Hillsborough County
Salvation Army food supply running low
With the low-income and unemployed struggling to make ends meet this summer, the Salvation Army of Tampa/Hillsborough County is running low on canned and dry goods. The charity feeds about 200 homeless people in its shelters each day and provides emergency grocery assistance for 75 to 100 families per month.
So the charity is asking Hillsborough County residents to step in to help by donating nonperishable food items to its monthlong Emergency Food Drive.
"Without their free or reduced school lunches, too many kids in our area eat only one meal a day, and many adults can't be sure where their next meal is coming from,'' said Major James Hall, Salvation Army area commander, in a news release.
Emergency Food Drive collection bins have been set up at the Community Worship Center, 1100 W Sligh Ave.; the South Hillsborough extension office, 7409 U.S. 301 S in Riverview; and in the Salvation Army Family Stores at 9926 Adamo Drive, 2815 S MacDill Ave. and 13910 N Nebraska Ave.
The Emergency Food Drive bins will be in place throughout August.
North Tampa
Jack, his beanstalk and the puppets
Children in kindergarten to fifth grade are invited to see a Bits 'N Pieces puppet production of Jack and the Beanstalk at 2:30 p.m. at Jimmie B. Keel Regional Library, 2902 W Bearss Ave.
A giant is loose in Cloudland, so Jack climbs the magic beanstalk skyward. Marionettes, big and small, perform together on stage in this traditional Celtic music puppet play.
The event is free. For more information, call (813) 273-3652.
Temple Terrace
Proposed budget shrinks, taxes same
City Manager Gerald Seeber has recommended a 10 percent cut from the current year in the proposed budget for the 2014-2015 fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1. Seeber presented a $44,089,781 budget, a reduction of $4,795,832 from the current fiscal year.
Seeber had recommended that the city postpone hiring a director of redevelopment, but the City Council this week, apparently reflecting optimism that the lawsuit between the city and the developer of the stalled Downtown Temple Terrace will soon be resolved, asked him to set aside $125,000 to hire a redevelopment director to oversee that project and others.
The council decided to leave in the budget a a contingency appropriation of $456,056 for municipal employee raises in the upcoming fiscal year. Seeber had warned the council in earlier discussions that they needed to think about raising pay in order to keep good employees from leaving.The city manager recommended that the property tax rate stay the same, at $6.43 per $1,000 of assessed value, though council member David Pogorilich and Mayor Frank Chillura warned that it's going to be difficult to attract new residents and businesses to the town with the highest tax rate in the county.
The budget sets aside $201,205 from reserves to help meet city needs, a reduction from the current year, and Seeber said the city may not need it all. He anticipates using $281,204 from reserves this year, though $509,575 was budgeted.
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Explore all your optionsSeeber warned, however, that without new or increased taxes and fees, "the only recourse available in the future will be to rely again upon a slowly dwindling General Fund reserve to pay for current year operating expenses."
The entire proposed budget is available online at templeterrace.com.
Town 'N Country
Dance like Bollywood stars on Saturday
If you're an adult looking for a high-energy, high-cardio dance class, you may want to check out Bollywood Moves, a fun fitness class that will be held at 4 p.m. Saturday and at 1:30 p.m. on Aug. 30 at the Town 'N Country Regional Library, 7606 Paula Drive, suite 120. Bollywood Moves, with short, easy-to-follow routines, is inspired by the dancing in Indian films.
The event is free. For more information, call (813) 273-3652.