The Branch - Your Development Services Update _ May 2023 Issue

Sally’sDesk

Welcome to our first edition of The Branch: Your Development Services Update! Our Communications Team has been working hard to redesign our newsletter, bringing you the pertinent information that will capture your attention... and we’ve listened to your comments, adding some features that many of you asked for in our recent communications team’s survey. Every four months, our newsletter shares valuable information on the happenings within the Development Services Branch, as well as other news that may be beneficial to you. Departments highlight team members and share work efforts that demonstrate how each one of you are making a difference to serve our community and help create a better future for all.

As most of us are aware, we are one of the fastest growing counties in the state. Trying to keep pace is taking a village... and that includes the County Commission, County Administration, and everyone in between. For Development Services, we are responsible for providing assistance, solutions, support and customer service to residents, developers and businesses.

What’s most exciting is that when traveling the county, you know that our Development Services team had a hand in helping develop what you see - everything from Economic Growth, Planning and Development, Building and Construction Services, Code Compliance, and support services from Fiscal, Communications, Process Improvement, and Business Support.

Thank you for your on-going committment and hard work. Let’s continue to celebrate our successes and with our commitment, we’ll help Pasco grow the SMART way - and the best way for Pasco County.

-Sally Sherman Assistant County Administrator

Debra Jadick, Licensing Specialist in Central Permitting, has worked for Pasco County for 28 years! Her career began in EMS and after a year, Debra went to Utilities and stayed for eight years. She has now been serving customers in Building Construction Services for 19 years and counting!

“When I started with BCS in 2004, the size of the team was half the size of what it is now.” Debra says. “The department has grown so much over the years, and I feel so lucky to be a part of this growing team.”

When she is not helping customers at work, Debra loves to spend time with her husband and kids. She has one son, three stepdaughters, and one granddaughter. Her son recently got married and her husband, Kevin, is also a proud member of Development Services in the Planning & Development Department. Debra recently picked up pickleball as a hobby and frequents the courts in her neighborhood. She is an avid gardener with flowers being her specialty. Debra and her husband try to have monthly ‘staycations.’ A few spots they love to get-a-way to inclue Mount Dora, Cedar Key, and Bayport.

Development Services is lucky to have a devoted employee like Debra! If you see her around, make sure to say hello!

Building Construction Services

Darcy McDonald, Permit Tech I

Jared Pompilio, Permit Tech I

Damari Santos, Permit Tech II

Kris Auger, Field Inspector I

Salvatore Giglia, Field Inspector I

Matthew Gunter, Filed Inspector I

Matthew Jones, Field Inspector I

Kevin Koplar, Filed Inspector I

Roger Reimann, Field Inspector I

Charles Wiseman, Field Inspector Building III

Planning and Development

Ryan DeFonso, Planning and Zoning Tech II, Current Planning

Wendy Godfrey, Admin. Secretary, Current Planning

Kristen King, Planner II, Long Range

Jorg Klutznik, Planning & Zoning Tech I, Development Application Serv.

Todd Biron, Community Assessment Planning Intern, Long Range

Adrian Scott, Zoning Intern, Zoning

Kurt Siverson, Planning and Zoning Tech II, Current Planning

Nickolas Hatzileris, Project Coordinator II, Long Range

Ciara Ngin, GIS Intern, Long Range

Amandla Hill, Planner II, Long Range

Code Compliance

Abe Carmack, Code Compliance Officer

Georgia Crofoot, Code Compliance Officer

At the January Quarterly Supervisors’ meeting, Rocco Dottoli recieved The Star Performer of the Year Award. While on a call, Rocco discovered that a disabled homeowner did not have batteries in his smoke detector. Rocco personally installed new smoke detectors and replaced the battereies in the chirping detector.

Michael Bierman, Joseph Edwards, Pat Phillips, Jewell Tomow, and Amalio Vera recieved the Star Team of the Year Award. This team stopped an assault taking place in the Code Compliance parkng lot, where the perpetrator turned out to be the son of the woman he was assaulting. The woman informed the officers that her son was in the midst of a mental health crisis. They were able to keep the woman safe while law enforcement subdued her son.

Patrick Dutter recieved the Star Leader of the Year Award for his assistance and participation integrating Accela 1 & 2 and the implementation of ePermitHub. Patrick has gone above and beyond his typical duties, working long hours, evenings, and even some weekends. He is always focused on the needs of his staff and improving the customer experience.

