wesley chapel neighborhood news issue 26-12

By Matt Wiley

After years of serving as the face ofthe Wesley Chapel area in Florida’sHouse of Representatives, State Rep.Will Weatherford (R-Wesley Chapel)has officially been sworn in as the nextSpeaker of the Florida House.

For six years, Speaker Weatherford,32, has represented Wesley Chapel inTallahassee and most recently headedup the House Redistricting Committee,which worked to redraw Florida’s vot-ing Districts for the House, Senate andU.S. Congressional seats prior to the2012 Presidential Election .

The House voted unanimously forWeatherford, a Brookside resident, tobe the next Speaker of the House, suc-ceeding District 35 Rep. Dean Cannon(R-Winter Park) and becoming the firstSpeaker of the House from PascoCounty in more than 100 years.

“It’s a great opportunity,” Weath-erford says. “We have a lot of work todo and there are a lot of challenges

down the road. There’s no time for avictory lap.”

He says that as State House Speak-er, Wesley Chapel really will have avoice in Tallahassee.

“We’ve had a voice since I’ve beenin the Legislature,” he explains. “But,now I get a microphone. I hope that Imake the community proud.”

He says that there are many priori-ties over the next two years, includingcampaign finance reform and, especial-ly, education.

“I really want the Legislature towork toward making Florida’s educa-tion system the strongest in the coun-try,” he explains. “But, it’s not going tohappen over night.”

The 2013 Legislative Sessionwon’t begin until March 5, but legisla-tive committees are already beginningto meet, and will continue to meetthrough January and February.

“That’s where a lot of ideas gettossed around,” Weatherford says.“With 120 members in the House,

there’s an opportunity for a lot of ideas.We have to harness the good ones.Things are going to move pretty quick-ly once the session gets going.”

On November 20, Weatherfordwas officially sworn in as the newSpeaker of the House in the House

Chambers of the State Capitol Buildingin Tallahassee.

“We are living in a time when thepeople of Florida expect us to act,”Weatherford said during his acceptance

suicide as the PCSO SWAT Teamentered the couple’s Raven Brook Rd.home in Quail Hollow on May 6, overconcern for the well-being ofLosacano’s 5-year-old daughter, afterthe woman was reported missing.

“I want to applaud the deputies ofthe Pasco Sheriff’s office,” said Nocco.“If it wasn’t for their heroic actions onMay 6, a little girl who is now living inNew Hampshire may not be alive.”

Det. Daniel Toner said thatdeputies searched for Losacano exten-sively, using data banks and records, aswell as a land search of the entire Wes-ley Chapel area, using mounteddeputies and ATVs.

Two hunters discoveredLosacano’s skeletal remains on Novem-ber 15 in a wooded area across fromWesley Chapel Mini Storage, located at

26504 WesleyChapel Blvd. (S.R.54). Toner said thatpartial denturesfound at Losacano’shome contributed toestablishing her iden-tity. Her cause ofdeath will be deter-mined over the nextseveral weeks.

Additionalspecifics about the case, including possi-ble motives, were not given, due to itstill being an ongoing investigation.

For Advertising Information Call 813-910-2575 • Volume 20, Issue 26 • December 15, 2012 • www.WCNeighborhoodNews.com 1

Volume 20Issue 26

December 15, 2012

The Direct-Mail News Magazines Serving Wesley Chapel & New Tampa Since 1993!

WESLEY CHAPEL: Aberdeen • Belle Chase • Brookside • Chapel Pines • Country Walk • Lexington Oaks • Meadow Pointe • New River • Northwood • Pinewalk • Pine Ridge • Saddlebrook • Saddleridge Estates • Saddlewood • Seven Oaks • Lakes at Northwood • The Villages of Wesley Chapel • Wesley Pointe • Westbrook Estates • Williamsburg

NEW TAMPA: Arbor Greene • Cory Lake Isles • Cross Creek • Grand Hampton • Heritage Isles • Hunter’s Green • Hunter’s Key • K-Bar Ranch • Lake Forest • Live Oak Preserve • Pebble Creek • Richmond Place • Tampa Palms • West Meadows

THE INDEPENDENT COMMUNITY NEWS MAGAZINES DIRECTLY MAILED TO:

NEIGHBORHOOD MAGAZINE!

Chamber Softball Showdown, ‘MysteryMonkey’ Moves To Dade City, More

‘Nibbles & Bytes’ & More!

Pages 23-36

Also Inside This Issue!

Inside:Which Restaurants Topped

Our Dining Survey?See page 30!

PRSRT STDU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDTAMPA FL

PERMIT 2801

ECRWSSPostal Customer

Dated MaterialPlease Rush!

NEWS, BUSINESS, SPORTS &EDUCATION UPDATES

Shops At Wiregrass Breaks ‘Black Friday’Record, Election Results By Precinct, Lots

Of Local Business Features & More!

Pages 1-22

Weatherford Is Pasco’s 1st Speaker Of The Florida House In A Century!

Human Remains Identified As Wesley Woman Missing Since AprilBy Matt Wiley

The human remains found in awooded area of Wesley Chapel havebeen identified as those of LindaLosacano, a Wesley Chapel womanwho has been missing since May.

During a Pasco County Sheriff’sOffice (PCSO) press conference onNovember 19, Sheriff Chris Noccoannounced that Losacano had finallybeen found and that her next of kin

had been notified.“It’s not over yet,” said Nocco.

“We can confirm that we have her, andshe will be given a proper burial. But,at the same time, we do not (yet) knowhow she died. That’s still part of theinvestigation.”

Nocco says that Timothy DeanArnold, Losacano’s long-timeboyfriend, is the lead suspect, althoughhe, too, is deceased. Arnold committed Linda

Losacano

Will Weatherford, the new Speaker of the Florida House, shakes hands with his predecessor, Rep.Dean Cannon. Photo: MyFloridaHouse.gov.

See “Weatherford” on page 5.

2 For Advertising Information Call 813-910-2575 • Volume 20, Issue 26 • December 15, 2012 • www.WCNeighborhoodNews.com

Even though I’m aCharter member of the“Rotary Club of NewTampa Noon,” whichmeets at the same time as

one of the two Wesley Chapel-basedRotary Clubs, I came to the realization acouple of weeks ago that I had onlyattended one meeting of either of the twoWesley Chapel clubs. And, that was ameeting of the Wesley Chapel SunriseRotary and it was at least three or four (ormaybe more years ago).

But, whether I belong to anotherRotary Club or not, I still feel as though Ishould have spent at least a little more timewith these two very diverse groups of localbusiness people (and a few retirees), so Idecided to attend at least one meeting ofeach club and tell you a little about each inthese pages.

So, since I had never yet attended aWesley Chapel Noon Rotary meeting...and since the newer of the two WesleyChapel clubs is now meeting Wednesdaysat noon at the new Ciao! Italian Bistro(which has replaced Pagelli`s) at the Shopsat Wiregrass mall, I figured I’d start there.You folks know how much I love checkingout the new restaurants in our area and Ireally wanted to see what kind of spreadCiao! puts out for Rotary. And so far, Ihaven’t been disappointed with the yummyfood at Ciao! at all.

For those who don’t know, RotaryInternational is the world’s oldest andlargest service organization, with millionsof members in literally hundreds of coun-tries. Rotary is the organization that hasplayed the leading role in the nearly world-wide eradication of polio and the organiza-tion’s mantra is “Service Above Self.” Thetwo Wesley Chapel clubs are both inRotary District 6950, which includes the

clubs in Citrus, Hernando, Pinellas andPasco counties. Every club gives moneyback to Rotary International and theRotary Foundation, as well as to recipientsthe clubs choose for themselves.

For example, at the meeting I attend-ed, which featured an awesome guestspeaker who takes people skydiving at Mt.Everest, of all places, club president GregLenners of the Shops at Wiregrass mallpassed around the holiday “wish lists” ofabout 30 children in need who attendSeven Oaks and Veterans Elementaries inWesley Chapel. The club members wereinvited to select one or more of those chil-dren to purchase the toys and gifts theyasked for.

“People think, when you live in a rel-atively affluent area, that there aren’t manykids who won’t have a merry Christmaswithout a little help,” Lenners said to the40+ members in attendance of the 54-member club, many of whom signed up tohelp whole families or more than one childon the list. “But sadly, there are, so I knowyou’ll want to help.”

And, considering that many of thesekids were only asking for fairly low-costitems like Legos and even clean socks, theclub members — a group of local businessleaders, including several I’ve known forseveral years — it was easy for me to getcaught up in the fellowship of these dedi-cated people. And, I can assure you thatwhether a club has 100 members or lessthan 20, you get the same feeling at virtu-ally any Rotary meeting you attend.

The meetings — and there are clubsthat meet for breakfast and even afterwork, too — usually also feature greatspeakers (the week after I first visited, theWesley Chapel Noon club’s guest was apolio survivor), “Happy Dollars” or “BragBucks,” where members and guests forkup some cash to help the club and its caus-es in exchange for being able to bragabout everything from their kids to awardsthey’ve won or just to acknowledge beau-tiful weather), networking and more.

And, here in Wesley Chapel, youhave two great clubs from which tochoose. I will visit another Wesley Chapel


The Wesley Chapel Rotary Is More Than Just ‘Service Above Self’

Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News15345 Amberly Dr., Tampa, FL 33647Phone: (813) 910-2575 Fax: 910-2483

Website: WCNeighborhoodNews.comAdv. E-mail: [email protected]

Editorial E-mail:[email protected]

Publisher & Editor Gary Nager

Assistant Editor/PhotographerMatt Wiley

CorrespondentCamille Gillies

Advertising Customer Service ManagerNikki Bennett

Marketing DirectorAshley Knoblach

Senior Graphic DesignerPorsha Lemos

Nothing that appears in Wesley Chapel NeighborhoodNews may be reproduced, whether wholly or in part, with-out permission. Opinions expressed by Wesley Chapel Neigh-borhood News writers are their own and do not reflect thepublisher’s opinion.

The deadline for outside editorial submissionsand ads for Volume 21, Issue 2, of Wesley ChapelNeighborhood News is Wednesday, January 3, 2013.

Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News will consider previ-ously non-published outside editorial submissions if they aredouble spaced, typed and less than 500 words. WesleyChapel Neighborhood News reserves the right to edit and/orreject all outside editorial submissions and makes no guar-antees regarding publication dates.

Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News will not returnunsolicited editorial materials.

Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News reserves the right toedit &/or reject any advertising. Wesley Chapel NeighborhoodNews is not responsible for errors in advertising beyond theactual cost of the advertising space itself, nor for the validityof any claims made by its advertisers.

