New Tampa Neighborhood News, Volume 33, Issue 17, August 19, 2025

New Tampa’s Kids Are Back At School!

By Gary Nager

by Charmaine George

As you’re receiving this issue, the 2025-26 school year is about a week old, but because our deadline to finish this issue was the day before school started, we couldn’t get photos from the actual opening day of school onto these pages, so our amazing photographer Charmaine George went to as many “Meet the Teacher” events at as many of our area schools as she could.

Charmaine included shots from each of these events not only in the beautiful collage on this page, but also put together the best of the best photos she took and gave us dozens of options to fit on pages 24-25 (this issue’s center spread).

A few things to note:

1) Neither Freedom nor Wharton high schools held their own “Meet the Teacher” events, so we have no photos from those schools on these pages.

2) Neither Benito nor Liberty middle schools had such events, either, but Charmaine was able to get middle school photos from Turner Bartels K-8 School, which are included among our photos on these pages.

3) Charmaine was careful to ask permission at each school, so the faces of children who are not allowed to be photographed were not included.

hosts

“In Remembrance

Photos

Congratulations, Hope! Chamber President Earns Prestigious Title!

An Editorial by GARY NAGER

As I’ve written multiple times previously, North Tampa Bay Chamber (NTBC) president & CEO Hope Kennedy and I didn’t know each other at all when she moved here from Pensacola nearly 14 years ago to take over the reins at what was then called the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber (which later became the NTBC under her leadership).

But since then, Jannah and I have both been proud to say that we have considered Hope to be among our closest friends. As the publisher and editor of this publication the entire time she’s had her job, I couldn’t help but interact with Hope on a regular basis and what I have always found her to be is a consummate professional who took over a floundering organization and transformed it into a true regional powerhouse. In addition to her Chamber duties, Hope has served on the Boards of Directors of local hospitals and business organizations and has been asked to speak on behalf of her Chamber and the North Tampa Bay community at the openings of too many development projects to mention them all here.

But, as of a few short weeks ago, Hope now has national credentials to go along with the evergrowing influence she has earned locally.

At the 2025 Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE) conference in Philadelphia from July 22-25, Hope was proud to be given the title of CCE — or Certified Chamber Executive — which fewer than 3% of the leaders of the 7,500+ Chambers of Commerce in the U.S. have earned.

“CCE isn’t an honorary title or an award,” Hope says. “To earn the CCE credentials, you have to go through an extensive application process and everything about your Chamber is put under a microscope — from financials to accomplishments. You have to have held your position for at least seven years and you have to be sponsored by another CCE in order to even be considered (Hope was mentored by Tampa Bay Chamber president & CEO Bob Rohrlack). It’s a pretty big deal for both me and our Chamber.”

Hope also had to submit multiple essays, including one about a major project she’s proud of and she wrote about helping what is now called the Greater Pasco Chamber (GPCC) — which previously had been a competitor of the NTBC — recover from nearly going out of business. Hope’s NTBC Board allowed her to also take over the GPCC leadership on an interim basis, in order to right what otherwise likely would have been a sinking ship — even though there were some GPCC Board members at the time who didn’t want Hope to be the one helping them.

Today, the NTBC and GPCC work handin-hand and Hope deserves much of the credit for keeping that one-time rival afloat.

She was one of 26 new CCEs named at the 2025 National ACCE Conference — the largestever group to receive those credentials at the same time — but that doesn’t diminish in any way her accomplishment. “Earning the CCE designation means that I’ve reached the absolute top of my profession,” Hope says. “It was a lot of hard work, to get here, but it was definitely well worth it!”

So, What About WC Incorporation?

If you remember, back in March, we reported that Hope and her NTBC Board had decided to lead a group of local business owners who wanted to look into the possibility of Wesley Chapel incorporating as its own city, with the goal of ensuring that the residents and businesses located in the area had their own local government overseeing future development and other decisions and to find out if the idea was even economically or logistically feasible.

Through its nonprofit Foundation, the Chamber began asking for donations from individuals and businesses to fund two $75,000 studies — the first to determine the economic impact of the area known as Wesley Chapel and the other, if the results of the first study warranted

moving forward, an incorporation feasibility study.

However, the possible start of the first study was put on hold when Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis proposed ending property taxes, which would have made incorporation a lot more difficult to achieve. But, the State Legislature rejected the governor’s idea when its session ended in June.

“That at least revived the idea of exploring Wesley Chapel incorporation,” Hope says. “We have restarted our fund-raising efforts, so anyone who wants to make a tax-deductible donation for the study (or if you have questions about it) should call the Chamber office at (813) 994-8534.”

“We hadn’t actually started collecting any money before,” Hope says. “But, we did have commitments for about a third of the amount needed for the first study.”

New Tampa Neighborhood News

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Congrats, Hope! (Photo by Matt Warticki)

Stonewood Grill Hosts Its Own Celebration Of Dave Rathbun

By Gary Nager

I remember very clearly the day Bella Brave general manager Tina Stormer called to tell me that my friend and former long-time Stonewood Grill & Tavern managing partner Dave Rathbun had passed away at the age of 69.

The first phone call I made immediately after I told Jannah was to current Stonewood Grill managing partner Dennis Diaz to ask him what, if anything, he planned to do in order to give all of Dave’s seemingly thousands of longtime customers and friends an opportunity to pay their respects and share their love for Dave.

Apparently, I wasn’t alone. When I asked Dennis how many people had called to ask him the same question, he said “Everybody! But, I don’t know his family or even how to get in touch with them.”

I didn’t either, but I found Dave’s stepdaughter Emily Barreira on Facebook and told her that although I knew Bella Brava — where Dave was working the last year+ — was planning a “Celebration of Life” for him at the restaurant located off S.R. 54 near the Veterans Expy., I was concerned that most of his Stonewood customers would not be in attendance at that event.

So, I asked Emily to talk to her mom (and Dave’s truly beloved widow) Gina to see if it would be OK for me to put together a second Celebration of Life for Dave. She got back to me and said it would be fine to do that and that she and her mom would try to be there for it.

As we reported last issue, the Bella Brava event was an amazing recap of Dave’s too-short life, which also included his three brothers and two sisters and what seemed to be at least 300400 people — including a few of his New Tampa “peeps.” Among those in attendance were Dennis Diaz and Stonewood’s executive chef Danny Manzur. Together, we set the date for Stonewood’s “In Remembrance of Dave” event for two weeks later — July 28 — which I announced on the front cover of our last New Tampa issue.

Although I was hoping to hold the event sometime after 5 p.m., Stonewood needed to hold it at 1 p.m., and although that time may have kept the attendance down somewhat, what took place was exactly what I had hoped for — a wonderful celebration of a deeply loved man, with great food provided mainly by Stonewood but also by some of the attendees and of course, great stories about a man they all knew and loved.

So, somewhere between 60-70 people came three hours before Stonewood opened on July 28. There was food and bar stools and booths filled with people, with some of the plaques, awards and

photos Dave received over the years.

And, Emily and Gina were not only on-hand (they are in the photo, right, with Stonewood’s Danny Manzur, far left, and Dennis Diaz, far right, and several other of the restaurant’s employees who helped make the event a success), they also brought along the memory board that also was on display at the Bella Brava event.

The Neighborhood News sponsored the opening round of drinks and one of Dave’s long-time customers brought along a remembrance guest book that most of the people in attendance signed.

Everyone talked about how Dave always knew not just everyone’s name, but where they preferred to sit, what food and drinks they usually had and more than a little info about each person’s job, family, etc.

“Dave definitely had a gift,” said long-time customer and friend Debby Amon. “He was just such a wonderful man.”

Many of those on hand at the Stonewood event knew Dave from when he worked at the Carrabba’s Italian Grill on N. 56th St. in Temple Terrace before he helped open Stonewood.

Here are just a few excerpts from the “In Loving Memory of Dave” guest book. I honestly can’t read all of the signatures, so I won’t include any of the signers’ names here — but you all know who you are and what you said:

“We lost a truly remarkable man - someone whose presence lit up every room, every shift & every heart that walked into Stonewood. As GM, he wasn’t just a leader, he was the heartbeat of the place. He had a gift for making everyone feel seen & valuedwhether you were a longtime customer or a first-time visitor. He never met a stranger & he never let a day go by without a warm smile, a gentle hug, or a kind word. His employees adored him, not just for how he led, but for how he cared. He built a family, not just a team & that love ran deep. His joy was infectious, his heart was enormous & his legacy is etched into the lives of everyone lucky enough to know him. We will miss him dearly, but will carry his light forward. It was an honor to call him our friend.”

“I grew up in [the Rathbun family’s] neighborhood. Every year when I’d do the food drive, David was so wonderful & charitable. Always had a smile on his face & told us to come to Stonewood. He & his generous spirit will be missed.”

“We experienced Dave’s kindness & generosity of spirit on many occasions. He has served as an example in our lives for what it means to live your faith with simplicity & authenticity. Dave had the heart of a true angel. All his employees always commented that he was the best boss they ever had & we know why.”

“Dave was a man unlike anyone we have ever met. Truly special. He touched people’s lives in ways that left an everlasting impression.”

“Dave was the dearest person we met upon relocating to Tampa. While we were new, Dave made us feel like old friends, or better yet FAMILY! And, to Dave’s family, thank you for sharing Dave with us!”

“Dave trained my sister when she started as a waitress for Carrabba’s. I saw him frequently through the Stonewood days & more recently played golf with him & learned of his transition to Bella Brava. You can’t ask for a better guy or restaurant manager. His spiritual growth was very inspirational to me. We have been spiritual brothers since. You will be doing great things up there!”

“Emily & Gina - We loved Dave so much. From years ago at Stonewood to our long conversations in Publi to always visiting him at Bella Brava.”

All photos by Charmaine George

Another Crume’s Eagle Scout Project Beautifies Heritage Elem.

Heritage Elementary is grateful to Donovan Crume and the New Tampa Scouting America Troop 148, which meets at St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church, for their accomplishment at Heritage Elementary.

On Aug. 2, Donovan completed another Eagle Scout project at Heritage Elementary off Cross Creek Blvd. He is now the third member of the Crume family who chose a Heritage Elementary beautification project as his Eagle Scout project!

Donovan took the initiative and coordinated the meeting times to assess the scope of the project and to make a supply list. He also confirmed project days and times, put together a fund-raising event to secure the funds needed and then purchased all of the materials he needed.

Donovan’s project consisted of spreading 10 cubic yards of mulch throughout the school’s learning butterfly garden and pressure washing and painting 16 concrete benches that are used both in the parent pickup area and as seating at the learning garden. The week prior to the project’s execution, Donovan and his brothers (Davis and Dylan) loaded the extremely heavy benches into their Dad’s truck to transport them home to do the pressuring washing and prepare for painting the following week.

On the day of the event, Donovan and his family arrived at 7:30 a.m. to set up a comfort tent with food and drink for their

crew and soon, about 20 scouts, leaders and parents from Troop 148 arrived, ready to work!

Donovan showed great character and leadership skills in all his communications, not only with me, but also with his fellow scouts. He made sure everyone was hydrated throughout the day and suggested cooling off breaks, especially for the younger scouts. He made sure everyone knew their tasks and had the supplies to complete it. Even the 100-degree heat did not keep these scouts from completing the project and the transformation is amazing!

Heritage is a designated Monarch Way Station, so we take our butterfly, bird and insect habitats seriously, as well as our learning gardens for our students, families and staff. — Submitted by Jean Josephson, Gifted Elementary Teacher, Heritage Elementary.

(Above left, l.-r.) Davis, Donovan & Dylan Crume are all now Eagle Scouts whose Eagle projects have helped beautify Heritage Elementary. (Above right) Donovan’s work crew. (Below) Members of the crew paint the benches (left) for the school’s new Butterfly Waystation (right). (All photos provided by Jean Josephson)

New Tampa’s Vasil Kirkov Plays At Wimbledon; Is US Open Next?

In the 31 years I’ve owned this publication, I can’t recall having actually interviewed any kid raised in New Tampa who played at Wimbledon — the oldest and most prestigious professional tennis tournament in the world.

But now, I can’t say that anymore, as Bulgaria-born Vasil Kirkov, 26, who has been raised in New Tampa since he was nine, played Men’s Doubles at Wimbledon with his partner Bart Stevens from The Netherlands.

The unseeded duo lost in straight sets (67[6-8], 4-6), in the first round in July at the All England Lawn Tennis Club in London — to the #5-seeded doubles team of Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool. The British duo ended up winning the entire tournament — becoming the first all-English pair from the host country to win the Men’s Doubles title at Wimbledon in 89 years — and lost only one set along the way.

“We definitely gave them as tough a match as anybody,” Vasil says. “We even took them to a tiebreaker in the first set. So, even though we ended up losing, I thought we played very well.”

Very well indeed for a team that only made it into the Wimbledon draw as the third alternate and had to wait for a call that said they were going to compete there. Even with that loss, however, Vasil is now ranked a career-high #78 in the world as a doubles player (Stevens is #74) and since Wimbledon, the pair made it to the Finals of the ATP Challenger Tour tournament in Hagen, Denmark, earlier this month.

Vasil says that he started his tennis “career” on “the courts in Hunter’s Green. I can still

remember the first time I hit on Court 3 with my brother Kiril (who ended his tennis career after playing in college).”

Depending upon which surface his next tournament will be played on (clay or hard-court), Vasil continues to practice when he’s in town at the courts at either Arbor Greene or Hunter’s Green.

He also admits that his mom Tanya used to beat him “until I was 11 years old, so she definitely played her part in this.” He credits his father Stoyan as his self-taught coach, even though Stoyan was never a high-level player himself.

