Baugh hosts public forum

EAST COUNTY — As she paced around in her beige high heels, the gaze of District 5 Commissioner Vanessa Baugh never left her audience.

Baugh spoke to about 50 people May 21, during a town hall-style forum at the Esplanade community clubhouse.

Attendees voiced concerns about the number of new developments being created and said there are not enough streets to alleviate the traffic congestion on major roadways, such as at Lakewood Ranch Boulevard and State Road 70.

Baugh shared about planned transportation improvements, including extensions of Lorraine Road and Lakewood Ranch Boulevard south to Fruitville Road, which are projects associated with Schroeder-Manatee Ranch’s Villages of Lakewood Ranch South. Sarasota County commissioners finalized approval of the project May 21.

“You won’t get these improvements in a month, but we’re already in the design stages,” Baugh said. “It’s going to get done.”

She vowed to push for other road projects that would improve traffic along University Parkway and Interstate 75, as well.

Baugh agreed to hold the forum after hearing from Esplanade employee Josh Meredith via email. He asked her to lead a forum that would address transportation and growth in the Lakewood Ranch area — issues he’d identified as concerns of Esplanade residents.

Baugh enjoys visiting area neighborhoods in her district and holding meetings to learn what topics her district’s residents have on their minds, she said.

She also has plans to travel to other communities, such as the Palm-Aire Country Club, during the summer.

“When I ran for office, I said that I wanted to have Town Hall meetings,” Baugh said. “If I don’t meet with people, how am I going to know where they are coming from, what their problems are, and if there’s something I can do?”

Contact Amanda Sebastiano at [email protected].