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Congressional push, county and agency seek quick deal on New Port Richey senior-housing site
Summary
A visiting congressman and the Area Agency on Aging urged the City Council to expedite sale or conveyance of city land to unlock roughly $7.2 million (part of a $30M project) in federal and county funds for affordable senior housing; council discussed leasing a recreation-center parcel as an alternative to avoid delay.
A visiting congressman, introduced in the meeting as Bill Arrakis, urged the New Port Richey City Council to move quickly to sell a city-owned parcel adjacent to the recreation center so Pasco County and the Area Agency on Aging can complete a $30 million affordable senior-housing project.
"I urge you to move forward with the sale of the city owned parcel adjacent to the New Port Richey Recreation Center… so we can proceed with a critical $30,000,000 project to build affordable senior housing in our community," the congressman said, warning that federal funding is time-sensitive and that delays could jeopardize grant dollars.
City staff described two options: convey two parcels on Indiana Avenue identified in the HUD environmental review, or lease a 2.5-acre portion of land on the recreation and aquatic center campus (Van Buren) for 100 years as a faster path. The Area Agency on Aging representative said some federal funding requires outright site ownership and that changing the project address would trigger a new environmental review that could take months.
"Our site control requires us to own the property outright," the Area Agency representative said, noting the agency manages Neighborhood Stabilization/CDBG funds and federal CPF/HUD funding tied to the project and that an environmental review for a new parcel could add about four months to the schedule.
Council members and staff discussed zoning, stormwater and parking trade-offs. One council member said the Van Buren/rec-center site offers existing detention and some parking, while another cautioned that a sale may still be required to meet federal grant terms. Staff and council pressed for a three-party approach (city, county, agency) and asked the county to review parcel plans so design work can begin in parallel with any necessary rezoning or environmental review.
County Commissioner Lisa Yaker told the council the county would support efforts to speed the project and shared examples of seniors who benefited from downtown services, urging rapid action to preserve funding and local momentum.
City staff asked project partners to provide parcel drawings and a written proposal so planners and legal staff could review land-use and funding constraints. Council members voted to pursue the option that best preserves the grant while directing staff to engage county planners, legal counsel and the Area Agency on Aging to refine agreements and timelines.
Next steps: council asked partners to deliver parcel drawings and a written proposal; staff was directed to evaluate zoning and environmental-review implications to keep the funding on schedule.
