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Hope Allen

North Tampa Bay Chamber wins top state award

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The North Tampa Bay Chamber recently was named the 2019 Chamber of the Year for the state of Florida during the Florida Association of Chamber Professionals annual conference in Daytona Beach.

The chamber was honored for its accomplishments, including its acquisition of two chambers within the past five years that led to its official name change and logo, as well as its involvement in numerous initiatives.

Hope Allen, president/CEO of the chamber said the award is a testament to the chamber’s board, its ambassadors, its staff and the area’s vibrant business community.

Hope Allen is the president/CEO of the North Tampa Bay Chamber, which recently was named the 2019 Chamber of the Year by the Florida Association of Chamber Professionals. Allen also received an individual award for her 15 years of service as a chamber professional. (File)

“This is something we’ve been working toward since I took over the organization,” said Allen, who joined the chamber seven years ago, when it was known as the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce. “We had not been ready in the past because we did not have a strategic plan and we did not have an audit.”

But the organization achieved those goals and was able to apply for the honor this year, and proceeded to take home the top prize.

“We, essentially, as chamber professionals, build communities. This is validation that we are going, not only in the right direction, but we’re doing it extraordinarily well,” Allen said.

The application has nine different components, including such things as accomplishments, financial stability, governmental relations, membership, strategic planning, communications and special events.

In the area of governmental relations, for instance, the chamber had to describe its activity at the local, state and federal level, Allen said.

“We were able to speak to all of that,” Allen said, noting that she went to Washington, D.C., with the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition.

“What I took away from that summit is, ‘global is very local.’ As leader of this chamber, we need to make sure we understand that.”

It’s important, for example, to realize that tariffs have a local impact, she said.

At the local level, the chamber has advocated for increased transportation options, and at the state level, it has pushed for lower business rent taxes.

“We have an issue filter, here. If it doesn’t align with pro-business legislation, we are not dealing with it,” Allen said.

Only chambers that have been audited can apply for the chamber of the year award, which, of course, requires a financial investment, Allen said.

“We came back with a clean audit,” the chamber executive said, noting  that the audit covered not only budgetary issues, but also looked at employee records, crisis management, separation of duties, job descriptions and other organizational categories.

The state judges also consider a chamber’s strategic plan, its technology plan and its communications plan.

In the communications arena, the North Tampa Bay Chamber issues news releases, maintains a website, announces events, uses newsletters and varies its communications, based on the audience, Allen said.

For instance, “we have different messaging for potential members” than for existing members, she said.

The state honor also considers special events that are presented by chambers. That counts for 5% of the score, Allen said.

For much of its history, the chamber was “ very, very dependent on event income,” Allen said.

But in 2013, the board of directors decided to switch the chamber’s focus from presenting parties, pageants and parades’ to becoming the area’s connector, convener and catalyst, Allen said, during a recent talk about the chamber’s 20-year history.

That shift was a risk because it relied on investment by members, Allen said, but the organization was thinking ahead.

Now, the chamber focuses its energy on serving the business needs of its 739 members.

“We don’t sell the chamber,” she said. “The chamber is not something we feel is a widget. It’s an investment in your business. It’s a different pot of money from your branding and your marketing. It’s a business expense, in our opinion.

“Do you know who does sell the chamber? Our members. They sell it for us because they can see the return on their investment,” Allen said.

Published October 2, 2019

Chamber’s goal: Being there to meet members’ needs

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When the North Tampa Bay Chamber began two decades ago, it was known as the Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce.

In the beginning, it had 65 members and met in a garage.

Now, it has 734 members — with some based as far away as Brooksville and St. Petersburg.

It attracts a wide range of political and business leaders to speak at, and attend its monthly breakfasts and luncheons.

Hope Allen, president and CEO of the North Tampa Bay Chamber, believes chambers can help businesses thrive by advocating on their behalf, and creating opportunities for connection. (B.C. Manion)

The chamber also hosts numerous networking and learning opportunities each month.

It frequently celebrates with businesses through grand openings and ribbon cuttings, too.

Beyond that, the chamber seeks to help businesses as they navigate through government bureaucracy and learn about community organizations. They also act as an advocate on issues affecting businesses.

“We’ve come a long way in 20 years,” said Hope Allen, president and CEO, during the organization’s breakfast meeting earlier this month.

The chamber was born long before the area’s widely known developments, such as The Shops at Wiregrass, AdventHealth Wesley Chapel, Pasco-Hernando State College’s Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch, Tampa Premium Outlets, and Cypress Creek Town Center. And, that’s not to mention the scores of subdivisions, schools, restaurants, hotels and small businesses that now make up Wesley Chapel and nearby communities.

Over time, the North Tampa Bay Chamber has moved from the garage to an old flower shop to a storefront at The Grove, to its current home in Lutz.

It has shifted direction, too, Allen said.

“In 2013, the board of directors decided we were going to switch our focus from being ‘the parties, pageants and parades’ to the connector, the convener and the catalyst.”

“It was scary for everybody. We went from a nonprofit organization that was robbing Peter to Paul, to a membership-based business organization,” Allen said.

