Florida Realtors shares the median sale price for townhouses and condos in Manatee County. Median sale price is the preferred summary statistic for price activity because it’s not sensitive to high sale prices for small numbers of homes that may not be characteristic of the market area. The median sale price only reflects the values of the homes that sold each month and the mix of the types of homes that sell can change over time. The median sale for October 2016 was $174,750, which is slightly higher than October 2015.  

Sarasota Memorial Health Care System on Friday won state approval to open a new hospital in Venice, but Venice Regional Bayfront Health, which got approval the same day to build a replacement hospital, may still challenge whether the area needs two full-service facilities.

David Verinder, CEO for Sarasota Memorial, says he would like to see a new hospital open in Venice roughly three years from now on a 65-acre property already owned by SMH. The $200-million facility would bring an additional 600 to 1,000 permanent new jobs in the health care arena to the Venice area, he says. “This is a facility not for today or tomorrow, but hopefully for the next 50 years or so,” Verinder tells SRQ. SMH has sought a certificate of need for a new hospital since April and had an initial request denied in June, but the state approved a plan when SMH agreed to have an obstetrics department and to transfer beds south rather than just request additional ones. The new hospital will include 90 acute care beds, 10 of those for obstetrics, as well as a 25-room emergency care center. Many special services, such as SMH’s neonatal intensive care unit and Level II trauma center, will still only be housed at the main hospital facility in Sarasota. 

Venice Regional also had an application approved by the state Agency for Health Administration on Friday for a replacement hospital to serve the Venice area. “We are proud to be Venice’s hometown hospital, and we look forward to continuing to provide high-quality health care to residents and visitors in Venice and South Sarasota County,” says Bob Hite, marketing director for Venice Regional. He says the hospital will continue to inform the community on progress with a new facility and will continue to invest in improvements at the existing hospital.

But officials there expressed concern about the state granting approval for Sarasota Memorial to open a separate hospital on Laurel Road, which could compete for business. “We are carefully reviewing the details of the decision now and will explore all of the appeal opportunities available to us through state administrative and judicial review processes,” Hite says.

Verinder believes with the population in Venice, there will be room for both hospitals to operate. “Hopefully everyone steps back and sees that quality health care at a reasonable cost is a good thing for the community,” he says. Verinder notes that many patients in south Sarasota County today drive past multiple hospitals to get to SMH’s campus in Sarasota, and this will shorten the time it takes those patients to receive care. He also says that SMH has not abandoned plans to build a hospital in North Port, and that opening a Venice facility will help develop the professional resources needed to effectively serve the population in South County. 

The Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee installed the 2017 officers and directors at the Installation and Awards Banquet. Officers for the 2017 year include: President Xena Vallone of Xena Vallone Realty, President Elect Greg Owens of Keller Williams on the Water, Treasurer Amy Worth of RE/MAX Platinum Realty, Secretary Kristin Triolo of Sarasota Homes International and Immediate Past President Linda Formella of Michael Saunders & Company. Other board members include: Marie Avery, Georgina Clamage, Sharon Gould, Barry Grooms, Alex Krumm, Maryann Lawler, Diane Lee, Renee Marquiss, Brian McGreevy, Robert Milligan, Denise Oyler, Roger Piro, Christina Pitchford and Rita B. Smith.  

Realtors Association

Take Stock In Children is a not-for-profit program that helps children from low income families achieve academic and personal success through a postsecondary college scholarship and mentor program led by a partnership of the Manatee County School District, local businesses, agencies and individuals. In partnership with the Campaign for Grade Level Reading Manatee, two students were selected for the Readers to Leaders program as a part of the Every Day Counts! attendance initiative for the 2015-16 school year. Devany Delatorre-Saucedo is a fourth grader at Blackburn Elementary and is being mentored by Blanca Moscoso. Dakota Waltz is a fourth grader at Bayshore Elementary and is being mentored by Ashley Sherman. 

Take Stock In Children

Sarasota Manatee Airport Authority has elected Commissioner John Stafford as chairman for 2017. Stafford was appointed to the board in October of 2013, and served previously as vice chairman in 2016. Stafford recently retired as chairman of the board of FCCI Insurance Group in Sarasota and presently serves on several community organizations. Completing the officers for the Airport Authority board will be Vice Chairman Bob Spencer, who is president of West Coast Tomato and Carlos Beruff, as secretary, who is twice past chair and represents Sarasota Manatee Airport on the Metropolitan Planning Organization. 

Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport