Nonprofit group to take over county arts Pinellas commission approves move ... Page 4A. Opening in theaters – ‘Zookeeper,’ comedy starring Kevin James Also in theaters this weekend is ‘Horrible Bosses,’ starring Jennifer Aniston ... Page 1B. Volume XXXIII, No. 51 www.TBNweekly.com July 7, 2011 Officials mull over transit options By AMANDA SEBASTIANO “ ... we’re working on a grassroots campaign that the location of the interstate corridor in- volved quick travel time. LARGO – Since their first meeting in shows that transportation is important to us; we “There are going to have to be a few May, local officials, engineering planners need to move Pinellas forward.” stops so that passengers can get on and and various representatives from transit off, but the object is to get you to your organizations in the Tampa Bay area destination as quickly as you can go,” along with the Pinellas County Alterna- – Tom Morrissette Crozier said about the interstate route, tives Analysis have decided on routes president which will be the express and hybrid and started discussions on the next is- Largo Mid-Pinellas Chamber of Commerce one. sues to be faced: funding community The type of vehicle chosen will also af- outreach and timelines for when the fect the amount of stops as well, Pringle transit will be up and running, along One would run east and west, from A few around the table didn’t seem to added, saying that certain types will be with various other topics. downtown Clearwater to the greater agree with the second route choice. harder to start back up after making fre- Largo Commissioner Harriet Crozier, Gateway area on East Bay Drive, which Largo resident David Babb thought that quent stops. who is also involved with Pinellas will turn into Roosevelt Boulevard where Fourth Street would have been a more The team has five goals they hope to LARGO Metropolitan Planning Organization, an- it connects to the second, north to south productive route. Scott Pringle, the proj- nounced the two chosen corridors at the running along a corridor that ends near ect manager from Jacobs Engineering, The Village Inn – meeting June 29 at the Largo library. downtown St. Petersburg via I-275. responded that the deciding factors in See TRANSIT, page 4A it’s coming back A longtime restaurant company em- Wrapped up in the celebration ployee and his family are remodeling the Village Inn building and hoping to re- open the business by Aug. 1. ... Page 3A City plans to move osprey nest at field City facilities management staff has applied for a permit with the State of Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission for the removal of an osprey nest located on top of one of the light poles at the Southwest Recreation soft- ball field. The osprey is federally protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and state pro- tected by the Florida Administrative Code. These poles are scheduled to be re- placed in FY13 due to normal damage from decay at the ground level. A new T- perch will be installed on an adjacent light pole within 150 feet of the original nest to accommodate future nesting as required by state policies. COUNTY Helping Hands Former marketing executive enjoys volunteer work. “I’m not a big golfer,” said Dwight Er- ickson, “and the only volunteer work I had done had been with my church or at school when the kids were growing up. But volunteering is a great American tra- dition. It helps you stay mentally active. So I went on the Pinellas County govern- ment website and registered to be a vol- unteer.” ... Page 7A. Photos by JIM LAYFIELD Above, a group of Clearwater youths, participated in the toilet paper relay at the Fourth of July VIEWPOINTS celebration at Largo Central Park. Rain threatened the celebration but stayed away and the event ended with a dazzling fireworks display, shown right. More pictures of the event are on page 4A. Mary Sanchez Columnist says it is morally indefensible that City moves toward Congress shrinks from Tooting his horn doing what is right by immigrants. ‘one-stop’ service … Page 8A. By TOM GERMOND LARGO – City commissioners agreed to spend $125,000 July 5 for Features new carpeting and furniture in an effort to reconfigure the engineering and building division work areas at City Hall as part of plans become Business . .10A more business friendly. Classifieds . .5-7B City officials plan to create a new “one-stop” customer service area Community . .12A in the building division which will become the single public entrance to County . .5-7A the department. The customer service center will provide an improved Entertainment . .1,3-4,8B customer service waiting area, a planner on call station and a station Just for fun . .2B for other departments, such as fire and engineering services, to meet Largo . .2-3A with clients. Outdoors . .9A Commissioner Curtis Holmes raised questions about the costs of the Police beat . .5A project. “What on earth are we getting for $80,000?” he asked. “That’s a lot Viewpoints . .8A of money for something like that.” Mayor Pat Gerard said it cost the city $1 million when city officials Call 397-5563 moved into City Hall just for furniture. For News & Advertising Commissioner Robert Murray said city officials have talked about the business-friendly attitude city officials are trying to embrace. “Wouldn’t it be better to have that business-friendly attitude to begin with and then kind of work with the attitude and move along with that and then come back with this reset as we determine what Look For Your the real needs are of the business community as they come in and go through the plan ... ?” he asked. Community Development Director Carol Stricklin said the reconfigu- ration of the customer service area was recommended in 2007 by a Flyer Largo Mid-Pinellas Chamber of Commerce business development advi- Photo by TOM GERMOND sory panel. Charles Maxwell plays a handcrafted didgeridoo, a wind instrument developed by native “This project has been four years in the making in terms of what the In Todays Paper Australians. Maxwell of Largo, was among several vendors at the inaugural First Friday event, July 1, on First Avenue Southwest. (In Selected Areas) See ONE-STOP, page 4A Lolly’s Wigs Don’t let Heat & Humidity 12046 Indian Rocks Road, Largo cause you a Bad Hair Day! 727-595-1222 • www.VONailsAndSpa.com FACIALS • SPA THERAPY • WAXING • NAILS AND MORE 062311 20% OFF with this ad 070711 $ 00 Full Service, Private Rooms, Licensed Hairdresser. 063011 20% OFF We Offer Full Set or All Services for New Clients SHELLAC for Spa Mani-Pedi 5 727-723-5255 • 9148 Seminole Blvd., Seminole & Students 4711 Not available with other offers. Exp. 7/30/11 Natural Nails Not available with other offers. Expires 7/30/11 OFF © 2011 Tampa Bay Newspapers: All rights reserved http://www.tbnweekly.com 2A Largo Leader, July 7, 2011 Governor signs bills Street party at military museum LARGO – Gov. Rick Scott in the Officers’ Club at The Armed Forces Mili- tary Museum officially signed four veteran’s bills July 5. Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll, congressional members and state legislators were in attendance. The family of the late Rear Admiral Leroy Collins Jr., former Executive Director of Veterans Affairs, was also in attendance, ac- cording to a museum news release. The four state bills that were signed in the military museum’s Officers’ Club were HB 95, HB 465, HB 663 and HB 1319. HB 95 provides a free lifetime annual entrance pass to state parks for parents of military who have died in the line of duty, deceased members of the U.S. Armed Forces, National Guard, or reserve components who have fallen in combat, and surviving spouse and parents of law enforcement offi- cers or firefighters who died in the line of duty. HB 465 establishes the newly formed Florida Veterans’ Hall of Fame, providing for administration by the Department of Veterans Affairs. HB 663 requires the Division of Forestry within the Department of Agri- culture and Consumer Services (DACS) to establish one or more “Wounded Warrior Special Hunt Areas” on state lands to provide specialized hunting areas for eligible veterans. HB 1319 provides for issuance of temporary license to specified health care practitioners who are spouses of active duty members of Armed Forces under certain circumstances. The governor arrived early and took a tour of the military museum. He visited the Naval Gallery, the site of the recently installed Navy periscope donated by the U.S. Navy. The Armed Forces Military Museum, located at 2050 34th Way, opened in 2008. The 50,000-square-foot museum and display areas are filled with a military collection that includes tanks, aircraft, memorabilia and interac- tive exhibits. 061611 Adoption is an Option www.projectpatchwork.org 727-824-0863 Photo by TOM GERMOND Lic.# 100012915 Mayor Pat Gerard, center in white shirt, and Jennifer Lantry, owner of O’Shy’s Irish Tap House in Largo, cut the ribbon for the inaugural First Friday event, July 1, on First Avenue Southwest. They are flanked by participants in the event. First Friday will be held once a month and features food, entertainment and street performers. FREEFREE “Tons of PARKINGPARKING Deals” 8am-4pm – Fri., Sat. & Sun. Indoors “Rain or Shine!” Free Bible Weekly Auction Monday Nights @ 6:30pm Correspondence Course Florida Coastal Insurance Agency STOREFRONTS: Study the Bible in the privacy of your own home, Auto • Dog Tag Heroes • Butterfly Nails • Corner Hut Pub at your own pace. This course is non-denominational and Home • Flood • Jim’s Electronics • Cutting Edge • Tropical Deli provided free of charge.