Special to The Laker/Lutz News

By B.C. Manion

 

While Pastor Tim Mitchell of Chancey Road Christian Church may feel compelled by his faith to take in the homeless, the Pasco County Commission has rejected the church’s bid for a permanent 50-bed homeless shelter.

Commissioners opted instead to go along with county staff’s recommendation to allow the shelter to continue operating for a year, with a maximum of 35 overnight guests,  contingent on the church abiding to a long list of conditions.

The vote to grant the one-year shelter came on a motion on May 8 by Commissioner Pat Mulieri.

Mulieri initially had sought approval for the church’s request, but that bid failed on a 2-3 vote, with Mulieri and Commission Chairwoman Ann Hildebrand voting yes, and commissioners Jack Mariano, Henry Wilson and Ted Schrader voting no.

When Mulieri changed her motion to allow the temporary shelter, Schrader switched his vote to a yes.

In seeking a permanent shelter with 50 beds, Clarke Hobby, an attorney representing the church, said his client had agreed to a list of conditions intended to address neighbors’ concerns. “We’re providing the maximum protection we can for these folks,” he said.

The church has been operating a shelter without a permit, but its pastor said he was not aware one was needed until the church drew up a long-range plan, which called for a 120-bed shelter.

The church has since decreased its request to 50 beds, which exceeds the maximum number of people it has ever put up on a single night, Hobby said.

The attorney said the church is addressing a community need.

“My hat goes off to the church for stepping up to do the right thing. I think it’s the morally right thing to do,” Hobby said, noting there are no homeless shelters in East Pasco County.

Hobby said the church addressed concerns about the homeless loitering in the neighborhood by prohibiting walk-ins to the shelter. The church now picks up the homeless at a site on US 301 and returns them there in the morning. It also requires them to stay indoors, except for one 10-minute smoke break each hour at night until 10 p.m., he said.

“The people are only in there to stay the night,” Hobby said. “They are not in the neighborhood to have an adverse effect.”

Two women who previously stayed at the shelter spoke in favor of the request, and Hobby submitted a petition with more than 600 signatures supporting the church’s request.

But the majority of speakers spoke against it.

Michael Barnard, of 3619 Lanier Road, said it’s unlikely anyone signing the petition lives near the shelter. “It’s very easy, if you’re outside of the situation, to be for it. Who wouldn’t be?”

Other neighbors voiced concerns.

Rosemary Johnson, who lives on Chancey Road,  put it like this: “I don’t feel near as safe in my home as I once did.”

And she raised another objection: “I think it brings down the value of my home. It makes it harder to sell.”

Mary Jo Reilly Wingo, who lives on Lanier Road, noted: “They’ve been running that shelter for about two years. They knew what they were doing was wrong.”

Wingo also pointed out that the church is on a septic system that would be overloaded by a shelter housing 50 people.

Some residents cited rising crime rates.

Frank Kolske, who lives on Chelsea Road near the church, said his home was burglarized about three years ago and his military memorabilia was stolen.

County zoning administrator Debra Zampetti told commissioners that the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office responded to 19 calls at the shelter during 2010 and 51 calls in 2011.

This year, Hobby said, there have only been two.

Eric Johnson, of 12638 Morgan Road, was unimpressed: “If I were running the shelter, I wouldn’t call the police, either.”

A tripling in the crime rate, Johnson said, “demonstrates a clear degradation to the safety of the community.

Grace Barnard, who lives on Appaloosa Trail, said there have been burglaries, vandalism and stolen mail.

She expressed concern about the safety of the neighborhood’s children, especially those attending nearby Chester Taylor Elementary.

“There is a need for a homeless shelter,” she said. However, she added, it should not be at Chancey Road Christian Church.

“The church does not have the proper facility. The county needs to find a more suitable place for the homeless,” Barnard said.

Schrader asked the church what assurances it could provide the obviously skeptical neighbors.

“How do we give them confidence that if we give you what you want, that you will comply?” Schrader asked.

Hobby said the church must comply with the conditions for its permit, or the county could revoke it.

Mariano said he didn’t see how the county could approve the church’s request.

“Frankly, I don’t see how you can just let this go. We’re talking about people who don’t feel safe in their homes. I think the planning commission got it right, by not going forward,” Mariano said.

“The crime rate is triple. Home values will deteriorate,” Mariano said.

“What they’re doing is above their pay grade. Granted, their intentions are good,” Mariano said.

