Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News, Volume 30, Issue 6, March 22, 2022

Volume 30 Issue 6 March 22, 2022

Sweet Hobby

Angus Valley’s Jeff Hajari’s love of nature has led him to the hobby of beekeeping.

Stings aside, he says it’s been great.

See page 10!

Photo by Charmaine George

EDITORIAL

Our editor discusses the recent progress on local transportation projects.

See page 3

SADDLEBROOK SOLD!

Saddlebrook Resort has new owners who plan to restore it to its glory days.

See page 4

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! Celebrate Touch Nail Spa’s 5th anniversary with a special deal.

See page 16

ZUKKU-SAN SUSHI

The popular local Japanese restaurant will open two new eateries!

See page 40

More KRATEs Now Open (Or Opening Soon)!

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El Prince, All Good Things Gifts & More! See pgs. 42-44!

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Transportation Projects Nearing The Finish Line & The Loss Of A Friend

By GARY NAGER could provide some additional relief to the Editorial communities along 54.

Although I still avoid going over I-75 at S.R. 56, despite living less than a mile from that junction, there is no doubt that progress is being made on the Diverging Diamond Interchange (DDI) at that location, and it has me — and most people who live in and around Wesley Chapel — dreaming of the day when this project that has dragged on for way too long is actually completed.

Considering how often I visit the Bradenton-Sarasota area and how many times I have used Florida’s original DDI at the junction of I-75 and University Pkwy. (Exit 210), I know for fact that these unique intersections do work and will help improve our local traffic situation immeasurably when it is finally finished, which should be sometime this summer. I applaud the efforts of the DDI’s new contractor — Superior Construction Company Southeast LLC — which took over the $33-million project in late 2021 that had been abandoned by the now-defunct DAB Contractors that summer and can’t wait to be on-hand when the DDI opens to the public.

Meanwhile, there also was recent good news about Overpass Rd., which had been closed for about a year in order to allow for the construction of a $64-million new interchange at I-75 and Overpass Rd. While that interchange’s completion is still as much as a year off, the good news is that Overpass Rd. itself has reopened, with one lane in each direction over I-75 connecting Old Pasco Rd. to the west and Boyette Rd. to the east while the construction of the interchange at I-75 is still under construction.

Even though I don’t live in Epperson or any other community off Overpass Rd., considering that I can once again avoid the serious backups at I-75 and S.R. 54 when I drive from my apartment at the intersection of Wesley Chapel Blvd. and S.R. 56 to my office on S.R. 54 a mile east of I-75 (especially during morning and afternoon rush hours), this little piece of progress on yet another important local transportation project definitely means a lot to me.

I’ve also seen progress recently on the widening of S.R. 54 from east of Curley Rd. to east of Morris bridge Rd., another project abandoned by DAB Contractors (this one valued at more than $42 million) that recently was picked up by a different contractor (Cone & Graham). This is another long-awaited project that has tremendous implications for all of the communities off of 54 from Meadow Pointe to New River and it simply can’t get done soon enough. Unfortunately, according to the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), that completion probably won’t happen much before the end of 2023.

That’s still better than the outlook for the so-called Zephyrhills Bypass, however. We’ve had no updates about this project, which extends north and east from the curve of S.R. 54 behind Avalon Park Wesley Chapel and New River to Eiland Blvd. in Zephyrhills. And, considering its proximity (it’s only a half-mile east of it) to the Curley Rd. intersection, it Neighborhood News

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And, speaking of relief, despite some concerns of some Meadow Pointe residents on Facebook, I’m also looking forward to some traffic relief being provided by the Meadow Pointe Blvd. connection to K-Bar Ranch Pkwy., which is slated to begin construction in July, as managing editor John Cotey reported last issue. I’d still also like to see Kinnan St. in New Tampa connected for vehicular traffic to Mansfield Blvd. in Meadow Pointe, but I know that a lot of people don’t agree with that one.

Good-Bye To A Good Guys

I will admit that I was moved to tears by the news that Christoph “Chris” Trina

(photo), age 58, passed away after a heart attack and multiple strokes while on vacation with his family in Wisconsin. I reconnected with Chris as I became acquainted with his daughter Danielle Henry, the owner of The Bean Bar Co. in Tampa Palms, who has since become an advertiser of ours.

What I didn’t remember, without Chris reminding me, was that he also had advertised with us about 20 years ago, when he co-owned KMD Modeling in Tampa Palms.

He always said such nice things about me and the Neighborhood News and I know that Danielle and her brother Kyle and their entire family are still suffering the after-effects of this sudden — and devastating loss.

“He raised us as a single dad for 12

years and he literally didn’t put up with any nonsense,” Danielle says.

“We’re successful at a young age because he knows he didn’t let us do any less than our best.”

Chris was a passionate sports coach and cheerleader for his family and was loved by many — a wonderful man taken too soon. I realized how little I really knew about him, as we were just getting reacquainted over coffee at the Bean Bar. R.I.P., Bubba.

Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News 28949 State Road 54 Wesley Chapel, FL 33543 Phone: (813) 910-2575

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Publisher & Editor /Ad Sales Gary Nager Managing Editor / Photographer John C. Cotey Correspondents Celeste McLaughlin • Isabella Douglas Mahi Nooka Lead Video Producer/Multimedia Specialist Charmaine George Graphic Designers Morgan Conlin Valerie Wegener Billing Assistant Jannah Nager Nothing that appears in Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News may be reproduced, whether wholly or in part, without permission. Opinions expressed by Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News writers are their own and do not necessarily reflect the publisher’s opinion.

The deadline for outside editorial submissions and advertisement reservations for Volume 30, Issue 8, of Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News is Monday, April 4, 2022.

Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News will consider previously non-published outside editorial submissions if they are double spaced, typed and less than 500 words. Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News reserves the right to edit and/or reject all outside editorial submissions and makes no guarantees regarding publication dates. Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News will not return unsolicited editorial materials.

Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News reserves the right to edit &/or reject any advertising. Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News is not responsible for errors in advertising beyond the actual cost of the advertising space itself, nor for the validity of any claims made by its advertisers. © 2022 JM2 Communications, Inc. For Advertising Information Call 813-910-2575 • Volume 30, Issue 6 • March 22, 2022 • NeighborhoodNewsOnline.net

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Dempsey Family Sells Historic Saddlebrook Resort

By JOHN C. COTEY

john@NTNeighborhoodNews.com

Saddlebrook Resort, the first centerpiece of Wesley Chapel and a forerunner of all the development happening today in the area, has been sold.

But, it’s not going anywhere, says longtime owner Thomas L. Dempsey, who told the Neighborhood News that the sale just marks a new chapter in the resort’s long and fabled history.

“I’m very pleased; it has a long way to go,” said Dempsey. “A great group of people bought it and intend to expand it in the future and we’ll be working with them in the future.”

The iconic conference center, vacation resort and athletic getaway was purchased by Mast Capital and Amzak Capital Management. Financial terms were not revealed.

Dempsey was the Chairman and CEO of Penton Publishing, a subsidiary of the Fortune 500 Pittway Corporation, when he helped develop Saddlebrook Resort after Pittway purchased the 480-acre property in 1979. Saddlebrook Resort opened in 1981, and Dempsey purchased the resort from Pittway in 1988 and has been Chairman and CEO — as well as a full-time resident — ever since.

Saddlebrook Resort, tucked away south of S.R. 54 and east of Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd., is a 500-unit condo and hotel property, featuring restaurants, gift shops and other amenities, including more than 100,000 square feet of conference space.

It is often the choice of visitors with plans to stay in the area for a long time.

For example, in 2018, the U.S. Women’s Hockey Team stayed at Saddlebrook while training at nearby AdventHealth Center Ice for the Winter Olympics, before they won gold at PyeongChang, South Korea.

The Olympic hockey team is just one of many high-profile athletes that have been associated with Saddlebrook.

Both of the 18-hole golf courses were designed by PGA legend Arnold

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Thomas L. Dempsey, Saddlebrook Resorts owner, Chairman and CEO since 1988, poses with the U.S. Fed Cup tennis team in 2017. Saddlebrook hosted the semifinals, which the U.S. won, defeating the Czech Republic. (Photo: John C. Cotey) Palmer, but the most famous athletes the resort has hosted and trained have been professional tennis players.

Saddlebrook has been well-known for being a training ground for players like Jim Courier, Jennifer Capriati (also a long-time resident), John Isner, Martina Hingis and Andy Roddick, as well as many others. It hosts many tennis tournaments, most recently (and notably) the Women’s Fed Cup finals between the U.S. and the Czech Republic in 2017.

The property also is home to nationally-renowned tennis and golf training academies, which are part of Saddlebrook Prep, a fully accredited college-preparatory school (grades 3 through 12) with roughly 100 students from more than 25 different countries attending the school the property will receive a major renovawhile getting world-class training in their tion, and may even add residential and respective sports. commercial space in the future.

The gated resort, however, had be“I think there’s a lot of opportunity gun to show its age in recent years. Mast in elevating the property and bringing Capital CEO Camilo Miguel told the back some of its luster,” Miguel said.

Tampa Bay Business Journal (TBBJ) that

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“There hasn’t been much investment in the property in decades, so that’s the lowhanging fruit.”

Miguel also told the TBBJ he has already hired HEI Hotels & Resorts to manage the resort, and instead of bringing in a different flagship hotel to the property, feels that the Saddlebrook name still carries enough weight to make it a desired destination.

Dempsey, 97, declined to talk about the sale or why he sold the resort after all these years, but did say he was proud of what his family accomplished with one of the first big-ticket locations in the area north of Busch Gardens.

“From the time we arrived some 40 years ago, there was very little here, practically nothing,” Dempsey said. “It grew to be a prominent part of Florida. and one of the fastest-growing areas. And, we were very much a part of all that, and will continue (to be) for the future.”

Dempsey thinks the outlook for Saddlebrook is promising. He said the new owners have plans to expand and improve it, making them an attractive buyer.

As for what he will remember the most from his stewardship of Saddlebrook Resort, Dempsey says there are too many things to mention.

“It’s been a long series of very good things,” he said. “We had a lot of help along the way with the people here, and also the county and all of that. They were there to work with us and will continue to do so.”

For Mast Capital, a Miami real estate investor/developer, it is the second major purchase it has made in Wesley Chapel in the last six months.

In November 2021, in a joint venture with private equity firm Rockpoint Group, it acquired roughly 16 acres of land located at 5101 Bruce B. Downs Blvd. for $4.5 million with plans to build a 248-unit luxury apartment community later this year. According to Pasco County Clerk of the Court records, Mast Capital and Amzak Capital management purchased Saddlebrook for $15,009,000.

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Eight Years Later, Jury Finds Reeves Not Guilty Wesley Chapel’s most notorious and longest-running murder case took eight years to make it to trial and, after nine days of arguments, it took jurors less than four hours to decide that former Tampa police captain Curtis Reeves was not guilty of second-degree murder and aggravated assault in the shooting death of Chad Oulson.

The verdict was delivered in the early evening on Feb. 25, thrilling Reeves and his family while setting off a wave of mostly incredulous reactions on social media.

“This is great,” Reeves told reporters afterwards. “It’s been a long eight years. I couldn’t wait for it to be over with.”

Reeves was accused of second-degree murder and aggravated battery after shooting Oulson prior to a showing of “Lone Survivor” at what was then called the Cobb 16 theater at the Grove in Wesley Chapel in 2014.

Reeves confronted Oulson about using his cell phone during the previews for the movie, according to the criminal complaint. That led to an argument and the 43-year-old Oulson threw a bag of popcorn at the then-71-year-old Reeves, who then pulled out his handgun and shot Oulson in the chest. Oulson was taken to a hospital, where he died. His

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In an interview with WTVT-TV Fox 13, former Tampa Police Captain Curtis Reeves said that the experience has been tough on him and his family, but that he “had no alternative” when he shot and killed Chad Oulson at the Cobb 16 theater in Wesley Chapel in 2014. (Source: WTVT-TV)

wife, Nicole, was shot in the hand in an effort to stop the bullet that ultimately killed her husband and survived.

Reeves claimed self defense from the start, leading to a series of appeals and court maneuvers that kept the case from proceeding quickly to trial. In 2017, a

judge denied Reeves’ attempt to invoke Florida’s “stand your ground” law.”

Five years after that effort, the trial finally happened. TJ Grimaldi, an attorney for Nicole Oulson, said the delays were embarrassing.

Tampa attorney Richard Escobar

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led the defense, which convinced the six jurors of their argument that Reeves was just an old man defending himself against a younger, unruly moviegoer.

In an interview with WTVT-TV Fox13 after the trial, Reeves was unapologetic. While he said he wishes that the incident had never happened, he said Oulson bears the blame.

As for the infamous bag of popcorn, Reeves said he had no recollection of that moment. He said the media sensationalized that part of the incident, and that it had nothing to do with him shooting Oulson. Despite none of the eyewitnesses who testified at the trial, nor the in-theater video from that evening corroborating his account of the events, Reeves claimed that Oulson either struck him with his hand or threw his cell phone at him.