© 2012 JM2 Communications, Inc.

by Gary Nager

Table of ContentsLOCAL NEWS, BUSINESS, EDUCATION & SPORTS UPDATES....................................Pages 1-24

FHWC Opens New Wing, Wellness Center To Open ..........4Wesley Chapel’s Voter Turnout Higher Than County’s.........5Shops At Wiregrass Breaks ‘Black Friday’ Record...................6Wesley Chapel News Briefs ................................................8

Cano Sentenced To 15 Years For Bomb ThreatInterstate Pile-Up Injures SeveralWesley Chapel Woman Busted In ID Theft RingiPhone App Helps Solve Armed Robbery CaseThird Dougherty Pleads Guilty In Georgia

Wesley Chapel Community Calendar........................10-11Local Business Updates...................................12-24Say ‘Yes’ To The Dress At The Fancy Frock..........................12Seven Oaks Pet Hospital Specializes In Pet Wellness.............16A & A Boutique: Dress To Impress For Less........................20

Neighborhood MagazineChambers Of Commerce Square Off In Softball Bout........23Mystery Monkey Of Tampa Bay Moves To Dade City........24Turkey Gobble Feeds 200 On Thanksgiving........................25‘Taste Of Boston’: New England Seafood & More..............26Baker’s Gallery: Great Cupcakes & Baking Supplies.............28Annual Dining Survey Results!..........................................30Neighborhood Nibbles & Biz Bytes...............................32

WESLEY CHAPEL COLOR CLASSIFIEDS........34

Congratulations to the 2012-13 Board of Directors of theWesley Chapel Noon Rotary Club. Photo by David Cotten

Sunrise Rotarymeeting on anupcoming Friday at7:15 a.m., at thenewly revampedQuail HollowCountry Club andupdate you on bothclubs a little moreoften in the future.

See the Com-munity Calendaron page 10 of thisissue for contactinformation aboutboth WesleyChapel clubs.

By Matt Wiley

It has been open since October,but the new Florida Hospital WesleyChapel has only recently begun oper-ating at its full capacity.

The 83-bed facility, located onBruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd., justnorth of S.R. 56, initially opened withonly one of its in-patient wings in use,but finally was busy enough to openits second wing on November 26.

Director of public relations TracyClouser says that FHWC was waitingfor the number of patients to increaseto justify the opening of the hospital’ssecond wing.

“We’ve been very busy since weopened,” she says. “We’ve had asteady flow of patients, but it still tooka little time for the number of patientsto outnumber the amount of beds wehad available.”

Clouser says that the hospital hasreceived a large amount of positivefeedback from the community sinceopening on October 1.

“A lot of (the feedback) has beenabout the environment inside the hos-pital,” she explains. “People seem toreally enjoy how soothing it is. We’ve

also had a lot of positive comments onthe ambient technology in the emer-gency rooms suites. And, of course,about the staff.”

Ambient lighting, which patientscan change the color of, is used as atool in emergency room suites to helpsoothe patients before and after proce-dures. Children can choose betweendifferent animated themes that areprojected and played on the walls.

Clouser says that people havecontinually pointed out that, unlikemany other hospitals they may havevisited, at FHWC, they don’t feel likea number.

The hospital, although now openat its full current capacity, wasdesigned with room to eventually addon two more wings, for an ultimatetotal of 291 beds.

Public Invited To WellnessPublic Invited To WellnessCenter’s Jan. 6 Event!Center’s Jan. 6 Event!

And, just in time to help with allthose New Year’s Resolutions, theFHWC Health & Wellness Center,located adjacent to the hospital, is setto open for business on Sunday, Jan-uary 7. And, just like the publicopening of the hospital itself, the pub-

lic will be treated to aFREE “CommunityGrand Opening” onSunday, January 6, 1p.m.-4 p.m.

The 50,000 sq.-ft.,state-of-the-art facilitywill take a new approachto fitness, integratinghealthier lifestyle choic-es, including healthy eat-ing and stress manage-ment, into workouts.

According to theFHWC website, in addition to tradi-tional free weights and treadmills, theFHWC Health & Wellness Centerfeatures a four-lane, 25-meter lapswimming pool and warm water ther-apy pool, Technogym equipment –which is the same equipment used byOlympic athletes – cardio equipmentwith built-in TV screens, a cushioned,air-conditioned, indoor walking andjogging track, four exercise studios, ahealthy café and childcare facilities.

Clouser says that the publicGrand Opening event on January 6 isa great way to check out the WellnessCenter. Attendees can expect liveentertainment, refreshments, tours

and equipment demonstrations, aswell as a “healthy food truck rally.”She says that instead of having a cater-ing company supply the food, thepublic will be able to try differentdishes from several local food trucksthat feature healthy menus.

For more information aboutthe FHWC Health & Wellness Cen-ter and memberships, please call929-5252 or visit the MembershipSales Center, located outsideFHWC’s front entrance on BBD. Amembership information kiosk alsohas been set up inside the Shops atWiregrass mall. Or, visit Florida-Hospital.com/Wesley-Chapel.


FHWC Opens New Wing; Wellness Center Public Event Jan. 6!

FHWC’s Health & Wellness Center is all but complete andwill be officially open for business on Monday, January 7th.


Prec. #

Tot. Reg. Voters

% Ballots Cast Obama (D) Romney (R) Nelson (D) Mack (R) Snow (D) Bilirakis (R) Cutting (D) O'Neil (R) Wells (R) Newlon (D) Nocco (R) Bogart (D) Olson (D) Blommel (R) Starkey (R) Murphy (D) Yes No

7 5246 73 52 46 56 37 43 48 30 59 56 39 55 41 67 28 46 45 69 24

24 390 75 45 41 50 43 34 57 23 65 66 27 47 33 66 29 53 38 64 29

38 2209 74 46 52 49 44 37 55 23 67 61 33 43 37 60 34 52 39 68 26

48 1579 75 45 53 49 43 38 52 25 66 61 33 60 36 61 34 52 40 65 29

62 4742 69 40 58 46 47 30 61 21 71 67 28 67 29 60 35 58 34 66 29

73 6139 73 44 54 50 44 36 55 23 66 63 31 62 33 61 33 52 38 67 27

84 2119 64 43 54 51 40 33 56 26 66 65 31 62 34 65 32 52 40 61 34

85 2849 76 46 53 52 42 37 55 25 63 62 31 61 33 63 31 52 37 72 23

90 2775 79 53 46 57 38 44 49 29 59 56 38 54 42 64 31 46 46 68 28

99 6481 71 48 50 53 42 40 51 25 64 58 36 57 38 60 34 50 42 70 24

101 3276 75 53 46 57 37 43 48 30 58 55 29 53 42 67 27 45 45 69 25

107 2485 77 57 41 59 34 47 42 32 57 49 45 50 46 68 26 41 51 69 26

SheriffPasco Penny

RenewalDist. 3 County Comm.Tax CollectorProperty AppraiserClerk of CourtU.S. CongressmanU.S. SenatorU.S. President

Wesley Chapel Election Results By Precinct (%)

Wesley Chapel Voter Turnout Higher Than County In General Election

The drama of the 2012 electionseason may be over and all of the win-ners have been announced, but officialresults have only recently becomeavailable for Pasco County.

Wesley Chapel voters came out instrong numbers, with nearly 30,000ballots cast and a 72.7 percent voterturnout, which was higher than thecounty turnout of 69.47 percent.

And, although Barack Obamawas reelected as President of the Unit-ed States, Wesley Chapel was nearlysplit down the middle, with formerMassachusetts Gov. Mitt Romneyactually winning 50 percent of the

vote to Obama’s 48 percent in theWesley Chapel area’s 12 votingprecincts. The Republican nomineewon Pasco County with an even larg-er margin, with more than 52 percentof the vote to the President’s 45 per-cent.

Wesley Chapel precincts alsovoted almost overwhelmingly with thecounty to renew the Penny forPasco—which was set to expire at theend of 2014—with 68 percent votingto renew and only 26 percent votingto let it expire as originally planned.The county voted to renew with morethan 70 percent approval. - MW

speech, detailing Florida’s unemploy-ment, real estate, welfare and educa-tion issues. “These are problems thatwe can not afford to ignore.”

Weatherford also pointed out thatthe presidential election is over, so, tohim, wishing for the President or Con-gress to fail is the same as wishing forAmerica to fail.

“We are not here to serve as pas-sive brokers for the special interestgroups,” he said. “We are here to bethe chamber of ideas and solutions.We are also here to govern and tooffer bold, transformational ideas.Every member of this Chamber has apersonal responsibility to learn, toknow and to understand these issuesso that we may be knowledgeable bro-kers of lasting solutions.”

Weatherford also addressed theissue of bipartisanship, stressing thatregardless of their political parties, allState House members will be treated

with fairness and respect.“On this matter, you can expect

my future actions to match my prioryears of bipartisanship,” he explained,adding that no one in the House isconsidered an enemy due to theirparty affiliation.

“Our enemies are unemployment,poverty, illiteracy, broken systems, bro-ken government and burdensome reg-ulation,” he said. “These are the ene-mies that are wreaking havoc on ourpeople and on our state.”

Speaker Weatherford closed hisspeech by stressing that two years (theterm for a state representative, is ashort time, but that much can still bedone for the State in that timeframe.

“Our time is short,” he said.“The clock is ticking. Let us make themost of every single second. There arepeople counting on us. I am countingon (my fellow Representatives). Sothat when that clock runs out, may itbe said of us that we were bold, weserved with a purpose and we fulfilledour promise to Florida.”

“Weatherford”Continued from page 1

By Matt Wiley

Love it or hate it, “Black Friday”is a fairly new American tradition thatreminds us all that Christmas is rightaround the corner. There are alwaysspecial Day-After-Thanksgiving dealsto be had, but also sacrifices to bemade, in order to walk out the doorwith that special big-ticket item forthat killer price.

The dust from Friday, November23, has since settled at the Shops atWiregrass mall on S.R. 56, but onething is certain: this year has been themall’s biggest so far for Black Friday.

Among the mall’s stores, Jos. A.Bank Clothiers and White House/Black Market even took part in thecontroversial trend of opening onThanksgiving night, while 13 otherWiregrass stores — including Bath &Body Works, Charlotte Russe, Hollis-ter, Macy’s and Victoria’s Secret —opened just a few hours later, at mid-night, many to lines already wrappedaround the buildings.

“Black Friday traffic was up 45percent from last year,” says DebbieDetweiler, director of marketing for

the Shops. “Overall, Black Fridayweekend traffic was up 16 percent.”

Detweiler says that the biggestdifference between this year’s biggestshopping day and years past is thatshopping remained steady duringBlack Friday weekend this year,whereas, in past years, there were defi-nite lulls in the traffic.

“I think shoppers really did theirhomework this year,” Detweiler says,referring to visitors to the Shops atWiregrass’ website. “Shoppers wereable to check out deals at all of thestores that would be open to figureout which ones they wanted to be inline for first.”

Detweiler addsthat since the Shopsis an outside shop-ping center, the mallwas able to easilyaccommodate thestores that chose toopen on Thanksgiv-ing and their shop-pers. All of the rest-rooms were openand the lightsthroughout the mallwere on for early

shoppers. Maps were even printed outto let customers know which storeswould be open at what time(s).

