski

Dave Puhalski, basketball coach, Class of 1980 (Michigan)
Hired in June 1989 to guide the boys’ basketball, Puhalski went on to coach the Gators for 33 years. In that time, he coached seven Conference Players of the Year and numerous 1st Team All-Conference Players, with many of them moving on to play at the collegiate level. He racked up 479 wins and six district and conference titles and was named coach of the year several times.

Puhalski retired from coaching in 2020, then from teaching a year later, but the accolades didn’t end there. In June 2022, Land O’ Lakes administration requested the Pasco County School Board rename the school’s gym to be named after Puhalski, to which the board wholeheartedly agreed.

Drew Weatherford

Drew Weatherford, football, Class of 2004
As one of seven Weatherford children to play sports at Land O’ Lakes, Drew was one of the most prolific quarterbacks not only in school, but also in Pasco County history. He set county records for most passing yards (7,657) and touchdowns (79) and was an All-State Player, including in 2022 when the Gators went undefeated and won two playoff games.

All of this made him a highly touted college football recruit, who would eventually sign with Florida State University (FSU). There, he would start three years under former legendary coach Bobby Bowden, pass for 7,567 career yards and win the ACC Championship as a redshirt freshman.

After FSU, Weatherford would spend time in camps for the Chicago Bears and New Orleans Saints, as well as spend one season playing for the now defunct Arena Football League team, the Tampa Bay Storm.

Published October 11, 2023

Fastest kid sprints to NIL deal 

By

(Mike Camunas)

Seth Williamson, the 7-year-old Wesley Chapel youngster and speedster who is the “Fastest Kid in the Nation,” a title he earned by winning multiple championships last and this year during AAU Track and Field National Championships, now has another title to add to his young athletic career.

In late September, Williamson became the youngest track and field athlete ever to receive an NIL deal, signing a deal with Ford’s Garage restaurant, 25526 Sierra Center Blvd., Lutz, across from the Tampa Premium Outlets.

Generally, NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) deals are meant for college athletes, however, through his Speed Starz Track/Running Club, Williamson was able to secure the deal — and get a burger named after him!

The High Octane burger — a spicier entree with its pepper jack cheese and jalapeno toppings — will be on the Ford’s Lutz location’s menu starting in January.

Riding the rail for Halloween frights, delights

By

Board … if you’re brave enough.

Enter … if you dare.

The Halloween Spooky Train and Scary Trail, at the Grand Concourse Railroad in Shady Hills, offers frights and delights, in excess.

These passengers dared to board the Halloween Spooky Train at the Grand Concourse Railroad, 11919 Alric Pottberg Road, in Shady Hills. The 7.5″ scale train takes riders on a Halloween-themed 10-minute to 15-minute ride through the woods. Riders then walk through the quarter-mile Scary Trail, where volunteers put a friendly fright into the visitors who are brave enough to venture in. The train and trail will run Friday and Saturday evenings through Oct. 29. (Mike Camunas)

Still, it is a family friendly outing intended to delight people of all ages, and it happens as the sun sets and darkness takes over the woods.

It’s spooky fun, a wickedly good time and the perfect Halloween outing available on Fridays and Saturdays for the rest of October.

And, of course, it’s totally worth the trip.

On track for scares
First and foremost, people want to know is it really scary? And, as a family friendly outing, that is a legitimate question.

“We get a lot of parents who go, ‘Will my kids be scared?’” Spooky Train director Chris Ward said. “And when they do, the only thing I tell them is, ‘It’s your kid — so I don’t know! (laughs)

“We’ve got 5-year-olds who love it and then we have adults who are scared to death of it, so I can’t tell you — why not find out for yourself?”

The train ride takes about under 15 minutes while going through Halloween and scary movie-themed displays and a tunnel.

And, the scares? That’s in the eye of the beholder. 

Volunteers of the Grand Concourse Railroad Spooky Train aren’t out to “get” anyone, like, say at Halloween Horror Nights or Howl-O-Scream at Universal Studios and Busch Gardens, respectively.

In fact, the ride is “spooky and not scary,” as it’s geared toward those that are easily startled, so there is less to scare you but plenty to see.

There is definitely plenty to see while riding the 7.5″ scale train through the woods. Children, and adults, of all ages can board the train and take a slow ride, just feet from displays of ghosts and ghouls, demons and witches, and much, much more.

The Halloween Spooky Train ride at the Grand Concourse Railroad in Shady Hills will take riders, if they dare, on a venture into the ‘scary’ woods aboard a 7.5″ scale train on Friday and Saturday evenings in October.

