Todays Letters: City's doesn't have to buy park

Port Richey City Council member Dale Massad had the audacity to accuse opponents of the city's purchase of a condemned trailer park of being "self-serving." The park has been on the market for well over a year with no takers. The city wishes to purchase the 2 acre parcel for nearly $850,000. They intend to spend another $30,000 to remove the condemned structures, a haven for drug and prostitution activity, which the Port Richey Police Department has claimed to be largely powerless to control due to lack of cooperation from the property's current owners.

Beyond the nearly $1-million price tag to buy and remove these junk structures, the city has no vision or plans for the property except attempting to sell it at a loss, during an unprecedented downturn in the real estate market.

In the mother of all bad business decisions, the city is negotiating to pay full appraisal value while this property is in foreclosure. Not only does it plan to bail out the owner of what it considers to be the most blighted piece of property in the city by paying the full retail price, but it intends to do so knowing full well that the property will change hands in a few months and will likely revert to bank ownership or be available for a fraction of its actual value on the steps of the courthouse.

Furthermore, the city, for more than six months, has had the power to obtain the necessary court order to remove the offending structures for a fraction of the nearly $1-million it now plans to spend. It still has this power, yet it refuses to even initiate the process.

Suddenly, with an election coming up in April, city officials are desperate to show the residents of the east side neighborhood that they finally did something about the problem, not mentioning of course how long they have ignored it. Now the problem is poised to take care of itself at little or no cost to the city, yet they refuse to halt or even to slow down the process of paying full price for property they don't need.

For what? To finally fix a problem that has been allowed to fester for years, now that it is on the verge of solving itself? Or to gather a block of votes in the upcoming election by pointing to how much money you needlessly spent to help the people of that neighborhood. Self-serving indeed, Dr. Massad.

People of the east side, the City Council had the power to help you all along and failed to do so. The result will be the same no matter what. The trailers will be gone and the property will be cleaned and cleared. The only question is whether you want to spend $30,000 or $900,000. According to at least one member of our City Council, the city doesn't need a vision either.

Fears of a new owner re-establishing the park are unfounded. The city has confirmed that a trailer park will never be permitted to operate on that property again. I implore all the people of Port Richey to oppose this purchase. Urge the city to do what it should have done all along and begin the process of clearing the property by legal means, and to penalize the owner for failing to abide by our codes and ordinances and for refusing to cooperate with the city's effort to eliminate crime on his property.

That will leave the city with nearly $1-million that can be used to bring about real revitalization of your area. I'm sure you can come up with some better ideas about how to spend a million dollars, even if your city can't.

Perry Bean, Port Richey

Sex rules may get tougherJan. 8 story

Article on sex rules was biased

This article was exceedingly liberally biased, deceptive and patently offensive to the intelligence and decency of Pasco County residents.

The mere printing of this article is in defiance of Commissioner Jack Mariano's request to wait reflects a blatant disregard and disrespect for both he and our county government.

And you were proud to put it on the front page of your paper?

Steve Davis, Port Richey

Give us real family recreation

I am floored that the county has money to invest in a stadium for the rich! For years, we have been asking for a community center to expand programs we provide to children and families out of a 800-square-foot house that we turned into a community center back in 2002.

Also this is what the county calls more "bang for your buck" when it decides to spend our tax dollars? We need an industrial park in Lacoochee and decent housing there so tax dollars can improve lives. (Buy the industrial park. It is for sale.) Help us create an enterprise zone for small businesses, not watch the rich and famous hit a small green ball around. We have been asking for a library in the Tri-Community area for low-income children and have been told that there is not any money available for even a Bookmobile to come and help kids read!

I think we should stay away from consultants and paying them. We need to have town hall meetings in Pasco County communities so people can have a say in where their money goes.

Denny Mihalinec, Trilby

Editor's note: Financing for the tennis stadium is through the 2 percent tourist tax on hotel stays, not property taxes. The tourist tax can be spent only on tourism-related expenses.

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[Last modified January 9, 2008, 20:38:16]