The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

Local News

Building on a prayer

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HOPE Services is now being built on hope.

Nearly literally.

Stephanie Stevens, of Dade City, signs scripture she wrote on the building beams of HOPE Services’ Life Skills and Vocational Training Center, which is tentatively opening in Land O’ Lakes in February. HOPE Services, a Wesley Chapel-based nonprofit that helps individuals with disabilities secure and maintain meaningful, competitive and integrated employment, will provide job-training services and more through candidates from the Vocational Rehabilitation and the Agency for Persons with Disabilities. (Mike Camunas)

On Oct. 27, founder and CEO of the Wesley Chapel-based nonprofit Cindy Bray welcomed friends, family and residents to come write inspiring scriptures and well wishes on the two-by-four beams that will eventually support the organization’s Life Skills and Vocational Training Center in Land O’ Lakes.

The facility, at 5426 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., tentatively opens in February, and will provide training services to those with disabilities in the fields of construction, retail, culinary arts, hospitality, computer skills and general GED education.

Bray founded HOPE Services in 2003 to help individuals with disabilities secure and maintain meaningful, competitive and integrated employment.

“It was inspired by my daughter, Danica, who lives with disabilities,” Bray said, “and she needed help with services to become employable and before I knew it, I became a job coach, and being a job coach led to providing more and more services, and it led to all of this.”

This new, upcoming facility will be the first for HOPE Services, which will be open to anyone with disabilities looking to join the job force. According to HOPE services, people with disabilities are an overlooked and underused talent pool who are available, flexible and motivated. The training center will now be able to provide these potential employees with the skills needed to be hirable.

HOPE Services provides vocational evaluations, work incentive planning and assistance, on-the-job training, psychotherapy, employment services, pre-employment transition services and supported employment.

These services are provided, at no charge, as HOPE Services’ funding comes entirely from Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) and the Agency for Persons with Disabilities.

Once a candidate is eligible to receive services from VR or the Agency, the candidate must ask to be referred to HOPE Services, which immediately begins processing them as a client.

While based in Wesley Chapel, and soon Land O’ Lakes, HOPE Services also serves Hillsborough, Hernando, Pinellas, Polk and Citrus counties.

“This is our first life-skills center, and we want to open it up to the community,” Bray said. “We’ll teach them construction, we’ll teach them computer skills, culinary arts, retail, hospitality — all so they can get a job.

“And with (people writing on the two-by-fours), I wanted everyone to have ownership of the building, and give God the glory — that’s just me!”

For more information about HOPE Services, visit HopeGetsJobs.com.

Published November 02, 2022

Messages of inspiration and encouragement have been written on the beams of the brand-new HOPE Services’ Life Skills and Vocational Training Center, which is tentatively opening in Land O’ Lakes in February.
Julia Anthony and her son, Evan, wish HOPE Services good luck by writing it on the beams of its brand-new Life Skills and Vocational Training Center, which is tentatively opening in Land O’ Lakes in February. Julia’s husband and Evan’s father, Steven, is the general contractor for the construction.
A scripture of HOPE is written on a beam that will be part of HOPE Services’ Life Skills and Vocational Training Center, which is tentatively opening in Land O’ Lakes in February.

Pasco County spars with RADDSports

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Pasco County and RADDSports Pasco Wiregrass LLC are in a dispute over RADDSports’ operations of the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus of Pasco County.

The county has engaged an attorney, and has given RADDSports 30 days to correct issues identified in a formal notice of default, overnighted to RADDSports’ officials on Oct. 19.

At its Oct. 25 meeting, the Pasco County Commission approved budget amendments of more than $2.8 million that would fund a county takeover plan of the facility, plus an additional $88,1000  and also authorized an additional $150,000 in purchasing authority for Carlton Fields, P.A., for its continuing legal services regarding issues involving RADDSports.

The 98,000-square-foot indoor field house is the cornerstone of the 80-acre Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus of Pasco County. (File)

The board’s vote on the issue came as part of the board’s consent agenda, which means it was approved along with a group of other items in a single vote, without discussion.

Before that vote, representatives for RADDSports appeared during the public comment portion of the meeting, urging commissioners to either delay action, or remove the item from the consent agenda.

Anthony Homer, of RADDSports, told the board: “We were pretty shocked and blindsided to find out that this drastic change to our relationship with the County of Pasco was on the consent agenda.