“We do try to keep the train spooky, not scary,” Ward added. “We have things to look at, so we don’t want people getting scared and falling off the train. Plus, we have lots of families — mostly families, but we do have some individuals and couples, but mostly families. We’re not trying to scare anyone on the train.

“Because the trail is meant to be scary.”

Who’s afraid of the dark?
Seriously, if you are, perhaps the Scary Trail is not meant for you.

Through an approximately quarter-mile walking trail through a maze in the woods, visitors will find volunteers dressed to scare and give you nightmares.

“They’re high school kids and a few ‘pro’ actors, who make their own costumes, and we even have volunteers who do make-up,” Ward said.

“We do this all for fun. It’s all volunteers, but we do have fun with it.”

All that “fun” will find daring thrill-seekers winding their way through section after section, many of them with themes such as zombies, possessed individuals and even those from pop culture.

Visitors may get a kick, and a jump scare, when they find themselves in Hawkins, the fictional town from the hit show “Stranger Things.”

The Scary Trail, a quarter-mile hike with frights around every corner, is available to those who are brave enough to explore it, at the Grand Concourse Railroad in Shady Hills. The attraction is open through October.

But those really getting a kick out of all it are the volunteers hiding around every corner, with some even being a family affair. A mother-daughter duo await timid children in a foggy graveyard, while a trio of friends enjoy themselves — maybe a little too much —as an “insane clown posse.”

“Scared or not,” Ward said, “people really enjoy the Trail.”

 All aboard
In the end, it’s all in good, old-fashioned Halloween fun.

The Grand Concourse has hosted this Halloween event ever since it opened in 2018. It also has Christmas and Easter events.

The railroad is supported by “The Concourse Council” of Florida and is also a 501(c)3 nonprofit educational railroad. The railroad donates 50% of its yearly proceeds — and the money made from Spooky Train — to local charities, and the rest is reinvested for maintenance and new equipment.

“The concourse takes care of all that,” Ward said. “We just provide the fun.”

Riders of the Halloween Spooky Train, in Shady Hills, were wary about what was around the bend, in the final tunnel on the roughly 15-minute ride. The 7.5″ scale train makes its run through the woods and ‘scary’ Halloween decorations.

So come aboard the Spooky Train and hold on for a good time.

Enter the trail if you have the spine to do so.

Enjoy a ride, and walk, through the woods for some Halloween … fun.

Halloween Spooky Train and Scary Trail
Where: Grand Concourse Railroad, 11919 Alric Pottberg Road, in Shady Hills
When: Friday and Saturday evenings starting at 7 p.m., through and including Oct. 29
Cost: $8 for the train or trail separately, $15 for both
Details: Take a ride on the Spooky Train for 10 minutes to 15 minutes aboard a 7.5″ scale train through the woods and “scary” Halloween decorations. Scary Trail is an approximately quarter-mile walking trail through a maze in the woods where visitors will find volunteers dressed to scare and give you nightmares. Attractions are designated spooky and scary (but not too scary for those who are easily startled). Both attractions are for all ages, with kids under 2 getting in free. There are also food and vendor booths, Halloween displays and music.
For more information or to buy tickets, visit GrandConcourseRailroad.simpletix.com or GrandConcourseRailroad.com.

Published October 11, 2023

 

 

Little ones were tentative, but brave enough to make it through the quarter-mile Scary Trail at the Grand Concourse Railroad in Shady Hills.
Enter, if you dare, the Scary Trail, where volunteers are more than willing to scare and frighten those brave enough to enter.
From left, the ‘insane clown posse’ of Grayson Bowers, Billy Green and Ashton Blanton were more than willing to ‘volunteer’ to man the Scary Trail and frighten those brave enough to enter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gunner Saey cooks up some sausages and other food at the Grand Concourse Railroad in Shady Hills.
Visitors to the Halloween Spooky Train and Scary Trail at the Grand Concourse Railroad in Shady Hills can purchase food, drink and other goods while waiting to board or before venturing into the woods.
A tiny skeleton gives a wave as the Spooky Train heads out of the station at the Grand Concourse Railroad in Shady Hills.

U.S. 41 now four lanes in north Land O’ Lakes

By

After more than two years of reconstruction, U.S. 41 in Land O’ Lakes has more, much-needed lanes.

The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) removed construction barrels off the highway in early October, opening the new lanes on U.S. 41, also known as Land O’ Lakes Boulevard.

