Port Richey approves new logo concept, drops 'City of' and orders color tweaks

Port Richey’s Community Redevelopment Agency voted to approve a revised city logo concept on a motion that directed designers to remove the phrase “City of” and to provide a darker orange for the text.

The vote followed a presentation from Derek, the project presenter, who walked the board through several logo options featuring a stilt house, pelicans and nautical elements and who said staff and community leaders had been consulted on the designs. Derek said, “The next phase is to take this, if you approve it, put it on different sign types to see, you know, what kind of signs you want.”

City Manager Andrew Butterfield, who introduced the item, and several council members discussed the tradeoffs between a shorter name and historical branding. Vice Chairman Chris Mayer and Member Christine Sullivan expressed that a shorter line — dropping words — is easier to remember; others urged retaining “City of” to avoid confusion with neighboring New Port Richey. Member Lisa Burke and other members favored a slightly darker, burnt-orange tone for contrast and legibility.

Design consultant Mike of KMA flagged reproduction concerns and said the firm will provide multiple color and format options, including horizontal and stacked versions and black-and-white and grayscale proofs, so the council can test durability and visibility on business cards, trucks and signage. “I would probably go just below the deck,” Mike said when discussing the precise shade transfer point on the artwork.

The board’s motion approved Concept 1 with the requested edits — removal of the word “of” from the phrase and direction to present deeper orange options — and the chair declared the motion carried. The design team will return with refined color samples and non-color variants for final acceptance and production testing.