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DECEMBER 2018 Happy Holidays 941.349.0194|ISLAND VISITOR PUBLISHING, LLC
HOLIDAY CHEER
www.THELANDINGSOFSARASOTA.com
LMA Board Candidate Elections February 7, 2019 By Larry Lawrence and Henry Rhodes Co-Chairs
Generous support from Landin’ residents and local retailers bring much Holiday Cheer for Kids Fighting Cancer. page
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KID’S CORNER
The terms of five board members expire in February of 2019. Four of the board members are eligible for another term. Unfortunately, Neil Goldman has served 2-3 year terms and is therefore term limited. As such, he is not eligible for reelection. Richard Stern has volunteered to give up his seat to make room for new contributors. In Sept., President D’Silva appointed Larry Lawrence and Henry Rhodes as co-chairs of the nominating committee and Susie Golden, Sharon Goldman and Norman Olshansky as committee members. Goals for the coming year were to improve board gender balance, enhance representation of younger families, maintain year around resident representation and have candidates that
possess the skill sets needed for a strong board. The committee is recommending the following candidates: Doug Day, Deirdre D’Silva, Michael Knupp, Joan Koplin, and Paul Weiner. The committee plans to publish the candidates’ resumes in the January issue of The Eagle. There are five candidates for five open seats so there will not be a “contested” election. All candidates receiving votes will be elected. At the February 7, LMA Board Meeting, the Presidents of the homeowners and condominium associations will cast ballots for the election of the board members. (See accompanying article on pg. 13. by Michael Knupp on the LMA election process) A session will be held January 23rd at 7 p.m. for the Association Presidents
to meet and interview the candidates. Presidents’ and candidates please mark your calendars. Bio and candidates’ pictures will appear in the January Eagle edition. Qualified nominations received in writing by the LMA manager, George Niel, 30 days prior to the election will appear on the ballot sent in advance to the Association Presidents. Additionally, nominations will be accepted from the floor the night of the election. Please direct any questions about the election to Larry Lawrence or Henry Rhodes. Their contact information is in the Greenbook and on The Landings internal website. Happy Holidays! Please see the complete list of the Association Presidents on page 27
Siesta Promenade demonstration and hearing By Larry Lawrence / Photo by Norman Olshansky
Meet Cecelia “Cece” Plass, 15, 10th grader at Pine View School page
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VOLUNTEER Meet Jared Gracia-David, a volunter at Phillippi Estate Park
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HALLOWEEN PHOTOS
Photos from the 2018 Landings trick-or-treat event
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DEMONSTRATION Sura Kochman organized a rally on November 11 to protest the proposed Siesta Promenade project. It was estimated that 150-200 area residents participated and the demonstration lasted over an hour. About eight of the area community associations were represented as well as countless individuals. The Landings had an excellent turnout. Many displayed clever posters and signs. Given the honking of horns, waving and “thumbs up” by passersby, the demonstration was obviously very successful. Unfortunately, although the media promised to cover the event, they did not attend. That was disappointing, but it did not hamper the enthusiasm of the demonstrators. The LMA is greatly appreciative of the efforts made by The Landings residents in support of the demonstration. PLANNING COMMISSION HEARING NOVEMBER 15 Approximately 150 residents attended the Sarasota County Planning Commission Public Hearing on the Benderson Siesta Promenade application. The county planning staff began the session with a presentation on the various issues scheduled for consideration: re-zone, the Critical Area Plan (CAP) and a special exception to allow transient accommodations. Benderson then summarized the project which essentially was the same as that presented at the neighborhood workshop in August.
Interested parties were then given five minutes to speak, with the neighborhood association representatives presenting first. In all, approximately fifty-five individuals took the stand. The seven commissioners, although not asking many questions, appeared to be quite attentive. The vast majority of the speakers made presentations on issues of density, congestion, traffic, public safety, and healthy environments, building heights, and the area affected by the application. These presentations took about three hours. At the conclusion, the Commissioners began their deliberations. Continued on page 23
The Annual Holiday Dinner Dance is Sunday, December 2nd in the Lakeside Clubhouse with cocktails at 6:00 p.m. and dinner at 6:30 p.m. See LRC Manager’s Report on pg. 18 for sign up information.