U.S. 41 has been widened north of Connerton Boulevard, creating a four-lane divided highway heading north to State Road 52. (Mike Camunas)

The widening project, which expanded U.S. 41 to a four-lane divided highway, begins at Connerton Boulevard, heading north to State Road 52. Now, U.S. 41 is a four-lane divided highway from north of Ehren Cutoff and ending at State Road 52.

The $16.9-million project began March 12, 2021 and added nearly three miles of new lanes that go past northern Land O’ Lakes subdivisions such as Tierra Del Sol and Asbel, and AdventHealth Connerton. The project also included drainage improvements, and roadway signage and markings.

A shared-use path was constructed on the east side of U.S. 41 and connected to the paved path that ends just south of the Wilderness Lake Preserve subdivision.

Also about two years ago, an extension of Asbel Road was added to the east side of U.S. 41 and connected to Central Boulevard — the road that leads to Pasco County Jail. The road also wraps around the new Fire Station 22, which is now under construction.

The addition of this extension led FDOT to install a new four-way stoplight.

The new four-lane U.S. 41 will come in handy, as the county and FDOT readies to extend the Ridge Road Extension even further, bringing it from Sunlake Boulevard to U.S. 41 and Connerton Boulevard.

That project, which is Phase 2 of the Ridge Road extension, is slated for completion in late 2025.

As for State Road 52, the widening to a six-lane divided highway from the Suncoast Parkway to east of U.S. 41 and approximately one-mile total of widening on U.S. 41 approaching the State Road 52 intersection in each direction is still underway. According to the FDOT website, completion on that $49.9-million project is tentatively set for early 2024.

Following that in 2026, the county and FDOT will then widen State Road 52 headed east even further, expanding it to a four-lane divided highway up to Ehren Cutoff.

Published October 11, 2023

Besides widening U.S. 41, the project included adding a shared-use path north of Connerton Boulevard, on the east side of the highway.
Motorists will have more room now on U.S. 41, north of Connerton Boulevard, because a lengthy reconstruction project is now complete.
Aerial shot of U.S. 41 headed north from Connerton Boulevard in Land O’ Lakes and the new expanded four-lane highway. (Courtesy of FDOT)

Zephyrhills unveils new town-wide brand

By

It’s time to jump right into Zephyrhills.

It took more than a year, but the City of Zephyrhills has finally settled on its new brand — from a logo, to town slogan, to color schemes and more.

There will be a blue, green and teal color palette that honors the sky and the water and green for the rolling hills and open spaces in the area and an emphasis on the Z in Zephyrhills in the logo.

After more than a year of research, development and design, the City of Zephyrhills soon will unveil the efforts behind its rebranding initiative in conjunction with North Star Place Branding + Marketing. Since July of 2022, they have been collaborating to come up with a new town logo, slogan, color schemes and marketing campaign for Pasco County’s largest municipality. (Courtesy of City of Zephyrhills)

All of this was shown by city officials, as well as representatives from North Star Place Branding + Marketing, a Jacksonville-based consulting firm hired to research the town and develop a new brand, in a detailed presentation to the City Council on Sept. 25.

The city has long been associated with bottled water — hence the former town slogan, ‘The City of Pure Water.’ It’s also widely known for its skydiving and annual flock of snowbirds.

Now, it has a new slogan: ‘Jump Right In.’

“It’s a homage to the identity already there, while still moving forward with a new brand, a new message for Zephyrhills,” Sam Preston, director of project management for North Star, told The Laker/Lutz News. “And the city is much more than skydiving and water. (The new slogan) is an invitation to, well, everything — to businesses to dining to residents to all the events.

“It’s ‘Jump Right In’ where you can belong, where you can make the most of your life.” 

While the rebrand was formally accepted by the city, Zephyrhills officials said it will take time rolling out the new brand.

Firstly, the city and North Star are still putting the final touches on the designs of the new logo. Then, the rollout of the new brand will be very gradual, as it will take time to integrate it around town and through the city’s varying departments.

Plus, rolling out a city-wide brand of this magnitude takes time — most likely years.

The City of Zephyrhills is shedding its current title, ‘The City of Pure Water,’ including removing the sign on the right from the corner of Gall Boulevard and Fifth Avenue, after a year-and-a-half rebranding effort to better incorporate a city-wide image of Pasco County’s largest municipality. (Mike Camunas)

“You don’t want to do it all at once,” Preston said. “For example, when you retire one car in the fleet, you replace it with the new branding — doing it all at the same time is difficult and expensive.”

