The Laker/Lutz News

Pasco-Hernando State College

Chalk Talk 01/26/2022

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Family Fest & Health Fair
Pasco-Hernando State College (PHSC) will host a free Family Fun Festival and Health Fair at the school’s New Port Richey campus, 10230 Ridge Road, on Feb. 5 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Festivities will include music, food, campus tours, children’s activities, crafts, games, prizes and giveaways.

Information on PHSC programs, financial aid, scholarships, student activities and athletics also will be provided; and application fees for college admission will be waived for prospective students in attendance.

Students under the age of 18 interested in applying at PHSC must be present along with a parent or guardian.

The free event, sponsored by the Musunuru family, will be hosted in recognition of Pasco County’s Rao Musunuru, M.D. Day, established on Feb. 1, 2014 by the Pasco County Commission to honor the nationally renowned, Hudson-based cardiologist and his many initiatives to support community health.

Organizations providing health care, mental health services, diet and fitness programs, or any service related to community wellness can reserve a free table for the event’s Health Fair online at tinyurl.com/ya6cfur2.

To register for the event, visit PHSC.edu/about/events.

Open House
Land O’ Lakes Christian School, 5105 School Road in Land O’ Lakes, will host an open house on Jan. 30 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

The school encompasses PK3 through 12th grade.

It has full accreditation, affordable tuition, character training, college prep classes, fine arts, and athletics.

For information, call 813-995-9040.

Student achievements
These students were named to the fall 2021 Dean’s List at their respective schools:

  • Madison Nichols, of Odessa, Nazareth College, Rochester, New York
  • Laurie Schlosser, of Land O’ Lakes, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh
  • Timothy Williams, of Lutz, Wheaton College (Illinois)

Afterschool craft
New River and Hugh Embry library staff will visit Rodney B. Cox Elementary School, 37615 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., in Dade City, on Feb. 2 from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., for an afterschool craft.

For information, call the New River Library at 813-788-6375.

Flexible-start classes
Registration for Hillsborough Community College’s (HCC) spring flex-start semester is underway, with an offering of more than 1,000 classes.

The flex-start schedule offers a variety of start dates, times and modalities, including on campus, online, and live online, to ensure that students have the flexibility they need.

Students can earn credits applicable to any of HCC’s associate in arts and associate in science degrees, college credit and postsecondary adult vocational credits.

Tuition assistance also is available.

Flex-start semester dates are: Feb. 7 (12-week classes); Feb. 14 (10-week classes and five-week classes); March 8 (eight-week classes); and March 29 (five-week classes).

For information, visit HCCfl.edu/flexstart.

Scholarship applications
Supervisor of Elections Brian E. Corley is accepting applications for the Florida State Association of Supervisors of Elections Scholarship (FSASE).

Applicants must be at least a junior in college; be enrolled or accepted as a full-time student in a senior college or university in Florida, and have at least a C average or above for the previous year; have been a resident of Florida for two years; and demonstrate a financial need.

Two letters of recommendation, one from a college or university last attended or graduated from, and one from a personal reference should accompany the application.

The applicant also must be a registered voter.

Applications, as well as additional requirements, guidelines and eligibility information, can be found online at PascoVotes.gov, by selecting the 2022 FSASE Scholarship Application under the Newsworthy tab on the homepage.

Deadline for getting applications to the supervisor’s office is March 11.

Applicants will personally be interviewed by Corley, who will then select one finalist from Pasco County for consideration by the FSASE Scholarship Committee.

The association will award four $1,200 scholarships statewide to a political science/public or business administration or journalism/mass communications major.

Celebrating history, through art

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Pasco-Hernando State College (PHSC) kicked off 2022 and the first celebration of PHSC’s 50th anniversary, with the unveiling of the college’s first commissioned artwork.

Artist S. Blake Harrison explains the process he used to create a mural commissioned by Pasco-Hernando State College that incorporates much of Wesley Chapel’s history, during an unveiling of the piece at the college’s Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch. (Fred Bellet)

A reception and ribbon-cutting were held to showcase “Double Branch,” a 4 foot by 16 foot work, by artist S. Blake Harrison.

The program featured Dr. Timothy Beard, college president; Dr. Kevin O’ Farrell, provost at the Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch; Madonna Jervis Wise, a local historian and author; Dr. Lisa Richardson, executive director of the Pasco-Hernando State College Foundation; Andrew Beman-Cavallaro, associate director of libraries for the college; Janet Schalk, a PHSC librarian; and Harrison, the mural artist, who is based in Micanopy.

The college’s foundation paid for the mural, which honors the history and progress of Wesley Chapel, and commemorates PHSC’s golden anniversary.

Local historian Madonna Jervis Wise gave the audience a glimpse of Wesley Chapel’s colorful history. She included a photograph of Bruce B. Downs, the man for whom a now-heavily traveled road in Wesley Chapel was named. At one point, long before the community’s burgeoning growth, Bruce B. Downs Boulevard was known as ‘the road to nowhere.’

The 4 foot by 16 foot mural is believed to the largest mural in Wesley Chapel, O’ Farrell said, in his opening remarks at the Jan. 5 ceremony. It is displayed on a wall in the fourth-floor lobby of Building D, on the Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch, at 2727 Mansfield Blvd.

The provost said much research and thought went into the creation of the mural, which includes elements inspired by “Images of America: Wesley Chapel,” a local history book written by Madonna Jervis Wise.

The author said that unlike Zephyrhills and Dade City — which both have city governments, historic buildings and established town centers — Wesley Chapel offered no clear place for her to begin her research.

So, she relied on her background in genealogy to help her find descendants of families with deep roots in Wesley Chapel.

She began her quest by tracking down Marco Edward Stanley, of Gainesville, who arranged for Wise to interview his mother, 95-year-old Lillie Sapp Stanley.

That interview led to others, and ultimately Wise was able to tell the story of the community. Her book chronicles the various names the community has been known by through the years; its turpentine, lumber, moonshine and ranching industries; where the residents attended church, where they went to school and what they did for fun.

Dr. Kevin O’ Farrell, provost at the Porter Campus, discusses some of the elements featured in the mural. The work was done on plywood, using acrylic paint.

