Sarasota - Start a Business, Retire, Or Both

Siesta Beach in Sarasota, Florica was crowned America’s best seashore. Sarasota is a great place to start a business, or retire, or both, which is what my wife and I have done.

Here are some of the attaboys that have come our way over the past few years:

• Money Magazine calls Sarasota-Manatee one of the “Best Places to Live and Launch a Business.”

• Money Magazine, CNBC and Portfolio.com each awarded Sarasota-Manatee their top designation as “Best Place to Retire.”

• Money Magazine named Sarasota-Manatee the “Best Place to Retire Young.”

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Sarasota Economic Development

Green energy composite materials manufacturer 5D Composite Inc. to create 120 jobs with move to Sarasota County from Canada

5D Composite Inc., based in Ontario, Canada, plans to relocate part of its manufacturing operation to Sarasota County in 2011 and create 120 jobs over five years, according to Mark Huey, president and CEO of the Economic Development Corporation of Sarasota.

Municipal Gift Catalog

Gift Catalog for a Community

You can create a simple Gift Catalog for your community. The Gift Catalog can be a simple one page flyer. You simply provide a way for a citizen who wishes to give a gift to the public a way to send money or real estate to the Village Clerk. 

The following is sample language for your own community gift catalog. Adjust the gifts to fit your community and add your own logo and graphics. Please feel free to use it.
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GIFT CATALOG

            Citizens can give gifts for public improvements for the people of their community. The gifts will enhance the community while providing a way for citizens to memorialize a loved one. The following are some possible gifts and estimated costs.

Trees $ 350

Park Benches $ 500

Landscaping, Evergreens, Flowers, Trees $ 750

Ornamental Lighting $ 2,500

Sculpture and Outdoor Art $ 20,000

Jogging, Bike and Nature Trails $ 100,000

Parks and Nature Preserves $ 700,000

City Hall Park Improvements with small fountain $ 900,000

Streetscape & Beautification $ 2,000,000

Swimming Lagoon Pool / Skating Rink $ 3,000,000

Farm $ 5,000,000

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The Village Manager of Beecher, Illinois just advised me that a citizen gave the Village $50,000 for a Veterans Memorial. The Village used that gift as the match for another State $50,000.   Nice to see the Gift Catalog work.

Click to Read About the Memorial

Click for a Word Version of a Sample Gift Catalog

Sarasota County Energy Efficient Community

Imagine the possibilities for Sarasota County to create an economically sustainable, energy efficient community

Sarasota County is working hard to: Create a stronger and more diverse economy. Help existing businesses expand and create jobs. Help new businesses bring jobs to the county. Create a community based on economic and energy sustainability. Sarasota County is learning and growing from the lessons of the recession. We are diversifying our economic base by growing environmentally clean jobs and adopting sustainable development policies and practices. We are locating jobs and housing closer to each other, reducing transportation needs, building on clean businesses and incorporating environmental safeguards for waterways and natural areas. These goals are reflected in Sarasota County’s plan to create an Energy Economic Zone, which would be implemented through an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan. The Florida Legislature authorized Energy Economic Zones in 2009 to promote economic diversification and reduce greenhouse gases. The legislation identified several strategies to accomplish these purposes: Attract green industry to the zone. Encourage alternative energy research, demonstrations, production and use. Use energy-efficient land use patterns. Facilitate sustainable building practices. The Florida Department of Community Affairs selected Sarasota County and the city of Miami Beach as communities to create pilot Energy Economic Zones as models for other communities to meet the goals of the legislation. Sarasota County’s proposed Energy Economic Zone amendment is an innovative approach to land use planning that adopts sustainable development practices and energy efficient solutions.  Message to the BCC on benefits of the Energy Economic Zone     from Nicholas C. Gladding, Commissioner, Florida Energy and Climate Commission

SRQ is a Great Magazine

SRQ is a great on line Magazine for Sarasota.


Check it out at:


http://srqmediagroup.com/

Sarasota Downtown Development

Article from http://srqmediagroup.com/

[Government] Costs High for Changing Building Rules through Downtown Jacob Ogles, Jacob.Ogles@srqmediagroup.com A tightening of rules on how construction can be approved on South Palm Avenue may now affect other parts of downtown Sarasota. As City officials expand the area where new rules can later be applied, the costs for changes is going up rapidly. When the City was simply planning creation of a South Palm zoning overlay district and preparing a needed change to the City's comprehensive plan, the cost of noticing affected property owners of an upcoming public hearing was set to run $524. But now that all of downtown could potentially be affected by a comprehensive plan change, that cost has skyrocketed to $3,471. That cost covers mailing notifications of a Development Review Committee meeting to all property owners who could be impacted by a change. Like mailings will have to be done when the changes go before the Planning Board and City Commission. But City Manager Bob Bartolotta said time and money could be saved in the long run by discussing all of downtown. Since the City Commission gave direction to move ahead on South Palm changes, other neighborhood leaders, including those in Laurel Park and near Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Way, have asked for similar comprehensive plan changes. "Do you want to go though a comp plan change every time? Why do every single one separately?" Bartolotta said. By having a comprehensive plan amendment, which can easily take nine months to a year to implement, affect all of downtown, it will save staff time and costs. The manager noted the comprehensive plan change being considered will not necessarily restrict development. South Palm residents are also moving on a zoning overlay which will change the rules. Commissioners would still need to approve such an overlay for other neighborhoods before significant rule changes affected development.  _______________________________________ Craig Hullinger AICP - The process described above is too slow and costly. Speed it up.