“It’s been a great holiday seasonso far,” says Detweiler. “If Black Fri-day and the past few weeks have beenany indication, it’s going to be a hugeyear for our retailers’ holiday sales.”

For more information aboutwhat’s happening at the Shops atWiregrass mall this holiday season,including store hours and all of thegreat events at the mall, please visitTheShopsAtWiregrass.com.


Shops At Wiregrass Mall Shatters Previous Black Friday Records

Long lines of shoppers wrapped around many of the buildingsat the Shops at Wiregrass mall from the evening of “BlackThursday” into the early moring hours on Frida, Nov. 23.


News BriefsWESLEY CHAPEL the crash that closed southbound lanesof I-75 in Wesley Chapel on December1 and sent several people to local hospi-tals.

According to the Florida HighwayPatrol (FHP), around 6:30 p.m.December 1, Mona Saint-Juste, 52, ofTampa was traveling south on I-75 inher 1998 Nissan Altima, For unknownreasons, she was stopped in the outsidecenter lane south of the S.R. 56 inter-change. Janice Glover, 65, also ofTampa was traveling south in the samelane in her 2009 GMC Yukon.

The report says that Gloverswerved to the right to avoid a colli-sion, but hit the right rear of Saint-Juste’s vehicle. A 2011 Toyota Corolladriven by Patricia Hawkins-Savasta, 50,of Ridge Manor, also was travelingsouth in the outside center lane andtried to avoid a collision, but struck theleft side of Saint-Juste’s vehicle.

FHP reports that a 2012 DodgeCharger, driven by 35-year-old AngelaLawson, of Land O’ Lakes was travel-ing south in the outside lane, but alsowas unable to avoid colliding with thestopped Altima. Lawson swerved andhit the left rear of the Altima, causingher vehicle to flip onto its roof in theinside and inside center lanes. It alsocollided with 47-year-old BertLaFranchi’s 2010 GMC Sierra, separat-

ing the front wheel from his vehicle.All of the drivers were wearing

their seatbelts. However, Saint-Justewas transported to Florida HospitalFletcher in serious condition andHawkins-Savasta was transported to anunnamed hospital, also in serious con-dition. Lawson was taken to TampaGeneral Hospital in serious condition,along with her passenger, a 14-year-old,who was reportedly in critical condi-tion. Alcohol appears to be a factor inLawson’s collision.

FHP says that the investigation isongoing and charges are pending. Theaccident closed the southbound I-75lanes for two hours. No other detailswere available at our press time.

Wesley Chapel WomanWesley Chapel WomanBusted In ID Theft RingBusted In ID Theft Ring

Recent Powerball jackpots havebroken records and have the potentialto make individuals millionaires overnight. The lottery is one way to make“free” money, but one Wesley Chapelwoman has gone about it differently—by stealing identities.

According to the Associated Press(AP), federal prosecutors charged TaniaHenderson, 27, of Wesley Chapel, asbeing the ringleader of an identity theftring on November 27. The same day,authorities executed a search warrant ather home, where they found cash,

Cano Sentenced To 15Cano Sentenced To 15Years For Bomb ThreatYears For Bomb Threat

After spending the past 15 monthsin jail, the would-be Freedom HighSchool bomber has finally learned hisfate.

According tonumerous publishedreports, Hillsbor-ough Circuit JudgeKimberly Fernandezsentenced JaredCano, now 18, to 15years in prison onDecember 5. Cano has30 days to appeal the sentence. Hismaximum sentence was 37 years.

Cano’s mother reportedly pleadedwith Judge Fernandez to give himanother chance, explaining that heneeded only the right balance of thera-py and medication. Cano’s sister wasescorted from the courtroom during anemotional reaction to her brother’s sen-tence. Cano, himself, wept as his sen-tence was announced, reports said.

Cano was arrested in early August2011 after a confidential informantreported that he was planning to set offa bomb and stage a school shooting onthe first day of the 2011-12 school year

that would be larger than both the1999 Columbine High massacre andthe 2007 Virginia Tech shootings.

Cano was charged with threaten-ing to discharge an explosive device andpossession of bomb-making materialsafter Tampa Police Department (TPD)officers searched his mother’s TampaPalms apartment, where he lived.

“For those of you retards whodon’t know who I am, I’m the Free-dom High School shooter,” Cano saidin a cell-phone video released by prose-cutors last month, revealing the teen’stroubled state of mind. “Well, I will bein a couple of months.”

In the video, Cano detailed hisplan to set off four bombs in each cor-ner of the Freedom cafeteria, beforeadvancing on the Freedom courtyard,front office and parking lot, killing asmany people as possible.

Another video shows Cano smok-ing a bowl of marijuana and discussinghis desire to die, possibly alongside afellow student, whom he also says hefears might “snitch” on him.

Multiple Car Pile-upMultiple Car Pile-upInjures SeveralInjures Several

Details have been released about

Cano

debit cards and identification informa-tion for several people.

AP reports that prosecutors havefiled a criminal complaint against Hen-derson, saying that 191 fraudulent taxreturns for persons living and deadwere filed from a computer in herhome, totaling more than $1.5 million,which she was to split with her networkof accomplices. Some of those refundsalready had been paid.

iPhone App Helps SolveiPhone App Helps SolveArmed Robbery CaseArmed Robbery Case

It’s not every day that an iPhonesolves a crime. However, using a popu-lar app on a victim’s device, PascoCounty authorities have been able toclose the book on an armed robberythat unfolded on November 27 inTampa Palms and ended in WesleyChapel.

According to the Tampa PoliceDepartment (TPD), a call was receivedfrom a unit in the Eagles Point Apart-ments at Tampa Palms on November27, reporting an armed robbery. TPDresponded with a K-9 unit and air sup-port helicopter that began patrollingthe area for the suspects’ black ToyotaAvalon.

The report says that when theTPD K-9 officer learned that the victimhad the “Find My iPhone” applicationinstalled on her mobile device, the offi-cer used his own iPhone to locate the

missing phone on S.R. 56, near the I-75 interchange.

TPD’s chopper located the vehicleat a gas pump at the BP station on S.R.56, confirmed the license plate numberand initiated a felony stop. The suspectswere taken into custody and the stolenproperty, along with the firearm used inthe robbery, was found in the car. Thevictim positively identified the suspectsat the scene.

Marc-Nally Guerrer, 21, who hasno current address, is currently beingheld at the Land O’ Lakes DetentionCenter on a $26,000 bond for burglaryof an occupied dwelling, simple batteryand robbery with a deadly weapon orfirearm. Kwmane Brunson, 23, ofTampa, also is being held at the LandO’ Lakes Detention Center for robberywith a deadly weapon, although nobond amount was available. No arrestinformation was available for GregoriA. Harris, the third suspect, at our presstime.

Third Dougherty PleadsThird Dougherty PleadsGuilty In GeorgiaGuilty In Georgia

More than a year after their crimespree that began just east of WesleyChapel and ended in Colorado, theDougherty siblings are slowly makingtheir way back across the country,answering for their crimes in thenumerous states in which they werecommitted.

Most recently,on November 9, theAssociated Press (AP)reports that DylanDougherty, 27,pleaded guilty to tak-ing part in the rob-bery of more than$5,000 from a Valdos-ta, GA, Certus Bank on August 2,2011, where he also fired an assaultrifle.

According to AP, Doughertycould face more than 35 years in prisonfor the events that unfolded inside thebank: 25 years for the robbery and 10years to life in prison for the gun

charge. He already has been sentencedto 32 years in prison for several assaultcharges in Walsenburg, CO, where thesiblings were apprehended following acar chase and a shootout with localdeputies.

Dougherty siblings Ryan, 22, andLee Grace, 30, already pleaded guilty tothe bank robbery charges last month,although AP reports that details of theirplea deals were not released.

All three members of the so-called“Dougherty Gang” will be sentencedin Georgia on December 17, beforefacing charges in Pasco County for fir-ing at deputies during a car chase whenthe trio’scrime spree began.


Dougherty


Community CalendarWESLEY CHAPEL

WC Red Hat Society ChapterWC Red Hat Society ChapterThe Wesley Chapel chapter of the

Red Hat Society invites women over 50to join in the sisterhood of wearing redhats and pursuing fun, friendship, free-dom, fulfillment of lifelong dreams andhappiness, as well as the occasional nosh.

For more info, send and email [email protected] NetworkingExperienced NetworkingProfessionals (ENP)Professionals (ENP)

Monday, December 17, 7:30 a.m.— This networking group meets Mondaymornings at 7:30 a.m. for breakfast andat 8 a.m. for networking at Quail HollowGolf & Country Club (6225 Old PascoRd). For info, call Cindy at 505-3065.Free Networking Int’lFree Networking Int’l

Monday, December 17, 8 a.m. —Free Networking International (FNI), agroup of area business owners, meetseach Monday for networking and discus-sion at Lexington Oaks Golf Club(26133 Lexington Oaks Blvd., off S.R.54). For more information, call StacyDalton at 469-5499.

Walking ClubWalking ClubMonday, December 17, 8 a.m. -

The Walking Club meets at the Mead-ow Pointe III Clubhouse every morningto walk the path along Meadow PointeBlvd. All are welcome, even strollers,but no dogs please. Walking has unlim-

ited benefits, so put on your walkingshoes and come on out.

For more information, contactSusan Johnston at 767-7071 or [email protected].

Wesley Chapel BusinessWesley Chapel BusinessForum & NetworkingForum & Networking

Monday, December 17, 8 a.m. -The Wesley Chapel Business Forum &Networking (WCBFN) is a free gatheringof local business leaders in the SouthCentral Pasco and North Hillsboroughareas. WCBFN meets Mondays at Lex-ington Oaks Golf Club, located at 26133Lexington Oaks Blvd. For more info,call John Roth at 377-2622, emailJohn.Roth@ IBuilderz.com or visit thegroup’s Facebook page.MOMS Club Of WCMOMS Club Of WC

Monday, December 17, 10 a.m.— The Moms Offering Moms Support(MOMS) Club of Wesley Chapel, a non-profit social group for stay-at-homemothers, meets the third Monday of eachmonth at Lexington Oaks Golf Club foractivities, field trips and more.

For more information, e-mailHeather at [email protected] Chapel ToastmastersWesley Chapel Toastmasters

Monday, December 17, 6:15 p.m.— The “Wesley Chapel Speaks” Toast-masters Club meets on the first and thirdMonday of every month, at Hyundai of

Wesley Chapel (26944 Wesley ChapelBlvd.). Club meetings are open to allinterested parties.

For more info, call 406-5931 orvisit Toastmasters84.org.

Business Networking Int’lBusiness Networking Int’lTuesday, December 18, 7:30 a.m.

— Business Networking International(BNI), a group of business professionalswho work to support each other throughqualified business referrals, meets Tues-days at Heritage Church (1854 OakGrove Blvd.).

