Little Road

Traffic woes may lessen at 41/54

February 22, 2017 By Kathy Steele

Some relief may be coming in 2018 to reduce the daily traffic jams at U.S. 41 and State Road 54.

Frustrations at the intersection are common, as more than 100,000 motorists pass through the intersection every day.

Pasco County and state highway officials are now looking at a plan to lessen congestion.

The plan calls for lengthening turn lanes, providing more room in those lanes to improve the general flow in through lanes.

A long line of eastbound vehicles on State Road 54 wait to make it through the traffic signal, or reach the right turn lane to head south on U.S. 41.
(Kathy Steele)

Pasco County Commissioner Kathryn Starkey talked about the turn-lane project during a recent Pasco County workshop.

Starkey said she’d learned of the project at a committee meeting for the county’s Metropolitan Planning Commission.

“I think that’s a huge step forward on our road projects,” Starkey said.

The project isn’t seen as a permanent solution, but as something that can be done in the near-term.

“It is a fix.” said Margaret Smith, Pasco’s engineering services director, adding she doesn’t know how long the fix will last.

Design work is expected to take about eight to 10 months, with construction likely in 2018. The county will spend about $300,000 on design, with money saved from other road projects, Smith said.

A funding source for the remainder of the project, estimated at around $1 million is being sought.

The redesign would include these changes, based on an email from the Florida Department of Transportation:

The right-turn lane eastbound on State Road 54 would increase from 215 feet to 1,050 feet. Eastbound dual left-turn lanes would increase from 350 feet to 750 feet. An additional 125 feet would be added to the outside left-turn lane for a total length of 875 feet.
Westbound on State Road 54, the right-turn lane at U.S. 41 would increase from 360 feet to 500 feet. The southbound dual left-turn lanes on State Road 54 already are at the maximum length.
Southbound on U.S. 41, the dual left-turn lane would increase from 430 feet to 475 feet. The southbound right-turn lane would increase from 320 feet to 475 feet.
No change is planned for the northbound U.S. 41 left- and right-turn lanes because they are at maximum length.

A permanent and more intense design change for the intersection remains uncertain.

Work will begin anew in March on the Vision 54/56 corridor study, which is looking at a range of road projects from U.S. 19 to Bruce B. Downs Boulevard.

A first phase of the study was completed in 2016.

This second phase will place emphasis on ideas to improve the intersections of State Road 54 and U.S. 41 in east Pasco, and State Road 54 and Little Road in west Pasco.

Meanwhile, the state transportation department put an earlier proposal on hold to build a $180 million flyover elevating State Road 54 over U.S. 41, and including toll lanes.

The road project met strong resistance from residents at a town hall meeting in 2015.

Published February 22, 2017

Guiding Pasco County Schools is a big job

November 23, 2016 By B.C. Manion

As Kurt Browning begins his second term as superintendent of Pasco County Schools, he knows he’s got his work cut out for him.

He found that out during his first term.

The superintendent of Pasco County Schools poses in the livestock barn at the Pasco County Fair. (Photos courtesy of Pasco County Schools) — The superintendent of Pasco County Schools poses in the livestock barn at the Pasco County Fair.
(Photos courtesy of Pasco County Schools)

“I tell people, I have not worked as hard in my adult life as I have this past four years,” said Browning, who directs the daily operations of Florida’s 11th-largest school district.

The 58-year-old quickly added: “Although I’ve never worked this hard, I’ve probably never done anything as fulfilling.”

Elected without opposition, Browning oversees an organization with 88 schools, 73,340 students and 9,954 employees.

When he came on board, he said he assumed he’d be able to accomplish change faster.

“I’ve always been able to effectuate change pretty quickly,” said Browning, who previously served as Florida’s Secretary of State and Pasco’s Supervisor of Elections.

In Pasco County Schools, though, he found that change has been incremental, rather than sweeping.

He likens it to turning a big ship.

And, he acknowledges, it hasn’t been entirely smooth sailing.

Kurt Browning, superintendent of Pasco County Schools, bends his 6-foot-2 frame to get down to eye level with these children at Fox Hollow Elementary School.

For one thing, Browning said he also had to learn to work alongside the elected Pasco County School Board.

“That was a tough adjustment for me,” Browning said, adding that he hasn’t always been perfect on that score.

“I think there has been a board member or two who has pulled me aside and said, ‘You really need to communicate better. You need to keep us more informed,’” the superintendent said.

It’s a lesson he’s taken to heart: “I still make decisions, but I’ve got to remember that I’ve got a school board out there, and they’ve got a role,” he said.

When issues arise now, Browning aims to keep school board members in the loop.

For instance, the school board met in executive session on Nov. 15, so the staff could brief them on the impasse declared on Nov. 11 by the United School Employees of Pasco.

A learning curve of his own
The superintendent also had to develop a deeper knowledge of education issues.

“The first year and a half, it was a challenge,” Browning said.

Browning takes a Selfie during a graduation ceremony for Fivay High School. He never tires of ceremonies that honor students who have completed the necessary requirements to graduate.

Now, he can discuss educational issues facing the district and potential impacts on students, but said he’s no expert on education.

