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Nothing Ruled Out

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THE SUNCOAST NEWS

Published: October 8, 2008

One of the relics of that brief period in which it looked as if New Port Richey's long-struggling downtown redevelopment effort was finally going to take wings is the former home of First Baptist Church of New Port Richey. After the congregation left for a new home on Trouble Creek Road, the city bought the church complex overlooking Orange Lake. Back then, all things seemed possible. Home sales and property values in the city and around Florida were booming. There seemed to be a plan from some sort of development on every downtown corner.

Then the bottom fell out of the real estate and development industries, and the city, which had also bought the historic former Hacienda hotel building and other downtown land in anticipation of the coming boom, was left holding the bag, so to speak.

Last week, the city's Cultural Affairs Committee held a public forum at which turning the former church complex into a culture center of some sort was raised. In response, City Manager Tom O'Neill said "nothing's being ruled out" regarding what to do with the former church property. Mayor Scott McPherson said there are "15 to 20" possible things the city could do with it.

Who knows, if Florida's real estate market would just recover, the city could consider selling some of the other property it bought during the brief period of downtown euphoria to help pay the cost of turning the former church into a cultural center.

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