For more info, email Tim [email protected].

East Pasco Networking Group East Pasco Networking Group Tuesday, December 18, 9 a.m. —

The East Pasco Networking Group meetsevery Tuesday at Beef O’Brady’s (1660Bruce B. Downs Blvd., in the Shops atNew Tampa of Wesley Chapel plaza).

Call Frankie Ammons at 479-7997or e-mail [email protected].

Wesley Chapel Rotary ClubWesley Chapel Rotary ClubWednesday, December 19, 12:15

p.m. — The Rotary Club of WesleyChapel meets every Wednesday at CiaoItalian Bistro in the Shops at Wiregrassmall (2001 Piazza Ave.). Call 862-8989or 391-3895 for more information.

Networking For Your SuccessNetworking For Your SuccessThursday, December 20, 8 a.m. —

The Networking For Your Success groupmeets Thursdays at Quail Hollow Golf &Country Club (6225 Old Pasco Rd.).

For additional information, callShawn Clark at 888-711-2032 or visitNetworkingforYourSuccess.com.

WC Sunrise Rotary ClubWC Sunrise Rotary ClubFriday, December 21, 7:15 a.m.

— The Wesley Chapel Sunrise RotaryClub meets every Friday at Quail HollowCountry Club (6225 Old Pasco Rd.)

For additional information, callLynne Wilson at 695-6466.

Mothers Of PreschoolersMothers Of PreschoolersTuesday, January 8, 9:30 a.m. -

Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) is anon-profit group which meets to buildfriendships between mothers of infants tokindergarteners in the local community.MOPS meets the second Tuesday of eachmonth at Victorious Life Church, locatedat 6224 Old Pasco Rd.

For more information, email Deb-bie at [email protected].

Special Needs Support GroupSpecial Needs Support GroupThursday, January 24, 6:30 p.m.

- Learning Your Function, Inc., is a newnon-profit group dedicated to helpingindividuals with disabilities and theirfamilies through support groups, educa-tion and advocacy. The group meets atCrossroads Community UnitedMethodist Church (26211 County LineRd). All interested parties are encour-aged to RSVP and attend.

For questions call Jim Cracchioloat 469-2455, or visit LYFInc.com formore information.

By Camille Gillies

If you’ve ever had to shop for abridal gown in New Tampa and WesleyChapel, you know your choices werenearly nil – until now.

Thanks to the recent premiere ofWesley Chapel’s first bridal and formalwear shop, you can kiss that shoppingtrip to South Tampa, St. Petersburg orBrooksville goodbye. The new shop,dubbed “The Fancy Frock,” is the brain-child of local resident Jennifer Smith,who in August opened the boutique,located in the Redfern Professional Plazbehind Dunkin Donuts in Seven Oaks,off Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd.

The Fancy Frock features a variedassortment of wedding gowns and for-mal wear, including ball gowns, pageantdresses, prom and homecoming dresses,upscale cocktail and party attire and evenmen’s tuxedos and accessories.

Although the shop anchors one endof a cluster of medical and professionaloffices and breaks the traditional retailshopping mold with its office parklocale, The Fancy Frock isn’t too diffi-cult to find, offers two spacious roomsreplete with off-the-rack and customgowns and boasts a comfortable, helpfuland low-pressure atmosphere.

“Customers are always welcome tocome in and browse or they can makean appointment for more personal, one-

on-one service,” Jen says.One complete room of the bou-

tique features designer bridal gowns,while another is dedicated to other for-mal gowns and even cocktail dresses. Anenormous dressing suite – the kind ofwell-lit and fully mirrored kind requiredwhen making a nail-biting, once-in-a-lifetime (hopefully) wedding gown pur-chase – is available, as well as a pleasantsitting room for the usual critics...ahem,friends and relatives...the bride mightbring along for moral support.

Most designer wedding gowns arenotoriously expensive, but these bridalgowns won’t break the bank. Rangingfrom $300 to $2,000, the majority ofJen’s gowns are priced under $1,000and include such well-known designersas Anjolique, Mia Solano, Jasmine,Demitrios, Mon Cheri, Dolly Pearl,Nina Canacci, Christina Wu and Jordan.

“I love to shop but I don’t like topay full retail,” Jen says, who is proud tooffer high-quality dresses that are moreaffordable, thanks to her own savvyshopping know-how. She says her pricesare reasonable because she purchasesdresses that may have been samples ortheir style numbers were discontinued,but all merchandise at The Fancy Frockis brand new and top of the line.

“I also buy from wholesale distrib-utors and bridal shop owners who wantto turn over their inventory,” she contin-

ues. “They sell at a deepdiscount, and I pass thatsavings on to my cus-tomers.”

She says similarshops in northern states,many as far north asMichigan, stock heaviergowns at this time ofyear, so they are anxiousto move gowns made oflighter fabrics. AsFloridians know well,those light fabrics areappealing year-round inour warm climate,prompting Jen to pur-chase several gorgeous gowns from hernorthern contacts and offer them at theFancy Frock.

Staying on the cutting edge of thelatest style trends, Jen says today’s fash-ion-forward looks include pleats, “rusticchic,” layered ruffles and – the “in”color for the 2013 bride – silver. Jen cansmartly outfit the entire wedding party,from bride and groom to bridesmaidsand groomsmen to mother and father ofthe bride and flower girls.

The Fancy Frock also is a go-todestination for buying prom and home-coming dresses. Girls won’t have toworry that someone else will show up tothe dance in an identical dress becauseJen will keep a record of who purchased

what at each high school. Ah, one lessmoment of teen angst!

Speaking of angst, have you everseen a girl choose a pageant dress? LetThe Fancy Frock take the stress out ofthe process. The shop’s dazzling eveninggowns deserve a look from any younglady, whether walking down a runway orreigning over a parade. Jen currently hasseveral in stock and will carry a couturedesigner line beginning in 2013, but sheis waiting to announce the designer.

More Than Just Bridal WearWith the holidays upon us, now is a

great time to check out The FancyFrock for cocktail dresses and tuxedosthat will have you turning heads at this


Say ‘Yes To The Dress’ At The Fancy Frock!

Seven Oaks resident Jennifer Smith of The FancyFrock off BBD Blvd. in Seven Oaks can help dress up

the bride and the groom at your wedding.

season’s formal parties and New Year’sEve galas, with dresses from $59-$500.

Jen also offers a line of customaccessories that includes hair clips, sash-es, headbands and tiaras. She creates allof the pieces herself, a hobby she beganas a creative outlet from teaching. Infact, some New Tampa residents mayknow Jen from her days as a teacher atHunter’s Green Elementary.

With a Bachelor’s degree in ele-mentary education and a Master’sdegree in special education, both fromnearby St. Leo University near Dade

City, Jen spent the past 10 years as ateacher in Hernando and Hillsboroughcounties, but wanted to start her ownbusiness and exercise more of her cre-ativity. Four years ago, she began toyingwith the idea of opening a formal wearshop, but with the recession in fullswing, the timing wasn’t right.

“But, right now, everything seemsto have fallen into place,” she says.“Look at all of the growth and business-es popping up again along BBD. I knewthis was the time. I am located rightacross from the new Florida Hospitaland just a minute or two north of theWiregrass mall. It’s a great place to be.”

Jen adds that her research showsthat Pasco County has a high number ofprofessional, college-educated womenwho have never been married, a demo-graphic ideally suited for her business.

Coincidentally, Jen is a newlywedwho resides in Seven Oaks (only secondsaway from the shop) with her husband,Rob James, and their blended familyconsisting of children, Emily, 19;Granger, 12; and Isabella, 6.

“I really hope that people will stopby The Fancy Frock to see what I haveto offer,” she says. “Every dress is hand-selected and I have something for all agegroups, from teens to seniors.”

Wesley Chapel resident StephaniePeters found this out first hand duringher visit to the Fancy Frock. Stephaniesays she recently purchased semi-formaldresses for herself and her two daugh-


ters, ages 12 and 14.“We were shopping for dresses for a

Bat Mitzvah ceremony, and Jen told meshe had the perfect dress coming in forme,” Stephanie says. “It was just thecolor and style I was looking for."

She also says that the store has anexcellent selection, and her youngdaughters were both equally pleasedwith their special dresses.

“I’d definitely recommend hershop,” Stephanie says. “You can’t beather prices."

The Fancy Frock is offering aGrand Opening/Holiday sale featuring20-percent-off all in-stock formal andbridal gowns. Jen also invites you to takeadvantage of her “secret envelope” pro-

motion, in which customers, uponentering the store, receive an envelopecontaining special discount coupons.

The Fancy Frock is located at3737 Maryweather Ln. in the Red-fern Professional Plaza and is openTuesday-Friday, 10:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on Saturday. Thestore is closed on Sundays and openon Mondays by appointment only.Jen stresses that her goal is to accom-modate her customers, so store hoursare flexible and she welcomes eveningappointments.

For more information, includinghow the “secret envelope” promotionworks, call the Fancy Frock at 973-1999 or visit their Facebook page.

Unique gowns and dresses for otherformal occasions also are available

at The Fancy Frock.

By Matt Wiley

There are few things more difficultto watch than a suffering family dog orcat. However, there sometimes is a solu-tion, and the first step is taking that fam-ily pet to Seven Oaks Pet Hospital inWesley Chapel, where helping get petsback on their “paws”– and helping themstay healthy– is the name of the game.

Seven Oaks Pet Hospital, locatedon S.R. 56 between I-75 and Bruce B.Downs (BBD) Blvd. in the CypressviewSquare shopping plaza, is a full-serviceveterinary medical facility offering every-thing from anesthesia-free dental workand laparoscopic surgery (or surgeryusing a small incision and a camera tosee inside an animal’s body), to acupunc-ture and holistic medicine for every fam-ily’s four-legged friends.

The hospital prides itself not onlyon its customer service, but also on itspatient care and focus on overall petwellness. Seven Oaks Pet Hospital’s rep-utation precedes itself, thanks largely tothe work of Dr. Sree Reddy, DVM(Doctor of Veterinary Medicine), whohas been a practicing veterinarian formore than a decade.

Dr. Reddy graduated from the Col-lege of Veterinary Medicine in India in1997, before moving to the U.S. andearning his Master’s degree in veterinary

microbiology from Tuskegee Universityin Tuskegee, AL. After working as a vetin Ames, IA, and in Clearwater, Dr.Reddy opened Seven Oaks Pet Hospitalin 2007, where he currently specializesin laparoscopic and bone surgery andacupuncture, taking a more herbal andholistic approach to pet medicine thanmost vets.

“This isn’t a profession to me,”Reddy explains. “This is my life. I can’timagine myself doing anything else.”

Reddy is so dedicated to his four-legged patients, in fact, that he, person-ally, is on-call 24/7.

“I usually work 70-80 hours perweek,” he says. “I’m always thinkingabout my patients, even when I’m athome. If there’s an emergency, no mat-ter what time, day or night, I’m here.”

