Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/301152
R o n a l d a n d S a n i a A l l e n b o u g h t t h e 7,429-square-foot parcel at 162 Beach Road as part of a two-lot package in 2009, paying $5.4 million for them. They were seeking a vari- ance to build a 3,088-square-foot house on the 162 Beach Road site and construct a paver driveway of 1,421 square feet. In January 2013, the County Commission refused their request to put a 4,744-square-foot house on the parcel. On Wednesday, Chairman Charles Hines told his colleagues, "It's just against my core in America to tell someone how big their house should or shouldn't be." However, he added, "Looking at this, I believe there is a reason- able expectation that there is a reasonable use that's available" for the property. "This is still a big house on this lot." "My concern is we have to focus on what's in front of us," Commissioner Joe Barbetta pointed out. He then referenced comments the couple's agent, William M. Merrill III of Icard Merrill in Sarasota, had made that a denial of the request could result in a lawsuit. "We can speculate we're going to be sued; we can speculate it's a taking [but] I can't sup- port [the petition] as it appears." Photos from 1992 show the 162 Beach Road property flooded. Images courtesy Sarasota County Sarasota News Leader April 25, 2014 Page 51