Cypress Creek Town Center work still on hold

WESLEY CHAPEL -- Heavy equipment is back on the ground at Cypress Creek Town Center, but it’s not because work is about to restart at the proposed mall. The mall developer is following orders from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to stabilize the soil to prevent further discharges into Cypress Creek.

The corps suspended its permit for the mall in February after multiple incidents of construction runoff polluting the creek. Corps officials say reinstatement of the permit is still under review and a mall spokesperson denied reports that the developer told tenants work will resume “within weeks.”

There’s no date set on when construction might restart, she said.

-- Chuin-Wei Yap, Times Staff Writer

Local teens nab national volunteer honor

A handful of Pasco and New Tampa teens could have just watched a makeover show on TV. Instead they chose to do their own makeover, a community service project that spanned two years and was recently named tops in the state and number one in the country.

The Little Women of Lutz, the junior club of the Lutz Land O’Lakes Woman’s Club, earned the awards because of their efforts in landscaping two buildings at the Lutz Volunteer Fire Department, at the corner of Lutz Lake Fern Road and U.S. 41 in Lutz.

Christian Nunez, a Freedom High School senior and Little Women club president, got the news about the national honor in a call from Washington, D.C. She could hardly wait to tell club advisors Marilyn Wannamaker and Annie Fernandez.

“This is huge to win this award out of all the groups in the country,” Nunez said.

Nunez and Wannamaker will accept the award, which comes with $250, in June at a national conference in Chicago. The club will also be considered for additional money awards to be announced later. The money received goes back to the club for future projects.

No new power lines in Pasco

Backyard warriors can breathe easier today, as Progress Energy unveils its map outlining 200 miles of planned transmission lines that avoid the region's most controversial areas.

None of the new transmission project will be built in Pasco County, where residents hotly opposed an east-west corridor along State Road 54. In Pinellas County, the lines will avoid both Brooker Creek Preserve and Crescent Oaks, to the relief of power line opponents.

All but 20 miles of the 200-mile project will follow existing routes. New transmission lines will slice through parts of northwest Citrus County, along a stretch south of Wildwood in Sumter County, and a small swathe northwest of Brookridge in Hernando County. In Hillsborough County, upgraded lines will follow existing paths.

"Transmission is probably the hardest thing we build because it impacts the most people directly," said Jeff Lyash, president and CEO of Progress Energy.

The $3-billion project will carry electricity south from Progress Energy's $14-billion planned nuclear power plant in Levy County several miles north of Crystal River. The utility will file in June for environmental approval from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. The review will take 12 to 18 months.

The project could impact as many as 13,500 property owners, who will begin receiving letters from Progress Energy this week, Lyash said. Negotiations for property and easements will start later this year. The project is slated for completion by 2016.

See the Hillsborough map here. Read the full story here.

Times staff writers Chuin-Wei Yap, Theresa Blackwell, Chandra Broadwater and Rodney Thrash contributed to this report.

A Look at the new Hampton Park playground

TAMPA PALMS -- Here is an image of Hampton Park's new playground, scheduled to be completed in late July.

The new play area will include a state-of-the-art Evos play system as well as new seating areas, shade providers, swing sets and safety surfacing.

Officials say the new equipment will replace the older playground that was removed in April for safety reasons.

-- Robbyn Mitchell, Times Staff Writer

Shady past? No problem

In case you missed Sunday's investigative story about student loan king Roger Wayne Morgan of Live Oak Preserve, here's another look.

 

On March 4, Roger Wayne Morgan was arrested on 24 charges of writing bad checks. He is pictured here in a booking photo at the Hillsborough County jail, where he was released after posting a $48,000 bond.

In 2000, a Michigan bar association committee recommended denying Joseph A. Pursley’s application to practice law, citing his “cavalier approach to other people’s money.” In this document, the committee listed his $2.8-million in unpaid debts, including bills from Macy’s, Sears, JCPenney, and numerous banks.

Related Links

• Audio report: Hear part of an interview with Roger Morgan
• Past story about arrest

Northbound Bruce B. Downs closing tonight

Construction crews plan to close northbound Bruce B. Downs Boulevard at Interstate 75 overnight for work on the flyover at that interchange, the Florida Department of Transportation announced.