In March, Dr. Reddy welcomedanother full-time veterinarian into thefold at Seven Oaks: Dr. Lisa Clifford,DVM. A Hawaii native and Universityof Hawaii alumnus, Dr. Clifford receivedher DVM degree from Iowa State Uni-versity, also in Ames.

“It was a bit of a culture-shock,”she says of moving from the Hawaiianislands to the Great Plains.

Clifford has been working forReddy since 2010, but now alternatesbetween three and four days per week atSeven Oaks Pet Hospital.

Together, Drs. Reddyand Clifford take care ofpets from all across TampaBay, some from as far awayas Apollo Beach and St.Petersburg.

“Most of our clientshear about us from otherclients,” explains Reddy.“We’ve had between 25-to-30-percent growth inour client-base in the pastyear. People just keep com-ing back.”

Dr. Clifford agrees.“It’s more of a personalexperience here,” she says.“We focus on quality ofcare, instead of quantity ofpatients. We know theclients and the pets well. They’re not inand out the door.”

In addition to the dedication to petwellness of Seven Oaks’ vets, patientsalso keep coming back for the practice’scompetitively-priced “pet wellnessplans.” Seven Oaks Pet Hospital offersclients a choice in different levels of well-ness plans, which allow a client to pay aone-time fee for a pet-care package andbring their pet in as many times as need-ed for an entire year, whether it’s for acheckup or just for vaccinations,depending on what is included in the

plan. Seven Oaks offers plans for bothdogs and cats that range from completecare packages to dental plans. Puppy andkitten plans also are offered until theanimal is six months old.

The value of many of these pack-ages can total more than $800, but thecost to the client is offered at almost a50-percent discount, because you payfor the visits in advance.

Seven Oaks’ dental care works simi-larly to the care a human receives at adentist; no anesthetic is used, up to acertain point. If a pet’s teeth haven’tbeen cleaned for an extended period of


Seven Oaks Pet Hospital Specializes In Overall Pet Wellness

Dr. Lisa Clifford and Dr. Sree Reddy of Seven Oaks PetHospital on S.R. 56 combine traditional veterinary

medicine with a more holistic approach to pet wellness.

time and need extensive work, a sedativemay be necessary, but, if possible, petsreceive anesthesia-free dental work.

“It’s cheaper, less invasive and easi-er on the animal,” says Dr. Reddy. “Petscome in every six months and have theirteeth cleaned, just like humans.”

In addition, the facility also recentlyintroduced digital X-rays, allowing imag-ing to be done in a matter of minutes,rather than having to come back, or waitfor an extended time to see what ailmentis affecting an animal. And, beginning inJanuary, the facility will feature an in-house ultrasound machine, which willallow Dr. Reddy to see inside a pet tohelp diagnose a problem more accurate-ly before performing surgery.

Speaking of surgery, Reddy also

takes pride in Seven OaksPet Hospital’s use of laparo-scopic procedures. Using asmall incision and a tinycamera, Dr. Reddy is able todo biopsies and even spayswithout having to open upan animal’s abdomen.Neuters, however, are stilldone the traditional way.

“I truly believe in(laparoscopic procedures),”Dr. Reddy says. “Technical-ly, I’m losing money on(laparoscopy) because we

really don’t charge enoughfor it. It’s so much better forpets. The incision is only

about the size of a dime.”Reddy explains that with this sort

of procedure, pets can be back on theirfeet in a matter of days, as opposed toweeks. he notes that some pets don’teven require pain meds.

Another area that he specializes in isacupuncture.

“I was seeing a lot of paralyzeddogs,” he says. “A lot of my colleagueswere treating paralysis with acupuncture,so I was intrigued.”

Dr. Reddy says that he joined theInternational Veterinary AcupunctureSociety (IVAS) in 2006 to see whatacupuncture was all about. After sixweeks of training, he became certifiedand began offering acupuncture as an

alternative to traditional medication.“With paralyzed dogs, sometimes

within six or seven treatments, the ani-mal will begin to show signs of recov-ery,” he explains.

Tampa resident Ken Timmins andFenway, his mini-dachshund, experi-enced the wonders of Dr. Reddy’sacupuncture treatment first-hand. Fen-way was in intense pain and Timminsfeared that he would have to put thedog down, so he brought Fenway toSeven Oaks. Through an X-ray, Reddydetermined that Fenway was sufferingfrom a bulging disc and recommendedacupuncture.

“I was skeptical at first,” Timminsadmits, “But, within seven treatments,

Fenway was much better, and he wasback to his old self after the ninth treat-ment. If you have any doubts, I suggestthat you put your faith in Dr. Reddy.”

Whether your pet is suffering, orjust needs to have a checkup or teethcleaning, stop by and see Dr. Reddy orDr. Clifford at Seven Oaks Pet Hospital.The friendly and experienced staff willhelp make sure that your pet is well, andcontinues to stay that way.

For more information, pleasevisit SevenOaksPet.VetStreet.com orcall 929-4100. Seven Oaks Pet Hos-pital is located at 27227 S.R. 56 andis open Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.–6p.m., and 8 a.m.–2 p.m. on Saturday.It is closed on Sundays.


Dr. Reddy is a skilled veterinarian, but is equallyknown for his compassion for the animals he treats.


By Matt Wiley

New York…Paris…Wesley Chapel?Most ‘fashionistas’ wouldn’t dream ofconsidering the latter a part of the fash-ion world, but 17-year-old twinsAmber and Allie (aka A&A) Malottwould disagree with you. The WesleyChapel residents bring designer piecesstraight from the runways of the fash-ion capitals of the world to their con-signment shop, A&A Boutique, whichis located on Bruce D. Downs (BBD)Blvd., directly across from Florida Hos-pital Wesley Chapel (FHWC).

A&A Boutique is a luxury con-signment boutique that offers high-endclothing, handbags, shoes and acces-sories to men and women in the NewTampa and Wesley Chapel area forprices exponentially cheaper than thosethat can be found in malls and designerdepartment stores. From Gucci andChanel to Dior and Louis Vuitton,A&A has something from them all.

“We’ve always loved fashion,” saysAllie. “Even as little kids, we always hadfun mixing and matching clothes anddressing up.”

Today, the twins are completelyimmersed in the fashion showcase thatthey have created at A&A, holdingfashion shows right in the store that

showcase the consignment items theysell in the store and even involve theirattending customers and friends asmodels.

“We wanted to open a business inour own community,” the twins’ moth-er, Lori, explains. “We saw no luxuryboutiques in Wesley Chapel, so wedecided to open our own. The goal isto have the girls’ designs in the store.”

Lori says she had always wanted toopen a boutique for her daughters toshowcase their own designs, whichcould launch at A&A Boutique as earlyas next year.

“Lots of people told us not toopen a fashion consignment shop,”Lori says. “They said that there was noluxury market and we’d be lucky to beopen for more than a month. That wasfour months ago.”

Allie, Amber and Lori, who live inthe Quail Hollow neighborhood ofWesley Chapel, run the entire business.Amber takes care of authenticatingproducts and works on the website,while Allie helps customers try onclothes and takes care of the shop’sFacebook page, adding pictures of newproducts and constantly updating newproducts from consigners added intothe store’s system. Lori takes care of thebills, she says.

Real Designer LabelsReal Designer LabelsFor LessFor Less

A&A is the place to go for high-end fashion brand name shoes,clothes, handbags and accessories,but not just for customers, who canfind products at prices from 50-90percent below those found at the“mall stores.”

“When consigners bring usproducts, especially if the pieces stillhave the ‘new’ tags, we price them at50-percent-off the retail price,”Amber says.

Those same consigners also canlook forward to making anywherefrom 50-80 percent back on theproducts they bring in to A&A tosell. So it’s a win-win, both for cus-tomers and consigners.

What sets A&A apart is eachitem’s authenticity, which Ambermakes sure of as soon as new itemscome in. None of the items on A&A’sshelves or racks are “fakes.” The girlslook at stitching, patterns, labeling andhardware on products to determinewhich ones are worth purchasing froma consigner and which are cheaper“knock-offs.” Many times, Amber says,consigners aren’t even aware themselvesthat they are selling fake products.

The girls say that they also act as

“personal shoppers,” and have wish listsset up for customers. If a certain pieceor new items with their favorite design-er’s labels come in that a particular cus-tomer was searching for, either Allie orAmber will call the customer and letthem know before the product goes onthe store’s shelves.

“We also help customers pick outclothing,” says Allie. “We’ll tell them

A & A Boutique Brings The World Of Fashion To Wesley Chapel!

(L. to r.) Allie, Lori and Amber Malottof A&A Boutique on Bruce B. Downs

Blvd., just north of S.R. 56.


the truth if something doesn’t look theway it should on them. We don’t wantour customers to buy something thatdoesn’t look good on them.”

Amy Bledsoe Baldwin ofRiverview says the system works.

“I love A&A Boutique!” she says.“I always find the cutest clothes for thebest price. Plus, I love the owners.They’re sweet and knowledgeable, andnever pushy.”

Another thing that sets A & Aapart from other boutiques is that theshop carries actual runway pieces from

fashion capitals like France and Den-mark. A window display outside theshop showcases a picture of a modelwalking down a fashion runway, wear-ing clothing from Noir — a designerthat can only be found in Europe. Themannequin current;y in A&A’s windowis wearing that same exact outfit.

Allie says that many of the brandsthat A&A carries can only be found atInternational Plaza near the TampaInternational Airport, a long drive fromWesley Chapel.

“They can drive all the way there,

or they can come here and get it forhalf the price or cheaper,” says Amber.

A&A isn’t all about selling cloth-ing, either. The boutique also puts onfashion shows for the community,donating proceeds to a good cause. Forexample, the shop recently put on afashion show to benefit the FloridaHospital Wesley Chapel Foundationthat included a runway, or “blue car-pet,” as the girls decided to call it.Friends and customers were able to

dress up in several pieces that were forsale and model them for all those whoattended. The event raised more than$500 for the Foundation.

A&A also has participated in“Shoes for the Cure” during the recentfifth annual “Fashion Week Tampa Bayin Ybor City, as well as “Peace Cou-ture” on November 9, a fashion eventthat benefited The Spring of TampaBay, a domestic violence shelter for bat-tered women and their families. A&Aalso recently shipped three boxes ofcold weather clothes, toiletries, cleaningsupplies and batteries to a fellow con-signer in New York City to distribute tovictims of Superstorm Sandy.

After only four months, A&Aalready is making Wesley Chapel a morefashionable place to shop. The onlydownfall of running a consignmentboutique with the word “luxury” in thename, Lori says, is that it sometimesscares customers away.

“People see the word ‘luxury’ andthey automatically assume that theclothes we sell are going to be way outof their price range,” she explains.“That’s really not the case at all with usat A &A Boutique.”