“We weren’t notified of this ahead of time,” he said, adding that it’s a good thing they looked at the consent agenda for things related to RADDSports.

When they consulted their attorney, Homer said, they learned “that this is essentially not a discussion, that it is a termination asking us to vacate in 30 days.”

Homer added: “We have a contract that probably could use some modification. We’d love to come to the table. We have said that repeatedly in every communication with the county. We’re happy to work things out. It has to be mutually beneficial.”

Homer also told the board: “We think we’re doing a good job in Pasco County,” and noted that some commissioners have indicated this is a chance for negotiation.

Homer said he hopes that resolution can be achieved.

“Like any relationship, we want to avoid that divorce. It’s going to get expensive and nasty. Nobody wants that,” Homer said.

Richard Blalock, also of RADDSports, also addressed the board.

“We understand there are some gaps and weaknesses,” Blalock said. But he added that RADDSports remains committed “to make sure that this asset for Pasco County is positive.”

Attorney E. Colin Thompson, representing RADDSports, told the board that his client is committed to making the sports campus a success during the more than 18-year term that remains on the contract, agreed to by the county board approximately five years ago, when the county turned over the management and responsibilities of the sports venue to the private enterprise.

Thompson also told the board: “We would like to talk to this body and this staff to make sure there is no issue as to default.”

Barring additional dialogue, the attorney added, “We will be forced into a situation where we have to file and move on to litigation.”

In response for comment on the issue, Pasco County’s Media Relations and Communications office released this statement: “The Pasco Board of County Commissioners opened the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus of Pasco County in Wesley Chapel in summer of 2020 with a vision of making Florida’s Sports Coast a premier sports tourism destination – attracting tournaments and talent from around the country and the world. That vision has yet to be fulfilled by the existing operator of the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus (RADDSports). Our local hotels, restaurants and shops are not seeing the increased business they were expecting, and the impact to the county’s overall economy is not yet what the Board was anticipating.

“If RADDSports is unable to comply with the terms of its agreement, and fulfill the Board’s original vision, Pasco has a talented team of sports marketing experts and parks and recreation managers who can bring management of the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus in-house. Our Florida’s Sports Coast team is prepared to focus on booking outside events and attracting outside visitors. Our Parks, Recreation, & Natural Resources team is prepared to manage the building and campus grounds. Our Parks team is prepared to honor all event contracts and work to ensure our local sports enthusiasts continue to have access to our world-class facilities.

“Pasco County looks forward to the future success of the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus and the resulting economic boost from sports tourism the campus was designed to create.”

Published November 02, 2022

Students soar, in this Sunlake High program

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Talk about a different type of dual-enrollment program.

At the Aerospace Career Academy Program at Sunlake High, students can earn college credits, but they also learn about aviation and engineering — two very different careers that are very much intertwined.

Students learn how to pilot a plane and how to build an aircraft that works.

Cadet Technical Sgt. Brendon Riveria, a Sunlake High senior, left, flies an F-16 on a virtual reality (VR) flight simulator while Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University professor Mark Aragon, right, provides pointers for keeping it level. Aragon, the flight instructor at Sunlake, runs the school’s Aerospace Career Academy Program that allows students to get their pilot’s license and introduces them to aerospace and engineering careers. (Mike Camunas)

At the same time, they’re earning college credits from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

It’s possible to earn up to 30 college credits over four years — translating into the potential of $40,000 in tuition savings.

“We are building engineers who can fly and also pilots who know how a plane works from the engineering side,” said Joseph Fernandez, who teaches in Sunlake’s Robotics, Computer Science & Engineering Program.

“There’s one way to make a pilot: you put them in a plane, but we want to also have people who can repair a plane or who know how to design a plane from scratch. But engineers have to know that a person eventually has to sit down and fly the plane, and each pilot is going to come in all shapes and sizes.

“If you don’t fly a plane, you don’t think about where all the instruments and components go, and if you only fly a plane, you don’t think about all the work that goes into making sure it’s designed the most effective way,” the teacher said.

“Having both sides of the perspective help a pilot understand aeronautical engineering better and an aerospace engineer understand piloting better,” he added.

Students, as teenagers, go through this program, and they can earn their pilot’s license. However, it’s more than that — as a dual-enrollment program, they’ll be taking the same courses as a freshman or sophomore would at Embry-Riddle.