So, he said, he surrounds himself with “highly qualified, competent people — passionate people” he can turn to for the information he needs to make decisions.

The district faces big challenges.

“July 8th was not a good day for me. That was the day that the school grades came out. School grades dropped,” Browning said.

The district’s rank also dropped, from 33rd in the state to 39th.

“We’ve got to see some improvement,” Browning said. “We cannot continue to teach kids the same way we did 25 years ago, because it’s just not working.”

At the same time, it’s important to remember that good things are happening around the district, Browning said.

“You can go into kindergarten classrooms and see kids doing things independently that are just mind blowing,” he said.

He’s also impressed by the number of graduates receiving scholarships every year, and the schools the students plan to attend and their planned areas of study.

Browning understands that people judge schools by their school grade, but he said, it doesn’t tell the whole story.

Kurt Browning tours Quail Hollow Elementary, which was converted from an ‘open’ school to one with traditional windows, walls and doors.

“It doesn’t show all of the caring teachers, the caring administration. It doesn’t show all of the activities and the support that those folks give to the kids in those schools,” he said.

Still, it’s problematic when the district is drawing new school boundaries, Browning said.

At public meetings on proposed boundaries, it’s common for parent to resist sending their child to a school that has a lower grade.

That issue is likely to surface more often, as the district grapples to accommodate Pasco County’s burgeoning growth.

Work is now underway to recommend school boundaries for Bexley Elementary and Cypress Creek Middle/High School, which are set to open next fall.

As new subdivisions pop up across the landscape, the district will need more schools.

“We can’t build schools fast enough,” Browning said, pointing to the residential growth along the State Road 54 corridor, from Meadow Pointe Boulevard to Little Road.

But, the district doesn’t have the money to build more schools, Browning said.

A potential solution would be to raise school impact fees, which the superintendent favors.

That issue is expected to heat up in the coming year.

The Pasco County Commission sets the fees, which apply to new residential construction.

Social media is double-edged sword
Aside from its facility needs, another challenge facing the district is the pervasive misuse of social media.

Social media can be a great tool for sharing information, but its use can quickly spin out of control, Browning said. “It’s like a fire. You just can’t put it out.”

The consequences for misusing social media can be serious, and parents need to be vigilant about how their kids are using technology, Browning said.

“I have done everything but knocked on the doors of houses and said, ‘Know what your kids are doing.’ The last thing you want to have happen is for your kid to go and post something on Twitter about shooting up a school, blowing up a school.

“It’s going to be on the record for the rest of their life,” Browning said.

In reflecting on his first term, Browning said one area where the district has made considerable progress involves the expansion of educational options.

Four years ago, the district essentially had the International Baccalaureate program at Land O ‘Lakes and Gulf high schools, he said.

Now, it has an elementary magnet school at Sanders Memorial Elementary.

Pine View Middle School is an International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme Candidate School.

The district has the Cambridge Program at Pasco Middle School and Pasco High School, and it has converted Centennial Middle and Bayonet Middle to S.T.E.M. magnet schools.

It also has added an Aviation Academy at Sunlake, Hudson and Zephyrhills high schools.

The district also is eyeing the possibility of bringing Cambridge to Paul R. Smith Middle, and Anclote High School and San Antonio Elementary. And, it is considering an IB elementary program at Pine View Elementary.

Browning’s days are busy. At any given time, he may be visiting a district school, discussing a budget priority at a school board meeting, or joining the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office at a news conference. He’s also been known to pose for a photo in the livestock barn at the Pasco County Fair.

Perhaps his favorite thing, though, is sitting on the stage during district high school graduations.

It never gets old, Browning said.

He looks out on the sea of “hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of graduates” and thinks about their accomplishments.

“These are all kids who have met their requirements,” the superintendent said.

“I’m sitting there saying, ‘Wow, really, this is good stuff.’”

Published November 23, 2016

Pasco to help homeless ‘navigate’ to better lives

November 9, 2016 By Kathy Steele

Pasco County is exploring a new program to address the needs of the homeless population. It would provide a one-stop location to provide shelter, and an array of services and resources for homeless individuals.

County officials are proposing to remodel two vacant buildings at 8239 Youth Lane in Port Richey, formerly the home of a Boys & Girls Club. Described as a “navigation center,” the site would be able to house up to 100 homeless people at a time, and be a central location for nonprofits and other agencies to provide “wraparound services.”

County officials provided Pasco County commissioners with a presentation on the program at the Oct. 24 meeting in New Port Richey. In a 4-1 vote, commissioners agreed to pursue the program, potentially as a 2018 budget item.

“It’s a chance to take a step forward. It’s a chance to give these people a hand up,” said Pasco County Commissioner Mike Moore. “One of the things you don’t see is a facility like this in Pasco County. We’ve got to move forward on this.”

The commissioner serves as chairman of a citizen’s advisory board with the Coalition for Homeless in Pasco County.

Estimates put remodeling costs for the vacant buildings at about $1 million. County officials plan to pursue state funding.

Annual operating cost would be about $600,000, with funds from public and private resources.

The program is modeled after one adopted in San Francisco. County officials also are looking at other programs, including ones in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties.

About 4,500 people are homeless in Pasco, with about 800 chronically homeless. According to the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office, there are more than 100 homeless camps countywide.

