Sarasota News Leader

03/14/2014

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Siesta Seen $312,372 in grant funds for the original work. Therefore, the proposed changes will have no impact on the funding, Blanchard said. As explained in the memo, the modified proj- ect would expand the number of shelters from three to five, add way-finding signage and two new crosswalks on Beach Road, upgrade one existing crosswalk and improve the current crosswalks at the beach park to add ramps and other features to enhance access under Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) guidelines. SCAT staff has been asked to postpone the start of the project until the beach park improvements have been completed in November 2015, Blanchard added. Thus, the timeline calls for the shelter and crosswalk work to begin in December 2015. "I realize that the condos across the street from the beach did not want a bus shelter in front of them" when one was proposed a num- ber of years ago, Patterson pointed out. "But it seems almost a glaring omission that you have one on one side and not on the other," she told Blanchard. Because a bus stop is in that location on the north side of the road, Blanchard replied, staff could assess the possibility of putting a shelter there. Referencing the aerial map, she noted that parking areas are in the vicinity of the spot Patterson had indicated. "So [the shelter is] not going to disrupt some- body's view of the beach," Patterson responded. When Hines asked whether Patterson's request would entail another staff evaluation of the entire project, Blanchard responded, "Design has not started," so that would not be a problem. Further, Blanchard said, staff plans to seek public comment on the full proposal as part of the design process. "That's all I'm asking," Patterson replied. "Explore it and take it to the public." When Patterson also complained that one crosswalk appeared to be far from the bus stop it was designed to serve, Blanchard explained, "We had some difficulty in sit- ing the approximate location of the shelter [there] due to trees … It's not too far, really." It will be about 800 feet from the crosswalk, she added. NO, THANK YOU The county's chief engineer, James K. Harriott Jr., notified the commissioners in a March 6 memo that staff is not recommend- ing the county purchase a parcel for sale at 5700 Midnight Pass Road. Apparently staff was already leaning in that direction when it found the price was more than $1 million higher than it originally appeared to be. According to the memo, Commissioner Nora Patterson was approached on Jan. 30 by Siesta Key Real Estate Consultants, wonder- ing if the county would have any interest in the property. The land, which contains an office building and a parking lot, is adjacent Sarasota News Leader March 14, 2014 Page 98

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