Pasco County Community Development Receives National Award

NEW PORT RICHEY, FL — Third time’s a charm. For three years in a row, the National Community Development Association has recognized Pasco County Community Development as a winner of the 2023 Audrey Nelson Community Development Achievement Award for its collaboration on the Family Services Center.

“The Family Services Center helps families stay together until they get back on their feet,” said Board of County Commissioners Chairman Jack Mariano. “We’re proud of the collaborative work by our community development team and our local partners to make this happen.”

The Family Services Center consists of two buildings – a Family Services Shelter and a Housing Resource Center – and has helped more than 30 families since it opened in 2021. Homeless families are referred through the county's partnership with the Coalition for the Homeless of Pasco County.

The center plays an integral role in people’s lives during difficult times, allowing families to get meals, go through case management and keep their children in school.

Pasco County owns the property, and the BCC has a 15-year lease agreement with Catholic Charities to operate the Family Services Center.

The community development team was on hand Friday, Jan. 27, to receive this honor at the 54th NCDA Winter Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C.

Pasco County Community Development also received the Audrey Nelson Community Development Achievement Award in 2021 and 2022 for its collaboration on the Vincent House and Rosalie Rendu Residences Project, respectively.

The Audrey Nelson Award recognizes exemplary local projects and programs funded through the federal Housing and Urban Development Community Development Block Grant program and other HUD Office of Community Planning and Development funding.

For more information, visit ncdaonline.org.

This press release was produced by Pasco County. The views expressed here are the author's own.