Individuals stake out camps often in wooded areas all over the county, including west Pasco, Zephyrhills and Dade City, sheriff’s data shows.

Chase Daniels, assistant executive director of the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office, said, “Having one of these low-barrier shelters would be a game changer in Pasco County.”

Bob Dillinger, public defender in Pinellas and Pasco counties, said more than 30 percent of homeless in Pasco are children. Perceptions of homeless people often are wrong, he said.

“They want a job. They want a safe place to live,” Dillinger said.

One homeless camp at a time would be relocated to the navigation center where people can live while case managers from various agencies provide counseling, job training, health care and educational resources. The end goal is creating a pathway to permanent housing.

The location for the navigation center met with some opposition.

Pasco County Commissioner Jack Mariano cast the lone vote against the proposal and lobbied in favor of the Mike Fasano Regional Hurricane Shelter in Hudson.

“I would like to see us doing a full look,” he said. “If there’s other alternatives, I want to look at those alternatives.”

The hurricane shelter already is equipped to accommodate groups of people, and has a full kitchen, he said.

Greg Phillips, chief executive officer of a nonprofit, Kids Kicking High, also asked commissioners to consider allowing his program to occupy the space at the former Boys & Girls Club. The program offers before and after school classes with a focus on martial arts, and is located off Little Road in New Port Richey.

Sandra Butler’s 8-year-old autistic son recently earned his white belt at Kids Kicking High. “That’s a big accomplishment for him,” she said. “This is a big need for our community.”

While county officials described the navigation center as being secluded, some area area residents expressed concerns during public comment that the navigation center would increase crime in their neighborhood.

County officials hope to dispel those concerns.

“The homeless are here,” said Cathy Pearson, the county’s assistant county administrator for public services. “It’s better to have a place for them than to have them loitering at your business or your lawn.”

Published November 9, 2016

Uniting Pasco with love, from The Angelus

October 26, 2016 By Tom Jackson

As sure as armadillos tear up gardens and raw kumquats pucker lips, this much is verifiable about Pasco County: Despite what its borders suggest, the massive slab of real estate that squats atop Hillsborough and Pinellas is not one county, but instead is at least two, if not three, each neatly defined by a north-south thoroughfare.

Skip Schaer and Mike Mezrah, who owns Tampa Bay Sporting Clays. (Photos courtesy of Tammy Williams) — Skip Schaer and Mike Mezrah, who owns Tampa Bay Sporting Clays.
(Photos courtesy of Tammy Williams)

You know how it works. East-siders cluster around U.S. 301. West-siders rarely venture past Little Road. And, that leaves those in the center to squabble over where Land O’ Lakes — which, as you very well know, was here first — ends and upstart Wesley Chapel begins.

All this (generally good-natured) geographic division accounts for much of why there’s a county fair in Dade City and a remarkably similar festival in New Port Richey, and, more pragmatically, why there are essentially duplicated east and west county government offices.

Nothing, outside the occasional election, seems capable of bringing Pasco together.

Except, perhaps, this: The Angelus, a group home for severely handicapped people, has demonstrated uniquely how to bridge Pasco’s recalcitrant divide. Relocated from St. Petersburg to Hudson in 1986, The Angelus has episodically united not just Pasco, but the entire region on its behalf.

That season of unity is approaching once more, and once more, we are caught up in the magic of what individuals, pulling together on behalf of the less fortunate among us, can achieve.

Charlie Daniels talks to a resident of The Angelus.

In that spirit, three devoted west-siders — proving there is life east of Little Road, and even the Suncoast Parkway — gathered recently in the shade of the breeze-swept pavilion at Tampa Bay Shooting Clays and Archery, a remote destination that, nonetheless, occasionally becomes Pasco’s throbbing heart.

Assembled around a newly assembled picnic table on a gentle October afternoon hinting at autumn, the place smelled of fresh-cut wood and anticipation.

These three — raconteur and events director Tammy Williams, Port Richey businessman Steve Farrell and county Commissioner Mike Wells Jr. — had come far at the behest of Land O’ Lakes developer Skip Schaer to tout the virtues of Charliepalooza 2016 (for the headliner, country music star Charlie Daniels), No. 26 if you’re keeping score at home.

Instead, they kept drifting back to the extraordinary things that happen every day at The Angelus, where perfectly bright people, locked by sheer happenstance into substandard bodies, see their dreams nurtured, hopes encouraged, efforts rewarded, delights shared and disappointments comforted.

Dazzling. Remarkable. Bracing. Enchanting.

Much of what is achieved there, as the foundation’s literature likes to point out, comes from unalloyed love. The rest of the operation, however, takes money — large piles of the stuff — and the board’s efforts are both tireless and unending.

This is where even those who rarely, perhaps never, set foot on the far side of Starkey Park come in. This year’s three-day affair (Dec. 1 to Dec. 3) has the right stuff to conjure up a generous holiday mood. For golfers, there’s a pairing party (plus a mini-concert) that Thursday night at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino, followed the next day by a golf tournament at Hunter’s Green in New Tampa, plus an awards dinner (and a mini-concert) that night.

