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Spartan hut, begone
By TIM GRANT, Times Staff Writer CARROLLWOOD -- Families that depend on the after-school program in Country Place know it's only as dependable as the weather.
It's only two picnic tables covered by a tin roof. It has no walls. "When it rains, the kids get wet," said Judith Smith, 37, a mother of three children who have been enrolled there for four years. Smith was among nearly two dozen parents at a meeting Tuesday at Claywell Elementary School when Hillsborough County unveiled its plan to build a recreation center in Country Place. It should be open by this time next year. Plans call for a 3,000-square-foot facility in the park at Country Lake and Fox Hunt drives. It will allow the after-school program enrollment to double from 60 to 120 children and give residents in the subdivision of about 1,600 a place to hold their community meetings. "We'll all appreciate that," said Steve Taub, a Country Place resident who usually hosts the neighborhood's meetings at his house. County Construction manager Joel Jackson said the building will be one of 40 county recreation centers. He said the facility is being designed so that it can be enlarged for other future uses. "It's a standard recreation center that we're placing all over the county," Jackson said. "We try to make it look nice and ... lately we are designing them so they can be expanded to community centers." Nearly half the total square footage will be used for a multipurpose room. The other space will house an office, handicap-accessible bathrooms and a screened patio where children can get out of the rain and play games. The playground also will get a new design. The softball diamond will be reversed so that balls are not being hit toward the new building. The winding walking trail will be rerouted and a tennis court near the new building site will be turned into a basketball court. This was the first and only public meeting to discuss the $325,000 county-funded project. One resident, who would not give her name, made an unsuccessful plea for more meetings so that more people are informed of the plan. "This thing has been forever in the making. We've had a lot of missed opportunities and we should go with it," said John Jackson, president of the Country Place Civic Association. "If there is a problem, then we'll address it and meet again if need be." Joel Jackson, the project manager, said the request for a recreation center was made about five years ago, but it took this long to get funding for the project. He said fees for the county-run after-school program will not be affected. Parents will continue paying $15 per child every three months. What will change -- for the better -- is the type of programs that can be offered at Country Place. Currently, it operates from 2 to 6 p.m. all year. When the building is done, a summer program can be offered from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., he said. Country Place residents will be able to use the facility at no cost for their community meetings. Private events for residents would be subject to a rental fee. Residents will have to consider whether to allow nonresidents to rent the center after hours. The county will leave that decision to the homeowners, because it would involve lighting the basketball court and increased traffic. "People don't like lights near their homes," Joel Jackson said. Right now, the neighborhood's closest community center is in Northdale, but residents say that facility stays so booked up they've only been able to use it once since it opened about December 2000. "We need a place to have our meetings," said Darrel Spacone, an association board member. "That's the biggest obstacle we have now. As a homeowners association, it'll pull us together more and give us a place to better do our business." - Tim Grant can be reached at 269-5311 or at grant@sptimes.com.
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