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The East County community came out to support the grand opening of the $17.6 million Lakewood Ranch Library on Jan. 12.
About 500 people attended the celebration.
Commissioner Ray Turner told the crowd that the library was an “epic” project.
As soon as the doors slid open, it was a mad rush to get a look at the new 25,000-square-foot facility. Another 25,000 square feet will be available on the second floor which will be finished when the country decides upon appropriate uses.
“There are residents who have been here 25 years, and they asked for a library 25 years ago,” said Sue Ann Miller, president of the Friends of the Lakewood Ranch Library. “It’s an exciting day.”
Area hospitals, including Sarasota Memorial Hospital, are experiencing a higher volume of inbound patients with illnesses this winter, and are asking those who fall sick to act with care.
“The crowds are pretty typical for this time of the year,” said Kim Savage, communications manager at Sarasota Memorial.
“We’ve experienced more COVID, RSV (respiratory syncytial virus), and other typical viruses,” Savage said.
While nationally, there has been a rise in COVID-19, she said that’s not been seen in Southwest Florida, yet.
“The volumes we’ve seen, so far, are expected, and the strain of COVID seems less severe than in previous years,” she said.
Savage still urges those that are ill to be considerate to those around them.
With abundant holiday travel having just occurred, plus cooler temperatures, illness is aplenty.
“Flu and respiratory viruses have a typical seasonal peak between December and February which coincides with the influx of patients our hospital sees at this time of the year,” Sarasota Doctors Hospital Chief Medical Officer Jenn Bocker said. “Your assistance in keeping our community healthy by staying home if you are sick, washing your hands frequently and having healthy habits is greatly appreciated.”
Developer and political powerbroker Carlos Beruff recently applied for a permit on his controversial Aqua by the Bay project, which sheds additional light on the intentions behind the developer-driven plan to gut Manatee County's wetland protection policies.
Aqua by the Bay (formerly Long Bar Pointe) is a massive development on the last large undeveloped portion of Sarasota Bay in Manatee County. It is said to be Beruff's most favored development. While his audacious vision had to be curtailed after heated public opposition to the fact that it did not comply with several county regulations, it seems he viewed that as little more than a minor inconvenience.
In the 2020 and 2022 elections, Beruff shunned "developer-friendly" commissioners, who mostly voted for the many exceptions to the county's development rules he asks for, and instead backed candidates who seemed to understand much better what he expected in return for all that campaign and PAC cash.
The new board has kept itself hard at work ridding the county administration of its top leadership and installing a roster of people who seem likewise to understand what the man wielding the real power in Manatee County expects to be done. In other words, a single individual has essentially purchased himself a county government that can simply change any of the rules he does not wish to follow.
In October, those commissioners voted to remove the county's wetland protection policies and defer to whatever the state required. County officials claimed it was in response to commissioners asking that staff look for places where there may be duplication between state and local regulations. However, as TBT reported, it was actually driven by lobbyists for local developers.
In what can only be described as a farcical affair, the county outsourced the work to a consultant who did not seem to know much at all about wetland science. This was after county staff and an actual scientist refused to rubber stamp an idea that made about as much sense as a screen door on a submarine.
On social media, VPD posted that the starting salary ranges from $62,000 to $67,059.
There's a $5,000 State of Florida bonus for FDLE officers or certified out-of-state officers moving to Florida, with sign-on bonuses up to $7,500 possible.
VPD offers Special Event and detail opportunities, a take-home patrol vehicle, 11 paid holidays, eight vacation hours accrued each month, eight sick-time hours accrued each month, health, vision, dental and life insurance, wellness and mental health resources, and is part of the Florida Retirement System Special Risk.
The expulsion of Christian Ziegler as chairman of the Republican Party of Florida brings a wild scandal to a close— at least for the party. But how long will Sarasota remain in the Ziegler era?
There’s no doubt that both the fallen chair and his wife, Sarasota County School Board member Bridget Ziegler, wield less influence than they once did. Yes, both still hold positions locally. Christian Ziegler still serves as the state committeeman for the Republican Party of Sarasota. More noticeably, Bridget Ziegler remains on the School Board, where her term runs nearly three more years. But I’m not sure either will retain much sway with either position.
I’m often asked why the couple, early in the scandal, didn’t resign to avoid the steady drumbeat of scandalous headlines. The most obvious answer is financial; unlike some part-time politicians, the Zieglers’ income relies tremendously on political involvement. Much of that crumbled over the past two months, with Bridget losing her job as director of school board programs for the Leadership Institute and now with Christian fired from a party job with $120,000 base salary and quite a few other perks.
Considering that, it makes more sense Bridget Ziegler would endure meetings already, and countless more in the future, where a parade of dissenters repeat embarrassing details about her sex life on local TV. A school board seat isn’t the highest paid public office, but it has a healthy enough salary to help with a mortgage and health insurance during some pretty tough times.
It seems likely Christian Ziegler’s company, political marketing firm Microtargeted Media, will be less in demand this election cycle. Maybe something that doesn’t have his name explicitly attached to the brand can survive long term. Still, no one seeking political advice wants Christian Ziegler’s number today.
But the greatest hit long-term must be to the Zieglers’ political influence. Once coveted as supporters, particularly in conservative education circles, organizations like Moms For Liberty took noticeable steps to distance themselves from both Christian and Bridget Ziegler recently. Some of Christian’s closest allies in Congress, where he once workedas a staffer, have done the same. U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, his former boss, called for his resignation. U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, whose wife Erika founded a conservative school board group with Bridget Ziegler, made a trip to Tallahassee for the vote kicking Christian out of the chairmanship.
In the weeks after news of a rape investigation broke, I heard frequently Christian was on the phone threatening the political careers of those eagerly pushing him out of the party. But some of those same people now say he hasn’t returned their calls in weeks or more. He surprised many, myself included, when he chose not to come to the meeting where state Republican Party leaders voted 199-3 to remove him.
Sarasota County Schools could join more than 20 other Florida school districts in a lawsuit against social media companies, according to an item posted on the district's next meeting agenda.
The Sarasota County School Board convenes Tuesday evening, and if the item is approved the district would join a class-action lawsuit against the parent companies of Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and Youtube. The agenda item cites a Surgeon General's advisory that cites "mounting evidence for the risk of harm to some children and adolescents from social media use." The advisory adds that the platforms have easily accessible content that could be extreme, inappropriate or harmful to children.
Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium and CEO Dr. Michael Crosby were each recently recognized by two area publications for significant contributions.
Mote was named the top revenue-generating cultural nonprofit for the Tampa Bay region by the “Tampa Bay Business Journal.”
Crosby was named a 2023 Living Legend by “Florida Trend” magazine when it released its Florida 500 list of influential business leaders in the state. In 2020, Crosby was named among Florida Trend’s 500 most influential leaders in life sciences.
That puts Crosby in a lineup that includes Jeff Vinik, owner of the Tampa Bay Lightning, but he was quick to stress that any accolades he earned are due to the overall success of Mote.
The Whitney Plaza Community Center would be located at 6810 Gulf of Mexico Drive.
The Whitney Plaza Community Center recently received a hat trick of approvals.
Years in the making, the Whitney Plaza Community Center finally took a major step forward after the Manatee County County Commission approved the lease, interlocal agreement and funding.
The three key components were all approved in the commission consent agenda during its Jan. 9 regular meeting. County commissioners approved the consent agenda unanimously, and the Whitney Plaza items were not pulled for further discussion.
Having all three items on the same agenda was a “pleasant surprise,” said Town Manager Howard Tipton. It was like a late Christmas present.
“It was outstanding that they were able to come together and get that done,” Tipton said.
Beyond what the community center will provide in terms of service, Tipton said he’s looking forward to seeing how the community center will add to the synergy of the plaza.
“I’m excited for the businesses that are there, because this is really a nice pro-business move by leasing this space,” Tipton said.