Now standing 6’-1” tall, Vasil says he was home-schooled beginning with the seventh grade — after attending Benito Middle School on Cross Creek Blvd. for 6th grade. “I was playing tournaments all over and traveling too much to continue to attend school,” he says. “I had a lot of success in junior tournaments.”

(Above) New Tampa-raised pro tennis player Vasil Kirkov (no hat) shakes hands with Julian Cash after Vasil & partner Brad Stevens (right) lost in two tough sets to Cash & partner Lloyd Glasspool in the 1st round at Wimbledon., who ended up winning the tournament. (Photos provided by Stoyan Kirkov)

experience, but I’m happy with my decision.”

On To The US Open?

So much success, in fact, that he says he was “always ranked in the top five of my class [nationally] when I was 18.” In fact, at the 2017 French Open on clay in Paris, France, Vasil and his then-partner Danny Thomas made it to the finals, but were defeated in straight sets (4-6, 4-6) by the team of Nicola Kuhn and Zsombor Piros.

And, even though he had offers from a number of Division I NCAA tennis programs, Vasil decided to turn pro. “That was more than eight years ago,” he says, “Looking back on that decision, it would have been nice to have that college

He started out playing both singles and doubles as a pro, but injuries kept him from ever rising above the #439 in the world singles ranking he achieved in 2021. For his career, Vasil has won 10 ATP Challenger Tour and eight ITF doubles titles. He began partnering with Stevens in Oct. 2024 and, at our press time, the pair had a decent career match record together of 244 wins and 180 losses. Kirkov’s career pro tennis earnings recently surpassed $200,000.

“We know what we have to do in order to be successful,” Vasil says. “So, that’s what we’re focused on; not just the outcome.”

Armed with his highest-ever doubles ranking and very good recent results, Vasil says he and Stevens are now hoping to get into the 64-team Men’s Doubles bracket at the 2025 US Open.

“Nothing’s guaranteed right now,” he says. “We won’t get in just based on our rankings, but we’re hopeful to have a similar situation to Wimbledon and get the call.”

If they do get into the draw, Stoyan says Vasil is seeking local sponsorships for the US Open.

If your business could benefit from having your name and/or logo seen by a world-wide TV audience, call Stoyan at (813) 841-8014 or email K1tennis@yahoo.com. — GN

How Many Storage Places Is Too Many, Wesley Chapel?

A Recent Study Shows That Wesley Chapel Is Leading The Entire Nation In Self-Storage Growth, With More On The Way, But...

Introduction by Gary Nager

Story by Gary Nager & Joel Provenzano

Of course, it’s one of the most popular (albeit tiresome) running jokes in this community that Wesley Chapel is overrun by chicken places, car washes and yes, self-storage facilities.

In fact, a RentCafe report published in the Business Observer newspaper shows that over the past 10 years, Wesley Chapel, “has seen its storage capacity skyrocket 672%, jumping from 76,000 square feet to 587,000 square feet. That leap lands it as No. 1 on the top-10 list [of] cities for storage growth in the country between 2014 and 2024.”

Of course, the report also notes that, “Wesley Chapel is not officially a city (see pg. 3) but [is] considered an unincorporated census designated [place],” (or CDP). And, it’s also not clear whether the RentCafe report uses the three Wesley Chapel zip codes (33543, 33544 & 33545) as its boundaries of “Wesley Chapel” or if the Wesley Chapel CDP boundary, which extends from I-75 west to Wesley Chapel Blvd. and includes the area around the Tampa Premium Outlets (but not some other communities located within the Wesley Chapel zip code maps) is used — but here’s the bottom line: Wesley Chapel has a crap-ton of storage facilities — nine within zip codes 33543 and 33544 (but just one, at least so far, in 33545) and two along Wesley Chapel Blvd. with either a Lutz (33559) or Land O’Lakes (34639) zip code — and, sorry to say, more are on the way.

By our calculations (see chart on pg. 10), that adds up to 837,300 sq. ft. in 33543, 33544 & 33545, plus an additional 180,300 sq. ft. along Wesley Chapel Blvd. (or 1,017,600 sq. ft total), and at least two more under construction, totalling an additional 212,600 sq. ft., in Wesley Chapel “proper” — one on Curley Rd. just north of S.R. 54 (the second in 33545) and the other on Mansfield Blvd. near Wiregrass Ranch High (in zip code 33543). Without any additional facilities being built, Wesley Chapel will have 1,230,200 sq. ft. of these huge, most would say ugly, buildings “invading” our personal space.

So, who needs them?

Apparently, we all do — and they surely seem to be cash cows for those who develop and own them — or they wouldn’t keep building them.

According to the RentCafe report, “In Wesley Chapel, the growth in storage space — like its growth in housing and retail — is being driven by more people moving to the area.” The report found that, “the central Pasco locality saw its population increase 53% between 2014 and 2023.”

“It seems, the report’s authors write, that ‘every new household comes [with] a wave of belongings, and self-storage has stepped in to help manage this overflow.’

“The report notes one other factor in its findings on Wesley Chapel: The growth in

storage space is unlikely to slow down anytime soon. The area currently offers about 4.6 square feet of self-storage per capita, which remains well below the national benchmark, ‘suggesting there’s still plenty of room for further expansion.’ (A RentCafe spokesperson did not respond to a question about what the national benchmark is.)”

In other words, here in Florida, where there is no such thing as basements in most houses and attics are, in most cases, way too small to accommodate all of our “stuff,” these huge monstrosities are here to stay.

And no, they aren’t cheap, either. Although we found that most storage facilities list units “starting” as low as $54 per month for a 4’x5’ unit and most list their largest units — usually 10’x20’ — in the low $200s per month, we know first-hand that some of those climate-controlled units fetch more than $400 per month. Ugh.

Nationwide, the area from South to Central Florida was the hardest hit during the recession of 2008-09, in terms of housing foreclosures. Construction on nearly everything slowed for years, especially here in Wesley Chapel.

But, the Wesley Chapel area, in particular, has been playing catch up pretty quickly ever since, with both residential and commercial development skyrocketing recently, as well as in the number of storage facilities, which took nearly a decade after the recession’s peak to start coming out of the ground again in and near the

Yes, Florida is a prime market for this industry, but there’s more to it than that, especially for a (literally) hot market, as most (but definitely not all) of the storage units are climate-controlled nowadays.

The RentCafe article cited earlier in this story says that Wesley Chapel is the fastestgrowing self-storage market in the U.S. We confirmed this is likely true, but decided to pull the numbers ourselves (for both current facilities and those under construction), to give a more accurate representation of where our area stands today. In other words, are we actually “under-” or “over-” saturated with self-storage facilities?

According to the data in our analysis, we calculated the jump in storage space over the last 10 years for Wesley Chapel to be exactly 700% (close to the RentCafe’s report of 672%), from 175,600 total sq. ft. in 2014 to 1,230,200 sq. ft. by the beginning of next year.

Here are more numbers, and the answer to that pressing question:

The average rentable storage area is about 75% of gross floor area, so: 1,230,200 sq. ft. x 0.75 = 922,650 rentable sq. ft., divided by an estimated 110,000 people (in our Wesley Chapel service area) = 8.4 sq. ft. (sf) per capita.

The National Average for self-storage is 7-8 sf per capita, so with the two newest ones under construction on Mansfield Blvd. and Curley Rd. (see chart, right), Wesley Chapel is just now

slightly above the national average, putting us on-trend to keep up with the area’s rapid growth, making us a “balanced market,” that currently is neither under- nor over-saturated.

In fact, there’s almost no doubt that at least a couple of additional self-storage locations will almost definitely be needed — especially from Epperson and Watergrass north to Mirada/San Antonio — over the next few years to maintain that balanced dynamic, as more people continue to move to the area. So, as unpopular and maligned as they may seem, these storage facilities do provide important support for a healthy, thriving community.

But, Why Are They Needed?

Local social media comments on posts about self-storage facilities are quick to categorize them as “a blight on the landscape,” “a waste of space” or, at best, “a necessary evil.” But, are they really any of these things?

The plethora of customers filling these facilities and the nearly perfect Google reviews for all of the ones built during or after 2018 seem to indicate otherwise, as most people who use them seem to be, overall, pretty happy with the experience, with one caveat — price.

Self-storage pricing changes to match real estate trends — in other words, as housing, office and retail costs go up, so does the cost of self-storage.

See “Self-Storage” on page 10.

three Wesley Chapel zip codes.

Photos by Gary Nager & Joel Provenzano; photo collage designed by Charmaine George

SERVICES PROVIDED IN OUR OFFICE:

• Wellness Dentistry for kids and teens

• Holistic nutritional counseling for teeth and gums

• Ozone therapy for oral care

• Recommendation of non-toxic materials

• Sedation dentistry (nitrous oxide) and Sedation

• Invisalign First for children & Invisalign Teen

• Digital 3D scans, ITERO (no goop) and digital X-rays

• Laser dentistry (release of tongue tie for infants, children and teens)

• Relaxed environment, so your children can enjoy their visit

But, Who Are These Companies?

Although many of the local self-storage facilities have changed hands recently — and several have changed brands multiple times — the largest current provider of storage space to rent in the Wesley Chapel area also is the #1 or #2 (depending upon which Artificial Intelligence search response you trust) largest such company in the U.S. — Extra Space Storage, which operates more than 4,000 storage facilities in 42 states and Washington, D.C.

The second largest operator is Public Storage, with more than 3,300 locations across the U.S., Canada and Europe.

Our Google AI search response also said, “It’s worth noting that Extra Space Storage’s recent acquisition of Life Storage significantly increased their store count, pushing them past Public Storage in terms of number of locations.”

The trend towards more storage facilities isn’t just a local phenomenon, as StorageCafe says that, as of June 2025, there is now more than 2 billion sq. ft. of self-storage space in the U.S., with 62.3 million sq. ft. delivered in 2024 and 56.1 million sq. ft. expected to be added this year. StorageCafe also says that 1 of every three Americans rents a storage space in this country.

The trend increased during and since the pandemic, as more and more people have operated home-based businesses, many of which require keeping inventory for those business somewhere other than in the peoples’ homes.

Based on personal experience, the growth of hoarding also seems to have been a factor.

But, self-storage also is a good business model in today’s world, with low numbers of employees, very little upkeep required and literally every available square foot making money for the business owners. Nationwide, occupancy rates peaked at around 92% during the pandemic, but even with slightly lower occupancy now (around 87%), that’s still higher than most apartment and hotel occupancy

rates, with much less maintenance required.

Some Local Insight

While taking photos of the outside of one of the storage buildings, we saw a sign that said “Inventory Sale,” so we decided to check it out.

On the second floor, we met Lisa Gillispie, a business partner with L&J Elite events, a highly rated local business which focuses primarily on weddings. She explained that her business was “needing to downsize” — selling some of the inventory items the company uses regularly to stage its events — everything from candle holders and imitation floral arrangements to fine dishes and silverware, all in storage containers on shelving units from floor to ceiling (photo).

“Our biggest unit has been 10’x35’ and we need to downsize from our current five units costing $1,200 a month,” Lisa said. “We used to have four smaller units that cost $500 a month, but the price has almost doubled the last few years.”

Although she lives in Dade City, Lisa said her business partner lives closer to Wesley Chapel and noted, “A lot of our business is in this area.”

Storage Facilities in Zip Codes 33543, 33544 & 33545

That helped us realize that many of the people who need these units often have a very specific reason for needing them, and for those folks, at least, it’s not really about storing some useless junk.

We spoke with a long-term full-time employee at one of the local self-storage offices (who asked to not be named in the story) to get some insight into the business locally and the customers they end up serving.

“There are a lot of small business owners, consultants, local medical supply companies and home stagers,” the employee said, “so storage is a vital resource for them,” adding that, “We do have a lot of unit turnover” — meaning that many self-storage customers are only using the units for short periods of time. “For people moving in from out of town or apartment residents, storage helps. All of the new construction is bringing customers in, people who are waiting for their homes to be finished being built or other sudden life changes.”

The employee admitted that the cost of owning a self-storage business is pretty low.

“Yes, I’m the only full-time employee, and we have a couple of part time employees, but we’re good neighbors. We keep a clean property (building) and parking lot, maintain our landscaping, and don’t create much traffic.”

We also visited Morningstar Storage (behind Audi Wesley Chapel on S.R. 56), where we discovered that some local storage businesses do even more for the community, offering free or discounted storage units to charities and other non-profits, with ten nonprofits listed on a board in the business’ lobby, with even more that Morningstar offers for “seasonal storers,” like Toys-for-Tots. In other words, while you may hate the way they look and wonder why there have to be so f*@#ing many of them, self-storage facilities are pretty much a necessity in most communities, especially those growing by leaps and bounds, like Wesley Chapel.

But, are they here to stay? We’ll have to see.

So, Which Wesley Chapel-Area Chicken Tenders Restaurants Finished

First

Storage Facilities in & near Zip Code 33647 (New Tampa)

Name Address (Year Opened)

Extra Space 20315 Trout Creek Dr. 33647 (2018)

Extra Space 17231 Doña

Square Footage of All Facilities

Meanwhile...Here In New Tampa

In New Tampa, however, there are “only” six storage facilities in and adjacent to zip code 33647 (see chart above) — and all but one of them were built before 2007. And, only the newest such location — the Extra Space Storage facility on Trout Creek Dr. (off Bruce B. Downs Blvd., behind the Christian Brothers Automotive Center; photo) — which was built in 2018, is more than 80,000 square feet in size.

The six New Tampa-area self-storage locations total 474,860 sq. ft. — or way less than half the total square footage located in and near Wesley Chapel — and with New Tampa’s total population of around 80,000 people, there is only about 4.5 sq. ft. of storage per capita.

However, with only the K-Bar Ranch Master Planned Unit Development (MPUD) still growing in zip code 33647, whether or not any additional facilities will be built in New Tampa remains to be seen.