“We relied so heavily on Madonna’s work and her historical research, and that really inspired Blake to take those images and take those concepts and put together something that is as beautiful as this large, 4-by-16, piece of commissioned art,” O’ Farrell said.

Andrew Beman-Cavallaro, associate director of libraries, credited librarian Janet Schalk for working closely with Harrison on the project.

The artist expressed gratitude to Schalk for her guidance and to Wise for her work to preserve local history.

He said the mural’s panels reflect a narrative through art, featuring the area’s natural beauty, including trees and wildlife; its industry, including moonshine and trains; and its educational history, including the Porter campus and the college’s new Instructional Performing Arts Center, known as IPAC.

Dr. Timothy Beard, president of Pasco-Hernando State College, a featured speaker during the celebration, praised the mural created by artist S. Blake Harrison, extolling its size, vibrant colors and its potential to be a source of inspiration for others.

The college president was enthusiastic about the result of Harrison’s work.

“This is just an awesome piece of art,” Beard said, marveling at its size, vibrant colors and ingenuity.

“This event is the very first event associated with our 50th anniversary, to be celebrated officially July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023,” Beard said.

“Certainly we’ve come a long way,” the college president continued, “from having classes in backrooms, storefronts and churches.

“At PHSC, we promote and support many innovative, worthwhile programs that advance health, science and technology. But most recently, we have also embraced the arts, as never before,” Beard said.

He pointed to the college’s newly opened IPAC, as an example, of that new commitment.

The facility is dedicated to instruction in the performing arts, including music, theater and dance, as well as instruction in the digital arts.

It, too, is located in Wesley Chapel — next to Cypress Creek High School and Cypress Creek Middle School — at 8657 Old Pasco Road.

Published January 19, 2022

Pasco’s growth likened to adding ‘a good-sized city’

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Pasco County’s burgeoning development is evident.

Subdivisions are springing up. New businesses are moving in. Roads are being built. And, there are more places to shop, eat, learn and have fun.

A 20% growth in population between 2010 and 2020 has created new opportunities, but also presents challenges — and, Pasco County Administrator Dan Biles gave a big-picture look at the county’s growth during the North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce’s Nov. 2 breakfast meeting.

Pasco’s population, estimated at 464,697 in 2010, grew to 561,891 in 2020, according to U.S. census data.

“A 100,000 (people) is a good-sized city itself,” Biles observed.

Most of Pasco’s growth was spread out throughout the county, with 60% of the county’s population now living west of U.S. 41 and about 40% living east of it.

Biles addressed the opportunities and the challenges created by Pasco’s swelling population. He also touched on Pasco’s future prospects, during his talk on the Porter campus of Pasco-Hernando State College, in Wesley Chapel.

Pasco County Administrator Dan Biles gave members of the North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce a big-picture look at what’s happening in Pasco County, particularly regarding the opportunities and challenges presented by the county’s rapid growth. (B.C. Manion)

Although the county has New Port Richey, Port Richey, Dade City, Zephyrhills, San Antonio and St. Leo within its borders, roughly 92% of the county’s residents live in unincorporated areas.

Residents living outside of municipal boundaries rely on the county to deliver the types of services that cities normally provide, Biles said.

And, it takes a sizable staff to deliver them, the administrator said, noting the county’s 2021-2022 budget authorizes 3,200 positions.

The budget includes additional personnel for two new fire stations that are coming online and beefs up its development services office to address the staggering demands.

Permitting activity has been on a steady climb.

“October was actually the first month we actually dropped below year-over-year in 18 months,” Biles said.

He also noted: “We have consistently, since last July, issued about as many or more single-family permits every month than Hillsborough County.

“By the end of August, we had issued more single-family home permits in 2021 than we had issued in all of 2020. And that’s with builders tapping the brake and metering themselves.

“Yes, the market is crazy.

“Part of this is happening because of the reception that builders and developers are getting south of us,” the administrator said.

The Pasco County Commission has worked to create a welcoming environment for the development community, the administrator said, noting “not necessarily to compete with Hillsborough, but (so) that the development community would prefer to be in Pasco, than they would south of us.”

The rapid growth has impacts.

“Have you tried to get a permit from us recently? It’s not easy,” Biles said.

Besides residential growth, there’s been a significant uptick in commercial activity, too.

“Commercial is up 40% year-over-year, and that’s the one we want, right? Because they’re not homesteaded, from an ad valorem tax perspective. They actually help pay for the services we deliver to single-family.

“Our site plan approvals have doubled, year-over-year.

“The MPUDs (master-planned unit developments) almost doubled year-over-year.

“Even the stuff that’s in the pipeline isn’t slowing down.

“We’ve issued over 14,000 utility connection permits in the last 12 months, which is double the number of single-family permits,” he said.

Sales tax revenues are up, too, coming in at 15% to 20% higher, compared to a normal growth rate closer to 3%, year-over-year, Biles said.

While some of the increase can be attributed to taxing internet sales, most of it stems from consumers making more purchases.

Biles also noted that revenues based on increased property values went up 10.8%, and that’s including homesteaded properties, which are protected from significant property tax increases.

The county has finally recovered from the impacts of the Great Recession, when property values plummeted.

“It took us 12 years to get back to 2008 values. We finally got there in 2019-2020,” Biles said.

Biles told the crowd that Pasco has added 23,000 jobs during the past 12 months, and that’s not counting the positions that remain vacant, as employers search for qualified candidates.

The county’s tourism is on the upswing, too, he said.

“We almost doubled the amount of visitors last quarter from the quarter last year,” he said.

“We went from 236,000 to over 400,000 visitors in that quarter, and that’s when we were still in the wave, starting to come down the backside of the Delta COVID wave,” Biles said.

Looking into the future, Biles sees great things arising from Moffitt Cancer Center’s planned campus on 775 acres, in the upcoming Angeline community in Land O’ Lakes.

“For perspective, the corner they (Moffitt) have at Suncoast and Ridge Road is larger than the Central Business District of Tampa,” Biles said.

