Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/273295
• Although county property values rose slightly over 4 percent in 2013, they dropped 40 percent during the Great Recession. She gave considerable credit to former County Administrator Jim Ley for pushing the commission to put aside money during the height of the boom, which enabled the county to weather the downturn as well as it did. • The county's unemployment rate hit the 13.3 percent mark for a couple of months during the recession. "That's just stagger- ing," Patterson pointed out. Now the rate is just under 7 percent — "higher than we'd like, but still a turnaround." • Although the $21.5 million total expense for the improvements at Siesta Public Beach is "more than I would have liked … [the results] will be gorgeous." • Turtle Beach will see about $750,000 in improvements, including gazebos and new picnic areas and kayak launches. • The renourishment of Turtle Beach could get under way this fall, after turtle nest- ing season ends. The county is awaiting the necessary permits from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. • The trolley service to Siesta Key is still on schedule to begin this year, "so not everybody has to bring a car to our con- gested island." Nonetheless, Patterson said, because that project is being funded for three years by the state and the county New Siesta Key Association President Michael Shay takes a turn at the podium. Photo by Rachel Hackney Sarasota News Leader March 7, 2014 Page 78