St. Armands BID circles traffic issues

Every year, scuttlebutt surfaces that traffic congestion in Sarasota is getting worse and beginning earlier.
Among attendees at the Jan. 13 St. Armands Business Improvement District meeting, the consensus was that the phenomenon is real this year — and that something needs to be done about it.

The city is currently preparing a study on the possibility of building one or two parking garages near St. Armands Circle, but, in the meantime, the BID is beginning to focus on more immediate problems board members believe could be addressed quickly.

Board member Michael Valentino outlined several problems he’s witnessed in recent weeks on St. Armands. A Longboat Key resident, Valentino said traffic between the two barrier islands is worsening; he attributed the problem to non-coordinated traffic signals on Gulf of Mexico Drive and Ken Thompson Parkway.

“The lights are all fighting each other,” Valentino said. “It took me a half-hour at noon to get to my office, just in that small little area.”

The situation is also dire getting off of St. Armands onto the mainland, those present at the meeting agreed. Again, traffic signals were fingered as a culprit — this time, located at Sunset Drive and Gulfstream Avenue.

“The last two years are the worst I’ve ever seen,” said Diana Corrigan, executive director of the St. Armands Circle Association.

The group hopes to explore its options with city engineers and the Florida Department of Transportation. City staff has indicated in the past that it has no power to adjust lights on roads FDOT controls.

Additionally, Valentino aired concerns about the number of parking spaces employees of Circle businesses take. He suggested that, to increase the Circle’s parking stock in the short term, the board might encourage restaurants and shops to transport their workers to their businesses via shuttle from an off-site location.

“If we don’t do that, we’re just going to be forcing customers to shop at University Town Center, because nobody wants to not be able to park,” Valentino said.

Board member Marty Rappaport questioned the practicality of some solutions suggested at the meeting, but agreed that it was time to address the recurring problems.

“The question is not recognizing the problem,” Rappaport said. “It’s how are we going to start taking baby steps to go in the direction of solving them?”