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By null, Times Staff WriterOne group hopes that money from Penny for Pasco could aid in building a huge community center, like one in north Tampa.
DADE CITY - Pasco leaders have wanted a concrete plan for Penny for Pasco.
How about 50,000 square feet of concrete - and dance halls, and stages, and classrooms and fitness centers, all under one roof?
That's what one social services group and a state senator hope to build in Pasco.
Members of a group called the American Dream, met Monday in Dade City to discuss state Sen. Victor Crist's brainchild: the sprawling University Area Community Center Complex in north Tampa. The Pasco group hopes to get support to build a similar facility in east Pasco, partially with the help of Penny for Pasco.
"I'm ready to go campaigning on this issue," said Robert Loring of The American Dream, who also coordinates Toys for Tots for east Pasco.
Crist, R-Temple Terrace, whose district includes most of central and east Pasco, said he wants to export the success of the Tampa complex to Pasco but tailor it to local needs.
The complex includes not only the 50,000-square-foot center but also several other buildings under construction: a library, a visual and performing arts elementary school, a special needs school, and a health center with prenatal and geriatric medicine.
Crist said he plans to talk to Pasco's county and city leaders over the summer and then conduct a needs assessment to learn what type of complex would fit this area.
For instance, Crist said, maybe several universities could partner with local governments and businesses to build an agricultural science center. The idea is to partner with several projects: vocational training, child care, health and social services.
Crist is eying county-owned property just west of Interstate 75 near State Road 52.
County Commissioner Ann Hildebrand said Monday that Crist showed her a video about the Tampa complex last week during her trip to Tallahassee.
"From the video, it looks scrumptious," she said.
The first phase of the $12-million Tampa complex opened in 2000 on 28 acres in an area often called "Suitcase City."
It was transient, low-rent, with high crime and low employment. A little more than $5-million of that money came from federal, state and local sources, while the rest was from private and corporate donations.
The center is run by a nonprofit agency, founded by Crist, that does not provide services itself, but lines up and serves as the host for other agencies. There are Head Start classes, a special-needs day school and instruction in arts, crafts, music and dance. There is adult and GED education, vocational training, immunization and social services.
About 20,000 people use the center each month, said Julian Garcia Jr., executive director of the University Area Community Development Corporation Inc. The nonprofit agency operates the complex with money from user rentals and private grants. Hillsborough County owns the center.
The ownership could make a difference in whether Penny for Pasco dollars can be used to chip in for the center's construction, County Attorney Bob Sumner said. Sales tax dollars can be used on construction costs for public or government projects, but not if they're owned by another agency, he said.
County leaders have agreed to ask voters to decide on a penny-on-the-dollar increase in the sales tax on the November 2004 ballot. Critics say they want detailed plans of how the additional $31-million a year would be spent. Schools will likely build more classrooms.
But Loring and other members of his group hope a few million of those dollars could be spent on a complex near Dade City.
The complex could be something for everyone, he says - the arts, senior services, day care, job training and English classes. He hopes many of the programs could be targeted at the Hispanic and migrant community around Dade City but make the complex open to everyone.
Loring's group, made up of representatives from Saint Leo University, Pasco-Hernando Community College, the business community, and state and local social workers, started more than a year ago.
Loring said he helped launch it after watching the number of families served by Toys for Tots in Dade City grow by 20 percent a year.
Late last year, Loring and Toys for Tots partnered with Big Brothers Big Sisters, Pasco-Hernando Community College and Saint Leo University to provide college-age mentors for children at risk of slipping into a life of poverty, crime or drug abuse.
"I'm becoming frightened here," Loring said. He's tried to branch out from toys, asking local businesses for donations of school supplies, toothbrushes and food. A center like the Tampa complex could be a one-stop shopping for social services, he said. It would supplement and add substantially to what's already available, he said.
"The toys are the honey," Loring said. "Here's our chance to help them."
- Saundra Amrhein covers social services and east Pasco crime. She can be reached at (352) 521-5757, ext. 23 or toll-free 1-800-333-7505, ext. 6108, then 23. Her e-mail address is amrhein@sptimes.com