For four consecutive years in our annual Sarasota County Citizen Opinion Survey, county residents say growth and development are their top concerns. From Siesta Key to Lakewood Ranch Southeast, changes to our Comprehensive Plan and other growth management policies are impacting our communities. The League of Women Voters invites you to attend an informational event at Gulf Gate Library, 6 p.m., on January 24. about growth and the planning process and how citizens are getting involved. Presenters include Lourdes Ramirez, the president of Siesta Key Community, and Susan Schoettle, a former assistant county attorney and president of Keep the Country. Lourdes will discuss her organization’s legal victories over two large hotels on Siesta Key. She will also discuss the current challenge Siesta Key faces due to proposed changes to Sarasota’s Comprehensive Plan and Unified Development Code (UDC), which could also affect the entire county. Schoettle will provide a brief overview of the community planning process in Florida and Sarasota County and how the protections they provided have changed since the latest Comprehensive Plan was adopted. Both Ramirez and Schoettle will discuss recent and ongoing development issues and projects in Sarasota County and explain how citizens countywide can get involved and provide input to the planning process.

What You Need to Know about Sarasota’s Growth Management, Jan. 24, 2024, 6 p.m., Gulf Gate Library, 7112 Curtiss Ave, Sarasota.

To register click here