Speeding enforcement in gated communities requires HOA permission

Longboat Key Police Chief Russ Mager said a memorandum of understanding is required to set up a speed trap on private roads.

By S.T. Cardinal
| 5:00 a.m. May 31, 2026

A Longboat Key police officer measures the speed of vehicles traveling on Gulf of Mexico Drive. Traffic enforcement in gated communities require a memorandum of understanding with the Homeowners Association, said Longboat Key Police Chief Russ Mager.

Longboat Key
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Speeding issues in neighborhoods are a common complaint heard by police departments across the nation, but the issue becomes a bit complicated for officers to deal with when that neighborhood is behind a gate.

Traffic slows for a speed hump in Bay Isles.

Roberta Straff, who lives in the Bay Isles neighborhood on Longboat Key, has raised concerns with police about a speeding neighbor. Straff said she has seen the same black car repeatedly speeding through the neighborhood and estimates the car had been traveling 60 or even 70 miles per hour.

“Everybody here is aware of the situation of the speeders,” Straff said. “It’s an accident waiting to happen.”

The police report documenting Straff’s complaint states that Longboat Key Police Department is “limited in its ability to enforce traffic laws inside the community due to its roads being private.” Police Chief Russ Mager said police can get into gated communities at any time for routine patrols and to respond to calls.

Setting up a speed trap, though, is a different story.

“We have to get an agreement with the community to actually do that kind of work,” Mager said. “We have a form that they fill out that will allow us to do speeding enforcement in gated communities.”

The Bay Isles homeowners’ association signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the police department in 2022 to allow for traffic enforcement in the neighborhood, but it has since expired.

Straff, who walks her dog often on Bayou Sound, hopes a new agreement is signed to address the speeding issues.

“Bay Isles Association stopped them,” Straff said. “It was great when the police were here.”

Speed enforcement goes both ways

Mager said a majority of speeding enforcement is on Gulf of Mexico Drive because of the sheer amount of cars the main road sees. Pooling resources to high traffic areas is more efficient than patrolling neighborhoods.

“The logic is that Gulf of Mexico Drive is the main thoroughfare into our town. You look at where you come across the greater volume of traffic and the high-visibility areas where you want the public to know that the police are here,” Mager said. “It's a higher visibility on a main corridor.”

On that main thoroughfare, speeders aren’t the biggest issue Longboat police see, but the opposite. Police are stationed prominently on the busy road often to enact Chief Mager’s high visibility goal, and he is sure to emphasize the presence of patrol cars is not because the road is dangerous.

“Just because you see us out there doesn’t mean this is some unhappy or ugly place. It’s still paradise, still every bit of Longboat. You might see police officers when you navigate the island, but that’s not a bad thing,” Mager said. “It's really to make everybody feel safe and know that we’re here if you need our help.”

author

S.T. Cardinal

S.T. "Tommy" Cardinal is the Longboat Key news reporter. The Sarasota native earned a degree from the University of Central Florida in Orlando with a minor in environmental studies. In Central Florida, Cardinal worked for a monthly newspaper covering downtown Orlando and College Park. He then worked for a weekly newspaper in coastal South Carolina where he earned South Carolina Press Association awards for his local government news coverage and photography.