Tampa Bay Times from St. Petersburg, Florida • 168

NTP TIMES SUNDAY, OCTOBER 20, 1996 LUTZ IW OflDCR ONLV STATC INSPCTCD PIOS Luiz is sfesd'ij as'S agareH: sclhooll sues 'Heody To Cook Or Cooked On-Premise Cooking Cooker RentolDeliverv Available 20-6760 Where should a high school go? PfiRTICS CflTflD 5 LUfiUS, TfilLGflTS, JFUNDRfllSCRS fWflllflBl Residents say the sites chosen by the School Board would have imperiled the rural character of the area. By JACKIE RIPLEY Timet Staff Writer Lute-Lake Wallace Rd. Fern Rd. LutZ i IcTL, sPrin8 I Green Dr. LI Rawlingsf fc I I I Netties rr T.J1, JH Hanna Sunset Lri.

55 Lakeside wiff I Max Dr.v $3LK 1 8 Smith Cypress! Debuel TJr I Maniscalco Blind PonT Whitaker lyPASCol I ITER! Area Sinclair Hills Rd. 0 'TT, mmmimm BearssAve. u. 4 55 1 -r-sr- 149thve. 55 SkippeK I I BearssAve.

Mile m.1 Ihmmmmmmmmimmimmmmmmr1 exits to scatter traffic on Debuel, Hanna Road and Sunset Lane. Minuses: Maniscalco Elementary School is on Debuel, directly to the south. Neighbors and environmentalists consider the tract a picturesque treasure. 3. Up to 120 acres near Livingston Avenue, Walker Road and Sunset Lane.

Pluses: Access from two roads. Sparse population to the north. Minuses: Land is four parcels, one owned by an estate. Campus would surround several homes near corner of Livingston and Sunset. 4.

125 acres at Livingston and Max Smith Road. Plus: Abundant land backing up to swamps. Minuses: Populous new neighborhoods to the north. School would worsen Livingston's crowded rush hour, requiring turn lanes and perhaps a traffic light. 5.

95 acres at 150th Avenue and Livingston. Plus: Only site on public water and sewer lines; 70 buildable acres. Minuses: Livingston traffic. Half of site is under contract to a developer. Outside the region many people consider Lutz.

The Hillsborough County School Board is rushing to build a high school that would -relieve double sessions at Gaither High School. But finding a site has been complicated by the character of Lutz: narrow roads and established neighborhoods clinging to the community's scenic, country atmosphere. The board seeks a site of at least 85 acres, of which 50 are "buildable." It should be between Northdale and New Tampa, with roads to accommodate the buses and cars of 2,000 students. From west to east, these are the leading sites: 1. 40-50 acres, U.S.

41 and Debuel Road. Plus: Six-laning of 41 makes it the only site on a high-capacity road. Minuses: Tract is small, and split by a cypress head, leaving only 20 buildable acres. Consists of five parcels with different owners. 2.

150 acres, bridging lakes Stemper and Hanna. Touted as school planners' favorite site. Pluses: Wooded, spacious site would allow school to be largely hidden from surrounding neighborhoods, and accommodate a county park. Four potential ENJOY SPRING FRESH AIR IN YOUR HOME ALL YEAR 'ROUND Effectively Reduce The Harmful Pollutants Found In Places That You Spend Most Of Your Time Your Home, Your Office, Even Your Car! Take Advantage Of The Quality Air Purification Products That Living Air Has To Offer. There's No Installation Required, No Filters To Change, Just Plug It In And Start Experiencing Spring Fresh Air.

SMOKE DUST POLLENS 3 ODORS 0 PETS MOLD CHEMICAL GASES 0 BACTERIA LIVING AIR FRESHENS THE AIR UP TO 1500 SO. FT. Col Today for Your free 3 Day In-Home Wd LUTZ In their headlong rush to build a high school here; Hillsborough school officials have met an immovable object: the residents of Lutz, well-known for their independent streak and pioneer spirit. "We have fought for years to maintain the character of our community," said Denise Lasher, who lives in Hound's Run, close to a proposed school site at Livingston Avenue and Max Smith Road. "It's ludicrous to rush this quickly." School officials say expediency is vital to end double sessions at Gaither High School in 1998.

They hope to build the $39-million Lutz high school in two years instead of the typical three, using money from the new sales tax increase and copying construction plans from another new high school. But twice in two weeks, they have been rebuffed in their efforts to settle on a site. Lutz residents shot down plans to build a school near Hanna and De Buel roads before the full School Board could even review them. And last week, after County Commission Chairman Jim Norman received residents' complaints and got involved in the debate, school officials backed away from a plan to build the school at Livingston Avenue and Max Smith Road. The issues, once again, were the threat to Lutz's rural character and the prospect of increased traffic, this time on two-lane Livingston.

