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Hernando Today

New Vision For Old City Building: An Emergency Shelter

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By TONY MARRERO Hernando Today

The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 16, 2008

BROOKSVILLE - The dream to build an emergency shelter in Hernando County for evacuees with special needs is still alive.

A plan has been hatched to convert a 96-year-old storage building on the Brooksville Quarry golf course grounds into a pro shop, mining museum and office space that would double as a shelter using $700,000 in state and county money. It's money the state and county have set aside for the county's Enrichment Center to build a new center that would have doubled as a shelter, but that plan has faltered for lack of additional funding.

However, the city-owned building, built of reinforced steel and concrete and currently used to store golf carts and other equipment and machinery, could be the foundation needed to stretch the money far enough for a shelter, said Nick Morana, chairman of the enrichment center board.

The idea is bolstered by a preliminary engineering evaluation that found the building is in "good condition" with only "minor structural issues."

"We're pumped up about this," Morana said.

The city council will consider the proposal at its regular meeting slated for 7 p.m. Monday, Nov. 17, at City Hall, 201 N. Howell Ave.

The council has already expressed a willingness to consider accommodating the enrichment center's programs at the nearby Jerome Brown Community Center.

The enrichment center currently rents space in Brook Plaza, just a half mile north of the golf course. The goal is to save on leasing expenses.

The enrichment center's main location is on the campus of Oak Hill Hospital, and the board sought to build a new facility that would serve as a shelter on the campus. The hospital had pledged $500,000. But the price of the prefabricated concrete structures that would have been used skyrocketed, putting the price tag substantially higher than the $1.2 million.

The concrete structures would likely be used to enhance the city storage building, too, said Parks and Recreation Director Mike Walker. But fewer of them would probably be needed, he said.

The one-story building currently includes 3,200 square feet with two-story ceilings. The plan calls for adding a second floor.

Even if fewer concrete portables are needed, Walker acknowledged the project will probably require additional money beyond the $700,000 the center currently has in hand. He said he hopes to have a ballpark figure on just how much more in time for Monday's council meeting.

There may be potential for corporate sponsorships, Walker said. The idea has received initial support from the Hernando County Mining Association, which would likely be instrumental in helping create the mining museum.

The golf course sits on the first mining site in the county, dating back to the early 1900s. The industry has played a substantial role in the county's economy since then.

"That's where it all started, so what better place," Walker said.

Reporter Tony Marrero can be reached at 352-544-5286 or lmarrero@hernandotoday.com.

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