Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/185868
Sarasota News Leader October 4, 2013 Page 23 Railroad right of way. It would connect the "New Business" is where the meat of the 21-mile Legacy Trail to downtown Sarasota. agenda lies. The first item is a report on the Hudson Bayou Water Quality Project. If there While the Legacy Trail in South County is is a "most-abused" body of water in the city, mostly a recreational path, a northern leg Hudson Bayou is the hands-down winner. Not would make bicycle commuting a possibil- only does its water contain serious concentraity. It certainly would help knit together the tions of lead, but Lift Station Number Seven southeastern side of the city with a non-mo- periodically has erupted to dump uncounted torized corridor. gallons of sewage into the bayou. The water There are two public hearings scheduled in body also has dealt with the usual urban runthe evening. The first concerns adding a new off and dumping issues. financial instrument to the Sarasota Police Department pension portfolio. The second is a petition to create three single-family homes on Sylvan Drive, on the north side of Whitaker Bayou west of the Tamiami Trail. A previous plan allowed four condominiums, a clubhouse and six boat slips, but the new owner is seeking to "down-zone" without changing the official zoning. But the highlight of the evening will be how the commissioners handle downtown and Siesta Key business owner Chris Brown's bid to build New Orleans-style balconies in the 1400 Main St. structure at Five Points. He has already promised not to create a nightclub; his plan is for a new restaurant only. But nearby condo residents are concerned and organizing against whatever he calls it. The city commissioners will be asked again on Oct. 7 to decide exactly what they want on the site of the planned State Street parking garage. Photo by Norman Schimmel