That’s where Mark Aragon, an Air Force veteran pilot and professor at the university, comes in. He took over the program three years ago and massively revamped it, knowing aviation and engineering had to go together for the program’s survival.

Sunlake High senior Isabella Eby works with a full hands-on flight simulator in the school’s Aerospace Career Academy Program. It offers students the opportunity to learn to pilot planes, as well as earn college credit through Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

And, for the betterment of the students enrolled.

“The things we do, we get them through the pilot program. They take their FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) private pilot exam, so they can fly a plane. “They do it as a teenager — that’s unheard of in high school,” Aragon said.

He added: “Then, there’s the engineering side. They learn why a plane does this or how I can make a plane do that. When they’re using the (flight) simulators, we want them to be able to understand a plane better.”

The program has several simulators, including virtual reality (VR) headset apparatuses that put students in the cockpit of an F-16. The program also focuses on drone piloting and technology, as unmanned aircraft is a very sought-after career now.

Students use drones to do many things at the school. Such as, they were able to 3D map the parking lot by flying the droves over it, taking pictures and stitching them together. They also were able to assist in A/C repair when there was a leak and a drone was able to fly into the vent and find it.

“(The engineering side is about) problem-solving, thinking how to make things work and solve that problem. We want smart cars, then we want smart planes, smart rockets, everything to be able to control itself,” Fernandez said.

A very large flight crew checklist sits on the seat of a virtual reality (VR) flight simulator at Sunlake High and is used in the school’s Aerospace Career Academy Program.

“Everyone thinks it’s removing the pilot, but it still has to be taught how to fly. Not all drones are piloted with a remote control — they can be programmed to fly where they need to be. That’s where engineering, and programming come in.”

According to Aragon, this program can lead to careers, not just in aviation, aerospace or engineering, but also cyber intelligence and security, business administration and management, wildlife science, aviation maintenance, and meteorology.

Aragon also helps students prepare themselves for careers by having them create resumes.

In fact, with Aragon’s military background, he incorporated Sunlake’s Cadet Squadron into the program, as those students look to obtain their pilot’s licenses, too.

Not all plan on military careers; Aragon pointed out one student wants to become a commercial airline pilot.

“That’s a lot of fly time for a teenager to have,” he added.

That’s the case for seniors Isabella Eby and Matthew Santos, program students who are working toward becoming pilots, but learning as much as they can about aviation engineering, as well.

“I’ve been told by people that I’m better suited for engineering than aviation, but I do like the flying part, too,” Eby said. “A lot of these classes are hands-on, so seeing how the two go together and why they go together, it has allowed me to learn more on both sides of aerospace from the aviation and engineering aspects.”

“When I first got into (the program) as a freshman,” Santos added, “I took it because it looked like an elective that really interested me and could lead to a career. I’m very interested in aviation and started learning about the engineering side a lot more once in the program. I’m very interested in how those two work together and how it will help me as a pilot.”

Published November 02, 2022

Full services are back at tax collector’s office

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New and improved, the Pasco County Tax Collector’s Office in Wesley Chapel now offers additional seating and windows for the customers’ convenience. (Courtesy of Greg Giordano)

The Pasco County Tax Collector’s Office in Wesley Chapel as of Oct. 31 has relocated back to its original address at 4610 Pet Lane, Suite C-101, after a temporary move for renovations, according to a news release.

The key improvements include additional windows and more seating in the lobby for the customer service area, making the office more efficient and better able to serve its visitors.

“Our goal as an organization is to make a visit to our office as easy and as simple as possible,” said Tax Collector Mike Fasano, in the release.

“The changes made during this remodel will make the customer experience even better than before. We appreciate the understanding of residents who live in Wesley Chapel, Lutz, and surrounding communities over the past few months,” said Fasano.

The office, which has a Lutz post office address but is commonly considered to be in Wesley Chapel, again will be full-service and will offer the entire range of services expected.

For more information, contact the centralized call center at 813-235-6076, 727-847-8032 or 352-521-4338.

Published November 02, 2022

Voters are making big choices, in Pasco and Hillsborough counties

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Pasco and Hillsborough County voters have begun making their choices, through early voting sites and mail-in ballots, to decide the outcome of the 2022 General Election.

