Crews hope to break ground next to Valrico Elementary School sometime in the next two months.
By LETITIA STEIN
Published March 26, 2004
Bloomingdale residents enjoy a park. So do their neighbors in Riverview, Dover, Mango and Lithia Springs. Brandon has two parks - on Sadie Street and on Providence Road.
Not Valrico. For years, the community glared as a blank spot on Hillsborough County's lineup of parks. But county officials are about to patch the hole.
Sometime in the next two months, crews will break ground on a park and community building next to Valrico Elementary on Miller Road.
The 20-acre site will feature a 3,200-square-foot recreation center expected to be staffed for after-school programs and community activities.
"When school's out, the kids can fall out of the building and walk to the recreation center," said John Brill, a spokesman for the Hillsborough County Parks, Recreation and Conservation Department. "That was needed out there."
The center should take six months to build. The county has budgeted $1.5-million for the facility's first year, including construction fees, equipment and staffing for five permanent positions. The park site will include football and soccer fields and playground equipment.
The county is considering sharing basketball and other playing courts with the school.
Valrico received one of four identical recreation centers that the county plans to build this year. Similar projects are planned for Country Place, Carrollwood Meadows and Westchase communities. Each recreation center features a multipurpose room, office space, restrooms and storage facilities. Each also will have playing fields.
Combined construction costs are $2.4-million. All four centers should be open by December.