“Mr. Oulson was in charge of what happened that day,” Reeves said. “I simply responded to his attack. I had no alternative…I had a split second to make a decision, and I made the decision to not allow myself to be injured or killed.”

Reeves said had he known what would happen, he might have moved to another seat. But initially, he claims Oulson was not a threat, just a “loudmouth.”

Reeves called the jury “heroes.”

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Developer Not Taking No For An Answer On Seven Oaks Apts.

SAM’S CLUB

By JOHN C. COTEY john@ntneighborhoodnews.com After failing to convince Pasco County commissioners to accept one of their proposed projects in Seven Oaks, SD Wesley Chapel and Stock Development, LLC, are appealing the decision under the state’s Land Use and Environmental Resolution Act. At the Feb. 22 Pasco Board of County Commissioners (BCC) meeting, county attorney Jeffrey Steinsnyder told commissioners that SD Wesley Chapel and Stock Development are claiming the 3-2 vote against their project was “unreasonable and unduly burdensome.”

Steinsnyder said the appeal was rare.

“It’s been a while since we had one,” he said.

SD Wesley Chapel and Stock Development LLC want to rezone a 10-acre parcel (S-19) at the southern portion of Seven Oaks (just north of S.R. 56; see map above) currently zoned for commercial and retail so it can build a high-end 320-unit apartment complex as part of a vertical mixed-use development.

The proposed apartment complex would include a pool, a dog park and open space for gatherings in the southern portion of the complex.

Steinsnyder said the developers and county have agreed to meet with a special magistrate, David Mechanik, who is a Florida Supreme Court-certified mediator.

While a site for that meeting hasn’t been chosen, the public is invited to attend, especially those who are affected by the proposed development. If a resolution can be reached, another public hearing would be held and the BOCC would have to vote on the project again.

Pasco’s Planning Commission originally voted down the plan to rezone the 86,000 square feet of retail and office space in September due to a number of concerns.

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After the developers amended their original plan, the BCC voted 3-2 against it at the Jan. 11 meeting, with District 2 commissioner and Seven Oaks resident Mike Moore joining District 1 commissioner Ron Oakley and commissioner Jack Mariano of District 5 in opposition.

The Seven Oaks application was submitted prior to the BCC’s current apartment moratorium.

At the exceptionally long Jan. 11 meeting, dozens of Seven Oaks residents showed up to speak against the project.

Gary Lemberg, the president of the Seven Oaks Property Owners Association, told commissioners at that meeting that he hadn’t talked to a single Seven Oaks resident that favored the project. “Our board is definitely against it,” he said.

The arguments against the project varied, from traffic concerns on Ancient Oaks Blvd. (a major north-south route through Seven Oaks) to the effects on school capacity to general compatibility.

Opponents of the project, including attorney Chelsea Waller-Douthard of Waller Law, mentioned the number of apartment complexes already in that area.

Windsor Club at Seven Oaks to the east has 240 units on 14.7 acres, and the Colonial Grand at Seven Oaks rental community to the west has 318 units on 20 acres.

In addition, the Enclave at Wesley Chapel has 312 units on 43 acres, and Bonterra Parc has 264 units on 26.3 units.

Both are located across the street from Seven Oaks, on the south side of S.R. 56.

The proposed project “is double the density of any apartment community in Seven Oaks, and two-and-a-half times the density of other apartments in the area,” Waller-Douthard said, adding that it was more of a fit for South Tampa or Orlando than Wesley Chapel.

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Premier Hockey Federation Playoffs At AdventHealth Center Ice Mar. 25-

(Above) Pasco County Parks & Recreation Department manager Brian Taylor cuts the ribbon at the cricket pitch at the Wesley Chapel District Park on Boyette Rd., prior to the start of the Major Cricket League President’s Cup tournament. (Below) Taylor also “bowled” the ceremonial first pitch to kick off the tournament.

Wesley Chapel District Park Hosts Cricket League’s President’s Cup

By JOHN C. COTEY District Park has accommodated him for john@ntneighborhoodnews.com several local events.

Brian Taylor, Pasco County Parks & Wesley Chapel is quickly becoming Recreation Department manager, cut the one of the top amateur sports locations ribbon and threw (or in cricket parlance, in all of Florida, and you can now add “bowled”) out the ceremonial first pitch. cricket to a long list of sports and tourThe Arkansas Titans defeated the naments that plan on making the area its Tampa Tigers, captained by TPL managregular home. ing director Prahlad Madabhushi, in the On Feb. 18, a ribbon-cutting cerPresident’s Cup final. emony was held at the Wesley Chapel The entire event was broadcast by District Park to kick off the Major Cricket MQTV.com.

League (MCL)’s President’s Cup tournament, featuring teams from Canada, Arkansas, Connecticut, New Jersey, Tennessee, Tampa, and, of course Wesley Chapel’s own Legends, which is comprised of players from Wesley Chapel and New Tampa and captained by Nagesh Nayak, who helped organize the event.

“Next year, we hope to have more international teams,” Nayak said. “We had more people interested in coming, but we didn’t have the grounds and didn’t want to bite off more than we can chew.

We had eight teams, but if the facilities improve, we can easily do 12-16 (teams).”

Nayak, the president of the Tampa Premier League (TPL), has been searching for a dedicated cricket pitch in the area for a few years, and Wesley Chapel

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WHAT: Women’s Premier Hockey Federation Semifinals and Final, with six teams battling it out for the Isobel Cup. WHEN/WHERE: March 25-28, at Advent Health Center Ice. SCHEDULE: Friday, March 25, 4 p.m. — 3rd Place vs 6th Place (televised on ESPN+ & TSN Direct); 7:30 p.m. — 4th Place vs 5th Place (ESPN+ & TSN Direct) Sunday, March 27, 1 p.m. — 1st Place vs Lowest Remaining Seed (ESPN+ & TSN Direct); 4:30 p.m. — 2nd Place vs Highest Remaining Seed (ESPN+ & TSN Direct).

Monday, March 28 — Championship at 9 p.m. The final will be televised live on ESPN2, marking ESPN’s first linear cable broadcast of professional women’s hockey.

TICKETS: All of the games are free to attend.

WHO’S PLAYING: The official seedings aren’t finalized yet, because the season ends on Mar. 20, after we went to press with this issue.

Heading into the final week of the season, however, the battle for the top two seeds appeared to be clear, with the Toronto Six (13-2-1, 40 points) and Connecticut Whale (12-3-1, 37

points) securely holding down the top spots. The defending champion Boston Pride was in third place with a 10-5-1 record and 28 points, and seemed unlikely to lose that spot. Just seven points separated the bottom three teams — the Metropolitan Riveters (6-11-1), Minnesota Whitecaps (5-12-1) and Buffalo Beauts (4-12).

WHO TO WATCH FOR: Toronto forward Mikyla Grant-Mentis leads the league in scoring with 28 points on 11 goals (including five game-winners, No. 1 in the PHF) and a league-high 17 assists....Although her team is near the bottom of the standings, Minnesota’s Allie Thunstrom leads the league with 15 goals, four more than the three players behind her with 11 (Connecticut’s Kennedy Marchment, Metropolitan’s Madison Packer and Grant-Mentisof).... Boston’s Katie Burt (1.34 goals against average) and Toronto’s Elaine Chuli (1.38 GAA) are battling it out for top honors among the league’s goaltenders.

DID YOU KNOW: The winner receives the Isobel Cup, which is named after the daughter of Lord Arthur Frederick Stanley....of the NHL’s prestigious Stanley Cup.

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Angus Valley Man’s Beekeeping Hobby Is As Sweet As Honey

By JOHN C. COTEY john@NTNeighborhoodNews.com

Tucked away in Angus Valley, one of the few remaining places in Wesley Chapel that business and residential development haven’t touched, Jeff Hajari gets back to nature.

On this day, he is tending to his bees, all eight hives of them. It doesn’t take a lot of work, really, now that he has been doing this for two years, but he works to keep his hive small and strong.

In his kitchen, his countertops are filled with 16 oz. mason jars of the sweet elixir his troops have produced, roughly 400 pounds in all during his most recent harvest.

A large wedge of beeswax sits nearby on the floor, below a counter of vials filled with propolis (“bee glue”), a byproduct of the hive used by people with diabetes, to heal wounds, combat allergies and even soothe toothaches.

“Bees are amazing,” Hajari says.

“There are so many benefits to everything they produce.”

Which is part of the reason why Hajari is so fascinated by them. Truth is, we couldn’t live without bees, as they, along with butterflies, pollinate approximately 75 percent of the world’s flowering plants and 35 percent of the world’s food crops, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Hajari, 59, was born in Kerman, Iran, and came to the US in 1987 to start a new life. He settled in New York and began a career as a home improvement contractor, but then relocated to Florida and eventually bought a home in Angus Valley.

With an affinity for nature and being self-sustaining, Hajari started with chickens and goats in his backyard, and while his attempts to make goat’s milk failed, he did successfully manage to make some soap.

But, he really wanted his own honey.

Because he returns to Iran every year to help take care of his mother, the barnyard animals required too much care. So, three years ago, he bought his first beehive from a woman in Dade City for $250.

He transferred the hive in his truck, and says that setting it up was, well, a bit painful.

“I got stung like crazy,” Jeff says. “Probably 20-25 times. But, it was okay.”

Hajari continued to add more hives — at one point he had 12-15. But, they were weaker hives, and he has found by limiting the hives to

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Jeff Hajari is a beekeeper who produces and sells his own dark honey on Facebook Marketplace from his home in Angus Valley.

eight or so, he has a stronger, healthier group able to resist attackers like ants and other pests.

Two years ago, he designed a new entrance for the beehive to fight against varroa mites, who were capable of wiping out an entire colony.

Hajari says he learned how to keep bees like you would learn about anything — the internet and trial and error. He watched documentaries and YouTube videos, read articles and purchased a beekeeping suit. Handy with wood working, he constructed frames for the bees to expand their honeycombs. He has made mistakes, losing bees and entire hives. “Like anything, there is a science to it,” he says.

Every few months, his kitchen becomes a laboratory, where he extracts the honey from the combs and bottles it.

“It takes two days to get it all done and jarred and ready,” Jeff says. “It’s a labor of love. As long as I have enough for my coffee and tea, and my friends.”

He says that the taste each time is different. Hajari says it all depends on what flowers were pollinated. One of his recent batches was particularly dark and bitter.

“I don’t know why, but my honey looks almost like coffee,” he says. “I’ve been to stores but I have never seen anything that looks that dark. It’s extremely dark. But, I read where the darker the better, it has more antioxidants and antibodies. So I’m like, ‘Okay, I’m good with it.’”

He sells his honey and propolis (bee glue) on Facebook marketplace, which you can find by searching “Local Honey Wesley Chapel.”

Hajari will even come remove a colony of bees from your yard, if need be.

“It’s a hobby, and it’s fun,” he says.

But, there’s always something new to learn, and Hajari has now added mushroom hunting — “Not the crazy ones, the edible ones” — to his nature quest. He joined a

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group that goes hunting in places like Ocala National Forest, the Croom Wildlife Management Area in Brooksville and even Hillsborough River State Park. One trip yielded a basket of Chanterelle mushrooms, which he cooked up. “I’m addicted to them, they were so good,” Jeff said.

Because he has so many trees and logs in his backyard, he ordered a mushroom growing kit and is hoping to produce Shitaki, Golden Oyster and Lion’s Mane mushrooms in his own in his backyard. He said it takes a year.

And before he left for Iran recently, he planted a banana tree, avocados, blueberries and blackberries.

“I just like to be self sufficient,” he says, “especially when it comes to nutrition. I want everything organic, and I like to produce it myself.” What’s next for Jeff? He’s not sure, but he seems to be just beginning. “I always like to try something new,” he says.

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11

New Tampa All Abilities Playground Begins Construction

By JOHN C. COTEY

john@NTNeighborhoodNews.com

When New Tampa resident Pauline Sturtevant lived in California, she would drive 30 minutes, sometimes more, to the nearest all-abilities park for her son Caleb, who has Downs Syndrome.

It was the only place she could find with swings that were designed to hold his neck up properly, slides with higher sides to prevent him from falling off, or even a ramp to accommodate Caleb’s still-developing walking skills.

Caleb is 17 now, and while he may be too old for it, Pauline Sturtevant is thrilled that other parents will soon have a similar park closer to their homes in New Tampa. Of course, some people, including those in the northern part of New Tampa, have probably made use of the inclusive playground at the Wesley Chapel District Park on Boyette Rd. “It’s important, you just don’t realize how much,” she said. ‘‘For the parents to feel like someone took the time to think about (a project like this), to make sure their kids were included and had a place to go, was super important.”

On Feb. 14, ground was broken at the New Tampa Community Park on the City of Tampa’s first disability and sensory-friendly playground.

District 7 Tampa City Council member Luis Viera, who championed the New Tampa All Abilities Playground almost immediately after being elected in 2016, echoed Pauline Sturtevant’s message at the groundbreaking.

“You are not alone,” Viera told the crowd, which included members of the New Tampa Players’ Penguin Project, a theatre program for children and young adults with special needs. “You have friends, you have family, you have people who have been through this many many years before...and you have the City of Tampa having your back and making sure everyone has a place at the table.”