“We said we’ve got to stop what we’re doing with all these things, and really focus on the needs of our business community.

“So, we went on a listening tour. We went around. We visited all of our members.

“We said, ‘What is happening with your business? What is happening with Wesley Chapel? How can we help?’” Allen said.

The businesses responded: “They said we need somebody to be an advocate for our businesses, we need somebody to go to, when there’s an issue,” she said.

The chamber stepped up to accept the challenge, Allen said.

When someone broke a water line on State Road 54, for instance, the chamber set about to make sure it got fixed, Allen said.

Now, the chamber fields all sorts of calls.

“We know code enforcement now. I have his personal cellphone number now,” she said.

Creating a strong business network
“We’ve grown and evolved, and made ourselves important. We weren’t very important way back in the day, to the elected officials. We weren’t important to the region, as a whole, until everything started happening up here. Then, they were saying, ‘What is going on in Wesley Chapel?’

“We had built this amazing network of businesses and built this amazing network of community,” Allen said.

In 2015, it  combined with the New Tampa Chamber, keeping the Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce, but adding a tag line: Serving New Tampa.

“It was seamless,” Allen said. “We started to really grow. We started to really have the pulse on what was happening.

“Businesses were coming to us and they were saying: ‘We need this.’

“The developers would come to us, ‘We’ve got this land, we want to do something with it.’

Allen recalled that a man walked into the office, then at The Grove, seeking information about Wesley Chapel. He wanted to take a look around, so Allen took him on what she calls her first “windshield tour.”

It turns out that he represented the hotel developer who built the Fairfield Inn & Suites, in Wiregrass, which opened last year — three years after that initial visit.

The chamber often is involved in work that won’t come into fruition for years, Allen said.

She credits the chamber’s board, ambassadors and members for the progress the organization has made.

“What we have going on here is incredible. We all know it. We can feel it. This community is incredible. This business community is amazing. We support each other. We grow with each other. We cry with each other,” she said.

She and her staff are committed to serve chamber members, she said.

“We stand behind all of our members. We speak with one voice for our membership,” she said.

In 2018, the chamber rebranded itself as the North Tampa Bay Chamber.

“We didn’t leave Wesley Chapel behind, we just brought everybody into the arms of what is North Tampa Bay,” said Allen, who is passionate about the value that chambers can bring to communities.

Across the country, she said, “chambers of commerce are having the conversation now, ‘Are we relevant? Do you need a chamber of commerce in your community?’”

In her view, chambers “are here to serve a purpose, in every single community.

“If you’ve seen one chamber, you’ve seen one chamber.

“We’re all different. We’re all governed by our own board of directors. We all have our own programming that’s different.

“We’re not in competition with other chambers of commerce.

“If you can join every single chamber of commerce in the region, do it. Because you’re going to get something out of each and every one of them, “ Allen said.

Published August 28, 2019

International business increasing in Pasco

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Pasco County has been making strides in the arena of international trade, and Pasco County Commissioner Kathryn Starkey provided a briefing on the topic at a recent North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce luncheon.

In introducing Starkey, Hope Allen, president/CEO of the North Tampa Chamber said: “Kathryn Starkey is a huge advocate of Pasco County.

This rendering shows the future campus for TouchPoint Medical Inc. (File)

“It’s wonderful that Pasco now has a seat at the table, now on the global level, and it’s because of her work and the work of Pasco Economic Development Council, making Pasco part of the conversation.

“She is involved in developing international trade, with a focus on Europe and South America,” Allen said.

Starkey has a pulse on what’s happening locally, and also nationally, on the international trade scene.

She is chair of the International Economic Development Task Force at the National Association of Counties (NACCO). She also was nominated by the White House and NACCO to serve on a committee that looks over trade agreements and makes recommendations. She is among four commissioners who represent the voice of local government, she said.

She’s still undergoing her FBI background check, so at this point, she can participate in calls, but can’t read the information.

Starkey said her introduction to manufacturing came in 2004, when she was on the Pasco County School Board and she made a visit to a training program offered in Okaloosa public schools.

“What they had done was they interviewed their business community, and then they figured out how to start programs in their school system that taught the high school kids how to enter into that workforce when they graduated,” she said.

Pasco County Commissioner Kathryn Starkey

Because of her interest, Starkey traveled to Germany five times — to see for herself and to show others how the Germans do their system of apprenticeship training.

“It was really important to go and see how the world’s premiere training program works.

“If you don’t see it, you can’t understand it. They have the gold standard in manufacturing,” she said.

“What we have done here in Pasco County, Hernando and Pinellas County, is that we’ve set up a training and manufacturing program based on the European model of apprenticeship training,” Starkey added, referring to a program called AmSkills.

“We take high school students and we take students who have graduated, and we take adults who need retraining, and we take them through the process here and we get them very knowledgeable about manufacturing, training and jobs, and then we help them get meaningful jobs here in the community,” she said.

Over time, Pasco County Schools also has established several career academies. It also opened Wendell Krinn Technical High School this year, on the former Ridgewood High campus.

Mettler Toledo opened its 270,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Northpointe Village, off State Road 54.

