Updates

Superintendent Kurt Browning has cancelled the Pasco County Schools’ requirement for end-of-course exams, including second-grade and fifth-grade art, music and physical education exams.

While removing that requirement, the superintendent said each teacher must administer a standards-based assessment in each class in all levels.

To give teachers more flexibility, they are allowed to choose a teacher-developed and principal-approved instrument or a district-developed end-of-course exam, according to a school district news release.

“I realize that this decision may not meet everyone’s needs, but it alleviates the pressure associated with the current end-of-course assessments,” Browning said in the release. He also noted that it “allows our district time to develop a more reliable and balanced system of student assessment.”

Browning noted that he did not reach that decision easily and added that it came after extensive conversations with secondary principals across the district and district staff.

 

Lots of people took advantage of the chance to save money when paying for traffic tickets during a one-day special offered by the Office of the Pasco County Clerk & Comptroller.

Under a program called Operation Green Light, people who had overdue Pasco County traffic tickets, as well as court costs and fines could pay those costs in full, restore their driving privileges and receive a 25 percent reduction in the collections surcharge.

During that one-day event, held on April 18, the clerk’s office collected $81,351.

That total included 170 people assisted in person and 132 assisted through call centers. There were 136 customers who were eligible to have their driver’s license reinstated in Pasco County.

Pasco County Animal Services is offering free dog adoptions through April 25.

Additionally, the shelter is gearing up to do some heavy duty spring cleaning, so it will be temporarily relocating the animals from Building C.

Since all of the cats and dogs must be moved from the building, the shelter is seeking temporary homes for the cats and dogs, according to a Pasco County news release.

Shelter officials would be even more pleased if the pets could find permanent homes.

Building C will undergo maintenance, be cleaned out and will be fumigated from April 30 through May 5.

The Pasco County Animal Services Adoption Center is located at 19640 Dogpatch Lane in Land O’ Lakes. It is open from noon until 6:30 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday.

For more information, or to volunteer,  call 813-929-1212, 352-521-5194 or 727-834-3216.

People with unpaid traffic tickets in Pasco County may want to take advantage of Operation Green Light on April 18.

The Pasco County Clerk & Comptroller’s Office is allowing individuals to pay unpaid traffic tickets and court fines and fees in full without charging the normal 25 percent collection surcharge.

The Pasco County Clerk & Comptroller’s Office will be open for customers to pay traffic tickets in person or by phone from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m.

The payment locations and telephone numbers are:

• West Pasco Judicial Center, 7530 Little Road, Suite 101, in New Port Richey or by telephone at (727) 847-2411, Ext., 2205
• Robert D. Sumner Judicial Center, 38053 Live Oak Ave., Suite 112, in Dade City, or by telephone at (352) 523-2411, Ext. 2205.

Operation Green Light is being implemented statewide and will enable some individuals to restore their driving privileges.

Driving with a suspended license is the leading crime in Florida, and the number of individuals driving with suspended licenses grows annually.

In Pasco, there are more than 40,000 cases in collection or eligible to be sent to collection, exceeding more than $10 million in court assessments.

The Pasco County Tax Collector’s Office will be available to reissue driver’s licenses from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on April 18.

Pasco County is encouraging residents to help remove trash and debris as  part of the Great American Cleanup on April 18, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The county joins the national cleanup effort every year. On the local level, the effort is spearheaded by Keep Pasco Beautiful, a local affiliate of the national, nonprofit organization Keep America Beautiful.

Pasco County has been participating in the cleanup since 1992. Since 2008 alone, more than 163 tons of trash has been removed in Pasco County by volunteers in different parts of the county.

Teams in several parts of the county have already registered to help out. Communities with teams include Wesley Chapel, Dade City, Holiday, Hudson, New Port Richey, Port Richey and Spring Hill.

Those would like to join in are invited to call (727) 856-4539 and someone in the county’s Recycling and Education office will put them in touch with a captain from the area of their choice.

Nominations are being sought for the Pasco Economic Development Council Industry of the Year awards. The awards will be presented at the council’s 29th annual Appreciation Banquet in September.