At our press time, we did not know the occupancy rates of any of these facilities.

APEX Internal Medicine of Tampa

State Road Street Signs Damaged By Hurricane Milton Are Still Missing

By Gary Nager; Research & photos by Joel Provenzano

As we all remember all too vividly, Hurricane Milton, which was a Category 5 tropical cyclone when it made landfall near Siesta Key on Oct. 9 of last year, was the first hurricane in decades (or maybe ever) to make a direct hit on the Wesley Chapel area later that day and cause widespread damage and flooding.

The after-effects of Milton continued to be felt for many weeks and among the casualties of that storm were dozens of roadway signs that were knocked down and/or destroyed — some of which still have not been replaced now nearly 10 months later (highlighted in red in both pictures, right).

Pasco County Media Relations & Communications public information officer Sarah Andeara says, however, that the county’s Traffic Operations & Public Works departments, “have repaired all damages and replaced all signage on county roads that were damaged by Hurricane Milton. Traffic Operations replaced approximately 40 overhead signs and traffic signals, noting that each overhead illuminated street name sign costs approximately $3,700.”

At our press time, Andeara did not know how many post-mounted signs were fixed via the Public Works department, but said that for any missing signs on state roads — including S.R.s 56 and 54 — the Florida Department of Transportation (or FDOT)’s District 7 is ultimately responsible for the replacement of those signs. It’s also important to note that, unlike traffic signal “heads,” each of the signs — which are

important for tourism, emergency response and local businesses — has to be custom-designed.

FDOT transportation engineer Megan Arasteh says, “The Department has inventoried the damaged signs through field visits, and designed the new signs if as-builts were not available, and is in the process of securing the funds for manufacturing the signs.”

Arasteh also noted that, “The estimated timeframe to complete sign replacements throughout District 7 is approximately one year. It takes FDOT about one hour to design each sign if as-builts are not available. The manufacturing process requires a minimum lead time of four months, and each sign installation takes approximately three hours.”

As for how many signs FDOT needs to replace in our area, Arasteh says, “A minimum of 16 signs will be replaced in Wesley Chapel, nineteen signs total in Pasco County, and 203 signs total in all of District 7,” which also includes New Tampa.

Arasteh also notes that, “FDOT recently completed the process of acquiring federal funds to replace these signs. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) requires a Detailed Damage Inspection Report (DDIR) for approval of funding. FDOT began the process in December 2024. The report included details of the hurricane damage and pictures. FHWA approved the funds this month. As you can imagine with the extent of the damage due to Hurricane Milton, FHWA has had a very large number of DDIRs

to review and approve, [and] they have been a great resource to work closely with the Department throughout this process. Dist. 7 Traffic Operations is now working on a new contract that will advertise for bids in about two months for sign replacement.”

As for cost, Arasteh says, “The cost varies to replace each sign. Based on FDOT’s statewide averages for signs, the cost is approximately $7,500, not including design, maintenance of traffic and mobilization. A vendor will manufacture the signs on behalf of FDOT and Pasco County will install the signs.

Now, two+ months into the 2025 hurricane season, the hope here is that the work will be completed before our area takes another major hit.

‘Homes For Our Troops’ Volunteer Day At Injured Marine’s Future Home

“We don’t have a lot of family or friends here in Florida,” said retired Marine Sgt. Christopher Lawrence during the super-hot “Volunteer Day” (July 26) at his family’s future “Homes for our Troops” (HFOT) home in Wesley Chapel, where about 10,000 sq. ft. (25 pallets) of sod was unloaded and dozens of plants were used to landscape the front and side yards at the home on Steeplechase Rd. “But today, we feel like we have a lot of new family members.”

You could see the appreciation and joy Sgt. Lawrence, his wife Michelle (Chelley) and daughters DeliaMarie and Cristiana felt as they helped more than 100 volunteers beautify the outside of the custom-designed home the family expects to move into by around the end of this month.

Kent Custom Homes partner Nathan Pratt explained how to place the sod and plant the plants and said how proud he was to have two more Kent Custom Homes — for Sgt. Lawrence and Army Sgt. Quincy Lopez, who, like Sgt. Lawrence, lost his right leg to an improvised explosive device blast in Iraq (see story on pg. 16) — in Wesley Chapel, bringing the total Kent has specially adapted and built for Post-911 recipients designated by Homes for our Troops here in Central Florida up to nine.

Homes for our Troops is a national 501(c) (3) military nonprofit that continues to spend 90 cents of every dollar the organization raises to build more than 400 custom homes (and growing) across the country since its inception in 2004.

In addition to the landscaping on July 26, volunteers also sold HFOT hats and accepted cash donations to help HFOT continue to provide these homes at no cost to our severely injured military men and women.

To make a donation or for more information about HFOT, visit hfotusa.org or call (866) 787-6877. The “Key Ceremonies” for these two HFOT homes will both be held on Saturday, September 6. — GN

(Previous page, top) Sgt. Christopher Lawrence & his daughter DeliaMarie (both in red) pose with several of the 100+ volunteers who helped landscape (bottom pics) their future home in Wesley Chapel.

(This page, top left) The Lawrence family can’t wait to move into their new home.

Sgt. Lawrence raised the HFOT flag during the volunteer event (above).

Nathan Pratt of Kent Custom Homes thanks the volunteers & gives them instructions.

‘Homes For Our Troops’ Also Hosts A Volunteer Day For Sgt. Quincy Lopez!

Two weeks after Homes for our Troops (HFOT) held its Volunteer Day for former Marine Sgt. Christopher Lawrence (story on pg. 14), as many as 150 volunteers showed up to help lay sod and plant dozens more plants at the future home of former Army Sgt. Quincy Lopez in a different part of Wesley Chapel.

Sgt. Lopez lost his right leg to an improvised explosive device (IED) blast while on patrol in Iraq in 2006. And, like Sgt. Lawrence, Sgt. Lopez, who is a native New Yorker, chose to live in Wesley Chapel because of the weather and the area’s proximity to the Haley Veterans Hospital in Tampa.

Sgt. Lopez, his son Warren and their dog Skye (photos on this page) are excited to move into their specially-designed home by Kent

Custom Homes on Country Club Rd., which will happen on Saturday, September 6, 9 a.m., in a joint “Key Ceremony” that will begin at Sgt. Lawrence’s home on Steeplechase Rd. Although both injured home recipients already raised an HFOT flag at their homes, those will be joined by an American flag-raising ceremony on Sept. 6.

After being introduced by HFOT community engagement coordinator Krystina Goroshko, Retired Army Brigadier General Tom Landwermeyer, the president & CEO of HFOT, first talked about HFOT’s mission to help severely injured veterans rebuild their lives with customdesigned homes — which will approach 500 in 46 states by next year — and thanked all of the volunteers for coming out to help before turning

over the mic to Sgt. Lopez.

“This gives me a lot of independence back,” Sgt. Lopez said. “Having a home that’s adaptable allows me to cook and clean, move around and take a shower without assistance. It helps me to be a better father, a better community member and I’m so excited to be a part of this community. A lot of people say their communities are the best, but as welcoming as Wesley Chapel has been, I think you guys outrank a lot. You’ve accepted a lot of us [injured vets] into your community and you’re the reason why we sacrificed. I’m just extremely honored and thankful to all of you. I really appreciate you guys.”

Nathan Pratt, the same partner from Kent Custom Homes who spoke at Sgt. Lawrence’s Volunteer Day two weeks earlier, also gave the instructions to the volunteers doing the landscaping at this home and also thanked Sgt. Lopez for his service. — GN

l.-r.

&

take a moment for a

in front of their Kent Custom Homes/HFOT home. (Left) You think Skye is excited about her new yard? (Next page, clockwise from top left) HFOT community engagement coordinator Krystina Goroshko & HFOT president & CEO Gen. Ton Landwermeyer both had words of praise for Sgt. Lopez. Future HFOT home recipient & injured Army SPC Adam Morris helps out by carrying a big load of mulch. They say it takes a village to raise a child, but sometimes, it takes an army of volunteers to lay sod & landscape a custom-designed home for a severely injured veteran. (All photos on these pages by Charmaine George)

(Above,

Skye, Sgt. Quincy Lopez

his son Warren

photo

Upcoming Events — Free Sports Physicals, ‘Pasco 2050,’ Music For Kids, Theatre & More

Wednesday, August 20, 9 a.m.-10:30 a.m. – North Tampa Bay Chamber Coffee Social. At Florida Central Credit Union (17502 Doña Michelle Dr.). Wake up and join your fellow chamber members for your morning brew and networking. Free to attend. For more info, call (813) 994-8534 or visit Business. NorthTampaBayChamber.com.events.

Wednesday, August 20, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. – “Walk-In Wednesday.” At AdventHealth Wesley Chapel (2590 Healing Way, in the Healing Plaza building - Room 130). AdventHealth Wesley Chapel is calling all qualified candidates for this special hiring event. Hiring managers will be conducting interviews and extending offers. Hiring for: ICU RNs, Surgical Services (RNs, CFAs & Surg Techs), ED (RNs & ER Techs), Med/Surg-RNs, Imaging/ Radiology, EMS-EMTs, RNs & Paramedics). You are required to submit a resume with your application. Pre-registration is recommended but not required to attend.. For more info, visit jobs.adventhealth.com.

Friday, August 22, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. & Saturday, August 23, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. – Friends of the New River Library Book Sale. At the New River Branch Library (34043 S.R. 54). Join the Friends for this big summer book sale. Free to attend.

For more information, call (813) 7886375 or visit PascoLibraries.libnet.info/ event/14129499.

Saturday, August 23, 9 a.m.-12 p.m. –F45 New Tampa Grand Reopening. At F45 (18035 Highwoods Preserve Parkway). “Muscles & Mimosas,” local vendors, dunk tank, obstacle course, major membership discounts raffles, giveaways & more. Free to attend. For more info, call (813) 560-4047.

Monday, August 25, 7 p.m. – New Tampa Democratic Club Monthly Meeting. At New Tampa Regional Library (10001 Cross Creek Blvd.). Guest speaker: Lisa McLean. Free to attend. For more info, visit NewTampaDemocrats.com or Facebook.com/NewTampaDemocrats.

Wednesday, August 27, 10:30 a.m.-noon – Charting Your Course: Protecting Yourself, Your Loved Ones & Your Legacy. At Blue

Tuesday, September 2 at 11:59 p.m. is the deadline to purchase tickets. Tickets $50. For more info, contact Group sales at (727) 825-3406 or GroupSales@ RaysBaseball.com or to purchase tickets visit gofevo.com/ event/2025chamberevent.

Friday, September 5, 11 a.m.- 2 p.m. – North Tampa Senior Expo. At The Venetian Event Center (9724 Cross Creek Blvd.). Connect with dozens of local organizations dedicated to helping seniors and their families in North Tampa and surrounding communities. Free health screenings. There will be refreshments, prizes and giveaways. Free to attend. For more information and to pre-register, visit SeniorExpoUSA. com/2025-north-tampa.html.

attend, but please register. For more info and to register, visit Zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/ in-their-honor-september-11th-2001-operation-enduring-freedom-never-forget.

Thursday, September 11, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. – North Tampa Bay Chamber Ribbon Cutting. At Mindful Elevation (2604 Cypress Ridge Blvd., Ste. 102D, Wesley Chapel). Join Dr. Jacqueline Nelms for the Mindful Elevation Ribbon Cutting. Light refreshments will be served. There will be special discounts and a free gift. Free to attend. For more info, call (813) 994-8534 or visit Business.NorthTampaBayChamber.com.events.

Heron Senior Living (5085 Eagleston Blvd.).

This session is an excellent first step in the estate planning process and will help you take control of your future with confidence. For more information or to register, call Lilly at (813) 733-4754.

Friday, August 29, 4 p.m.-6 p.m. – North Tampa Bay Chamber’s “Final Friday.” At Fuzzy’s Taco Shop (19729 S.R. 54). Join North Tampa Bay Chamber members as they engage and network in a relaxed environment. Free to attend. For more info, call (813) 994-8534 or visit Business.NorthTampaBayChamber.com.events.

Wednesday, September 3, 6 p.m.-11:00 p.m. – North Tampa Bay Chamber Networking Night with the Rays. At Steinbrenner Field (1 Steinbrenner Dr., Tampa). Network with Chamber of Commerce members as the Rays take on the Seattle Mariners. Ticket purchase offers access to the Budweiser First Base Rooftop with complimentary food and beverages.

Monday, September 8, 7 a.m. – In Their Honor: September 11, 2001 & Operation Enduring Freedom – Never Forget. At St. Leo University Wellness Center (12338 Priory Cir., San Antonio). The event begins with a 5K, followed by a complimentary continental breakfast. The morning culminates in a poignant September 11 Memorial Event. 5K Registration $40, Memorial Event is free to

Friday-Sunday, September 12-14, beginning at 6 p.m. on Friday & ending at 9 p.m. on Sunday — 2025 New Tampa Arts Festival. At the New Tampa Performing Arts Center (8550 Hunters Village Rd.). Help kick off the upcoming 2025-26 season with a weekend full of free activities and performances by Tampa Bay artists across music, theater, dance comedy and more. Free to attend. For more info, call (813) 829-2760 or visit NewTampaArtsCenter.org/events.

Wednesday, September 17, 9 a.m.-10:30 a.m. – North Tampa Bay Chamber Coffee Social. At Spinner Law Firm (2418 Cypress Glen Dr.). Wake up and join your fellow chamber members for your morning brew and networking. Free to attend. For more info, call (813) 994-8534 or visit Business.NorthTampaBayChamber.com.events.