The following members of Current Planning were awarded Challenge Coins for demonstrating outstanding performance and maintaining our core values of Service Excellence, Integrity, Innovation, and Respect as recognized by their peers:

• Isaiah Hollinshead

• Liam Devine

• Fred Humberstone

• Will Poon

• Leila Barbara

• Katie McCarron (twice)

• Denise Hernandez

• Luke Moody

• Kara Wennlund (twice)

• Selenia Palma

• Ryan DeFonso

• Dayana Arteaga

• Patty Christ

• Patrick Dutter

• Liam Devine

Congratulations to the following team members from BCS for passing major exams:

• Chris Maine passed the Standard Plans Examiner test.

• Scott Novak passed the Electrical Inspector exam.

• Mark Garlock passed the Mechanical Inspector exam.

• James Sicuro passed the Building Inspector exam.

• MdHuzzatur Rahman passed the Plans Examiner exam.

• Jim Martin became a Certified Permitting Technician.

Congratulations to Paras Hatzileris and Gavin Covey for their promotions this quarter. Gavin and Paras are hardworking members of PDD and we thank them for their dedication to Pasco!

Congratulations to all the people who recieved awards during our most recent Quarterly Supervisors’ meeting.

David “Scott” Treaster was awarded the Star Performer Award. Scott is known as Mr. Consistent. He has a “Service Soul” and solves problems using his innovation, knowledge, and patience.

Robert “Bob” Sorg was also awarded the Star Performer Award. Bob, along with his entire department, has been working on a Process improvememt Plan with developer credits for the last year and a half. Bob has worked persistently to get the project ready for automation in Accela. His open communication has been indespensible during this process.

Matt Drozdeck, Darrian Menzel, Albert Marrero, Gary Miller, and Paras Hatzileris were awarded the Constellation Award. They make up the Development Application Services Team. This team consistenty goes above and beyond to support each other in processing , analyzing, and distributing plans submitted to Pasco County.

Code Compliance

Thank you for all the hard work done over the past year. I know you are being tasked with several duties outside the historical ones that Code Officers have been doing, and because of that, other departments and the administration are noticing. Keep up the great work, and I have always said, YOU are the hardest working department in the county. I am honored and privileged to be a part of the team.

-Patrick Arotin

Pasco County Code Compliance Officers go above and beyond what the job requires! The following Code Officers are perfect examples of our core values: service excellence, innovation, integrity, and respect.

Code Officer Binford noticed a child sitting in the street on County Line Road near U.S. Highway 19. Binford took swift and careful action by activating the flashers on his county vehicle and parked his truck to block oncoming traffic from striking the child. Binford proceeded to call 911 while simultaneously grabbing his reflective vest, directing oncoming traffic, and listening to further instructions from emergency dispatch. Binford continued protecting the child from traffic until a Pasco County Sheriff Deputy arrived on scene.

Code Officer Medina rendered assistance to two elderly women, just days apart. Medina witnessed one woman lying on the side of her home next to a knocked over trash bin, her walker a few feet away. He pulled over to ask if she was okay and she confirmed she needed help, as she had fallen and was unable to get up. The woman was luckily uninjured. Medina also witnessed a woman drop to the ground on the side of the road, stand back up, and fall again onto the sidewalk. He exited his vehicle and rushed to her, asking if she was okay. The woman stated she was walking to a doctor’s appointment and proceeded to fall again. Medina helped her sit down, called 911, and stayed with her until Pasco Fire & Rescue arrived.

These are just some of the heroic efforts our Code Officers are involved in every day during their normal duties, going “above the code” and helping our citizens when in need. We appreciate their hard work and dedication to helping Pasco County residents and visitors stay safe in our communities.

Metropolitan Planning Organization

A HUGE Thank You to the MPO team for all of their hard work to improve the operations and accountability of the MPO. In April, the Florida DOT announced that the Pasco MPO is moving from a high risk designation to a low risk designation for the purposes of state oversight. Without the hard work of the MPO staff, this reduction in risk ranking would not have happened. My heartfelt thanks to the MPO team!

-Carl Mikyska

The Florida Department of Transportation has agreed to fund seven new midblock crosswalks on Highway U.S. 19 in Pasco County. The crosswalks, scheduled to be constructed during the FDOTs Fiscal Year beginning July 2023, will align with Vision Zero, a target adopted by FDOT and The MPO to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries while increasing safe, healthy, and equitable mobility for all. According to a VOX article by Marin Cogan, “The [current] crosswalks are so

few and far between that a simple act – crossing the street to get to a business a few hundred feet away – might mean walking over half a mile to reach the nearest crosswalk.”

