News Briefs

+ County staff outlines Shell Road parking options
North Shell Road lacks lifeguards and organized parking — making it a difficult area for the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office to regulate activity. On a busy beach day, the public beach access on Siesta Key can be chaotic, according to neighbors.

Sarasota County staff will soon recommend a plan to Sarasota County commissioners to mitigate those issues, but funding isn’t currently earmarked in the budget.

The staff-endorsed option, which is one of six proposals, would create 16 parallel parking spaces and one angled handicap parking space along the street with the use of a shell material, posts and rope, and the displacement of the sidewalk, according to the draft of a memo from County Engineer Jim Harriott to commissioners. That plan would cost either $5,000 for staff design or $25,000 for a contractor design, plus roughly $30,000 for construction.

Commissioners could tap the general fund to pay for the improvements or defer currently planned maintenance on traffic signals or pavement markings.

Staff is set to present the proposal during an April 9 commission meeting.

+ Consultants to look at artists’ housing options
Consultants with Artspace Projects, a nonprofit developer of artists’ live/work housing, will come to Sarasota next week to evaluate sites within the area.

The Arts and Cultural Alliance of Sarasota County announced that Artspace consultants will conduct a feasibility study from April 8 to April 10, including a public meeting Wednesday, April 9, at the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee’s Selby Auditorium. The feasibility study will target potential sites in the North Trail.

During the three-day visit, the consultants are scheduled to meet with public officials, artists, real estate agents, banks and other stakeholders to evaluate how the city can facilitate the development of affordable live/work space for artists. Upon completion of the study, Artspace will either develop a housing project or provide an outline for how local stakeholders could undertake a similar effort.

The public meeting, scheduled from 7 to 8:30 p.m., will provide an overview of Artspace’s work and is intended to foster community support for a future project.

The city of Sarasota, the Sarasota Alliance for Historic Preservation, the Community Foundation of Sarasota County and the National Endowment for the Arts provided funding for the study, which cost $15,000.

Meetings & agendas
Siesta Key Association meeting — 4:30 p.m. Thursday, April 3, St. Boniface Church, 5615 Midnight Pass Road, Siesta Key

Regular City Commission meeting — 2:30 and 6 p.m. Monday, April 7, Commission Chambers, City Hall, 1565 First St., Sarasota.

Regular County Commission meeting — 9 a.m. Wednesday, April 9, Commission Chambers, Sarasota County Administration Center, 1660 Ringling Blvd., Sarasota.