Community Corner

Hacienda Redevelopment Decision Approaches

City leaders will discuss issues that still plague the project during a special work session tomorrow night.

Decision time on the redevelopment of the shutteredin downtown New Port Richey appears to be on the horizon.

The New Port Richey City Council is being asked to vote March 6 on whether to sign a “non-binding” agreement that outlines terms and conditions the city and developer would like to see in a formal contract to convert the Hacienda into a modern, boutique hotel.  

It is aso being proposed that the council vote in March on a resolution to agree to the proposed westward expansion of the building into Sims Park. The resolution would express that the council agrees to the removal and relocation of the Sims Park “Super Playground,” which sits in the proposed path of the expansion, and the nearby restrooms.

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If the council consents, the action would pave the way for a legally binding development agreement to be negotiated. That agreement could be presented to the city council this summer, and, if approved, construction could start in 2014.

Public Input Sought

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On Tuesday, Feb. 28, the city council will meet inCity council members cannot vote in a work session, but they can express opinion and give direction. The meeting takes place at 7 p.m. in City Hall.

History of the Proposal

In 2003, the city's Community Redevelopment Agency agreed to buy the Hacienda. The Hacienda had opened as a hotel in 1927, but was being used only as an assisted living facility at the time of the city's purchase of the building. The building has sat vacant since 2006.

The city has been negotiating the Hacienda’s redevelopment with Georgia-based firm Community Development Partners for five years. In October, city staff sent a to the developer. Talks have continued since then as negotiators seeks a public/private partnership.

The revised term agreement the city might sign off on in March proposes expanding the Hacienda Hotel westward to up the building’s room count from 55 to 93 and accommodate amenities.

Last summer, the city learned that a proposed northward expansion of the hotel could encroach into a section of Sims Park and put the project in conflict with a city ordinance that restricts how that section of park can be used. The northward expansion has effectively been taken off the drawing board.

City Manager John Schneiger said he does not believe that the proposed  westward expansion would put the project in conflict with the same ordinance that took the northern expansion off the table. 

Still, lawyers are doing research to determine if there are other titles and easements affecting the westward section of the park that lies in the path of the expansion.

The Hacienda is on the National Register of Historic Places. According to city development director Lisa Fierce, a westward expansion is the only option supported by the Office of Historic Preservation.

Regulators’ blessing is important because Community Development Partners is seeking historic tax credits for the project and needs to meet certain criteria.

The developers requested that the city approve a resolution specifically agreeing to the westward expansion and relocation of the playground and restrooms be approved along with the term agreement.

“The resolution gives us the comfort to move into the development agreement state,” Andy Ham, vice president of development for Community Development Partners, told city council members at a Feb.21 meeting.

The possibility of the relocation of the wooden Sims Park playground has drawn concern from people who use it, including members of Occupy New Port Richey who showed up at the Feb. 21 meeting.

City leaders have expressed that the playground has suffered from age. City officials have said they want to craft a plan that could guide the creation of a new playground somewhere else in Sims Park. Grants are being sought.

What Happens Next

Upon passage of the term agreement and resolution, the city and developer would launch negotiations exclusively with each other to craft and propose to the city council a legally binding development agreement by mid-June.

The developer would need to secure financing no later than 12 months after approval of the development agreement and start construction six months after it gets financing, Fierce said.


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