Charliepalooza moves that Saturday (Dec. 3) to Tampa Bay Shooting Clays, in the Ehren Cutoff bend, and wraps that night with a full-blown concert at the Dallas Bull, about a mile south of the Florida State Fairgrounds on U.S. 301. Headlined by Daniels himself, the event features Montgomery Gentry, Confederate Railroad and, from Hudson, the Embry Brothers Band.

Here’s why we came to the range: As extraordinary as each phase has been over the years, the Saturday of blasting away at clay targets — entering its fourth year — has begun to emerge as the linchpin.

“It’s a big challenge, like golf,” Wells says. “But, it’s quicker than golf.” And, not to put too fine a point on it, “I’m better at it than I am at golf.”

Better still, there’s no telling who you’re likely to bump into. A NASCAR driver, maybe a NASCAR crew chief. Buccaneer Super Bowl hero Mike Alstott is a regular. Cartoonist Guy Gilchrist. You might even catch Daniels himself going incognito, swapping his Stetson for an identity-disguising ball cap.

Reiterates Williams, “You never know who’s going to show up.”

Well. Remember that part how The Angelus, for its remote locale, brings Pascoans together? He’s not what you’d call a celebrity, exactly, but well-known rancher-developer J.D. Porter, of Wiregrass notoriety, has vowed to field at least one team of Saturday shooters.

And, as he has in the past, Paul Harvey — of Harvey’s Hardware on Land O’ Lakes Boulevard — is conspiring with Case on an assortment of unique collector’s knives for auction. Imagine that: the knives that bind.

The bridge to a tighter, better Pasco is there. All we have to do is cross it. Begin by investigating your Charliepalooza options at TheAngelus.com, or by calling Tammy Williams at (727) 243-8293.

Tom Jackson, a resident of New Tampa, is interested in your ideas. To reach him, email .

Priorities set for sidewalk and road projects

September 14, 2016 By Kathy Steele

Board members of the Pasco Metropolitan Planning Organization have adopted a priority list for road projects that is largely unchanged from last year.

But, there is one exception: The list now includes a plan to widen U.S. 301 to a four-lane divided highway from the Hillsborough County line to State Road 56.

The five-year work program runs through fiscal year 2020-2021.

While there’s little change on the road list, the sidewalk list is a different story.

Nine new projects for 5-foot sidewalks are listed as priorities in the 2016-2017 work plan.

Six of those in the top 10 have jumped ahead of other longtime sidewalk requests.

Lutz residents on Leonard Road want sidewalks built along the two-lane road from U.S. 41 to Cot Road as a safety measure. (File Photo) — Lutz residents on Leonard Road want sidewalks built along the two-lane road from U.S. 41 to Cot Road as a safety measure.
(File Photo)

The shift in priorities prompted questions by Pasco County Commissioner Jack Mariano. Mariano wonders if the ranking system is fair to communities that have waited years for sidewalks.

“I’m very disappointed,” said Mariano at the Sept. 8 board meeting of the MPO.

Among sidewalk projects that Mariano hoped to see higher on the list were Ranch Road, Zimmerman Road and Majestic Boulevard.

Lutz residents also have lobbied over the years for sidewalks on Leonard Road.

That project sits in the 20th slot, near the bottom of 25 proposed projects.

Mariano said he planned to meet with MPO staff members to review the criteria used to rank projects.

MPO Vice Chairman Jeff Starkey also took issue with the criteria.

“What if we don’t agree with how you’re calculating this?” he asked.

The lists of road, transit, multi-use paths and sidewalk projects are updated annually and submitted to the Florida Department of Transportation so they can be considered in FDOT’s five-year work plan for federally funded projects in Pasco.

Sidewalks, multi-use paths and trails are ranked on a point system based on criteria such as speed limits, connectivity to existing sidewalks and trails, accessibility to schools and transit stops, improved mobility in low-income and minority neighborhoods, and the consecutive years a project has been on the list.

Mariano said communities aren’t getting enough credit for time waited. There also are situations, he said, where speed limits might be low, but safety is still an issue for other reasons.

Changes can be made, and projects aren’t automatically done in order of their listing, said James Edwards, the Pasco MPO director.

The availability of money is a factor, he added.

“You don’t follow it in lock step,” Edwards said. “Things will shift around.”

The new sidewalk projects are:

Ridge Road/Little Road to Rowan Road
Congress Street/north of Lomand Avenue to Ridge Road
Old County Road 54/Little Road to State Road 54
U.S. 41/Lake Bambi Circle to State Road 52
Darlington Road at U.S. 19 to Sunray Drive
Fort King Road/17th Street/Morningside to Coleman Avenue
Regency Park Boulevard/ U.S. 19 to Cherry Creek Lane
Darlington Road/U.S. 19 to Hama Drive
17th Street/Meridian Avenue to County Road 41/Lock Street

For a complete list of the MPO’s 2016 priority projects, visit PascoCountyFl.net.

Published September 14, 2016

Several Pasco County schools to get lacrosse programs

September 7, 2016 By Kevin Weiss

Students at several high schools in Pasco County soon will be offered a new sport to play.

The Pasco County Lacrosse Alliance (PCLA), a nonprofit organization, recently announced an agreement with Pasco County Schools to manage the transition of high school boys and girls lacrosse from a club sport to a Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA)-sanctioned sport, beginning with the 2018 spring season.

