The Laker/Lutz News

Starkey Ranch K-8

Designed with nature in mind, library receives recognition

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Pasco’s brand new Starkey Ranch Theatre Library Cultural Center (Starkey TLC) is getting some noteworthy attention and national recognition for its unique design.

Pasco County Libraries has announced that the library is featured in the Library Journal’s “Year in Architecture 2021” issue, according to a Pasco County news release.

Staff at the Starkey Ranch Theatre Library Cultural Center spotlight the Library Journal issue that features its national achievement. (Courtesy of Pasco County)

The library, which opened in August, is recognized by the magazine for incorporating nature in its design.

The use of soft, natural light in the lobby and natural wood in the main entryways is designed to help connect people with the outdoor environment, the release says.

“To be recognized by such a distinguished publication as Library Journal is quite an honor for Pasco County Libraries,” said Bob Harrison, communications program manager, in the release.

“We’re proud of the innovative design of the Starkey TLC and how the community has responded to it,” said Harrison.

The library was built in conjunction with, and partially funded by, Pasco County Schools, and serves as Starkey Ranch K-8 school’s media center.

Patrons can visit the library at 12118 Lake Blanche Drive in Odessa.

The general contractor for the project was the Walbridge Group of Tampa, and the architect was FleischmanGarcia Architecture.

The Starkey Ranch TLC joins three other libraries also featured for reflecting nature in the building design: Brooklyn Pubic Library’s Greenpoint Library and Environmental Education Center in New York; The Newark Public Library in New Jersey; and, the Ledding Library in Milwaukie, Oregon.

Published December 08, 2021

Massive Two Rivers development gets OK

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A huge swath of land now occupied primarily by pastures and trees is expected to become home to Two Rivers, off State Road 56, between Morris Bridge Road and U.S. 301.

The Pasco County Commission voted 5-0 to approve a master-planned unit development (MPUD) zoning that will allow 6,400 residences, more than 2.6 million square feet of office and industrial, and 630,000 square feet of commercial uses.

The 3,405-acre property’s southern boundary is on the north side of County Line Road, and its northern boundary is on the north side of State Road 56.

The Two Rivers development also includes a site for an elementary school, middle school and high school, an 80-acre district park and a public safety site.

The development also will feature a connectivity plan, with trails and pedestrian paths — aimed at making it easier for people to get around the community — without relying on vehicles.

The Eisenhower Property Group will be building the majority of residential uses within the project, said Clarke Hobby, an attorney representing the applicants. “The Thomas family is retaining substantially of the all non-residential uses within the MPUD,” he said.

The Thomas family also owns the adjacent property, directly south of the Two Rivers site, in Hillsborough County, and part of the approval for the Two Rivers project requires a connection between the two developments to give the Two Rivers project access to U.S. 301, on a planned extension of County Line Road through the Hillsborough tract.

If that connection isn’t made on the Hillsborough side, then Two Rivers will be required to make the connection on the Pasco side, as one of the conditions for approval.

The schools and district park are expected to be co-located, so they can share land and other amenities, according to Joel Tew, who is co-counsel with Hobby, for the applicants.

The exact access to the school isn’t shown on the map because the school district and county must work out their plans to ensure access and safety for different uses, Tew said.

The shared uses could be similar to the arrangement the county and school district have at the Starkey Ranch K-8 and district park site in Odessa.

The Two Rivers project has been in planning stages for decades, Hobby said, noting that “Bob Sierra had this site under contract back as far as 2008.”

The Thomas family played an instrumental role in helping to secure the funding for the first two lanes of the State Road 56 extension to U.S. 301, and then for lanes three and four of the extension, Hobby said.

“Two Rivers was the largest part of the additional surcharges that are imposed on developments in this area to pay for lanes three and four of that extension. Of the $26 million that the county has to pay back to the state infrastructure bank, $15 million of that comes solely from surcharges on development on Two Rivers,” he said.

“What we’re bringing to you today reflects a lot of thought and effort by a lot of parts of your staff, the school board, particularly your natural resources (department) and the county attorney’s office.

