News Briefs

+ School district preps for School Choice enrollment
Parents who wish to send their child to a school other than the one to which they are zoned will have their chance during the Manatee County Public School District’s School Choice enrollment period, which will run Jan. 28 to Feb. 7.

Before the School Choice Open Enrollment Period begins, students and parents can attend the district’s School Information Fair from 6 to 8 p.m. Jan. 27, at the Bradenton Area Convention Center, 1 Haben Blvd., Palmetto.

Families can sign up for school choice at the fair.

Representatives from every public school and charter school in Manatee County will be at the fair to discuss educational programs, academies and opportunities.

The School Choice Open Enrollment Period is the only time during the year that parents can apply to have their child attend another school without citing a specific reason for the move.

Approval of school choice applications are subject to enrollment and other demographic criteria.

+ New section of Pope Road receives new name
Manatee County has renamed a section of Pope Road, which leads north to the Lakewood Ranch communities of Bridgewater and Esplanade Golf and Country Club.

County staff discovered the original Pope Road off State Road 64 would not align with a newer section extending north from State Road 70. The new section of Pope Road has been renamed White Eagle Boulevard because county development codes do not allow two streets to share the same name.

White Eagle Boulevard runs north and south between State Roads 64 and 70.

Road signs for White Eagle Boulevard were installed recently.

The old section of Pope Road will retain its name.

+ Planning Commission vets 2050 changes
The Sarasota County Planning Commission heard the second round of proposed changes to Sarasota 2050 Jan. 16, in a meeting that lasted more than three hours and included a 376-page meeting packet.

County staff presented tweaks to the long-term planning document, which guides growth east of I-75, intended to make it more attractive to developers. Most of the proposed changes target environmental regulations on the development of villages.

Planning commissioners were eager to vet the changes, but declined to outline specific modifications to staff recommendations before the Sarasota County Commission sees the second phase of 2050 changes in March. Critics of 2050 claim the plan, which aims to allow several compact, mixed-use walkable communities in East County, say the regulations are too stringent.

“It’s a big hairy thing that we’re dealing with here,” Planning Commissioner Robert Morris said. “I don’t want to get too bogged down with the minutiae of this.”

The Planning Commission voted 7-1 to recommend the changes with some guidelines about open-space requirements for villages.

Staff recommended lifting the 4,000 dwelling-unit cap on village developments and allowing more flexibility in the retail/residential/office space within village centers — which after the first phase of 2050 changes are allowed to be developed at the fringe of village settlements.

If the County Commission approves the changes, developers will also have more flexibility in the width of greenbelt (the improved pasture areas completely surrounding a village settlement) and greenway (natural areas surrounding waterways).

+ Mediation for Waterline Road project brings no verdict
A Jan. 14 mediation session regarding the fate of a plan for a 175-home community on Waterline Road, called the Martin-Hillwood project, did not produce a verdict.

The Manatee County Attorney’s Office said in a statement: “The mediation is ongoing, and the legal counsel for the applicant and the County Attorney’s Office will continue negotiations. Any action of the Board of County Commissioners to consider any proposed settlement agreement will be at a public meeting, and the public can comment at that time.”

The applicants and landowners, Mary Jane Martin Smith and her husband, Richard I. Martin, had issued an administrative appeal with the county requesting the mediation session after commissioners rejected their plan in September.

They also filed a lawsuit, in the form of a petition for writ of certiorari.

If the issue is resolved via an independent hearing officer — with either the plan approved as is or amended to appease both parties —the lawsuit will be eliminated.

“The litigation will remain abated while the mediation is ongoing,” the Manatee County Attorney’s Office statement said.

Meetings & agendas
Manatee County Board of County Commissioners Meeting — 9 a.m. Jan. 28, at the Manatee County Administration Building, 1112 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton

Manatee County School Board Workshop — 3 p.m. Jan. 28, at 215 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton

Manatee County School Board Meeting — 5:45 p.m. Jan. 28, at 215 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton

Manatee County Audit Committee Meeting — 3 p.m. Jan. 29, at 215 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton