Grand opening in style
Kalista Sprague, left, along with Lilly Boudin and Kate Boudin of Land O’ Lakes show off some of their face painting creations at the grand opening celebration for ME Hobbies. The store is located at 1904 Oak Grove Blvd., in Lutz. To learn more about the store, visit MEHobbies.com.
The Laker/Lutz News wins national ad award
An advertisement featuring some happy feet and encouraging readers to keep “a step ahead” was honored by a national contest featuring three newspaper industry groups.
The ad, from Family Foot & Ankle Care, won second place in Small Space Ad-Black Ink Only, at the 2014 Advertising and Editorial Awards from the Southeastern Advertising Publishers Association, Community Papers of Florida, and Independent Free Papers of America.
Family Foot & Ankle Care is represented at the paper by Terri Williamson, and the ad was created by Stefanie Burlingame and Carolyn Bennett.
The annual SAPA-IPF-CPF conference took place in Orlando this year, and the competition itself received more than 1,400 entries, organizers said.
Wesley Chapel chamber hands out awards
The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce honored its top businesses and leaders during its annual banquet recently at Saddlebrook Resort in Wesley Chapel.
The awards, according to chamber officials, acknowledge the accomplishments of small businesses, large businesses, volunteers, civic organizations, and business leaders, for the contributions they make to the regional economy.
The business awards were reviewed and scored by a panel of peers based on their demonstrated commitment to the advancement of the business community.
Winners included Stanley Giannet of Pasco-Hernando State College as Business Leader of the Year, Parks Ford of Wesley Chapel as Large Business of the Year, the New Tampa/Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News as Small Business of the Year, and American Cancer Society as Civic Group of the Year, and Kelly Mothershead of A Focus on Fitness as Volunteer of the Year.
In addition to those awards, Wendy Bechtelheimer was presented the president’s award for her contribution to the organization, while Jeff Novotny of American Consulting Engineers was named the board member of the year.
Grand opening for Flowers by Viktoriya
Flowers by Viktoriya will host a grand opening Oct. 3 at 9 a.m., at its new location, 5132 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., Suite 105.
The new store will offer silk flowers, cut flowers, plants, roses, vases and various arrangements.
Commission applauds CVS for tobacco stance
The Pasco County Commission publicly commended drugstore chain CVS Health recently for removing tobacco products from its stores around the country.
In a resolution, the commission cited a January surgeon general’s report that said smoking kills 480,000 people annually, and sickens millions more. It also costs the nation more than $289 billion in health care expenses and economic costs each year.
CVS had announced earlier this year it would remove tobacco products from its stores, but then decided to do it a month earlier than planned. That move, commissioners said, represents the “bold action needed from all segments of our society to accelerate progress against tobacco, and make the next generation tobacco-free.”
CVS operates more than 7,700 stores, including 11 in The Laker/Lutz News readership area east of the Suncoast Parkway.
October meeting for Women-n-Charge
Women-n-Charge will meet Oct. 3 at 11:30 a.m., at Pebble Creek Country Club, 10550 Regents Park Drive in Tampa.
Cost is $15 for members, and $18 for guests. It includes lunch, and speaker Rena Romano, a certified leadership coach.
For information, visit Women-n-Charge.com, or call (813) 600-9848.
Families returning to home market, Realtors say
Single-family homes remain on the rise for the greater Tampa Bay area, while sales of townhouses and condominiums continue to slip.
Just under 3,600 homes sold in the region that includes Pasco County last month, according to Florida Realtors, up nearly 4 percent from a year ago. That’s despite the median sales price staying the same at $160,000.
Condos dropped a little more than 1.5 percent to 1,170 units, while the median price there jumped more than 15 percent to $115,000, compared to 2013.
Statewide, single-family home sales are up 4.2 percent, while the median price rose 3.4 percent.
Short sales in the single-family home market dropped more than 49 percent from last year. Closed sales typically are occurring 30 to 90 days after sales contracts are written, according to the group.
Inventory was at a 5.5-month supply in August, while condos were at a 5.7-month supply. The interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.12 percent in August, according to Freddie Mac, down from the 4.46 percent average recorded a year ago.
Grand opening for Pulte at Country Walk
Pulte Homes hosted a grand opening recently for its new single-family homes in Country Walk, located off Meadow Pointe Boulevard south of State Road 54 in Wesley Chapel.
Pulte plans to build 32 three- and four-bedroom houses in the community, ranging in size from 1,827 to 2,443 square feet, according to north Florida regional vice president Sean Strickler. Prices will start at $220,000.
For information on the community, call (866) 230-3599.
HART offers text-based bus updates
Hillsborough Area Regional Transit, or HART, has launched a text message service to complement its app, OneBusAway.
The new feature will provide transit customers real-time bus arrival information via text message. This will provide some of the functionality of the OneBusAway app for riders who don’t have smartphones.
Those who wish to use it simply need to text “HART” and their bus stop number to 41411 to get back estimated arrival times. For example, someone wanting arrival information for stop 4804 would text “HART 4804” to 41411.