In partnership with Marchman Technical College, Wendell Krinn provides students access to 14 different technical education programs, including auto collision/repair, biomedical sciences, commercial art, computer systems, cosmetology, culinary arts, cybersecurity, digital cinema, electricity, HVAC, marine service, robotics, and welding.

Pasco’s workforce development is helping to attract international companies, Starkey said.

She also has been involved with Pasco EDC in trade missions to help local companies find foreign markets, and has helped host events to teach local companies how to grow their business in other parts of the world.

Pasco’s outreach efforts, its workforce development and its willingness to offer incentives to attract companies offering high-wage jobs has resulted in international companies setting up shop in the county.

Some of those companies include:

  • TouchPoint Medical Inc., a global supplier of technology-based health care delivery systems, will bring 116 new high-paying jobs to Pasco County. Company officials plan to relocate their headquarters to prime vacant land in Land O’ Lakes. They will build an approximately 125,000-square-foot facility, including a parking lot, on the northwest corner of Suncoast Parkway and State Road 54. The site is part of the South Branch Ranch property. The facility is expected to open in late 2019.
  • Mettler Toledo: Mettler Toledo opened its 270,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Northpointe Village in April. The Swiss-based company is a global supplier of precision scales and services used in research, and the packaging and production of food and pharmaceuticals.
  • TRU Simulation: TRU Simulation + Training celebrated the opening of a $30 million expansion of its Pilot Training Center in Lutz in February 2017. The facility opened in a 15,000-square-foot facility at 1827 Northpointe Parkway, off State Road 54 at Suncoast Parkway. TRU Simulation has contracts with companies such as King Air, Boeing and Cessna.

Starkey noted that it’s not enough to get international companies interested in Pasco, it’s also important to treat them well after they arrive, and to continue to form relationships.

Taking a page out of book she read about how the international community developed in North Carolina, Starkey makes it a point to take CEOs of international companies to visit assets around Tampa Bay.

It’s a great way for the CEOs to get to know each other and also for them to develop a deeper understanding of Tampa Bay’s strengths, Starkey said.

“I am trying to take really good care of your CEOs here, and they are spreading the word to their friends back overseas, or to their business friends, that Pasco County is a great place to do business,” Starkey said. “We want them to feel very welcome.”

Revised December 5, 2018

Chambers on the move

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The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce and The Central Pasco Chamber of Commerce each now have new homes.

The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce moved into Suite A at the Highland Oaks Medical Center, at 1868 Highland Oaks Blvd. (Kathy Steele)

The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce is settling into its new location at 1868 Highland Oaks Blvd., Suite A. The office is in the Highland Oaks Medical Center, off State Road 54, in Lutz.

The Central Pasco Chamber of Commerce has a new address in Harbour Village, at 1930 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., Suite 16, in Lutz. Chamber officials expected that move to be accomplished over the weekend of Jan. 13.

In addition to setting up shop in a new space, the Central Pasco Chamber also has promoted Suzanne Beauchaine to become its new executive director.

Beauchaine previously served as the chamber’s marketing and membership director.

David Gainer, the chamber’s president, praised Beauchaine for adding 90 new businesses to the chamber’s roster in the past year.

Hope Allen is the president and CEO of The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce. (File)

“It is a pleasure to recognize Suzanne for her diligence, commitment to excellence and her professionalism, by naming her our new executive director,” Gainer said, in a written statement.

The Wesley Chapel chamber opened its new office on Jan. 2, after vacating its former office at The Grove at Wesley Chapel.

The lease at the mall expired, and it was obvious a roomier site was needed.

“We had been looking. We had grown out of our space,” said Hope Allen, the chamber’s president and CEO. “We couldn’t even hold our board meetings at the (former) chamber.”

The Wesley Chapel chamber merged last year with The Greater Pasco Chamber of Commerce — creating the largest chamber in Pasco County.

In recent months, chamber officials have been working on merger details, including a new name for the chamber.

A task force is working on recommendations, but the membership will make the final decision, Allen said.

Allen said she had some trepidation about the move, and how visible the office would be.

But, the compliments rolled in, as members stopped by for visits, she said.

“Traffic grew. It tripled and quadrupled from the other location,” Allen said. “The whole place is beautiful.”

Suzanne Beauchaine is the new executive director of The Central Pasco Chamber of Commerce. (File)

The approximately 3,500 square foot office space is large enough that the chamber plans to sublet space to four businesses. There will be a certified public accountant, an architect, two financial planners and a Realtor, said Allen.

The names of the companies will be announced soon.

A ribbon cutting for the chamber is being planned for March.

“We’re excited to have a place where we can grow and be centrally located for our businesses,” Allen said.

As the Central Pasco Chamber’s new president, Beauchaine expressed enthusiasm for her role at the chamber.

“It’s very rewarding to help bring business owners together, and see their relationships grow and prosper,” Beauchaine said, in a written release.

Before joining The Central Pasco Chamber of Commerce, Beauchaine was an account manager at The Laker/Lutz News for about three years.

She also owned a business in Lutz for five years, and has worked in retail and office management.

Her husband, Gary Beauchaine, is a small business owner and a member of the Central Pasco chamber.

