The City was awarded a $400,000 federal grant to build the Legacy Trail Payne Park Multi-Use Recreational Trail (MURT). The trail will connect users from The Legacy Trail at Payne Park to protected bike lanes on the Ringling Trail to downtown and beyond -- plus offer shorter travel distances for those walking, biking, or using mobility assistance devices.

City staff is now working to complete the required Environmental Protection Agency’s National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which guides environment protection and restoration. It's anticipated those requirements will be met in the coming months and construction on the MURT is expected to begin in late 2024.

The new MURT will connect from South Payne Park at the School Avenue/ Legacy Trail Junction to Alderman Street, South Payne Parkway, and East Avenue.

We look forward to providing additional safe mobility options for residents and visitors to move around town. Stay tuned!

Learn more about the project here.

The Ad Hoc Van Wezel Purple Ribbon Committee (PRC) met for its inaugural meeting earlier this week with members taking the oath of office. They conducted housekeeping matters including selecting a chairperson (Lee-En Chung, P.E.), vice chair (Morris “Marty” Hylton III) and scheduled future meetings as needed for the second and fourth Wednesday of the month at 5:30 p.m. either at City Hall or the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall. All meetings will be open to the public and will be noticed in advance. 

Later this month, the Committee will gather at the Van Wezel for a comprehensive tour of the building by staff, as the Committee begins learning about our City owned and operated facility, and ultimately recommends viable options for reuse. 

Their assignment will be an in-depth process, including reviewing structural engineering reports, studying financials and more, which could take two years to complete. We appreciate the committee members' willingness to volunteer their time and expertise for this important community matter.   

It’s not too late to participate in our Mature Tree Program!

This is a unique opportunity to have a beautiful, mature tree planted in your front yard at a cut rate. Single family homeowners in the city limits just have to meet the required $100 deposit and the City will pay up to $500 to buy and plant an approved tree.

Since Phase 3 was announced last month, 19 homeowners have opted into the program and now have a beautiful, mature tree in their yard. In the accompanying photo, a happy resident can be seen with a lovely 10-foot-tall silver buttonwood just planted in the Hudson Bayou neighborhood. Congratulations!

Our vendor, Tree Biotics, works with City staff to determine the best placement of each tree, which could be a live oak, silver buttonwood, mahogany, red maple or gumbo limbo (no palm trees). Our goal is to plant an additional 90 trees before winter to help grow our urban canopy.

Click here for more information or email our vendor at MatureTreeProgram@gmail.com

The program is funded with monies collected from tree removal permits and earmarked for urban canopy initiatives.

Interested in learning about the Sarasota School of Architecture, currently featured in a special cultural heritage exhibit at City Hall? 

Join us for an open house and lecture at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 31 in the Commission Chambers to hear about this noted regional style of modern architecture. 

Our City Hall exhibit includes renderings, reproductions, original blueprints, and archival photographs. Many of the most well-known Sarasota School of Architecture practitioners are represented: Victor Lundy, Phillip Hiss, Paul Rudolph, and Jack West, who designed City Hall in the early sixties. So, City Hall offers the perfect location to foster conversation about this architectural movement!

The open house will feature presentations by Sarasota County Division of Historical Resources Manager Joshua Goodman, Architecture Sarasota President Morris Hylton III, and Sarasota County Libraries and Historical Resources Director Renee Di Pilato.  

The current exhibit is on display through June 2024.

Payne Park Tennis Center (PPTC) is proud to be the host facility for over 15 fall season USTA teams, including women, men and mixed combo teams. Previously, several USTA teams have advanced to the sectional tournament in Orlando, and we look forward to an exciting season this year!

PPTC also will host an in-house men's singles ladder competition Sept. 1 - Nov. 30. Already, nearly 20 players are registered, so it’s bound to be a fun season! Then, starting in November until February 2023, The Suncoast (men) and Tri-Cities (women) local leagues -- some of the largest independent leagues in the country -- will get underway.

Of course, courts are still available for non-league enjoyment! PPTC offers 12 Har-Tru courts, free hitting wall, ball machine rental and access to professional lessons and clinics – all in beautiful downtown Sarasota.

Click here to subscribe to the PPTC newsletter or call 941-263-6641 to learn more.

However you plan to celebrate the remaining days of summer this year, the Sarasota Police Department wants you to do it safely.

SPD will participate again this year in the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over high-visibility enforcement period, which runs now  through Sept. 4. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will be working alongside SPD to reduce impaired driving. 

According to NHTSA, 13,384 people were killed in drunk driving crashes in 2021 — that’s one person every 39 minutes. And, that’s why SPD is reminding the public that drunk driving is not only illegal; it’s a matter of life and death. As you head out to festivities during the Labor Day weekend, remember: Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.  

SPD offers these safety reminders to avoid drinking and driving: 

• Even if you’ve had only one alcoholic beverage, designate a sober driver, plan to use a ride service, or call a sober friend to get home safely. 
• Contact law enforcement immediately if you see a drunk driver on the road. In the Sarasota city limits, dial 911 or 941-316-1199. 
• Do you have a friend who is about to drink and drive? Take the keys away and plan to get your friend home safely.