Don’t believe her? Stop in to seeA&A Boutique (2653 BBD Blvd.,Suite 108) for yourself, visit Face-book.com/AABoutiqueLLC or call528-8765.

A&A Boutique already has a wide selection of fashions and accessories formen and women, including this outfit (right) by European designer Noir,

which isn’t widely available in the U.S.


Wesley Chapel Chamber Falls Short In First-Ever ‘Softball Classic’By Gary Nager

Photos by OurTownFLA.com

Although it had been close to 20 yearssince I played any softball at all, I decided torisk re-injuring my surgically repaired kneesto participate in the first-ever “Softball Clas-sic” between the Greater Wesley ChapelChamber of Commerce and the CentralPasco Chamber on December 2.

The more experienced (they at leasthad one practice prior to playing the game)Central Pasco team ended up prevailing in ahard-fought, exciting 11-10 nail-biter,despite the fact that Central Pasco, at onepoint, led 9-4.

I arrived a little late for the start of thegame, so I spent a LOT of time warming upmy arm and my legs before entering thegame as a late-inning replacement.Although I popped up to the infield on myfirst at-bat, I ended up hitting a little deeperpopup in the 7th inning that drove in tworuns, to make the score 9-7.

Unfortunately, I quickly gave thosetwo runs back on a lined single to left thatwent between me in left-centerfield and leftfielder Chris Thurow of Thurow FinancialServices (although, truth be told, the ballwas only hit 5 or 10 feet from me). TheWesley Chapel rally in the 9th inning fellone run short in a game that saw some niftydouble plays turned or at least started byWesley Chapel Republican Club presidentMike Moore.

But, the player who kept WesleyChapel Honorary Mayor candidate/teammanager Troy Stephenson of Wesley Chapel Nissan’ssquad in the game was definitely pitcher Paula O’Neil,the Pasco County Clerk of the Circuit Court/ Comp-troller, who threw a complete game, had a couple of

good hits and also threw out several runners at firstbase to keep the game close.

Bottom line? The game was a blast and I didn’thear of any major “weekend warrior” injuries after thegame ended. We’ll get ‘em next time!

(Above) Members of the Greater Wesley Chapel (in blue) and Central Pasco Chambers of Commerce pose for pics following CentralPasco’s 11-10 win over Wesley Chapel in the first-ever Chamber Softball Classic!

(Below left) Pasco County Comptroller Paula O’Neil went the distance on the hill in the loss for the Wesley Chapel Chamber.(Below right) Wesley Chapel’s Chris Thurow scores on a close play at the plate.

All photos on this page provided by OurTownFLA.com


By Matt Wiley

After spending four years runningfrom the “law,” a fugitive is behindbars, but it’s not the kind of fugitivethat probably springs instantly to mind.

“Cornelius,” the “Mystery Mon-key of Tampa Bay,” was moved into hisnew home at Dade City’s Wild Things(just a few miles north of WesleyChapel) on December 3, after evadingtrappers around the Tampa Bay area formore than four years. From Clearwaterto Temple Terrace, Dunedin to PinellasPoint, Cornelius has taken wildlife res-cuer Vernon Yates on quite a wild ride.

“He’s a very intelligent animal,”says Yates, who also is the founder anddirector of Seminole-based WildlifeRescue & Rehabilitation, Inc. “It gotto the point where he’d actually recog-nize my truck. He’d be sitting in a treeand as soon as he’d see me pull up,he’d take off.”

Yates explains that Cornelius couldhave been caught much sooner, as hehas been able to hit the monkey withtranquilizer darts numerous times.However, Cornelius would run up intoa tree before falling asleep. Yates saysthat knocking on someone’s door andtrying to explain to that person thathe’d just shot a monkey that ran into

their backyard usually gave Corneliusenough time to escape.

During the past four years, Yatesexplains, the rhesus macaque monkeyhas used his intelligence to avoid bothcapture and the deadly mistakes thatmany other less intelligent animalscommonly make, such as making con-tact with power lines or trying to crosscross busy intersections.

Since his capture in south St.

Petersburg on October 24, Cor-nelius has been in Yates’ custodyat his wildlife refuge until a prop-er home was found, which Yatesdetermined to be Dade City’sWild Things, the 22-acre zoothat is home to more than 250animals, including several otherspecies of macaque.

“It’s been a four-year ordealand people kept asking me what Iwould do with the monkey whenI finally caught him,” explainsYates. “I just wanted someonewho could give him a goodhome and didn’t want him justfor the publicity. There wasanother facility in Lakeland thatwas interested, but they sincebacked out, so I decided on WildThings.”

Cornelius’ new home isn’ttoo shabby, either. He currently

lives alone in a 14 ft. x 14 ft. cage made

of 9-guage chain link on a cement slab,shielded by a glass pane – a healthrequirement since Cornelius was diag-nosed with being infected with the her-pes B virus following his capture. Hiscage also features swings, a small, heat-ed house and a feeding station. After30 days, other macaques will be intro-duced into his environment.

“He’s adjusting pretty well,” saysWild Things director Kathy Stearns.“At first he explored everything and atesome food from a high spot in thecage. He seems comfortable. Curious,but comfortable.”

Dade City’s Wild Things, locat-ed at 37245 Meridian Ave. in DadeCity, is currently setting up a “Mys-tery Monkey Fan Club” to help raisefunds to pay for the maintenance ofCornelius’ new cage. For more infor-mation about how to get involved,or to make a donation, please visitDadeCitysWildThings.com.

Mystery Monkey Of Tampa Can Run Wild In Dade City

Cornelius the “Mystery Monkey of Tampa Bay,”peeks out of his new home at Dade City’s Wild

Things, just a few miles north of Wesley Chapel.


By Matt Wiley

Thanksgiving is a time of yearwhen friends and families take time toget together and be thankful for eachother and all that they have. It’s atime of year when it can be easy toforget that there are those who don’thave a family to go home and share anice traditional Thanksgiving mealwith, and there also are those in ourarea without even a home to go to.

It is for that reason that the Wes-ley Chapel Noon Rotary Club (seepage 3) teamed up with AtonementLutheran Church’s Helping HandsPantry and Metropolitan Ministries toput on the club’s third annual“Turkey Gobble” to help feed thehungry, needy and homeless on

Thanksgiving Day.Thanks to more than 50

volunteers, the “Gobble” wasable to provide Thanksgivingmeals with all the trimmings tomore than 200 people, both atAtonement, located on S.R. 54,but also around the communitybetween 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.

“People probably camefrom as far as three miles for ameal,” says Wesley ChapelRotary president Greg Lenners, whoalso is the general manager of theShops at Wiregrass mall. “We evenhad some volunteers take some mealsto the Quail Hollow area, where thereare some people living in the woods.”

Lenners says that a locationchange might have affected how many

people came outfor a meal, as theevent had beenheld at the Wes-ley Chapel DairyQueen, alsolocated on S.R.54, for the pasttwo years.

“Last year,we served morethan 350(meals),”

Wesley Chapel Rotary’s 3rd Annual ‘Turkey Gobble’ Feeds Hundreds

Lenners says. “So, we served a littleless this year, but he event was still abig success.”

Meals consisted of all the tradi-tional Thanksgiving favorites, includ-ing turkey, stuffing, potatoes andgravy, vegetables, dinner rolls and, ofcourse, pie.

“We definitely plan to keep thetradition going,” Lenners says. “Ofcourse, we don’t want the event togrow. If anything, we want it to besmaller because that would mean that

there are fewer people in need in thearea, but we’re here to help as manypeople as we can.”

For more information aboutAtonement Lutheran’s HelpingHands Food Pantry, please call973-2211, or, for MetropolitanMinistries, please call 209-1000 orvisit MetroMin.org. For the WesleyChapel Rotary, which meetsWednesdays at noon at Ciao! ItalianBistro in the Shops at Wiregrassmall, call 862-8989 or 391-3895.

linguine or linguine with clams. fried orblackened sea or bay scallops and forthose who aren’t allergic to shrimp (like Iam), there’s baskets of fried, coconut andkickin’ shrimp, too. There’s even bakedsea scallop and seafood casserole dinnersand all-you-can-eat options available.

The baskets are served with fries andcole slaw, or you can upgrade to a “din-ner,” with your choice of fresh cole slaw,yellow rice, sweet potato fries, steamedbroccoli, yellow rice or BBQ baked beans.

Taste of Boston also recently addedseveral rotating flavors of deliciousBruster’s Real Ice Cream and has a varietyof decent

wines and draft and bottled beers, includ-ing “George’s Boston Brew,” a tasty red.And, although Taste of Boston alreadycan host or cater your holiday party, com-ing soon is George’s mobile “ChowderBus,” which he can bring to your locationand basically provide most of his menu.

Reservations are not required atTaste of Boston (1944 Bruce B.Downs Blvd.), which opens every dayat 11 a.m. for lunch and dinner. Youcan get $3 off your order of $20 ormore with the coupon on page 31, orcall 994-9797 or visit TasteofBoston-Florida.com.


Taste of Boston — A Taste That’s Not Just For New Englanders!

(Top) The 1-pound+ steamed lobster at Taste of Boston, located in the Shoppes at New Tampa of Wesley Chapel, is a signature New England seafood treat. (Above, l. to r.) Otherfavorites at Taste of Boston include the New England clam chowder, the lobster roll sandwich and the popular “full-belly” fried clams. All photos on this page by GalleriesbyJayne.com.

By Gary Nager

When you meet George Illes, theowner of the Taste of Boston restaurant,located in the Shoppes of New Tampaplaza, directly across S.R. 56 from theShops at Wiregrass mall, you definitelywouldn’t think he was from Boston — orany part of New England, for that matter.

Although he spent about 15 years inHampton Beach, NH — where heowned everything from a bagel shop toan ice cream-and-gyro place, George stillhas the heavy accent of his native Hun-gary, but he also has retained the abilityto create authentic New England-styleseafood that has transplanted “Yankees”from Massachusetts and Rhode Islandcoming back again and again.

“When you call yourself ‘Taste ofBoston,’ you’d better keep your NewEnglanders happy,” George says. “If theydon’t taste what they remember frombefore they moved here, they’ll nevercome back again...and they’ll tell theirfriends to avoid your place, too.”

That’s not a problem at Taste ofBoston, which attracts a sizable crowd forlunch and dinner virtually every day. Hiscustomers are a nice mix of former north-easterners and locals who enjoy every-thing from authentic New England clamchowder to “whole belly” fried clams to aself-proclaimed “Best Outside of Philly”cheesesteak sandwich.

All I can say is that everything I’vesampled at Taste of Boston, which was

actually George’s second Tampa Bay loca-tion when he opened here in April 2010(he sold his South Tampa restaurant lastyear), has been fresh and delicious.

I love the “chowda,” as well as thedelicious grilled or blackened basa (afreshwater fish that is much tastier thantilapia) and even the fried haddock — aguilty pleasure of mine, even though Iusually avoid fried seafood.