The Kumba Dancers & Drummers from Busch Gardens were among the highlights of last year’s New Tampa Arts Festival, which returns to the New Tampa Performing Arts Center Fri.-Sun., Sept. 12-14 (NN archive photo by Charmaine George)

I will readily admit that among the dozens of Broadway and Off-Broadway musicals that I saw during my years of living in New York, “The Music Man” was never one of my favorites — but I only ever saw the hit 1962 movie starring Robert Preston as the conniving Prof. Harold Hill and Shirley Jones as the lovely librarian/music teacher Marian Paroo — although I was in the show’s (barbershop) “Quartet” in my high school’s performance of the classic Tony Award-winning hit.

I thought the story of Hill, the traveling salesman/con man, and his duping of a town full of weird and often stupid characters, created by Meredith Willson and Franklin Lacey, was just too dated and not as much fun as some others.

But honestly, to me, the New Tampa Players’ (NTP) production of “The Music Man” at the New Tampa Performing Arts Center was better than the movie. And apparently, I wasn’t alone. All of the people sitting around Jannah and me raved

about the talented cast and their beautiful singing voices, the sets, the costumes and the 15-piece orchestra — the largest ever for an NTP production — under the musical direction of the great G. Frank Meekins. I hope director Angel Borths, choreographer Tatiana Eriksen, costume designers Shelley Giles, Heather Cleveland, Travy Stemm and Dave Giles and production manager (and NTP producing artistic director) Nora Paine and the entire cast and crew are proud. This also was the first NTP show I’ve seen with sign language interpreters (middle right photo)!

The amazing Melanie Bierweiler was correctly sassy as Marian (and did a fantastic job singing “Goodnight My Someone” and “Till There Was You”) and David Groomes didn’t disappoint in the demanding role of Prof. Hill on “Ya Got Trouble,” “76 Trombones” and with Melanie on “Till There Was You.” The “Quartet” of Chase Reeder, Michael Bonassar, Jacey Squires and James Cass hit every note of every song, including on “Lida Rose.”

Neil Bleiweiss provided great comic relief as Mayor Shinn and Becky

Groomes correctly “overacted” as his zany wife Eulalie. Talented youngsters Nora Duffy as Amaryllis (who sang like a songbird in duet with Melanie on “Goodnight My Someone”) and Luke Adams as Marian’s lisping brother Winthrop (who sang to the back of the theater on “Gary, Indiana”) showed that NTP has a bright future ahead. And, Debbie Scourtes brought a lot of verve to the role of Marian’s widowed mother Mrs. Paroo, who is trying to keep her daughter from becoming an old spinster. You could just hear the audience hissing at the show’s one villain, Charlie Cowell (played to perfection by Stephon Mikell), and Jaden Figueroa and Chloe Tort were great as the young “troublemaker” Tommy Djilas and Zaneeta Shinn (“Ye

Gawd!”), respectively.

The largest cast I’ve ever seen in an NTP production also included the super-fun and funny Pick-A-Little Ladies (Lena Wigfall, Suzann Humara, Christy Adams and Chelsea Keith), plus nearly 20 “ensemble” players young and old (including the super adorable extra-young’ns Mars Wolfe Bonassar and Elliott LeFloch).

But, I wouldn’t be telling the truth if I didn’t say that Gabriel Martin White as Hill’s buddy and fellow con man Marcellus Washburn was this show’s scene stealer. He got laughs — calling Hill by his real first name (“Greg”) throughout — and he brought to mind the young Dick Van Dyke in “Mary Poppins” with his expressive face and high-flying, elastic-legged dancing. My pics did him no justice!

Great job, one & all!

Up next for NTP are another classic musical — “Oklahoma” — in October, and “The

Sponge Bob Musical” (yes, really) in January.

Auditions for both shows have already been held (although volunteers to help with both productions are still needed), so look for announcements about when tickets go on sale in these pages and at NewTampaPlayers.org. — GN

Briefs - City Furniture, New Tampa Center, U.S. Rep. Laurel Lee & More!

We first told you back in 2023 that CITY Furniture was planning to build a 120,000-sq.ft. showroom on a 400,000-sq.-ft. parcel across S.R. 56 from the Tampa Premium Outlets, near the Floor & Decor store.

Well, the site work for CITY Furniture recently began (photo; the Silversaw Apartments are in the background) and Maitland, FL-based Miller Construction Co., is doing the construction.

Adjacent to the latest furniture store in the Wesley Chapel area will be a Home2Suites by Hilton hotel that will be developed by Impact Properties, the same group that built and still owns the nearly adjacent Hyatt Place Tampa Wesley Chapel hotel (see story on pg. 45). Although we don’t know when the construction of the 103-room, five-story, 66,913-sq.-ft. hotel is expected to begin, the last update we received said it was expected to open sometime in 2026.

New Tampa Center Has Been Sold

According to an article in the Sarasota-based Business Observer newspaper on Aug. 5, the sale of the 93,666-sq. ft Publix-anchored New Tampa Center plaza to a joint partnership between Bain Capital Real Estate and 11North Partners, was finalized on Aug. 1.

The New Tampa center sale was part of a 10-shopping center portfolio the new joint venture purchased for $395 million from PGIM Real Estate. Although the article says the individual shopping center prices were not disclosed, “Hillsborough County records show New Tampa Center sold for $57 million.” Among the other centers purchased, all but one is located in

Florida (the other is in South Carolina) and seven of the ten are anchored by a Publix, including the New Tampa Center, where the Publix is 56,146 sq. ft. Among the other tenants in the plaza are the following restaurants: Lima Peruvian (see ad on pg. 36), Minerva Indian, Little Greek, China One, Everbowl, Pizza Hut, Twistee Treat and McDonald’s. Other businesses in the plaza include a Pinch-A-Penny, The Joint Chiropractic, Coldwell Banker, Pak Mail, Coast Dental, and Leiva’s Jewelry, to name just a few.

Leiva’s owner Jonathan Leiva says that it’s too early to tell what effect, if any, the sale will have on the plaza and his business, but he is “hopeful that it will work out for the best.”

Congresswoman Lee Speaks At 2&2

The day we went to press with this issue — Aug. 10 — District 15 U.S. Rep. Laurel Lee (R-Brandon) made a speaking appearance at the 2&2 Restaurant (located at 33835 S.R. 54 in Wesley Chapel) owned by Kruth (Kurt) and his wife Suzie Sombutmai (top photo on next page).

At the speaking engagement, which also was supported and attended by the East Pasco Chamber of Commerce, Congresswoman Lee made it clear that she believes the “Big Beautiful Bill” recently passed by Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump, “will definitely help small businesses and seniors,” even though the law’s detractors say that it favors large corporations and billionaires and will cut funds for programs such as Medicare and Medicaid.

Lee’s district also includes all of New Tampa and she has an office in Tampa Palms. The

former Hillsborough Circuit Judge and Florida Secretary of State said that even though the Hillsborough portion of her district leans “more blue than red,” she is able to “reach across the aisle” and work with Democrats “whenever necessary,” such as the bill she co-sponsored with Dist. 14 Rep. Kathy Castor to fight human trafficking.

Attorney Ron Weaver Talks...Nudists?

Speaking of speaking engagements, retired land use & zoning attorney Ron Weaver (with mic in bottom photo on next page), formerly with the Tampa-based firm of Stearns Weaver Miller, was the featured speaker at the Aug. 5 North Tampa Bay Chamber Business Breakfast held at Pasco Hernando State College’s Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch. Weaver, showed off his encyclopedic knowledge of how both Hillsborough and Pasco counties developed. He began his presentation with an attention-grabbing look at some of the

famous Tampa Bay-area “nudists,” because, he said, “Since 1941, we have been the nudist capital of the world.” He mentioned actress Lauren Hutton, actor Channing Tatum and pro wrestler/ actor John Cena, all of whom have done nude scenes on film, as among our area’s nudists.

Weaver also talked about how both Hillsborough and Pasco counties were named for British citizens. Wills Hill, the 1st Earl of (or “Lord”) Hillsborough, who was the Secretary of State for the Colonies prior to the American Revolution, which Weaver said Lord Hillsborough caused by ignoring the protests of the Colonists.

More than 100 years later, Samuel Pasco, who also was born in London but attended Harvard University across the pond, was recruited to help expand education opportunities in north Florida and ended up having a county spun off from Hernando County named for him after he served as Florida’s Speaker of the House. — GN

New Tampa Kids Are Back At School For The 2025-26 School Year! (Continued

All photos by Charmaine George

On these two pages are more photos from all of the New Tampa schools our photographer Charmaine George could get to for the “Meet the Teacher” events at each school — some of which were held at the same day & time as others.

Charmaine was able to get photos at Clark, Heritage, Hunter’s Green, Pride and Tampa Palms elementaries and at Turner Bartels K-8 School. We apologize that she was not able to get pictures at Chiles Elementary, Benito or Liberty middle schools or Freedom or Wharton high schools. — GN

from page 1)

Elementary Principal Kirsten Meyer!

By Celeste McLaughlin Neighborhood News Correspondent

With the 2025-26 school year having started on Aug. 11 for all Hillsborough County students, Pride Elementary has a new principal who has taken the helm after the retirement of former principal Paulette English.

Kirsten Meyer says it feels like “coming full circle” for her, after starting her career as a second grade teacher at Hunter’s Green Elementary (HGE) in 1998.

In fact, two teachers who are now part of the staff at Pride — Julia McKernan and Lucy Kovach — were once her students at HGE.

“It’s nice to see the growth in the community and see the love and passion that teachers have for their kids,” Meyer says. “There’s an energetic feeling and a love for learning at all of the schools in this area.”

Most recently, Meyer was assistant principal at Mitchell Elementary in South Tampa, where she served for two years. Prior to that, she was the assistant principal at Foster Elementary off of 22nd St. in North Tampa.

At Pride, she leads one of the largest schools in Hillsborough County — about 1,000 students.

“To be a first-time principal and have the

responsibility to take on a school that is such a high-performing school is an honor,” Meyer says. “I know the expectation walking in. I know that I have to keep this going.”

In fact, Pride has never received any letter grade other than “A” from the State Dept. of Education in the 23 years it has received one since first opening for the 2001-02 school year.

Meyer says the staff and parents have been welcoming and supportive, and that she is excited to work with the “amazing” staff, including her experienced assistant principal, Heather Moncrief.

She says she recently learned that the school’s namesake, Dr. Richard Ford Pride, is the grandfather of Shaylia McRae, whom Meyer worked under when McRae was a regional superintendent for the county.

“It’s another personal connection,” Meyer says. “I have to live up to her namesake. This school has a tradition of high standards, so I want to make this community proud and make these teachers proud.”

Speaking a few days before school started, she said she couldn’t want for the students to come back and get the year under way.

“Pinch me,” she says. “It’s a dream come true. I couldn’t have wished for anything better.”

New Pride Elementary principal Kirsten Meyer (left) and assistant principal Heather Moncrief were excited to meet as many Pride students as possible on the school’s “Meet the Teacher” day, which was held on Aug. 7, a few days before school started. for the 2025-26 school year. (Photo by Charmaine George)

Licensed Massage Therapist Peggy Boyd Offers A Surgical Alternative

By Iris Vitelli

Neighborhood News Correspondent

Licensed Massage Therapist (LMT) Peggy Boyd says she never imagined that a single question on her first day of massage school would change the course of her life.

“The teacher asked what made us fall in love with the human body,” Peggy recalls. “I just knew I was in the right place. It felt like home because during college, I was a track athlete and fell in love with anatomy and physiology.”

Peggy worked with a chiropractor and a massage therapist before opening her own office in 2011. She wanted to show her patients that they might have other options, that there was an alternative to surgery for some of them, and that’s how Surgical Alternative was born.

Surgical Alternative, located on U.S. Hwy 41, near Sunset Ln. in Lutz, uses a holistic approach to help clients with physical and emotional pain. In addition to Peggy, who also is a Cranial Structural Bodywork Educator (or CSBE), the staff consists of three additional LMTs — all of whom also have additional certifications to help bring comfort and pain relief to their patients — Elizabeth Brown, Heather Thomas and Nancy Adams.

Peggy says that Surgical Alternative draws patients from as far away as Naples, Virginia and South Carolina. Many local clients drive from Wesley Chapel, New Tampa and St. Petersburg, not for a relaxing massage, but because they’ve tried everything else and they have not seen the pain-relieving results they have received at Surgi-

cal Alternative. Here, clients find real healing, often for the first time.

She started her journey after graduating from Florida State University in 1995 with a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in Nutrition. After graduation, Peggy says she considered going to school for occupational therapy but found an alternative in massage school.

Cranial Massage A Specialty

After completing her massage certification, Peggy began to attend workshops and found Chiropractic Physician G. Dallas Hancock D.C., Ph.D., who has been practicing since 1974 in Tampa and specializes in — and teaches — cra nial massage. “It was therapeutic,” Peggy says. “It was powerful. I knew by learning this technique, I could make a difference in people’s lives.”

Cranial massage focuses on aligning the body’s core structures — the cranium, spine, and pelvis.

For those who recently watched the HBO Documentary “And So It Goes,” about pop star Billy Joel, Peggy says that cranial massage is similar to the treatment that Joel has received since being diagnosed with NPH (Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus). It has been reported that he is seeing a physical therapist. When asked if she has ever worked on someone with this diagnosis, Peggy said she had not, but that some of the clients she has worked on have had similar conditions.

“When there is too much pressure in the cranium, the spinal fluid gets stuck,” Peggy says. “This fluid removes toxins from the body by going through the brain, spinal cord and tail bone

Licensed Massage Therapist & Cranial Structural Bodywork Educator Peggy Boyd says it’s worth a trip from New Tampa to visit her Surgical Alternative on U.S. Hwy. 41 in Lutz if other treatments haven’t provided the relief from your pain you seek. (All photos on these pages by Charmaine George) and back up again. The spinal fluid does this 14-16 times a minute. They are possibly doing cranial work for him and affecting the cerebral spinal fluid that may have gotten stuck and is not moving as it should.”