The couple has two adult daughters who are area residents.

For more information about The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce, call the chamber at (813) 994-8534, or visit WesleyChapelChamber.com.

For more information about The Central Pasco Chamber of Commerce, call (813) 909-2722, or visit CentralPascoChamber.com.

Revised January 17, 2018

Outlining a road map to tackle Pasco traffic problems

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Pasco County’s residential and commercial growth is causing more traffic headaches on the area’s roads.

At an Aug. 21 session, residents had a chance to learn about what’s planned to tackle the area’s congestion during The Pasco County Transportation Summit.

U.S. Rep. Gus Bilirakis and Pasco County Commission Chairman Mike Moore hosted the event at the Pasco-Hernando State College Porter Campus, in Wesley Chapel.

A project that would ease traffic congestion on Wesley Chapel Boulevard, also known as County Road 54, is scheduled in fiscal year 2018. Planning calls for widening the road from two lanes to four lanes, from State Road 54/56 to Progress Parkway. (B.C. Manion)

Other panelists included David Gwynn, District 7 secretary for the Florida Department of Transportation; Pasco County Administrator Dan Biles; and, Hope Allen, chief executive officer and president of The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce, which recently merged with The Greater Pasco Chamber of Commerce.

The meeting focused on project updates for east Pasco and Wesley Chapel.

Audience members submitted written questions to the panel.

Their queries centered on current and future road projects; public transit; new technology, such as self-driving vehicles; and, passenger rail on CSX rail lines.

Charity Henesy-Brooks, who lives in the Meadow Pointe subdivision, said she came away with information she didn’t know before. “It’s good to know they are trying to get ahead of the (traffic) problem,” she said. “At least they have these goals.”

For Moore, the basic issue is how to build the right infrastructure to support economic development and meet residents’ needs.

Anyone who drives in the county knows the frustration of long waits in traffic, he said. “Relief is on the way. There are a lot of things on the way, but these things won’t come to fruition over night.”

At least one project has been sped up.

Construction of the diverging diamond interchange at Interstate 75 and State Road 56 will begin in 2018, about two years ahead of an initial start date. The unique engineering pattern eliminates left turns and most traffic signals, to quicken, and ease, traffic flow.

The interchange is at the epicenter of a growth boom in Wesley Chapel that includes Tampa Premium Outlets and Cypress Creek Town Center.

“It’s miserable. I get it,” said Moore. “I’m with you.”

Bilirakis said local governments will have federal funding available for their transportation projects.

President Donald Trump campaigned on a promise of $1 trillion in shovel-ready infrastructure projects. Congress is waiting on a specific proposal from the White House, Bilirakis said.

“The infrastructure piece is very much alive,” he said. “It’s a priority for the President, and it’s a priority for us in Congress. It’s a bipartisan effort and, God knows, we need that today.”

Bilirakis said he expected Congress to address tax reform early in 2018, and “then, we’re going to get to infrastructure.”

He also said the Ridge Road extension will benefit from an expedited review process implemented by the White House.

Pasco has lobbied for the extension for nearly 19 years as a necessary east-west road for hurricane evacuations. A permit is needed from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Environmentalists have opposed the project, which would cut through a portion of the Serenova Preserve. But, Bilirakis said, “We’re really moving the ball forward on this project.”

Lots of projects are on the horizon
The state department of transportation currently has a slate of road projects under construction, in design or in planning. In the past five years, the state agency has invested more than $640 million in Pasco, Gwynn said.

By late 2017, work on widening Interstate 75 from four lanes to six lanes from County Road 54 to State Road 52 will be completed, along with a redesign of the interchange.

To the west of I-75, work to widen State Road 52 from two lanes to four lanes, from Bellamy Brothers Boulevard to Old Pasco Road, will be done by summer 2018.

State Road 54 from Curley Road to Morris Bridge Road will go from two lanes to four lanes by fall 2020. A shared use path and sidewalks also will be built.

Work recently began on a four-lane extension of State Road 56 from Meadow Pointe Boulevard in Wiregrass Ranch to U.S. 301 in Zephyrhills. Completion is scheduled by spring 2019.

Two projects are in design and scheduled to begin in 2019. One will widen State Road 52 from two lanes to six lanes, from west of Suncoast Parkway to east of U.S. 41, with a shared use path.

A second will realign State Road 52 from Uradco Place to West Fort King Road. A new four-lane road will run from Uradco Place to Prospect Road. From Prospect to Fort King, the existing road will widen from two lanes to four lanes.

A third project, with no construction start date, would widen State Road 52 from two lanes to four lanes from U.S. 41 to west of Bellamy Brothers Boulevard.

There are two unfunded projects in design stages that would both realign and widen Gall Boulevard in Zephyrhills.

Bicycle lanes and sidewalks are being designed for County Line Road from Northwood Palms to west of Bruce B. Downs Boulevard. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2018.

Also, planning is underway on two projects to widen U.S. 301 from Fowler Avenue to State Road 56, and from State Road 56 to State Road 39.

A major reconstruction of the State Road 54 and U.S. 41 intersection is on hold while a local task force reviews options and makes a recommendation to the county’s Metropolitan Planning Organization.

Pasco has 48 road projects slated from 2017 to 2021 at an estimated cost of about $426 million. Almost all will be in east and central Pasco, Biles said.

The county will fund about half the cost, with the remainder coming from state and local funds, he said.

The expansion of Wesley Chapel Boulevard from State Road 54 to Progress Parkway, from two lanes to four lanes, is scheduled in fiscal year 2018. Sierra Properties, which is developing Cypress Creek Town Center, completed the initial segment of the project, and built an entrance into the mall from the boulevard.

In addition to increasing road capacity, the county is exploring options with new technology. For instance, adaptive traffic signals can be adjusted based on real-time conditions monitored via cameras a centralized command post.

This technology is being used in some areas of U.S. 19, and Biles anticipates that in the next five years it would be installed along other roadways.

Bilirakis is a fan of self-driving vehicles, which is an evolving technology. He is supporting federal legislation to ensure that such vehicles are adaptable to needs of seniors and disabled veterans.

The Congressman also agreed that partnerships with Uber and Lyft can enhance public transit by helping people reach bus stops.

Self-driving vehicles appeal to Land O’ Lakes resident Kelly Smith as a means of providing ride-sharing opportunities.

That would get more vehicles off the roads and lessen the need for parking, and potentially mean fewer roads would be needed, she said.

But, Smith, who is running against Moore for a seat on the Pasco County Commission, said, “I’m concerned that we’re not looking into the future.”

In response to a question about buying CSX rail lines for passenger service, Moore said he favors rapid bus transit.

“CSX does not give their lines away,” he said. “It’s very costly. Bus transit is more economical.”

Published August 30, 2017

Merger yields largest chamber in Pasco

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The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Pasco Chamber of Commerce have merged to create the largest chamber in Pasco County.

Mike Cox, chairman of the Greater Pasco Chamber of Commerce; and Hope Allen, president and chief executive officer of The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce, shake hands on a deal to merge their chambers.
(Courtesy of Stephen John Photography)

The new chamber has more than 860 members, and it is growing. Wesley Chapel contributed about 615 members in the merger, and Greater Pasco nearly 250 members.

The first event of the merged chambers will be a Final Friday mixer on July 28 at the Cheval Golf and Athletic Club, in Tampa.

A consolidation resolution received approval in mid-June from the chambers’ board members.

The merger was announced on June 28 at a press conference at the Academy of Culinary Arts at Land O’ Lakes High School. Hope Allen, president and chief executive officer of the Wesley Chapel chamber; Michael Cox, chairman of the Greater Pasco chamber; Bill Cronin, president and chief executive officer of the Pasco Economic Development Council; and, Pasco County Commission Chairman Mike Moore were among those who attended.

Allen will assume leadership duties of the new chamber.

“I don’t have a crystal ball on what the impact will be, but we hope our impact is to be the voice of the business community,” said Allen. “We can speak with one voice, one very large voice.”

The merger follows a decision in January to sign an affiliation agreement to allow members to join both chambers at discounted fees.

“That’s what got us working together,” said Cox. “We realized it was well-received by our members.”

Bill Cronin, president and chief executive officer of the Pasco Economic Development Council, left; Jennifer Cofini, chairwoman of The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce’s board of directors; Hope Allen, president and chief executive officer of The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce; Mike Cox, chairman of the Greater Pasco Chamber of Commerce; and Mike Moore, chairman of the Pasco County Commission, had a press conference to announce the merger of the Wesley Chapel and Greater Pasco chambers.

It’s been a natural progression since January, said Allen.

“We were officially courting,” she said. “We were engaged and now we’re married, blending our two families.”

The new chamber and the Pasco EDC can complement one another in supporting the business community, Cox said.

Pasco EDC is a nonprofit that works with Pasco government to create jobs and attract targeted industries to locate or expand in the county.

“The chamber really picks up where the (Pasco) EDC leaves off,” Cox said. “There are a lot of businesses that aren’t targeted industries, but they are vital to our local economy.”

Some details remain to be worked out on the merger, including the new chamber’s name.

A marketing consultant will be hired to do research and gather public input on the name selection. Issues to be sorted out include names related to the geography of the new chamber, but also the Wesley Chapel branding already in place.

“We want to make sure it is a very well thought-out process,” said Allen. “We want to do it right.”

Members will be able to vote on the matter, she said.

A task force initially created to explore the merger will continue to operate until December. Task force members will aid in working through transition details as the merger proceeds.

According to the consolidation resolution, the board of directors will expand from 17 to as many as 24 members, with five to seven members from Greater Pasco added to the board.

The Lutz office of the Greater Pasco chamber will stay open for now. If needed, a new location will be found in Trinity, Odessa or Lutz.

What: Final Friday mixer for chamber members
When: July 28 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Where: Prime 19 @ Cheval Golf and Athletic Club, 4312 Cheval Blvd., Tampa
Cost: Free
Information: Call Wesley Chapel chamber at (813) 994-8534, or email

Published July 12, 2017

Sports complex wins crucial approval

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Pasco County commissioners agreed to push ahead with a proposal from RADD Sports to build a $25 million sports complex at Wiregrass Ranch.

