Planning Commission sides with Nokomis residents on Shakett Creek

The owners of the vacant land at the southwest corner of Laurel Road and Albee Farm Road in Nokomis, Florida (851 and 871 Albee Farm Rd, Nokomis, FL 34275) are requesting rezoning from Sarasota County with an unprecedented swap from OUC (Open Use, Conservation) land into RSF-1 (Residential, Single-Family). (Petition 19-04)

WE NEED your help to stop the development of this sensitive land!

THE REZONE PETITION STATES (19-04):

“The Applicants specifically want to rezone approximately 1.015 acres of a fill area in Shakett Creek from OUC (Open Use, Conservation, 1 unit/25 acres) to RSF-1 (Residential, Single-Family, 2.5 units/acre) in order to build one single- family residence on the property. The Applicant also intends to rezone approximately 1.43 acres closer to the intersection of Laurel Road and Albee Farm Road from RSF-1 to OUC in what the Applicant is referring to as a “rezone swap”. The intent is to provide single-family residential zoning on the property where the Applicant would like to build a single-family residence and in exchange rezone another part of the property similar, but slightly larger in size, to OUC for conservation purpose. Much of the property is impacted by Shakett Creek, except for an area in the northeastern part of the property near the intersection of Laurel Road and Albee Farm Road and a fill area in Shakett Creek that is high enough to build. It is the latter fill area in Shakett Creek that the Applicant would like to use to build one single-family residence.”

HISTORY:

The owners bought this land at a highly discounted price from Sarasota County through a tax deed sale (a purchase price of under $25,000 for nearly 15 acres of land that abuts 2 sides of navigable waterways leading to the Gulf of Mexico). Two community workshops were held by the owners to inform neighboring residents of their intention (June 29, 2017 and December 18, 2019). The owners publicly stated that their goal for purchasing this land was to build their family residence on an island that sits at the southwest corner of the property. This island is currently zoned OUC. In order for the owners to build their home there, they are seeking permission from Sarasota County to rezone this portion of their property. They want to swap OUC zoned land with RSF-1 zoned land located elsewhere on the parcel.

CONCERNS SURROUNDING THIS ZONING SWAP:

Response Time by Public Safety Services
Public safety is a concern. The owners of this property have signed a waiver and made it public knowledge that in the event of an emergency, public safety services may be delayed and they are aware of this delay. The delay is due to the fact that the proposed driveway and bridge leading to the building site will not support the weight of heavy emergency service vehicles.

Non-Binding Development Concept Plan
Petition 19-04 is a Non-Binding Development Concept Plan. This means that the owners are not obligated to the plan submitted and it can change at any time. Whereas a Binding Plan means there are no allowable deviations from the approved plans. It is entirely possible that if approved, the owners of this land can build multiple homes on the property.

NOTES FROM THE JUNE 6, 2019 REVIEW BOARD PUBLIC HEARING

Four concerns that arose from the Sarasota review board hearing on June 6, 2019.

Sensitivity of the Swap:
A swap of this nature (OUC to RSF-1) is unpresented and had never occurred within Sarasota County, as stated by a County Employee.

Delay in Response to Public Safety:
A delay in emergency service response time was reaffirmed by Mr. Tom Hicks, a Sarasota County Public Safety representative who spoke at the review hearing. It was also affirmed by Mr. Hicks that this delayed response would pass with the property Meaning if the property was sold, the new owners would have to accept the terms of the Fire Marshall report and the possible delay in emergency response services time.

Non-Binding Development Concept Plan:
When publicly asked by Commissioner Morris “Would you be willing to make a stipulation that if this does go through that you would build a single family house on the property” An agent for the owners stated “I don’t think they are willing to make that stipulation.”

Additional Disturbance to OUC Land:
Notwithstanding the land within the proposed swap; if approved there would be additional disturbance to OUC land granted for personal access and utility easement, potentially up to 700 linear feet along Shakett Creek.

COMMENTS FROM COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSIONERS:

Commissioner Morris: “This is not a good deal for Sarasota County – taking environmentally sensitive land and swapping for something that is zoned RSF-1.” “Not a good trade for Sarasota county.” “The fact that the applicant has come before us and stating one house but absolutely not willing to stipulate that.”