In 2014, several Hillsborough County public schools became Florida High School Athletic Association-sanctioned in lacrosse. (Courtesy of HIllsborough County Public Schools) — In 2014, several Hillsborough County public schools became Florida High School Athletic Association-sanctioned in lacrosse.
(Courtesy of HIllsborough County Public Schools)

For the upcoming 2017 season — slated to begin in February — the high school teams will play at the club level in the Florida Gulf Coast Lacrosse League, a subsidiary of US Lacrosse, the sport’s national governing body.

The initial three-year contract between the PCLA and the Pasco County School Board has targeted the following schools for initial Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) certification: Anclote, Land O’ Lakes, Mitchell, Sunlake, Wesley Chapel, Zephyrhills and GGG high schools. GGG is the yet-unnamed high school in Wesley Chapel.

The agreement is similar to a three-year pilot program approved for 10 schools in Hillsborough County in 2014.

Essentially, it calls for the PCLA to manage operational costs (uniforms, protective equipment, refs, travel, coaching stipends), while participating schools provide field access and gate workers.

David Mazursky, president of the PCLA, estimates equipment and operational costs for the lacrosse organization will total about $15,000 per school. Whatever funds aren’t covered through sponsorships will trickle down to players in a “pay-for-play” model.

According to its website, the PCLA is looking to set the registration fee in the same arena as Hillsborough County’s, which decreased from $390 to $320 over the past three years.

Eight Pasco County high schools are set to have lacrosse as a Florida High School Athletic Association-sanctioned sport for boys and girls, beginning with the 2018 season. This season will be played at the club level. (Courtesy of FHSAA) — Eight Pasco County high schools are set to have lacrosse as a Florida High School Athletic Association-sanctioned sport for boys and girls, beginning with the 2018 season. This season will be played at the club level.
(Courtesy of FHSAA)

“We’ll have to charge a fee because there’s costs for transportation, referees, and when you become FHSAA, the head coach has to be a paid position,” Mazursky said.

Certain equipment — uniforms, helmets, protective gear — will be loaned to players. Other types of gear — stick, cleats, socks, gloves — will have to be furnished by players.

Ideally, every school’s boys and girls team will have enough participants to reach the FHSAA-limit of 25 players, Mazursky said.

“I actually don’t think we’re going to have any problem getting enough kids,” he said. “I think you might get a lot of football players that want to do something in between the spring and fall football,” he said. “You’ll get kids that don’t make the soccer team or don’t make the basketball team.”

The biggest challenge, he said, is funding, in general, and then finding and locking in corporate sponsorships to help keep registration fees low.

To help transition first-time players, the PCLA is hosting a series of free player clinics from September through December. The first clinic is Sept. 18 at 8 a.m., at Seven Springs Middle School, 2441 Little Road in New Port Richey.

“The goal of the clinics is for kids who haven’t played to really understand what the game is, and really get them hooked on it,” he said.

“I’m sure we’ll be able to do that,” he added.

In Florida, the sport has grown rapidly over the past several years. According to the National Federation of High Schools, the state saw a 70 percent increase in participation to 8,603 players from 2008 to 2013.

The Pasco County Lacrosse Alliance (PCLA) is a nonprofit organization working with Pasco County Public Schools to manage the transition of high school boys and girls lacrosse from a club sport to a Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA)-sanctioned sport, beginning with the 2018 spring season. (Courtesy of Pasco County Lacrosse Alliance) — The Pasco County Lacrosse Alliance (PCLA) is a nonprofit organization working with Pasco County Public Schools to manage the transition of high school boys and girls lacrosse from a club sport to a Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA)-sanctioned sport, beginning with the 2018 spring season.
(Courtesy of Pasco County Lacrosse Alliance)

Moreover, about 150 Florida schools are currently sanctioned to play for state titles in both girls and boys lacrosse.

“The exposure has been much better,” Mazursky said. “As we get it into more high schools…it’ll grow from just purely a club program to something more prominent.”

The PCLA president noted that transitioning from a club sport to an FHSAA-sanctioned sport is critical to expanding lacrosse’s reach to adolescents in the area.

“There’s a lot of interest at the youth level, but when kids realize they don’t have a high school sport, then they quit,” he said. “As a club sport, you don’t feel like part of the high school — you’re not in the yearbook, you don’t get a (varsity) letter.”

Note: Parents and students can go to PascoLax.org for more information. Donations to help fund lacrosse for one of the selected teams of choice can be made at: PascoLax.org/donations-per-team.html.
Companies interested in sponsoring their local schools can contact Eric Handman at for more information.

Published September 7, 2016

Bus riders will get new routes, shorter waits at bus stops

August 3, 2016 By Kathy Steele

Shorter wait times at bus stops on State Road 54 and a new Land O’ Lakes connector bus route are ready for a roll-out.

Effective Aug. 15, riders on Bus Route 54, known as the Cross County Connector, will have new Saturday service, a new route pattern with a bus stop on U.S. 19, and buses that run every hour, not every two hours.

The route will stretch from U.S. 19 to City Hall in Zephyrhills, with stops in between at The Shops at Wiregrass and Tampa Premium Outlets.