“We believe this project has been done the right way,” he said.

“One of the biggest things you have to remember about Two Rivers is that it truly is a mixed-use project,” Hobby said, with 2.6 million square feet of employment-generating uses.

“So, this project has been set up correctly, from the get-go. We’re not shortchanging it. And, we’re going to create a lot of jobs along the way, in addition to creating an overall great community,” Hobby said.

Some residents objected to aspects of the request, including potential traffic congestion, concerns about potential flooding, and a lack of specificity regarding access points and other details, but the county board was not swayed by the testimony.

Published September 22, 2021

School board member cites concerns about funding trends

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Pasco County School Board member Cynthia Armstrong is calling attention to a trend she finds worrisome relating to state funding for schools.

She made her remarks during the July 27 school board meeting, after she and her colleagues approved the tentative budget for next fiscal year.

Superintendent Kurt Browning provided an overview, highlighting some of the key points of the approximately $1.47 billion budget, which is a decrease of $53.5 million.

Pasco County School Board member Cynthia Armstrong is concerned about a reduction in state funding for schools. (File)

For instance, the budget includes $10.5 million in additional state funding, to accommodate the district’s projected growth of 2,277 students, and recurring expenses.

The operating budget, of $731.5 million, includes the allocation and operating costs for the opening of Starkey Ranch K-8 and the mid-year opening of the Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation.

The budget also includes an allocation of nearly $1.6 million to continue to increase the minimum base salary for full-time classroom teachers, Browning said.

The $351 million capital budget includes the construction of the Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation, the construction of the 6-12 academy in the Land O’ Lakes area, and major renovations for Hudson and Gulf high schools, he added.

Olga Swinson, the district’s chief finance officer, said the district set aside $5.5 million for COVID-19 retention supplements, for employees who would not qualify under the governor’s bonus plan.

Swinson explained some of the steps necessary to balance the proposed budget.

For instance, she said, “we are moving 30 custodial units to be paid with the Department of Health grant.”

The district also plans to move 35% of the salary of its school psychologists to be covered by funding allocated for mental health needs.

The district additionally used Elementary and Secondary Emergency Relief funding for the purchase of textbooks, which is allowed, but for this year only, Swinson said.

It also is transferring about $4.5 million from capital funds to the general fund to cover property insurance costs. Again, that’s for this year only, Swinson said.

Most of the new money received by the district resulted from an increase in property values, Swinson said. “The budget was built on about 6% property increase and we actually saw a 12.4% increase,” she said.

School board member Cynthia Armstrong raised concerns about the level of state funding received by the district and steps the district was forced to take, to maintain a balanced budget.

“You can see that we did use a few non-recurring funds to balance this budget, which is something that none of us like to do,” Armstrong said. “That just means we’re really going to have to dig in hard next year, unless the financial situation improves,” she said.

The board member continued: “I can only say, ‘Thank goodness property values went up, or we really would have been hurting.

“Because if you look at comparing this budget with last year’s, the money from the state that they give us was less than what we received last year,” she said.

The year before, the district received more money than it had the previous year — so it was on an upward trend, Armstrong said.

This year, she said, “despite what the Legislature (says) — how they spin it — when you look at the actual numbers, we actually got less from the state Legislature.

“Those are issues we need to be concerned with because, as we all know, the property values will not continue to go up at the rate that they’re going up,” she said.

She told her colleagues that she was raising the issue, as “kind of a cautionary thing.”

The district must remain fiscally strong to retain its high credit rating, so that it can borrow when necessary at the lowest cost possible, Armstrong said.

The district’s final public hearing on its budget is set for Sept. 14 at 6 p.m., in the board room at district headquarters, 7227 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., in Land O’ Lakes.

Pasco County Schools tentative 2021-2022 budget
General operating budget: $731.5 million
Capital budget: $351.1 million
Tax millage rate: $5.810
Taxes on a $175,000 home, assuming a $25,000 homestead exemption, would go down $16.80, under the proposed budget.

Published August 11, 2021

Pasco schools seek ‘near-normal’

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As the Pasco County public school district wraps up an academic year that was anything but normal, Superintendent Kurt Browning hopes things will be different in the 2021-2022 term.

Browning discussed his hopes for the district, along with a full range of other topics, during a webinar hosted last week by the Greater Pasco Chamber of Commerce, as part of its Business Development Year series.

“This year has been incredibly challenging,” Browning told those listening.

“Whoever knew … when everything got shut down (in March 2020) that we would literally be shut down for the fourth quarter and that we’d still be dealing with COVID … more than a year later,” the superintendent said.

Browning praised district teachers, administrators and staff for making rapid adaptations to conduct the rest of last school year virtually.

Then, he said, the district made more adjustments before the 2020-2021 year began to create a new option called mySchool Online. That option has allowed students to learn virtually, following a normal school schedule — being taught remotely by teachers.

When the 2021-2022 school year begins, Browning said mySchool Online will be discontinued. Students will either return to school campuses for in-person learning or learn remotely through Pasco eSchool.

MySchool Online, Browning acknowledged, “had its challenges.”

“We’ve had some students that have been very successful on it. I will tell you that we’ve had some students that have not been very successful,” he said.

Concerns about students lagging behind prompted the district to make an all-out push in an effort to persuade parents of those struggling students to return them to campus.

Some parents simply refused, Browning said.

That’s concerning, the district leader said, because “the performance this year is certainly going to set them up for future success. We just want to make sure our kids are prepared, going forward into the next grade level.”

As of last week, details were still being worked out regarding the summer instructional program and the upcoming school year.

Browning wants to reintroduce activities that were diminished or curtailed by COVID-19.

“Kids need some sense of normalcy. They need to have their clubs. They need to have athletics. They need to have their dances. They need to have the social interaction with other students,” Browning said.

“And so, we are going to try to have as normal of a school opening as we possibly can, starting in August,” Browning said.

At the same time, the district will take guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and will work closely with the Department of Health-Pasco County, he said.

Social isolation, mental health
Browning said he doesn’t consider himself a “touchy-feely” type of guy. But added: “I have been very concerned about the mental well-being of our kids this year.”

When students are learning remotely, they don’t have the safety nets that schools provide, he said.

“Teachers can’t physically lay their eyes on these kids. They can’t see that they’re dirty.

“They can’t see that they’ve got bruises on their arms.

“They can’t see that they’re thinner because maybe they’re not eating.

“At least when they were face-to-face, they could see some things. Teachers could let their administrators know. We could make phone calls. We could do a wellness check with the family. We could provide food. We could provide clothing.

“Not only that, we could provide hope.

“What we found through COVID is that some parents have just not had any hope.”

“My heart just breaks when I hear about these kids that are struggling,” Browning said.

He then told those listening to the webinar about a call he received from a fellow superintendent — who told him two students in that district had committed suicide.

A few weeks later, Browning said, he learned of a Pasco student who had committed suicide and then, a couple of weeks later, another student did.

“I don’t know all of the underlying circumstances to what brought that kid to make that decision,” Browning said. Then, he reiterated: “I have been concerned about the mental well-being of our kids.”

Browning touched on some other topics, too.

In response to a question, he said he expects COVID-19 to have a negative impact on the district’s graduation rate.

He also told listeners that the district will be opening its Starkey Ranch K-8 school in the fall. Located in the Starkey community, off State Road 54, it is the district’s first school specifically designed for kindergarten through eighth-grade students.

The school is expected to have about 1,000 elementary school students and 600 middle school students.

The campus will have a facility that has been dubbed TLC, which stands for theater, library and cultural center.

The TLC will accommodate public library for patrons and students. It also will have a 250-seat theater and three makerspaces.

Michael Francis, conductor for the Florida Orchestra, has been helping the district with its arts planning for the campus, Browning said.

On another topic, the superintendent told the crowd that unlike many districts across the state, Pasco is projected to experience growth in the coming year.