The city has several plans to implement the new colors and logo, which could include new monuments around town, but also putting it on park and street signs.

City officials told The Laker/Lutz News there are no plans for a formal reveal event or celebration, instead it will use a gradual approach, integrating the new brand over time.

One of the first times residents could see the new city’s new brand will be at the tentative groundbreaking for the updated Hercules Park. The groundbreaking event for the more than $5-million project on the 12-acre parcel of land at the corner for County Road 54 and Gall Boulevard is set for Nov. 28 at noon.

North Star began the nearly $70,000 rebranding project in July 2022, starting with collecting data from Zephyrhills residents and those that live nearby, looking for input on the town from outsiders’ perspectives.

The firm collected data from 1,486 unique inputs that included nearly 1,000 people completing an online survey, plus on-site conversions, focus groups and interviews. The information revealed how the city is perceived and helped shape the new logo and slogan.

North Star officials said it wanted to find a new narrative for the town, while still embracing its longstanding identity. In the end, the new brand still incorporates two important elements from Zephyrhills: the water and the skydiving.

Ironically, the City began the rebranding process because “City leaders also believe strongly that Zephyrhills offers much more than simply being referred to as the city of pure water.”

“People just walk up to me, and say, ‘Why are you spending so much money on this (rebranding)? Why are you spending any money at all on this? What’s wrong with the logo we have? This is where the water comes from, what’s wrong with that?” City Manager Billy Poe told The Laker/Lutz News in February.

“And it’s not to get rid of the water logo or get rid of the skydiving component. We feel we’re more than one thing, and we want to tell our story before someone can tell it for us and then not get it right.”

The City also posted a website laying out its rebranding initiatives, as well as answering questions behind the reasoning of the process and research.

All that information can be viewed by visiting AuthenticZephyrhills.com.

Published October 04, 2023

Coyotes take to ‘frozen creek’

By

New teams at a high school are rarely formed.

But this season, Cypress Creek has a new hockey team, and the Coyotes have full varsity and JV rosters, a legitimate, competitive league, sharp-looking jerseys, and practice and play in a brand-new facility.

The Cypress Creek High School Hockey Team may be in its inaugural season, but it is chock full of experienced players — including many who have played together before. Also, as part of the Lightning High School Hockey League, the Coyotes come from more than one school, with players coming from Cypress Creek, Pasco and Sunlake high schools. The way the league is set up, only a handful of teams in Pasco, Hillsborough, Pinellas, Polk and Manatee counties are made up from players from a single school, as is the case at Land O’ Lakes High School. (Mike Camunas)

“The biggest thing is we want one community, as one team, to support the players on and off the ice,” coach J.C. Powers said. “We have about 20 players on varsity, and a full JV team, so everyone plays. … They have a chance to plant the seed for the future, to be the start of this new team, to really put a stamp on the league as a new team, as Cypress Creek, and I think our guys, this season, are really enjoying that.”

Cypress Creek is part of the Lightning High School Hockey League (LHSHL), which organizes and oversees teams from five counties: Pasco, Hillsborough, Pinellas, Polk and Manatee. Despite the number of schools, as well as the always-growing interest in youth hockey in the Tampa Bay area, the league realizes not every high school has enough players to form a team made up entirely of its own student-athletes.

So, every three years, the LHSHL evaluates the “catchments” and pairs together schools to form a team.

Like it did with Cypress Creek.

The team is designated as the Coyotes, but players are coming from Cypress Creek, Sunlake and Pasco high schools.

“It’s a change being a new team because everyone thinks we’re the underdogs,” Cypress Creek senior Cayden Faircloth said. “It’s taken some time, but I think we’ve really come together as a team in a short time. It’s not difficult (all the players) not going to the same school. Sure, we want to learn more about each other, but once you’re out on the ice, it’s all hockey, more so than personality.

Cypress Creek senior Cayden Faircloth looks on during a game vs. Mitchell, as part of the Lightning High School Hockey League at Nest Hockey Academy, the Coyotes home ice rink.

“You just want to learn how to play with (your teammates), not fight one another.”

The Coyotes practice and play at Nest Hockey Academy, the new private, not-for-profit athletic and academic institution in Wesley Chapel. They practice once a week and play on Fridays, in games featuring three 15-minute periods.

“The biggest thing is how we try to approach the game, and the biggest thing I tell my players is that you may not know each other or be best friends, but we’re still playing the game of hockey,” Powers said. “A lot of players we have are not new to competitive hockey or the Lightning League. I’ve been coaching since 2017, but the biggest thing with my players is consistency and knowing that it’s okay to make a mistake, but learn from them.

“Like any other team, we want our players to become great young men, especially off the ice. It’s what we strive for.”

The Coyotes, as well as the other teams and players in the LHSHL, will also strive for the postseason. LHSHL teams compete to win the Tampa Bay region, then advance to states and even eye a national championship.

Hayden Hunter takes a shot on net during a game at Nest Hockey Academy on Sept. 22.

All of that takes teamwork — something the Coyotes have had from the start.

“We had to learn how to play with (new guys) and how to play well with each other and had to gel a little at first, but it didn’t take long,” sophomore Dylan Mize said. “I think we’re playing really well together now. I think it’s a great group of kids and we can do well this year.

“It’s a little different,” he continued, “because you want to gel, not just playing hockey, but when you’re together or even hanging out, but I think we all get along well in the locker room. We’re not like some first-year teams.”

“With us being a new team, (other teams) don’t expect a lot from us,” Faircloth added. “I think they’re underestimating us.”

Cypress Creek is off to a hot start this season, already 4-2 through Sept. 29, scoring 42 goals while allowing just 29.

And whether or not that is expected of a newly formed team, what is expected is a competitive league — one that isn’t exactly brand new.

“That is an effect, isn’t it?” Powers said. “It’s been in full effect for a while, but there is the Lightning effect, the hockey effect. Yeah, it’s the Lightning League, but now it has so many teams, so it’s a great thing, since now we have so many opponents and even balanced teams in the communities.

“In the end, our players and all the teams are out here playing the game of hockey.”

Cypress Creek goalie Carter Lindquist, left, goes over strategy on an iPad with Coyotes coach J.C. Powers, before a game vs. Mitchell in the Lightning High School Hockey League on Sept. 22.

Lightning High School Hockey
Details: Lightning High School Hockey is the high school ice hockey league of the Tampa Bay area, with teams from Pasco, Hillsborough, Pinellas, Polk and Manatee counties. Most teams are designated as a specific school name, but feature players from up to as many as five or more schools. There are some teams entirely made up of players from a single school. There are four divisions of teams and regular season games run through January.
Local teams:
Cypress Creek (Cypress Creek, Sunlake, Pasco)
Freedom (Freedom, Wharton, Gaither, Leto, Chamberlain)
Land O’ Lakes (entirely made up of Land O’ Lakes players)
Mitchell (Mitchell, River Ridge, Anclote, Fivay, Gulf, Hudson)
Steinbrenner (Steinbrenner, Alonso, Sickles)
Wiregrass Ranch (Wiregrass Ranch, Wesley Chapel, Zephyrhills)
Info: Visit LightningHighSchoolHockeyLeague.com.

Published October 04, 2023

Cypress Creek goalie Ryan Zerfass slides over to make a save on a shot during a game vs. Mitchell at Nest Hockey Academy on Sept. 22.
Center Hayden Hunter, one of the team’s top goal scorers, leans in and readies himself for the faceoff vs. Mitchell.
The Cypress Creek High Hockey Team practices and plays at Nest Hockey Academy, at 9175 McKendree Road, in Wesley Chapel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Carson Cormier leans on the wall at his team’s bench, watching the action play out on the ice during a game at Nest Hockey Academy in Wesley Chapel.
Cypress Creek senior Cayden Faircloth works the puck away from a Mitchell skater during a game on Sept. 22.
Four Cypress Creek High Hockey Team players congregate and celebrate a goal scored vs. Mitchell on Sept. 22.

Take a walk through Dade City history

By

Even though the landscape, and buildings, have changed, the history remains.

It has stood the test of time, as many things have in Dade City. And now, some of the town’s most dedicated residents want to show off that history, for all to see.

The 1909 Pasco County Courthouse, or the No. 1 stop on the brand-new, 82-stop Dade City Historical Self-Guided Tour, sits at the intersection of Meridian Avenue and Seventh Street. It is the crown jewel of downtown Dade City, as well as the centerpiece of the new walking tour available to residents and tourists alike. In April 2022, a committee of Dade City historians formed to create this comprehensive historical walking tour. It is complete with a web site, narration for stops and QR codes that cover historical sites and massive amounts of history in Dade City. The city was incorporated in 1889. (Mike Camunas)

They’ve created the Dade City Historical Self-Guided Tour — a comprehensive and immersive tour of historical sites, buildings, streets, monuments and more scattered throughout town. 

