- December 10, 2025
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With seven strong personalities comprising the Manatee County Commission, the county's staff members can sometimes be pulled in seven different directions.
So commissioners met for a work session Dec. 3 at the Bradenton Area Convention Center to discuss a strategic plan that will better guide staff members as to the entire board’s priorities, versus individual commissioner priorities.
District 5 Commissioner Bob McCann has made it clear that his No. 1 priority is to finish widening and improving Lorraine Road, but only one other commissioner placed a gold star next to Lorraine Road, so it is not a board priority.
When asked individually, commissioners came up with 79 different priorities, which were then categorized by staff and placed on poster boards. Commissioners were given 10 gold stars to place beside the items they felt were of the highest priority.
After the gold stars were tallied, U.S. 41 was prioritized over Lorraine Road.
“I put a star on advancing Vision 41 (improvements along U.S. 41 from Cortez Road to the Sarasota County line) because it’s the only one that’s financially feasible on that priority list,” Commission Chair George Kruse said. “The rest of it is just a pipe dream. It’s super expensive to build roads right now.”
The discussion of Lorraine Road ended up shifting to a bigger conversation about transportation.
Kruse wants to keep the focus on finishing the trail system and smaller projects, such as intersection improvements.
McCann countered that he can’t drive his car on a trail, and Commissioner Jason Bearden said that he doesn’t want to drive his kids to school in a golf cart.
In the end, the only major priority all seven commissioners could agree upon under the category of "Infrastructure, Mobility and Transportation" was that the permitting process needs to be reformed and streamlined using new technologies.
However, there were two issues that all seven members of the board agreed should be placed at the top of the priority list — change the way the millage is reviewed each year and attract "targeted agricultural and agritourism businesses" to Manatee County, which despite its growth still consists of two-thirds agricultural land.
Director of Government Relations Stephanie Garrison led the meeting. She said the strategic plan, when finalized, will improve transparency for the public and allow commissioners to hold staff members more accountable because every action will tie into a set goal.
In addition, every goal and every action will be tracked within a software system so staff members can provide regular updates to commissioners and residents.
Now that commissioners have weighed in, staff members will return Dec. 16 with a final draft for the board’s approval. At that time, a website will also be launched so the public can see the plan for themselves.
Kruse described how millage is reviewed currently by the commission, “We wait until September (when the budget is being finalized), and then we throw out a random millage cut and there’s no rhyme or reason.”
He equated the minimal cuts from past years to “trimming one olive off every salad” and said the cuts are never tied to anything.
Kruse used the recent change in garbage collection as an example of the government making assumptions.
“I voted to keep (trash collection) twice a month and have everyone pay more, and I was told that any dollar in the pocket is a good dollar to save,” he said. “We cut a day off trash, and people are starting to regret that decision.”
Kruse suggested following Wakulla County’s process. The county holds a series of Town Hall meetings where they lay out the budget and let people see how much each department spends and on what.
Essentially, the public is given gold stars to stick on boards and make their own decisions as to what services should be prioritized. Then, the staff lays out those priorities from highest to lowest.
Cutting the low priority items can provide a dollar amount going into the budget session.
Commissioner Tal Siddique also requested to see the utilization rate of county services, and Bearden wants the balance between workforce allocation and service delivery defined.
“What we don't want are our service levels dropping,” Bearden said.
While commissioners voted 4-3 to not renew the county’s contract with the Bradenton Area Economic Development Corporation in September, they did agree that economic development and job creation rate are at the top of their priority list as a board.
While disagreement remained as to which entity — the county or the EDC — should take on the responsibility, the board agreed that they want to attract more agricultural businesses to Manatee County.
“(Economic development) needs to be focused,” Kruse said. “There’s a lot of great things people in Manatee County are doing that could create permanent green space, create a thriving ecosystem out in the rural areas, and discourage the growth out there.”
Commissioner Carol Felts emphasized the need to “take advantage of the skills and talents that we have innately existing here.”
She focused on farming, but also scientific industries that are focused on water quality.
“Then, we’re bringing in businesses into rural areas that fit with the culture and help to preserve that culture long term,” Commissioner Amanda Ballard said.