Pasco County will give bus riders an upgrade with two new buses that have plush seats, reading lights and luggage racks. (Courtesy of Pasco County) — Pasco County will give bus riders an upgrade with two new buses that have plush seats, reading lights and luggage racks.
(Courtesy of Pasco County)

To ensure the shorter waits, some bus stops with low ridership along Duck Slough Boulevard and within the Trinity area served by Bus Route 23-Little Road will be discontinued.

“It’s going to make our routes more efficient,” said Philip Pumphrey, Pasco County’s public transportation director.

Riders also will get an upgrade with two new 40-foot buses with plush seats, reading lights and luggage racks.

The goal is to give riders more commuting options and a better ride, Pumphrey said.

The Pasco County Commission approved the new service route on State Road 54 at its July 26 meeting in New Port Richey.

The Land O’ Lakes bus service is scheduled for March 18, pending approval of Pasco County’s proposed 2017 budget.

The route will move north on U.S. 41 with bus stops that include the Central Pasco Chamber of Commerce, the Land O’ Lakes Community Center, post office, Land O’ Lakes High School and the detention center.

A loop eastward along State Road 54 will have stops at Collier Commons and the Land O’ Lakes Branch Library.

The new bus routes and shorter time waits were among recommendations in a report from Tindale Oliver & Associates. The consulting firm completed a study of the county’s transportation needs into 2040.

By extending Bus Route 54 to U.S. 19, county officials anticipate riders can transfer directly to Bus Route 14-Madison Street; Bus Route 18-Tarpon Springs/Grand Boulevard; Bus Route 25-Rowan Road, and Bus Route 23-Little Road.

There will be fewer transfers overall for riders trying to connect with the cross-county connector and destinations to the east or to board Bus Route 19 for destinations south, and from there to the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority system (PSTA).

Future improvements recommended by Tindale Oliver’s consultants include bus service until 11 :30 p.m., cutting wait times to 30 minutes on all routes and adding Sunday service. The consultants also recommended adding 30-minute local and express bus routes in future, and providing a 15-minute rapid bus service.

Published August 3, 2016

Keeping the church flock safe

April 27, 2016 By B.C. Manion

While many think of church as a place to lay down one’s burdens, gain spiritual refreshment and find inspiration — a house of worship is also vulnerable to potential violence.

Jim Howard, executive director of Trinity Security Allies based in Trinity, knows only too well about that possibility

When he was a teenager, living in Texas, his father shot and killed a deacon after church. Howard’s father was imprisoned, his family moved away, and Howard doubted his faith and left the church.

He subsequently went into a career in law enforcement and eventually returned to the church.

He also found a way to use his professional knowledge to serve his faith, first, by helping to protect a church’s collections and then by forming a church security team.

Jim Howard guides churches to help ensure they have a place ‘where people can come to worship, without fear.’ (Courtesy of Jim Howard) — Jim Howard guides churches to help ensure they have a place ‘where people can come to worship, without fear.’
(Courtesy of Jim Howard)

Besides serving on the security team at Generations Christian Church, on Little Road, he is the executive director of a nonprofit organization that helps churches that need guidance in creating and preserving a safe place to worship.

“Our motto for the church ministry is: ‘Have a place where everybody can come and worship God without fear.’

“Once a person doesn’t feel safe at church, then they’re not going to come to church,” said Howard, who also has a private security consulting business.

When a white man opened fire on June 17, 2015 during a prayer meeting in a historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina, killing nine people, it captured national headlines.

But, the issue of church violence is nothing new, Howard said.

In 1999 — the same year as the killings at Columbine High School in Colorado — there was a shooting at a church in Texas were seven people were killed, he said.

This past Easter Sunday, at Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee, a man was taken into custody after entering a church armed with a .40-caliber Beretta in his pants pocket and a 300 Blackout rifle in his backpack, according to news reports.

Trinity Security Allies provides presentations to help church leaders learn about precautions they can take to help keep their churches safe, and to create plans for responding to violence, if it occurs.

“We go in and educate,” Howard said.

When he gets called to do a church assessment, he tours the church and its grounds.

In the children’s ministry area, he said, “The first thing I do is to look to be sure the doors will lock.”

That’s rarely an issue where the musical equipment is kept. Typically, he said, he discovers “it’s locked behind a door that Fort Knox would be proud of.”

He said churches should have a check-in, check-out zone for their kids’ ministry. Some churches issue a set of matching badges — one for the child and the other for the parent. The badges must match, or the child won’t be released, he said.

Churches also need to vet their volunteers, he added, especially any that have contact with children.

Security team members must pay attention to people approaching and entering the church.

Look for anything unusual: Someone talking to himself; someone who appears agitated or angry; someone wearing a long coat or heavy jacket when it’s warm outside.

His church has a policy of being especially friendly to newcomers.

They are welcomed by church staff or volunteers, and when people don’t respond, the security team lets someone else at the church know, so they can try to engage them, he said.

While the church isn’t interested in gossip, it needs to know of potential issues, Howard added.

“People who are coming into church are broken,” he said. The church is there to help, but should also take steps to protect itself and those gathered.