Pasco’s Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) has been working in collaboration with the FDOT to discover why U.S. 19 in Pasco is possibly the most dangerous road in America, with more pedestrian and bicyclist deaths than anywhere else in the country, according to VOX. The sites chosen for the new crosswalks and agreed on by the MPO and The Board of County Commissioners are based on research compiled by the two organizations which shows the areas on U.S. 19 that have the highest number of accidents, injuries, or deaths involving pedestrians, the distances to the nearest signals and crossings, and the frequency of use.

Crash data from a crossing at U.S. 19 and Buena Vista Lane/Bartelt Road, the highest priority of the seven locations, found that 10 bicycle/pedestrian crashes occurred here between 2015 and 2021; nine causing serious injury, and one death. According to Carl Mikyska, Executive Director of MPO, the department has been working closely with FDOT to make our roads safer for pedestrians, drivers, and cyclists. “Pasco County MPO thanks the FDOT for their continued partnership and proactive approach to transportation safety,” Mikyska said. “Every death on our roads is one too many. With partners like the FDOT, we are certain to make Pasco County a better place to live, work and play.”

Building Construction Services

Building Permitting is not slowing down. February was our highest grossing month on record! For the first time, commercial revenue surpassed residential revenue. The total revenue this quarter reached $7.24M, which includes $3.48M in residential revenue and $3.52M in commercial revenue. The total new value added this quarter was $869M.

Building Safety Month kicks off May 1st, 2023. This year’s campaign, entitled “It Starts with YOU,” raises awareness about the role we all play in ensuring safety. Each week of May will feature a different subtheme such as Building Safety Starts at Home, Prepare Your Community, and Building Safety Professionals & You. In addition, The Resolution proclaiming the month of May as Building Safety Month was read on April 18, 2023, at the BCC meeting in New Port Richey. We were excieted about incorporating Building Safety activities for children at our annual “Bring Your Child to Work Day” which was held on April 27, 2023.

Planning and Development Department

“I am humbled and grateful each day for the dedication shown by the team in the Planning and Development Department. Over the last few months, PDD has been doing double-duty to reduce backlogs and improve processing times. The teams have not only kept pace with inbound applications, which have not slowed down, but have managed to make significant inroads in the fields of development review, Master Planned Unit Development reviews and Comprehensive Plan Amendment reviews. The development community has even congratulated the team on a job well done and is very appreciative of their efforts, submitting a letter of congratulations, support and encouragement for PDD to the Chair of the Board of County Commissioners. I am excited to share this news with the team and the Branch.

-Nectarios Pittos

May is National Historic Preservation month and Planning and Development is in the process of documenting all of Pasco County’s historic sites for a new historic resources page on our website. At the Board of County Commissioners meeting on May 9th the board will officially declare May to be Historic Preservation Month. Some of the locations that will be featured on the new web page are the Dade City Courthouse, The Baker House in Elfers, The Oelsner Mounds in Port Richey, The Aripeka Post Office, The Hacienda Hotel in New Port Richey, and many others. Pasco County was founded in 1887 and has been inhabited since around the year 900. Our county is steeped in history. Visit a historic place during this year’s National Historic

Office of Economic Growth

The Office of Economic Growth’s new initiatives, projects and programs could not have been possible without the hard work and extra efforts made by our small team. Brownfields, grant awards, redevelopment, small business assistance, and target industry attraction are just a few areas the office has delivered on thus far in 2023.

-David Engel

The Office of Economic Growth has continued to help locally owned small businesses in Pasco County with an incentive that reduces the cost of their mobility fees. Since the 2021 Mobility Fee Update, the Board of County Commissioners found that locally owned small businesses are less likely to be able to financially cover the increased mobility fee costs. Business owners who permanently reside in Pasco, Hillsborough, Pinellas, Hernando, Sumter, or Polk County, and have 25 full-time employees or less, qualify for the incentive. This Mobility Fee Reduction incentive is intended to not only help our local economy by adding new businesses, but to help local business owners succeed.

