Special to The Laker/Lutz News

By Kyle LoJacono

A $2 park fee meant to plug a $691,000 budget hole is falling short of expectations.

The Pasco Parks and Recreation Department’s new user began in November at 11 county parks. The charge was for one vehicle per day, with the exception of residents who purchased a $60 annual pass. The county enacted the fee to prevent having to close county facilities or raise taxes during the last budget cycle.

“We were faced with a tough budget reality,” said department director Rick Buckman. “We could have either closed parks for a couple days each week and permanently close the remaining two county pools, raised taxes for everyone or start the user fees. The commission got feedback from residents and they voted for the fees.”

One of those remaining pools that could have been closed is the one at the Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex on Collier Parkway.

The budget shortfall for the department was almost $900,000 for the current fiscal year on top of the $1.8 million it has cut during the last three years. The goal of the park fee is to make up $691,000 of that shortfall, but the county has collected only $60,000 during the first two months.

In addition, county sponsored youth leagues and programs had an increased fee to make up the rest of the shortfall. Those leagues are on track to do just that, but user fees are lagging behind.

“We are using the same program they’re using in Hillsborough County,” Buckman said. “It’s been successful there and that’s one of the reasons the commission wanted to try the user fees.”

Since the fees in Hillsborough started in November 2009, the county has collected $927,786, according to Hillsborough spokeswoman Kemly Green. Hillsborough Parks, Recreation and Conservation spokesman John Brill said the fees were needed to keep the department operating.

Both counties’ law enforcement officers can write tickets to anyone they catch not paying the entry fee.

Jeffrey Steinsnyder, county attorney, said several businesses owners, mainly on the Gulf coast, argued the fees went against county ordinances. He said the only problem was the wrong ordinance was listed on the signs telling guests about the fee to enter.

“The board has the authority to impose fees for parking,” Steinsnyder said.

The incorrect signs have been removed after county administrator John Gallagher sent an e-mail to several Pasco departments reading, “The ordinance on the signs are not correct. I would appreciate if you would remove this language until the issues is addressed by the Board.”

Buckman said the signs will soon be up with the correct wording.

“We still get people calling and sending messages who are mad about the fees,” Buckman said. “Our department and the board of commissioners believe people want parks. They make life better in the county and this was the best way to keep them open.”

The most recent Pasco residents survey, which polled nearly 2,000 county inhabitants, showed that 63 percent of people support user fees as opposed to raising taxes for such programs as parks and recreation.

Buckman said the department is still planning on expanding the John S. Burks Memorial Park in Dade City and possibly the Land O’ Lakes Community Center, neither of which have entry fees.

Buckman said the Dade City construction will happen, including the addition of a new soccer/football field. It will also convert an old softball field into one for soccer/football. He said once done, the expansion will have no new operating cost, which is different from Land O’ Lakes.

“We’re going to go through 30 percent of the design and then wait until we have the budget to operate it,” Buckman said. “The plan is to add many more fields in Land O’ Lakes for soccer, which would require more people to staff it. We don’t want to expand and then not be able to staff it.”

For additional information on the Pasco Parks and Recreation Department, visit portal.pascocountyfl.net. For Hillsborough’s department, visit www.hillsboroughcounty.org.

Pasco parks with entry fees

Withlacoochee River Park, 12449 Withlacoochee Blvd., Dade City

Suncoast Trail, stretches from Lutz into Hernando though central Pasco

Jay B. Starkey Wilderness Park, 10500 Wilderness Park Blvd., New Port Richey

Crews Lake Wilderness Park, 16739 Crews Lake Drive, Spring Hill

Anclote River Park, 1119 Baillies Bluff Road, Holiday

Anclote Gulf Park, 2305 Baillies Bluff Road, Holiday

Key Vista Park, 2700 Baillies Bluff Road, Holiday

Moon Lake Park, 8985 Lake Drive, New Port Richey

Robert K. Rees Memorial Park, 4835 Green Key Road, New Port Richey

Eagle Point Park, 4499 Strauber Memorial Highway, New Port Richey

Robert J. Strickland Memorial Park, 6345 Clark St., Hudson

Store will replace old Wal-Mart in Land O’ Lakes

By B.C. Manion

Bealls shoppers who are accustomed to traveling between company stores in Lutz and Land O’Lakes soon will be able to choose from a larger selection of goods under a single roof.

The Bradenton-based chain is closing its locations in the Land O’ Lakes plaza at US 41 and SR 54 and in Sunset Plaza on US 41, south of Sunset Lane in Lutz. The stores will close when the inventory in those stores sells out or when the new store opens, whichever happens first, said Bill Webster, Bealls director of public and government affairs.

The combined space of the current locations, at 2410 Land O’ Lakes Blvd. and 18445 US 41, respectively, totals about 20,000 square feet.

The new location at 21703 Village Lakes Shopping Center Drive in Land O’ Lakes will be 27,500 square feet. It will have an orange, red and white motif, Webster said.

The home goods section in the new store will be somewhat smaller than it is at the current stand-alone store in Lutz, Webster said. However, the new store will have a substantially larger selection of shoes, kids’ apparel, young men’s and juniors.

Bealls specializes in apparel for the entire family and has experienced considerable growth in its young men and jeans segments, Webster said. He thinks that’s because the company has increased its number of stores in urban areas.

“We have a really big plus size business,” Webster added.

The store will have an ample assortment of shoes, hats, handbags, wool ponchos, jewelry, luggage, home décor items and linens, he said.

The new store also will use the company’s new customer check out system, with shoppers waiting in a single line to check out. That system will ensure that people will be waited on in the order they stepped into line.

No layoffs are anticipated and it remains unclear whether any positions will be added, he said. The company will likely be able to meet its staffing needs by combining personnel from the stores it is closing, he said.

Bealls is enthusiastic about establishing a larger presence in the community, Webster said. “We have a very strong business at Land O’ Lakes. We love the market there.

“We have had that on our horizon to expand that for a very long time.”

The store at the new location will have a new façade, Webster said.

He’s optimistic about its prospects.

“We’re looking for more growth, absolutely. The outlet division has really thrived during the Recession. More and more people are looking for good prices and we absolutely do have that.”

Once things get moving, they’ll really get moving, Webster said. “Tallahassee is going to fast-track everything.”

ZPAL expected to lose pool and possibly field

By Kyle LoJacono

Last spring, Mark LaMonte and the Zephyrhills Police Athletic League (ZPAL) stepped in and helped save Hercules Aquatic Center, but $20,000 of debt has changed that.

Pasco County had planned to close the pool, located at 38110 CR 54 in Zephyrhills, to help meet the budget shortfall. LaMonte, who had taken over as president of ZPAL earlier in the year, then asked county commissioner Jack Mariano and county Parks and Recreation Department director Rick Buckman if his organization could run the center.

LaMonte did not return requests for interviews for this story, but said in a previous interview last year, “Commissioner Mariano and Rick were extremely excited at the idea and helpful in getting this contract drawn up very quickly. We also appreciate commissioner Ted Schrader for lending his support to the contract as well as all the rest of the commissioners who were very encouraging in their comments at the meeting.”

By April, the pool was turned over to ZPAL and the city of Zephyrhills donated 250,000 gallons of water to fill it. The center reopened May 29 for people to cool off during the hot summer months. Also, the Zephyrhills High boys and girls swim teams used the facility for home meets during the fall. If the pool had closed, the Bulldogs would have had to travel to Saint Leo University.

It seemed to be a win-win for everyone involved. The county saved some money and those in east Pasco still had an affordable place to have some fun. Unfortunately, debt was piling up and the county was expected to void the deal with ZPAL Jan 25.

“We struggled with the decision to close the pool and believed Mr. LaMonte would be able to keep it going for the youth of Pasco County,” said Pasco Commissioner Pat Mulieri. “It really is too bad things had to work out like this.”

Mariano agreed with Mulieri’s sentiments, adding, “ZPAL had several chances to pay its debt and we, in the commission, knew it was time to move on.”

Dan Johnson, assistant county manager, said ZPAL owes the county more than $5,000 in electricity bills.

“The pool costs about $100,000 per year to operate, including lifeguards and other staff, but usually only took in about $35,000 in fees as I recall,” Johnson said.

The nonprofit organization also owes the city of Zephyrhills nearly $2,500 in water bills and $12,500 in other expenses to other debt holders.

The fate of the pool, which is on 16 acres of land, is in doubt, as the county still does not have the money to operate it. There is a reverter clause that could give the land back to the Pasco School District, which owned the land in the 1980s.

“If we are given the land, then we will look into what the best options are for it,” said Chris Williams, the districts director of planning. “We could operate it as a pool for the high school swim teams, but the savings there might not offset the operating costs. It’s still early in the process.”

Pasco School’s attorney Dennis Alfonso said at a school board meeting Jan. 18 that another option is to sell the land.

“It is a well positioned piece of property,” Alfonso said. He added that realtors expressed interest in the land several years ago.

ZPAL may also have its deal with the city of Zephyrhills voided.