All sorts of people walk through a church door, Howard noted.

“We’ve had people with mental illness that have disrupted the church service. We’ve had domestic issues that caused us concern. Injunctions,” he said. “We’ve had thefts.”

When it comes to having guns on a church campus, that’s an issue that a church should address, Howard said.

An active shooter can kill or injure numerous people much faster than law enforcement can respond to the scene.

“If you don’t have someone on your campus that can respond to it, that’s something to really pray about and consider,” he said.

“Our church has a policy, if you have a concealed weapons permit and you want to carry, that’s fine. If you’re on the safety team, with us, if you have a concealed weapons permit, I ask you not to carry — I’m a firearms instructor — unless you and I go out and we do some shooting, so I can see how you handle the gun.”

“Because of my background, I understand what police officers are going to be facing if they come into a church in a scenario like this,” he said.

“I don’t fear a person walking into church with a gun. I fear the gun battle.

“Inside a crowded church, there’s a good possibility that somebody that you know is going to get hit,” he said, noting that two out of three shots typically miss their intended target.

It’s also a good idea to practice what to do, in the event an active shooter ever shows up at the church, Howard said, noting that’s something his church has done.

Church Safety
When: May 7, registration at 8:30 a.m.; meeting starts at 9 a.m.
Where: Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, 20735 Leonard Road, Lutz
Who: Open to anyone
How much: Donations accepted for refreshments.

Published April 27, 2016

Ideas clash for solving traffic woes

February 10, 2016 By Kathy Steele

A proposal for a flyover at State Road 54 and U.S. 41 got a big thumb’s down at a recent transportation task force meeting aimed at finding solutions for reducing congestion on one of Pasco County’s busiest east/west corridors.

In fact, the idea of a flyover anywhere along State Road 54 and State Road 56 between U.S. 19 and Bruce B. Downs Boulevard met stiff resistance.

About 50 people, including members of two separate task forces, residents and Pasco County officials, met Feb. 2 at Rasmussen College to discuss options.

A heavy volume of cars and trucks makes State Road 54 and U.S. 41 one of the busiest intersections in Pasco County. (File Photo) — A heavy volume of cars and trucks makes State Road 54 and U.S. 41 one of the busiest intersections in Pasco County.
(File Photo)

Task force members pressed county officials to consider using frontage roads to ease congested intersections and to preserve access to local businesses and shops.

The task force also approved a motion to ask county planners to determine the feasibility of the frontage road option.

“Our solution is at grade, which is what the public wants,” said Tom Ryan, a task force member and economic development manager at the Pasco Economic Development Council. “It (flyover) infringes on their quality of life. There is no way around it. It will affect quality of life.”

Ryan was joined by task force member Robb Sercu who also tossed out ideas for at-grade alternatives rather than flyovers.

The meeting was the first joint session of East and West task forces, which began meeting separately in September. Each was appointed as an advisory board to the Pasco County Metropolitan Planning Organization. Their task is to recommend up to five alternatives that the MPO can consider for future transportation projects over the next 20 years. One option is not to build anything.

The West Task Force is studying State Road 54 from west of U.S. 41, and the East Task Force, from east of U.S. 41.

However, discussion at the joint meeting quickly focused on the intersection of State Road 54 and U.S. 41 as a priority that likely will be the first road project to need funding.

“That is the most congested location at this time,” said Ali Atefi, a transportation engineer with MPO.

The Florida Department of Transportation held a public hearing in January to get input on two alternatives for elevated lanes over U.S. 41. Many who attended said they came away believing they would pay tolls.

“That’s what got a lot of people upset in our area,” said task force member Fred Knauer. “If I go to Lowe’s, I have to pay a toll?”

Atefi said tolls could be a source to pay for the roads, but that hasn’t been decided yet.

County officials also noted that even with elevated lanes, there would be at-grade through lanes at the intersection.

Some of those attending the meeting want tolls to be an option, to help reduce congestion.

“Toll roads do have a place,” said task force member Marilyn DeChant. “They take drivers off grade and put them up (on express lanes). They do have a place to be considered.”

But, task force member Susie Hoeller said toll roads could hurt elderly residents on fixed incomes and local businesses that do deliveries.

“People in government, they don’t look at the real impact on people’s lives,” she said. “I think it’s a bad idea.”

Whatever option that gains approval should be one that is feasible and reasonable, said Ryan.

And, any option that involves construction will cause disruptions including the purchase of right-of-way, he said.

“We shouldn’t hide away from discussing eminent domain. These are going to come up,” he said. “There’s a business or two that might have to move.”

Keystone Community Church, at 21010 State Road 54, also could be in the path of future road construction.

“We’re in a growth mode now,” said Wayne Hawes, chairman of the church’s board of directors. “Are we going to waste our money if we expand our facilities?”

Even if funds were available now, Atefi said construction could be between seven and eight years away.

Funding more likely won’t be available until after 2020.

Some people at the meeting expressed frustrations and skepticism about the planning process.

Dave Miller said the county’s long-range land use plan is too focused on increasing density.

“This is social engineering,” said Miller who lives in west Pasco, off Little Road and State Road 54.

“They are trying to force people into high rises on transit lanes. You need to throw this back at them (Pasco County and the state). This is not workable,” Miller said.