Commissioner Theresa Mast: “… never recalls a swap of sensitive lands to RSF-1” “(She thinks) this applicant knowingly purchased this property in its current state ..” “The community would get the raw end of the deal on this one”

Commissioner Strelec: “…. a real safely issue out there and although people in the fire department can make agreements to that kind of thing it doesn’t change that fact that I think there is a real danger and that is why I don’t support this.”

Commissioner Cooper: “The applicant opened with a statement calling for ‘equal land for equal land’. I think that is a mischaracterization of what is happening here. The only thing equal is their relative size.”

One a final note, Commissioner Theresa Mast thanked the community members who came and spoke in opposition of this petition and carrying themselves in a very professional manner. She stated that commissioners are guided by regulations rather than emotions and have to factor those issues.

REVIEW BOARDS RECOMMENDATION:
The Review Board made a unanimous recommendation to deny Petition 19-04. A final review from the County Commissioners is set for September 10, 2019. If you would like to learn more about this rezoning request and watch the entire review hearing, please do so by following this link:


For more, contract Bill Cantrell at NACA:

Bill Cantrell  |  President
NACA (Nokomis Area Civic Association)
Cellular  |  941-586-8301
billcantrell@verizon.net
www.naca-nokomis.com

$19 million to pay for garage on prime I-75 property

Courtesy of the Sarasota News Leader

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Issuance of $19 million in bonds approved to pay for Sheriff’s Office’s new fleet facility in Nokomis

April 18, 2019 by Rachel Brown Hackney, Editor & Publisher

Complex slated for completion in the summer of 2020

A map shows the location of the new Sheriff’s Support Services Facility in Nokomis. Image courtesy Sarasota County

With a unanimous vote on April 10, the Sarasota County Commission approved issuing $19 million in bonds to finance a new fleet operations center for the Sheriff’s Office at 2101 Laurel Road in Nokomis.

The annual debt payment on those bonds is expected to be approximately $1,225,000, according to a county staff memo. Tentatively, the memo noted, the closing on the bonds is set for mid to late May, after staff has learned the latest bond rating for the county.

The project — formally called the Sheriff’s Support Services Facility — will be built on a 17.75-acre tract near Interstate 75. Completion and green building certification are anticipated in the summer of 2020, the staff memo pointed out.

On April 10, the board also approved — in the same motion — a contract with Atkins North America Inc. to manage the construction of the complex. Atkins will receive a total of $1,472,616.52 for that job and work it already has undertaken on the project.

Additionally, the motion awarded total payment of $17,446,312 to Willis A. Smith Construction of Sarasota for the building of the new facility. The staff memo explained that the company solicited bids from trade contractors for the initiative, under the terms of a contract the commission approved with Willis A. Smith in January 2018. The April 10 vote approved a contract amendment that increased the amount paid to the company by $136,816.

On Jan. 30, 2018, the County commission approved the initial, $1.1-million contract with Atkins North America’s Sarasota office for the design work for the complex. The funding for that contract and the initial one with Willis A. Smith came from Law Enforcement and Justice Facilities impact fees, a staff memo explained at the time.

Commissioner Alan Maio. File photo

Commissioner Alan Maio made the April 10 motion, and Chair Charles Hines seconded it.

The item was on the agenda as a “Presentation Upon Request,” but no board member asked for staff remarks, and no one had signed up to address the commission.

“A lot of things are coming online,” Maio noted, referring to a number of county public safety initiatives that are or soon will be underway. Among them will be the construction of three more fire stations, following the four built during his first term, he said.

“This is a very big deal,” Maio added of the sheriff’s new facility.

Earlier, addressing a person who spoke to the board during the Open to the Public period, Maio acknowledged “I’ve been the butt of a lot of interesting comments about the Sheriff’s Support building.”

Some Nokomis residents have criticized Maio for pushing for his colleagues to approve the location of the new facility. They have argued that the site would have been better suited for commercial purposes, given its proximity to the new Sarasota Memorial Hospital.

