BY MICHELE MILLER
What’s What New Port Richey
March 17, 2022
There was a different yet familiar feeling on the streets of downtown New Port Richey. The old man and I were out for a date night of sorts, riding high and getting a kick out of folks walking the streets, mouths agape and snapping cell phone pics as we rolled on by.
To clarify the fuss wasn’t about us, rather the horse-drawn carriage we were riding in being pulled by a 14-year-old standardbred mare named Molly. It’s something you might see in New York City’s Central Park, Charleston, South Carolina or St. Augustine where historical horse and carriage tours are the norms.
But who would have thought New Port Richey?
A few people it turns out – starting with David and Lori Wallis, owners of Cornerstone Carriage Company. In early January the couple relocated to New Port Richey from Cherryvale, Kansas to be closer to their granddaughter and settled here because of the potential they saw in downtown New Port Richey.
Then there’s Sean Fulton, who is entering his third year as the proprietor of Sip on Grand, a trendy downtown wine, beer and charcuterie establishment that’s garnered more than a niche following these days.
“Business has been good,” said Sean. “Every week I’m seeing more people who have never been here before.”
But it’s the regulars who have been helping keep him afloat. That’s why he brought Molly and her owners to downtown New Port Richey for one night as part of a second anniversary/customer appreciation celebration.
The $15 carriage rides, along with a 22% discount for food and beverages and Jason Taylor singing and playing his guitar, were all part of celebrating the success of the past two years despite repercussions to the hospitality industry because of the pandemic.
In March 2020 Sean was a brand new business owner making a big life move and one of the subjects I interviewed for a feature story I was writing for the Tampa Bay Times (Pasco County residents, businesses find ways to cope with new realities) on how COVID-19 was affecting some local businesses.
The story ran on March 18, 2020, one day after Governor DeSantis issued an executive order to close bars and nightclubs for 30 days and the Times gave me notice that my position in the Pasco bureau was being eliminated.
One year later, I wrote another feature story about Sean and his tenacious ability to make it through his first year of proprietorship for my own online publication, a fledgling LLC called What’s What New Port Richey that launched in June of 2020.
Now comes a follow-up – for both of us – and maybe for all of us.
It turns out that sometimes endings and hiccups aren’t all bad. Might even be a turning point toward something more fulfilling – if you take an optimistic vantage that’s easier to appreciate in hindsight.
“Looking back you see the silver linings,” said Sean, noting that the COVID shutdown enabled the former health care worker to ease into his new role as a business owner.
“I always try to be grateful about something,” he said, listing just a few of his counted blessings. “I had the money to keep going. To pay my employees. It gave us the time to slow down and think.”
“At the time it was frustrating,” he said. “But it actually helped me keep my feet underneath me.”
It also gave him leeway to experiment with new ideas in addition to trotting out the celebratory horse-drawn carriage rides that entailed meeting with city officials to make that happen.
PHOTO | MICHELE MILLER
To keep things going early on he promoted the concept of “date night” take-out service on social media, brought in live music, mid-week happy hour nights, and opened a service window to serve patrons social distancing at sidewalk tables. He tweaked the menu and started hosting “Murder Mystery Pub Tours” that tend to sell out in a flash, bringing customers to Sip as well as other downtown establishments such as Ordinance One, Cotee River Brewing Co. and Dented Keg Ale Works.
As a new business owner, he learned the importance of continuity for those who held Sip as a favorite haunt, so when the winter holidays rolled around he sponsored the traditional Christmas Golf Cart Parade that had been established by the original owners.
One of the best things, Sean said, was being able to learn about the wines he was selling – to delve into the origin and localities of the vineyards and the grapes, some grown on small patches of family-owned land in faraway countries.
Then there was the importance of giving back, something that should be part of any successful business plan.
A bottle of exclusive wine (a 2018 “Soul of A Lion” from DAOU Vineyards) is being raffled to support students in need at Gulf Middle School, a Title 1 school in New Port Richey where over 85% of some 900 students enrolled qualify for the federally funded free/reduced lunch program.
