SCANNING Sarasota PLANNING

Sierra Club Conservation Group Event Details Date: Thursday, September 18, 2025 Time: 6:00 PM Location: Selby Public Library – Conference Room (Downstairs, Southeast Corner) 1331 First St, Sarasota, FL 34236 Admission: Free and open to the public Team Statement: Staying Focused on What Unites Us We welcome people from all walks of life. Our meetings are a non-political and religion-free zone, allowing us to focus on our shared goal: protecting the environment. Respect, inclusion, and collaboration are at the heart of everything we do. Let’s work together to build a future where Florida’s land, water, wildlife, and communities can thrive. Our group includes people with a wide range of perspectives and beliefs. That diversity is valuable — and it’s essential we respect it. Let’s focus on what brings us together, not what could set us apart. Topic: Greenbelts: Sarasota Manatee Wildlife Corridors and our archaeology in Manatee and Sarasota  Guest Speaker: Dr. Uzi Baram. A Sarasota resi...

Update: A proposed mediation agreement was put forward  - it will go to the Board Oct. 21 - the Board is not required to accept it.  The proposed agreement - 86 homes, set behind water - is here. ============== A t the opening of the September 11 mediation of DR Horton's effort to reverse a 5-0 Board decision to deny its proposed 170-home project adjacent to the Celery Fields, Horton offered a revised plan: 122 homes, all behind a large retention pond: DR Horton's revised proposal for Smith Farm About 20 residents spoke at the hearing, run by a Magistrate, Mark Barnebey . None of the speakers supported the Horton proposal. The 50-acre Smith Farm is largely a floodplain - many who live in the area spoke of how tons of fill would be needed to elevate the homes - leading to potential flooding of surrounding neighborhoods. Other speakers focused on the impacts to the birding and recreation area of the Celery Fields - how the traffic from so many homes on a narrow winding road, cou...

At 9 a.m. this Friday, September 5, the County Commission will hold its fourth Stormwater workshop. This discussion will include an administration proposal to increase our annual stormwater assessment to the tune of an additional $5 million per year. But wait: Didn't the county raise our annual stormwater assessment just a couple years ago to bring in over $10 million in additional revenue? Do we not have federal grants of which $75 million is allocated for stormwater maintenance dredging? Aren't Sarasota County customers  already paying  more per capita for stormwater management than any other county in Florida? County administrator Jonathan Lewis says we need another increase. But last year, Stormwater "forgot" it had $15.7 million sitting in another account.  Here's an odd thing: When the Board meets on Friday to consider another increase,  there is no non-increase option. Lewis has only put before them the choice between a higher or lower increase.  Why is t...