“This is about zoning. Does it work there?” Mariano said, before he and two other commissioners decided it does not.

 

By B.C. Manion

 

Lee Edwards had her Kentucky Derby plan all laid out.

She and her husband, Joe, would attend Derby Day in their community of Southport Springs in Zephyrhills, and the 71-year-old would compete in the derby hat contest.

That plan changed however on April 26, when the derby hat that Edwards’ daughter-in-law made for her to wear at her community’s contest won the top prize in Kathie Lee and Hoda’s Homemade Derby Hat Contest, sponsored by The Today Show.

The hat features pink feathers, ribbons and miniature plastic horses that actually rotate around its brim, as if competing for the first jewel in horse racing’s triple crown.

So, instead of heading out to watch the derby with friends, the Zephyrhills couple was treated to a trip to watch the 138^th running of the Kentucky Derby.

They jetted off to Louisville, where they stayed in the luxury class Galt House Hotel, on the banks of the Ohio River, Lee Edwards said.

They went to a reception at the hotel that evening and then to Kentucky Oaks, a charity horseracing event the following day.

It was a posh affair, with tickets going for $350 each. The couple watched from a sixth-floor air-conditioned suite in an exclusive area known as Millionaire’s Row at Churchill Downs, where they could step onto a balcony to watch a race when they wanted.

Their tickets for the Run for the Roses the following day were valued at $750 each.

The couple headed out to the track around noon, watching races all day long – again from their sixth-floor suite.

Lee and Joe tasted their first mint juleps.

“I liked it very much,” said Joe, who is 71.

Lee was less enthused. She found another drink more to her liking.

“They had a drink called Lily. It was Grey Goose Vodka with sweet and sour in it. It was pink. I loved that,” she said.

The food was delicious, Joe said, noting the buffet had carving stations for turkey and roast beef and vegetables prepared in every way imaginable.

The desserts were to die for, he said. “They make a cheesecake, with an inch of this Derby Pie in the middle of it. I just kept going back and forth.”

Joe and Lee enjoyed the spectacle of it all.

“The fashion and the shoes – you know, those Lady Gaga shoes,” Lee said. “It was just wonderful.”

“I was so impressed with the fashion on display,” Joe agreed. “I’ve never seen this kind of fashion before.”

Watching the race from the balcony was a thrill, Joe said.

“We were just ahead of the first turn. This is where you see them stretched out. It’s like something out of the movies. They’re galloping, by then,” he said.

The roar of the crowd is amazing, he said. “It was like two trains coming by.”

Lee put a $2 bet down on Bodemeister to win, place or show.

“My horse was leading until the very end,” she said, then I’ll Have Another closed the gap to cross the finish line first.

She still won $20.

Joe said it was fun to be part of Millionaire’s Row, if only for a little while.

“It’s hard to believe that people live like that,” he said. “We’d go out and put a $2 bet down. The people next to me, one guy, [told the clerk taking bets] ‘Put 15 grand on No. 5 and put 14 [grand] on No. 3.’ ”

After the race, the couple’s derby adventure continued.

“Saturday evening after the race, we went to an after party for the derby and they brought some of the jockeys in,” Lee said.

They also enjoyed celebrity sightings at the derby and its related festivities.

“Miss Kentucky was there. Doris Roberts was at the Kentucky Derby, and a lot of movie stars,” Lee said.

The Zephyrhills woman was a bit of a celebrity herself, being interviewed by a local news crew, while donning her prize-winning hat.

Lee admitted that she didn’t wear her hat a lot.

“I can’t wear it very long. It’s very heavy,” Lee said.

When she wasn’t wearing it, Joe was carrying it.

“I’m the hat carrier,” he said, good-naturedly. “That’s what I spent my three days doing.”

 

 

By B.C. Manion

 

Four candidates are squaring off this campaign season for the honor of placing a palm on “Green Eggs and Ham” and taking the oath of office.

Yes, it is that time of year again – when hopefuls step into the fray to seek the honorary title of Lutz Guv’na.

This isn’t the kind of campaign where you’ll be bothered by robo calls or be bombarded by endless negative ads.

There won’t be huge media events to announce endorsements in the race, or $40,000-a-plate benefits to generate campaign cash.

But this is a campaign where money talks.

Seriously.

The candidate who raises the most cash wins. It really is that simple.

That’s the way it has worked since 1991, when the tradition began.

And, the candidates do debate — although debate may be too strong of a word.