Zephyrhills city attorney Joe Poblick sent ZPAL a letter demanding payment of all outstanding debt by Feb. 10 or risk losing exclusive rights to use Krusen Field for its youth football and cheerleading program. The letter also requested proof of insurance to operate the program.

ZPAL has had rights to use Krusen Field, located on Krusen Field Drive near 20th Street in Zephyrhills, since 2009. Before that, ZPAL and the Zephyrhills team in the Pasco Police Athletic League (PPAL) disputed over which group should use the location. The PPAL organization currently uses Sam Pasco Park, 39835 Chancey Road in Zephyrhills.

ZPAL records show 124 football players and 87 cheerleaders registered for the most recent ZPAL season. The organization had teams for players ages 4-14. The cost for the season was $95 for football players and cheerleaders 4-6 years old and $130 for those ages 7-14 for the first child per family, $105 for each additional child.

ZPAL also had an AAU baseball program for children ages 10-11 years old at Krusen Field during the fall after the football season, but the number of registered children was not available.

-Community Editor B.C. Manion contributed to this story.

Citizen patrol gets rolling, too

By B.C. Manion

The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office has moved its Lutz Community Station from its former location at 19002 First St. S.W. to a new space at 138-B Whitaker Road.

The new station is in the Lutz Landings Business Complex off US 41.

It will provide the same services as offered at the substation’s previous location near US 41 and Lutz-Lake Fern Road, said Deputy Tom Wesolowski. But it also will be used for the newly established Lutz Citizen Volunteer Patrol, Wesolowski said.

The substation’s new space is slightly larger, Wesolowski said.

Building owner Chuck Kaupp, who also is a member of the Lutz Citizen Volunteer Patrol, has been encouraging the sheriff’s office to move into the space for quite some time, Wesolowski said.

The owners of the buildings at Lutz Landings have chipped in to subsidize the sheriff’s office rent, so the department is paying a nominal rent and covering utilities, Kaupp said.

The Sheriff’s Office thought it was a good time to make the move, Wesolowski said.

“The owners of the building that we were in have had the building on the market for years,” Wesolowski said, so there was always some degree of uncertainty about how long it would remain in that building.

Services provided at the sheriff’s substation include:

–     Fingerprinting for employment or to meet volunteer requirements (The service is free for Hillsborough County residents and is $10 per card for non-residents).

–     Reporting of misdemeanor crimes, such as vandalism, fraud, identity theft and lost property

–     Reporting a neighborhood problem

–     Reporting of minor traffic accidents

The office serves an area that is generally bound on the west by North Dale Mabry Highway and east by US 301, on the north by County Line Road and on the south by Bearss Avenue.

Wesolowski said he wanted to get the word out about the office’s relocation to avoid inconveniencing anyone who needs the substation’s service.

“We did get quite a bit of traffic (at the old location),” he said.

Signs have been posted to inform people who drop by, but there’s no guarantee how long they will remain up, he said.

Wesolowski said the substation aims to give citizens a convenient place to get services and to voice any public safety concerns that they have. If someone is worried about safety in their neighborhood, for instance, they can drop by to share those concerns.

The office also helps citizens over the telephone, Wesolowski said. The number is (813) 264-8950.

Besides offering a service for citizens, the office also offers a location for detectives, street crime units and other Sheriff’s Office personnel to drop by when they are in the area to use the office space.

The office also is home to the headquarters of the new Lutz Citizen Patrol, which provides voluntary services to assist the sheriff’s office.

Members of the volunteer patrol help with traffic control, search for lost children and adults, handle the exchange of information for minor accidents, take care of vacation checks, do patrols of parking lots, schools, parks and other areas and help direct traffic around downed wires, accidents and other obstructions in the road.

The volunteer patrol in Lutz has seven members but could use more, Kaupp said.

Eddie Townsend, the leader of the Lutz volunteer patrol, said he has an interest in law enforcement and enjoys giving back to the community.

By handling various duties, the volunteer patrol members free up deputies to devote more time to responding to crimes, Townsend said.

He said being involved in the volunteer patrol has made him more aware of what deputies encounter and has given him a deeper level of appreciation for the work they do.

Substation Office Hours

The substation is generally open from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Please call ahead to be sure someone is in the office because they may need to step out to handle a call. The number is (813) 264-8950

Volunteer Requirements

Must be 19 or older

Must have a valid driver’s license

Must pass a screening process

Must complete training course

Must attend monthly meetings

Must be willing to volunteer at least 12 hours a month

Anyone who would like to learn more about the volunteer citizens patrol should contact Lorraine Jordan at (813) 247-8223 or e-mail her at .