Others seemed skeptical that their efforts on the task force would be taken seriously.

“Ultimately it’s going to be what they want it to be,” said task force member Christie Zimmer. “I’m praying it’s not that, and we won’t get something stuffed down our throats.”

Her remarks drew some applause.

Task force members will complete surveys in the next weeks to identify up to five construction alternatives, plus a no-build option.

The West Task Force will vote on alternatives at its final meeting on March 28. The East Task Force will do the same at its meeting on March 31. Both of those meetings will be from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., at Rasmussen College.

The planning organization will do additional study on the top selections.

What: Town Hall meeting with Pasco County Commissioner Kathryn Starkey, and county staff members
When: Feb. 18 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Where: Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, 20735 Leonard Road, Lutz

Published February 10, 2016

More festivals and fun as Halloween approaches

October 21, 2015 By Michael Murillo

Previously, we published a list of up-and-coming Halloween and fall festival events designed to provide plenty of treats (and a few scares) in October.

Those events were fun, but there are others that also deserve attention. So prepare for more games, rides, costumes and maybe a couple of frights over the next couple of weeks.

Trinity Fest

Generations Christian Church, 1540 Little Road in Trinity, will host its “Trinity Fest” Oct. 29 through Nov. 1. The event will include a variety of activities across four days.

On Thursday, the midway carnival will be open from 5 p.m. until 10 p.m. Rides are $1 each.

On Friday, from 5 p.m. until 10 p.m., there will be a food truck rally, a disc jockey, line dancing, a mechanical bull, a rock-climbing wall and free hay rides. There also will be pumpkin decorating and cornhole tournaments. The rides will be open with a $20 wristband allowing unlimited access.

On Saturday, there will be a Generations on the Go 5K and fun run from 8 a.m. until 10 a.m., and a business and craft expo from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. From 11 a.m. until 3 p.m., there will be dancers, music, a petting zoo and a dominoes tournament. Trunk-or-treating will take place from 7 p.m. until 8:30 p.m., and midway rides with $20 unlimited access will be available from noon until 5 p.m., and again from 5 p.m. until 10 p.m.

On Sunday, an unlimited wristband will cost $15, and the carnival will be open from 1 p.m. until 5 p.m.

For more information, call (727) 375-8801 or visit TrinityFest.info. To register for the 5K, visit GenerationsontheGo.org.

A Hillbilly Halloween
Hillbilly Farms, 10325 US Highway 98 in Dade City, will host its fourth annual “Harvest Festival” on Oct. 24. More than 400 people attended last year, and they’re expecting another good turnout.

Children’s activities include bounce houses, mini-train rides and games. There will also be horse riding, face painting and a pumpkin patch.

The Harvest Festival includes an annual pumpkin-painting event, and guests can either purchase a pumpkin on site or bring their own.

The event itself is free and parking is free, but individual activities may incur a separate charge. For $10, parents can purchase a wristband that allows their children to participate in various activities. Food and drinks will also be available for purchase.

The Harvest Festival runs from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. For more information, call (352) 567-7475 or visit the Hillbilly Farms Facebook page.

Macabre Mall on 41
The Haunted House on 41, an annual tradition at Land O’ Lakes Community Park, 5401 Land O’ Lakes Blvd, is back with a shopping mall theme.

Visitors will walk through the room to visit several creepy “shops” full of monsters, blood and assorted Halloween-themed gore. It only takes a couple of minutes to walk through it, but local students put a lot of time into its construction. In the end, they create a creepy attraction that brings in nearly 1,000 visitors each year. And, at a suggested donation of just $1, it’s an affordable fright.

The mall has a sneak preview evening Oct. 22 from 7:30 p.m. until 9 p.m., and is open Oct. 23 and Oc. 24 from 7:30 p.m. until around 10 p.m.

For more information, call (813) 929-1229.

Spooky Tails means treats for K-9 unit
The ninth annual “Spooky Tails” Halloween party and pet costume contest will be on Oct. 24 at the Land O’ Lakes Community Center, 5401 Land O’ Lakes Blvd. The annual event benefits the Pasco Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit.

Previous fundraisers have assisted in the purchase of a bite suit to help train the dogs, and contributed to the K-9 dog retirement fund. The goal for this year’s event is to contribute to the retirement fund and make other purchases the unit needs during the year.

For Gail Cooper, owner of Parwick Kennels and the founder of Spooky Tails, taking care of canines that serve the community is the right thing to do.

“These dogs are these men’s partners. They have each other’s backs, if you will,” she said. “They’re part of the family.”

Ben Pumo, owner of Benedetto’s Ristorante Italiano and a supporter of Spooky Tails since its inception, agrees.

“They’re our officers without a voice,” Pumo said. “I think it’s important that the dogs get taken care of after their retirement.”

Pumo expects 40 to 50 dogs in costumes at the event.

Spooky Tails runs from noon until 4 p.m. The pet costume contests will be at 2:30 p.m. There will be more than a dozen vendors at the event, as well as games, music, food, and a special demonstration from the K-9 unit.

For more information, call (813) 480-0811, or visit Pasco-K9-Fundraiser.com.

Published October 21, 2015