The campus is going to be a mix of profit, nonprofit, research and health care — and is expected to generate 14,000 jobs, an estimate that Biles thinks is probably too low.

The Moffitt campus, Biles said, will have significant consequences.

“This is a generational type thing. Forty and 50 years from now, our kids and grandkids will think of Pasco, and they will think of the cancer research — and maybe cure, that would be nice — that happened in Pasco County.”

He expects Moffitt to submit for permits sometime within the next six months.

Revised November 17, 2021

School board approves $52.7 million magnet school

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Work is moving ahead on a new magnet school for sixth- through 12th-grade students, which is expected to usher in a broad array of new opportunities for students.

The Pasco County School Board approved a $52.7 million contract with Ajax Building Company, during the board’s Nov. 2 meeting.

The 6-12 school is planned on an 18.8-acre site within the community of Angeline, south of State Road 52, north of the future Ridge Road extension and west of Sunlake Boulevard.

The school board, acting as the Pasco County School Board Leasing Corporation, previously approved the sale of bonds to finance the new magnet school and to complete projects at Hudson and Gulf High schools. The sale of $80 million in bond was completed on Nov. 2.

The school site is within Angeline, which is being billed as a wellness community. Angeline will be developed on thousands of acres of land, east of the Suncoast Parkway and south of State Road 52.

Within that area, Moffitt is planning its Pasco County campus. The cancer center’s presence in Pasco is expected to include a massive research and corporate innovation district. It has site entitlements that encompass 24 million square feet, and include plans for a hospital, research and development space, office, manufacturing, laboratories, pharmacies, educational facility/university, hotel, and commercial space. The multiyear, multiphase project is expected to create 14,500 jobs.

At a previous school board meeting, Ray Gadd, deputy superintendent for Pasco County Schools, reported that Moffitt and Pasco-Hernando State College are working together “to develop a very unique school setting.”

The school is designed for 1,700 students, according to the Ajax contract.

Plans call for a facility with 186,882 gross square feet.

It will have:

  • A one-story administration building
  • A one-story dining/multipurpose area, with a fully functioning kitchen
  • A two-story media and band area
  • A four-story classroom wing

Other parts of the site development include parking, drives, walkway canopies, an aluminum shade system, fencing, a walking trail, sidewalks, underground utilities, landscaping, irrigation and other infrastructure.

Construction is expected to take 18 months, with the closeout taking 1.5 months, bringing the total to 19.5 months, according to the contract.

Substantial completion is expected in April of 2023, with a final completion in June of 2023.

Harvard Jolly is the architect on the school district project.

Published November 10, 2021

Moffitt and Pasco Schools have big plans

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Pasco County Schools and Moffitt Cancer Center envision great possibilities of working together when the school district builds its planned 6-12 magnet STEAM school on land near Moffitt’s planned campus in Land O’ Lakes.

Ray Gadd, deputy superintendent for Pasco County Schools, recently updated the school board about a meeting between school district and Moffitt staff members.

“We had our first real, live, meeting with the administrative staff of Moffitt Cancer Center. And, it went really very, very well,” Gadd told the school board on Oct. 5.

“On the Angeline property, as the crow flies, is kind of back behind Land O’ Lakes High School, Moffitt is putting in a hospital and a big research center, and we have a school right across the street,” Gadd said.

“That school, we’ll start construction on that, I think, about mid-October. We’ll probably be the first building up out there. And, we are currently working with Moffitt and Pasco-Hernando State College to develop a very unique school setting.”

The campus will serve students in grades six through 12.

“More than likely, the upper classmen will have an opportunity to interact in the Moffitt hospital, with Moffitt researchers; (and) participate in apprentice programs and internships.

“It would be something that is very unique to the Pasco school system,” Gadd said, noting that Dr. Kim Moore, assistant superintendent who oversees the district’s career and technical programs, was at the meeting, as well as Dr. Monica Ilse, assistant superintendent for high schools, and Steve Hegarty, public information officer.

“We had a very, very positive reception from the Moffitt folks,” Gadd said.

In remarks to her school board colleagues, Cynthia Armstrong said it’s exciting “that we’re going to have a magnet school right next to their campus, which is going to be huge. So, we’re very excited about that.”

That meeting was a follow-up to a previous session between Gadd and Dr. Patrick Hwu, president and CEO of Moffitt.

Gadd previously briefed school board members about his meeting with Hwu.

During that briefing, Gadd told board members that he’d “heard through the grapevine that he (Hwu) was a big supporter of education, public education.”

But Gadd added: “My meeting with him was beyond expectations. I went there with a few ideas and he had hundreds of ideas about how our new STEM magnet in the Angeline area could be a partner with Moffitt.”

Gadd noted: “We’d have to work through all kinds of legal issues, as he and I discussed, but having students actually sit in, participate in procedures, surgeries, internships. Having graduate students and doctors actually come to the school building and teach courses and work with us, district-wide on virtual programs for kids, who are in nursing programs, health programs, biomedical engineering and those kinds of things.

“He was exuberant, and we made arrangements to connect my staff with his staff. I am really looking forward to the potential we have to work with Moffitt,” Gadd said.

Funding for the construction of the district’s planned 6-12 school in Land O’ Lakes was approved on Oct. 5, when the school board adjourned, then reconvened as the Pasco County School Board Leasing Corporation to approve $85 million in financing that will pay for the lease‐purchase financing of that school, and projects Hudson and Gulf high schools.

The new Angeline mixed-use community — which is being billed as a wellness-themed community — will be developed on thousands of acres of land, east of the Suncoast Parkway and south of State Road 52.

Moffitt plans to create a massive research and corporate innovation district.

Site entitlements for Moffitt’s project, which encompass 24 million square feet, include plans for a hospital, research and development space, office, manufacturing, laboratories, pharmacies, educational facility/university, hotel, and commercial space. The multiyear, multiphase project is expected to create 14,500 jobs.

The school district’s new school in Angeline will be designed for 1,694 student stations, which at 90% capacity translates to about 1,530 students, according to a previous report in The Laker/Lutz News.

The school board hired Ajax Building Company at its Sept. 15, 2020 meeting to do pre-construction work at the 6-12 STEAM school site.

The school is planned on an 18.8-acre site within Angeline, south of State Road 52, north of the future Ridge Road extension and west of Sunlake Boulevard, according to Ajax’s website.

“Campus plans include a one-story administration area, a one-story dining and multipurpose area with a full kitchen, two-story media, band and art areas, and a four-story classroom wing, with all areas connected by a one-story and two-story atrium/central corridor, the website post says.

The site development also includes “walkway canopies, aluminum shade system, fencing, walking trail, sidewalks, chiller/generator plan, site lighting, underground utilities, landscaping and irrigation,” according to information posted by Ajax.

Harvard Jolly is the architect on the school district project.

Published October 13, 2021

Fall season offers exciting local sports action

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The fall sports season is here, and there’s plenty of action on tap across The Laker/Lutz News coverage area.

Here’s a closer look at some notable storylines, events and other local happenings these next few months.

The Gaither Cowboys are poised to be one of the Tampa Bay area’s top football teams this year. (Courtesy of Gaither High School Athletics Department)

Which area prep football program will reign supreme?
Fall is synonymous with football — particularly the Friday night lights variety in many communities and small towns. There are about 15 high schools in The Laker/Lutz News coverage area in Hillsborough and Pasco counties. Several of those football programs are expected to have successful, winning campaigns in 2021.

Deciding which program is best is difficult, considering varying school sizes and classifications. However, it might be wise to pay close attention to the Gaither Cowboys (7A), Wiregrass Ranch Bulls (7A), Zephyrhills Bulldogs (5A) and Zephyrhills Christian Warriors (2A).

By year’s end, one or more of these programs could be showing gaudy records and an appearance in the state series for its respective classification.

Of course, winning an FHSAA (Florida High School Athletic Association) 11-man football title is extremely elusive. The last local program to do so was the Pasco Pirates some three decades ago — back in 1992 when they downed Tampa Jesuit 28-16 in the 3A state championship at the University of Florida’s Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

If you can catch just one regular-season game in person this season, check out the 64th edition of the 9-Mile War between rivals Pasco and Zephyrhills. This year’s contest is set for Nov. 5, at Bulldog Stadium at Zephyrhills High School. Pasco leads the all-time series, 41-22.

The Bishop McLaughlin Hurricanes varsity volleyball program has had an incredible three-year run. All that eludes them is a state title. (Courtesy of Bishop McLaughlin Catholic High School Athletics Department)

Bishop McLaughlin volleyball expects to remain elite
The Bishop McLaughlin Catholic High School varsity girls volleyball program has enjoyed one of the more dominant runs across any area sports program over the last three years — going 24-3 in 2020, 25-4 in 2019, and 30-1 in 2018, respectively.

The Hurricanes should again remain very competitive in the FHSAA’s Class 3A ranks, under longtime coach Doug Chinchar.

Despite the graduation of Florida Dairy Famers 3A state volleyball player of the year Audrey Koenig —now a freshman at Florida State University — the team returns several other All-State performers and Division I prospects. This includes junior outside hitter Maddie Snider (Florida State University verbal commit) and junior outside hitter Ali Waldon (Mercer University), among others.

What eludes the Hurricanes is a state crown. The program reached the state semifinals in 2020, the regional semifinals in 2019 and was state runner-up in 2018.

Will this be the year the Hurricanes are the last team standing in its class?

The Sunlake High boys cross country team finished state runner-up at last year’s Class 3A meet. (File)

Sunlake High cross-country keeps pushing the pace
The Sunlake High cross-country program looks to remain top dog among area schools.

The Seahawks boys squad finished second in the 3A state meet last season — representing the all-time best mark ever achieved by any Pasco County prep cross-country program.

The school’s girls squad performed well, too, posting a 10th-place finish at the state 2020 meet.

And, a majority of Sunlake’s top distance runners are expected to return.

Last season, there was only one senior among the boys team’s top seven runners and two seniors among the girls team’s top seven.

The Seahawks haven’t been complacent in the offseason, either. Athletes participated in a running camp at University of North Carolina-Asheville — which featured lots of challenging hills work.

Speaking of high school cross-country, pay attention to Land O’ Lakes resident Elli Black — a home-schooled student who runs for Tampa Cambridge Christian School. Black is coming off a second-place finish in the 1A girls state meet, posting 18:28.5, as a seventh-grader. She’s shaved several seconds off that mark since then.

Former Tampa Bay Rowdies head coach Stuart Campbell is leading the Pasco-Hernando State College’s upstart women’s soccer program. (File)

PHSC women’s soccer kicks off inaugural season
Pasco-Hernando State College launched a women’s soccer program earlier this summer, and will kick off its inaugural season in September.

The program is led by former Tampa Bay Rowdies head coach Stuart Campbell, a familiar face and widely known figure in the soccer ranks. The English-born Campbell played professional soccer from 1996 to 2013, before serving as the assistant coach for the Rowdies from 2014 to 2015 and head coach from 2015 to 2018.

Women’s soccer marks PHSC’s first new sport since 2005 — when it brought on women’s cross-country, under head coach Jackie Wachtel.

PHSC joins four other NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic Association) women’s soccer programs in the state — Polk State, Daytona State, Eastern Florida State, and Asa College.

The upstart program had open tryouts in late June at the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus of Pasco County, in Wesley Chapel.

As for the style of play, players and fans can expect lots of action and high-scoring affairs, under Campbell’s tutelage.

Tampa Bay Lightning prospect Gabriel Fortier is expected to highlight the 2021 NHL Prospect Showcase at AdventHealth Center Ice in Wesley Chapel. (Courtesy of Tampa Bay Lightning media relations)

AdventHealth Center Ice to host 2021 NHL Prospect Showcase
Local hockey fans will get a taste of the National Hockey League’s (NHL) next generation of top-end talent later this month — in Pasco County no less.

AdventHealth Center Ice in Wesley Chapel is the site of the 2021 NHL Prospect Showcase, to be held Sept. 18 through Sept. 21.

Hosted by the back-to-back Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning, the event will welcome prospect teams from the Carolina Hurricanes, Nashville Predators and Florida Panthers.