Residents and visitors who choose to take courses in the plaza are within walking distance of the restaurants, fitness centers and shops that are all in the plaza.
Next, Tipton said the county and school district are working on a survey to be sent out to residents. The survey will seek to reaffirm what residents are hoping the space will provide, and will include some ideas talked about at the last community input session last summer.
A new water mark was just set for real estate in Lakewood Ranch. Premier Sotheby’s International Realty announced the $6.3 million sale of a home on Anchorage Place, the highest transaction ever recorded in the community.
“We are thrilled to have played a role in facilitating this groundbreaking transaction, setting a new benchmark for the Lakewood Ranch real estate market,” said Donna Soda, the real estate associate representing the seller.
The 2012 London Bay Homes house sits on a 1.5-acre property with lakeside views, and it overlooks the clubhouse at The Lake Club. And as residents of The Lake Club, owners have access to the restaurant, two resort-style swimming pools, fitness center and other amenities.
Sarasota Vice Mayor Jen Ahearn-Koch sees a worst-case fallout from a potential zoning text change designed to spur more affordable housing through density bonuses.
If you give developers room to build bigger than the current zoning code allows, they could turn the busiest sections of Sarasota into hubs for overgrowth and unsightly urban sprawl, Ahearn-Koch said during a Sarasota City Commission workshop on Monday.
The Sarasota City Commission weighed the pros and cons of the zoning text amendment, which would create three new zoning corridors to promote the development of attainable housing. The amendment will go before the Sarasota Planning Board on Jan. 24 and, if recommended for approval, will see a city commission vote in the spring.
To promote the development of attainable housing — described as affordable for residents earning between 80% and 120% of an area’s median income — the amendment would afford a triple-density bonus to projects that designate at least 15% of the extra units as attainable.
At least a third of these affordable units must be priced at or below 80% of the area’s median income, and no more than a third of the units can be priced at or above 120% of the area’s median income ($64,000 in the Northport, Sarasota, and Bradenton area, according to a presentation from development staff). These units will have to remain attainable for at least 30 years.
The amendment would be the last step in a series of zoning ordinances aimed at increasing attainable housing. It’s an initiative that began in part with the passage of an Urban Mixed-Use Future Land Use classification, which designated major commercial centers along Tamiami Trail and Fruitville Road as ideal locations for future mixed-use developments.
Several other provisions, including a quadruple density bonus allocated to developers that build affordable units in some downtown zoning districts, aim to bolster the broader affordable housing initiative.
Chief Planner Briana Dobbs said the widespread goal is to provide housing for middle-class workers who otherwise couldn’t afford housing close to their workplaces.
“It’s really looking at these individuals who are working here in the city that should also have the ability to live here,” Dobbs said.
This amendment's density bonus is the latest developer incentive, and it means that — if proposed within these new zones — a project could build three times as many units as its original zoning allows if 15% of those extra units exceeding the zone's base density are priced attainably.
That was the wrench for Ahearn-Koch, who expressed concern that overuse of the incentive from developers could crowd the new districts with a higher volume of buildings than intended.
Will affordable housing policy encourage 'concrete canyons'?
Before affordable housing incentives are applied to redevelopment of commercial centers and corridors throughout Sarasota, at least one city commissioner wants staff to consider what she calls the worst-case scenario of parcels combined to create 3-acre sites eligible for more intense mixed uses.
Vice Mayor Jen Ahearn-Koch raised this concern as commissioners discussed the Planning Department's proposed zoning text amendment during its Jan. 8 workshop.
As an example of her concerns, Ahearn-Koch pointed to the planned Calypso Sarasota, which will combine three parcels along North Tamiami Trail to build a 224-unit apartment complex in a single building stretching more than two football fields in length along the roadway.
She's concerned about a proliferation of such projects outside the political process, as the ordinance will permit administrative approval.
The ordinance encourages development in areas identified in the comprehensive plan as a future land use mixed use. Residents have expressed concerns to staff and commissioners that allowing up to five-story buildings on parcels 3 acres or larger will result in “canyons” along the main thoroughfares.
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