The district also has been included in a 10-county intensive reading pilot project, which will allow the district to provide some intensive literacy help.

Although Browning expects the district to fare well, overall, in terms of the state budget, he said the district needs to improve salaries overall, but teacher salaries, in particular.

“It really is tough work out there, and with some of the other districts out there having additional sources of revenue that we don’t have, it makes it difficult to compete with those other districts,” Browning said.

Published May 05, 2021

Boundaries set for Starkey Ranch K-8

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The Pasco County School Board has set boundaries for the new Starkey Ranch K-8 school under construction in the Starkey Ranch development.

The school — part of a complex that includes a theater, library and cultural center — is scheduled to open in the 2021-2022 school year.

The board adopted the boundaries during it Dec. 1 board meeting.

Starkey Ranch K-8 will have a capacity for 1,500 students, and initially will open for kindergarten through seventh grade, allowing students entering eighth grade to remain at their current school.

The new school will draw students from Longleaf and Odessa elementary schools, as well as River Ridge Middle.

The school also will be a magnet school, attracting students from beyond its assigned boundaries.

In addition to adopting boundaries for Starkey Ranch K-8, the board made some minor adjustments involving the boundaries of Watergrass and Wesley Chapel elementary schools.

That change is being made as a result of the Epperson Ranch subdivision, Williams said.

No one from the public spoke for or against the boundary changes during the board’s meeting.

Published December 23, 2020

Boundaries to be set soon for Starkey Ranch K-8

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The Pasco County School Board is scheduled to set boundaries for the new Starkey Ranch K-8 school at the board’s Dec. 1 meeting.

The school — part of a complex that includes a theater, library and cultural center — is scheduled to open in the 2021-2022 school year.

The board held a public hearing on the proposed boundaries during its Nov. 17 meeting, with no one stepping forward to offer public comment.

“Starkey Ranch K-8 is built to house about 1,500 students. Initially, the school will open with kindergarten through seventh-grade students. The plan is to grandfather rising eighth-graders to their existing school,” Chris Williams, the district’s planning director told the school board during the public hearing.

“Staff put together a plan to rezone about 450 students from Longleaf and Odessa elementary schools to Starkey Ranch.

“In addition, approximately 100 students from River Ridge Middle School are proposed to be rezoned to Starkey Ranch,” he said, noting the students assigned to Starkey Ranch K-8 live in the development.

“With the Starkey Ranch development continuing to build houses for the next couple of years, we expect growth of about 200 K-8 students per year, so with growth, we anticipate approximately 750 K-7 (kindergarten through seventh grade) zoned students upon opening.

“That leaves quite a few seats open for magnet school. However, we will be working to make sure we keep seats available and open for growth, in that area,” Williams added.

District staff had an open house to explain the boundary proposals, and also accepted comments via the district’s Let’s Talk portal, Williams said.

Six comments were received via Let’s Talk.

“One person requested Asturia to be zoned for Starkey Ranch; one requested the Woodlands neighborhood of Longleaf to be zoned for Starkey Ranch. Others had questions about Starkey Ranch registration and grade configurations,” Williams said.

The district also is recommending a slight boundary shift affecting the Watergrass and Wesley Chapel elementary schools.

The change is being made as a result of the Epperson Ranch subdivision, Williams said.

“That area of Epperson Ranch being developed goes all of the way up to Tindale Road.

“You’ll also notice a small sliver above Tindale Road that has a few houses. Originally, when we were developing this plan, there were no elementary children who lived there who were attending the zone of Wesley Chapel elementary, but come August, one student did move into that area. We’ve been talking among ourselves. They will be rezoned to Watergrass Elementary, but if they choose to remain at Wesley Chapel Elementary, we plan on accommodating them,” Williams said.

Additionally, Superintendent Kurt Browning does not intend to reset school choice for any of these schools that are affected by the boundary changes and grandfather children in with transportation.

The final public hearing on the proposed boundary changes for Starkey K-8, as well as Watergrass and Wesley Chapel elementary, is set for 9:30 a.m., on Dec. 1, in the board chambers at district headquarters, 7205 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., in Land O’ Lakes.