The groundbreaking for the health care complex took place on April 4. That 350,000-square-foot structure will stand on a 65-acre medical campus at the intersection of Laurel and Pinebrook roads.

On Dec. 13, 2017, the County Commission approved the rezoning of the approximately 52.8 acres at the intersection of Laurel Road and I-75, so the new Sheriff’s Support Services Facility could be constructed there. The complex will replace a facility the department has been using on Old Venice road in Osprey.

During the public hearing for the rezoning, Sheriff Tom Knight pointed to the easy access for his staff from the Laurel Road site to areas north and south of it, via I-75 and Honore Avenue, as well as to areas east and west of the property, thanks to Laurel Road and Clark Road.

On Jan. 8, 2013, as part of a presentation to the County Commission, Knight talked of his concerns about having very expensive equipment — including the SWAT team’s “Bearcat” and the bomb truck fuel tanker — sitting out in the open at the Osprey facility. “We have virtually nowhere to store them,” he said, noting that the equipment at that time was valued at nearly $8 million.

This is a rendering of the new Sarasota Memorial Hospital underway outside Venice. Image courtesy SMH

A county staff memo provided to the commission in advance of the April 10 meeting pointed out that the Osprey fleet facility for the Sheriff’s Office comprises multiple buildings. The main one, the memo noted, “was a former fire station, with additions and renovations over the years, in order to function at its current use. Only two maintenance bays are located within a [stormproof] structure, with the other four located in standard pre-engineered buildings.”

The memo added, “While the Facility is functional, it is not operationally efficient and is in need of extensive maintenance and improvements to meet current code requirements.”

Consideration of the community

The design of the new complex also reflects commission direction during the rezoning hearing in December 2017. At that time, Hines and then-Commissioner Paul Caragiulo talked of the need to make the site attractive, as members of the public had stressed to the board that the Laurel Road/I-75 area is the gateway to Nokomis and Venice. (Bolding added)

The April 10 staff memo said of the new complex on Laurel Road, “To control and minimize the Facility’s visual impact, the north and west project site boundaries will feature an 8-foot ornamental precast wall, softened by significant plantings of trees and shrubs, and the front of the Facility has been set back from Honore Avenue, allowing for a heavy vegetative buffer of street trees.”

The memo continued, “The Facility and associated outbuildings have been situated on the site to shield neighboring properties and internal vehicle parking. In addition, careful thought has been given to avoiding noise or light pollution outside the parcel. Operations, which would generate a higher than average noise level, will be performed within closed insulated wall areas, and site lighting has been designed to reduce light pollution through the use of fixture shields.”

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NOTE: The opposition to this plan noted that while this garage will cost money, it will also deprive Nokomis of a "gateway" asset such as a hotel which would bring in tax dollars to the County. 

More on this:

Public Record: Email exchange relevant to Sheriff Garage on prime property in Nokomis

County decision to give "prime real estate" to Sheriff questioned

County decision to give "prime real estate" to Sheriff questioned

UPDATE June 15: A Petition has been created to STOP the proposed Sheriff's truck garage on prime visible property in Nokomis.


UPDATE: See this recent letter of June 4, 2018, from John Ask to Commissioner Al Maio. It refers to the matter detailed in letters to Sheriff Tom Knight below, and begins:

Dear Commissioner Maio:

I hope you and your family are well, and doing well!

This personal communication is a long time in coming, and is written in the spirit of great disappointment, both in you and local government leaders; it’s written with stunning disbelief that individuals that I’ve known well, trusted, and believed in, can be so willing to put themselves ahead of others, and more importantly, ahead of what is in the best interest of the community and Sarasota County at large. Continue...

Earlier Correspondence:

Letter from John Ask, former chair of the Sarasota County Planning Commission and longtime member of the Nokomis Area Civic Association, to Sarasota Sheriff Tom Knight, dated May 9, 2018. 

The Letter concerns a county commission decision to give to Sheriff Tom Knight a prime parcel of public land for $zero compensation for a truck garage. The land is at Honore near Laurel Rd. in Nokomis. The Planning Commission hearing which supported this decision is here, beginning at the 2 hr 54 minute mark. 