It was the brainchild of the president of the Dade City Merchants Association, Margaret Angell, and Mary Katherine Mason, owner of Lanky Lassie’s Shortbread. They wanted a way to preserve the town’s history that dates back to the late 1800s.

They recruited some of Dade City’s foremost historians, with the project taking more than a year to complete. 

In the end, the tour came to a whopping 82 stops.

“The idea was to teach people easily, through a walking tour or on their phone or computer, of the rich history in our town,” Mason said. “And, as people travel to our town to see the history, it will show the commissioners that Dade City is worth preserving. It will show that Dade City is a destination for history and small town charm, as some people try to escape the Wesley Chapels and Tampas.

The Dade City Heritage and Cultural Museum on U.S. 98 was once the 1912 Atlantic Coastline Railroad Depot. It is stop No. 12 on the Dade City Historical Self-Guided Tour.

“It will help build tourism by showing the history, and preserve it, as well.”

The tour can be accessed online and started at any stop. Each stop comes with its location, history — in both writing and videos — and some of the stops have narration.

Mason and Angell also are working on physical QR codes to be placed at each stop, allowing visitors to scan the logo to bring up the tour’s site.

The formulation of the tour started back in April 2022, when Mason and Angell approached author and historian Madonna Wise, who has written extensively about Dade City, including ‘A Haunted History of Pasco County’ and ‘Dade City (Images of America).’

Wise said they reviewed the tours completed by the Florida Humanities Council and requested it help them with the tour. However, the Council was unavailable, so they formed a tour committee and began the process.

The Wells Fargo Bank, at the corner of Seventh Street and Meridian Avenue, was the 1889 Bank of Pasco. It is stop No. 15 on the Dade City Historical Self-Guided Tour.

The committee includes Mason, Angell and Wise, but also Stephanie Black, director of the Pioneer Museum & Village; Melody Floyd, Dade City Chamber of Commerce who developed the Dade City Historic House tour; Wayne Sweat, longtime Pioneer Florida Volunteer and reenactor (he narrates the tour); Britton Janning, the tour’s tech guru who built the site, QR codes and more; Judge Lynn Tepper, retired circuit judge; Imani Asukile, diversity director at Pasco-Hernando State College; and, Eric Baker.

“I believe it far exceeds the tours done by the Humanities Council,” Wise said. “We tried very hard to tell the complete story with great diversity and human anecdotes.

“Our tour has 82 stops,” she added. “In many of the stops, we did comprehensive interviews — in other cases we discovered completely new history or corrected facts. The level of enthusiasm and support from the town has been phenomenal.

The Florida Army National Guard Armory on Live Oak Avenue was the 1955 National Guard Armory of Dade City. It is stop No. 14 on the Dade City Historical Self-Guided Tour.

“The goal of Mary Katherine and Margaret Angell was to provide a model for historic preservation. The group is intensely proud of the endeavor and we tried very hard to be inclusive of the research that had already taken place by historians.”

Mason said they researched other cities that have rich histories, as well as walking tours, hoping to “follow in their footsteps.”

But as the committee kept working “thousands of volunteer hours,” the tour kept growing. Especially once Wise, who did most of the research, was enthusiastically on board.

“Eighty-two stops is definitely large (laughs),” Mason said. “Madonna, she just kept adding, too. She was like, ‘What about this one and that one?!’ There’s just so much history that where do you stop? … She’s a true historian — it’s her passion and it was difficult for her to stop.”

“It is difficult to convey the level of volunteer time committed to this project,” Wise added. “Consulting has been extensive and (the) research is often new. Some of the history is not fun, but well-documented, especially on the tour now.”

On the Dade City Historical Self-Guided Tour, the Elevated Estates at The Edwinola, once a hotel, was founded in 1912. It is stop No. 28 on the tour.

Mason said while researching other historic tours of other cities, they found each town has its own bylaws of preserving its historical districts, including the buildings. Dade City, on the other hand, has no such laws or rules, so historical buildings have been modified, renovated or, in some cases, removed altogether.

“A lot of (building) facades have been changed over the years, maybe even torn down,” Mason said. “We would like to beautify and preserve them. Owners can do whatever they want to the buildings they purchased. Our hope is the tour shows that it’s worth preserving.”

As a shop owner herself, Mason also sees the benefits of the tour, from a business standpoint. Her hope is the tour brings more foot traffic downtown, but especially on the weekends, motivating the fellow storefront owners to extend business hours.

Then the rest will be history.