The 10,000-sq.-ft. park will cost

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(Left) Zach Mueller told the crowd he was thrilled about the New Tampa All Abilities Playground. “I was happy to hear a park was being built for kids like me and my friends, and now they will have a park that is fun to play in and just be themselves. Thank you.” (Photos: Charmaine George) (Right) A rendering of what the All Abilities Playground will look like.

roughly $2 million — paid for by city money and American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) federal funding — and will include multiple play pieces that are wheelchair-accessible, a sensory area geared towards children with autism and other sensory or cognitive challenges, a new art mural based on a “Fantastic Florida Nature” theme, and more.

At the groundbreaking, City of Tampa Mayor Jane Castor said that the park will have “16 different opportunities involving all of the sensory abilities in that park. It will be fantastic.” Mayor Castor also said the importance of parks in the development of a number of skills in children is sometimes taken for granted.

Making the city’s parks more accessible to everyone is a movement she strongly supports.

“I feel everything starts at parks and recreation, out on those fields,” Castor said. “That’s where children learn the life skills, that’s where they make lifelong friendships, and that’s where healthy skills and attitudes are developed. It all starts with ‘Hey, you wanna play?’”

For children with special needs, regular playgrounds can be a haven for emotional discomfort and even injuries, and it is easy for them to shrink away in fear.

Pauline Sturtevant says it always pained her to see special needs children sitting on the sidelines at most other parks, and “developing a mentality that they are different and should be in a different place.”

Now, they will have their own place.

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“The families are excited,” said Melissa Ewen, the director of fellowship and special connections, a special needs ministry at St. James United Methodist Church, also located in Tampa Palms.

“Most of the ones I talk to have older high school or adult-aged family members, but for them it’s a sigh of relief. They know the challenges they faced; others won’t have to.”

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15

Touch Nail Spa Celebrates Its 5-Year Anniversary In Wesley Chapel!

By CELESTE McLAUGHLIN Correspondent On Sunday, March 27, Touch Nail Spa on S.R. 56 in Wesley Chapel will celebrate its fifth anniversary with a special event. The first 50 people at the Wesley Chapel location (not available at the New Tampa spa) when it opens at 11 a.m. will receive a free “Simple Touch” pedicure (a $27 value). Simple Touch is the spa’s basic pedicure that includes nail trimming, shaping and buffing, cuticle grooming, callus treatment, pineapple sugar scrub, hot towel wrap, lotion massage and polish with one of Touch Nail Spa’s 1,700 colors.

The husband-and-wife team of Timmy Pham and Tiffany Ha opened Wesley Chapel’s Touch Nail Spa in 2017. At that time, the Wesley Chapel location was 3,200 square feet, but the spacious, clean salon with great customer service soon saw a need to expand. Now, at 5,000 sq. ft., it is the largest nail salon in Wesley Chapel.

Timmy and Tiffany expanded their business again in December 2020 by opening the second Touch Nail Spa location in The Village at Hunter’s Lake, near Sprouts Farmers Market off Bruce B. Downs Blvd.

The pair is excited that later this spring, they will be launching yet another new location in the Odessa/Trinity area. That Touch Nail Spa is expected to open in mid-April.

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Treat yourself to a royal experience in Touch Nail Spa’s queen-like thrones and wide variety of services provided by a friendly staff at either the Hunter’s Lake location on Bruce B. Downs Blvd. or in Wesley Chapel on S.R. 56. (Photos: Charmaine George) The two current Touch Nail Spa salons is no longer required, the staff will gladly clean and disinfected. While this cleanliness both offer high ceilings for better ventilaaccommodate anyone who asks to be seated has always been part of the Touch Nail Spa tion, rows of comfortable leather pedicure more than six feet away from others. For experience, it has been especially emphasized chairs, plenty of manicure stations and a manicures, plexiglass partitions separate during the Covid-19 pandemic. complimentary beverage with any manicure, the technicians from their customers, with “The most important thing people are pedicure or other services, including eyelash enough room on the bottom to slide your looking for right now is that everything is extensions, waxing, facials and massage. hands through. clean and sanitized,” Timmy says.

Complimentary beverages include bottled “We want people to be comfortable,” The salon’s cleanliness and bright water, soda, or a glass of chardonnay, caberTimmy says, explaining that while CDC atmosphere is one of the reasons it has been net sauvignon, moscato or sangria, served in guidelines have relaxed and many customso popular since it opened five years ago. a chilled glass (wine is for adults age 21 and ers are no longer seeking social distancing, In addition to the Simple Touch Pediolder with proper identification, of course). the salon still follows strict health and safety cure, Touch Nail Spa offers other services While Timmy tells us social distancing procedures to be sure all areas are always with an even more spa-like experience, in-

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Touch Nail Spa co-owners Timmy Pham and Tiffany Ha, with their “little princess” Tia, are celebrating the five-year anniversary of the Touch Nail Spa location on S.R. 56. They will give a free “Simple Touch” pedicure to the first 50 people at the Wesley Chapel location only for the event on Sunday, March 27. cluding a variety of “Hot Touch” and “Organic Touch” pedicures, ranging from $47 to $62. These include a hot stone massage for your legs and feet, plus your additional treatments, such as specialized exfoliation for the bottom of your feet and a mask for your legs and heels. Timmy says the Orange Burst and Milk & Honey pedicures are among the services most requested by customers because of the excellent results they provide in leaving feet feeling soft and smooth.

Whether you prefer a simple mani/ pedi to keep your fingers and toes neat and polished, or are looking for the perfect technician to provide the latest trend in nail shapes and designs, the experts at Touch Plexiglass partitions keep Touch Nail Spa’s Nail Spa can help. clients separated from their nail technicians.

At both locations, Touch Nail Spa prices for children age 11 and younger. offers dipping power, acrylic nails and all Both locations have plenty of technikinds of nail designs. French manicures and cians waiting to serve you, and Timmy gel polish (which lasts longer than regular promises that the customer service experipolish) are available. The color choices are ence will always be top-notch. The Wesley seemingly limitless. Touch Nail Spa carries Chapel Touch Nail Spa has 48 employees, roughly 1,700 colors, available in both while the slightly smaller New Tampa salon regular polish and gel. For those who prefer currently has 32 employees and Timmy is dipping powders, which add a layer to your looking to hire a full-time receptionist for nails that is as strong as acrylic but healthier that location. Please call either location if for your nails, there are 2,000 choices. you would like to apply.

While Timmy says the pandemic has Touch Nail Spa also now has e-gift been difficult for the entire industry and has cards available for all occasions that can be increased his costs, the prices at Touch Nail used at both locations. They are available for Spa have remained the same. purchase at the spa’s website, TouchNail “We also haven’t cut the quality beAndSpa.com. cause of the economy,” Timmy says. “EveAppointments are welcome if you want rything is more expensive now and a lot a service with a specific nail technician. For of salons have had to increase their prices, services with any available technician, please but we haven’t done that. We have kept the just walk in. prices the same, but also kept the quality of The Wesley Chapel (27233 S.R. our products the same or better.”

56) and New Tampa (8630 Hunter’s Touch Nail Spa’s Customer Rewards Village Rd.) Touch Nail Spas are both Program helps keep the services even more open Mon.-Sat., 9:30 a.m.–7:30 p.m., affordable. Upon arrival at either salon, and 11 a.m.–5 p.m. on Sun. To make an customers sign in on one of Touch Nail appointment with a specific nail techniSpa’s iPads. There, you register for your free cian or for more information about the membership and start earning points. MemWesley Chapel location, call (813) 973bers receive 1 point for every dollar spent.

4111. For the New Tampa location, call When you reach 500 points, you receive (813) 536-1003. Also, see the ad on page $25 off any a pedicure service.

39 for more information.

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17

Dr. Benjamin Ghaly Finds A Home At Blue Water Dental

By JOHN C. COTEY

john@NTNeighborhoodNews.com

Like any young professional starting out in a business, Benjamin Ghaly, D.M.D. (Doctor of Dental Medicine), was looking for the right place to build his career as a dentist.

Luckily for him, his fiancée had a desire to live in the New Tampa/Wesley Chapel area, and although he was working in Lakeland at the time, he started to look around.

As it turned out, long-time New Tampa dentist Nicole Mitchell, D.M.D, was looking for someone to work at her still relatively new Blue Water Dental office in the Pebble Creek Collection.

“Personality is huge, and I think he has the right temperament, personality and approach,” says Dr. Mitchell, who specializes in family implant and cosmetic dentistry.

“You can’t ever really teach that kind of stuff. And it was important to me.”

Dr. Mitchell says she not only found the dentist she was looking for when she hired Dr. Ghaly in October 2021, but Ghaly found just the kind of person he was looking to work for, too.

During his interview, he discovered many of his goals — to provide quality dental care in a friendly and honest way

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Dr. Benjamin Ghaly says finding a good dentist is like finding a good car mechanic — you want someone you can trust, someone who will be honest with you. And, he says, at Blue Water Dental in the Pebble Creek Collection, that’s exactly what you will get.

(Photos: Charmaine George)

— were shared by Dr. Mitchell. He liked that Blue Water Dental was not focused on high-volume and “cranking them out,” as they block off an hour for each new patient visit.

“I like dentistry, I compare it a lot to going to an auto shop, or mechanic,”

Ghaly says. “You want someone who is really honest. (Like cars), people don’t really know much about their teeth and what treatments they need or don’t need. That is something that Dr. Mitchell and I are big on, and that’s why we get along really well. We’re not trying to rip people off.

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We’d rather educate our patients.”

Ghaly, 28, graduated from the University of South Florida with a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in Integrative Animal Biology in 2016, and then earned his D.M.D. degree from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale.

Although he considered medical school or physical therapy as a career, dentistry had always stuck with him since high school, when he shadowed the father of one of his friends, who was a dentist.

Ghaly says he also was influenced by his father Helmy, a pharmacist.

“He always had a passion for medicine, and he was a big inspiration for getting me into health care,” Dr. Ghaly says.

He believes he has found his calling, and is excited to add new patients. Ghaly does a little bit of everything at Blue Water Dental, from general dentistry to root canals to surgeries like extractions. But, he says he focuses on the “bread-and-butter dentistry,” making sure patients teeth and mouths are disease-free and clean.

“I focus on exactly what the patient needs,” he says. “And, if they need additional treatment, we always try to provide affordable options.”

He complements his dental skills — “I like working with my hands” — with a comforting bedside manner, which is vital

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in dentistry, which always has a high percentage of nervous patients.

In fact, Dr. Ghaly sees one of primary roles as being an educator and confidant for his patients.

“I really like the personal interactions,” he says. “I want the patients to know that we are here to take care of them. They have a fear of the unknown, and we try to explain everything to them.”

Dr. Mitchell also is a USF graduate who received her D.M.D degree from the University of Florida in Gainesville. She has been a dentist in New Tampa since 2006, moving here after receiving advanced dental training and serving four years with the U.S. Army in Fort Benning, GA. She opened her own practice in Dr. Benjamin Ghaly, a USF and Nova Southeastern grad, is eager to make New Tampa/Wesley 2010 in Highwoods Preserve, and Chapel his long-term home. moved to her current, and much other benefits, with a similar adult plan larger, location in February 2020. for only $35 a month.

“I’m happy to be in a bigger spot For those who need more care, a now,” Mitchell says. “I honestly did it so I perio (gum) maintenance plan is offered could help more people. I feel we provide for $53 per month, the difference bea really good quality of care, and I want to ing periodontal maintenance every 3-4 offer that to more people.” months instead of just twice a year.

Blue Water Dental offers the full Dr. Mitchell says she has wanted to range of dental services: teeth cleaning, offer plans like this for years, but finally dental implants, root canals, Invisalign had time during the Covid downtime to braces, fillings, sealants, gum disease treatresearch and implement the plans. ment and sedation dentistry.

“It’s great for people who don’t have And, if sedation dentistry is a little insurance,” Dr. Ghaly says. “And we stress too much for some patients, Max and dental hygiene here. Half of the (eight) Mandi are there to help as well. Brother offertories (dental treatment rooms) are and sister, Max (short for “maxilla,” the dedicated to hygiene, so you don’t get to bone that forms your upper jaw) and the point where you need a crown or deep Mandi (short for “mandible,” or the lower cleanings.” jaw) are Maltese/Shih-tzu mixes that Dr. Because, as Dr. Ghaly and most denMitchell has trained as therapy dogs. tists will tell you, “taking care of it yourself Blue Water Dental also makes it easier with brushing and flossing is really the to afford good dental care. They are inmajority of dental health.” network with Aetna, Cigna, Delta Dental, Blue Water Dental is located at MetLife, Guardian Dental and Humana 19651 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., Suite Dental insurances, and also accepts all A-1, in the Pebble Creek CollecPPO plans. tion. It is open Monday, Tuesday and For those without insurance, or Thursday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.; and 8 a.m.-1 those who have bad insurance, they offer p.m. on Wednesday and Friday. For three plans — a standard child plan for more information, visit NicoleMitch$30 a month that includes a prevenellDMD.com, call (813) 957-5887 or tive cleaning every six months, X-rays, see the ad on page 26 of this issue.