Trinity Art Festival May 7 12pm-6pm The Commons

Live music, food trucks, local artists

Live Music Every Friday and Saturday 7-10pm Cotee River Brewing

Tasty Tuesdays Community Market 10am-12pm

New Port Richey Library

Locally grown food, artisan items, honey, coffee, skin care, etc...

Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical May 5-7

Richey Suncoast Theatre

Backyard Bazaar Every 1st Saturday 6-10pm Railroad Square

Newly Opened Businesses

Pop Stroke Golf, 25260 Pondside Dr., Lutz; 2/22

Chicken Salad Chick, 25038 Wesley Chapel Blvd., Wesley Chapel; 12/22 CO

Carrabbas, 25298 Sierra Center Blvd., Lutz; 9/22

Land O’ Lakes Trek Bicycle Shop, 16908 Focus Loop, Land O’ Lakes 10/22

Peace Lutheran Church, 12708 Memorial Dr., New Port Richey;

1st Choice Pharmacy, 2049 Welbilt Blvd., New Port Richey

Scott Treaster, Lead Structural Building Inspector, doesn’t have the typical ‘office’. As a Pasco County Building Inspector, Scott starts his day at 6:30 am and heads to his first jobsite. One day he could be in a residential neighborhood and the next day he may be inspecting a Publix. “The County is my office,” Treaster said. “Building Inspectors work rain or shine, hot or cold, and don’t have kitchens or bathrooms. We have about 24 Structural Inspectors that perform around 600 inspections total, per day, so starting our days early is a must if we want to complete our assigned jobs each day.” Breaking it down further, this means each Structural Inspector performs approximately 125 inspections weekly, or a team total of 3,000 weekly.

Our Last Winner!

If you recognize the location below, be the first to send an email to DevServicesMedia@mypasco.net to claim your prize!

Isaiah Hollinshead correctly identified the Tampa Premium Outlets.

In case You missed it

March 24, 2023

The Honorable Jack Mariano,

Over the past six months, the Tampa Bay Builders Association Government Affairs Pasco Committee has held routine meetings with County Administrator Mike Carballa and Director of Development Services Sally Sherman and her staff. The purpose of our meetings has been to work through process improvement as it relates to zoning, planned review, code amendments, and identifying all best practices. While we acknowledge that more work is needed to streamline the process related to planning and review, we write this letter to commend Mr. Carballa and Mrs. Sherman for their work to maximize these efficiencies and decrease the backlog in the planning and review department. We know the staff has been working overtime to cut review times, and this was only done with their leadership. We also would like to applaud the staff’s work over the past two years to bring the processing of permits to ten days.

We appreciate our continued collaboration with Mr. Carballa. While improvements are still needed, the process has improved. We now look through items such as the minor corrections memo and stormwater process. The Tampa Bay Builders Association, comprised of 1028 members through Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco County, continues to serve as a resource to your staff and board.

Over the next few months, we will continue to finalize details with Mr. Carballa and his staff as we work on the following:

• HP Storm Pipe

• Stormwater Review Process

• 40 and 50ft Lots

• Simplification of the Final Approval Memo

• Phase in of Park Impact Fees

• Final Plat Review

As always, we appreciate the Board’s attention and focus on these important matters and look forward to bringing reasonable, productive policy solutions to you in the near future.

Sincerely,

Brian Bullock

2023 TBBA President

Tampa Bay Builders Association 512 East Kennedy Boulevard Tampa, Florida 33602 (813) 571-8222

Happy Birthday

We want to wish all of our team members with birthdays in May, June, July and August a very Happy Birthday!

Moving Update!

The Citizens Center demo is complete and new framing is now being installed. The project is estimated to be completed during the 3rd quarter of 2023!

April 26th was Administrative Professionals Day

“No one is more cherished in this world than someone who lightens the burden of another.”

-Joseph Addison

Administrative Proffessionals Day was on April 26th this year. We would like to take a moment to recognize the amazing Administrative Assistants we have in Development Services, a few of whom are pictuerd here. Without their hard work and dedication, we would not be able to achieve all that we do.

UPCOMING EVENTS

May 3rd

Citizens Advisory Committee Meeting

Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee

May 11th

MPO Board Meeting

May 17th

West Market Action Committee Meeting

May 31st

Citizens Advisory Committee Meeting

Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee

June 8th

MPO Board Meeting

June 21st

West Market Action Committee Meeting

June 27th

Pasco County Construction Board Meeting

July 19th

West Market Action Committee Meeting