All four teams will play each other once over the four-day showcase.

Any skater or goaltender in each of the four organizations on an entry-level contract (or less), provided they are 24 years old or younger and have less than 20 games of NHL experience, are eligible to participate in the showcase.

Teams will dress 18 skaters and two goaltenders for each contest. Games are regulation length with three 20-minute periods. A five-minute, three-on-three overtime period will determine a winner if games are tied after regulation. Games will conclude with a five-player-per-team shootout regardless of the final score.

The Lightning roster will include a number of the organization’s top prospects, including 2018 second-round draft pick Gabriel Fortier, who recorded six goals and 10 points in 30 games last season for the Syracuse Crunch, the Lightning’s American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate.

Also participating for the Bolts is a pair of 2020 second-round draft selections in forwards Jack Finley and Gage Goncalves, who each made their professional hockey debut with Syracuse last season.

Meanwhile, three of Tampa Bay’s selections from the 2021 NHL Draft in July will be in attendance as well — defenseman Roman Schmidt (third round, No. 96 overall), forward Cameron MacDonald (fifth round, No. 160 overall) and forward Niko Huuhtanen (seventh round, No. 224 overall).

The contests will be open to the public. They’ll also be streamed live on TampaBayLightning.com.

Published September 01, 2021

Ice center names academy director

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Hockey in Florida is hotter than hot following back-to-back championships by the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Glen Metropolit, former Tampa Bay Lightning player, is the new director of AdventHealth Center Ice’s Global Prospect Academy. (Fred Bellet)

Now, AdventHealth Center Ice has strengthened its connection to the Bolts, through a new hire.

Glen Metropolit, a former Tampa Bay Lightning forward, has been selected as the new director of AdventHealth Center Ice’s Global Prospects Academy.

The academy provides a tailor-made educational approach — giving students a chance to combine intensive hockey training, along with scholastic pursuits.

Gordie Zimmermann, chief executive officer for AdventHealth Center Ice, announced Metropolit’s selection during a news conference last week at the five-rink facility, off Cypress Ridge Drive at the Interstate 75 interchange, in Pasco County.

The academy is part of ice center’s mission to build a “developmental pipeline” for future hockey players – both boys and girls – who want to play on college, professional or Olympic hockey teams.

About 30 students are expected to enroll in the program, which will more than double the previous year’s enrollment of 14,  Zimmermann said.

North Tampa Christian Academy will provide the academic curriculum, with Global Prospect Academy students attending classes at North Tampa Christian, which is about three miles from the ice rink.

Gordie Zimmermann is the owner and chief executive officer of AdventHealth Center Ice, the largest ice sports training facility in the Southeast. (Fred Bellet)

A classroom dedicated to academics also is located at the ice rink.

North Tampa Christian will provide transportation between the two sites.

The program will be crafted to meet both academic requirements and hockey training schedules. Pasco-Hernando State College also will provide college course opportunities.

“It’s a highly competitive academic program,” said Stephen Herr, North Tampa Christian’s headmaster. “They are going to get a top-notch education. They are going to get academic scholarships they hope for, in addition to athletic scholarships they and their parents have dreamed of for so long.”

The program provides an opportunity previously not available to area student-athletes, Zimmermann said.

Academy hockey players run drills on the ice as AdventHealth Center Ice officials announce Glen Metropolit as the new director of the Global Prospect Academy.

“Kids were going to Michigan or Boston to play hockey. There were no programs in Florida. In the future, we’ll grow and include other sports we have here,” he said.

Figure skating could become the second ice sport for a program like the one the academy provides for youth hockey players, Zimmermann said. It also will recruit students nationally and internationally, he added.

He mentioned one family from the Czech Republic that is considering a move to Pasco so a son can enroll in the academy to play hockey. They also have a daughter who figure skates, Zimmermann said.

They are just one example of the broad-based interest in the new academy, Zimmermann said.

Brian Bradley represented the Tampa Bay Lightning organization at the news conference. The former Tampa Bay Lightning player is an inductee into the Sports Club of Tampa Bay Hall of Fame.

Before accepting his new role, Metropolit served as assistant director and head coach for the Lightning’s U18 Elite Training Program for high school students from grades nine through 12.

The former hockey player had stints in several national and international hockey leagues, and is an inductee into the ECHL (formerly East Coast Hockey League) Hall of Fame.

He also is a recipient of the Bill Masterson Memorial Trophy, an annual award bestowed to a hockey player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey.

Gordie Zimmermann, left, chief executive officer of AdventHealth Center Ice; Glen Metropolit, new director of Global Prospects Academy; and Stephen Herr, headmaster of North Tampa Christian Academy, chat prior to a press conference.

Metropolit describes hockey as “the ultimate sport.”

Of his new appointment, he said: “This is just another way I can give back and help hockey players reach their goals.”

Metropolit’s staff includes Stan Neckar, former National Hockey League and Tampa Bay Lightning player; Nick Lindberg, former professional hockey player; and John Drysdale, a USA level 4 certified coach, a bronze certified goalie coach, and a former youth development director.

Zimmermann noted that the interest in hockey, in general, has grown steadily over the past five years.

“We’ve probably doubled the size of youth hockey in Florida,” he said.

AdventHealth Center Ice provides considerable opportunities for those interested in developing their talents, and for spectators who enjoy watching sports.

The facility is the largest ice sports training in the Southeast, with one Olympic-sized rink, three National Hockey League style rinks, and one mini-rink.

It also boasts locker rooms, a fitness and sports recovery center, off-ice training area, full-size restaurant and bar, concession stand and pro shop.

It hosted the 2018 U.S. Women’s Ice Hockey Team training program, and the team went on to win Olympic gold.

Adult and youth leagues play there, and it attracts special events — which, in turn, has a positive impact on Pasco County’s economy.

Visitors to the area to attend events at the ice center often stay in area hotels and spend money at gas stations, at restaurants and at area attractions.

By Kathy Steele

Published August 18, 2021

East Pasco chambers pause merger discussions, for now

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After several months of discussions regarding a potential merger between chambers of commerce in Dade City and Zephyrhills, those talks have been put on pause — for now.