At Surgical Alternative, Peggy says the goal is to restore balance so the body can heal itself. This isn’t just simple massage, and it’s not a spa or chiropractic treatment. It’s targeted therapeutic work that has helped people avoid

surgery, reduce medication, and recover from long-term pain and dysfunction. Clients come in for everything from sports injuries and TMJ (temporomandibular joint/jaw) pain to PTSD, chronic fatigue, anxiety and fibromyalgia. Many have tried other things that have failed before they visited Surgical Alternative.

Grace Rickershauser, a long-term client of Peggy’s, was put in traction and a brace when she was young due to another child pulling on

(L.-r.)

her neck in a pool. Many years later, she was still suffering from the same pain.

“My doctor wanted to put me in a brace and wanted me to have surgery,” Grace says, adding that Peggy was recommended and she began seeing her every week then every other week. A few months later, she went back to the doctor, who told her she was no longer a candidate for neck surgery.

“That was back in 2010 and I continue to work with Peggy,” Grace says. “I see her every couple of months now.” Peggy has also worked with Grace’s husband and her brother.

“I highly recommend Peggy and Surgical Alternative, whether you need a small adjustment or a large one, as I did.” Peggy not only helped Grace avoid surgery, but she also restored her ability to move without pain.

Each session begins with a conversation and full-body assessment. Every member of Peggy’s team is a well-trained LMT and they all share her belief that healing is not a one-size-fitsall proposition.

Peggy and her staff have helped veterans with PTSD, teens with sports injuries, adults recovering from car accidents, children with sensory issues and others.

“It’s incredible to watch someone change, not just physically but emotionally,” says Peggy.

One of the lesser-known but powerful tools Peggy and her staff use is BAUD (or Bio-Acoustical Utilization Device), which uses sound frequencies to stimulate the brain and interrupt neurological patterns associated with pain and trauma.

“It’s great for people who have had long-

term trauma or emotional issues that haven’t responded to talk therapy (aka psychotherapy) alone,” she says. “Everything is connected. What happens emotionally will eventually show up [and have an effect] physically.”

Also available is “needle-less” acupuncture, which uses a microcurrent device on acupuncture points to help with pain, anxiety, digestive issues and more. Unlike traditional acupuncture, this method is painless and non-invasive.

“It’s another way to help the nervous system calm down so the body can heal,” says Peggy.

She adds, “We look from the bottom of your feet to the top of your head. The body tells us what it needs.” She says this approach has helped clients of every age, as she has worked with everyone from a two-week-old infant who was struggling to latch after a traumatic birth and is now latching without a problem (thanks to cranial massage), to a 90-year-old woman who today walks without pain or a walker.

What sets Peggy and Surgical Alternative apart is not only her decades of experience, but her deep commitment to education for both her and her staff. She continues to train in advanced techniques and often teaches other professionals in the field.

She says that some patients come weekly at first, “especially if they’re in acute pain,” says Peggy, “and then taper to every few weeks. Others come monthly to stay ahead of stress or movement issues, while a few just check in seasonally or when something flares up.”

Peggy also is the founder of the Institute of Alternative Therapy, which offers certifica-

• Independent Broker & Medicare Expert since 2008

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tion training in Cranial Structural Bodywork. She teaches everyone from massage therapists and chiropractors to physical therapists and acupuncturists. Her workshops don’t just teach techniques, they offer a deeper understanding of how to support the immune system, balance the sinuses and jaw and treat conditions like TMJ. She’s even developed custom workbooks to support her students, and many return every year for additional Continuing Education Units (CEUs).

“We get people coming in from all over the state every year to learn with us,” she says.

Peggy also is focused on the wellness of her team. “We can’t take care of you if we’re not taking care of ourselves,” she says. She’s created a culture of balance by requiring her staff to trade services every week. “It’s built into the schedule,”

she says. “Every Wednesday at 11 a.m., we work on each other. It’s mandatory.” She also encourages her LMTs to work a four-day work week.

Peggy and her staff welcome your questions when you call the office.

“We tell the client exactly how we can help them and then make the appointment,” she says.

Peggy says she would like to open additional locations but, for now, she’s content continuing her life’s work in Lutz.

First-time Surgical Alternative customers are offered a 20% discount (see ad on pg. 33). To schedule an appointment, call (813) 9486300 or you can book your appointment by visiting SurgicalAlternative.com/treatmentstampa. The office is located at 18115 N. U.S. Hwy 41, Suite 1000, Lutz.

(Left photo above, l.-r.) Elizabeth Brown, Peggy Boyd, Heather Thomas and Nancy Adams of Surgical Alternative are all highly trained, experienced Licensed Massage Therapists who also can offer cranial massage, which Peggy demonstrates (above right).

Cozy Research Is Seeking Patients Experiencing Heart Failure For A New Study

By Celeste McLaughlin Neighborhood News Correspondent

For anyone who has been experiencing heart failure, a local research company is conducting a clinical trial that may help you or someone else. This trial currently is open and is enrolling new participants.

Cozy Research, LLC, is a medical research company founded in 2016 by Wesley Chapel resident Ryan DeWeese. It operates primarily out of the Wesley Chapel office of Dr. Jonathan Yousef at Lifetime Family & Urgent Care, located on Argerian Dr., off S.R. 54.

Ryan says his company conducts clinical research trials in a variety of areas. Past research projects have included testing Covid antibody treatments, as well as medications for everything from cholesterol and blood pressure to cosmetic dermatology.

At this time, Ryan says there are only two studies that are open and seeking new participants. Both are for people who are experiencing heart failure.

To qualify, patients must be 18 years of age or older, have been diagnosed with chronic heart failure for at least 3 months, and who are already receiving treatment for their heart failure.

These studies are sponsored by German pharmaceutical giant Boehringer Ingelheim, a company founded in 1885 that today is the largest private pharmaceutical company in the world. Both studies are testing the same medication, but patients can qualify for one or the other based on their lab results. One tests patients whose condi-

tion is more severe than the other group.

“Research subjects keep their primary care doctor, stay on their current medications and nothing changes,” Ryan explains. “This study is for an add-on therapy meant to go with whatever meds they are already taking. We don’t take over any care of these patients.”

He says clinical trials, including these, are vital because for any medication to get approved for use in the U.S., it has to be tested in the U.S.

“It’s the only way we can get new treatments approved and out there,” he explains. “We can’t look at a study in Germany and say we want that medication. To be used here, it has to be tested here.”

Although some local cardiologists and, in this case, Dr. Yousef, may recommend to their patients that they may qualify for a study, it is always voluntary to participate.

Once someone volunteers, they are first brought in for a screening.

“Each study is looking for specific lab results,” explains Ryan, “including if the patient is healthy enough to participate in the study.”

The screening includes paperwork, a comprehensive medical history, blood draw, and a physical.

Those who are chosen to participate will either receive medication or a placebo so that results can be measured for both those who receive the treatment, and those who don’t. All patients are made aware that they may receive the placebo.

Whether they receive the treatment or the placebo, all participants benefit from medical care that is funded completely by the study, such as

periodic blood testing and electrocardiograms. Results from these assessments are shared with study doctors, as well as with each patient’s physician.

“This is additional personalized care because all of the testing and labs go well above and beyond your regular annual physical,” DeWeese explains. “Your own doctors are looking at your results, study doctors are looking at it, plus the pharmaceutical team is overseeing it.”

And, no insurance is needed, since everything is covered by the study.

All medical testing and procedures will be provided by trained medical providers at the Lifetime Family & Urgent Care office, whether that’s Dr. Yousef or nurse practitioner Yana Luk-

jantschenko, MSN, FNP-C (Master of Science in Nursing, Family Nurse Practitioner-Certified).

Ryan has been partnering with the practice for seven years and says study participants find Dr. Yousef and Yana pleasant and easy to work with. And, he says, compensation also is provided for participants’ time and travel.

This trial has been reviewed by an Institutional Review Board (IRB)/Ethics Committee (EC), which protects the rights, safety, and wellbeing of participants.

“The study may or may not help you,” Ryan says, “but if it doesn’t help you, it may help someone else.”

Ryan has worked in medical testing since

Wesley Chapel resident Ryan DeWeese of Cozy Research is enrolling patients experiencing heart failure for a new research study. (Photos on these pages by Charmaine George)

lot of on-site testing at Lifetime Family & Urgent Care on Argerian Dr. in Wesley Chapel.

graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology from Western Michigan University in 2004. He completed a Master’s degree in Health Care Administration from Ohio University in 2012.

He was working for a large pharmaceutical company and took the opportunity to move to the Tampa Bay area in 2012.

“I had always wanted to live somewhere warm,” Ryan says, “where I never have to drive in snow or shovel snow again.”

After more than 10 years in research, serving in positions from entry level to research director, he felt like he knew the industry well enough to start his own company, and did so in 2016.

Edgar Espana recently participated in a different study and says he’s glad he did.

“It was a really nice experience,” Edgar says. “My doctor presented a study to me and I jumped on it.”

Edgar says he doesn’t know if he got the placebo, but he did see a benefit. “I figured if I got the medicine, we’ll see if it works,” he says. “If not, it could help other people.”

He said the process of scheduling and going to appointments was easy, and it was a benefit to have his cholesterol checked more often than he otherwise would have.

“They were really flexible on time,” Edgar says, “and had really good communication.”

For more info about the heart failure study and Cozy Research, see the ad on pg. 34. To see if you qualify for the study, email Ryan@cozyresearch.com or call (813) 922-2115.

handful of people still in our area who began advertising in the Neighborhood News before I bought it in 1994. In other words, the guy knows as much about the homes and communities in New Tampa and Wesley Chapel as anyone — in cluding yours truly.

Monty, who has been in the real estate busi ness in the Tampa Bay area since 1982, founded that original Tampa Palms brokerage firm, called Florida Properties, in 1989, and Florida Proper ties was the first business to purchase the back cover of the Neighborhood News and continued to advertise with us until he sold that company to (and went to work for) Coldwell Banker in 1998.

Monty and his wife Jayne (who got her Business degree at USF and still handles the accounting at Better Realty Services) welcomed their daughter Emma into the world in 2004, when Monty decided to take a step back from real estate, even though his license remained active and he still worked in the business.

was easy — everything was flying off the shelves, with all-cash offers, usually above asking price. Now, it’s backed off a little, but [resale] prices are still OK, and even though the [new home] builders are offering all of these incentives, there’s usually higher fees in new home communities.”

Then, in 2015, he founded Better Realty Services and opened an office in Wesley Chapel, as he was managing a townhouse project off S.R. 54 near I-75 for a company out of Miami.

Today, the Better Realty Services team is mainly Monty and property manager Kathy Rieger. “Kathy also is licensed as a real estate agent,” Monty says, “but she primarily handles all of our property management and does an outstanding job.”

He also says that although the property management side of the business is doing well, “We’re about 70-80% selling and maybe 20-30% property management right now.

Monty says his current featured listing (top photo) — a 4-bedroom, 3.5-bath, 3,374-sq.-ft. home at 8910 Magnolia Chase Cir. in Hunter’s Green — is a beautifully updated Bimini floor plan by Rutenberg Homes on hole #2 of the Hunter’s Green Country Club golf course with a great pool. It’s a “must-see,” listed for $1,050,000.

As for the name of his business, Monty says, “We’re called Better Realty Services because we want to — and can — do it better!”

For more information about Monty Bryan and Better Realty Services (2600 Cypress Ridge Blvd.), call (813) 833-7786, visit BetterRealtyServices.com or see the ad below. — GN

When you volunteer for the heart failure research study, you will receive a

Nurse Practitioner Cory Dowell Joins The Team At The Primary Care Of Wesley Chapel!

By Iris Vitelli

Neighborhood News Correspondent

For many people living in New Tampa and Wesley Chapel, finding a primary care practice that treats them like more than just a number or doesn’t tell them the first available appointment is six months out can be a real challenge. Located two minutes from the S.R. 56 exit of I-75, off Wesley Chapel Blvd. in the Cypress Bend Professional Park in Lutz, The Primary Care of Wesley Chapel has quickly earned a reputation as a place where patients are truly heard, respected and cared for like family.

Lead clinician Cory Dowell, MSN, APRN, FNP-C (Advanced Practice Registered Nurse and Certified Family Nurse Practitioner), says that The Primary Care of Wesley Chapel opened last year because, “We saw how rushed and impersonal healthcare had become. We wanted to create something better, where people feel safe, understood and empowered to take control of their health.”

Led by a team of three dedicated nurse practitioners — including Cory, Scarlette Owens and Megan Dudley, all of whom have the same degree and certification — the office has been making a real impact on the lives of patients. By blending cutting-edge technology with warm, personal care, The Primary Care of Wesley Chapel has built something special.

Cory joined the practice in February of this year, after speaking with Megan, a longtime colleague. The two had worked together at another primary care office for eight years,

(L.-r. above) Medical assistants Alexis Alban & Maggie Rodriguez, nurse practitioners Scarlette Owens & Cory Dowell,

McCall & nurse practitioner Megan Dudley take care of their patients like family at The Primary Care

until Megan joined Scarlette at The Primary Care of Wesley Chapel when it first opened.

After learning from Megan that the practice was looking for another provider, and knowing they shared the same philosophy on how patients should be treated, Cory knew it would be a great fit for her.

Cory earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree from the University of Florida in Gainesville in 2011 and completed her Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) from the University of South Florida (USF) in Tampa in 2014. She has more than 10 years of primary care experience with a diverse background in

health informatics (the use of computer and information science to improve healthcare), disease prevention, chronic care management and health education. Cory has taken on the responsibility of running the practice and working with the staff while also treating patients.