25-percent off any needed treatment and

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19

Big Or Small, Taylor Gardner Gutters Meets Your Home’s Needs

By JOHN C. COTEY

john@NTNeighborhoodNews.com

If you’re like most homeowners, you probably haven’t put a lot of thought into your home’s gutters.

They generally aren’t admired by your neighbors while sitting out by the pool, like a fence might be, or like when you’re enjoying a cold drink in the driveway while basking in the glory of your perfectly manicured and green lawn.

But, those gutters might just be more important to your home than any of those other aesthetic changes you can make to the outside of it.

At Taylor Gardner Gutters, there is nothing more important, or serious, than making sure homes are equipped with the best gutters possible, because without them, the foundation of your house is susceptible to water damage that can create big problems down the road.

“I tell customers that gutters are the least expensive thing you can do to your home to improve the quality of the look of the home and quality of the life of your home without spending a fortune,” says Taylor Gardner, the owner of Taylor Gardner Gutters since taking over from his father Ed in 2019. “A fence can be five grand easy, and new floors can cost you $5,000-$10,000. But, new gutters?

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Many big builders in the area, as well as individual homeowners that need gutters or repairs, choose the crew at Taylor Gardner Gutters. (Photo: Taylor Gardner Gutters) The average is $1,500-$2,000, tops.”

Why are gutters, which Taylor Gardner Gutters can customize, install and repair, so important? Well, Taylor says there are many reasons, but one of the most important ones is that they take the downpour from those heavy Florida rainstorms and redirects the water away from your house.

Without gutters, the chance of water

creating a river between you and your neighbor and settling at the base of your home’s foundation are much greater.

When saturation occurs, the water gets under the house, and can cause the wood or laminate floors in your house to pop, or pucker up.

The water also can bring erosion to the side of your home, which can cause cracks in the stucco and window ledges,

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and form unsightly trenches.

“Gutters will protect the integrity of your foundation, and that’s the important thing,” Taylor says.

Sarah DiMonarco, a Tampa-based Realtor, was referred to Taylor Gardner Gutters by a friend and hired Taylor and his crew for a house she was flipping.

Sarah was so impressed with the work and the price that she recommended the company to her friends and clients, and even her roofer.

When she had her gutters installed, the crew rerouted her downflow.

“I asked why they were doing that, and they said it was because the water was washing dirt out to my driveway,” Sarah says. “They made sure it was redirected where it should be going. I’ve been very happy, and the price was right.”.

At Taylor Gardner Gutters, Taylor and his five crews take the job seriously and set out to prove that not all gutter companies are created equal.

The company offers a thicker gauge aluminum than many of its competitors, which prevents the gutters from ever buckling under the weight of the water.

Taylor’s crews use rivets instead of screws. Unlike screws, rivets are made of aluminum and won’t rust.

“Most of our competitors use

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screws,” Taylor says, “and unless they are zinc-coated screws, they will rust. But, zinc-coated screws are more expensive than rivets, so no one does that.”

Rivets also are a stronger way to hold things together, and Taylor says he tells his customers to consider how airplanes are constructed. “They are riveted together,” he says, “and there’s a reason for that.”

However, what may separate Taylor’s company from its competition more than anything is the warranty. He says he offers a lifetime no-leak — and no questions asked if it ever does leak — warranty. Taylor says he is unaware of any other gutter company that offers a lifetime warranty.

And, for the best results, Taylor recommends an aluminum, seamless gutter system. While he says a handyman may be able to throw gutters on your house, they are probably using vinyl gutters purchased from a big box store.

“I never paid a lot of attention to gutters, but they are kind of like crown moulding,” Sarah says. “They really do enhance the look of the home.”

A Legacy Of Honesty

Taylor learned the gutter business from his father Ed, who started Gardner Gutters back in 2000 but passed away following a long battle with cancer in 2020. Ed was highly regarded for running his business with honesty and dignity, and Taylor says the business he now runs strives to continue much of what his father taught him.

Taylor, who did a tour of Iraq while in the Marines for nine years and earned a Business Administration (B.A.) degree from Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA, afterwards, took over completely in 2020 after Ed passed away. Gardner Gutters was rebranded

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trailers, and has pivoted to working with builders on new construction, especially in the busy Wesley Chapel area, to help the company grow.

Taylor says the fact that his company is trusted by big builders like GL Homes and David Weekley Homes, suggests that Taylor Gardner Gutters does exceptional work using the best quality materials. It also offers free estimates.

And following in Ed’s footsteps, Taylor is hoping to build a following by sending out salespeople who are there to build relationships and explain the need for gutters, not just sell them. In many of New Tampa’s communities and some of the older ones in Wesley Chapel, most homes built 20 years or more ago or so were built without gutters, but many have added them because, well, it’s just smart.

“I don’t hire a salesperson to be a salesperson, I hire them to be an educator,” Taylor says. “They have to understand (our business) to be able to explain it to the customer, and not just give a sales pitch.”

So, if a customer is complaining about a flower bed against the side of the house flooding or cracks on the outside of the house, the company offers solutions.

“If necessary, we’ll tell them you need gutters or you are going to have a serious problem,” Taylor says.

“That’s not a sales pitch, it’s just the honest truth.”

In addition to custom gutter installations and repairs, Taylor Gardner Gutters, which is proud to be veteran-owned-and-operated, also provides screen Seamless gutters like these can keep the rain from flooding your room installations and window replacements. favorite spots to gather and hang out.

Taylor Gardner Gutters is located at 6202 that year as Taylor Gardner Gutters.

Land O Lakes Blvd. in Land O’Lakes. The store He says the business was flagging at the time, but hours are Monday-Friday 8 a.m.-5 p.m. For more now is booming. Taylor opened a new office in Land information, visit TaylorGardnerGutters.com, call O’Lakes, added more crews with new equipment and (813) 515-0844 or see the ad on page 26.

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21

Berkshire Hathaway Can Help You Navigate A Hot Real Estate Market

By CELESTE McLAUGHLIN Correspondent Like most of Florida, the real estate market in Wesley Chapel and New Tampa is on fire.

For the agents of the New Tampa/ Wesley Chapel and Zephyrhills offices of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices (BHHS) Florida Properties Group, located east of I-75 on S.R. 56 in Wesley Chapel (next to Buffalo Wild Wings), that means getting creative when placing offers on behalf of buyers and helping sellers navigate a fast-paced and often overwhelming number of offers as soon as they list their homes.

“For the past year, depending upon the price point, sellers have been receiving anywhere from 10 to 30 offers on their homes,” says Veronica Davidson, market president and managing Broker.

Those offers are often $50,000 or sometimes even $100,000 more than the list price.

“Our agents have to educate buyers that the property will likely not appraise for that,” she explains, and help them include the appropriate legal verbiage for the contract and navigate the steps it will take to actually close on the house, including bringing cash to their closing.

Davidson says with many people

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As market president & managing Broker for the New Tampa/Wesley Chapel and Zephyrhills offices of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Properties Group on S.R. 56 in Wesley Chapel, Veronica Davidson leads 115 agents who can serve all of your real estate needs. coming from out of state in larger, more price of a home in Florida in 2021 was expensive markets — many from Caliup 23 percent over 2020, and Davidson says those prices are still rising. fornia — local buyers have to have cash on hand to compete. The experienced “The demand has priced out a agents at BHHS can present options lot of local buyers,” Davidson exthat may help a local buyer hold their plains. “There are so many people own in such a crazy market. who couldn’t buy a home in their own It’s so crazy, that the average sales neighborhoods right now.”

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But, Davidson says her agents are well prepared for such extenuating circumstances.

“They know how to navigate this type of market to get offers accepted and to help sellers make it convenient and seamless for their move,” she says.

In fact, she adds, this is a crucial opportunity for homeowners who have fallen on hard times.

“Most people have equity in their homes right now,” she explains. “If you’re behind on your mortgage payments, don’t let your home go into foreclosure. Sell it and get your equity.”

In this situation — or if you have any questions about whether it’s the right time to sell your home or buy a new one — give the agents at Berkshire Hathaway a call.

Davidson says you can feel confident that you’ll be working with someone who is experienced and committed to integrity. As evidence of her team’s success, she says that MLS (Multiple Listing Service) data shows that her team of 115 agents was the highest producing real estate office in Wesley Chapel for 2021.

Name Recognition

If the name Berkshire Hathaway seems familiar, it’s because it is derived from the holding company Berkshire

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Hathaway, Inc., which is chaired by billionaire financier and company CEO Warren Buffett.

The local Berkshire Hathaway office is part of HomeServices of America, Inc., which is owned by Berkshire Hathaway Energy, a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway, Inc. In fact, what is now called Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Properties Group was originally founded in 1959 as Tropical Realty. Dewey Mitchell and Allen Crumbley acquired the business in 1984, then aligned with the Prudential Real Estate Network in 1988.

In 2012, Berkshire Hathaway purchased that group, including the local Prudential Tropical Realty office on Bruce B. Downs Blvd. in Wesley Chapel.

The New Tampa/Wesley Chapel office is one of 20 offices under the Florida Properties Group umbrella. Davidson says her agents are committed to an exceptional culture, where they practice the company’s mission statement of teamwork, integrity, passion and excellence.

They also are committed to serving the community around them. Every year, the local office holds a food and toy drive for Metropolitan Ministries during the holiday season. The agents also support the company-wide charity, called Sunshine Kids, which gives children who have terminal diseases a week in Orlando to go to Walt DisneyWorld and Universal Studios.

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This was one of our Berkshire Hathaway’s listings in Estancia. They offer help buying and selling homes in this tricky and quickly changing market.

Davidson says many agents will parhelp of Berkshire Hathaway Realtor ticipate in a clay shoot coming up in April, Cynthia Filippi. with all proceeds going to Sunshine Kids.

“In two transactions, there were no At the office’s annual “Be The Sunhiccups, and everything went smoothly,” shine” event, agents take the day off to he says. “I’ve dealt with buying and serve a charitable organization. Earlier this selling homes quite a bit, and I found year, they volunteered at the Community Cynthia and Berkshire Hathaway to be Food Pantry in Carrollwood. very professional in their approach.”

He says the people who bought his More Than Just Agents home were from Canada, so dealing with Kevin Blatz sold his New Tampa an international transaction was unique. home of 20 years in May 2021 and They also didn’t see the home before moved to Lakewood Ranch with the buying it, and he says Cynthia partnered

closely with their agent to be sure the transaction was easy for both parties.

“It was truly seamless,” he says.

Davidson says that’s always the goal.

“Our agents are not just transactional,” she says. “We want to do such a good job that our customers become customers for life.”

She adds that Berkshire Hathaway strives to simplify many aspects of real estate, because customers have access to a wide range of services, including its mortgage and commercial division, as well as property management resources for both investors and renters.

“For investors, we have a strong property management team,” she says. “The (local) rental market is just as hot, so we can rent very quickly for a great price.”

On the flip side, people who are looking to rent can take advantage of the resources available in the local Berkshire Hathaway office to help them find a rental property.

To browse properties available for rent or learn about property management services, visit the Berkshire Hathaway online portal at RentAHomeWithUs.com.

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Properties Group is located at 26771 S.R. 56. For more information, visit BHHSFloridaProperties.com, call (813) 9078200 or see the ad on pg. 31.

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23

Your CBD Store Offering New & Improved Products

By JOHN C. COTEY

SunMed’s carcinogen-free products have the USDA Organic designation, and each label has a QR code, so users can see exactly what they are putting into their bodies.

“Ours is just so pure,” Lisa says, adding that other places that sell CBD, from Amazon to other brick-and-mortars, cannot make that claim.

john@NTNeighborhoodNews.com

Lisa Feigel isn’t a doctor, but she can sound like one when helping a customer figure out what kind of CBD products will help with whatever problem they have.

With her extensive knowledge of CBD, or Cannabidiol, as well as one of the top-rated product lines to sell, Feigel says she can help just about anyone who walks through the door of her Your CBD Store in the Freedom Plaza on S.R. 54.

“I believe in CBD,” says Feigel, who opened her Wesley Chapel store in August 2019. “I believe in what it can do, and I think most people who try it will almost always come back again.”

CBD is related to tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the active ingredient in marijuana that produces the “high.”

CBD is derived from hemp, which is a variety of cannabis (as is marijuana), but with less than 0.3% of THC, and thus, does not produce any of the psychoactive effects. However, CBD still retains all of the medicinal benefits of cannabis, the uses of which go back thousands of years.

Considered a holistic product, CBD products are offered as full spectrum — which are generally stronger and contain no more than the legal limit of 0.3% THC — and broad spectrum, which have no THC at all.

Feigel’s SunMed CBD products have a wide range of effects on a wide range of maladies, from anxiety to sleep deprivation to pain management, and more. According to a recent New York Times story, Brightfield Group (a cannabis market research firm) conducted a survey of 5,000 people, revealing that 60 percent of CBD users have taken it for anxiety, followed by chronic pain, insomnia and depression.