So, in order to get a take on some ofGeorge’s other great tastes, I treated mystaff to get the word on their favorites.Graphic artist Porsha Lemos raved aboutTaste of Boston’s lobster roll sandwich ,which is served with a cup of zesty lobsterbisque, too. On another visit, Porsha alsosaid that Taste of Boston’s fried “wholebelly” clams were among the sweetestand tastiest she ever tried. PhotographerJayne Baker gave thumbs-up to theauthentic Maryland crab cake bites appe-tizer and the whole steamed lobster.Assistant editor Matt Wiley gobbled hishuge crab cake sandwich and I was pleas-antly surprised by the delicious oven-baked sub roll and zesty sauce on Taste ofBoston’s tasty, huge chicken parmesansandwich basket.

Taste of Boston also offers a varietyof great appetizers, from “kickin’” shrimp(served with a spicy Asian-style sauce),boneless Buffalo and BBQ wings, friedplantains, mushrooms and onion ringsand even authentic New England “steam-ers” (steamed clams), burgers and more.

You can even get shrimp scampi over


Taste of Boston also features a yummy chicken parmesan sandwich (left), as well as a totally tasty grilled basa sandwich (photo by GalleriesbyJayne.com).


Baker’s Gallery—A Year Of Great Cakes, Baking Supplies & Much More!

(L. to r.) Antonio, Gene, Philippe, Reginald & Alexandra invite you to check out theunique cakes, cupcakes, baking supplies and so much more at The Baker’s Gallery,

located in the Pebble Creek Collection on BBD Blvd., behind Kobe Steakhouse.

By Gary Nager

Alexandra Auguste was born in Haitibut she has been in the U.S. for morethan four decades, including more than30 years in Long Island, NY. Moreimportant than where she’s been howev-er, is where she is now...behind thecounter at The Baker’s Gallery in thePebble Creek Collection on Bruce B.Downs (BBD) Blvd., creating uniquecakes, cupcakes, butter rolls and evendelicious “pate” pastries from her nativecountry, stuffed with meat, chicken andeven codfish — all at great prices!

A Wilton-certified baker for morethan 20 years, Alexandra and her family— including her cousin Philippe, her sonReginald, her “adopted” son Antonio andher sister Gene (named after the actressGene Tierney) — bring smiles, knowl-edge and a lot more experience creatingunique wedding and other special occa-sion cakes than just the one year the storehas been open here.

“We’ve already created everythingfrom a Monster Truck cake with fondant-covered Rice Krispie treat wheels to cakestopped with a fully edible lady’s shoe andeven edible flowers,” Alexandra says.“And really, if you can imagine it, we canprobably create it for you. Check ourwebsite for a full gallery of our cakes.”

I have to say that I like The Baker’sGallery’s cakes that are a series of cup-

cakes standing side-by-side that form afull-sized, custom-designed cakes. Part ofthe reason is because I love Alexandra’scupcakes — which are now available in 28flavors, with new ones being added to thelist seemingly every month.

If you like chocolate (like I do), TheBaker’s Gallery crew has chocolate“delite,” chocolate espresso, Oreo cookie,German chocolate and chocolate-vanillaswirl. You like fruit flavors? The newestaddition is pumpkin spice, but Key lime,lemon raspberry, orange apricot, “straw-berry-filled strawberry” and about nineother real fruit cupcake options arealmost always available in both regularsizes (for just $2.50) and “mini” (a truebargain at $1).

And, the funny thing is that Alexan-dra says she had no intention beforehandof even having cupcakes in the store, but“our customers wanted samples of thedifferent cake flavors we have and‘gourmet cupcakes’ are really popularthese days, so we decided to give gour-met cupcakes at reasonable prices a shot.”

I remember that the first week thestore was open, The Baker’s Galleryalready was up to about six cupcake fla-vors. Visiting there too often is dangerousdiet-wise for a cupcake lover like me, soone or two (never more, lol) mini-Bavari-an cream crunch and Confetti cupcakesare a necessity with a cup of The Baker’sGallery’s yummy by-the-cup coffee.

I’m also already addicted to the flakypate pastries, of which Alexandra says thestore sells “hundreds a week” and hopeto try the butter rolls soon.

But, one thing I probably won’tneed much of anytime in the near futureare the incredible array of cookie cutters,rolling pins and other baking supplies,but only because I refuse to take up bak-ing for fear of ending up looking like acertain boy made out of dough. If youhave the baking “gene” or even a desire

to learn, The Baker’s Gallery really is foryou. Alexandra says baking classes arecoming soon and she’s already doing“design your own cookie/cupcake” par-ties for kids’ birthdays and school groups.

Just go check it out and tell Alexan-dra and her family that I sent you!

To order an amazing custom cakefor your holiday party or any specialoccasion, or for more info, call TheBaker’s Gallery (19651 BBD) at 973-9966 or visit TheBakersGallery.com.


Unique cakes, cake pops, cupcakes and other delicious bakery treats & accessories likethese make The Baker’s Gallery a must-call when you’re planning your next big party.


Here Are The Winners Of Our 2012 Dining Survey & Contest!So, here are this year’s winning

restaurants and the names of the readerswho won prizes in this year’s biggest-everReader Dining Survey & Contest. And,thanks to a lot of (for once) correct bal-lot-stuffing, we have a few restaurants thatreally took off this year.

We always encourage restaurants togive the forms to their customers, but wealways warn them that if they only haveone or a couple of restaurants named,those votes will not be counted. Well, thenew Full Circle Pizza & Grill’s cus-tomers did exactly as instructed, so FullCircle won Your Favorite New Non-Chain Restaurant, Your Favorite PizzaPlace (unseating runner-up La PrimaPizza, which previously had won everyyear it’s been open) and Your FavoriteSandwich Shop in New Tampa & WesleyChapel & was named, behind first-timewinner, The Olive Garden, as your secondFavorite Restaurant in New Tampa.

Also named a first-time winner,thanks to lots of loyal customers, is Tasteof Boston, your Favorite Restaurant inWesley Chapel. Don’t forget to check outmy annual “Gary’s Favorite Restaurants”in our next issue.

Congrats go out to Sandy Elveniaof Lexington Oaks, whose name wasdrawn at random from our record 600+entrants to win $100 at the restaurant ofher choice. See the complete list of win-ners at the end of the next page. — GN

1. Olive Garden2. Full Circle Pizza

Your Favorite RestaurantsIn New Tampa (NT)

Your Favorite RestaurantsIn Wesley Chapel (WC)

Your Favorite NEWRestaurants In NT/WC

Your Favorite AsianRestaurants In NT/WC

1. Taste of Boston2. Bonefish Grill3. Wolf’s Den4. GrillSmith5. La Prima Pizza6. Vallarta’s7. Texas Roadhouse8. The Hungry Greek9. Outback Steakhouse10. Cantina Laredo11. Red Robin12. First Watch13. PizzaMania14. Applebee’s Grill & Bar15. Beef O’Brady’s16. Burger Monger17. Cracker Barrel18. Sonny’s BBQ19. Café Fresco20. PrimeBar21. Bonsai Sushi22. Dickey’s BBQ23. Yamato Japanese Steakhouse24. PDQ25. Dempsey’s Steakhouse

3. Liang`s Bistro4. Red Lobster5. Stonewood Grill & Tavern6. Acropolis Greek Taverna7. Chili’s Grill & Bar8. Las Palmas Spanish Café9. Romano’s Macaroni Grill10. Ruby Tuesday11. TGI Friday`s12. Burger 2113. Ciccio’s California Cuisine14. Mr. Dunderbak’s15. Oakley’s Grille16. Kobe Japanese Steakhouse17. Panera Bread18. Koizi Endless Hibachi Grill19. Five Guys Burgers & Fries20. Sushi Tsu Japanese Steak & Sushi21. Sushi Ko22. Sukhothai23. Ploy Thai24. Sushi Café25. Tijuana Flats

1. Full Circle Pizza & Grill2. Burger 213. Koizi Endless Hibachi Grill4. Oakley’s Grille5. Latin Twist Café

1. Liang’s Bistro2. Kobe Japanese Steakhouse3. Ho Wok4. Yamato Japanese Steakhouse5. Asian Buffet6. Koizi Endless Hibachi Grill7. Sukhothai8. Thai Ruby9. Saffron Indian Cuisine10. China Wok

Your Favorite LatinRestaurants In NT/WC

1. Vallarta’s2. Las Palmas Spanish Café3. Cantina Laredo4. Tijuana Flats5. Latin Twist Café6. Moe’s Southwest Grill7.Café Ole8. Baja Fresh9. Taco Bell10. J Baja’s Mexican Grill

Your Favorite Pizza PlacesIn NT/WC

1. Full Circle Pizza & Grill2. La Prima Pizza


The Latest & Greatest News About Dining, Shopping, Retail & More In New Tampa & Wesley Chapel!By Gary Nager

Firehouse Subs MovesFirehouse Subs MovesIn case you were wondering what

happened to the Firehouse Subs —which used to be located next to Publixin the New Tampa Center on Bruce B.Downs (BBD) Blvd. — this might get alittle confusing.

Firehouse is still located next to aPublix on BBD, but it just reopened inthe Shoppes of New Tampa at WesleyChapel, the plaza located across S.R. 56from the Shops at Wiregrass mall. Theproximity to the mall and the major inter-section of S.R. 56 of BBD helped theowners decide that a move was in order.

Firehouse Subs is now located at1824 BBD Blvd., between Publix &Bealls. For more info, call 977-3181.

Gerry’s Back At Winners!Gerry’s Back At Winners!Congratulations to Gerry Maly-

novsky, the original owner of all of theWinners Sports Grills in the Tampa Bayarea, who recently took back over theWinners location in at 5429 Village Mar-ket, at the corner of Bruce B. Downs(BBD) Blvd. and S.R. 54.

Gerry, who has been primarily in thecatering business since selling his threeWinners locations (Odessa, Tampa Palmsand Wesley Chapel), including handlingthe in-house catering kitchen at thePepin Distributing Hospitality Centeron N. 50th St. in Tampa, has been busyupgrading the Wesley Chapel Winners’menu and promises to roll out an entirelynew, upgraded menu soon.

“We’re going to be adding somegreat fresh fish options, additional steaks,

pastas and daily specials,” he says. “We’renot going to forget that this is still a‘sports grill,’ we just want to give our cus-tomers more choices.”

For more info, see the Winners adon page 31 or call 973-7474.

Shops At Wiregrass UpdateShops At Wiregrass UpdateThe new Ciao! Italian Bistro has

opened and is offering a fantastic 20-per-cent-off your entire bill with the couponin the ad on page 35.

I’ve only had a chance to sampleCiao!’s Italian fare a couple of times sinceit replaced Pagelli’s in the mall, but Ireally enjoyed both the parmesan-and-potato-crusted snapper pictured above(served with great homemade mashedpotatoes and fresh asparagus, too) andthe rigatoni alla Toscana, which featureslarge tube pasta sautéed with Italiansausage, roasted peppers, onion andtomato sauce, topped with garlic-herbRondele. For more info, call 907-2200or visit CiaoItalianBistro.com.