"To put a school on a road already overcrowded is absurd," Lasher said. School officials say they need at least 85 acres, 50 of them "builda- Source: Joe Trumbach, director of administration, Hillsborough County School District. Grand dDpenin; Sale Times art Lutz's families have more than 1,000 high school-age children. Still, the project is widely regarded as a nuisance. John D'Ovidio, whose children are grown, said he is "not opposed to a high school in Lutz." "I just don't feel like it should be a couple hundred feet away," he said.

Fellow Lutz resident Dottie Bloom, who has a daughter in elementary school, said a high school as close as Livingston would be "extremely convenient." Still, she said, it should not be built in her rural neighborhood. Times staff writer Bill Coats contributed to this report. you have a story about Lute, call 226-3469. comply with the county's Growth Management Act." Trumbach maintains that the school administration did just that when it chose the Livingston-Max Smith site. He said the Planning Commission had included it in a list of possible school sites.

But city water and sewer lines would need to be extended to reach the campus. If that were to happen, development would be encouraged along Livingston, a disadvantage to those who oppose growth. Trumbach will meet again with Lutz residents Nov. 4 at 7 p.m. at Maniscalco Elementary School.

Nearly half the student population at Gaither lives in Lutz, Trumbach said, and by that estimate, last week, they should have already been working in partnership. A new state law requires local school boards to act in concert with municipalities to assure that proper infrastructure, such as roads, sew- drs and water service, is in place before selecting a. site to build a sfchool, according to Rose Petru- cha, a principal planner for Hillsborough's City-County Planning Commission. I Before 1995, school boards had virtual autonomy. "The whole intent was that when sites are chosen, they're chosen in the right location where there are facilities in place to serve it," Petrucha said.

"That says the School Board must cooperate and ble," somewhere between North-, dale and New Tampa, with roads to accommodate the buses and cars of 2,000 students. This is not an easy mission, but it is "essential to take Gaither off double session," said Joseph Trumbach, the system's director of administration. U.S. 41 and Dale Mabry Highway have been suggested as possible sites. But school officials say they cannot find a tract big enough.

And they are not willing to use their power of eminent domain. "We prefer to operate in an amicable, upfront, positive fashion," Trumbach said. "That's not an avenue we would take." While Norman was proud to have brought the players together L0WLST PRICES GUARANTEED! TOWN 'N COUNTRY Se Habla ciwucni in I IH-tlkll! upend QUAUTY USED CARS CREDIT PROBLEMS Retail center sports new name $79 OUR SPECIALTY FUTON WAREHOUSE DOWN By JACKIE RIPLEY Times Staff Writer yfD N. Tampa 2820 E. Bearss Bruce B.

Downs (Next to Remington Steakhouse) 971-5979 Tampa 906 N. Dale Mabry (Dale Mabry Cypress) 870-2300 I $79 OWN $37iM $79 OWN $47iM $79 OWN $41 WK $79 OWN $42 $79 OWN $33M $79 OWN $61WK $79 DWN $47 $79 OWN $49WK $79 DWN $29 '93 VOYAGER SE '95 SATURN '95 NEON '94 GRAN PRIX '94 NISSAN TRUCK '95 ALT1MA GLE '94 CAMARO '95 TAURUS GL '92 TAURUS ing the past year: Humana Health Care, Tampa General Hospital Family Walk In Center, Tampa General Hospital Pediatric Center, American General Finance, LA City Beauty Supply, Dr. Colon, Hillsborough County Sheriff's Substation, Mark Alan Salon and Big City Nails. The name Fountain Oaks refers to the center's fountain and the large number of oak trees. If you have a story about Town 'N Country, callJackie Ripley at 226-3468.

Known in the late 1980s for its wide selection of fashion-oriented retailers, Fashion Square also was home to Lionel Playworld and Ross Dress for Less until bankruptcies shut their doors. In August, Merchants Management was hired to revitalize the center, increasing occupancy to 74 percent, with today's anchors including Coolwalla Carnival, Gold's Gym, American Cowboy Company and Marshall's. The following tenants have moved to the shopping center dur CARROLLWOOD By Monday, Fashion Square Shopping Center, at Dale Mabry Highway and Waters Avenue, will have a new name. The retail center will be renamed Fountain Oaks to reflect the change in tenant mix from retail to a combination of entertainment and services, said Jon Christiansen, vice president of Merchants Management Inc. SUTHERUN IZXTi 302 W.

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