The competition evaluates top Pasco County companies for their technology, innovation, job creation, growth and capital investment and involvement in community activities.

Nominees for the award should be  service, manufacturing or technology companies operating in Pasco County.

The awards will be presented in the categories of manufacturing, service/distribution, technology and nonprofits/others.

The annual banquet typically attracts about 600 people, including business, community and elected leaders.

All nominations must be received by the Pasco EDC, via email (), mail or fax (813-926-0829), prior to the close of business April 30, 2015. All submissions will be reviewed by the Nomination Review Subcommittee and/or Pasco EDC staff to determine eligibility. For more information, visit PascoEDC.com.

 

Walter E. Andrusyszyn, of the University of South Florida, is slated to speak about current political scene, both nationally and internationally on the evening of March 23 in Land O’ Lakes.

Andrusyszyn has worked inside the White House with all of administrations from President Ronald Reagan to President Barack Obama.

He served as the Director for Northern and Eastern European Affairs in the National Security Council, as Deputy Chief of Mission at NATO and Chief of Mission in Estonia. He was awarded the Secretary’s Award for Heroism in April1997, for his efforts to gain the release of an imprisoned American journalist held by Bosnian Serb authorities. And, in September 2001, he was named the Director of the Task Force on Terrorism in response to the Sept.11 attacks.

His talk will take place at the Republican Club of Central Pasco at Copperstone Executive Suites, 3632 Land O’ Lakes Blvd.

There will be a “soapbox” time before the meeting at 6:30 p.m. with light refreshments. The business meeting begins at 7 p.m.

All are welcome to attend.

For more information, call (813) 996-3011.

Go Hillsborough, a public engagement initiative on transportation, will hold a telephone town hall meeting from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. on March 19, according to a Hillsborough County news release.

This telephone town hall meeting is among the workshops being held  to give Hillsborough County residents an opportunity to voice their opinions on how the county’s transportation systems can be improved.

It also will give residents a chance to talk about how transportation issues impact their daily lives.

Local leaders and staff members will field questions from callers, as well as listening to their comments.

To participate, residents are encouraged to RSVP in advance of the call at go.hillsborough.org.

Residents may also dial in to the call directly by calling the toll free number: 1-877-229-8493 and entering the PIN 110301#.

Go Hillsborough is a collaboration of Hillsborough County, the cities of Plant City, Tampa and Temple Terrace, and Hillsborough Area Regional Transit.

If you’re in the market for some used furniture, linens, lamps, china, pots and pans and other home goods, the annual Woman’s Club Flea Market at the Old Lutz School may be a good place to shop.

The GFWC Lutz-Land O’ Lakes Woman’s Club puts on the sale every year to benefit a number of local charities. It is the club’s second-biggest fundraiser of the year.

This year, shoppers can check out the deals from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on March 6 and March 7.

 

A 150,000-square-foot sports facility now under construction in Wesley Chapel is expected to become a major tourism draw.

Roughly 100 people attended the Feb. 24 groundbreaking ceremonies to celebrate the project.

The facility is expected to be popular with youth hockey leagues and to attract international hockey tournaments.

It’s a dream come true for Canadian-born Gordie Zimmerman, managing partner of Z Mitch LLC and former general manager at the Ice Sports Forum in Brandon.

“I really love hockey,” he said. “We saw a lack of ice in the area. Kids can’t practice enough.”

The as-yet unnamed facility will open in fall 2015 at 3173 Cypress Ridge Blvd., off Interstate 75 at the State Road 56 interchange in Wesley Chapel.

It will have four full-sized rinks including one Olympic-size hockey rink. There also will be a removable ice rink pad that can be converted for multi-uses including basketball, dog shows and graduation ceremonies.

Zimmerman also announced a 10-year partnership with Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel. The hospital will be a major sponsor of the facility and will provide educational programs on sports and injury prevention.

Zimmerman and the hospital are sponsoring a contest to name the ice and sports complex. Suggestions can be made through March 10 at www.WesleyChapelIceCenter.com.