As someone whose primary beat for some 20 years was covering the positive side of education in Pasco County, I know well the value of these school programs and the people who subsidize them. (Tickets are $10 and can you just stop by to purchase – check the details out here.)
My silver lining is being able to still write local stories and possibly help fill the hole left when the Tampa Bay Times pretty much pulled their operation out of Pasco County.
Despite losing my job, I was able to use skills acquired over 22 years – writing stories, taking and editing photographs, learning new software programs, and pushing content on social media – to start my own LLC and online publication with a mission to help “connect people to the community they live in.”
Nearly two years in, What’s What New Port Richey is seeing a steadily growing local readership (close to 70,000 views now) as I learn to navigate the new normalcy looking for more stories to tell.
That means meandering through a new comfort zone that goes beyond visiting our beautiful county and city parks that provided a safe haven, some awesome nature photos and fun outdoor adventures during the pandemic.
It’s a transition that had us stepping into a large indoor venue for the first time in late February to see the Richey Community Orchestra’s Shades of Blue concert. That Sunday afternoon show featured trumpet virtuosos Charly Raymond, an enchanting performance of Rhapsody in Blue by classical pianist Jeffrey Chodil, and an array of talented volunteer musicians led by conductor Stephen P. Brown, who have proved essential in keeping the music alive in our community.
(FYI – There are just two shows left to take in this season. Get your tickets at the RCO website here.)
In early March we lined up with a bunch of kids and their families to take in the wonder of a free night of stargazing through telescopes at Jay B. Starkey Wilderness Park, a mostly monthly activity sponsored by the Pasco Astronomers that had been scuttled until a few months ago. (FYI – The next one is April 2!)
We stopped by the Cindy’s Pets Strawberry Festival in Sims Park, where organizers were thrilled to report a record showing as volunteers plated up shortcakes and made extra runs to the grocery for whipped cream. That is a very good thing, indeed, in that the festival is the largest fundraiser for the non-profit that delivers food for pets of seniors enrolled in the Meals on Wheels program.
PHOTO | MICHELE MILLER
I also attended my first small business workshop, courtesy of the Pasco Economic Council, which happens to have some very good resources for new and established business owners making their way.
Add to that grabbing a beer and a few songs with Chris Dupree and his guitar at Cotee River Brewing Co., ice cream outings with friends at a new favorite place called Cotee River Creamery and Desserts, and stopping by and staying a while at the East Main Street Coffee and Sandwich Shop for a pre-hike breakfast at Werner-Boyce Salt Springs Park in Port Richey.
PHOTO | MICHELE MILLER
On the agenda is the resurrection of the Chasco Fiesta. After a two-year hiatus, the 100th event kicks off Friday, March 25 for 10 days of revelry, lots of live music and some essential fundraising for about 20 local non-profit service organizations.
I am especially looking forward to the street and boat parades, the Native American Fest within the fiesta, as well as the Blues Masters Night concert on March 31 in Sims Park that features New Port Richey’s own singer/songwriter Julie Black and her band.
No doubt they and other musicians are jazzed to be back to playing Chasco again. And after years of covering the annual gala for one of the local rags, I’m happy to be writing about it again for What’s What. (Read that story here.)
As for the horse-drawn carriage rides, well there might be more news on that soon. According to David Wallis they could be a usual occurrence on weekends come November – April, “pending permit approval from the city.”
He’s working on that.
It’s another collective step in fostering fresh starts, new growth and a sense of renewal and well-being- the things a strong community thrives on.
Now onward.
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As a new resident to NPR, What’s What New Port Richey has been an excellent online resource for information about my new community.
I appreciate you and your efforts. Keep up the great work.
~Blessings
Jeffrey Bizzarro
Magnolia Valley
Thanks so much and welcome to the neighborhood!
Nice column, Michele.