They mostly just try to figure out how to do outdo each other with clever jabs.

Indeed, this year’s hopefuls will be conducting a “candidate debate” during the Guv’na kickoff, which is set for 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. May 19 at the Old Lutz School House, 18819 US 41 N. Besides hearing from the candidates, event-goers also will be able to enjoy food, games and music.

Competing for the Dr. Seuss-style hat and red sash this year are Karin D’Amico, who is representing the civic association; Robin LeBlanc, proprietor of Good Behavior Dog Training; Brian Vindick, proprietor of Philly Cream of Tampa; and Connie Dorton, proprietor of the Dorton family.

They join an assorted cast of characters who have sought the coveted title of Lutz Guv’na through the years. In one contest, the competitors even included Sticky the Duck, according to published accounts.

While it’s called a race, the annual event actually is about pulling the community together for a host of fun events, which double as fundraisers. Typically, the candidates do flea markets, hold car washes or host spaghetti dinners, chicken dinners, luncheons and barbecues to raise cash for their campaigns.

Every cent they collect goes to support community causes.

Over the years, the proceeds have been used to purchase scouting tents, support scholarships, buy plants for a butterfly garden, support Little League teams and the Lutz volunteer fire department.

 

 

By B.C. Manion

 

Saturday, May 12, was a festive and emotional day at 39307 Coit Road in Dade City.

Jessica Avalos and her daughters marked a milestone, along with Habitat for Humanity of East & Central Pasco County. At a special ceremony, Avalos received the keys to the home that she and her girls, Layla Brandt and Shaelyn Moats, helped to build. And Habitat celebrated the completion of its 100^th home since it began building homes in 1994.

Cars and trucks lined the street for the housewarming party, which was festive, with balloons, banners, hot dogs, chips, popcorn, snow cones and plenty of folks on hand who helped with construction of the three-bedroom bungalow.

Avalos was brought to tears, as she accepted the keys for her new home.

Now, instead of sharing a bedroom with her two girls at her grandmother’s home, she and her daughters will each have a room of their own.

Avalos wasn’t the only one whose eyes welled up.

“I’m just so happy for her,” said Crystina Avalos, after touring her daughter’s house. “I’m overwhelmed.

“Every kid deserves a lift up. I’m on disability. I just don’t have the means to help my children, and they’ve been working so hard to help themselves.”

Marijane Graham, Avalos’ grandmother, said she had no words to express her gratitude.

“It is beyond belief. I just can’t believe it,” Graham said.

She also said her great-granddaughter, Shaelyn, used to slip out of bed at night to sleep with her. Now, she said, her great-granddaughter told her:  “Gramma Nanny, now you can come sleep with me.”

Avalos was not surprised about the home. After all, she and her daughters contributed more than 800 hours of sweat equity toward building the frame home, which sports a concrete front porch with brick columns and wooden pillars.

The 29-year-old, however, had no idea it would be furnished.

Contributors chipped in to buy furniture from the Dade City ReStore, 15029 US 301, where Avalos is an assistant manager, having worked her way up from cashier.

Avalos had seen the living room set at the store and knew that it had gone out. But she had no inkling the set would find its way to her new living room.

Donors also furnished the three bedrooms, stocked the bathroom and provided new and barely used items for the kitchen, including a coffee maker, an iron, a crockpot, pots and pans, dishes and storage containers.

Contributors even gave 5-year-old Shaelyn stuffed animals, which the girl snuggled immediately.

The celebration included symbolic gifts from both Habitat and East Pasco Quilters. A member of the quilting group told Avalos that the quilt represented her group’s desire that the family  “sleep under a blanket of love.”

This kind of project takes many hands, said Stephanie Black, director of development and public relations for Habitat. More than 200 women participated in Women Build 2012, donating funds and helping to construct the home. There were other fundraisers, too, including the highly successful Men Bake event, to help cover costs.

Avalos expressed amazement at the generosity people have shown.

“You don’t think that anybody is going to be so nice,” she said. She’s especially happy to be able to provide a home for her girls.

“They’re going to be much happier,” she said.

 

 

By B.C. Manion

 

The Cheval Athletic Club – once only available to residents of the exclusive community — has put out the welcome mat for people living outside its gates.

Larry King Jr., son of the famed television interviewer, purchased the athletic club last year.

King said, via email, that he has lived in Cheval for nearly 10 years and saw an opportunity to improve the club for the community, and to provide quality equipment that members could enjoy with their families.