Scarlette Owens received her ASN (Associate of Science in Nursing) degree from Pasco Hernando Community College (now Pasco Hernando State College) in 1994. She received her BSN degree from the University of Phoenix in 2000 and her MSN degree from The University of Tampa in 2002. Scarlette has 30 years of professional experience and has been

an Adjunct Professor/Clinical Faculty at USF for Nurse Practitioner students since 2017.

Meanwhile, Megan earned her Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree from Houghton College in Houghton, NY and her ASN degree from Jackson State Community College in Jackson, TN, in 2010, and her MSN from Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, TN, in 2017. Megan grew up in Pennsylvania and chose Wesley Chapel as her new home 10 years ago. She focuses on providing high-quality care with compassion and empathy.

Together, the trio has cultivated a space where educating the patient, giving each

medical assistants Hannah Ploehn & Valerie

of Wesley Chapel in Lutz. (Photos by Charmaine George)

ing. Despite that growth, the clinic’s team remains committed to keeping wait times low and the quality of care high.

strengths to the practice, their shared mission is simple — to treat people the way they would want their own families to be treated.

“One of our main roles as providers is to be educators,” Cory explains. “We walk patients through their lab results, explain treatment options, and help them understand what’s going on inside their bodies. That way, they leave feeling informed and confident, not confused or overwhelmed.”

And yes, the patients are noticing the difference. With a 4.9-star (out of 5) overall rating on Google (on nearly 80 reviews) and new word-of-mouth referrals pouring in every week, the practice has grown steadily since its open-

Two months ago, patient Lori Souza wrote in her 5-star review: “My husband and I are both new patients to Primary Care of Wesley Chapel and we have had nothing but a positive experience so far!

Scarlette spent so much time with us on our first visit and continues to be a big support to us. She has such a kind and caring approach and makes us feel right at home. As a nurse myself coming from the clinical side, I can very much appreciate the time that she takes with us. I understand that it’s tough to spend a lot of time with a patient these days, but she makes it happen. Lastly, the staff and other practitioners are always smiling and helpful. Thank you Scarlette

That staff includes office manager, Maggie Rodriguez, lead medical assistant Alexis Alban and medical assistants Hannah Pleon and Valerie McCall.

Available Services

The Primary Care of Wesley Chapel offers a wide range of services for patients ages 18 and older. These include annual wellness exams, sick visits, lab work, diagnostic testing, joint injections, chronic disease management and even allergy evaluations. Telehealth appointments are available for added convenience.

“With Telehealth,” says Cory, “we can see a patient who may be out of town or someone who just needs a refill. The myPrivia is an easy-to-use online portal that allows patients to

request refills, message their provider and view test results from the comfort of their homes. It’s easy for the patients to communicate with us. We always check the messages on the portal and answer them as quickly as possible.”

But, Cory says, what really sets this clinic apart is its people-first approach. Every member of the team, from the front office staff to the clinical providers, believes that good medicine starts with good communication.

“We don’t double book or rush anyone through the door,” Cory explains. “We believe in being thorough, not just efficient. When a patient walks into our clinic, we greet them by name. We remember their stories. We know when they’re going through something difficult. That kind of connection makes all the difference.”

And, while the office uses the latest tech tools like electronic medical records, Telehealth and the myPrivia app, the team insists that technology should serve patients, but never replace human interaction. The nurse practitioners all focus on educating people about their own health so they can make informed decisions that align with their values and goals.

For people dealing with chronic conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, or thyroid disorders, the practice offers long-term care that’s proactive, personalized, and grounded in trust. Instead of simply managing symptoms, the providers at The Primary Care of Wesley Chapel take the time to uncover root causes and create realistic treatment plans that work.

For anything more serious, thanks to the years of experience each provider has, the office has access to a network of specialists in a variety

of medical specialties they work with and will refer patients to them when necessary.

That same attention to detail applies to patients who come in for routine physicals or urgent needs like a sinus infection or a sports injury.

Cory says, “Every person who walks through the door is treated as a priority, whether it’s their first visit or their fifteenth. We have patients who tell us, ‘I’ve never had a provider sit and really listen to me like this before,’ and that’s heartbreaking,” Cory says. “But it’s also why we’re here. To do things differently.”

She adds, “We never want to become a factory-style clinic. Even as we continue to expand, our goal will always be to preserve that small, connected feel.”

Looking ahead, Cory says that the team does plan to offer additional wellness services and expand their procedural offerings to include joint injections.

“We also are exploring a pharmacy collaboration to enhance convenience for our patients,” Cory says. The group also plans to increase its community outreach efforts, including hosting and/or participating in educational events and health talks. The practitioners’ long-term vision is to remain a cornerstone of care for local residents in New Tampa, Wesley Chapel and beyond, where residents know they can turn for thoughtful, expert support.

The Primary Care of Wesley Chapel is located at 2935 Pearson James Pl. in Lutz. It is open Mon.-Fri., 7:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. For appointments or more information, call (813)991-4243, visit PrimaryCareWesleyChapel.com or see the ad on pg. 42.

Blue Heron Senior Living’s New Wing Is Just Part Of The Community’s Appeal

By Gary Nager

Photos by Charmaine George

Although my mom isn’t suffering from any of the 180 different forms of dementia, I was happy to attend the “Virtual Dementia Tour” put on by Senior Helpers at Blue Heron Senior Living in Wesley Chapel on July 16.

I honestly believe that whether you know or think someone you love has Alzheimer’s disease or any other type of dementia, the Virtual Dementia Tour will give you a new perspective on the diverse variety of problems most of us will deal with as we age, regardless of our whether or not our mental faculties ever diminish (more on this event below).

I also know that Blue Heron, owned and managed by TLC Management, is the only assisted living and memory care facility in New Tampa or Wesley Chapel that also offers skilled nursing for rehab or long-term care. Hosting events like the Virtual Dementia Tour just adds to the appeal of this 159,000-sq.-ft. residence where the opportunity to “age in place” has kept it near capacity since it first opened in 2021.

left) Chris Tomko of

explains how the Virtual

in Wesley Chapel. (Right) Neighborhood News editor Gary Nager admits that he failed the VDT miserably & got a better understanding of the lives of our elderly.. (Next page, l.-r.) One of the spacious private bathrooms & the new dining area in the newly expanded skilled nursing wing at Blue Heron. About The Virtual Dementia Tour

ond floor — 18 on the first floor (for rehab) and 19 on the second floor (for long-term care).”

“Our current occupancy is 100% in both long-term care and memory care and 90% in rehab,” says Blue Heron’s executive director Meagan Kopstad, “but we do have a couple of rooms available right now on the assisted living side.”

Blue Heron’s skilled nursing area added a new wing last year, “with 37 additional patient beds, bringing us up to 141 total,” says community relations director Lilly Gonzalez. “Those new beds are divided between the first and sec-

She adds, “We couldn’t hold our planned Grand Opening of the new wing last October because of the hurricanes that hit the area. In other words, your readers have never seen the new wing in print before.”

The new wing also includes a new dining area (photo on next page), a new patient lounge and a new nurses’ station.

With the expansion, Blue Heron Wesley Chapel now has a total of 248 residential units — 95 assisted living, 22 private memory care and the 141 skilled nursing units.

Blue Heron brought in Senior Helpers, the nation’s leading provider of in-home senior care, with more than 400 locations across the U.S., including a local location serving New Tampa and Wesley Chapel, to host the Virtual Dementia Tour (VDT). Senior Helpers is certified to bring the VDT to Blue Heron and other assisted living facilities and, in just a few minutes, the tour definitely gave me new insight into the lives of the elderly.

VDT participants put provided inserts in their shoes with plastic pegs that push into your feet to simulate painful neuropathies.

You also put on glasses that blur your vision, similar to how cataracts affect your eyes. You also have to put on thick, heavy work gloves that significantly reduce your manual dexterity. And finally, you put on headphones that make it a lot more difficult to hear. Anyone you know have any of these issues?

You are then led into a room and given two tasks to do that would be simple for the average person to complete, but you are only given the instructions once, all while wearing the headphones. Pretty much everyone, including yours truly, fails the VDT miserably. But in doing so, you can clearly see (once you

(Above,

Senior Helpers (left)

Dementia Tour works to Christopher Dobard at Blue Heron Senior Living

This five-minute test is pretty much guaranteed to help you become more empathetic to your elderly loved ones — I know it’s helped me better understand some of the things my mom is dealing with — and the VDT is just one of many free programs Blue Heron brings in for both its residents and members of the community.

The next such free event is being held on Wednesday, August 27, 10:30 a.m.noon, and is called “Charting Your Course: Protecting Yourself, Your Loved Ones & Your Legacy.” Board-Certified Elder Law attorney Ed Spinks, a partner with Florida Elder Law & Legacy Planning, will lead the discussion so you can learn how to legally protect yourself, your family and your assets. “This

process and will help you take control of your future with confidence.”

Blue Heron also offers amazing amenities for all of its residents, like beautiful, enclosed courtyards and gardens, lounges, family rooms & dining rooms with delicious meals, a pub, a theater, a salon/spa, computers, internet and cable TV, a private dining room for family gatherings, an art studio and a wonderful life enrichment center with fun programs.

There’s always something to do for Blue Heron residents, where your loved ones can find compassion, companionship and care.

For more information about Blue Heron Senior Living (5071 Eagleston Blvd., Wesley Chapel), call (813) 4540513, see the ad on pg. 43 or visit SeniorLivingAtBlueHeron.com.

New Tampa Palms Apartments — Luxury Living, Larger Spaces & Great Amenities

By Celeste McLaughlin Neighborhood News Correspondent

Now that New Tampa Palms Luxury Apart ment Homes has been open about 18 months, property manager Isabella Tamochunas says the people are moving in and hardly ever move out.

“Typically, people only move out if they buy a house,” she says.

That’s because they tenants renting these spacious apartment homes — the largest are more than 1,500 square feet — love the beautiful views, quiet lifestyle and abundant amenities.

“Our newest amenities are a playground and outdoor fitness center by our gorgeous lake, and a walking trail right next to it,” Isabella says. “We have a dog park by the lake with a pretty view, too.” The lake also has a recently-installed grill and picnic table.

Isabella says residents also love the resort-style saltwater pool with a sundeck, veranda, pergola, al fresco dining and fire pit. They take advantage of the indoor fitness center that’s open 24 hours a day, and enjoy a lounge area with coffee.

Once the community is completely built out, it will include 402 units. Four of the 17 buildings are still under construction, so some of the apartment homes will become available after those buildings have been completed, which is expected to be by the end of this year.

Resident parking includes electric vehicle charging stations next to each building.

A resident named Albilda, who asked that we only use her first name, moved in last October. Albilda says that she and her husband

Assistant manager Nick Tersigni & property manager Isabella Tamochunas of New Tampa Palms Luxury Apartment Homes love seeing canine resident like Gigi having fun at the community’s dog park. (Next page) Amenities like the newly opened outdoor gym at

apartment homes (bottom) even more attractive to prospective residents. (All

had lived in Tampa Palms for 30 years and knew they wanted to downsize. But, after three decades in the same home, she says it was daunting to decide what to do next.

“I had done a lot of homework before making the decision to downsize,” says Albilda. “I found a lot of other places to be too hectic. I wanted a garden apartment, and that’s what this feels like. We’re on the corner on the first floor, and it feels very private.”

The couple signed a lease for a little more than two years to give them time to decide their next steps — like maybe purchasing a town home

— but Albilda says she’s ready to renew her lease instead. “We’re already thinking of extending it,” she says. “I love Tampa Palms and I didn’t want to leave the neighborhood, so this is ideal.”

She said she and her husband take advantage of the gym and the pool, and especially love to use the outdoor fitness center together.

And just as much as they enjoy the amenities, they really appreciate the people.

“Everyone here is wonderful,” Albilda says. “During my working career, I was in customer service, and the team here is super, including the handymen. The attention to detail is unbeliev-

make the

able. They listen to people. If something needs to be done, it’s done immediately.”

She also enjoys the mix of residents in the community, from the retired couple she likes to talk with next door, to the busy professionals, to those who work from home.

Leases are offered for 13, 16 and 26 months and the monthly rents are priced competitively. Homes in New Tampa Palms include the 1-bedroom, 1-bathroom “Palm Springs” model with 1,264 sq. ft. of living space, and the 2 bedroom, 1-bathroom “Palm Bay” unit with 1,333 sq. ft. These smaller units are currently fully

Are You Being Treated for Heart Failure (HF)?

Put a whole team behind you!

Our clinical trial is looking for a better way to treat people with heart failure. Join us today. This investigational treatment option combines an investigational medication with an approved medication for HF. All participants will also continue to receive their standard-of-care treatment for HF and will have regular trial site visits to check on their health. YOU MAY BE ABLE TO TAKE PART IF YOU:

1.are 18 years of age or older

2.have been diagnosed with chronic HF for at least 3 months

3.are already receiving treatment for your HF.

There will be no cost to you for the trial-related medications, health assessments, and medical tests. This trial has been reviewed by an Institutional Review Board (IRB)/Ethics Committee (EC), which protects the rights, safety, and well-being of participants.

For more information, please contact Cozy Research: Call us at: (813) 922-2115 or Email: Ryan@cozyresearch.com

New Tampa Palms

spacious

photos on these pages by Charmaine George)

you’re interested, as availability changes often.

Other models that are currently available include the 2-bedroom, 2-bath “Palm Shores” units (1,409 sq. ft.), which is priced from $2,105 per month, and the 2-bedroom, 2-bath, plus den “Palm Gardens” floor plan (1,571 sq. ft.), priced from $2,425 per month.