Published November 25, 2020

Pasco school choice expos going virtual

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Pasco County Schools is showcasing the district’s choice programs in two virtual events this year.

The goal is the same as it has been in years past — to inform families about the upcoming school choice application window and to highlight the innovative program options.

The Nov. 16 Virtual Pasco Pathways Expo, presented at 5 p.m., will be the east side program.

The Nov. 19 Virtual Pathways Expo, presented at 5 p.m., will be the west side program.

The events will feature informational sessions that cover the general application process.

In addition, many of Pasco County’s schools will showcase unique educational options like STEM and STEAM magnets, the Cambridge International Education Programme, International Baccalaureate, Career Pathways, and more.

Those in attendance will have the chance to learn about Wendell Krinn Technical High School, Pasco eSchool, and the soon-to-be open Starkey Ranch K-8.

The school choice application window will run from Jan. 7 to Jan. 21, for all schools and grade levels.

For information and to register to attend a virtual expo, visit Pasco.k12.fl.us/expo.

Published November 11, 2020

Starkey Ranch K-8 is set to open next fall

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A new kindergarten through eighth grade school that’s being constructed in the Starkey Ranch community now has an official name: Starkey Ranch K-8.

The school is scheduled to open next fall, and will part of a complex that includes a district park, a theater and library. The district park opened in November 2017.

This is what the Starkey Ranch K-8 School campus will look like. (Courtesy of Pasco County Schools)

The quartet of community amenities resulted from a public-public-private partnership involving Pasco County Schools, Pasco County and the Wheelock Communities, the private developers of Starkey Ranch, a community off State Road 54 in Trinity.

Starkey Ranch K-8 School is the public school district’s first school specifically designed for elementary and middle school students.

The school is expected to have about 1,000 elementary school students and 600 middle school students. The campus includes a gymnasium, athletic fields, a running track and sports courts that will be available during non-school hours to residents, through a shared-use agreement.

Additionally, the third part of the partnership involves Pasco County, and involves the construction of what’s been dubbed TLC, which stands for theater, library and cultural center.

The TLC will accommodate public library patrons and students. It also will have a 250-seat theater and three makerspaces.

The Pasco County School Board approved the school’s official name during its Oct. 6 meeting. The board prefers to name schools after the general location, features of the area or historical information about the area.

Published October 14, 2020

New schools coming to Pasco County

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A groundbreaking was held Sept. 9 to begin work on a new career and technical school off Curley Road, in East Pasco County, across from a sizable development called Epperson.

Then, at the Sept. 15 Pasco County School Board meeting, a contract was approved for preconstruction work on a new 6-12 School in the emerging Angeline community in Land O’ Lakes.

Dignitaries gather to fling shovels of dirt during the ceremonial groundbreaking for Kirkland Academy of Innovation, which is scheduled to open for the 2022-2023 school year. (Courtesy of Pasco County Schools)

Meanwhile, work continues on the construction of the new Starkey Ranch K-8 in the Starkey Ranch development, a growing Pasco County community.

During the groundbreaking ceremony and at the board meeting, Pasco School Board members and school district officials expressed enthusiasm about expanding educational opportunities for district students.

The 184,000-square-foot Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation, being built at 9100 Curley Road, is expected to serve 1,000 students and is scheduled to open for the 2022-2023 school year.

The school will prepare students for high-salary, high-skill careers in high-demand areas such as digital multimedia, engineering and robotics, biomedical sciences, building construction, and cyber security, according to district officials.

School board member Allen Altman is delighted with the new school, as he has been pushing for years to expand educational opportunities in East Pasco.

“That just warms my heart,” Altman said, at the board’s Sept. 15 meeting.

“I can’t tell you how many years that I’ve tried for that. The Recession kind of put us behind,” he said, then it was one thing after another.

The new facility, he said, is “just a tremendous thing for the entire county, but especially that community.”

After pushing for years to expand opportunities for East Pasco students, school board member Allen Altman is delighted about the construction of Kirkland Academy of Innovation, a new high school being built off Curley Road.