Public Land at Honore near I-75 Laurel Rd. exit
Given to Sheriff for Truck Garage by Board

Dear Sheriff Knight:

This communication is intended to provide a partial solution to your several capital requests including the most recent helicopter request. As you well know, your Vehicle Maintenance Facility planned for the I-75 interstate exchange at Laurel Road and Honore Ave is on prime real estate that could be sold for high dollars and become an ongoing income generating source for Sarasota County tax rolls. As you well know, this Laurel Road interchange is where Sarasota Memorial Hospital is constructing a hospital. This county property which lies across the street has the potential to become commercial uses to complement the hospital and a true asset to Sarasota County residents, both in services and ongoing tax revenue generation.

Please recall, your meeting on the topic of the vehicle maintenance facility with Nokomis community leaders Bruce Dillon (also, an elected official on the Sarasota County Charter Review Board, and NACA Board Member), Bill Cantrell (Nokomis Area Civic Association President – NACA), and myself, at the time a Sarasota County Planning Commissioner, and former 13 year NACA President. 

An aerial map shows the proximity of
Rustic Road to Interstate 75. 

During that meeting we discussed that the alternative site for the maintenance facility was on the corner of Knight’s Trail and Rustic Road a couple of miles away, and is already zoned for Government Use (GU). This site is owned by Sarasota County and sits adjacent to your many other facilities. In fact, we shared with you documents showing that this was the site of choice of a previous study for locating Sheriff and Fire facilities, at study where I was in fact one of the participants and am a primary source. You stated to the three of us that you don’t care which site is selected, that either can work, and your absolute priority is getting the facility built as your need is imminent.

Sheriff Knight, in the way of review, if Sarasota County sells the Laurel Road/Honore Ave parcel it can generate sufficient money to buy your helicopter and more. 

Also, the commercial uses constructed on the site will provide an ongoing income stream to Sarasota County for other needs, including your office.  For example, the Sarasota County Tax Collector has told Bill Cantrell that a hotel on that site would generate roughly $250,000 in property tax revenue, with additional revenue to come from jobs, room taxes, and visitor spending.  Best of all, the hotel would only require roughly 4 acres of the site leaving much more opportunity for other development and income generation for Sarasota County. A hotel located by an interstate exchange and a new Sarasota Memorial Hospital represents a very realistic example and opportunity.

Finally, developing this interstate exchange commercially is not only best use of public assets, but it meets with the wishes of the community. The local community seeks commercial uses that meet resident needs vs. a vehicle maintenance facility; uses that create a positive first impression of Nokomis and North Venice as this is our Eastern Gateway Entrance. NACA has a long history of seeking to revitalize, redevelop, and develop Nokomis into something that the community and all of Sarasota County can be proud of.

Your vehicle maintenance facility does not come close to meeting that positive development goal, nor is it the best use of a valuable public asset that this land represents. A win/win for your office, Nokomis residents, and Sarasota County taxpayers is to construct your vehicle maintenance facility on the Knight’s Trail location on land that is of little value for other uses.

Thank you in advance for considering this very common sense solution that is seeking the best outcome for all in Sarasota County. Please reconsider the location of your vehicle maintenance facility allowing both the local community and all Sarasota County taxpayers become winners, and subsequently, a reason to be pleased and proud of our elected leaders in their use of public money.

Respectfully,

John Ask
Nokomis, Florida 34275

P.S. More information on this project, history, and the community perspectives can be viewed on the Nokomis Area Civic Association – NACA website main page at www.NACA-Nokomis.com

NACA and the community are committed to working tirelessly for the benefit of the Nokomis area, and Sarasota County. It continues to be the hope that our local government leaders will choose to work cooperative with our community for the benefit of all Sarasota County residents!

Cc: County Commission Chair, N. Detert; District 4 Commissioner A. Maio, NACA President Bill Cantrell

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(Ed's note: More correspondence on this matter can be found here. Images courtesy of the Sarasota News Leader; bolding and hyperlinks added to Ask letter.)