Upcoming County Events

Let's talk Neighborhoods! This years summit will highlight neighborhoods and community organizations leading South Florida in quality of life. Local leaders will present topics relative to the natural environment, recreational and cultural opportunity, and public safety. Don't miss this opportunity to connect with neighbors and be inspired and motivated by the efforts of your local community.

Community Resilience Starts With You

Environment

Bioswales for Mosquito Prevention

Description: A residential stormwater ditch constantly held water promoting mosquito breeding and was impossible to mow. Several attempts at improve drainage failed and the residents decided to turn the existing roadway ditch into an 80ft. long bioswale to improve the situation. Sod was removed from the ditch and a rock channel was placed in the center flo-way. Wetland and drought tolerant native plants were installed in the flo-way and on the ditch banks leaving a grass strip between the top of bank and the roadway. The bioswale allows stormwater to move freely during heavy flows, reduces soil erosion and provides habitat for beneficial minnows, frogs and insects that eat mosquitos and their larvae.

Results: Water quality improved, ditch bank erosion and the need for mowing was eliminated. Also, the buzz of annoying mosquitos was replaced with the songs of birds, frogs and other wildlife. Residents control the vegetation in the ditch by manual removal methods when needed.

On November 15, the Board of County Commissioners approved a new watering schedule beginning January 1, 2023. The new schedule should help reduce the stress on water systems by spreading it out over a 6-day period, Monday through Saturday, instead of Tuesday or Thursday. The new ordinance will apply to all citizens living in unincorporated Sarasota County who use public or private water utility systems, private wells, or private connections to surface water bodies. The ordinance does not apply to reclaimed or reuse water or saltwater.

All clients will continue to irrigate their lawns once a week with no watering between 10:00 a.m. and 4 p.m. The new watering days will be assigned based on the street address. For more information regarding water restrictions please click on the link below.

Sarasota County's Air and Water Quality team is committed to preserving our environment and responding to concerns as quickly as possible. Submit an online pollution concern form at https://loom.ly/ouKQFmI or call 941-861-5000. Reporting an environmental emergency? Contact the State Watch Office at 800-320-0519. For more information about Air and Water Quality, visit scgov.net, keyword: AWQ. #SRQCountyPDS

Health

Community Health Action Teams (CHATs) are community-led groups working in coordination with the Community Health Improvement Partnership (CHIP) to improve the health of Sarasota County residents. CHATs are citizen-led teams active in four geographically distinct areas of Sarasota County, including North Port, Laurel, Osprey, Venice, Nokomis (LOVN), Englewood, and Newtown. 

CHATs identify and research health issues facing the community, then take action to address these issues. Some accomplishments include:

• Successfully advocated for health services.
• Launched a successful Drug-Free Youth (D-FY) Initiative and supported the created of prescription drug drop-off boxes.
• Developed community resource directories and established community well-being programs.
• Tested a community-based chronic care delivery model.

For more information, please reach out to the CHAT Coordinator, Andre McClerkin Jr. by phone at (941) 861-2964 or email at [email protected]. 

Gulf Coast Community Foundation is constantly looking ahead to identify new priorities, address emerging issues, deploy new solutions, and explore bold new approaches. Every few years, Gulf Coast Community Foundation deploys a regional scan, prioritizing our regional philanthropic work by identifying critical trends. The regional scan provides a roadmap to direct our community investments and inform the planning and work of community partners, government leaders, and philanthropists. This helps us mobilize resources to long-term and emerging issues in partnership with our community providers. We have begun preparing for our 2023-2024 Regional Scan and we want you to help inform the scan and its outcomes. Please help to inform the current regional scan by anonymously answering the following brief survey: https://bit.ly/3mIi7yq. Thank you for adding your voice to our knowledge and impact

Safety

The Peace River Manasota Regional Water Supply Authority and its partners are performing a cleaning process of the regional drinking water systems. Sarasota County gets more than half of its drinking water from the Authority.

Starting Monday, April 10 through Sunday, May 14, Sarasota County will be performing this cleaning of the county’s water distribution system. This is a common practice to temporarily disinfect drinking water with only chlorine rather than the county's normal process of using chlorine combined with ammonia. This process will last approximately 35 days. This process meets all federal and state standards for drinking water. While this cleaning process will allow chlorine to move through the water distribution system and may cause a change in the taste, smell, and color of your water, the water will be completely safe to drink.

Should you experience these temporary changes, you should flush your plumbing system by running faucets until the water runs clear; however, boiling water is not necessary. While your water will be completely safe throughout this process, customers on kidney dialysis who use a proportioning machine to prepare dialysate at home are advised to contact their physician or equipment supplier out of an abundance of caution to obtain the

appropriate steps to accommodate the change in water disinfection, and to install the proper filtering devices, if needed.

Customers using the water for aquariums should continue to use the common practice of monitoring the chlorine residuals. Customers should also check for discolored water before adding clothes to their washing machine. If you want to know more about the chlorine conversion process, please visit the following link or call 311.

Many older adults experience concerns about falling and restrict activities. Being inactive results in loss of muscle, strength and balance. It also compromises social interaction and increases the risk for isolation, depression and anxiety. Fear of falling can actually contribute to falling. If you are concerned about falls, interested in improving balance, flexibility and strength, and want to learn how to reduce risk factors the A Matter of Balance may be just what you need. This award winning 8- week program combines challenging beliefs about falls, creative problem solving, home safety, and home based exercise. If you are interested in hosting a class, please contact: Susan Berger at [email protected] or call 941-861-2558 

National Child Abuse Prevention Month was first observed by presidential proclamation in 1983. A blue ribbon is the symbol for awareness. Throughout the month of April millions of Americans can participate in bringing awareness to the issue of child abuse prevention.

Planning and Development

Interested to know projects in your area? Click on the map to explore our Planning Data Explorer!