“The conversation has definitely taken a back seat,” according to John Moors, executive director of the Greater Dade City Chamber of Commerce. “I can’t say that it’s shut down for good, that we don’t know, but the task force has stopped meeting currently.”

The boards for both chambers approved the formation of a task force last year to look into the logistics and possible benefits of merging the two organizations.

The task force involved about 20 stakeholders — 10 from each respective organization — representing hospitals, banks, and other small businesses and groups.

(File)

Randy Stovall, provost emeritus for Pasco-Hernando State College, chaired the task force. He’s been active with both chambers for years.

The group met about a dozen times, from October 2020 through April 2021, with groups split into a budget committee, a membership committee and a mission committee.

Its three main objectives were membership, community advocacy and economic development.

The task force generated enough progress to reach a consensus on a proposed name for a merged chamber: Greater East Pasco Chamber Alliance.

But news that the merger talks have paused was announced in the Greater Dade City Chamber of Commerce’s August newsletter.

The newsletter indicated the Dade City chamber’s financial outlook exceeded expectations amid the COVID-19 pandemic, so merging its organization with the Zephyrhills chamber wasn’t quite as pressing as originally once thought.

Melonie Monson, the CEO of the Greater Zephyrhills Chamber of Commerce, said the task force, on the whole, had “put together very great reasons why a merger would be the right direction to go, and really had fleshed out the greatest perspectives from this and what advantage it would be for both communities.”

But she said various hurdles surfaced when trying to flesh out the finer details of a merger concept, she said.

Monson said “the biggest problem” resulted from both chambers being content with their own current leadership, and not wanting either her or Moors to step down or take a less prominent role within a merged organization.

(File)

Monson put it like this: “We just felt like, until one of us is ready to retire, then this would be on pause. Doesn’t mean that (a merger) wasn’t the right thing to do, it’s that neither one was ready to say goodbye.”

Another sticking point, she said, came with determining locations of where a combined chamber’s main office and secondary office should be situated — Zephyrhills, Dade City, or vice versa — and how to best leverage economy of scale.

“We felt strongly there needed to be a presence in both communities of the chamber,” Monson said.

Task force supports merger concept
The task force overall found a merged chamber “made sense” and could yield several benefits, Monson said.

Specifically, it suggested that a larger, combined chamber “would have a stronger voice and advocacy on the county and state level, and members would gain more of a value by expanding the geographic reach of the chamber,” Monson said.

It also suggested that merging the Dade City and Zephyrhills groups would better help navigate booming commercial and residential development in Central and East Pasco.

With that, Monson said the task force observed a merger “would really help us in the risk of losing our territory to other entities, and making a stand of, ‘This is East Pasco.’”

These were likewise important factors for leadership within the Dade City chamber, too.

Moors detailed how the East Pasco area historically has been known as a more rural area, with less focus on business development and manufacturing.

This may not be the case for much longer, with rampant growth on the community’s doorstep.

“For the most part, there hasn’t been a lot of activity of companies moving into this particular area, but we do see that this may well change as the population increases and the density increases and the demographics change,” he said.

As East Pasco continues to grow, Moors emphasized the importance of being “in front of that wave of growth, rather than trying to catch up.”

Pandemic spurred initial merger discussions
Both chamber leaders have casually discussed the possibility of combining their respective organizations for a few years now, but more serious talks didn’t begin until the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020.

Ramping up those conversations was important for the Dade City chamber to prepare an action plan in a worst-case scenario, given the uncertainty around the effects of the coronavirus on the area’s business and economic climate, Moors explained.

“With everything shut down, we just didn’t really know what anything was going to look like, we didn’t know what was going to happen with our membership, we didn’t know whether we were going to be able to have a Kumquat Festival, whether we were going to have any events, because at that point, everything was literally locked down. In fact, the chamber was closed for a period of time last year,” said Moors.

Since then, however, Moors said the Dade City chamber has experienced an upbeat financial outlook, with membership reportedly up 15% year-on-year, combined with a successful enough scaled-down Kumquat Festival.

Put another way, negative revenue impacts caused by COVID-19 never materialized for the chamber, Moors said. “So, the need to merge was not as urgent as we had feared,” he added.

Monson said the pandemic provided “a great opportunity” to form a task force to discuss the merits of a proposed merger, and garner various perspectives.

But she emphasized the Zephyrhills chamber didn’t need to enter the merger talks strictly out of concern regarding financial sustainability.

She said she was confident in her organization’s membership base and other efforts, even during the pandemic.

“You know, we’re a strong chamber no matter what, and we knew we were going to be,” she said. “We did not forecast the gloom and doom.”

Rather, joining forces with the Dade City chamber on a merger task force was more to vet the various benefits and outcomes of such an exercise, Monson acknowledged.

Merger talks likely not done
Monson said the merger concept — and its varied findings — will likely be revisited once she or Moors leave their current leadership posts, whenever that happens.  She said the work of the task force could be revisited, once she or Moors moves on.

“I believe that we could come up with great ideas of location, I think that would be something that we would get worked out pretty easily, but the biggest thing was we were going to pause it until one or the other was ready to retire, or move on to another venture in life,” Monson said.

If a merger eventually occurs, it would be the third merger of its type among Pasco County chambers.

The North Tampa Bay Chamber is the result of combining chambers that previously represented Wesley Chapel, New Tampa, Trinity and Odessa.

The Greater Pasco Chamber of Commerce resulted from a merger between the West Pasco and Central Pasco chambers.

Published August 11, 2021

Several local athletes taken in 2021 MLB Draft

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Aspirations of playing professional baseball may soon become a reality for a handful of athletes from local high schools and colleges in The Laker/Lutz News coverage area.

The Major League Baseball (MLB) 2021 first-year player draft spanned 20 rounds (and 612 picks) from July 11 through July 13.

The draft is held every summer by conference call among the 30 Major League clubs.

The clubs take turns selecting players in reverse order of their won-lost records at the close of the previous regular season.

Generally, a player is eligible for selection if the player is a resident of the United States or Canada and the player has never before signed a Major League or Minor League contract. Residents of Puerto Rico and other territories of the United States also are eligible for the Draft.