“I have suffered intense paranoia and anxiety for most of my adult life,” says Sam Crook, one of Lisa’s regular customers. “Lisa was very VERY informative, patient, and just overall pleasant as she walked me through the options. Taking her advice, I purchased a few products and life has never felt better for me.”

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A Tale Of Two Deltas

Lisa Feigel has owned Your CBD Store on S.R. 54 in Wesley Chapel since 2019, and says that new products and innovations are keeping her customers coming back. (Photos: John C. Cotey) By eliminating some of the things home shows for those who want to learn, that had been holding him back, Crook explore and sample in the privacy of their says he has gotten a new lease on life with own homes.

Your CBD Store products.

Your CBD Store offers SunMed “With my anxiety and neuroses products that Lisa says “are second to diminished, I feel more confident, more none.” SunMed grows its hemp in Orproductive at my job and sleep better than egon and Colorado, and processes it in I ever have,” says Crook, “Physically, I Palmetto, FL, at a large, new plant. The have more energy (than I’ve had) in years. company uses CO2 extraction, which These things are literal game changers.” doesn’t require the heat than can cause More and more people are experienc- CBD to lose some of its potency. ing the benefits of CBD. For a while, it was an uphill battle, as a stigma remained attached to CBD, due to its relationship with cannabis and hemp, and questions and doubts concerning the regulatory landscape.

But, more and more people keep walking proudly through the front door of Your CBD Store.

According to a story posted by Forbes.com, national CBD sales hit $4.6 billion in 2020 (just two years after hemp-derived cannabinoids were federally legalized), and some forecasters are predicting a U.S. market of roughly $20 billion by 2025.

For those who are intrigued but trepidatious, Lisa will do Tupperware-like

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Delta 8, which was introduced last year, has been a big seller, and the newer Delta 9 is close behind. Both have THC, and Feigel is clear with customers that if they have to pass a drug test anytime soon, there are other options, like products with CBN and CBG (see below).

Delta 9 can get you high and produce psychoactive effects, but does not require a medical marijuana card. The difference between Delta 9 and Delta 8 is just one particular chemical bond appearing on the eighth carbon molecule instead of the ninth.

The different chemical configuration makes Delta 8 less potent, and has been reported to provide users with a smoother “high” without the anxiety and paranoia associated with Delta 9. It has nearly the same positive effects of Delta 9, but fewer of the negative effects.

“Delta 8 was a big deal last year and really brought more people in to check

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CBD pet products are among Feigel’s biggest sellers, and the Delta 8 and Delta 9 products, packaged as Above and Beyond, are right behind. Your CBD Store Wesley Chapel has a variety of products with various weighs to consume them, and Feigel can help you make a choice. us out,” Lisa says, adding that some of her customers have told her using Delta 8 has provided them with “the best sleep of their lives.”

Your CBD store offers both Deltas in gummies, water solubles, vaping cartridges and even pre-rolled for those who prefer to smoke it.

They are packaged as Above & Beyond, and are geared towards pain (sativa), relaxation and sleep (Indica), and a combination of both (hybrid). She doesn’t recommend either one if a customer is subject to drug tests or has one upcoming, because of the higher THC level.

CBG, or cannabigerol, and CBN, or cannabinol, also are products of cannabis, but CBN is THC-free and helps cause a drowsy effect that can aid with sleeping, while CBG is touted more for its potential therapeutic and anti-inflammatory effects.

Feigel calls it the “super momma of cannabinoids” and the topical pain cream version of it is one of her store’s best sellers.

Whether by cream, oil, gummy, water or vape, Lisa says her store offers multiple ways to get her CBD products into your system.

“Everyone has a preference,” Lisa says. “But really, there’s no wrong way of taking CBD. It’s just a matter of getting it in you.”

And, for those who might need a boost losing weight, there is now TRIM, a Neighborhood News

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new offering that Lisa says is “amazing.”

She says TRIM is the only CBD weight-loss product on the market, adding that, “in a 90-day clinical study of 120 people, participants lost up to 18 pounds, six inches around the waist and eight points in their BMI (Body Mass Index).

TRIM features THC-V, which it says is a non-psychoactive compound in hemp known to naturally suppress your appetite (THC-D9, by contrast, causes appetite stimulation).

“There’s new stuff coming out all the time,” Lisa says. “TRIM has been very popular. It’s just another way that CBD can help make your life easier.”

And don’t forget Fido, aka the family pet. CBD has proven to be effective in relaxing pets who have anxiety and suffer on fireworks-friendly holidays. Your CBD Store has a variety of products, including the newest ones — Chillin’ Out (for relaxation) and Movin’ Easy (for mobility and aches and pains) broad spectrum hemp chews for dogs.

Your CBD Store Wesley Chapel is located at 30044 S.R. 54. It is open Monday.-Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., and 11 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturday. It is closed on Sunday. For more information, call (813) 536-0119, visit CBDrx4u.com/find-us/Florida/WesleyChapel, search “YourCBDStoreWesleyChapel” on Facebook or see the ad on page 28.

For Advertising Information Call 813-910-2575 • Volume 30, Issue 6 • March 22, 2022 • NeighborhoodNewsOnline.net

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The ExerScience Center’s ‘Biohacking’ Retreat Can Help You Heal! my facility stand out from the other physical therapy, chiropractic and wellness centers,” Leiva says.

By JOHN C. COTEY

john@NTNeighborhoodNews.com

Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) Lauren Leiva of The ExerScience Center on S.R. 54 in Lutz prides herself on helping people be their best selves, whether that’s through physical therapy, injury and surgery rehabilitation or other treatments.

And, she says she keeps an open mind about the many ways wellness can be achieved.

That mindset has led her to a unique idea: Dr. Leiva is putting together a unique retreat — The Best Self Biohacking Retreat — designed to explore the many alternative and holistic ways people can find wellness.

“Biohacking,” also referred to as a form of do-it-yourself biology, is a growing trend. Although it has many different definitions depending upon who you talk to, it is essentially “hacking” your own body and mind’s biology with the use of science and technology in an effort to optimize performance. It can be as simple as intermittent fasting or meditating, or as complex as having stem cells injected into your joints or trying to rewire your brain.

It is not a proven science, so it may not be for everyone, but Dr. Leiva and others swear by it.

“It’s basically things you can do, things

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Healing Your Mind & Body

At the “Best Self Biohacking Retreat” Apr. 22-24 at The ExerScience Center on S.R. 54 in Lutz, Doctor of Physical Therapy Lauren Leiva (photos) can help your mind tap into your best self with the BrainTap headsets created by Dr. Patrick K. Porter (with Lauren in right pic).

(Photos: TheExerScienceCenter.com & The ExerScience Center Facebook page)

that are available, that can help make you feel better,” Dr. Leiva says. “It is hacking into your own biology to help you do things that maybe you couldn’t achieve before.”

Dr. Leiva’s Biohacking Retreat is scheduled for the weekend of April 22-24 at her ExerScience Center, which opened at her current brick-and-mortar location in 2020 (although the ExerScience Center has been around since 2015).

She says the retreat will include three days worth of healing the mind, body and

soul. She has scheduled superfood lunches and dinners with speakers scheduled to discuss the importance of eating the most beneficial foods for your mind and body.

There also will be an energy dance party, hyperbaric oxygen treatments, IV therapy, electrical stimulation assisted exercise, massage therapy, infrared treatment, neurobioelectric meditation and mind fitness with BrainTapping, yoga and more.

“There’s so many things people don’t know about and that’s really how I make

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BrainTapping is one of those things. It was developed by Patrick K. Porter, Ph.D., and uses a Bluetooth headset that produces unique frequencies and sounds for brainwave entrainment. BrainTap Technologies “has a library of more than 400 guided audio programs (all voiced by Dr. Porter) and creative visualization processes, allowing users to relax, reboot, and revitalize while achieving peak brain performance,” according to its website.

This unique therapy offers programs for things like sleep, weight, stress and even learning for children.

Dr. Leiva is a big proponent of brain tapping. She claims that it produces dramatic improvements for those who can’t sleep or have suffered from some kind of trauma, as well as for children who have concentration issues.

“After 15-30 minutes, you take it off and it’s absolutely magical,” says Dr. Leiva, who attended a recent Health & Wellness conference where she tried BrainTapping for the first time.

“I bought 10 of them (the headsets) right away,” she says.

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Leiva, who earned her DPT degree from Nova Southeastern University after earning Bachelor of Science degrees in both Biomedical Science and Biomedical Physics from the University of South Florida in Tampa, says it is that mind-body connection that is most important in recovery, and what immediately attracted her to biohacking.

She says her physical therapy practice has shifted dramatically to also treating wounded vets, boxers, MMA fighters and others who have suffered brain trauma, in addition to those with physical injuries.

“So not only am I doing physical therapy for the body,” she says, “but I am going in through my patients’ minds…I’m helping people walk and talk again. It’s truly a blessing.”

Don’t Forget The Neubie

Dr. Leiva also is a Level 2 Neubie practitioner. The Neubie by NeuFit is an FDA-cleared and patented machine that sends direct current stimulation to the exact point of a patient’s pain or muscle movement limitations, and re-educates the muscles by “tapping into the power of the nervous system.”

“It is one of the hallmarks of my practice,” Dr. Leiva says.

Imagine a TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) unit — which offers the same type of electrical stimulation and can be picked up on Amazon — on

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Biohacking Retreat attendees will have access to the ExerScience Center’s infrared sauna. steroids. “A TENS unit is like a bicycle compared to the Neubie, which is more like a Tesla,” Leiva says.

All of these things — the BrainTapping headsets, the Neubie machine, infrared and hyperbaric oxygen treatments, IV and salt therapy, dry needling as well as large doses of meditation and yoga, will be available at The ExerScience Center’s Best Self Biohacking Retreat. Dr. Leiva plans on limiting the retreat to 10-12 people, and anyone who is interested can contact her by calling (813) 803-7070 for Retreat pricing.

If you’re not looking to commit to a weekend of self-improvement, you can

still check out The ExerScience Center for your other physical therapy and rehabilitation needs. Dr. Leiva offers physical therapy, personal training, nutrition, group fitness and yoga, all with the goal of helping people feel their best.

Certified by the National Academy of Sports Medicine as a Certified Personal Trainer and a Fitness Nutrition Specialist, Dr. Leiva can tackle a myriad of maladies or just help you get into better shape.

The ExerScience Center is located at 24706 S.R. 54, in Lutz, less than two miles west of the Tampa Premium Outlets. For more information, call (813) 803-7070, visit TheExerScienceCenter.com or see the ad on pg. 35.

The Neubie by NeuFit helps rehabilitate injuries with electrical stimulation.

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Need A Workout? Feel The Burn (Boot Camp)!

By JOHN C. COTEY

john@NTNeighborhoodNews.com

Kathy Wasserman was looking for a new place to work out just as Burn Boot Camp was opening its doors in New Tampa for the first time roughly four years ago. She jumped on one of the grand opening offers and has been a member ever since.

“They offered a free 30 days, and, by the end of the 30 days, I was hooked,” says Wasserman, a Tampa Palms resident. “Not only were the workout programs well thought out and varied, but the community of people is the nicest group of people I have ever worked out with.”

Owner Tammy Henrici deserves some of that credit. When she took over Burn Boot Camp, located in the Big Bear Plaza off Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. between BayCare and Mahana Fresh, in September 2021, Covid had sucked some of the life out of the gym.

Now, with new equipment and trainers and under her direction — Henrici even leads some of the 45-minute boot camps herself— the place is popping again.

“There’s increased energy and enthusiasm from the trainers,” Wasserman says. “I have never enjoyed working out more.”

Henrici is a self-described workout buff, who has been a member of many gyms over the years. She joined the Burn Boot Camp in New Tampa shortly after Wasserman did and found it just as satisfying.

So, she decided to buy the New Tampa franchise.

“I was addicted. I was so excited about going the next morning I couldn’t sleep,” Henrici says. “I have been in the corporate world for 40 years and working out at Burn gave me the confidence to make a change in my life. When I saw how Burn can change

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1% better than the day before.”

Henrici says she has built a family atmosphere at Burn New Tampa, and Wasserman says that is probably what she likes most about it.

“There is a level of inclusiveness and positivity you don’t normally see in gyms,” Wasserman says. “Everyone seems happy to see each other and work out next to each other. They high-five each other. There’s a positive, competitive nature I haven’t seen at other places.”

But, don’t mistake that camaraderie for being part of an easy workout.

The workouts at Burn New Tampa are anything but, Henrici says. There are a variety of weights and resistance bands, along with foam jump boxes, a boxing bag and other equipment that keeps Tammy Henrici liked the workouts so much at Burn Boot Camp she decided to buy the New Tampa location. After adding new trainers and equipment, she says her gym now offers the you moving from station to station.

For those who don’t work out due most complete workout around. (Photos: Charmaine George) to creaky knees and sore joints, Burn people’s lives, I knew I had to own one thing out of each boot camp. has a floating floor which cushions the to finally help other people realize their “We meet each member at their jumps and lessens the impact on your potential, too.” level of fitness,” says Henrici. “We have body. And, if you can’t jump, trainers Henrici used to work in IT for some people who have never worked can provide modified techniques. a major health company, and now out before. We have some former col“The floor was the initial physical focuses on fitness. She is a National legiate athletes. We have moms and thing that attracted me to the gym and Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM)dads, people who are young and not it makes a big difference in a workCertified Personal Trainer and also is a so young anymore. No matter your out,” Henrici says. second-degree black belt in Krav Maga background, we push everyone to do Burn New Tampa offers camps six Martial Arts.