In a video of the groundbreaking, posted on Twitter, Altman put it like this: “Things came together, I believe, in almost divine intervention, with the right property, at the right time, with the right people in place to make this a success.”

In the same video, Superintendent Kurt Browning said “you know, technical education is so important. We’re excited for what it means for our students and our community.”

Deputy Superintendent Ray Gadd, who also made an appearance in the video, said: “The school will sit right here, on top of this big hill, overlooking the ponds below and the oak trees. And then, behind us, on the back side of the property will have a K-8 STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) Academy, at some point, opening probably in ’24. This school will open in ’22.

“We’re literally going to put a technical school right in the middle of what will be a future suburbia for Pasco County,” Gadd said.

While the district proceeds on construction of Kirkland Academy of Innovation, it also is embarking on another project for a school known on as School LLL, which is planned for Central Pasco County.

At its Sept. 15 meeting, the board approved a $235,000 contract with Ajax Building Company for pre-construction work relating to a new 6-12 school planned for the Angeline community of Land O’Lakes.

The school will be designed for 1,694 student stations, which at 90% capacity translates to about 1,530 students.

The school will be designed on an 18-acre site within Angeline.

Construction is scheduled to begin in September 2021, with substantial completion expected in July 2023.

Meanwhile, the district has begun the boundary process for the new Starkey Ranch K-8.

A parent-night workshop is planned for Oct. 6  from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., at Odessa Elementary School, 12810 Interlaken Road in New Port Richey. New boundaries must be drawn to assign students to the school.

A public hearing for the boundaries proposal is planned for Nov. 17 at 6 p.m., with final school board action on Dec. 1.

Published September 23, 2020

Pasco County School Board approves $1.5 billion budget

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The Pasco County School Board has adopted a budget of more than $1.5 billion for the 2020-2021 fiscal year.

That’s an increase of more than $122 million over last year’s budget, Superintendent Kurt Browning said, during the board’s Sept. 15 meeting.

Browning outlined some key points about the budget.

It includes:

  • $704.3 million in the general operating budget
  • $401.4 million in the capital budget

The total tax millage is 5.922 mills, a decrease of .179 mills. Under the proposed rate, a homeowner of a $175,000 house, after the deduction of the $25,000 homestead, would pay $26.85 less per year than last year.

The general operating budget increased from $666.6 million to $704.3 million. The district received additional funds totaling $24.1 million in state funding.

Out of the $24.1 million:

  • $10.1 million is set aside for School Choice, that is charter schools and scholarships
  • $4.9 million for retirement increases
  • $1.3 million for insurance increases
  • $3.4 million for 68.91 personnel allocations for schools and 5.17 personnel allocations for the district
  • $1.2 million for the continuation of costs related to Project Rise, general paper and dual enrollment
  • $500,000 for property insurance, utilities and school resource officer contract increases

The operating budget includes costs for allocations and operating costs for Cypress Creek Middle School and the midyear opening of Starkey Ranch K-8.

The budget also includes $4.7 million to implement the teacher salary increase allocation. The district will use that allocation, along with funds from fiscal year 2019-2020, of $7.3 million for the Best and Brightest program, to increase the minimum base salary for full-time classroom teachers to approximately $45,000 per year.

The budget also includes raises of approximately 1.5% for all remaining staff.

The proposed capital budget of $401.4 million includes:

  • Construction of Starkey Ranch K-8 and Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation
  • Major renovations to Northwest Elementary and James M. Marlowe Elementary
  • Construction of a new bus loop at San Antonio Elementary School
  • Cafeteria renovations, replacement of heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems and infrastructure upgrades at various schools
  • Lease-purchase computers and school buses
  • Completion of the remodeling of Zephyrhills High School

The budget does not reflect the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security, CARES funds, totaling more than $14.4 million, which is being used to pay for expenses related to COVID-19.

There was no public comment or board discussion about the budget, which was approved unanimously by the board.

Published September 23, 2020