He purchased the property last November.

“At this point, and we are not done yet, but I expect to invest $350,000-$500,000 in improvements in this effort,” King said.

Before he began the upgrade, King said he surveyed the community and researched other clubs in Tampa Bay and elsewhere.

“I was looking to match the demand for services I was hearing from the potential customer to the best of what is available in and out of our area,” he said.

The club, at 4142 Cheval Blvd., already has launched a broad selection of fitness classes and soon will initiate a summer camp for kids, said Pete Young, director of youth development for the club. It also plans to offer an after-school program at the beginning of the coming school year.

King said he built his programming around existing and potential club members.

“I asked them what they wanted and what they needed,” he said.

His first goal is to meet the demand of the Cheval community, he said. But he also wanted to make the facility available to others, if they want to take part.

In addition to its current offerings, the club staff will listen to members to see if there’s demand for additional programs, he said.

Young said King has been renovating the club ever since he purchased it.

“This is a brand new workout room. It used to be the tennis pro shop,” Young said, during a recent tour of the facility. King knocked down a wall in the room and expanded it, stocking the enlarged space with fitness equipment.

He also renovated the group exercise room.

“This used to be a dumpy workout room with some really bad cardiovascular and weight-training equipment. They just completely gutted it,” Young said.

There also is a new spinning room upstairs, equipped with 20 top-of-the-line bikes for group exercise classes.

“These are much, much better facilities now and they have the personnel that can operate a high-end fitness facility, with group exercise programs and private exercise program as well,” Young said.

King also has assembled a highly respected staff, Young said.

Dayna Davidson is the new director of fitness for the facility and Jill Martino is in charge of group exercise.

“Anybody who is seriously interested in fitness in this area will be impressed,” Young said. “Everybody knows Jill Martino. She is extremely well regarded. She’s as well known as any group exercise instructor in this area.”

Group exercise options include indoor cycling, swimming, TRX boot camp, tai chi, kickboxing, yoga stretch, silver spin, zumba and yoga. They also are forming a triathlon club.

The club offers personal training, heart rate training, explosive speed and power training. The summer program for students in kindergarten through eighth-grade is called Camp Cheval 2012. It will begin the week of June 11 and will run for 10 weeks, concluding on Aug. 17.

The camp borrows on the theme of the 2012 Olympic games, Young said. Each week has a theme, such as “Let the Games Begin! Opening Ceremony,” “Be amazing, Go for the Gold,” “In the Nick of Time,” and “Survival of the Fittest.”

The kids in this inaugural camp will be the first to test out the new playground equipment, the new sand volleyball court and the half-court basketball courts. They’ll also be able to go for a dip in the club’s swimming pool and get a workout on its tennis courts.

Kids will be grouped by age for activities. Families can sign up for as much or as little as they want, Young said.

“You can do a single day. You can do half-days for a week. You can do full days for a week, or you can do two weeks, four weeks, six weeks, eight weeks, 10 weeks – whatever combination you want.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re a Cheval member or not a member, although the pricing is different. The most a member would pay a week for Camp Cheval is $150 a week; and the most a non-member would pay is $190. That’s full day.”

The drop-off will be from 7 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. and pickup would be no later than 6:30 p.m.

In the after-school program, kids would do their homework and then be able to take advantage of the club’s facilities, which include television screens for Xbox and Wii games, a racecar simulator, a flight simulator, air hockey, skee ball and a basketball game.

Young said the club has sent out mailers announcing the upgraded facilities and expanded programming to residents of Cheval and the nearby communities of Heritage Harbor, Villa Rosa, Calusa Trace and several small communities in between.

Residents in Land O’ Lakes, Wesley Chapel and other communities also are welcome to take advantage of the facility and programming, Young said.

King is confident the venture will be successful.

“I am very passionate about this business opportunity,” he said. While recognizing there are no guarantees, he cited three reasons he expects his team to succeed.

“We are hiring the best people. It starts there. Just making all these improvements does not make a difference if we do not have the best team to support our members.”

Second, there is a strong customer demand, he said. “Response to a normal survey is 3 percent, tops. When I surveyed the community the response rate was 18 percent. This validated what I heard talking to neighbors in the community: People wanted to see the club improved and were tired of past failed promises to do something.”

Third, he and his staff are passionate and committed to making the club the best.

For more information about the athletic club’s offerings, call (813) 949-8281 or visit www.chevalac.com.