The closing is scheduled between 9 p.m. tonight and 5 a.m. Monday. The southbound lane is scheduled to remain open.

Northbound motorists on Bruce B. Downs will be forced into an eight-mile detour. They will exit onto southbound I-75 then get off at Fletcher Avenue. From Fletcher, they'll enter I-75 northbound, then return to BBD on the northeast side of the interchange.

-- Bill Coats, Times Staff Writer

Crime Report May 8-15

This report contains incidents called in to the Tampa Police Department for zip code 33647 from May 1-7. Please contact Tampa Police for more information on individual reports. Addresses may reflect where the incident happened or who reported it.

• FOX HEARST RD, 9600 BLK, Burglary-Residence, Friday, 5/9, 2:24 pm
• BURCHETTE RD, 5300 BLK, Domestic Violence, Friday, 5/9, 3:43 pm
• BRUCE B DOWNS BL, 15500 BLK, Stolen Vehicle, Monday, 5/12, 9:06 am

Note to readers: Because of confidentiality laws, police agencies cannot report the addresses of sexual assaults, and this report does not contain those incidents.

Modern-day Cupid

As a certified life coach Nancy H. Wall, owner of Tampa Bay MatchMakers, helps her clients out by doing research on potential mates for them, like at this little get together called Tampa Singles Helping Singles at the Stonewood Grill in Tampa Palms Wednesday evening. Here, she teasingly sticks her tongue out at one client after the newly single woman said a deal breaker would be if the guy leaves the seat down and is under 5'8". (MELISSA LYTTLE | Times)

The four women and one man sat at the mahogany table in a private room at the Stonewood Grill as Nancy Wall led the "Singles Helping Singles" networking session. For more than an hour Wednesday evening, Wall facilitated, prompting the singles to discuss their single status and their careers.

But the night was still young for Wall. After this meeting, she was off to a speed-dating session and then a karaoke gathering.

Just another day at the office for the sole "certified" matchmaker in the Tampa Bay market.

Wall, 44, incorporated Tampa Bay MatchMakers LLC in October 2007, combining her life-coaching skills with a matchmaking business plan that offers clients not only prospective mates but also advice and suggestions. Her 70 single professional clients range in age from 24 to 70 in the Tampa Bay and Sarasota markets.

Biking to work, even from New Tampa

By Eric Smithers

Today is the last of National Bike to Work Week and in the spirit of things, I decided to put my cycling enthusiasm to the test. With city officials boasting about our new bike lanes, I figured I’d take the challenge.

So last week, I took a 13-mile trek from my New Tampa apartment to the St. Petersburg Times downtown office.

Normally, my Friday morning starts at 9 a.m. with a slow wake-up, a 10:30 departure to the office and an easy 20-minute drive on Interstate 275. But that day I gave myself some extra time. By 9:30, I was weaving through the back streets of East Tampa, taking a route recommended by a local biking expert.

The morning greeted me with a balmy 80 degrees, some slight wind and anxiety — if there’s one thing a cyclist hates, it’s wind.

Before graduating from the University of South Florida student, I regularly biked to class, so I knew what to expect. Bruce B. Downs Boulevard was fast-paced and nerve-wracking as usual; the same was true along Fowler Avenue. The vast, car-choked pseudo-highways aren’t my idea of a nice commuter roads, but the fresh asphalt was nice on the saddle.

School to host achievement event, art show

Academy at the Lakes will host its “Day of Achievement” from 9 to 11 a.m. May 23 in the gym at the school, 2331 Collier Parkway, in Land O'Lakes.

Students in grades one through four are scheduled to be recognized for their many achievements of students during the academic year. Students each become mini-curators of their own important accomplishments academically, athletically and artistically by creating displays of those features of achievement unique to each student. The event allows students to create a collective “museum” and visitors are invited to view the displays and visit with each curator. The Day of Achievement is designed to replace the traditional awards assembly.

The school also will host a student art show at Frame by Frame Gallery located at 16035 Tampa Palms Blvd. in New Tampa. Gallery owner Steve Rothfarb will host the event, which will be launched with a reception for the student artists and their guests at 2 p.m. Sunday. The show will conclude on Wednesday. For more information on either event, call the development office at Academy at the Lakes at (813) 948-6823.