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Pasco Rolling Out Anti-Foreclosure Plan
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Published: March 4, 2009
NEW PORT RICHEY - With foreclosures threatening to throw still more families out onto the streets, Pasco leaders opened the door this week on a long-range plan to end the homeless problem.
As a first step, a Florida Housing Help Workshop on March 14 will reach out to residents facing foreclosure, the Rev. Dan Campbell, president of the Coalition for the Homeless of Pasco County, told county commissioners.
With a foreclosure rate of about 9 percent and other factors, Pasco meets the definition of a distressed county, Campbell, pastor of Community United Methodist Church of Holiday, said.
It would be "foolish" to continue the mistakes of the past 20 years in trying to manage and contain homelessness, Campbell commented.
"It's not just the compassionate thing to do, it's the smart thing to do," Campbell said. Dozens of cost-benefit analyses have shown it's less expensive simply to fix problems that lead to homelessness.
Pasco can follow the example of hundreds of other communities which have enacted 10-year plans to combat the problem, Campbell said.
The county has lost out on federal funds because Pasco had no formal plan to confront the issue, Campbell said.
Within several months, Campbell and others hope to finish the plan. He doesn't want some plan that gathers dust on a shelf.
The March 14 workshop will be a great place to start, Commissioner Pat Mulieri believes.
Often residents can't get answers from their lenders or other sources of information about avoiding foreclosure, Mulieri believes.
The workshop, conducted through the office of Florida Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink, will supply such information.
By mid-March, the county might know more about any more federal stimulus money that can be used, George Romagnoli, Pasco's community development manager, added.
The Florida Housing Help workshop will take place from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. Saturday, March 14, at Community United Methodist church, 3214 U.S. 19, Holiday. Advance registration is recommended. Call the toll-free number 1-877-693-5236.
Carl Orth can be reached at 727-815-1068 or corth@suncoastnews.com.
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