Sarasota County

A senior Sarasota County staffer called the developer’s proposal ‘insulting’ and urged the county to abandon negotiations.

A burn ban is now in effect for unregulated fires for all of Hendry County as dry weather conditions impact the area.Sarasota County also activated a burn ban as of Jan. 9 and Punta Gorda has activated a watering limitation.

In alignment with its mission of saving lives, the Sarasota County Fire Department (SCFD) has partnered with SunCoast Blood Centers to implement a groundbreaking prehospital whole blood transfusion program. This initiative aims to provide life-saving blood transfusions to patients suffering from severe bleeding or traumatic injuries before they arrive at the hospital.

The Florida Department of Health in Sarasota County is monitoring rabies among wild animals in the area. This is in response to a single confirmed case of rabies in a raccoon that was killed in the Bee Ridge area, off McIntosh Road between Proctor and Wilkinson Road in Sarasota County on January 25. All residents and visitors should be aware that rabies may be currently present in the wild animal population.

Due to the National Weather Service forecasting cold temperatures Tuesday night, cold weather shelters will be available in Charlotte and Sarasota counties.

Sarasota County is continuing upgrading water meters throughout unincorporated Sarasota County to enhance the utilities system and improve response times during weather events and year-round. This project started in 2023 on Siesta Key and is expected to take five years to complete the remaining meter replacements throughout unincorporated Sarasota County.

The Sarasota County Fire Department will continue its monthly open house events in 2025, inviting the community to connect with local firefighters and learn about fire safety.

Resurfacing and milling operations will resume Jan. 13 for Siesta Key after being suspended due to Hurricane Helene and Milton .Work will be done on local and residential roads first.Construction will occur Monday through Saturday 7 a.m. - 7 p.m., not including holidays. The project is expected to be completed in summer 2025.

Sarasota County will get a new $210,094,000 allocation from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery to assist with recovery and mitigation efforts from Hurricanes Idalia, Helene and Milton and Tropical Storm Debby.The county created the Resilient SRQ program in 2023 to support Hurricane Ian recovery from the prior allocation of $201,535,000 in CDBG-DR funding. It assists the community in rebuilding homes, repairing infrastructure and addressing unmet needs from Hurricane Ian.

Burn ban now in effect due to dry conditions in Sarasota County