Every unit has a spacious patio or balcony, each with a private storage space, and is equipped with a security alarm system. Ceiling heights range from 9-16 ft., and each home includes a gourmet kitchen with custom white wooden cabinetry, top-grade granite countertops, gooseneck faucets, breakfast bars and pantries. Each apartment also has a laundry room equipped with a full-size washer and dryer, a frameless shower, self-closing kitchen and bathroom cabinet doors and generous closet space.

New Tampa Palms is being built by Warren Kinsler of New Tampa, Inc. He is still developing what had been known as Tampa Palms Area 3 — from the plaza that includes BJ’s Wholesale Club south to New Tampa Inc.’s Compton Place apartments on the east side of Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. He is finally getting close to completing his large portion of the Tampa Palms community.

Kinsler, whose New Tampa, Inc., is a subsidiary of New Jersey-based Garden Communities, says the company has developed — and still owns and manages — 100,000 apartment units in Arizona, California, Connecticut, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey and New York, as well as 25 million sq. ft. of retail, office and hotel space.

them, but that doesn’t work for us.”

In fact, the 383-unit Compton Place was the first piece of Kinsler’s puzzle built in Tampa Palms a quarter of a century ago and it is still owned and managed by New Tampa, Inc.

He says he visits each of his properties every day, seven days a week, and sees first-hand the quality, upkeep and customer service offered to residents. He says the staff at New Tampa Palms is top-notch, including Isabella and assistant manager Nick Tersigni.

“They’re the best two I have,” says Kinsler.

The staff also includes leasing agents Kelvin Melendez and Claudia Lopez.

“We all work together to welcome prospective residents,” Isabella says, “and we like to visit with our new residents and make sure everyone is enjoying the community. We do our best to make sure our residents are well taken care of.”

There are currently two specials available for those who may want to move in.

First, preferred employees — including first responders, veterans, active military, healthcare professionals and educators — receive five percent off rent every month. Be sure to show your employee ID in one of those fields to receive the discount.

And everyone, no matter their profession, can take advantage of the current special that gives residents two months of free rent.

The New Tampa Palms Luxury Apartment Homes community is located at 7970 Tampa Palms Blvd. The office is open Mon.Fr., 9 a.m.- 5:30 p.m., 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Sat., and 1-5 p.m. on Sun. For more info, visit

Long-time New Tampa resident and life time sports card collector Bill Martin (no relation to the late Billy Martin, the former manager of the New York Yankees and four other Major League Baseball teams) of Bat Boy Collectibles says that he didn’t get into the sports card and collectibles business “for the money. I do this because I’ve been collecting cards — especially baseball cards — since I was a kid and I still love it. I also realized that I have accumulated a tre mendous amount of items, and I started looking at stuff that I had collected since I was six years old and I decided that I have to narrow what I want to collect and what I’m willing to part with.

He adds, “I have my personal collection, which is basically not being touched, but eve rything else, I figured I could share with other people. It’s a labor of love for me.”

I met Bill for the first time at the packed Tampa Bay Sports Card Show (held at the Holiday Inn Tampa Westshore the weekend of July 25-26 and it was clear that he loves his “hobby.”

“How much do you want for this Aaron Judge rookie card?,” asked a teenage boy with his father. “Can you do any better than what’s on the sticker?”

“For you?,” Bill replied. “Sure. I’ll take $50 off that price.”

There also was a guy who was only interested in football cards, specifically of different starting NFL quarterbacks. “Do you have any Roger Staubach rookie cards?” Bill ended up selling the guy five or six different cards for more than $350.

The former New York Mets bat boy — which inspired the name of his “side hustle” — says his most prized sports possessions are two of the seats that were ripped out of Shea Stadium before it was demolished and replaced as the Mets’ home field by Citi Field. Having lived in our area for 22 years, he says he’s been a Tampa Bay Rays season ticket holder the last 16 seasons.

Bill, who has owned a telecommmunications company the last 25 years, also says that he still does as much buying as he does selling.

“I go to a lot of these shows and my wife gets mad at me because anytime I sell a lot, I always end up putting it right back into the business. I’m always buying, especially peoples’ whole collections — large or small.”

He adds, “If you call the number in my ad (below), I’m always willing to take a peek at whatever ‘stuff’ you’ve got and help you price it correctly, even if you end up not selling it to me.”

And, he’s not only interested in sports cards. For example, “Lately, I’ve been collecting these history cards from the 1910s. There’s a George Washington card, a couple of Popes. They’re pretty cool.”

For more information about Bat Boy Collectibles, call Bill Martin at (631) 2209327. — GN

Zukku-San Sushi Bar & Grill Is Now Serving Weekend Brunch!

By Gary Nager

Photos by Charmaine George

It’s no secret that Zukku-San Sushi Bar & Grill, located in the small strip plaza next to the Hyatt Place hotel (see story on pg. 45) across S.R. 56 from the Tampa Premium Outlets has been among my favorite restaurants in Wesley Chapel — including my #1 fave for 2024! — since the day it first opened back in late 2020.

So, what could make Zukku-San even better? How about the most unique and delicious week end brunch in “The Chap?”

Co-owner and executive chef Gia Tran was proud to introduce us to the new weekend brunch menu items on the first day brunch was offered — the day before we went to press with this issue. Gia and his partner Ferdian Jap now own five fastcasual Zukku Sushi places in four states (including at Tampa’s Armature Works), three Ato Burritos & Bowls (including in The KRATE at The Grove), Astro Ice Cream (also on Sierra Center Blvd.) and have another Zukku-San opening soon in Orlando.

Gia (near right) told us that he’s been “cook ing up” the ideas for almost all of the items on the opening brunch menu (which he said will be expanded) “for a couple of years,” but just couldn’t seem to pull the trigger on getting it started.

“I knew I wanted to include some ingre dients that you almost never find at an Asian restaurant,” Gia told yours truly, photographer Charmaine George and Charmaine’s boyfriend Brendan. “Have you ever had fried eggs, ube waf fles or bacon at an Asian place?”

The answer was clearly “no” from all of us, and I’ll be honest that I wasn’t 100% sure I was going to love all of the new items — until I actually tried them. Of course, the only things I couldn’t try were the new “Bird’s Nest” sushi roll (top right photo on this page) and the “ZukkuSan Signature Mary” (one of the two drinks on the next page) because both included fried shrimp.

But, Charmaine and Brendan both raved about them, especially the Bird’s Nest, which combines tempura shrimp, salmon and cucumber, topped with an avocado and real crab (not “krab”), plus a poached egg, scallions, masago, eel sauce, spicy mayo and sesame seeds.

Meanwhile, the Signature Mary has Haku Japanese vodka, wasabi paste, soy sauce and Bloody Mary mix, with Sichuan peppercorn bitters, garnished with a California roll, tempura shrimp, pickled ginger and celery, with a black-&white sesame seed rim. There’s also an option to

But, all of us honestly went bonkers for all of the other choices. The other brunch sushi roll was a Quail Roll (middle right photo), which combined tamago, cucumber and avocado, topped with two sunny-side-up quail eggs (shockingly tasty), plus bacon (yes, bacon!), scallions, “lava aioli,” eel sauce and Japanese togarashi spice. I don’t know if I’ve ever had that last ingredient before, but the entire sushi roll was just soooo tasty.

I’ve also never really been a big fan of Eggs Benedict, so the new Crispy Rice Benedict (bot-

of a revelation, with its crispy rice topped with (again, real) snow crab, poached egg and a never-heard-of miso brown butter Hollandaise sauce that Gia said stays blended longer than most Hollandaise sauces because of the miso. We all agreed we had never tasted anything like it. But wait, there’s more! I know we just hosted

the first-ever Wesley Chapel fried chicken tender contest (see story on pg. 38), but there is a new contender in town, as Zukku-San’s Ube Waffle & Fried Chicken combo (top photo on next page) is

Rotisserie Chicl?en & Peruuian Cuisine

a combination of three thick slabs of the crispi est (and yet, still juicy) panko-fried chicken served with three of the only waffles I’ve ever had made from ube — also known as the vibrant purple yam (sweet potato) originally used primarily in The Philip pines. The waffles also are topped with a generous dollop of creamy ube butter and served with a sake cup of ginger maple syrup. If you’re the kind of person who tries the fried-chicken-&-waffles at every place that serves them and don’t think this is among the best you’ve ever had, feel free to let me know what you didn’t love about it.

Gia said that his pastry chef Alex Winchester (bottom left photo) went through “like ten different waffle irons” before finding the one that would give his ube waffles the proper texture and crunch.

The final brunch “entrée, which Gia called “kind of a throwaway addition because I felt we needed at least one more entrée,” is no “throwa way” to yours truly, as the “Sunrise Fried Rice” (right) is Zukku-San’s nutty & savory chicken fried rice (already among my whole family’s favorites), which has big chunks of chicken, peas, carrots, onion and garlic and tops it with a sunny-side-up (chicken) egg. Does the fried rice “need” the egg? Maybe not. But is it still a winner? You bet! What About Dessert?

We all were honestly too stuffed to want to even order dessert, but Gia insisted we try Alex’s new mango & passion fruit sponge cake (lower right), which isn’t even on the dessert menu yet, but it was excellent and the whipped tropical icing is addictive. And yes, we still found a way to polish it off — are you surprised?

Also on the brunch dessert menu — all of which I have to start sampling on my next visit — include an ube cheesecake, a ginger yuzu (citrus) creme brulée and a banana hazelnut opera cake.

I also enjoyed my lychee mimosa (at left in photo, right) enough to not need a shot of my usual Ballyhoo Irish whiskey (found only at Zukku-San locally) with my meal. Other Brunch beverages include an Asian Mary, a Sake Mimosa and a Green Tea Umeshu Martini. Try these for yourself and let me know what you think.

And yes, if these brunch items somehow don’t do it for you (but my opinion is that you’d have to be crazy, or a vegetarian, to not at least try some or

er Blvd. It is open for lunch & dinner every day at 11 a.m. and stays open until 9 p.m. on Sun., 9:30 p.m. on Mon.-Thur., and until 10 p.m. on Fri. & Sat. Reservations are not required (except for larger parties), but are definitely suggested, especially on the weekends. For more information, call (813) 419-1351, visit ZukkuSushi.com or see the ad on pg. 45. And please, tell Gia and Alex and the entire crew that I sent you!

The Search For Wesley Chapel’s Favorite Fried Chicken Is Over! Well, Sort Of!

By Gary Nager

Photos by Charmaine George

So, which is our readers’ favorite fried chicken place in the Wesley Chapel area?

The answer I have for you is certainly not definitive, although the nine judges yours truly picked from amongst nearly 50 of our readers in both of our distribution areas definitely were in agreement on their favorites...well, mostly anyway.

Picking those nine judges was not an easy task. Of the 50 people who volunteered, I originally planned to only have five judges. But then, I thought, what would happen if more than one of the people we picked ended up not being able to be there for all three rounds? I decided that having at least a couple more couldn’t hurt — it would even allow us to employ Olympic-style scoring, if necessary (it wasn’t), where we could throw out the high and the low and just use the other seven scores for each restaurant.

At any rate, the nine people selected, from left to right in the top left photo, were: Bill Johnston (aka Colonel Sanders himself!) and his wife Suzanne Reno of Quail Hollow, Aaron “Dion” Rocha of New River Township, Cindy Cooley of Tampa Palms, Dion’s wife Suzanne Rocha, the father-daughter duo of Joshua & Zoe Paine of Heritage Isles and the son-&-father team of Karson (the self-proclaimed & costumed “King Chicken Wing” and Jason Centeno of Live Oak Preserve (and yes, a certain editor is in there, too).

All three rounds of judging were a blast for yours truly, the judges and even for Jannah, whose unenviable job it was to go and pick up the chicken from each of the restaurants, cut each tender into bite-sized pieces and plate them for me to bring to the judges.

I originally thought we were going to split the number of places into one group of 5 for Round 1 and one group of 6 for Round 2, but after Round 1, I realized that one Wesley Chapel chicken place (Wing Stop) had recently added tenders to its menu, so Round 2 ended up having the Mild and Spicy chicken tenders from seven places.

A few other things I have to mention:

1)Because we bought and had to bring the chicken from multiple places to one central location, the judges knew beforehand that none of the chicken would ever be as hot or as moist as it would be at each of the actual restaurants.

2)None of the chicken was served with sauces for fear that the judges would figure out whose chicken was whose too easily. But again, it also kept each place’s chicken from tasting its best.

3)I have to thank president & CEO Hope

Kennedy (see pg. 3) and office administrator Darlene Hill of the North Tampa Bay Chamber for allowing us to use the board room in the Chamber’s beautiful, new office in The Shops at Wiregrass for all three rounds of the contest.

4)I also have to thank our photographer/ videographer Charmaine George for not only shooting still pictures, but also videotaping all of the proceedings. Although we are announcing the winners in this issue, we also will show video highlights from all three rounds as the premiere episode of our “Neighborhood Newsmakers” podcast. Look for updates about that first podcast on our “Neighborhood News” Facebook page.

5) Yours truly didn’t sample all of the chicken nor did I try to influence the judges in any way.

Here’s how the judging went for the first two rounds of the contest, as each chicken tender was judged based on its Crispness, Moistness, Seasoning (for Mild) and Heat (for Spicy), but only the Overall score given for each restaurant counted:

Round 1 (July 23) — There were five Mild but only four spicy chicken tenders in this round, because Raising Cane’s is the only one of the 12 total restaurants that doesn’t sell spicy tenders. The Mild tenders were from PDQ, Chicken Guy, Zaxby’s, Raising Cane’s and Dave’s Hot Chicken. The favorite of these five was Chicken Guy, with PDQ second (both of which advanced to the Finals) and Raising Cane’s third, with Zaxby’s fourth and Dave’s fifth.

