St. Joseph Catholic Church parishioners oppose affordable housing units next to school
St. Joseph Catholic Church parishioners have sent a very clear message to Diocese of Venice officials:
They want no part of a proposed 96-unit affordable housing complex, which would be built adjacent to St. Joseph Catholic School, the only Catholic school in Manatee County.
Early in a meeting Wednesday night, which attracted a crowd of several hundred, Judge Edward Nicholas, acting as a private citizen, asked for a show of hands of those opposed to the housing project. Nearly every hand in the audience shot up.
“This is not a done deal. We can stop this. This is money poorly spent by the diocese,” Nicholas said, urging parishioners to call and email their county commissioners.
Under consideration are three garden-style walk-up buildings, a community center, access and parking behind the church at 3100 26th St. W., serving families with moderate income. Rents would range from $1,000 to $1,200 a month.
Rick Miller, president of Fort Myers-based National Development of America, said although tenants would be gainfully employed, they would not necessarily be able to afford traditional rental housing or a single-family mortgage in the Bradenton area.
The project would not be Section 8 or HUD housing, he said.
While no one disputed the fact that Manatee County has a serious shortage of affordable housing, building the apartment complex on church property would make it impossible for the school to expand, and potentially put students at risk, some in the audience argued.
Deborah Suddarth, principal of St. Joseph Catholic School, said she hadn’t planned to speak Wednesday night, but felt compelled to share her concerns.
“I cannot be quiet, I am sorry,” Suddarth said, adding that she recognizes the need for affordable housing and the diocese’s ministry to help fill the need.
“But I also see a beautiful ministry here with our children,” she said.
Student enrollment is growing, and the need for more classrooms needs to be addressed, she said.
“Landlocking us with this project will not allow this school to grow,” Suddarth said.
Wednesday night’s meeting ran more than 90 minutes. It opened with an outline of the project, but most of the meeting was devoted to audience comments and questions.
Joe DiVito, general counsel for the diocese, opened the meeting, saying the proposal had been previously presented to the St. Joseph Catholic Church finance committee, but that nothing has been decided or set in stone
“You are not all parishioners but you are all welcome,” DiVito said, taking note of the composition of the crowd.
Rachel Layton, a consultant and planner with ZNS Engineering, explained that if the project were to go forward, it would require Manatee County Building Department review and action by the county planning commission and by the elected county commission. There would also be a required public hearing.
Wednesday night’s meeting was intended to brief parishioners on details of the project, and was not the legally required public hearing that would accompany a formal application, DiVito said.
Opponents of the housing project wanted to know why the diocese was not building a Catholic high school in Bradenton, why it was not updating St. Joseph Catholic School , and why it was not putting money into improving the church’s food pantry, one of the largest in Manatee County.
Local attorney Sean Flynn attended the meeting. Taking note of the show of hands, he estimated that 95 percent of those in the room opposed the housing project.
“If you do not have the support of the parish, will you go forward?” Flynn asked diocese officials.
Bishop Frank Joseph Dewane of the Diocese of Venice responded that he came to Wednesday’s meeting only to listen.
“I didn’t come with a mindset or a decision made,” Dewane said, offering no indication of whether he supported continued exploration of the affordable housing project on St. Joseph property.
This story was originally published September 2, 2021 at 11:35 AM.
