Sarasota & Manatee Counties news thread

[wondermint2]

Manatee County to consider speed limit cameras in school zones next week

For full article:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/ma...ceba3de7&ei=23

Those who speed in school zones may soon be caught on camera in Manatee County and subject to penalty if a new initiative by officials is approved next week.

Manatee County commissioners will consider plans to install speed cameras in local school zones during the county commission meeting on Tuesday.

The measure would not be the first time Manatee County employees have cameras to monitor traffic safety and penalize offenders who put school children and parents at risk. The county previously operated red light cameras to monitor traffic infractions at select intersections. However, the county ended the program in 2022.

Manatee County Chairman Mike Rahn said the school zone cameras are a different story because of the likelihood that many children, parents, and crossing guards could be walking through the area during high-traffic hours.

"The school zone cameras provide much more protection, much more safety than the red light cameras did when they were in effect," Rahn said. "There was a lot of public pushback on red light cameras, but we feel that there is more of an impact protecting our school children and their parents."

[wondermint2]

New restaurant focused on 'upscale comfort foods with a twist' to open in Lakewood Ranch

For full article:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/tri...ceba3de7&ei=28

A new gastropub, with ownership that's operated other restaurants in New York City, plans to soon debut in Lakewood Ranch's Sarasota County development Waterside Place.

Allswell hopes to open by September, said co-owner Tory Delany. Allswell's owners have also operated New York City eateries such as The Malt House, a tavern with two Manhattan locations, and Southern California-style Mexican restaurant/mezcal and tequila bar Mezcali, also in Manhattan.

Delany described the intended ambience of Allswell as a "pub setting that serves high-quality food and high-quality drinks, with the focus being on upscale comfort foods with a twist."

Some potential menu item examples she gave included duck shepherd's pie, bone-in beef rib with black garlic barbecue, cod fish and chips with English pea puree and malt vinegar aioli, short rib grilled cheese, burrata and stone fruit salad, pork belly sliders, Dungeness crab queso, and BFG (baked, fried, grilled) wings.

[wondermint2]

What is a Bill of Rights sanctuary county? Some places in Florida block federal laws

For full article:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/wh...892595a7&ei=21

Last August, Florida's Collier County declared itself a "Bill of Rights sanctuary."

Sarasota County followed a few months later. The Marco Island City Council announced in January plans to be the first city to take that stand. A Hendry County commissioner wants to join the fight. The Volusia County Chair in 2021 tried to get support for the move there but it was voted down.

What does any of that mean? Mostly, it means that people there are unhappy with and distrustful of the federal government and want to be able to disregard federal rules they feel are unconstitutional or overreaching.

Sarasota County passed a Bill of Rights Sanctuary resolution in November 2023 based on Collier's ordinance.

Sarasota's grew out of concern over perceived government overreach during the pandemic and frustration with healthcare professionals at Sarasota Memorial Hospital following treatment protocols established through the federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC) who refused to prescribe alternative therapies such as Hydroxychloroquine and Ivermectin (which studies have shown to have no impact on the virus) when requested.

[wondermint2]

Originally Posted by wondermint2

Sarasota City Commission revises vacation rental ordinance

https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/new...b391035f&ei=46

The Sarasota City Commission passed a revised ordinance to better protect neighborhoods from vacation rentals that some consider party houses.

The Commission voted 4-to-1 Monday to expand certain regulations from barrier islands to anywhere in the City of Sarasota.

Now all vacation rental owners that do not live on their property will have to get a registration with the city. The City is also changing the cap on the number of people that can occupy a home from 16 to 14.

New vacation rental owners must register by June of this year. Those already registered will be grandfathered in.

More details here:

Sarasota vacation rental regulations expand citywide (Video)

For full article & video:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/new...892595a7&ei=43

City leaders in Sarasota voted 4-1 Monday to expand short-term vacation rental regulations citywide that, up until the change, only impacted vacation rental properties on the city’s barrier islands.

After the initial ordinance passed a few years back, commissioners said they heard from residents on the city’s mainland who were dealing with similar issues such as late night parties, excess noise, littered streets and parking on sidewalks.

“It is Gillespie, it is Arlington, it is Alta Vista, it is Laurel Park, it is the Indian Beach Sapphire Shores neighborhood, it is central Cocoanut, it is Bayou Oaks. It is happening all over the city,” Commissioner Jen Ahearn-Koch said.

“The loss of the neighborhood feel continues,” said Kelly Brown, who lives in the city. “I used to know all of the neighbors on my street. Now, it is somebody different every weekend. They don’t even clean up their dog’s waste, they leave that for everybody else to do. This is not a hotel. This is our neighborhood, this is where we live, this is what we call home so I am super excited that the city commissioners decided to expand the vacation rental ordinance citywide.”

The ordinance amendment will impact around 700 additional short-term vacation rentals, according to Ahearn-Koch.

The new fee structure is will cost rental owners $500 for the initial application and $350 for renewals. The costs will cover both inspections and enforcement.

City officials say this ordinance will not impact owner-occupied short-term rentals, where the owner lives on property and is present during the guest’s visit.

[wondermint2]

School District of Manatee County to hold job fairs

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/sc...4c1f31f7&ei=62

The School District of Manatee County will host two job fairs in February, offering a variety of positions for job seekers with on-site interviews available.