Burn New Tampa offers a combination of strength training and high intensity interval training (HIIT) in each 45-minute camp. On Sundays, a protocol is released online and through an app explaining what lies ahead for the next week. No two workouts are the same, says Henrici, so no matter what days you come, the workouts will be targeting different parts of the body and range from strength to cardio.

Wasserman says she goes to 5-6 classes a week. There are other people like her, while others show up 2-3 times a week. There’s literally something for everyone, Henrici says, and anyone of any skill level can get some-

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with more than 330 locations across the U.S. All of its trainers are NASM CPTs (Certified Personal Trainers) and also have to be CPR-certified, including the four at Burn New Tampa. But, they also need to have the energy to run a boot camp and get to know each and every member’s needs.

“No one is a number, and we take pride in providing personal attention to every member,” Henrici says. “We can be giving Jane form correction while calling out to those at the next exercise to get three more reps in and addressing the entire camp about how much time is left, all at the same time.”

Burn New Tampa offers 6-, 12and 18-month memberships, as well as month-to-month memberships. There are Camp Packs (5-8 camps per month) and Fit Cards, which are good for a year. Wasserman, who travels to visit her Each 45-minute boot camp includes a variety of strength training and high intensity inchildren in Nashville and Chicago, loves terval training, under the watchful eye of trainers and the support of fellow gym members. that Burn has universal memberships so days of the week, with multiple camps — provement via weight loss and muscle her membership can be used at any Burn usually some in the morning and some in gain which, in turn, help decrease the Boot Camp facility in the U.S. the early evening — each day of the week need for a variety of medications you If it all sounds too good to be and two on Saturday morning. For four may be taking, as well as mental imtrue, Burn New Tampa is currently ofof the camps during the week, Burn New provement by providing stress-reducfering a 7-day complimentary trial for Tampa offers a complimentary “child ing and endorphin-releasing workouts. you to try it out and see for yourself. watch” room (Burn is not a licensed day “That’s why so many members say With so many fitness options, care provider, however). All the camps this is their ‘happy place,’” Henrici says Henrici thinks Burn New Tampa is the are open to both men and women, proudly. best choice because she says it is the although Henrici says that her current total package. members are predominately women.

About The Burn “We provide unlimited 45-minute The goal is to provide physical imBurn Boot Camp is a franchise camps a week,” she says. “We offer

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1:1 Focus Meetings with the trainer to set goals and monitor them. We also provide nutritional guidance. Members can also access daily virtual workouts when they can’t make it to the gym.”

The Focus Meeting is to help define what a member wants to get out of the boot camps. And while there are no certified nutritionists at Burn, the trainers do recognize the importance of a proper diet when it comes to being in shape and asks members to track their food intake in an app. They will suggest increases or decreases in their fat, carb, and protein intake.

“We aren’t focused on the scale but rather on the inches, fat loss and muscle gain,” Henrici says.

The Burn Boot Camp app allows members to check in to camp for the child watch room, trainer and workout schedules for the week as well. And, the support from other members, Henrici says, is unrivaled.

“Your best friend may be here waiting for you.”

Burn Boot Camp New Tampa is located at 17512 Doña Michelle Dr., and is open Monday-Friday, 5:15 a.m.-10:30 a.m., and 4:15 p.m.-6:30 p.m.; and 7:45 a.m.-10 a.m. on Saturday. For more information, visit BurnBootCamp.com and check under “Locations,” call (813) 563-6700 or see the ad on page 36.

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Wesley Chapel’s Outstanding Seniors, Class of 2022 The Outstanding Senior Award is given to one senior at each high school each year in Pasco County on the basis of academic record, service, leadership, citizenship and evidence of commitment to their school and community. The award is selected by a panel of School Board employees and community members. Congratulations to this year’s Outstanding Seniors at Wesley Chapel’s three high schools.

LANA GUZMAN WESLEY CHAPEL HIGH COUNTYWIDE SENIOR OF THE YEAR Scholarship: As a student, my goal has always been to strive for the highest level of success, and my motivation has been driven by my desire to reach my full potential. My pursuit for a challenge has led me to take rigorous Advanced Placement (AP) courses, dual enrollment courses, and work towards receiving my AP Capstone Diploma. Maintaining a driven mindset has also allowed me to hold a 4.36 grade point average all throughout high school and led to me passing every AP exam thus far. Because I emphasize the importance of being an honest and hardworking student dedicated to furthering my education, I have been able to find success all throughout high school.

Leadership: While at Wesley Chapel High School, I have proudly served as the Wesley Chapel Future Farmers of America (FFA) president where I run a chapter of more than 50 members. Working with both my advisor and officer team, we organize events, competitions, meetings, and volunteer opportunities. Additionally, I served as the Student Government Association Class of 2020 Secretary my freshman and junior years, and currently hold the

CAMILA AMAYA CYPRESS CREEK HIGH Scholarship: Straight-A Honor Roll all four years, Member of National Honor Society, Member of National English Honor Society, American Sign Language for four years.

Leadership: Interact Club President, Organized school supply drive to Honduras, Class of 2022 Secretary, Senior Class Influencer for Gigante Productions.

Service: Cypress Creek High School

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leadership positions of executive president. As executive president, I have run an organization of class sponsors and officers, assisting in the planning of dances, spirit weeks, events, and organizational service activities. Each leadership position I have been blessed with has granted me the ability to inspire others through compassion and knowledge.

Service: Because it is my goal to make a positive difference in my community, I utilize opportunities to serve as a way of accomplishing this mission. In the summer of 2020, I volunteered at the Glazer Children’s Museum, where I served as a Teen Play Leader. Here, I assisted a variety of guests by provid-

volunteer, assisted coaches at the track meets, decorated Homecoming hallways, helped teachers around their classroom after school, assisted with graduation for the class of 2021, aid at Howl-o-Palooza, helped to decorate gym for Homecoming 2021, My Lady of the Rosary Soccer Club referee, refereed multiple soccer games a day, aided children in learning soccer and working as a team, interned for BEST Medical Program, shadowed medical professionals around AdventHealth Zephyrhills Hospital, aided with patient bed side manner and patient transportation, observed surgeries and medical procedures, attended a one week anatomy course at the hospital, Honduras Mission Trip organizer, traveled to my home country with a group to a low-funded public school, organized activities for the children, delivered supplies and food and handed out care packages, translated for a group of volunteers for a week.

Citizenship: Interact Club President, organized School Supply Drive to Honduras, Class of 2022 Secretary, Senior Class Influencer.

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ing information about exhibits, monitored exhibit activities, prepared material for small groups, and facilitated learning with all guests. In addition to my service at the museum, I also serve at my local library (New River Library) and church (New Walk Church). Whether my service is performed at the museum, library, or church, the fact that I can make a positive difference in someone else’s life is both encouraging and humbling.

Citizenship: As I strive to positively impact as many lives as possible, I do my best to humble myself and remember that there is great wisdom in learning from others. As chairman for the Student Advisory Council, I am directly involved in facilitating discussions that lead to voting on school based activities. Furthermore, I serve in the Wesley Chapel National Honor Society, which is directly linked to community events in the area. As mentioned before, I am actively involved in the agriculture industry, which has allowed me to participate in this year’s 2021 Florida Youth Institute, as well as hold a delegate spot at the 2021 Global Youth Institute. In addition, I have served for three years as a participant of the Agriculture Education Institute hosted by the University of Florida. Both institutions generate another opportunity for knowledge and growth, as I look to use these opportunities to educate others on the importance of agriculture, further solidifying my mission to leave this world better than I found it.

AISIA WALDEN WIREGRASS RANCH HIGH Scholarship: National Honor Society member, National Society of High School Scholars member Leadership: Photo editor - Yearbook, WRHS Boys Basketball Varsity Manager - 2 years, President - Earth Club, nurse assistant AdventHealth.

Service: AdventHealth Care volunteer - Intensive Care Unit, compiled 463 volunteer hours, Previous Baldomero State Hospital volunteer, Key Club member (service to community), Mu Alpha Theta member (tutor students), Earth Club (service to community), Previous SADD member.

Citizenship: Black Lives Matter protest organizer

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Wiregrass Ranch High Health Fair Draws A Crowd

By ISABELLA DOUGLAS Correspondent When Phoebe Taylor put on the drunk goggles and attempted to walk the guided pathway, she thought it would be easy. Instead, the Wiregrass Ranch High freshman was shocked to find herself stumbling throughout and sometimes off the course.

Like Taylor, students at her school are learning the consequences of drinking and driving, the dangers of not wearing their seatbelts and the importance of mental health.

“It’s easy for us to just go and do something dumb and regret it later,” Taylor says. “If that actually happened it could be very dangerous.”

The largest-ever Wiregrass Ranch Wellness & Safety Fair was hosted on March 9 by the school’s Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) chapter to bring awareness to mental health and promote a healthier and safer lifestyle.

The event brought about 35 community leaders and the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) to talk to students and demonstrate the dangers of these acts.

Shaina Finkel, the president of the school’s SADD chapter and the national SADD president for the 2021-22 school year, oversaw the event. Her main goal was to have students talk to these organizations and understand the messages they are spreading.

“It’s not just going in and getting education,” Finkel said. “It’s meeting people and finding things that you might be passionate about that you didn’t know you were passionate about.

It’s bringing safety and education and health to our school and it’s just allowing the students to learn.”

Finkel says there have been instances where these messages have not been reached by students; she hopes that through these fairs, students will rethink some of their previous and future decisions.

Ashley Boyles, Wiregrass Ranch High’s assistant principal, also oversaw the Wellness & Safety Fair. She says the fair is eye-opening to students and impacts them for a long time. The last time the fair occurred was two years ago, because of the pandemic, but she says students still remember and talk about it to this day.

“We’re again trying to make sure that our students are safe not only at school, but out in the community, out on the roads,” she says. “We always say to be college-, career- and life-ready and I think this is something to be lifeready.”

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(Above) At Wiregrass Ranch High’s Wellness & Safety Fair on March 9, students met with a number of community organizations, including the Pasco Sheriff’s Office (PCSO). (Right) Many school groups, including Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) had booths at the event.

(Below) WRH SADD chapter president Shaina Finkel. (Photos: Isabella Douglas & Shaina Finkel) simulator demonstrated the dangers of drinking and driving and not wearing a seatbelt in a car crash. As the car spun, dummies inside not wearing a seatbelt flew out. Florida Highway Patrol spokesperson Steve Gaskin said he still gets people coming up to him and saying they remember the visual impact, and it is one of the reasons why they buckle up today.

“If I can make an impact on each one of these kids, then that’s one crash I won’t have to work and it’s one family I won’t have to go talk to and say, ‘Hey, your child’s not coming home tonight,’” he says.

Kelsey Strigler, the vice president of Wiregrass Ranch’s SADD chapter, says the car simulator is likely the most effective demonstration to show students the importance of wearing their seatbelts.

“Looking at it, I would be terrified,” she says. “I already do wear my seatbelt, but If I was a student who didn’t, that would really drive the point across that like you really need to wear that or you’re going to end up like the dummy on the floor.”

Among the booths was the American Foundation of Suicide’s Tampa Bay chapter run by board member Teresa Daniels. She is spreading her son Tristan Daniels’ story in hopes of saving another student’s life.

“There is hope out there,” she said.

“They could be lifesavers. They can help anyone in need.”

Gabriella Nieddialek, a SADD member, recognized the importance of this booth and is glad to now be learning about these tools.

“A lot of teens don’t really like to come forward about mental health, and it’s definitely something that I’m glad the school introduces and is comfortable talking about,” Nieddialek said.

“Definitely encouraging us to talk to people and get help.”

Wiregrass Ranch’s SADD chapter advisor Gregory Finkel is proud of how the event turned out. He watched how students interacted with community members as they talked to each other

about what they learned. He says that is what the event is all about.

“You don’t really get these opportunities too often,” Gregory Finkel said.

“If we can hit one of them, just one kid right, make a difference in their lives, the better.”

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Middle School Violinist: Please Support Our Orchestra Programs Did you know that kids who are involved in music are more likely to score higher on standardized tests? It’s true — papers from respected journals, such as The Journal of Educational Psychology and The British Journal of Psychology have done extensive research on this matter. So, why aren’t our local public school orchestra programs supported by our public school districts?

Unfortunately, not many adults involve themselves Opinion by with youth orMahi Nooka chestra programs, or even bother to learn about them. But, I believe that absolutely needs to change.

My name is Mahi Nooka. I’m 14 years old and I’m an eighth grader at Dr. John Long Middle School. I have been playing the violin for four years and I was invited to give my opinion on this subject by Neighborhood News editor Gary Nager because of a disturbing pattern I’ve noticed: our local youth orchestras are not being supported by the Pasco County School District or the local community.

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You see, school orchestra programs in this area aren’t well-known or funded properly. I’m in both my school orchestra at Dr. John Long and in an outside program called the Tampa Metropolitan Youth Orchestra (or TMYO). It’s well known that the arts historically have had a low priority in Florida’s public schools, especially compared to sports and other moneymaking activities and I don’t think that’s fair or just.

But, even within the arts, there is a hierarchy; specifically, within school music programs. Orchestra programs are almost always given a lower priority than band programs in the amount and quality of resources provided. I’ve seen bands (especially high school marching bands) get larger classrooms, uniforms, and spots on the school’s website, while the orchestra programs are stuck using the same equipment for the past sixteen years or more.

It doesn’t make sense to me, though. I know that music has the ability to change kids’ lives — it has changed mine drastically. I started in orchestra in the 6th grade (although I’ve been taking private lessons since the 4th grade) and came to love it.

In the 7th grade, my private teacher recommended that I join an outside

Mahi Nooka (2nd from left in front row) is a violinist in both the Long Middle School orchestra and the Tampa Metropolitan Youth Orchestra who would like to see more public support for youth orchestra programs.

program to supplement my school experiences, and we found TMYO, a youth orchestra program located in Hillsborough County. I auditioned for one of the four groups they had that matched my skill level best, and I loved it so much that I auditioned again this year, for the next higher group.

Currently, I’m proud to say that I am sitting fourth chair in the second violin section at TMYO.

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One thing I can tell you through my experience is that orchestra is like a family. It teaches teamwork and lets us form incredible bonds. I’m more confident and passionate because of it, and my fellow musicians and I are comparable to siblings. Orchestra gave me that, and I’m hoping that if orchestra programs are better nourished, other kids can have that, too.

However, whether orchestra pro-

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grams can thrive or not doesn’t depend upon us as musicians. The success of these programs depends heavily upon public participation — on people like you knowing about our programs and taking the initiative to support us.

That brings us to the real question: How can you support us?

Attending an orchestra concert is a great way to help. By attending, you’re showing that the kids’ hard work is not for nothing, and that someone cares.

This is vital to developing confidence and allows us to practice performing in front of an audience (two essential skills for musicians).

Trust me, it doesn’t feel good when your auditorium is half-full and you’re performing for barely fifty people. This may seem like a lot of people to some of you, but think of how many people go to sporting events, especially football games.

And honestly, if nothing else, concerts are just a great way to spend time and involve yourself with the community. Though I’m not sure about other programs and schools, the concert for Dr. John Long is on Wednesday, May 4, at the Center for the Arts at Wesley Chapel, and the next concert for TMYO is on Saturday, May 14, at the USF School of Music in Tampa. The general public is invited to attend both of these events.

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In addition to simply attending an orchestra concert, many local nonprofit programs have options for donations on their website. I know TMYO does (tmyo.org/make-a-donation) and so do many others in the area: the Florida Youth Orchestra (floridayouthorchestra.org/donate), and the Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra (fsyo.org/support-fsyo). Donating lets our orchestras continue to exist and allows young musicians continue to express themselves creatively.

If you’re not interested in donating or attending, you can still help by spreading the word. Discussing the benefits of orchestra programs can help stir up interest in the programs, and some parents might even check out orchestra programs for their own kids.

It may seem like a little thing, but it can help a lot.

And so, I’ve made my case. The youth orchestra programs need to be supported, and I’ve done my part to ensure that happens by having this article published in the Neighborhood News. I will keep advocating in the background because of my love for orchestra, but there is only so much I can do. I hope I have inspired you to take action. This is your chance to give back and make an impact — one that will be appreciated by young orchestral musicians in our community.

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35

Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus To Host RADD Summer Camps!

By GARY NAGER If you have kids as young as age 6 and as old as high school-age, and you’re not sure what to do with them this summer, RADDSports at the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus of Pasco County has a variety of great camps during the 2022 RADD Summer Heatwave.

RADD is offering everything from All-Sports camps to individualized training camps in its core sports of basketball, volleyball, soccer and cheerleading, some of which are broken down by age and/ or skill level and others for kids of all ages and abilities.

All-Sport Camps!

To give your kids (boys and girls) ages 6-16 exposure to and training in volleyball, basketball, soccer and cheerleading, as well as Yo Murphy Performance Training, RADD’s All-Sport Camp is a great choice. There are three separate one-week sessions — May 31-June 3, June 20-24 and July 18-22 — and the camps group kids by age (6-8, 9-11, 12-14 & 15+), are all held indoors from Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., in air-conditioned comfort and include lunch each day, plus a camp T-shirt.

“Campers will get an introduction to each sport and learn basic skills, rules and components of each sport,” says RADD Sports CEO Richard Blalock. “This summer’s camps will focus on sport-specific skills for everyone from novice to elite athletes.”

Basketball Camps!

There will be three week-long RADD Basketball Camps for boys and girls ages 8-16, which are designed to focus on individual skills development, the importance of basketball fundamentals and developing a healthy team attitude and will be held indoors only, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

The basketball camp dates are June 6-10, June 27-July 1 and August 1-5, and also will be broken down by age and skill level.

Cheerleading Camps!

There are three levels of cheer camps this summer, including three one-week sessions for Youth Cheer Camps (June 6-10, June 27-July 1 & August 1-5, all 9 a.m.-4 p.m.; with late pickup and dropoff available for an additional charge) for ages 5-12. No previous cheer experience is necessary and athletes will learn foundational skills for stunts, tumbling, cheers

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A variety of cheerleading camps are among the many summer camp programs available for kids of all ages during the RADDSports 2022 Summer Heatwave. (Photo: Charmaine George) transition part of the attacking position. and dance in a fun environment. The For the Defense Camp (also June 13cheer camps also will include daily fitness 15, 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m.) campers should come education by Yo Murphy Performance. ready to work hard and focus on the technical The next level up is the RADD Team aspects of playing the libero position, includCheer Camp for ages 6-14, which will be ing ball control and overall defense. held June 13-17 only, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. each The two-day Setting Camp (June 16-17, day, for athletes who have been through 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.) will focus on offensive strateor would like to join RADD’s competitive gies, proper hand and body positioning and cheer teams. The focus will be on new skills mental and emotional aspects of the game. for stunts, tumbling and dance before fall Younger players (ages 5-9) can attend team placements, with daily fitness education the Eaglets Volleyball Camp (July 11-13, 9 provided by Yo Murphy Performance.

High school cheer teams also have their a.m.-4:30 p.m.), where they will be taught the fundamentals of volleyball utilizing lighter balls own three-day (July 27-29) School Team and a lower net, all while having a great time Cheer Camp, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. each day. The building a passion for the sport.

School Team Cheer Camp is appropriate for There’s also a Co-Ed All Skills Camp both sideline and competitive cheer teams.

Teams also will receive two follow-up sessions to be scheduled throughout the year.

(July 11-14, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.) for boys and girls ages 10-18, designed to teach the fundamentals of volleyball to those ranging from elite to beginner levels.

The Team Camp (July 11-14, 9 a.m.4:30 p.m.) is a four-day camp designed for Varsity and JV teams who want to get a jump start on their high school seasons! Coaches and players are encouraged to attend together with focus on skills development, competition against other high school teams, team building and goal-setting.

There are two different Elite Camps (July 25-28, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. and July 2728). The first Elite Camp includes 21 hours of training for Elite Varsity-Level Setters (grades 9-12), Developmental Setters (non-varsity, grades 7-10) and First Contact (serve, serve receive & defense for grades 7-10). The second Elite Camp is eight hours of training for grades 5-7 and beginning 8th graders.

For more info about all RADD Summer Sports Camps, visit wiregrass-sports. com/camps or see the ad on pg. 37.

Soccer Camps!

There will be three one-week RADDSports Soccer Camps for ages 8-17 — June 13-17, July 11-15 & July 25-29.

The soccer camps, which will be held both outdoors (weather permitting) and indoors, will focus on improving fundamental skills and game technique.

“I really don’t think there’s anything like our camps in this area,” says RADDSports director of soccer (and former English Premier League player and Tampa Bay Rowdies player and coach) Stuart Campbell.

Volleyball Camps!

RADDSports also is offering seven different sessions of Volleyball Camp.

The Attacking Camp (June 13-15, 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m.) will focus on individual techniques for attacking, with proper footwork, proper arm swing mechanics and the

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The John Long Middle School Bulls girls soccer team didn’t lose a game this past season — heck, they didn’t even give up a goal — on their way to the Pasco County Eastside Athletic Conference Middle School Championship. (Photo: Courtesy of Nick Zuzek)

John Long Girls Take Middle School Soccer Title In almost every sport, they say defense wins championships.

And, John Long Middle School girls soccer coach Nick Schell can certainly attest to that.

The Bulls capped a perfect season with a 3-0 win over Weightman on Feb. 22, clinching the 2022 Pasco County Eastside Athletic Conference Middle School Championship.

The shutout was nothing new for the Bulls. In fact, every game they played this season was a shutout.

The unbeaten girls squad pulled off the difficult feat of holding all seven of their opponents scoreless for the entire season, while scoring 23 goals themselves over the course of the 2021-22 season.

Seventh-grader Natalie Zuzek, a

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defender, and eighth-grade goalkeeper Caitlynn Figueroa were voted CoDefensive MVPs. The Bulls’ airtight defense also was bolstered by Rayne Leslie (7th grade), Natalia Gaona-Zelaya (7th grade), Jayda Gonzalez (8th grade), and Maci Marotta (7th grade), all of whom came up big in a pair of 1-0 wins and a 0-0 tie (against Rushe Middle School).

Amaya Rodriguez, an 8th grader, was voted Long’s Offensive MVP after leading the team in scoring.

Kylie Strigler (8th grade), Delaney Strigler (8th grade), Sophia Maxwell (7th grade), and Sophia Stirling (8th grade) also contributed to the scoring, which included decisive 8-0 wins over Stewart and Centennial middle schools.

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39

Zukku-San Sushi Owners To Open Astro Ice Cream & Ato Sushi & Poké

By GARY NAGER Photos by Charmaine George

Zukku-San Sushi Bar & Grill, located on the north side of S.R. 56, just west of I-75, has been my favorite Japanese restaurant in our area since the day it opened.

I love sushi, and Zukku-San has an incredible variety of some of the best sushi in our area, but for me, it’s always been more about everything else on Zukku-San’s delicious menu that sets it apart from its competition.

Co-owner Ferdian Jap and co-owner/ executive chef Gia Tran have created something special in their unassuming space next to Crumbl Cookie. And, while Zukku-San is an elegant, but still casual, sit-down restaurant with a full premium liquor bar (with craft cocktails like the lychee nut martini and coconut mojito shown center right on this page), Ferdian and Gia actually started together with more of a fast-casual poké-bowl-andsushi-“burrito” concept in Tampa’s Armature Works, with a similar location also open in Charlotte, NC, and they are getting ready to open a similar concept called “Ato” in the KRATE Container Park at The Grove (Ferdian says Ato likely won’t open until late May or early June).

And, since they’re obviously not busy enough with just those eateries, Ferdian and Gia also have an Astro Craft Ice Cream location in Armature Works, and plan to open a second Astro location where Great Clips closed on the north side of S.R. 56. next to Mellow Mushroom. The signage is up at the new Astro Ice Cream, but Ferdian says the new location likely won’t open until June or July (more on that below).

But, this article will focus on Zukku-San, which continues to add new favorites to my list every time I try anything new.

The Best Starters!

I have been raving about the Starters at Zukku-San from Day One, including the most perfect deep-fried gyoza (pork dumplings) with house-made Ponzu sauce, crispy vegetable spring rolls served with an amazing semispicy orange chili sauce, skewered traditional Japanese chicken and beef tenderloin yakitori (with fresh veggies; there’s also shrimp and veggie-only varieties) served with teriyaki sauce, steamed or garlic edamame, crispy fried Karaage

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(Above) The Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. on Wesley Chapel Blvd. near I-75 has had house-made NY-style bagels from Day One, but now, owner Daniel Kurland also offers authentic Carnegie Deli corned beef and pastrami, with the Carnegie’s potato knishes, pickles and spicy brown mustard also available. chicken served with spicy mayo and a wonderful tuna tataki, plus it’s the only place I know of that serves Tempura a la Carte options.

The tempura is lightly battered and fried to golden perfection and allows you to order individual portions of your favorites. The bottom right picture on this page was our most recent order, which includes four pieces each of carrots, sweet potatoes and zucchini (only $2.95 per order each), as well as a whole soft shell crab ($9.95), which was cut into bitesized pieces for us. Other a la carte tempura options include shrimp, tofu, broccoli, while giant squid, avocado, hamachi (yellowtail snapper) collar, asparagus, onion, red and jalapeño peppers and whole lobster tail. So good!

On our most recent visit, we also ordered the chef’s special spicy bluefin tuna chu-toro crudo (top right photo), which has thin slices of bluefin tuna (which is a fattier tuna they call medium-fatty, than their regular ahi tuna tataki appetizer), topped with jalapeños and scallions in an incredible sriracha/chili-based spicy sauce.

