Osprey Observer » Pinecrest Road

Lithia Pinecrest Road Widening Public Meeting Draws Crowds

Tamas Mondovics — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 01:17:29 +0000

Hundreds attended a recent public meeting concerning the proposed widening of approximately an 11 mile section of Lithia Pinecrest Rd. from its current two travel lane roadway to a six travel lane roadway, affecting the Brandon, Bloomingdale and Lithia communities from S.R. 60 in Brandon to C.R. 39. Local residents who showed up at the Palmetto Club at FishHawk Ranch to hear more extensively about the project had the opportunity to view maps, elevations, a video presentation of the proposed change, as well as talk to county officials on-hand to address questions and concerns. Hillsborough County, in cooperation with the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), has been working on preparing a Project Development and Environment (PDE) Study to consider the proposed widening of Lithia Pinecrest Rd., which according to county officials and many local residents, at this point, is simply not sufficient to handle the traffic. “Portions of this roadway currently operate below the county’s adopted minimum acceptable level-of-service standard,” said Hillsborough County Engineering Division Public Works Center Project Manager William Alford. Alford explained that the meeting was strictly about gathering information and that the improvements are intended to accommodate both existing and future traffic volumes as well as enhance motorist safety and reduce emergency response times. But while area residents in general agree that something needs to be done, just as many were unsatisfied due to the lack of information offered by the county. For starters, county officials were faced with complaints that the video presentation of the project seemed to be short on facts. The hot topic that seemed to concern most included the lack of traffic lights planned for the Valrico portion of the project. “I don’t see how they can talk about safety. It is difficult to turn onto Lithia Pinecrest going north now. How is that going to be better trying to cross three lanes and then merge in to three lanes of traffic without a traffic light,” said Gene Will of Valrico, who has lived on Hummingbird Ln. for the past 40 years and is very concerned about being able to turn northbound onto Lithia Pinecrest once the six lane road project is completed. For many residents the small but problematic as well as infamous, Bell Shoals Road and Lithia Pinecrest intersection just a few yards south of Lumsden was the worry of the day-although not on the agenda for the meeting-the proposed road widening plan will include the turning Bell Shoals Road, into a cul-de-sac, cutting traffic flow from it to merge onto Lithia Pinecrest. That is a big problem for Sue Curd with Curd and Associates who feels that the change would choke or at least alter the volume that her business generates. “I will lose business,” she said. Jim Barfield, also a Valrico resident for the past four decades whose wife Jean became Honorary Mayor of Brandon in1996, was disturbed by the fact that the County took this long to decide on thinking about the roads. “The County has been passing out building permits to developers for years. Now they have a problem on their hands and rightly; nobody is happy,” Barfield said. Good, bad or ugly, the meeting seemed to have accomplished its purpose and as expected could and would not please everyone while provided an opportunity to hear or to be heard. One thing is sure. This project will be done and Lithia Pinecrest Road will be a six lane major artery for commuters even if its success remains to be seen. For ore information about the project or for project updates, public comments and concerns please visit www.lpcstudy.com.

Public Meeting To Discuss Lithia Pinecrest Road Project Development & Environmental (PD&E) Study

Marie Gilmore — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 19:27:51 +0000

Public Meeting To Discuss Lithia Pinecrest Road Project Development & Environmental (PD&E) Study

Hillsborough County, in cooperation with the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), will hold a public meeting to discuss the Project Development and Environmental Study for Lithia Pinecrest Road in the Brandon area.

The Study evaluates the proposed widening of Lithia Pinecrest Road from SR 60 (Brandon Boulevard) to CR 39. The study length is approximately 10.95 miles.
The meeting is being held to obtain your input regarding the location, conceptual design and environmental effects of the alternatives for the proposed project’s needed improvements.

County Staff and representatives from FDOT will be at the meeting to discuss the details of the project and answer any questions residents may have. Please attend, we welcome your input.

Date: Tuesday, Nov. 18
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Place: Palmetto Club, 17004 Dorman Road
All meeting facilities are ADA compliant. For additional assistance, please call us.
For more information, please call Steve Valdez, Public Works Department, at 272-5275 (TTY: 301-7172).
Visit us on the Web at – www.hillsboroughcounty.org.

Osting Baseball Academy Earns Second Place In Cooperstown

Tamas Mondovics — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 20:46:30 +0000

Never before has a Tampa bay area AAU, U-13 team finished in the medal bracket in the prestigious Cooperstown, NY “Baseball World” Summer Tournament… up until now!
Valrico’s Ostinger Baseball Academy brought home the silver recently after competing in its inaugural season losing 3-2 in to the California Demons in the championship game.
Jim Osting, manager and owner of the Academy along with assistant coaches Dave Reed, Shawn Reed and Jack Bartlett helped 13 local U-13 boys achieve what began last summer as athletes and parents pledged to start a travel team that would compete throughout Florida against top ranked clubs.
“The goal was simple,” Osting said. It was to compete for the USA National Crown at the Baseball World National Summer Tournament.
Team parents and players organized two successful fundraisers which have included a “Dinner to Go” night at the Brunchery Restaurant as well as golf tournament that helped raise the funds required to travel and participate in the coveted tournament during the Baseball Hall of Fame induction week.
“It was a dream come true for all of the boys, the parents and the coaches while provided the inspiration to build a world class area Baseball Academy,” said Bill Farley owner of the Brunchery restaurant.
Osting had a vision to create a baseball academy in the Valrico area dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs primarily focused on Baseball. The inaugural season goals were to finish with a record above .500 and to compete well in the Cooperstown Baseball World Tournament. The Ostingers finished the second half of their season going 20-6 including a 6-1-1 record in Cooperstown.
But Cooperstown did not end the summer success for the young athletes at the academy.
At the end of August the Ostingers won the 14-U USSSA tournament in Leesburg Fl., beating the Central Florida Predators 12-3. The Back to School Classic had six teams from the state.
“It was a total team effort and everyone played their part in winning the tourney,” said Osting adding, “The dedication of our young players have started to pay off.”
Former major league pitcher for the Milwaukee Brewers Jim Osting, has built a successful program training area children starting as early as U-9 up to top prospect Varsity HS Baseball players that have gone on to receive scholarships to top colleges in the country. He is also has broken ground on the Academy Training Facility that is located just east of Lithia-Pinecrest Road and Highway 39 and estimates that the facility will be completed by October 1st.
The Academy now has 2 AAU teams competing as U-13 and U-14 that will play out of the new FishHawk Sports Complex. For more information about the Osting Baseball Academy please call 404-1775.