Year in Review 2022
Major Events
What We’ve Done
02.01
Local officials held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new CENTRAL ENERGY COOLING PLANT, which controls power, water and HVAC distribution for county buildings on the Ringling Boulevard corridor. The project involved relocating the plant to the corner of School Avenue and Ringling Boulevard, upgrading aging infrastructure and expanding capacity to include the William L. Little Health and Human Services Center. The project began in July 2020.
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03.22
The county celebrated the groundbreaking of the BEE RIDGE WATER RECLAMATION FACILITY EXPANSION AND ADVANCED WASTEWATER TREATMENT CONVERSION PROJECT. Tentatively scheduled for completion in 2025, the project will remove more phosphorus and nitrogen from reclaimed water, providing further protection for bays and estuaries. It will also increase the facility’s daily treatment capacity from 12 million gallons to 18 million gallons. Click here to learn more about how the project will enhance water quality.
04.22
Sarasota County celebrated the grand opening of FIRE STATION NO. 9, located at 6750 Bee Ridge Road, Sarasota, with a hose uncoupling ceremony. This project replaced the previous fire station with a hardened 3-bay facility built above the FEMA floodplain and able to withstand Category 4 hurricane-strength winds. Existing underground fuel tanks were replaced with new, larger underground tanks.
Click here to take a virtual tour of the station.
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05.04
The county held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new SOUTH COUNTY COURTHOUSE.
The 42,000-square-foot, two-story facility was constructed with one full-sized courtroom on the first floor and three on the second floor. The design will accommodate additional courtrooms in the future to meet the growing needs of the community. This project, which was partially funded by penny tax revenues, also added 175 public parking spaces and reopened access from State Road 776 to Annex Drive.
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07.05
Play (pickle) ball! Sarasota County held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for improvements to LONGWOOD PARK. In addition to six new pickleball courts, this 20-acre site in north county now includes additional parking, shaded seating, a drinking fountain, ADA access and improved pedestrian access at the park entrance, a multiuse recreation facility, one large picnic pavilion, two shelters, two playgrounds, outdoor basketball and tennis courts, and the Miracle League baseball field for persons with disabilities.
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09.28
On Sept. 28, HURRICANE IAN made landfall just south of Sarasota County as a strong Category 4 storm. It was barely two weeks to the day that Hurricane Irma slammed into the area five years before, and when recovery teams began assessing the damage, emergency management officials realized the impact from Ian would dwarf that caused by Irma. The storm caused wind damage, extreme power outages and catastrophic flooding.
Here’s how the county responded. MORE >
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