Also now open in the mall, finally, isBlue Lagoon Island Grill AuthenticCaribbean Cuisine. Located next to900º Woodfired Pizza and featuringeverything from authentic Jamaican jerkdishes to fresh fish entrées with mangoand other fresh fruit sauces, BlueLagoon’s menu is unique and everythinglooks and sounds pretty delicious. Lookfor an update on Blue Lagoon (994-1526, BlueLagoonTampa.com) in afuture issue.

Toast Adds Coffee & MoreToast Adds Coffee & MoreLong-time readers of this publication

know how much I enjoy the Toast Fine

Wine Bar on Bruce B. Downs(BBD) Blvd., just south of TampaPalms, in the Oak Ramble Plaza.Although Toast has multiple owners,Hector Gonzalez is the face of thebiz and one of New Tampa’s fore-most authorities on fine wine —especially for those looking for out-standing wines at outstanding prices.

But now, Toast, which recentlyopened a second location in SouthTampa, is expanding its kitchen andits food options and recently addedan espresso bar serving delicious Illycoffee, espresso, cappuccinos, lattesand other coffee drinks.

Toast has live music, great winedinners and also is a great place for find-ing wonderful buys on bottles of red,white and sparkling wines you won’t findat the grocery store for the holiday season

and it’s also a great place to hold yournext holiday party.

For more info about Toast Wine& Café (14921 BBD), call 632-3105or visit ToastWineandCafe.com.

Check out the beautiful new coffee, espresso &cappuccino bar at the recently revamped Toast

Wine & Café on BBD in New Tampa.


P E T C E N T E R

C O M P U T E R S E R V I C E S

H O M E I M P R O V E M E N T DRY WALL SPECIALIST - Not a handyman.Affordable Quality Work repairing water damage,ceilings and walls, retexturing, popcorn removal,room additions, cracks, holes, plaster and stuccorepair. 26 Years Experience. Wesley Chapel resi-dent. State Certified. Call Ron for free estimate(813) 784-5999

NEED HOME MAINTENANCE – Almost anyjob, large or small, ext/int, fencing , screening, sm.concrete, sprinklers, painting, repairs, int. doors, locks,sheet rock, windows, paint, caulk, grout, trim, shelv-ing, garages organized. Installations, removals, pres-sure washing, wood restoration & more. Call Dale’sHome Maintenance @ 973-0194 or 727-2582.

GREG’S PAPERHANGING – For all of yourwallpapering needs. Licensed & insured, clean, quick& reasonable. Call 973-2767 for free estimate.

RAYMOND PAINTING – Interior & Exteriorpressure washing, paper hanging, plaster, stucco, tiles,clean & seal pavers, roofing leaks, etc. Licensed &Bonded. References available. Free Estimates. YourNeighborhoond Arbor Greene Resident. We work 7days. Call 994-5124.

DAVID BRIDGES PRESSURE CLEANING -Complete exterior cleaning of your home or businesswith a professional and personal touch. - Pool decksand screen enclosures - All fencing/ driveways andwalkways/roofs - Gutter and downspouts. Find yourhappiness in a fresh, bright clean home. Your neigh-bors will love you for it! All work guaranteed.Licensed and insured. (813) 215-1177

WEST COAST FLOORING INC - Hardwood,Laminate, and Carpet; Over 25 years experience insales and installations; Repairs: Large and small jobs;We even do exterior pavers; Free estimates - CallDoug at (813) 215-4817

H E L P W A N T E D

PHYSICAL THERAPIST – An establishedNew Tampa outpatient clinic is hiring a part-timePT to provide customized, one-on-one care. Faxresume to (813) 994-3080

HELP WANTED - Medical Billing Personnel,part-time, flexible hours, Local PT Clinic. Faxresume to (813) 994-3080.

NEW TAMPA & WESLEY CHAPEL Classifıeds

R E A L E S T A T E FIND YOUR DREAM HOME FROMYOUR CELL PHONE! - Wish you could seehome details while you are driving around lookingat homes? NOW YOU CAN! With Team Bohan-non's Mobile MLS Search application, you cansearch for any home in the area on your cell phone.Check out price, beds/baths, details, maps, evenphotos – all from the convenience of your cellphone. SEARCH PROPERTIES WHENEVERAND WHEREVER YOU WANT! GET ITNOW - Text: MLS4YOU to: 87778 Compli-ments of Doug, Annette and Dale BohannonColdwell Banker (813) 979-4963

REALTOR - Let me Find your Dream Homefor you,... I WILL DO THE WORK! - You willget my full attention to your Real Estate needs.Call me directly at 813-679-9595 or email me:[email protected]. MARIA CHERREZ -VANGALDER, Realtor, Ceritfied Short SaleExpert; Charles Rutenberg Realty, Inc.

P O O L S E R V I C E STRANQUILITY POOL SERVICE - NewTampa owned & operated. Great Pricing with out-standing customer service! LICENSED, BONDED& INSURED. See why we are New Tampa’s #1Choice!! New customer’s ONE MONTH FREE!Call Chris Today @ (813) 857-5400 or visitTranquilityPoolService.com

AQUATEC POOL SERVICE - keepingpools clear & swim safe since 1994. WE DOPOOLS RIGHT! Commercial & Residential. CPO#33-303052 Licensed & Insured. Service guarantee.Call (813) 312-5694 TODAY and get 1MONTH OF QUALITY SERVICE FORFREE. www.aquatecpool.com

M I S C E L L A N E O U S SPRINGER STORAGE: RV & Boat Storage PortRichey, FL Starting at $35.00 mo. Pay first twomonths, 3rd month free. 24 hour access & 24 hourmonitoring. Call to reserve your spot. (813) 833-1191.

CAR SERVICES – Don’t Have a Ride? Don’t Wantto Leave Your Car? Shouldn’t Drive? We Drive Youand Your Car Home! Night Clubs, Corporate Events,Sporting Events, Concerts, Appointments, Airport orStranded... Call Jay at (813) 966-1530.

FOR SALE - Solid wood Drexel Heritage, ItalianTraditional style, Dining Room Set: Dining roomtable w/ leaf 86 in. long, 42 in wide, 6 chairs w/ bur-gundy and gold accent cushions, and matching light-ed china cabinet. For pricing or more informationplease call (813) 690-1062.

TAMPA CAT LADY- Professional Cat-SittingService. Cats are happiest in their own home,surrounded by familiar sights, sounds, &smells. When you are away, we feed, cuddle,& play with your kitties & clean & dispose oflitter. Insured, bonded, & Red-Cross certi-fied in pet first aid/CPR. Call 994-9449or visit www.TampaCatLady.com.

F I T N E S S & W E L L B E I N G

C L E A N I N G S E R V I C E S

D-ULTRA CLEANING SERVICE - We have ourown supplies & more than 300 clients in New Tampa!For more information, Call 758-9710.

M.Y. CLEANING SERVICE -Offering Residen-tial cleaning. We offer complete bath & kitchen clean-ing, as well as dusting and polishing furniture. We provide our own supplies. Free estimates! Your satisfaction is our priority! With 5 years of experience,we guarantee meticulous cleaning! Call Mila: (813) 516-3554.

QUALITY CLEANING & SERVICES - Resi-dential & commercial with14 years of experience. Weprovide our own supplies and always the same crew.Free estimates! (813) 381-1430 or 418-1217.

EDUCATION / BABYSITTING

PROFESSIONAL TENNIS LESSONS -Recently relocated USPTA/PTR teaching profes-sional available for private/group/team tennis les-sons. Former Head Tennis Professional at the #2 and#3 Tennis Resorts in the U.S. Past coach of former#1 singles player at the University of Florida. Call Steve Brady at (843) 422-3993 or email [email protected]

WENDELKEN STUDIO OF MUSICALARTS - Join our popular and award-winning schoolof classical music. Right in the heart of Tampa Palms,we offer Classical, European training in: Piano, Vio-lin, Cello, Voice and Viola. Beginners throughAdvanced; Adults, too. Receive College credit towardthe Associate Diploma in Performance from our affil-iate, The Carnegie Hall-Royal Conservatory of MusicAchievement Program. Many recital/competition/examination/performance opportunities. The topschool in Tampa for serious classical training. SeeTampaPiano.com or call Mary at (813) 978-1771

PROFESSIONAL TECH SUPPORT – in yourhome or small business. A+ certified computer techwith 15 years of exp. Maintenance & repairs,upgrades & tutoring. More affordable than the largechains! Friendly, personalized svc. Technical jargonexplained in plain English. References available uponrequest. Call 957-8342 for free estimate.

DO YOU HATE YOUR COMPUTER?!? - WECAN HELP YOU! Troubleshooting, installation,networking & virus removal. WE COME TOYOU! Servicing residential and businesses, with over25 years experience. Contact Jeffrey Blank at (813) 973-4507 today! www.WSICA.COM;[email protected]

LICENSED MOBILE MASSAGE THERA-PIST Available seven days a week, 9am -9pm. $55for 1 hour! Types of massage available: Swedish,Deep Tissue, Aroma Therapy, Hot Stone, CorporateSeated, Pregnancy, Sports & Injury Rehab. Refer-ences available. www.barkdollmassagetherapy.com CALL (727) 372-6389 Lic #MA47546.

JAZZERCISE CLASSES - Classes available Mon-Fri 8:30am & 9:30am located at Jansen Dance Proj-ect. Jazzercise is a combination of dance, hip hop,kickboxing, yoga, and Pilates. Enjoy 30 minutes ofrockin’ cardio and 30 minutes of strength training.All Monday’s in September are FREE! For moreinformation call Julie (813) 505-5258,www.jazzercise.com or [email protected].

LOOKING TOPLACE A LISTING?

Call The Neighborhood News

813-910-2575

L A W N C A R E JASMINE’S LANDSCAPING - Complete lawnmaintenance, Tree, palm and hedge trimming, Plant-ing, mulching, stones, Sod replacement, Pressurewashing, Gutter cleaning and more. Cited by yourHOA for violations? Need to comply for: Pressurewashing, Trimming, Mulching, Sod replacement,Sprinkler repair or Mailbox repair or replacements?Askabout our HOA SPECIAL! FREE ESTIMATE!(813) 420-4465

LAWN CARE - We Specialize in Residential Lawn &Landscape Maintenance! Landscaping, Mulching,Clean-ups, Palm/Tree Trimming & Sprinkler Repairalso available. Owner Operated over 17 years. Call ustoday for Reliable Service for everything that grows @ your property (813) 973-3825 or visit: ntlcpropertymaintenance.com

wesley chapel neighborhood news issue 26-12

Documents

state house

florida house

house redistricting

wesley chapel intallahassee

face ofthe wesley chapel

speaker weatherford

lot of ideas

weatherford rwesley