The basic categories of players eligible to be drafted are:

  • High school players, if they have graduated from high school and have not yet attended college or junior college
  • College players, from four-year colleges who have either completed their junior or senior years or are at least 21 years old; and
  • Junior college players, regardless of how many years of school they have completed.

Representing the highest selection from the local community was Sunlake High alum Tommy Mace, now a fourth-year junior from the University of Florida.

Sunlake High product Tommy Mace has been an impactful right-handed pitcher for the Florida Gators baseball program the past four seasons. He was selected 69th overall by the Cleveland Indians in the 2021 MLB first-year player draft. (Courtesy of University of Florida athletics department)

The imposing 6-foot-6, 230-pound right-handed pitcher was taken 69th overall by the Cleveland Indians — in Competitive Balance Round B between the second and third round.

The recommended bonus slot value for that lofty pick is just under $1 million, at $929,800.

If and when Mace signs, he’ll join another local product in the Indians organization — Gaither High product Oscar Mercado, who earned a call-up with the big league club in June.

Mace, 22, very well could’ve turned pro last year, but opted to return to school with hopes of further improving his draft stock.

This past season at Florida he posted a 4.38 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 113 strikeouts in 90.1 innings pitched, along with a 6-2 record.

Across his four-year college career, Mace compiled a combined 4.37 ERA, 1.279 WHIP and 258 strikeouts in 269.2 total innings pitched, with a 22-7 mark.

Mace was ranked as the No. 45 draft prospect, according to MLB.com’s 2021 pre-draft rankings.

He exhibits a four-pitch mix — fastball, slider, curveball and changeup. This includes a sinking two-seam fastball that is viewed as his top offering, touching 96 mph with cutting action, according to various scouting reports, including MLB.com.

MLB.com’s draft profile on Mace otherwise states: “Mace has gotten a bit bigger physically, which could help with consistency of velocity and stuff. He’s always been good at throwing strikes, but has been more a contact, ground ball kind of pitcher, rather than one who misses tons of bats. He did increase his strikeout rate while continuing to fill up the strike zone in 2021.”

Mace has been highly-regarded since his prep days at Sunlake, where he was a three-year varsity letter winner.

As a senior, Mace tallied a 1.29 ERA and 101 strikeouts in 77.2 innings, with an 8-2 record in 11 appearances — guiding the Seahawks to the Class 7A regional finals.

He won 19 games during his high school career, posting a combined 1.65 ERA and 196 strikeouts in 165.2 innings.

Mace was rated as No. 72 prep player in the class of 2017 by Perfect Game and No. 15 overall prep player in all of Florida — including the fifth-ranked, right-handed pitcher in the state.

Wharton High senior baseball standout Zach Ehrhard, left, won Hillsborough County’s 2021 Wade Boggs Athletic Achievement Award on the basis of athletic, scholastic and community achievements. Ehrhard was picked by the Boston Red Sox in the 13th round of the 2021 MLB Draft. Also pictured here is Boggs, middle, and Ehrhard’s older brother, Drew, who also won the award in 2017. (File)

Among other accolades, he was named MaxPreps Second Team All-American and National High School Coaches Association All-Southeast Team.

Mace previously was drafted out of high school in the 12th round (347th overall) by the Cincinnati Reds in 2017.

He, of course, didn’t sign with the Reds, instead opting to pitch for the Gators, which had then come off a 2017 College World Series crown — the first national championship in the program’s history.

Others drafted in later rounds
Mace was one several area players taken, albeit those in later rounds, on day three of the baseball draft.

Wharton High School senior Zach Ehrhard — an Oklahoma State University signee — was picked by the Boston Red Sox in the 13th round (367th overall).

The 5-foot-11, 175-pound switch-hitting shortstop batted .438 this season for the Wildcats, with three homers, 12 doubles, 29 runs scored and 21 RBIs, along with 26 stolen bases.

Ehrhard was this year’s recipient of the Wade Boggs Athletic Achievement Award, which honors a high school baseball player in Hillsborough County on the basis of outstanding athletic, scholastic and community achievements.

Baseball talent runs in the Ehrhard family.

His older brother, Drew, received the same prestigious county award in 2017 and went on to play collegiate baseball at the University of Tampa.

Another area prep position player, Gaither High senior A.J. Graham, was taken with the first pick in the 18th round (523rd overall) by the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The 6-3, 180-pound right-handed shortstop batted .346 with two homers, seven doubles, 18 runs scored, 14 RBIs and 12 stolen bases in 78 at-bats across 23 games this season.

Also picked in the 18th round was Saint Leo University left-handed pitcher Jimmy Burnette, landing 542nd overall to the Toronto Blue Jays.

This season the 6-foot-2, 205-pound redshirt senior led the Lions in innings pitched (45.0), wins (three) and strikeouts (53) to go along with a 5.80 ERA and 1.53 WHIP and a pair of complete games.

Burnette appears to have emerged in the inaugural MLB Draft League, a summer showcase for top draft-eligible prospects providing exposures to scouts, coaches and advanced baseball technologies.

Gaither High/University of Texas third baseman Cam Williams was selected by the Kansas City Royals in the 19th round of the 2021 MLB Draft. (Courtesy of University of Texas athletics department)

Playing for the league’s Mahoning Valley Scrappers in Niles, Ohio, Burnette posted a 3.09 ERA, 1.4 WHIP and 44 strikeouts in 23.1 innings pitched.

A Chicago native, Burnette transferred to Saint Leo from the University of Illinois this past season.

Gaither High/University of Texas third baseman Cam Williams was taken in the 19th round (559th overall) by the Kansas City Royals.

The 6-foot-2, 200-pound Odessa native starred for a Longhorns squad that had a third-place appearance at the 2021 College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska.

The fourth-year senior led Texas with 20 doubles and was second with 12 homers, to go along with .295 average, 42 runs scored and 51 RBIs spread across 61 starts at third base.

Prior to college, Williams led Gaither to the 2016 7A state championship his senior year and was named Rawlings-Perfect Game Honorable Mention All-American.