About $15 million in funding would be from a bank loan, secured with a proposed 2 percent increase in the county’s tourism tax. Nearly $11 million would come from previously pledged tourism dollars, and sales tax revenues.

Pasco County Commissioner Mike Moore
(Fred Bellet)

County commissioners unanimously voted to pursue the project, and send out bids for the bank loan at their April 12 meeting in Dade City.

The sports complex, and an $18.5 million, 120-room hotel, would be built on land donated years ago by the Porter family – developers of Wiregrass Ranch and The Shops at Wiregrass.

Over the past eight years, several proposals fell apart, including one for a baseball complex in 2015.

RADD Sports wants to build a 98,000-square-foot indoor facility for sporting and recreational activities including basketball, volleyball, cheerleading, dancing, wrestling, gymnastics, curling and badminton. In addition, there would be outdoor sports fields, an amphitheater with an event lawn, trails, pavilions and a playground.

“This is a good program,” said Pasco County Commission Chairman Mike Moore. “Over the years, for whatever reason, commissions in the past have not moved forward. We have a great opportunity. Let’s stop kicking the can down the road.”

Dirt won’t be flying any time soon, however.

It will take additional votes to finalize the project, including an ordinance to increase the tourist tax. Four of five county commissioners need to approve the increase.

Though the initial vote was unanimous, Pasco County Commissioners Mike Wells and Jack Mariano had concerns about linking new tourism dollars to one project.

Wells would like to see boat ramps built in western Pasco in future. County officials said the bank loan possibly could be increased to $16 million or $17 million to fund those.

Anthony Homer, vice president of real estate for RADD Sports

Mariano said tax revenues should be spread around to benefit the entire county, not just focused within the Wesley Chapel area.

“What’s the fairness to the other side of the county when there’s no return coming back?” he said.

But, prior to voting in favor, he added, “I know this is going to be a top-shelf product.”

Details are still being negotiated, but the county will receive a portion of the profits generated from the sports complex. “The entire county will benefit from this project,” Moore said.

However, the project and the tax increase drew a notable objection from Thomas Dempsey, owner of Saddlebrook Resort.

It makes no sense to use the tourism tax as “backup for a loan that can’t be obtained in a normal way through a bank,” said Dempsey, who spoke during public comment. “I can’t run a business that way. Nobody should. It’s a burdensome tax on Saddlebrook.”

The upscale resort in Wesley Chapel contributed a large share of the $8.5 million already collected in tourist taxes. A rebate program is being proposed to compensate Saddlebrook and other hoteliers. Details will be negotiated as the project moves forward, but Wells said, “It should have been done before yesterday.”

RADD Sports estimates gross revenues of $3.8 million in the first year, with increases each year after. Company officials pledged that the loan debt would be paid first before RADD Sports got paid.

Research shows that the complex will have a regional pull, drawing people willing to drive four hours to eight hours, said Anthony Homer, vice president of real estate for RADD Sports. About 1.2 million people live within a 30-minute drive, he added.

An estimated 30 to 40 special sporting events can be held at the complex, along with weekday activities for local amateur leagues and recreational visitors.

On average, more than $208 is spent daily per person during tournament weekends for the event, as well as at hotels, shops and restaurants in the area.

“We didn’t pull these numbers out of a hat,” Homer said.

However, county officials said banks wouldn’t accept RADD Sports’ revenue projections as the only collateral source for the loan.

Hope Allen, president of The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce, urged commissioners to support the project.

“The timing is right,” she said, during public comment. “Everybody is ready to move forward,” Allen said.

Published April 19, 2017

Connected City vote on Pasco’s agenda

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A final decision on an ambitious technology-driven community in eastern Pasco County – known as Connected City – is at hand.

The Pasco County Commission will have a final public hearing on the project on Feb. 7 at 1:30 p.m., in Dade City.

The Meridian Autonomous vehicle, known as the World Bus by Mobi-Cubed, will be the first self-driving vehicle tested in the Connected City. The ‘city of the future’ is being developed by Metro Development Group in partnership with Pasco County.(Courtesy of B2 Communications)

The first public hearing on Jan. 24 offered a review of the project and an opportunity for public comment.

Pasco County and Metro Development Group are partnering on a 10-year pilot project, authorized by state law. About 7,800 acres were set aside for development projects that encourage advanced technology and high-wage jobs.

The area is bordered by Interstate 75, State Road 52 and Curley and Overpass roads.

Metro is the first to offer a development project for the area. More developers are expected to take part in Connected City in the future.

“This project arguably is one of the leading technology designs in the country right now,” said Kris Hughes, the county’s planning and development administrator. “It sets new standards for physical development. It makes Pasco highly competitive and attractive as a place to live and work.”

Several people spoke during public comment on Jan. 24. Most supported Connected City.

“I feel the benefits outweigh the concerns brought up,” said resident Dawn Newsome. “I’m excited to see the opportunities that Connected City offers us.”

Too many younger Pasco residents leave home to find good-paying jobs, but that could change with Connected City, she said.

