Volume 20 Issue 18
Inside: Kids Get Into Monkey Bizness At Wiregrass Mall! In Neighborhood Magazine!
August 25, 2012
The Direct-Mail News Magazines Serving Wesley Chapel & New Tampa Since 1993! THE INDEPENDENT COMMUNITY NEWS MAGAZINES DIRECTLY MAILED TO: WESLEY CHAPEL: Aberdeen • Belle Chase • Brookside • Chapel Pines • Country Walk • Lexington Oaks • Meadow Pointe • New River • Northwood • Pinewalk • Pine Ridge • Saddlebrook • Saddleridge Estates • Saddlewood • Seven Oaks • Lakes at Northwood • The Villages of Wesley Chapel • Wesley Pointe • Westbrook Estates • Williamsburg NEW TAMPA: Arbor Greene • Cory Lake Isles • Cross Creek • Grand Hampton • Heritage Isles • Hunter’s Green • Hunter’s Key • K-Bar Ranch • Lake Forest • Live Oak Preserve • Pebble Creek • Richmond Place • Tampa Palms • West Meadows
Are You Ready For The Republican National Convention, Wesley Chapel? By Gary Nager Unless you’ve been living under a rock or in a foreign country the past few months, I’m sure you’re aware that the Republican National Convention (RNC) is coming to downtown Tampa just a few days after you receive this issue. The question you might be asking yourself right about now, however, is “How is that going to affect me? We live 35 minutes, without traffic, from downtown!” Well, the RNC is going to hit home a lot closer than you think. With virtually every hotel in the Wesley Chapel and New Tampa areas sold out for the week of the convention (Aug. 27-September 2), the Shops at Wiregrass mall hosting an “All-American Festival” from Thursday, August 30Monday, September 3, and with one of the leaders of the effort to bring the RNC to Tampa appearing at a recent New Tampa Chamber of Commerce meeting to tell the Chamber members how they can benefit from having the RNC in thier backyards...well, let’s just say that not only are the “Elephants” coming, they’re coming to help you —
and your business! This is a unique opportunity to showcase your goods and/or services to a group of people who will get to see for themselves whether or not the rumors are true about what a great place the Tampa Bay area in general (including the Wesley Chapel/ New Tampa area) is to both live and work. On August 14, Steve Hayes, the executive VP of Tampa Bay & Company and the VisitTampaBay.com website, one of the groups which helped bring the RNC to Tampa, told about 30 New Tampa Chamber members who gathered for lunch at Hunter’s Green Country Club that opportunities do abound for locals to benefit from the RNC. “There are more than 30,000 hotel rooms in Hillsborough County alone that will be filled with visitors from other states that entire week,” Hayes said. “Those people have to spend long hours downtown and will be looking for other things to do — from dining to shopping to outdoor activities — away from downtown, especially if they’re among those staying in or near this area.”
And, that’s where local businesses can get their foot in the door, Hayes said. As an example, he explained that VisitTampaBay.com has a social media “hub” for the RNC whereby anytime anyone, for example, tweets anything about Tampa Bay, or asks where they can find anything from a good restaurant to a massage therapist to an urgent care center in the area where they’re staying, the social media “hub” can scope out answers and “tweet” back answers to them. “If your business is social media savvy, we believe there Steve Hayes of VisitTampaBay.com discussed how are plenty of opportunities to local businesses can benefit from the RNC with the benefit from the RNC,” said Hayes. “All you have to do is New Tampa Chamber of Commerce on Aug. 14. find them.” hotels owned by the New Tampa HosHotels On The Bandwagon pitality Group, which also owns the Lisa Moore, the marketing director Wingate Inn by Wyndham in New Tampa and the Hampton Inn & Suites for the new Springhill Suites by Maroff S.R. 56 in Wesley Chapel), agreed riott in Tampa Palms, and George Santhat despite their distance from downdona, who manages the Holiday Inn town Tampa (and the Pinellas beaches, Express Hotel & Suites near Muvico in Highwoods Preserve (one of three See “RNC” on page 5.
Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel’s Public Opening To Be Held Sept. 16!
NEWS, BUSINESS, SPORTS & EDUCATION UPDATES
NEIGHBORHOOD MAGAZINE!
Bodies Found AT Target Ruled A MurderSuicide, Avalon Park West To Break Ground August 28 & Much More!
Monkeying Around At Monkey Bizness, PDQ Offers Great Food Fast, Another Installment Of ‘Nibbles & Bytes’ & More!
Pages 1-28
Pages 29-36
New Hospital, New Jobs Before it opens, FHWC has plenty of positions to fill — a total of more than 400, in fact. Experienced nurses and clinical staff are encouraged to apply online at the hospital’s website, FHWesleyChapel.com/Careers, but See “Hospital” on page 4.
ECRWSS
Also Inside This Issue!
wall, an obstacle course and some large, inflatable slides.
Postal Customer
After years of planning and construction, the brand new Florida Hospi-
tal begins to see patients in October. According to a press release from the hospital, the “Community Grand Opening” will be held on Sunday, September 16, at 1 p.m. The event will be free, open to the public and will feature live entertainment, refreshments and activities for all ages, including tours of the new facility, which will give attendees a look at areas that will not be open to the public once the state-ofthe-art, 83-bed hospital opens. The event also will include appearances by Tampa Bay Lightning players and McGruff the Crime Dog, who will be helping with child fingerprinting. For kids, there will be a rock-climbing
PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID TAMPA FL PERMIT 2801
By Matt Wiley
tal Wesley Chapel (FHWC) on Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd., just north of the Shops at Wiregrass mall, is finally gearing up for its public Grand Opening, and is in the process of filling hundreds of additional positions before the hospi-
Dated Material Please Rush!
Jobs Filling Up At WC’s New Economic Engine!
For Advertising Information Call 813-910-2575 • Volume 20, Issue 18 • August 25, 2012 • www.WCNeighborhoodNews.com
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