Pasco chips away at natural beauty

Editor: The Pasco County Commission celebrated Earth Day 2003 last week by condemning to death one of the last pieces of undeveloped land on our coastline. The commission approved a change that paves the way for the development of more than 50 acres of pristine wetlands and pine forests for housing. The parcel of land just off Strauber Memorial Highway south of Moog Road in Holiday is a critical habitat for a large number of wild animals, including many threatened and endangered species.

This piece of land is not just a last refuge for wildlife; it also forms a critical natural corridor linking hundreds of acres of wetlands with Gulf access to the west with hardwoods and forest to the east. It is one step in a link of natural land that extends all the way from the Gulf to U.S. 19. The last piece of this wild corridor before U.S. 19 is the same land that is slated to contain the new Holiday Wal-Mart Supercenter.

I have lived in Pasco County on and off for 30 years. In that time, I have seen the continued destruction of our coastline and unchecked removal of coastal wetlands and uplands. The official Pasco County Web site proudly declares Pasco part of the "Nature Coast," but unchecked development has turned that phrase into a sad reminder of what once was.

The developer recently purchased this property for only $7,500 an acre. They will put several $300,000 houses on each acre of land. The new residents will get unobstructed views of the Gulf of Mexico. Existing residents will get more dangerous traffic, strained public works facilities and will lose another piece of their beautiful natural coastline.

Congratulations to one for not singing along

Re: Commission approval of Schrader land use change

Editor: I immediately thought of the old song Whatever Lola Wants (Lola Gets). But the lead line in the song would substitute Commissioner Ted Schrader for Lola.

The rationalization for approval of the land-use change, according to the news report, was that this would prevent further urban sprawl. I guess you can rationalize anything you want to, but how in the world would this prevent urban sprawl by encouraging and permitting three homes per acre instead of one home per acre? The words that come to my mind are overdevelopment and land-use density.

Another alleged justification was that central Pasco has enough water so that increased development would not be a problem. Apparently, central Pasco is not considered to be a part of Pasco County, as the county certainly does have a water problem. I was reminded of this when I read that residents of Pasco County can only water their lawns one day a week.

Congratulations to Commissioner Pat Mulieri for her refusal to go along to get along with her fellow commissioner. That takes courage.

Districts should put FCAT money toward education

Editor: At a time when school districts throughout the state moan and groan about budget shortfalls, not enough pay for teachers and the lack of funding for supplies that are crucial in the education of children, it is disheartening to hear that school districts spent FCAT reward money on anything other than the above-mentioned uses.

The Pasco County School District apparently had other uses for some of the money it received. According to the Sarasota-Herald Tribune, six Pasco County schools spent more than $93,000 to upgrade playgrounds.

Last November voters said they want smaller class sizes, more teachers and higher pay for teachers. Let us dissect that $93,000: 50 teachers could have gotten an annual raise of $1,860 or three new teachers could have been hired at an annual pay rate of $31,000 or 93 new computers could have been bought for schools at a cost of $1,000 each. Statewide, about $50-million was spent on bonuses that went to people holding nonteaching positions. How many teachers could that same $50-million have hired? Yet people wonder why our educational system is malfunctioning.

What is wrong with being fiscally conservative at a time when the Pasco County School District says to get ready for tough times? It makes me wonder what else our tax dollars are being spent on, if not on educating the approximate 54,000 students of Pasco County.

Theater director thanks community for support

Editor: The Angel Cabaret Theatre is open and will remain open for a long, long time! And Dee Etta Rowe and Jimmy Ferraro will be performing!

I would like to thank the community for their many years of support for the theatrical productions that I have produced in our area during the many years I have been a resident. I have been producing and directing professional shows in Pasco County since 1977 at the Hacienda Hotel, the Dacker Dinner Theatre, the Flamingo Dinner Theatre, the Show Palace Dinner Theatre, Pasco-Hernando Community College and Angel "Garden Cafe" Theatre. All of these productions have been professional, successful, quality, critically acclaimed and all with nonunion actors.

If you think about it, all union actors were nonunion before they joined Actors Equity Association, my wife and myself included.

I would like to assure our patrons that as a member of the Florida Professional Theatres Association, I will continue to produce and direct top-quality shows. Nothing has changed. In fact, I will now have a larger talent pool of actors from around the country to bring to New Port Richey for your entertainment.

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