Hope Allen, president of The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce, offered a letter of support from the chamber’s board. She said the project would bring jobs, new housing, economic development and entrepreneurship to Pasco.

Resident Jennifer McCarthy had concerns about property rights of people who have lived in the area for generations. She also worried about increasing traffic congestion.

At build-out in 50 years, Connected City is expected to have a population of about 96,000 residents, living in about 37,000 homes and apartments. About 7.2 million square feet of space will be available for job creation.

“At best, Connected City is going to generate jobs that aren’t just retail and construction,” McCarthy said. “At worst, it adds to the urban sprawl that already plagues the area.”

During a video presentation, Metro developers provided new details on their plans.

A groundbreaking for the manmade Crystal Lagoon at Epperson Ranch will be on Feb. 2. The mixed-use, master-planned community is within Connected City boundaries.

The 7-acre lagoon, with crystal blue waters, is creating a buzz with companies that want to locate within the Epperson community, said Kartik Goyani, vice president of operations with Metro.

To meet demand, Metro now is planning a second and larger lagoon on the northern portion of the site, Goyani said.

Metro previously announced partnerships with Saint Leo University for an education center within Connected City. In addition, Florida Hospital and Tampa General Hospital plan to set up a new medical partnership in Connected City.

Meridian Autonomous Systems will provide support for self-driving and electrical vehicles.

“We are going to be at the forefront of this technology,” Goyani said.

Metro also is developing technology to operate street lights on solar and wind power.

The Museum of Science & Industry (MOSI) will partner with Metro to integrate learning activities into Connected City. Goyani also said the nonprofit is planning a $1 million exhibit on Connected City in 2017.

And, job creation already is coming into focus.

On Jan. 30, Metro Places had a job fair at Pasco-Hernando State College where more than 400 jobs were available.

“We hope to make this an annual event,” Goyani said.

Published February 1, 2017

Tampa Bay Express wins a crucial vote

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A hard-fought, often passionate battle over Tampa Bay’s transportation future ended with a vote in favor of building the Tampa Bay Express.

The project calls for 90 miles of new toll lanes on Interstate 275 from St. Petersburg to Wesley Chapel, along Interstate 4 to Plant City, and south on Interstate 75 to Manatee County.

Vehicles stack up near ramps onto and off Interstate 75 in Pasco County. The interchange is near Tampa Premium Outlets and an active development area for new shops and restaurants. Supporters of Tampa Bay Express hope the transportation project will ease congestion. (File Photo)
Vehicles stack up near ramps onto and off Interstate 75 in Pasco County. The interchange is near Tampa Premium Outlets and an active development area for new shops and restaurants. Supporters of Tampa Bay Express hope the transportation project will ease congestion.
(File Photo)

The project is seen by many in Pasco County as key to propelling economic growth and easing traffic congestion.

“We’re happy it passed,” said Hope Allen, executive director of The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce. “Common sense prevailed in that it will be moving forward. Further discussion will happen and that’s good.”

Advocates for and against packed the June 22 public hearing of the Hillsborough County Metropolitan Planning Organization. More than 160 people signed up for public comment during an 8-hour speaking marathon that lasted until almost 2:30 a.m. Most were from Tampa, but others came from St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Plant City and Pasco.

The Hillsborough MPO voted 12-4 to put the expressway project, known as TBX, as a priority on its five-year transportation plan. The plan must be submitted to the Florida Department of Transportation by July 15 for state and federal review.

Construction on phase one is slated for 2021 and would re-design the I-275 interchange into downtown Tampa.

Work on a new span of the Howard Frankland Bridge, between Tampa and St. Petersburg, however, is planned for 2017.

TBX will create new toll lanes adjacent to existing non-toll lanes at an initial cost of more than $3 billion, and potentially as much as $6 billion.

Toll fees would vary depending on traffic volume, with more expensive tolls applying at rush hour. No toll rates have been announced, but fees on existing toll systems, including on Interstate 95 in Miami, suggest they could be as high as $2 a mile.

A rapid bus transit service potentially could use the toll lane, but not pay tolls.

In the weeks leading up to the vote, the Wesley Chapel chamber joined with other area chambers and organizations in Pasco and the region, to publicly support and campaign for a favorable vote on TBX.

Four of Pasco County’s commissioners also signed a letter of support. Pasco County Commissioner Jack Mariano was the lone dissenter.

He objected to toll lanes, saying they would be unfair to people who can’t afford expensive toll fees.

Other options, including conversion of CSX rail lines for public transit, should be studied, Mariano said.

“To me, you are wasting capacity for a rich few,” he said. “There should be a big regional discussion on what is going on in the whole area.”

Opponents of TBX campaigned to block the project as a boondoggle that would benefit wealthy motorists, harm minority communities, lower air quality and crush ongoing revitalization of neighborhoods that suffered during highway widening projects in the 1960s and 1970s.

The project is expected to wipe out as many as 100 businesses and residences in historic neighborhoods of Tampa Heights, Seminole Heights and V.M. Ybor.

“This project is morally flawed on several levels,” said Beverly Ward, principal of BGW Associates, a company that studies effects of public policy decisions on communities.

