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THURSDAY, July 28, 2011
clearing the air By Rachel Brown Hackney | Managing Editor
Owners get to keep oversight
The Sarasota County Commission has affirmed that Siesta Key property owners will continue to be responsible for the quality of Village maintenance.
For the first time since the Sarasota County Commission began addressing the matter four-anda-half months ago, all the parties involved seemed to be in agreement July 26, on the validity of the bills covering the maintenance of
the Siesta Village Beautification project. Before the latest discussion began, however, Commission Chairwoman Nora Patterson made it clear that the county was not going to take away the Village prop-
erty owners’ oversight of the maintenance. That concern had arisen after the county’s former chief financial planning officer suggested to the commission July 13 that it might be more efficient to bring the upkeep back in-house.
Patterson referred to minutes from the board’s June 8, meeting, when the commissioners voted 5-0 to allow for the Siesta Key Village Maintenance Corp. to con-
SEE MAINTENANCE / PAGE 8A
DIVERSIONS Where do Asolo Conservatory students end up after they graduate? One graduate, who may also just be your favorite neighborhood bartender, is heading back to her California roots.
NEIGHBORHOOD
ALLEY CAT
13A
Beth OwenCipielewski has been bowling since she was a child, but a recent renewed focus on her game has earned her a spot in a major international competition.
CHARGE! Rachel S. O’Hara
The first “wave” of Olympic triathletes hits the water at 7 a.m., Saturday, July 23, during the Siesta Key Triathlon at Siesta Key Public Beach. See story and photos on Page 14A.
HOME & GARDEN
16A
Exotic touches from the owners’ travels complement the native flora in this Siesta Key garden.
4
CELEBRATING
YEARS
1971-2011
seeings spots By Robin Roy | City Editor
More beach parking may have to wait Although county commissioners hope additional spaces will be part of the first phase of improvements in 2012, they didn’t put that item in the initial construction plans. Beachgoers may not see more parking added until 2013. When county employees recently surveyed Siesta Key Beach users about the most important changes they wanted to see at the public beach, more parking spaces and a new restroom facility were the top two responses. But according to the latest Sies-
ta Key Beach improvement plan, only one of those issues will be a top priority. A revamped restroom is included in phase one, which is tentatively scheduled to begin next year. More parking spaces may have
to wait for phase two, which wouldn’t begin until 2013. County commissioners debated July 26, whether parking should be an immediate goal. During the public comments portion of the meeting, Lourdes Ramirez, former president of the
Siesta Key Association, pointed out that the first design for the improvements, created by the Glatting Jackson firm, had about 800 spaces in the paved parking area, while the more recent Kimley-Horn plan has 525. Both plans added 360 pervious parking spaces near the stormwater pond, she added. The plan needs more parking, she said.
SEE PARKING / PAGE 2A Domenick’s Blind Factory
Business directory.........22A Classifieds................... 22A Community Calendar......18A Cops Corner....................9A Crossword.....................21A Opinion..........................6A Real Estate...................20A
Vol. 22, No. 2 | Two sections YourObserver.com
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