The Lake Sarasota Community Blog

REMINDER: Public Hearings for Comprehensive Plan Update on June 8 and 10 Public hearings for the Comprehensive Plan Update will be held on  June 8 at 1:30 pm  and on  June 10 at 9 am . These hearings are for Board of County Commissioners to consider transmitting the Comp Plan to the State for review. Adoption by the BCC will take place after the State review, with target dates of October 2016. Documents have been posted online for the public hearings. The documents include: 1. Comp Plan Volume 1 Draft - June BCC Hearings, updated 06/06/16 2. Comp Plan Volume 2 Draft - June BCC Hearings, updated 06/06/16 3. Errata Tracking Sheet, updated 06/01/16 - contains policy information 4. Errata Tracking Sheet, updated 06/06/16 - contains map information 5. Planning Commission Recommended Policy Language, uploaded per public request  Please take note of the public hearing dates, times and topics listed below. Meetings will b...

Welcome to Sarasota County's community e-newsletter. If you have questions, ideas for articles, or feedback on the system, contact us at  pubcom@scgov.net .    Two events help people get insurance during open enrollment for Affordable Care Act The Community Health Center of North Port and the Health Planning Council of Southwest Florida will host two enrollment events on  Monday, Dec. 15  at Selby Library, 1331 First St. in Sarasota and at the Jacaranda Library, 4143 Woodmere Park Blvd. in Venice.  Gulf Gate Library mall location closing  Jan. 3 The Gulf Gate Public Library's temporary location inside Westfield Sarasota Square Mall will be closed beginning  5 p.m. Jan. 3 , in preparation for the opening of a new and improved library at 7112 Curtiss Ave., Sarasota, a few weeks later. Civics 101 now enrolling for 2015 classes Sarasota County Government's popular Civics 101 program begins  Jan. 22 , offering even m...

SARASOTA, FL – Sarasota County residents must be registered to vote by Monday, July 28 to be eligible to vote in the Primary Election on August 26, according to Supervisor of Elections Kathy Dent. To register, one must complete a Florida Voter Registration Application . Applications are available at supervisor of elections’ offices, city halls, county libraries, county offices, and social service agencies and may be downloaded from the supervisor of elections (SOE) website at  www.SarasotaVotes.com . Dent also recommends that voters visit the SOE website to verify their registration and precinct information prior to going to the polls to vote. Just click on “Voter Information” in the main menu and then select “Voter Lookup” or “Precinct Finder” and follow the easy instructions. A voter who has moved, had a name change, or needs to update his or her signature since the last election may do so by completing a Florida Voter Registration Application. Voters may call the su...

The Sarasota County Commission has cut impact fees in half on building permits issued before Feb. 1, 2013. The vote was 4-1, with Commissioner Jon Thaxton dissenting. The effect on the Bee Ridge Corridor Improvements is yet to be determined. The work on the Low Impact Road Plan was set to begin in 2014. Full story here

After hearing a presentation from engineer Jeff Roberts, the Sarasota County Commission today approved, by a unanimous 5-0 vote, the Low Impact Design option for Bee Ridge Road east of I-75. That means Bee Ridge Rd. will be four lanes from Mauna Loa Blvd. to Bent Tree, then two lanes from there out to Iona. About 40 properties on the south side of Bee Ridge (many of them in Lake Sarasota) will be acquired - hopefully at reasonable and realistic market prices - in order to develop a broad corridor with community features such as meandering sidewalks, ponds, bio-swales, and a good deal of buffering between the road and communities that abut it. (click to enlarge) It's a wise and timely decision, given that new projects that will increase density, traffic, and noise along Bee Ridge are on the drawing boards. Besides protection from noise, dust, pollution and sirens, the buffering and attractive landscaping will give the area east of I-75 a "Gateway" quality. Eventually the...

On Wed., Oct. 28, at 1 p.m., the Sarasota County Commission will hold a public hearing concerning plans for Bee Ridge Rd. east of I-75. Engineers will explain plans and probably answer questions, and presumably public comment will be invited. The hearing will be in the Commission chambers on Ringling Blvd. For more background on Bee Ridge projects, click here . Important update from the Bee Ridge Neighborhoods Committee : The Public Hearing is still at 1 pm, but the actual presentation from the Engineers has been moved to 4:30 pm on Wed. Oct. 28: County Staff has met with Commissioners earlier this week to secure their input and questions in preparation for the Wednesday, Oct 28 Commissioner meeting. This meeting will begin at 4.30 PM. Bee Ridge Road Construction will be the third agenda item. The County Administration Building is located downtown on Ringling Boulevard, across from the Post Office, just east of Orange Avenue. Come early to secure parking, located behind the building...