Voters will make decisions on a broad array of issues.

In Pasco, the races for Pasco County Commission already have been decided, with Seth Weightman claiming the District 2 seat being vacated by Mike Moore; and Gary H. Bradford winning the District 4 seat occupied by Christina Fitzpatrick. A write-in candidate for District 4 has withdrawn.

The race for District 1 of the Pasco County School Board finds Al Hernandez facing James M. Washington.

Voters will be casting their ballots by mail, through early voting, and at the polls on Election Day, Nov. 8. Those heading to precincts likely will encounter signs like this one. (Mike Camunas)

A judge had determined that Hernandez was ineligible, ruling that he did not meet the residency requirements, but Hernandez appealed that ruling and was granted a stay — enabling him to remain on the ballot, pending the outcome of the appeal.

Whoever wins that race will fill the seat being vacated by Allen Altman, who is retiring from public office. Incumbent school board members Cynthia Armstrong and Megan Harding already have been reelected for additional four-year terms.

Pasco voters also will decide if they want to extend Penny for Pasco for 15 years. If adopted, this would be the third time that voters found favor with the voluntary tax.

Proceeds from the 1-cent sales surtax would be split among Pasco County, Pasco County Schools and the county’s six municipalities. The money goes for a broad array of uses, including such things as school construction, road improvements, environmental lands acquisition, police vehicles and other public safety enhancements.

In Hillsborough County, voters will decide who they want to represent them on the Hillsborough County Commission.

In District 1, incumbent Harry Cohen faces challenger Scott D. Levinson.

In District 2, incumbent Ken Hagan faces Angela Birdsong.

In District 5, incumbent Mariella Smith goes up against Donna Cameron Cepeda, and in District 7, incumbent Kimberly Overman faces Joshua Wostal.

Hillsborough County voters also have the opportunity to express their position on a proposed 1-cent surtax to support transportation projects.

The ballot initiative had been nullified by a circuit court judge, but the Hillsborough County Commission appealed that ruling, and because of that appeal, the issue remains on the ballot.

If the tax ultimately passes, it would last 30 years and would pay for transportation improvements throughout Hillsborough County’s incorporated and unincorporated areas.

Meanwhile, local voters also will have their say on statewide and federal races.

They will help determine whether incumbent Gov. Ron DeSantis will return for a second term, or if he will be replaced by challenger Charlie Crist.

They will choose whether incumbent Jimmy Patronis serves another term as the state’s chief financial officer, or challenger Adam Hattersley assumes that post.

They will select either Wilton Simpson or Naomi Esther Blemur to serve as the state’s commissioner of agriculture, filling a seat vacated by Nikki Fried, who made an unsuccessful bid for governor.

Voters also will choose a number of state lawmakers to serve in the Florida Senate or the Florida House of Representatives.

And, voters will decide the fate of three constitutional amendments.

Proposed Constitutional Amendment 1, which would take effect Jan. 1, would authorize the Legislature to prohibit consideration of any improvement made to residential property to resist flood damage, in determining the property’s assessed value, for taxing purposes.

Proposed Constitutional Amendment 2 would abolish the Constitution Revision Commission, which meets at 20-year intervals, to submit proposed revisions to the state’s constitution. The next meeting is scheduled for 2037.

Proposed Constitutional Amendment 3, which would take effect Jan. 1, would authorize the Legislature to grant an additional homestead tax exemption for non-school levies of up to $50,000 of the assessed value of homestead property owned by classroom teachers, law enforcement officers, correctional officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, child welfare services professionals, active duty members of the United States Armed Forces, and Florida National Guard members.

Voters also will be making some big decisions at the federal level.

They will determine the outcome of races in the U.S. Senate and in the congressional House of Representatives. The outcome of those races will have an impact on which party garners more seats in the U.S. Congress, which will influence the future direction on spending and policy issues.

In Florida, specifically, voters will decide if incumbent Marco Rubio should remain in office, or if he should be replaced by challenger Val Demings.

Voters also will cast ballots in their congressional districts to select members of the U.S. House of Representatives.

EARLY VOTING

  • Hillsborough County has 26 early voting sites operating, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., now through Nov. 6.
  • Pasco County has 12 early voting sites open, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., through Nov. 5

For specific early voting locations in each county and for additional information about the Nov. 8 General Election, visit PascoVotes.gov or VoteHillsborough.gov.

Both websites offer a wealth of information that may prove useful to voters.

Published November 02, 2022

Giving responders to disasters a comfortable place to sleep

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Hurricane Ian ravaged the state of Florida, leaving death and destruction in its path.

The devastation also made it hard for first responders — engaged in search, rescue and recovery efforts — to find a comfortable place to sleep at night, said Pasco County Commissioner Jack Mariano.

He thinks steps can be taken to improve that situation and he wants to join with Andrew Fossa, Pasco County’s emergency management director, and others, including Kevin Guthrie, the county’s former emergency management director and current director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management, to try to find some solutions.

Andy Fossa, director of emergency management of Pasco County, told the county board that many people were sleeping in primitive conditions because of a shortage of accommodations, in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian. (Courtesy of Pasco County)

At the Pasco County Commission’s Oct. 25 meeting, Mariano told his colleagues that he’d been in Fort Myers to help deliver food gathered by a Pasco Rotary District and to visit with some county first responders.

The commissioner said that’s when he learned that first responders sent by Pasco were sleeping in locker rooms or under bleachers.

“And, I found that very disturbing,” Mariano said.

Fossa responded: “So, it’s very difficult, especially when we were in Lee County for three weeks.

“The sleeping arrangements — you’re basically going primitive. You’re living a lifestyle, like sleeping in a campground, in tents.

“The hotels — (have) no power, no water.

“We were sleeping in the EOC (Emergency Operations Center). Some of us got better sleeping arrangements later on,” he said.

“Lee County actually secured a Best Western Hotel and blocked out all of the rooms, so first responders and contractors that were working the storm, were actually able to stay there.

“But a majority of the other folks that were down there, from other agencies, whether it be in-state or out-of-state, were sleeping on cots, or sleeping bags on the ground.

“Some were sleeping in parks.

“I met a group of folks on Pine Island that were sleeping in hammocks. They were tying their hammocks to trees and they were sleeping outside at night.

“There was just no room. There’s no place to put anybody.

“Between the displaced citizens trying to find places, the first responders trying to find places, FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) coming in, contractors coming in — it got very overwhelmed, very quickly,” Fossa said.

Mariano added: “As I saw the sleeping arrangements, I was thinking, maybe there are improvements we can make.”

Typically, when a hurricane hits one part of the state, teams from other parts of the state respond to help, the county board member said.

Once cleanup efforts are underway, he said, “there’s opportunities there, we can make accommodations better.”

The board member then told Fossa: “I’d like to get with you, get with Kevin (Guthrie), get a group together and find out, ‘What can we do regionally? What can we do statewide?’ — to make (it) when you guys are going down there, to have better accommodations?”

“I think there’s some efficiencies, some things that we can do statewide, that can be a lot better,” Mariano added.

Fossa told the board: “We have been trying to get assets from the state. It is sometimes difficult.

“They do have assets that they can give to us to keep, that we can use for deployments. It’s just No. 1, finding a place to store it. No. 2, having something to haul it.”

Mariano said he wouldn’t expect all 67 counties to have the supplies they need, but he thinks a regional approach could be helpful.

The supplies could be stationed in different parts of the state, so they could be quickly deployed, when needed, Mariano said.

“What I just saw was disturbing,” Mariano.

He thinks there’s an opportunity to take steps to improve the situation, going forward.

Published November 02, 2022

Pasco first responders help Kentucky cope with flooding

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A team of Pasco County emergency responders was honored by the Pasco County Commission for its efforts to help Kentucky in the aftermath of massive flooding.

The team — Andrew Fossa, Abraham Philipson, Krysta Johnes, Jessica Milford and Danielle Lang — was honored with a resolution by the county board at its Oct. 25 meeting.

The resolution details the work that was performed and commends the “outstanding and invaluable disaster relief assistance” provided to the Commonwealth of Kentucky during its time of need.

Members of Pasco County’s emergency response team were honored with a Pasco County Commission resolution on Oct. 25, recognizing their contributions to help Kentucky recover from massive flooding. Shown here are Pasco County staff, members of the Pasco County Commission, emergency responders, and the Pasco County Clerk and Comptroller. (Courtesy of Pasco County)

The resolution recounts that “on the evening of July 27, 2022, a large rainstorm struck Southeastern Kentucky affecting Breathitt, Perry, Clay, Pike, Letcher, Owsley, and Floyd counties, resulting in widespread destruction, casualties, and missing persons.”

It also notes that “many roads throughout the affected counties were covered with water and completely impassible.”

Plus, the resolution says, “several counties had been affected by mudslides and landslides while the water systems and pumping stations were broken down from the influx of rainwater and debris.”

As a result, according to the resolution, “citizens were without water, working sewer

systems, power, and communications.”

In response, Tampa Bay’s large network of professionals who are trained to respond to natural disasters and severe weather events, stepped forward to help.

The resolution notes that “Pasco County understands the value of providing aid and relief during times of disaster and prides itself on its skilled workforce and workers’ dedication to respect, integrity, innovation, service excellence, and quality.”

In addition to feeling “a profound sense of pride” from helping, the experience also helps Pasco’s teams to hone their skills in an unfamiliar environment, the resolution says.

Pasco County Commissioner Mike Moore, who sponsored the resolution, told Fossa: “One of the great things about our team is that they’re always called to action. Obviously, we don’t like to have to see them leave Pasco County, but they leave Pasco County for good reason because they are so good at what they do.”

Fossa thanked the board for the resolution.

“The deployment was very unique for us. We see storm surge, the water comes in and the water comes out,” Fossa said.

But in Kentucky, “they actually had two flooding events within a period of about eight hours. ..

“You don’t know the power of water,” he said, noting it destructive forces recently were witnessed again, through the fury of Hurricane Ian.

“We were very instrumental with the Kentucky emergency management. We had a very good working relationship,” Fossa said.

“This team behind me, they’re second to none. They’re very hard workers. They know their jobs,” Fossa added.

Commissioner Jack Mariano told Fossa and the team: “Thank you very much for going down there.”

Besides providing help where needed, it better prepares county employees to respond when a disaster strikes at home, the county board member said.

Mariano cited an observation of Kevin Guthrie, the current director of the state’s Division of Emergency Management and former director of emergency management for Pasco County.

Mariano said that Guthrie has said, “it’s much better to learn the experience there, than to learn it here — so that when it does come here, you’re better trained, as well.

Moore told Fossa: “You guys are amazing. Thanks for all of your work.”

Fossa said the experience allowed the team to form friendships with emergency management staff in Kentucky, and to share information.

Even though the team is back in Pasco, the information-sharing continues, Fossa said.

Published November 02, 2022

Pasco airport moratorium extended until May

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The Pasco County Commission has extended a temporary moratorium on new proposals near airports until next May.

The moratorium had been scheduled to expire on Nov. 13, but the board voted on Oct. 25 to extend it until May 17, 2023.

The moratorium applies to the submission and acceptance of application for building permits, site plans, special exception uses, conditional uses, rezonings and comprehensive plan amendments within the moratorium areas around airports in Pasco County.

The board took the action as part of its consent agenda, meaning it was approved as part of a bundle of items in a single action, without comment.

The board previously approved the temporary moratorium near airports on May 17, 2022.

That approval was for a 180-day period, but the board has extended that to be a total of 365 days.

The county retained the firm Harris Miller Miller & Hanson Inc., environmental and transportation planning consultants on July 12, to provide a draft Airport Protection Zoning Ordinance consistent with Chapters 330 and 333, Florida Statutes, according to background materials in the county board’s Oct. 25 agenda packet.

On Sept. 13, the consultants provided the draft Airport Protection Zoning regulations to the county staff.

The extension of the temporary moratorium is intended to provide time for county staff to review and comment on the draft Airport Protection Zoning regulations, present the regulations to the Airport Zoning Commission and to stakeholders, and to bring the Airport Zoning Regulations through the public hearing process, according to the agenda packet.

Published November 02, 2022

Helping to bring neighbors together

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Hillsborough County’s mini-grant program aims to foster engaged communities through creative projects.

Hillsborough County Neighborhood Relations is accepting applications for the 2023 Neighborhood Mini-Grant Program, which aims to bring neighbors together and boost community involvement, according to a news release.

The program provides up to $5,000 of funding for neighborhood organizations that foster healthy, safe and engaged communities through innovative and creative community projects.

This year’s project categories are: Neighborhood Identification; Leadership Empowerment; Safety Opportunities and Education; Environmental Enhancements; Health and Wellness Engagement; Neighborhood Preparedness; and Neighborhood and Community Innovation.

Civic associations, homeowner associations, or special taxing districts in Hillsborough County are eligible to apply including those in Tampa, Plant City and Temple Terrace, the release said. Neighborhood organizations must be registered in the Neighborhood Directory Listing before applying for a mini-grant.

The deadline to apply is Nov. 14 at 5 p.m.

For more information about the application process, the requirements, and how to complete an application, contact or 813-272-5860.

Published November 02, 2022

This project is lit

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On the 27-acre acre campus at Learning Gate Community School, in Lutz, sixth-graders have built solar panels that power and charge electrical devices.

Learning Gate Community School environmental science teacher Steve Warrener, right, looks on as Ryan Khalfouni, left, and R.J. Akers work on connecting plugs and wires that will connect to the solar panel field the sixth-graders built. (Mike Camunas)

So, why did they do that?

They gave several reasons for taking on the challenge.

They wanted to create clean energy, to stop CO2 emissions, to educate themselves and others about solar power and, last, but not least, to impress Elon Musk.

Working with solar panels was a new experience for sixth-grader Harvey Lemieux.

He said the project was fun and informative, teaching students a lot about creating clean energy.

Learning Gate Community School sixth-graders Mya Stapleton, right, and Hattie Pham-Yancey, left, use a karaoke machine that is powered by a solar panel farm the students built by hand. The panels can power appliances and devices, as well as charge an electric car and a rebuilt electric go-kart. It even powered a house during a power outage caused by Hurricane Ian in September.

It took the first quarter of the school year to build the solar panels and wire them so the power can be converted into electricity. Once they had the power, the students — supervised by environmental science teacher Steve Warrener — were able to plug in devices such as a power drill, as well as a karaoke machine speaker to listen to some of their favorite tunes.

They also were able to charge a modified and rebuilt go-kart.

The kart is aptly named “Edmond” — after Edmond Becquerel. He’s the French physicist credited with the discovery of the photovoltaic effect, the operating principle of the solar cell. The student’s kart is fully electric and runs on recycled batteries from a front loader.

“Learning Gate is a pretty special school. I don’t know of any other school that’s building solar power stations, but I sure hope there will be more,” the teacher said.

The project is more than just building solar panels. The students worked out how the panels would work, even preparing a professional presentation they would use, if approaching a company seeking a solar-power solution.

The students had to research every part and component, Warrener said.

In addition to building a solar panel field, sixth-graders at Learning Gate Community School also restored a go-kart, converting it to electric. The kart, which can be charged with the panels, is named ‘Edmond’ after Edmond Becquerel, the French physicist credited with the discovery of the photovoltaic effect, which is the operating principle of the solar cell.

That showed them “why they have to do it that way and why it would be the most efficient way,” Warrener said.

Annabelle Avant, a sixth-grader at Learning Gate Community School, connects plugs and cords from the solar panels that will power things such as a karaoke machine and power tools.

“What the project really did was show that it’s not hard to use solar power and go with clean energy,” the teacher added. “In fact, it’s easily accessible and that it can be done, it can be made affordable and it can be built — even by kids!”

The project was so successful, it will allow Learning Gate to lower its electric bill and carbon footprint.

It also was used to charge up a teacher’s electric car — and, also used to power a house, Warrener said.

During Hurricane Ian, some houses in his neighborhood lost power. Warrener offered to bring over the panels. In one case, the energy was used to keep a fridge running to avoid spoiling food and also to run other devices, the day after the storm.

“I don’t even know how that happened (powering a house),” Lemieux said. “Just taking the power of the sun and turning it into electricity for a house — that’s just crazy to me.”

“That was pretty cool and amazing that it was able to power a house,” sixth-grader Ellis Brodski added. “We had just been using it to charge the kart or power the (karaoke machine), so to see it have a big use like that was pretty cool.

“I thought we were able to make these solar panels that work pretty easily, so I think others should do it, too.”

Lemieux agrees.

“It could save so much money and energy, so yeah, I think that those solar farms that people build, I think people take it for granted and that more people should use solar power,” he said. “Maybe more schools can get students to do what we did and build it as a project and then it helps the school save money.”

Published October 26, 2022