He was drafted out of high school in the 39th round by the Seattle Mariners, but didn’t sign, opting for Dallas Baptist University and San Jacinto College before transferring to Texas.

Williams’ father, Reggie, played four MLB seasons with the Anaheim Angels and Los Angeles Dodgers.

(Note: While slightly outside our coverage area, Fivay High/University of Mississippi product Gunnar Hoglund went in the first round (19th overall) to the Blue Jays. The 6-foot-4, 220-pound right-hander from Hudson was viewed as one of the draft’s most polished arms, but slipped slightly after having Tommy John elbow surgery in May.)

Robust draft history
It’s not uncommon for at least a few ballplayers from area high schools and colleges to be drafted each year.

In 2020, Steinbrenner High/Florida State University right-handed pitcher CJ Van Eyk went to the Blue Jays in the second round (42nd overall), and Wesley Chapel native/Bishop McLaughlin Catholic High/University of South Florida right-handed pitcher Carson Ragsdale went in the fourth round (116th overall) to the Philadelphia Phillies.

Saint Leo University left-handed pitcher Jimmy Burnette was selected by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 18th round of the 2021 MLB Draft. (Courtesy of Saint Leo University athletics department)

(Though slightly outside our coverage area on the west side of Pasco, Trinity native/Mitchell High catcher Jackson Miller went in the second round (65th overall) to the Reds.)

The 2019 MLB Draft also yielded a trio of area selections.

Land O’ Lakes High/St. Petersburg College second baseman Dustin Harris was selected in the 11th round (344th overall) by the Oakland Athletics; Pasco-Hernando State College/University of Tampa pitcher Tyler Beck was selected in 30th round (899th overall) by the Minnesota Twins in the; and Steinbrenner High/Mississippi State University pitcher Cole Gordon was selected in the 32nd round (958th overall) by the New York Mets.

Prior drafts yielded several community picks as well, including four in 2018 and six in 2017, respectively.

Locals picked in the 2021 MLB Draft

  • Sunlake High/University of Florida pitcher Tommy Mace (Cleveland Indians, Comp B, 69th overall)
  • Wharton High shortstop Zach Ehrhard (Boston Red Sox, 13th round, 376th overall)
  • Gaither High shortstop A.J. Graham (Pittsburgh Pirates, 18th round, 523rd overall)
  • Saint Leo University left-handed pitcher Jimmy Burnette (Toronto Blue Jays, 18th round, 543rd overall)
  • Gaither High/University of Texas third baseman Cam Williams (Kansas City Royals, 19th round, 559th overall)

Published July 21, 2021

Pasco gains state funding for wide assortment of projects

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Initially, things were looking pretty bleak on the state fiscal front — before the last session of the Florida Legislature.

Pasco County Commissioner Kathryn Starkey recalled some previous remarks from the county’s state lobbyist, Shawn Foster, of Sunrise Consulting.

“Before session started, you were like: ‘This is going to be a really bad session. We’re going to be billions of dollars in the hole,’” Starkey said, during the Pasco County Commission’s June 22 meeting.

Foster said that was before the dollars that came in from the America Rescue Act.

Nearly 10% of the state’s $101.5 billion came from the federal government, Foster said.

“If it had not been for that $10 billion that we got from the federal government, there would be no good here. There would be no good,” Foster said.

Without the federal money, he added: “There would be none of these projects on here, none of these other big grants.”

Instead, “the state took $7 billion of the American Rescue Act and implemented it into this year and held off another $3 billion for the next budget,” Foster said.

Instead of being decimated, the statewide budget includes:

  • $1 billion for community substance abuse and mental health
  • $3.2 million for homeless program challenge grants
  • $500 million for the Resilient Florida Trust Fund and programs
  • $626 million for septic to sewer and stormwater improvements
  • $146.7 million for the State Housing Initiative Partnership program
  • $74 million for the Florida Job Growth Grant Fund, including $24 million from last year
  • $1.5 billion in the Emergency Rental Assistance Program

The county can apply directly for funding through the Septic to Sewer/Stormwater Improvement program, Foster said.

“That was our Sen. (Wilton) Simpson’s priority and has been for years. I think it started with an idea a few years ago; it was $50 million. So, to see it up to $626 (million) is amazing.”

The lobbyist also noted that the Emergency Rental Assistance Program is one in which constituents can make direct applications, through OurFlorida.com.

Three Pasco County projects also went through to the governor.

Those were:

  • $6.5 million for the Handcart Road water and wastewater improvements
  • $200,000 for the Ackerman Street drainage improvements
  • $3,818,208 for the Lindrick sewer and water quality

“The county as a whole, really did well,” said Ralph Lair, the county’s intergovernmental affairs officer.

Other county projects receiving funding were:

  • $3 million to extend the runway at Zephyrhills Municipal Airport
  • $4,665,000 for the Sarah Vande Berg Tennis & Wellness Center in Zephyrhills
  • $25 million for a Florida National Guard Armory in Zephyrhills
  • $1.25 million for a CARES One-Stop Senior Center in Dade City
  • $450,000 for AmSkills Workforce Training
  • $25 million for a Pasco-Hernando State College student success and community engagement center in Dade City
  • $34,738 for a Pasco Association of Challenged Kids Summer Camp
  • $5 million for Metropolitan Ministries to expand its campus in Pasco County
  • $700,000 for Bridging Freedom Program in Pasco County

While Commissioner Mike Moore expressed gratitude for this year’s appropriations, he said the county needs to focus on securing funding to address flooding issues in areas such as Quail Hollow and around Eiland Boulevard.

“That needs to be a big focus, going forward,” Moore said. “Those are very important. Those affect our citizens on a day-to-day basis,” he said.

Commissioner Kathryn Starkey said she’d like to follow the Pinellas County Commission’s example of meeting with their county legislative delegation and with their federal legislative delegation.

She wants Pasco to be more proactive in seeking state and federal funding to help address county needs.

Foster expressed optimism about the state’s revenue prospects for next year.

Committee meetings will begin in the fall, and the next session of the legislature is set to start Jan. 11 and end on March 11.

Published July 07, 2021