The Lake Sarasota Community Blog

Good morning everyone. We will be working on the walls at Westminister and Bee Ridge again in the morning - preparing them for the paint. Please come out and help with the project. We will be there from 7:00 until 10:00 a.m. We could really use the help - hope to see you there. If you have high school students in need of the community hours - this would be a great opportunity. Thanks! Debbie

This Saturday, July 29, volunteers will be helping paint and complete the improvements to the Westminster Drive entrance beginning at 7 a.m. Meet at the entrance, bring a trowel if you have one. With eight people, the job should be finished by 10 a.m. Contact Peter for more info by email or phone: 377-2723. The next general meeting will take place on Tuesday, August 8th, at 6:30 at Sarasota Baptist . In Brief: - Residents are signing a Petition to ask the County to place stop signs at several designated intersections along Mauna Loa. - Debbie Marks and several residents will begin a door-to-door community survey later this week. Debbie indicated her plan is to begin on Thursday at the Mauna Loa entrance. The aim is to gather feedback on traffic calming and other issues, and to raise neighborhood awareness of efforts by Lake Sarasota homeowners to address issues that matter to the community.

What: Lake Sarasota Neighborhood Meeting New Time and Place: When: July 25, 2006 at 6:30 PM Where: Sarasota Baptist Church

Last night's general meeting, held at Sarasota Baptist Church , addressed a number of issues: - The group agreed to apply for a Beautification Grant. - A "Yard of the Month" initiative will recognize one attractive yard per month. All are encouraged to submit candidates. - Peer-to-Peer Code Enforcement was discussed as a means of upgrading messy properties. - Debbie Marks and residents will conduct a door-to-door neighborhood survey soon, getting input from residents on traffic calming and other issues. - The group agreed to look for locations, especially along Mauna Loa, where stop signs might be useful. - The issue of the Bee Ridge Corridor was introduced. Several residents described the intersection at Bee Ridge and Mauna Loa as unsafe and below par. The County apparently has plans to upgrade Bee Ridge east of I-75, but has not communicated its plan to Lake Sarasota because the community has no formal association. - It was suggested that County Commission candidates be...

From Debbie: Good afternoon everyone. One of your neighbors, Laura Mathis has been able to secure a meeting place for us at the Sarasota Baptist Church (SBC), 7091 Proctor Road, located just south of the park and schools. I realize this is short notice, but we will be moving the meeting tonight from the park pavilion to the auditorium at SBC. It is in the 'main' big building thru the main doors under the overhang. The guard on duty will be Wade Meyer. Signs will be posted at the park for those I can not reach by email. Hope to see you there.

Here's an update from Debbie about the next general meeting: July 11, 2006, 6:30 p.m. will be our next regular meeting. We will still be at the pavilion in Lakeview Park for this meeting and hopefully by our next regular meeting in August we will have made arrangements with one of the nearby Churches. We will be discussing the various beautification projects which have been completed and talking about what project to undertake next. Please join us. Also, the Beautification Committee will be working on the walls at Westminister and Bee Ridge again this Saturday morning (July 8) , preparing and painting them. If you have a few minutes, please stop by and help out. We'll be there from 7:00 to 10:00 a.m. Donations are also being taken to cover the cost of materials for the wall. If you'd like to donate, please contact Dawn Steele at 377-4710 or bring the donation to the meeting on July 11. Hope to see you all there. Thanks!