Sarasota

The Sarasota County Commission approved $32 million in stormwater projects Tuesday to help prevent future floods at Bahia Vista, St. Armands and Celery Fields following the severe storms in 2024.

A Sarasota parking open house meant to ease months of frustration instead erupted into boos, shouting and accusations that residents had been misled about the meeting’s format.

Sarasota’s St. Armands parking garage has fallen far short of the revenue projections used to justify the project, leaving the city’s parking division struggling to cover the debt tied to it and contributing to a financial crisis now rippling across the city’s parking system.

The next Sarasota County School board will see a liberal-leaning majority take control after voters rejected the conservative policies and culture wars that for years dominated the board.

More than 100 paid ads have targeted Sarasota voters with claims presented as fact, paid for by LGAI and a second anonymous Wyoming entity, US Polling Research. None of the ads carried the disclaimer required by Florida law for political messages created with artificial intelligence.

The new crosswalk raises a basic question: What makes this design different from the artwork Sarasota removed at FDOT’s direction last year?

Since 2013, the division has received at least $3.9 million in subsidies and loans from the city’s general fund and still owes more than $1.6 million — more than the parking fund’s entire projected balance for the coming year.

Holly DeWitt and Marina Pope became close friends while building choir and band programs.

The city will now revert to its former parking hours and hourly rates — with free parking on Sundays and paid parking ending at 8 p.m. during the week – while the increased charges for citations will stay in effect.

Downtown Sarasota's newest bakery is a family affair — and a way for its Ukrainian owners to stay connected to home during an ongoing war.

The city will focus on modernizing the mechanical and electrical equipment at its 12th Street facility. Three electrical buildings will be torn down and consolidated into one, with a new backup generator.

Criminal citations for sleeping outside in Sarasota have increased more than fourteenfold since 2020, driven in part by expanded police training that now empowers officers throughout the department to enforce the city's lodging ordinance.