Round 2 (July 30) — Chick-fil-A and Slim Chickens finished solidly as #s 1 and 2 (in that order) to advance to the Mild Finals, and they were followed by Popeye’s, Wing Stop, Chick’n Fun, Hangry Joe’s and Sweet Krunch, in that order.

The same seven restaurants competed for Favorite Spicy, with Chick-fil-A and Slim Chickens again finishing in the top two spots, followed (in order) by Chick’n Fun, Popeye’s, Wing Stop, Hangry Joe’s & Sweet Krunch.

Chick-fil-A finished in a flat-footed tie for first place, with each receiving 3 first-place, 3 second-place and 3 third-place votes. But, since five of the judges had PDQ finishing higher than Chick-fil-A, PDQ won for Favorite Mild Tenders Chick-fil-A was second and Chicken Guy finished third (with 2 first-place votes), and Slim Chickens was fourth, with only 1 first-place vote.

The judges agreed that the four Mild Finalists were their four favorites from the first two rounds.

I know it really doesn’t “prove” anything. I’m also quite certain that many, if not most, of our readers will disagree with the results.

But, what it did accomplish was to bring together a diverse group of our readers for a fun and interesting cause and there’s no doubt that these nine previous strangers — two couples, two father-&-child combos and one not-partnered judge — all became friends and took their “jobs” very seriously, but not too seriously.

On the Spicy side this round, Zaxby’s was the clear-cut winner by average score, but Chicken Guy was the #1 choice of more of the judges, so both advanced to the Finals, with PDQ and Dave’s not advancing.

Finals (Aug. 4) — The judges were never told which four Mild and which four Spicy tenders advanced to the Finals, but several recognized PDQ & Chick-fil-A from the first two rounds and one judge identified Chicken Guy from Round 1.

For the Finals, each judge was asked to put the four Finalists in each category from their overall #1 Favorite down to #4.

For Favorite Spicy Tenders, Chick-fil-A and Slim Chickens each had 3 first-place votes, but Chick-fil-A also had 4 second-place votes to Slim Chickens’ 1, so Chick-fil-A was named the Favorite Spicy Tenders winner, followed by Slim Chickens. Zaxby’s just beat out Chicken Guy to finish third.

Looking Back

Independently owned by brothers Frank & James Gouveia, The Grill at Morris Bridge will feature an ever-changing menu created by Executive Chef Daniel Friley.

For Favorite Mild Tenders, PDQ and

The contest was certainly not scientific and

There were comments like, “I can’t taste the chicken,” “Dill pickle undertones,” “Only one I didn’t finish,” “Needs sauce,” “Tastes like Publix” and “Heavy vinegar flavor” — and a lot of laughs. All nine judges also want to try judging the Best Steaks, Best Fries, Best Burgers and a couple that I might actually try to put together — Best Pizza and Best Tacos, but I probably will have to select a whole new crew of judges next time. Look for the podcast on our Facebook page!

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Papichy’s Is Now Open On WC Blvd.

I’ll admit that the first time I ever bought anything from the Pastelitos Papichy’s food truck — which has been located in the same plaza as LA Fitness and Five Guys Burgers & Fries south of County Line Rd. and west of Bruce B.Downs (BBD) Blvd. for about two years — was a few months ago, when I first heard that owners Ruben Caridad and his son, Ruben, Jr., were opening their first brick-&-mortar location in the Grand Oaks Plaza at 26242 Wesley Chapel Blvd. in Lutz (photo below).

But now, I’m definitely a fan. And, considering that one of my daughters-inlaw is from Venezuela, as are the Caridads, I prob ably should have tried Papichy’s sooner. The entire menu is a variety of fried Venezuelan items, from savory to more dessert-oriented. Open for less than a couple of weeks at our press time, the new location is the seventh Papichy’s for the Caridads, who also have their food trucks off Waters Ave. in Tampa and in Odessa (FL) and Orlando.

Considering that “Pastelitos” is part of the place’s full name, I first tried a guava and cheese pastelito, which was crispy and delicious, but be warned that the guava jelly is molten-hot, but worth it! A box of 25 assorted (there also are chick en, pizza, potato-&-cheese, ground and shredded beef varieties) mini-pastelitos is shown above.

Since then, I also have sampled the mini-em panadas (available in many of the same savory varieties, as well as filled with ham & cheese, fish, black beans, bacon, seafood & more), as well as tequeños (cheese sticks) and my surprise favorite — the mandocas (cornmeal doughnuts shaped like a teardrop). All so good.

Papichy’s treats to the Volunteer Day at the future home of Sgt. Quincy Lopez in Wesley Chapel (see pg. 16) and they were all quickly gobbled up. You definitely should try Papichy’s if you haven’t already! For more info, search “Pastelitos Papichys” on Facebook or call (813) 406-1757. — GN

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Double Branch’s New Owner; OddFellows Ice Cream & Haraz Coffee Are Coming Soon!

Double Branch’s New Owner

When I read on Facebook that Branch Artisanal Ales, located at 5956 Wesley Grove Blvd. in The Village at The Grove, was under new ownership, I was excited to meet the new owner and learn about his plans for the place — even though I’ve never been a big beer drinker.

Well, after meeting the new owner, who goes by Dee (shown here with his friendly bartender/ team member Jenna), and seeing how he’s already opened up Double Branch’s interior, including creating a window into the sizable working brew ery, added more TVs (including a 190” projection screen) and upgraded the entire look of the place, I have to say that Dee is on the right track.

He’s also added several more beer taps (with a rotating selection of excellent craft beers and “a new commitment to sustainable brewing practices”), with live entertainment, trivia nights, brewery tours and fun community events all coming up soon.

Dee also says that although you can bring in food from The Grove’s restaurants and enjoy them with his tasty beers, seltzers, ciders and white, red and rose wines on tap, he plans to bring in “maybe 20-30 total items” from Falabella Family Bistro across the way sometime in the future. In the meantime, he also plans to host a Grand Opening event sometime later this month, but had not yet announced it as we went to press with this issue, so check our “Neighborhood News” Facebook page for that announcement soon. For more info about Double Branch, which is open every day except Mon. (but will open for Monday Night Football), call (813) 492-880 or visit DoubleBranch.beer — and please tell Dee I sent you!

the twice-monthly Fresh Market at Wiregrass, but I decided to visit again when I saw the announcement that the not-yet-open OddFel lows Ice Cream was going to be on hand at the July 19 Fresh Market, serving samples of ice cream that I had never heard of before. What do you expect from a true ice cream lover?

Well, OddFellows — which currently has four locations in New York City, where brand founder and co-owner Mohan Kumar lives,

plus one in Pittsburgh, one in Woodlands, TX, four in South Korea and one in Tampa’s Hyde Park Village — definitely offers a unique and creamy twist on traditional ice cream.

There are nine “Classic” flavors (like cookies & cream and the option I can’t wait to try, peanut butter s’mores), plus “Limited Time” flavors, like vanilla blackberry blondie, matcha strawberry, banoffee pie, miso peanut butter brownie and the Brooklyn blackout and mango sticky rice flavors Charmaine and I sampled that day — and they both had delightfully different tastes. There’s also vegan options for those of you who insist.

OddFellows’ Ian Heim (at right in photo above) didn’t know exactly when the shop will open in Wiregrass, but he said it’s expected to be by the end of this month. Keep checking our “Neighbor-

When it opens in Wiregrass, OddFellows will be located at 2001 Piazza Ave., Suite 125, next to The Living Room. For more info, visit OddFellowsIceCream.com.

Haraz Coffee Coming Soon, Too?

I was equally excited to see a sign posted next to Fine Ink Studios (the former location of Pinot’s Palette) that Haraz Coffee House was “Brewing Soon” at 1722 Bruce B. Downs Blvd. (south of S.R. 56), in the Publix-anchored Shoppes at New Tampa of Wesley Chapel plaza.

I’ll admit that I’d never heard of Haraz before, but I say that any coffee shop that isn’t Starbucks that opens in our area is definitely worth a try and Haraz’s website says that the brand and founder Hamzah Nasser are “on a mission to share the rich heritage of Yemeni coffee with the world. By sourcing the finest beans and honoring traditional craftsmanship, we bring the bold, authentic flavors of Yemen to every cup.

to creating unforgettable coffee experiences that connect communities and celebrate culture.”

Since starting off in Detroit in 2021, Haraz has grown to 31 locations in 13 states (with the closest one to us, and the only one in Florida, in Orlando), with 185 more “in the pipeline.”

Whether you like traditional lattes or cappuccinos or prefer Turkish, Saudi, French Press or cold brew coffee, or even coffee with cardamom, ginger or other spices, Haraz has got you covered.

There’s also hot chocolate, green and matcha tea and pistachio and saffron lattes. Haraz also features milk cakes, cheesecake & cinnamon rolls, and sells items like coffeemakers and bulk coffee.

I called the Orlando location but they said the Wesley Chapel shop is owned by another franchisee, so they had no idea when our Haraz is expected to open. Of course, we’ll keep you posted, both in these pages and on our Facebook page.

For more information, visit HarazCoffeeHouse.com. — GN

Our D’Oro Margarita with Monte Alban Reposado Tequila finished off with Gran Gala liqueur. Flavors: Strawberry, Mango, Raspberry & Passion Fruit.

Einstein Bros. Bagels Opens Next To Nutrition Smart!

We know...some of you can’t control your excitement while others couldn’t care less, but the long-awaited Einstein Bros. Bagels, located at 1821 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., Suite 112 (in the same plaza as Nutrition Smart) has been open for nearly a month, and a steady stream of customers has been enjoying Grand Opening special deals and of course, those ever-popular Einstein Bros. bagels, sandwiches, pastries and coffee ever since.

The smallish shop, which does not have a drivethrough, is open every day from 6 a.m.-2 p.m., and even though I already knew the menu pretty well from Einstein Bros.’ years of being a national chain (now with nearly 700 locations), I have already found a couple of sandwiches I

fresh cheesy hash brown gourmet bagel, and the unique bagel definitely added a nice flavor to the sammy.

The second, more lunch-ori ented sandwich I enjoyed was the turkey, bacon & avocado sandwich

lettuce, tomatoes and roasted tomato spread (which I also ordered on the side).

And yes, Einstein Bros.’ selection of fresh-baked bagels (left) is bigger than most, with unique options like country sausage, spinach florentine, green chile and more. There also are fresh pastries like the cinnamon roll shown in the photo above, muffins

To order or for more info, visit EinsteinBros.com or call (656) 202-4257 and tell Kurt (the GM) I sent you! — GN

Recapping The Hyatt Place’s ‘Jingle Mingle’

in July” events, but very few that I’ve been to can match the free “Jingle Mingle” event hosted by the Hyatt Place Tampa-Wesley Chapel hotel (located at 26000 Sierra Center Blvd., just north and west of the S.R. 56 exit off I-75, Lutz) on July 31.

Sure, lots of places have had Santa Claus himself (bottom photo) on hand and avail able for free pictures at their events, and some may even have had some free food available, but the Hyatt Place management saw this as an opportunity to introduce the local community to the beautiful ballroom and delicious catering available at the hotel — in case you or someone you know wants to host a holiday event there.

Among the tasty treats served at the Jingle Mingle were small, plated samples of holidayinspired dishes — like grilled orange salmon on a bed of tasty rice with fresh asparagus (top), oven-roasted chicken with house-made cran berry sauce and an addictive sweet potato mash and braised short ribs with red wine sauce, ac companied by a baby carrot medley and mashed potatoes. And, all of them were actually as appealing to the palette as they were to the eyes.

But of course, for yours truly, the highlight was the full-on s’mores station (above right), complete with graham crackers, Hershey’s chocolate bars and your choice of mini or huge marshmallows, plus skewers and “hot flames” to toast those marshmallows. Absolutely decadent!

Each adult attendee also received a ticket for a free holiday-themed cocktail (e.g., a “White Christmas Margarita,” “Tipsy Rein deer” and more), plus vendors like Florida Ave. Brewing Co. and Thirsty Buffalo gave away free beer samples. And, PopStroke, Main Event and Metro Lagoons were on hand, and there was a free photo booth, other desserts and more.

The event also helped remind attendees that the hotel also will again host a full-on Thanksgiving buffet and this year, a New Year’s Eve gala that hotel director of sales Lorna Petchey promises will not be cancelled this time.

For more information about the Hyatt Place, call (813) 803-5600, visit Hyatt.com or email Lorna.Petchey@Hyatt.com to book your own holiday party ASAP. — GN

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Our Classified Ads Are Still The Least Expensive Way To Reach 180,000+ People In New Tampa & Wesley Chapel, But Our Rates Went Up, As Of August 1!

Here are those new Classified advertising rates:

7 Issues (3 months) - $150 13 Issues (6 months) - $250 26 Issues (1 year) - $400 Please visit

or call (813) 910-2575 to order or renew your Classified ad today!

Please also note that if your long-running Classified ad no longer appears on this page, you will have to pay the new rates above in order to renew your Classified ad!

Tree Trimming & Tree Removal. Dead-Wood Removal. Tractor Work. Affordable Rates. 24-Hour Emergency Storm Service. Free Mulch. Call 813495-9541 or 813-788-TREE.

COMPUTER SERVICES ____ DO YOU HATE YOUR COMPUTER?!? WE CAN HELP YOU! Troubleshooting, Installation, Networking & Virus Removal. WE COME TO YOU! Residences & Businesses, more than 25-Years Experience. Contact Jeffrey Blank at 813-973-4507, visit WSICA.COM or email Wsica@wsica.com.

Steven Kessel, REALTOR® w/Future Home Realty, Inc., has created just for you, the most advanced, up-to-date, user-friendly propty search engine for homes for sale in the Tampa Bay & Central Fla area — & it’s FREE to use & enjoy. BuyYourDreamHome.com.

The New Tampa & Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News Classifieds are the classified ads your neighbors actually read!