Volume 18 Issue 12
WESLEY CHAPEL Inside:
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June 5, 2010
NEWS
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Wiregrass Ranch Moving Towards A ‘World Of Possibilities’ By Michael Smith Just a few years ago, there was very little to see on the 5,000-acre Wiregrass Ranch site, which occupies almost the entire area along the east side of Bruce B. Downs Blvd. (BBD, or CR/SR 581) between State Roads 54 and 56, aside from a few dozen cattle that were the last of the herd that used to roam the property when it was a working ranch owned by the Porter family. Although they were reportedly hounded for years by eager developers offering huge sums of money, the family refused to sell the land, waiting for the right developer and the right deal to come along to match their vision for the property that had been their home for decades. Then, in the early 2000s, the family finally settled upon a plan that would eventually bring thousands of homes, retail stores, restaurants, schools, offices and recreational facilities to the site — and it looked like the Porter family’s vision was finally on the path to fruition.
First came the JC Penney department store, which opened in 2005 as the cornerstone of what would become the Shops of Wiregrass mall, which itself opened with great fanfare in 2008. Two new public schools also opened, Dr. John Long Middle School and Wiregrass Ranch High, on property donated to the Pasco County School District by the Porter family, which also has donated land for a professional tennis center and a branch campus of Pasco-Hernando Community College (PHCC). Meanwhile, builder Pulte Homes also signed on in 2004 as the master developer of the residential portion of the project, unveiling plans for several different communities (to be built by different Pulte homebuilding divisions) on the site, and other entities joined in as well, bringing along plans for an 80bed hospital, additional retail and more. Despite all of those ambitious plans, however, progress has been slow in coming, thanks to a variety of issues and obstacles that have arisen along the
This sign on Bruce B. Downs Blvd. says a PHCC campus is coming to Wiregrass by 2014. way, such as when Pulte pulled out of the site of their new campus, which will the project last year because of the be located on 60 acres of land near downturn in the real estate market. Wiregrass Ranch High. College officials said that they hope to break ground on But, there have been some significant developments over the past couple the facility, which will be called the Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch, in of months that could clear the way for early 2012, and to open it to students the project to get back on track much in the fall of 2013. sooner than was previously expected. State Rep. Will Weatherford (RPHCC Under Way Wesley Chapel) also helped the college For instance, on April 10, officials See “Wiregrass” on page 6. with PHCC held a ceremony to mark
State Road 56 Extension To Open To Meadow Pointe Blvd. By Aug.
NEIGHBORHOOD MAGAZINE!
Incidents & Accidents In The News, A Variety Of Local Business Features, WRH Crowns A State Pole Vault Champ & Much More!
Check Out Our Exclusive Summer Camp Guide, A Review Of The New Super Buffet Restaurant, Lots Of ‘Neighborhood Nibbles’ & More!
See pages 3-22!
See pages 23-40!
ECRWSS
LOCAL NEWS, BUSINESS & SPORTS UPDATES
ment with new contractor Ripa & Associates includes a scheduled opening date of August 2. That is especially important, he says, because with construction work getting under way on the widening of S.R. 54 between C.R. 581 (Bruce B. Downs Blvd., BBD), the county wants S.R. 56 to be available for drivers who would like to be able to bypass that roadwork. “We really need that link,” Shepherd says. See “S.R. 56” on page 5.
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However, Pasco County chief project manager Bob Shepherd tells us that a new contract has been awarded for the job, and work is scheduled to resume within the next week. “At this point, there are approximately 20-25 days worth of work to be done,” Shepherd says. “That includes laying down some additional asphalt, doing the final striping and installing traffic signals at Mansfield and Meadow Pointe boulevards.” Shepherd says that there also are some problems that need to be addressed with some of the underground utility work that was performed by WDG, which, along with some other final touches, mean that the roadway won’t be entirely finished until January 2011, but he says that the agree-
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Stop me if you’ve heard this before (and I know that you have), but Pasco County officials have once again announced a new schedule for the opening of the long-awaited S.R. 56 eastward extension from Mansfield Blvd. to Meadow Pointe Blvd. that will
allow drivers to begin using the roadway by early August. Earlier announcements of the opening of the extension had to be revised after the original contractor, WDG Construction, Inc., abruptly abandoned the project when the company went out of business, leaving officials to search for a replacement.
Dated Material Please Rush!
By Michael Smith
For Advertising Information Call 813-910-2575 • Volume 18, Issue 12 • June 5, 2010 • www.WCNeighborhoodNews.com
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