Pasco Hope community begins taking in displaced residents weeks after Hurricane Milton

FOX 13's Ariel Plasencia reports.

HOLIDAY, Fla. - Pasco County leaders announced a new community in Holiday, which will offer temporary housing to roughly 100 displaced storm victims.

In July, the county bought the two-acre property on Grand Boulevard, which was intended to become a temporary homeless shelter.

"And then Hurricane Helene hit. We noticed we had almost 500 people in shelters. Where are we going to put these folks?" Cathy Pearson, Pasco County's assistant county administrator for public services, said. "Then Milton hit. And then we have over 5,800 people in shelters."

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So, the county partnered with Catholic Charities to get this community – now called Pasco Hope – up and running as fast as they could. Officials then identified people who had been staying in the county’s shelters as candidates to become some of Pasco Hope’s first residents.

"This is really about re-housing those that have recently lost their home," Catholic Charities Executive Director Maggie Rogers said. "Whether they're displaced permanently or just temporarily, it's really us being able to assess their needs and help them move on."

There are 25 trailers that can house two people each and 50 single-person pallet homes. The Pasco Hope community also includes separate facilities where residents can do laundry, take showers and cook food.

Pearson told FOX 13 that several Pasco County departments and partner agencies worked together to get all this infrastructure in place in just three weeks.

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Catholic Charities will offer residents assistance as they look for new permanent housing options. Additionally, the organization will provide computer access, medical support and mental health counselors.

"Many of these folks that are coming here have lost every single thing they own," Rogers said.

About 100 people are expected to move into the Pasco Hope community soon. And while this is a great first step, the county acknowledges there are still so many other residents who also need help.

"So that's what we've been contemplating, because we don't know, even in our mobile home parks, how many people are still living in uninhabitable positions. So we have thought about that, and we said, you know what, the plan is, let's do this. If we have to go and do some more and get more trailers from the state, we will evaluate that," Pearson said. "So case by case."

According to the county, the Pasco Hope community will eventually transition into a solution for the homeless community down the line.

Any Pasco County residents who have been displaced by the storm and need help with housing, should reach out to Pasco Customer Service at (727) 847-2411.

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