Matzke Support Center is hosting a Transportation Job Fair from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 14.

Candidates will be interviewed on-site for open positions including bus drivers, bus aides, vehicle mechanics and more.

Matzke Support Center is located at 1 Matzke Way in Bradenton.

An Operations & Paraprofessionals Job Fair is taking place from 2 p.m. until 5 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024, at Wakeland Support Center, which is located at 1812 27th Street East in Bradenton.
Open positions include cafeteria managers, custodians, food service workers, HVAC technicians, paraprofessionals, plumbers, teacher aides and more.

Interested applicants are encouraged to view openings and apply online at their website:

https://www.manateeschools.net/careers.

[wondermint2]

Community calls for Bridget Ziegler to resign from Sarasota County School Board again (Video)

For full article & video:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/polit...2b198aa5&ei=28

Ahead of the Sarasota County School Board meeting Tuesday night, dozens of community members rallied again calling for Bridget Ziegler to step down.

Prior to the rally at the Landings, the group met at SEE Alliance in Sarasota and prepared for the meeting.

This is the third time the group has come together before a meeting and demanded Ziegler step down.

The community’s push for her resignations came after allegations of sexual assault surfaced against her husband, Christian Ziegler, the former Florida GOP Chairman.

Executive Director of SEE Alliance, Zander Moricz, said the calls for Ziegler to step down go beyond the alleged three-way she was involved in. He said it also has to do with protecting Sarasota County Schools from Ziegler’s “horrible” policy changes. According to Moricz, it’s time the community voted on whether Ziegler should stay or go.

“Only one-third of our community voted in the last school board election. No one has had to pay attention to school board’s because it’s previously been a non-partisan academic focused institution,” said Moricz.

[wondermint2]

‘You guys failed my child’: Bradenton teacher, aide accused of tying child with autism to chair for one hour


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELinZZPhW8A

[wondermint2]

Say ‘I Do’ again with special Valentine’s Day vow renewal ceremony in Sarasota

https://www.wfla.com/news/sarasota-c...-sarasota/amp/

Love is in the air, which means there’s no better time to say “I Do” once again than on Valentine’s Day.

On Tuesday, Sarasota County announced its annual “Say ‘I Do’ Again” vow renewal ceremony will be returning to Nokomis Beach and Siesta Beach at 6 p.m. on Feb. 14.

For more than 35 years, Sarasota County Parks and Recreation and Natural Resources (PRNR) has hosted the sweet event. This Valentine’s Day sunset ceremony will include light refreshments, music, and photo opportunities. Registered couples will also receive a flower and renewal certificate.

“A stunning sunset, singing shore birds and a gentle breeze certainly set the scene for love. Now take that scene and pair it with hundreds of other couples eager to renew their vows on Valentine’s Day, and you have our beloved Say ‘I Do’ Again event,” Recreation Specialist Kristie Lever said.

The renewal ceremony at Siesta Beach will be officiated by Judge Walker, and Judge Ruhl will officiate the ceremony at Nokomis Beach.

Couples can pre-register for the event online or by phone at 941-861-7275 by Friday, Feb. 9. Registration costs $15 per couple.

On-site registration opens at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, with the ceremony beginning at 6 p.m. It costs $25 per couple to register on-site.

Siesta Beach is located at 948 Beach Road on Siesta Key. Nokomis Beach is located at 100 Casey Key Road. Additional information is available by calling 311.

[wondermint2]

Proposed density increase in Newtown criticized as 'ghetto'

The Sarasota Housing Authority seeks higher density for new developments. A city Planning Board member says doubling the number of units at the Bertha Mitchell community will burden Newtown.

For full article:

https://www.yourobserver.com/news/20...wn-criticized/

There's a consensus that the need for affordable and attainable housing in Sarasota has reached crisis proportions, but opinions over solutions remain subject to debate.

While a zoning text amendment to offer incentives to developers for including a comparatively small number of attainable units in mixed-use projects in commercial centers and corridors slowly works its way through City Hall, the Sarasota Housing Authority is working to build 100% affordable housing developments.

But not without some resistance from one Planning Board member who characterized a request by the SHA to double the density as building a "ghetto" in the heart of Newtown.

During a Feb. 1 special meeting, Planning Board members debated SHA's request for a recommendation for approval of a comprehensive plan amendment for a new development on two small parcels at 1442 and 1456 22nd St. and a redevelopment of the Bertha Mitchell complex, an aging collection of duplexes on some 14 acres surrounded on three sides by single-family homes.

The two-part proposal is a request to amend the Future Land Use map from Multiple Family-Medium Density to Multiple Family-High Density for those parcels. The second part is to amend the Housing Authority Overlay District to increase the maximum building heights from 35 feet to 45 feet and to increase the maximum density on properties designated as Multiple Family-High Density on the Future Land Use map from 25 dwelling units per acre to 50.

[wondermint2]

St. Armands' Corvettes on the Circle canceled due to city decision

The Skyway Corvette Club was told vehicles are no longer allowed on the St. Armands Circle Park grass, which stopped the event that celebrated 25 years in 2023.

For full article:

https://www.yourobserver.com/news/20...city-decision/