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Students Have Eye On Shoreline

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 29, 2008

TAMPA - Gathered by the Hillsborough River in a nook next to Blake High School, students recently helped Mayor Pam Iorio cut the ribbon on a $100,000 shoreline restoration project.

Funded by the Southwest Florida Water Management District with a matching grant from the county's school district, the Hillsborough River Restoration Grant also involves students from Dunbar and MacFarlane Park elementary schools and Blake High School.

The primary focus is to address riverbank erosion, which affects water quality. Thomas Ries, president of Ecosphere Restoration Institute who is helping design and permit the project, said the goal is to create a gradual sloping from the shore to the water along 1,500 feet from Blake west to Rick's on the River restaurant.

The project's design and survey are under way, and the water management district's staff plans to begin construction in the spring. When students return from spring break, they will help with the planting, enhancing a second-semester environmental curriculum.

Jamie Pilarczyk

Sangria's Faces 2 Votes This Week

SEMINOLE HEIGHTS - A proposal to convert an automotive repair shop into Sangria's Spanish Tapas Bar & Restaurant will have its final review by the Architectural Review Commission at 6 p.m. Monday.

Earlier this month, the commission gave initial project approval to the restaurant owners but members wanted more details on the proposed mid-century modern design. City council also gave initial approval to rezone the site and close a portion of Mohawk Avenue and an alley. The council is expected to take its final vote Thursday.

Sangria's owners bought Larry's 4X4 Auto Service, 512 E. Hillsborough Ave., after losing their South Howard Avenue location last year in a landlord dispute. They plan to remodel the repair shop, in a Seminole Heights historic district, and reopen Sangria's. A sushi lounge and pub also might open as part of a restaurant and retail complex.
Kathy Steele
City Buying Site Decimated By Fire

PLANT CITY - The city has agreed to spend $475,000 to buy nearly a half-acre that was left vacant by a 2005 arson that destroyed almost a block in historic downtown.

By the end of the year, the city hopes to close on the deal for the property at the northeast corner of Collins Street and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Assistant City Manager Greg Horwedel said. The land is owned by Curtis Devane, who owns a restaurant across Collins Street. He has used the property as a parking lot since buying it.

Devane will donate back to the city $50,000 to use for landscaping the property, City Commissioner Mike Sparkman said. The landscaping, which could include planters and vines on trellises, would help screen the back sides of buildings exposed when the fire destroyed several buildings fronting Collins.

Dave Nicholson

Subdivision Plan Delayed Again

DADE CITY - After nearly two hours of debate earlier this week, Pasco County commissioners put off consideration of a controversial subdivision proposed for hilly terrain just west of Dade City.

Delaying further consideration of Berry Hills Estates until January represents another setback for developer Tracy Harris, who has spent two years trying to win county approval for 266 homes on 400 acres off Blanton Road. The proposal has drawn a sharp response from its neighbors and other residents of northeast Pasco, who fear the project will be a suburban-style intrusion into their rural community.

The proposal failed to win support from the county's planning commission and development review committee, both of which deadlocked on it.

Kevin Wiatrowski

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