It’s also served with a side of seaweed salad.

The Best Entrées!

We’ve usually stayed pretty basic when it comes to our favorite entrées “from the Wok & Grill” at Zukku-San, but on our most recent visit, we tried three new dishes (in addition to our usual chicken fried rice) and no one was disappointed.

My favorite was my grilled short ribs (above), which are marinated in Asian pear juice, grilled to perfection and served with jasmine rice and sautéed veggies. These aren’t your falloff-the-bone short ribs; they’re more like Chinese-style BBQ spare ribs, but the flavor is definitely unique.

Photographer Charmaine George ordered the wok-fired Udon Noodles with fried tofu (top right photo on next page) and we all raved about the sauce covering the chewy soft noodles, the tofu and the sautéed broccoli, onion, carrot, red peppers and zucchini. Like ZukkuSan’s fried rice and wok-fired hibachi (egg) noodles, you can order them with just veggies,

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chicken, tenderloin steak or shrimp, too.

Of course, Jannah and I also had to bring our granddaughter Rosie with us, since ZukkuSan has been her favorite restaurant since she was just over a year old. Rosie and her mom Lauren love all the starters we order (the carrots are her favorite) and the perfect California roll, but her dad Albert also raved about the soy butter glazed baked salmon entrée. Lauren also always gets a Mexican roll, with tempura shrimp,

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avocado, cucumber, sesame seeds, masago (fish roe) and spicy mayo.

For those who only crave sushi, try Zukku-San’s Masterpiece sushi rolls like the shrimp volcano and lobster Masterpiece roll.

Zukku-San also has a wide variety of nigiri (sliced fish on rice) and sashimi (no rice), hand rolls, as well as sushi and sashimi palettes with from 24 pieces of up to four different sashimis (for $50) up to small and large sushi palettes with as many as six Masterpiece rolls or 8 classic or hand rolls for $120.

For lunch, Zukku-San has makeyour-own poké bowls with rice or mixed greens, up to two proteins (try the panko chicken and ahi tuna), up to two sauces and up to three toppings, as well as Bento Box lunches with short ribs, chicken teriyaki, shrimp tempura or sushi-only, served with ginger salad, pork gyoza and miso soup.

Zukku-San Sushi Bar & Grill is located at 25916 Sierra Center Blvd.) and is open seven days a week for lunch and dinner (although the lunch menu isn’t available on weekends). For more info, visit ZukkuSushi.com, call (813) 419-1351 or see the ad on pg. 45.

Astro Ice Cream Set To Open!

For those of us who love ice cream, the announcement that Zukku-San’s owners also are opening a second location of their Astro Craft Ice Cream in our area is very much welcome news.

The Armature Works location features a

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variety of unique flavors that, according to its website, “feature new twists of traditional flavor combinations that reflect the diversity of our Tampa Bay community & honor its rich history.”

Ferdian says no one else has flavors like creme brulée café con leche, whiskey cookie dough, Tampa guava cream cheese or banana pudding peanut butter cookie, Ybor spiced run toasted coconut meringue pie, or options like ice cream sandwiches made with real pressed Cuban bread from La Segunda Bakery (photo above). “The bread gets crispy and the ice cream stays cold,” says Ferdian. Wow! Stay tuned to these pages for updated on Astro Ice Cream’s expected opening.

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41

KRATE Container Park Update: All Good Things Gifts, The Rebellious Hippie & El Prince Mediterranean Now Open!

Kobé Reopening Delayed!

For those who have been waiting patiently for Kobé Japanese Steakhouse to re-open in its new location a mile or so south on BBD (in the former location of Vuelo and Señor T’s Mexican restaurants, and Romano’s Macaroni Grill before that), well, we’re sorry, but you’ll have to wait just a little bit longer.

According to Kobé spokesperson Hien Nguyen, the original hoped-for opening of as early as Dec. 2021 has had to be extended by several months.

“Unfortunately, construction is slower than expected, as supply chain delays for large equipment are stalling our progression.” says Nguyen. “We can’t move forward until some of these items are delivered. Unfortunately, we do not have an exact date, but hopefully in a few months if some of these items can be delivered soon.”

If you’ve driven by the site of the future Kobé, you’ve probably noticed that a tremendous amount of exterior work has been done, but that it definitely has stalled in recent weeks.

We know our readers are excited about the re-opening of Kobé, so be sure to keep checking these pages for further updates.

Unfortunately, we also haven’t received, seen or heard any updates about when Hungry Crab Juicy Seafood & Bar is expected to open in the former Kobé location in front of the Pebble Creek Collection, also on BBD. In fact, unlike Kobé, which has had the monument sign in the picture (right) up for several weeks, we haven’t even seen a banner sign yet for Hungry Crab, which has six other locations already open, the closest of which is in Largo and the furthest of which is in Brunswick, GA. The New Tampa Hungry Crab is one of three additional locations opening soon. — GN

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Despite the supply chain, parking and other economic issues delaying so many planned openings at the KRATE Container Park at The Grove, new KRATEs have continued to open and we believe it’s our responsibility to show them to you.

Among the newest KRATEs to open is All Good Things Gifts, owned by Nickole Davis, which actually opened on Valentine’s Day, but we weren’t able tp get in and take pictures until the weekend we went to press. But, wow, what a cool and unique assortment of eclectic gifts the 273-sq.-ft. KRATE has in stock!

If you’re looking to give a gift that shows your love for Wesley Chapel and its individual communities, All Good Things has a variety of glasses and candles inside tins with every community from Avalon Park to Watergrass, throw pillows with all three Wesley Chapel zip codes and more. There also are natural soaps and bath bombs, cool water and other toys for your kids, scented hair brushes, tea holders, luggage tags, Carmie’s Kitchen dip and cheeseball mixes, cocktail cubes in your favorite drink flavors (you just have to add alcohol), jewelry and so much more. For more info, visit AllGoodThingsGifts.com or call (813) 838-8207. — GN

Las Palmas Food Truck — Same Great Food, All-New Look!

When last we checked in with our friend Ramses Garcia, the owner of Las Palmas Latin Grill (which was shuttered by a fire in its storefront location on Oct. 11), he had just recently opened the Las Palmas Food Truck, which was just a plain white truck Ramses had renovated so he could continue serving his authentic Cuban cuisine in the same parking lot while rebuilding his popular eatery.

Well, since then, Ramses has added a custom exterior wrap to the truck, complete with a caricature of Al Pacino’s character and his famous line from “Scarface” — “Say Hello To My Little Friend.”

Yes, the revamped truck looks great, but it’s still the food Ramses and his wife Ana serve inside that’s the most important thing. Whether you crave award-winning Cubans, amazing roasted pork, grilled chicken breast, deviled crab or Ana’s Tres Leches dessert, visit LasPalmasLatinGrill.com to order your favorites today — and please tell Ana and Ramses I sent you! — GN

Super Hot Asian & BBQ Is Open In Former Fushia Location!

For those who have been waiting for something to open where Fushia Asian Bistro closed in the Shoppes at Amberly plaza in Tampa Palms, your wait is over.

The new restaurant is called Super Hot Asian & BBQ, and it also is Chinese/ Asian fusion. We’ve only gotten to try a few menu items so far, but we definitely enjoyed the pan-fried gyoza dumplings (served by an actual robot server), as well as the Yangzhou (aka “Young Chow”) combo fried rice.

For more info about Super Hot (15317 Amberly Dr.), call (813) 6804124 or visit superhot.kwickmenu.com/ index.php. — GN

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Another new KRATE that opened recently is The Rebellious Hippie, which owner Jasmine Sanchez (photo, right) has dedicated to the sale of unique herbs for cooking like sea moss, burdock root, cassia senna alata and ashwagandha (look them up), as well as gifts that support the hippie lifestyle, like the celebrity candles shown above (and Blazin’ Zodiac candles, too), cool necklaces, herbal and other house plants, smokable non-cannabis herbs (like blue lotus, damiana, lavender and more), agave and other tinctures, clothing and much more. For more info, search “The Rebellious Hippie” on Facebook.

See pg. 44 for more new KRATE info.

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El Prince Mediterranean Opens; Bacon Boss & Others Delayed Continuing our ongoing tour of the newest KRATEs to open at The Grove, El Prince Mediterranean, which has only had locations in Middle Eastern destinations like Dubai and Qatar, has opened its first U.S. location right here in Wesley Chapel.

I’ve only sampled a couple of items at El Prince so far, but both the meat shawarma (photo; which is delicious, marinated sliced ribeye beef roasted with Middle eastern spices, topped with onions and tahini sauce that I had them put on the side) and the El Prince salad (with dice lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, peppers, onions and a savory vinaigrette dressing) were super yummy.

El Prince also offers shish kebab (cubes of marinated lamb) and shish tawook (cubes of marinated chicken) platters, kofta kebabs (grilled, seasoned ground beef) and a mixed grill of all three, plus bone-in grilled chicken and the specialty of the house — roasted lamb shank, and more.

For the full menu and more info, search “El Prince Restaurant” on Facebook or visit ElPrinceRestaurants.com.

Other KRATEs that were hoping to open by the time this issue reached your mailbox but will likely take a little longer to open are The Bacon Boss (one of our favorite local food trucks, with amazing

burgers and more, opening its first actual restaurant) and Palani’s Hawai’i Noodles, both of which are now planning to open sometime in April.

Although we weren’t able to get confirmation from the owners, we were told that Tacos el Patron might be open by the time this issue hit mailboxes.

Other KRATE restaurants getting ready to open over the next couple of months include Ato Sushi Burritos & Poké Bowls (see pages 40-41 for more info), Tasty Ramen, Boba Mac’s Tea & Eat, Mojo Grill Latin Fusion, TJ’s Hot Dogs, Flipn’ Fries Factory, Bakery X and Cafe Zorba. — GN

Here & There, This & That: More Wesley Chapel & New Tampa Dining News • We told you last issue that The Brunchery was close to opening its second local restaurant on S.R. 56, in the former Wolf’s Den location. That opening happened the day after we went to press with this issue, so I hope you’ll go check them out and tell owner Al Marku that I sent you. For more information, see the ad on the next page (pg. 45).

• In the same plaza as Blue Water Dental on S.R. 54 near Saddlebrook Resort, two restaurants are significantly closer to opening the second Wesley Chapel location for each.

• Jersey Mike’s Subs (photo), which already has a location in the Shoppes at New Tampa plaza on Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. south of S.R. 56, is nearing completion, and is now hiring, with an anticipated opening sometime in early April.

• First Watch, which also already has its first location in the same plaza as Wesley Chapel’s original Jersey Mike’s, doesn’t look quite as close to opening, but is in the process of applying for its permit to serve alcohol on the premises. We’ll keep you posted about both of these new eateries.

• Meanwhile, in New Tampa, at our press time, I still couldn’t verify if the opening of Hana Sushi & Grill in the former location of Aroy Thai Tsyu (at 20685 BBD) ever actually happened because every time I’ve called there’s been no answer and every time I’ve driven by, the place has been dark. There is a new sign up replacing the old banner sign.

• In the meantime, I was able to catch up with the owners of Oishi Express Sushi & Hibachi Grill, which is expected to open in the former location of Luv Fresh (and Petra Mediterranean Express before that), next to Taste of NY Pizza in the Highwoods Preserve area of New Tampa. There’s no doubt that there has been a lot of construction going on inside the new restaurant, but the owners weren’t sure exactly when they planned to open. Their best estimate was sometime around the end of this month. Stay tuned for updates.—GN

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POOL SERVICES

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ALLSTARPOOLSOFTAMPABAY.COM. Pool cleanups, & acid washing of old pool finishes. Marcite, quartz & pebble finishes from $3K. We offer cool decking, Eurocrete & paver decking options. Paver, river rock sealing, leak detection & in-ground vinyl liner replacements avail. Quality salt & ozone generators, pumps, motors & filters. Serving NT & WC since 1990. Call/text 813-244-7077 or visit AllStarPoolsofTampaBay.com.

TRANQUILITY POOL SERVICE. New Tampa owned & operated. Great Pricing w/outstanding customer service! LICENSED, BONDED & INSURED. See why we are New Tampa and Wesley Chapel’s #1 Choice!! Call or Text Chris today @ 813-857-5400 or visit TranquilityPoolService. com. New customers get ONE MONTH FREE! NEIGHBORHOOD POOLS. Wesley Chapel owned & operated since 1999. Weekly service. No long term contracts. Mention this AD for one-month Free service. Call 813-907-7322 for details or text Joe at 813-758-7608.

If you don’t see your long-running Classified ad on this page, it’s because you didn’t respond to our attempts to receive a new payment from you.

Your Classified ad can still be renewed going forward, but only at the full-year Classified rate.

For more information, call (813) 910-2575 and ask for MJ.

Neighborhood News

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Neighborhood News

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For Advertising Information Call 813-910-2575 • Volume 30, Issue 6 • March 22, 2022 • NeighborhoodNewsOnline.net

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For Advertising Information Call 813-910-2575 • Volume 30, Issue 6 • March 22, 2022 • NeighborhoodNewsOnline.net

Neighborhood News

@NTWCNews