But, supporters said TBX should be viewed as a regional project that would significantly decrease commute times, promote new development, and encourage more customers to visit existing businesses outside their neighborhoods.

“It’s going to hopefully expedite commuting up to us,” said Greg Lenners, general manager of The Shops at Wiregrass. “We’re still seen as a more rural area. It will be a plus.”

More than half of Pasco’s workers commute to jobs outside of the county, sometimes sitting for two hours in stalled traffic on interstates.

Others in St. Petersburg, Tampa and Plant City said they also want relief from congestion to spend more time with family, friends and children.

“This project will benefit everyone,” said Ken Roberts, an Apollo Beach resident and member of Citizens Organized for Sound Transportation. “We need to realize we are in this all together.”

Published June 29, 2016

Commuters could get a faster ride

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Pasco County commuters understand the frustration of gridlock, as they head to and from work every day.

Florida Department of Transportation officials believe the proposed construction of a project known as the Tampa Bay Express could make life easier for motorists traveling from St. Petersburg in Pinellas County to Wesley Chapel in Pasco County.

Nearly 50 miles of new toll lanes would be built adjacent to existing non-toll lanes along Interstate 275 and Interstate 4, in a project that state highway officials have pegged at initial costs of $3 billion, but said it could get as high as $6 billion.

If the project is approved, construction would be five or more years away.

The toll fees would vary depending on traffic volume —  with more expensive tolls applying at rush hour. SunPass would be the only accepted method of payment. The system will not allow billing by license plate.

The potential is there, too, for a rapid bus transit service that would operate within the toll lane system, but not pay tolls. A 44-foot “multimodal envelope” is included in the design. Park and ride stations would be built. including one in Wesley Chapel.

The project is stirring an intense struggle between those who support the TBX as a regional approach to easing traffic congestion and those who characterize the TBX as a boondoggle that will destroy historic Tampa neighborhoods, and do little for mass transit.

TBX-FDOT_system_map
The proposed Tampa Bay Express would add toll lanes to existing non-toll lanes along Interstate 275 and Interstate 4, creating a managed toll system linking Wesley Chapel in Pasco County to St. Petersburg in Pinellas County. (Courtesy of Florida Department of Transportation)

A coalition, including the Tampa Bay Partnership, now has The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce as a partner. The chamber’s board of directors approved a resolution on April 21 in support of TBX “as an essential foundation to pursue a variety of forward-thinking transit options” in the Tampa Bay area.

The day before the chamber’s vote, state transportation officials made a presentation to about 20 people who attended a public meeting on the TBX, sponsored by the chamber.

Kirk Bogen, the transportation department’s environmental manager engineer, said the Wesley Chapel presentation was the first one in the “outskirts” of the TBX project area.

“We’re putting out feelers, accepting invitations,” he said.

Hope Allen, president of the Wesley Chapel chamber, said the coalition’s goal is to inform people of what’s going on and “to make sure it’s the right fit for our commuters.”

The TBX and gridlock relief are key to the area’s future development, she said. Without the project, she added, “Wesley Chapel doesn’t look quite as appealing. We’re here to help you get this moving along.”

The toll express lanes also have strong support from Mayor Bob Buckhorn.

But, the project faces resistance within Tampa’s historic neighborhoods, including Tampa Heights, Ybor City and Seminole Heights. Community activists and a newly formed Sunshine Citizens coalition are working hard to block the TBX.

They have held a series of protest marches through neighborhoods that could lose about 100 businesses and homes to the road project. Among area businesses that could be torn down are Café Hey, the Oceanic Market and La Segunda Central Bakery, which has operated in Ybor City for more than 100 years. A public housing complex, Mobley Park apartments, also could be torn down.

Many in the neighborhoods remember past urban renewal projects that divided and devastated communities.

A crucial vote on the matter will take place on June 22 at 6 p.m., at the Hillsborough Metropolitan Planning Organization in the Hillsborough County Commission Chamber, at 601 E. Kennedy Blvd., in Tampa.

Members of that board approved the project in 2015 as part of their Transportation Improvement Plan, but opponents are hoping to sway some members to vote against it now.

There is critical need for the project and for toll revenues that can “help maintain the roads into the future,” Bogen said. Otherwise, he said, “Your system basically will continue to fail.”

On any day during rush hour, Pasco residents chug south on I-275 at speeds well under highway limits.

“I spend so much time stuck on freeways or Bearss Avenue or downtown, I don’t know where the time goes,” said Tom Ryan.

Ryan is economic development manager for the Pasco Economic Development Council, but said he was speaking as a private citizen.

Greg Vinas, B2B sales manager in Wesley Chapel, said he also would like to see light rail as an option, but the TBX is needed to reduce congestion and create connections.

“It will make the community that much smaller,” he said.

With improved transportation, one trend he hopes to see is reverse commuting with Tampa area residents coming to Pasco for jobs, as the area attracts new businesses.

“I know people now (from Tampa) who won’t come up here,” Vinas said.

To find out more about the proposed TBX project, visit TampaBayExpress.com. To learn more about the opposition, visit StopTBX.com.

Published April 27, 2016