SARASOTA
Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
VOLUME 11, NO. 26
FREE
YOUR TOWN WISH GRANTED
Make-A-Wish of Northern and Central Florida granted the wish of 18-year-old Hunter Hill. After a diagnosis of cystic fibrosis, Hill started playing video games to keep in contact with his friends through Xbox during hospital stays. His wish was for a laptop to keep the games going — and to use for homework, of course. Former “Wish Child” Nicole McDowell helped organize a limo ride for him to pick up a laptop and Xbox One at Best Buy, followed by a shopping spree at GameStop. “I was once a wish kid, so I understood the desire to be able to stay in contact with his friends…” McDowell said.
TURN THE PAGE After 14 years abroad, Elisa Hansen returns to her artistic home at the Ringling.
BLACK
TIE
PEOPLE WITH PURPOSE
Nikki Taylor encourages others to get involved in community philanthropy.
INSIDE
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THURSDAY, MAY 28, 2015
Today, the city of Sarasota and Sarasota County frequently find themselves unable to work together on major issues. How did they get to this point? Can they get past it?
THE GREAT
DIVIDE DAVID CONWAY AND ALEX MAHADEVAN OBSERVER STAFF
ARTS+CULTURE
REMEMBERING OUR HEROES 1B
A 2014 joint effort between Sarasota County and the city of Sarasota to construct a homeless shelter led to acrimony, harsh accusations and ultimately, no solution. “There is a clear path by the administration in the city to sabotage this process,” County Commissioner Joe Barbetta said at the time. That same summer, discussion about the future of the downtown SCAT transfer station saw the city question the county’s thought process and clamor for more control. “You’d rather be driving the bus than under the bus,” City Commissioner Shannon Snyder said. In January of this year, the county sought the transfer of city-owned land as promised in a 2003 agreement. The lack of response from the city angered the county, and the city attorney would later call the
original agreement a sham. Time and time again, when the city and the county begin working together on major policy issues, they have found themselves eventually butting heads. Though some individuals downplay the severity, there’s a general agreement that there is a divide between the two governments that has become more pronounced over the past five years. But the divide didn’t always exist. In 2005, the city and county were in the midst of what City Attorney Robert Fournier called a “love train” in a memo earlier this year. (That memo, naturally, was written to address ongoing tension between the city and county.) What made the love train derail, and how can it get back on track? An examination of the past 15 years of city-county relations shows a rise and fall driven by financial issues, philosophical differences and personality clashes. STORY CONTINUES ON 2A