“I’m from Zephyrhills and didn’t want to come near Dade City (laughs) because of the 9-Mile Rivalry,” Mason said. “I’ve learned so much now and, of course, I’m fond of my building, but also the Wells Fargo Bank building — just learning how there was a robbery there with dynamite — so cool!

“But if you’re brand-new to the city, having the tour is incredible,” she added. “It makes me want to learn all the history. … (If) more people come to our town, maybe on Sundays, then we start to see businesses open on those days. We’re a mom-and-pop town, so bringing people out to see history, and shop, will be great to see, especially new people from the tour.

The Dade City Garden Club, next to Touchton Park, is stop No. 51 on the Dade City Historical Self-Guided Tour.

“And make taking the tour totally worth it.”

Dade City Historical Self-Guided Tour
Cost: Free, but donations are welcome to the 501(c)3
Where: 82 stops throughout the greater Dade City area
Details: A comprehensive and historically informative walking tour of the numerous historical sites and massive amount of history in Dade City. The city was incorporated in 1889. The tour also is dedicated to Dennis Alfonso, who, along with his wife, Nancy, are longtime Dade City lawyers. Dennis passed away earlier this year.
Event: There will be a tour launch party on Nov. 9 at 6 p.m., at the Pioneer Florida Museum & Village, 15602 Pioneer Museum Road, Dade City, featuring speakers, readings, demonstrations and more.
For more information or to even start the tour, visit DadeCityHistory.org.

Published September 27, 2023

Last but not least, and perhaps a way to eat after getting through all 82 stops of the Dade City Historical Self-Guided Tour, there’s Steph’s Soul Food off Fifth Street.
The 1886 Saint Paul Missionary Baptist Church, on Seventh Street, is stop No. 69 on the Dade City Historical Self-Guided Tour.
The 1966 Miss Polly Touchton Park, slated for a renovation in the near future, is stop No. 52 on the Dade City Historical Self-Guided Tour.

Dancing, touching tributes mark Sunlake special occasion

By

It’s a longstanding tradition, so the weather wasn’t about to stop it.

Sunlake High mom Kristin Satin performs a dance in a shirt with her son’s face on it during a showcase for Seahawk Seniors during Homecoming Week. Satin and dozens of other senior moms (and a few dads) boogied down at the football fields at the Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex on Sept. 20 to entertain hundreds in attendance, including their senior students and friends. (Mike Camunas)

As part of Sunlake High’s Homecoming Week festivities, each grade plans skits and performs them on the school’s football field.

Parents — mostly the moms of the senior students — also join in, coordinating dances to popular music to entertain (and possibly embarrass) their kids.

Hundreds of Sunlake High students, parents and family members came out to the Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex on Sept. 20 to see skits, parents dancing and touching tributes from both kids and parents, as part of the school’s Homecoming festivities.

Closing out the fun showcase, parents and family members walk the field holding giant posters, with one side showing the students’ senior portrait and the other a baby picture.

As a final act, the senior students will then line up and walk toward the parents, this time holding touching thank you and tribute posters they made, all before being sent off to their final Homecoming — which was held this year on Sept. 23.

“The school has been doing this a long, long time,” one senior mom, Kristin Satin, said. “The rain postponed it, but we were able to get to this field and make a quick pivot and it all worked out.

“This is always a lot of fun.”

Rain and bad weather had Sunlake parents shifting the venue to Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex on Sept. 20, where hundreds crowded the football fields, and the showcase kicked off with each grade performing its respective skits.

Then it was the parents’ turn, as dozens of senior moms — and a few dads, some dressed as Taylor Swift — danced to songs and even had a costume change. The moms danced in matching Senior Family ’24 shirts, but then switched to shirts with their kids’ faces all over them.

“It’s a Sunlake tradition!” Satin said. “We weren’t about to miss out on tradition because of the weather. It always rains in Florida — we won’t always have our (kids’) senior (year).”

Published September 27, 2023

Sunlake High dad Rob Lamkey — or is that Taylor Swift? — performs with dozens of senior moms during a skit and showcase event at the Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex, as part of the school’s Homecoming Week festivities.
From left, the Mixon family — Lisa, Alyssa and Dave — honors their senior student during a Sunlake High showcase and skits as part of the school’s Homecoming Week festivities at the Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex.
Sunlake seniors, from left, Remley Velde, Kaitlyn Schwartz, Ashley Ridgway and Reese Meckfessel walk down the field at the Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex on Sept. 20, holding signs thanking their parents and families with tributes from their young lives and high school memories.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunlake High mom Kelly McGauran, left, poses with her daughter, Ciara, for a photo following a Senior Showcase at the Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex on Sept. 20. Parents and families walked the field with posters that had both the student’s senior portrait and baby photo on opposite sides.
Dozens of Sunlake High senior moms — and a few dads — danced away to pop songs as a fun way to entertain, and possibly embarrass, their kids at the Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex in connection with the school’s Homecoming festivities.
Parents of Sunlake High seniors were more than happy to dress up and dance to a few tunes at the Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex on Sept. 20, all to send off their kids to the Homecoming Dance, which was held Sept. 23.

St. Leo approves 2023-2024 town budget

By

The town of St. Leo has adopted a budget of $4 million for the 2023-2024 fiscal year.

This year’s budget represents a miniscule of decrease from the $4.1 million budget last year, with the St. Leo Town Commission approving the incoming budget in a meeting on Sept. 19.

The town is expected to generate total general funds of slightly more than $1 million through sales and use taxes, licenses and permits, intergovernmental and miscellaneous revenues.

Founded in 1891, the Town of St. Leo is the oldest incorporated municipality in Pasco County. (Mike Camunas)

St. Leo also has $2 million in reserves.

Expenditures are estimated at just over $2.5 million, stemming from general government, public safety, physical environment, human services and other non-operating uses.

General government has the highest expenditure at $428,315.

The town plans on spending $142,181 of general funds on public safety, plus an additional $25,000 in the category of physical environment.

Transportation and special projects are earmarked for $293,000 of special revenue funds of $1.9 million.

Included in this year’s budget are funds for the St. Leo Town Center: the town’s newest attraction that was announced, and graciously welcomed by citizens and nearby college students, in February.

The multi-faceted town center is planned to be at the corner of what is now known as County Road 52 (formerly State Road 52) and Lemon Road, less than a mile from the university that also bears its name. It will feature restaurants and vendors, event and entertainment space, gardens and more, as it aspires to become a tourism destination.

The St. Leo Commission, seen here in February and led by Mayor Vincent D’Ambrosio, approved the town’s 2023-2024 fiscal budget of $4 million on Sept. 19.

Additionally, the town will work with the Florida Department of Transportation to reconfigure the intersection of County Road 52, College Avenue and Pompanic Street, and convert the now confusing, flashing-light stop, into an easier-to-navigate, traffic-friendly roundabout.

Special Revenue funds totaling $1,807,227 are budgeted for the Town Center under “Non Operating Uses” and “Transportation and Special Projects.” 

More than $1.2 million has been set aside for the Town Center, with the funds coming from the Penny for Pasco initiative. Additionally, $225,000 is budgeted for stormwater impact fees and funds for Lemon Street.

St. Leo officials told The Laker/Lutz News the Town Center project is still in some design phases and does not have an actual groundbreaking or start date. However, officials added, “Ideally, we would break ground as soon as possible in (fiscal year) 2024.”

Founded in 1891, St. Leo is the oldest incorporated municipality in Pasco County. The town is approximately 858 acres in size, much of which is Lake Jovita. The most recent population estimate is 2,362.

The five-person Town Commission consists of Donna DeWitt, Mayor Vincent D’Ambrosio, Mayor Pro Tem James Hallett, Curtis Dwyer and William Hamilton.

For more information about the town, its commission, permits, applications and other issues, visit TownOfStLeo.org.

Published September 27, 2023

A Sense of Place

By

Dust in the Windmill
An old windmill located on State Road 54 near the Suncoast Expressway was snapped by Nicole Magazu, of Land O’ Lakes. She took the photo on Aug. 26, 2018 while on a walk with her husband. That image is all that remains of the windmill. It sat on the property now occupied by an Amazon distribution center. Magazu laments: ‘I miss seeing farms in Pasco County.’
You’re the Sunflower
Land O’ Lakes resident Jeanne Johnson took this picture of a sunflower in a maze in southern Spring Hill. ‘I feel that sunflowers bring such joy to life,’ she said.
Shopping for Cotton Candy Skies
The Laker/Lutz News Photographer Mike Camunas grabbed this picture of a pink sunset sky outside the Publix Super Market at Arbor Square at Connerton in Land O’ Lakes one August evening.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you’d like an image to be considered for publication, please email it to . Please add a sentence or two, describing when and where you took the photo and what the image means to you. Be sure to include who took the photo, where he or she lives and contact information, in case we need to reach back.

Published September 27, 2023