SARASOTA COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — A legal battle against Sarasota County has been brewing for more than a year and this week, the fight continues.
In the fall of 2022, Sarasota County commissioners approved changes to the Sarasota County Comprehensive Plan, which includes land-use changes that will pave the way for development out east, including a project that many view as an extension of Lakewood Ranch.
Lakewood Ranch Southeast could bring up to 5,000 new homes to a 4,100-acre property that sits between Fruitville Road and University Parkway.
The plot of land wraps around existing rural neighborhoods such as Bern Creek Ranches.
“We’re turning into ‘Ft. Lauderdale West’ which is what none of us wanted when we came here,” said Mike Hutchinson, who lives in Bern Creek Ranches. “You can’t see the stars anymore, which is the main part of Lakewood Ranches. It’s all gone.”
Opponents of the land-use change argue the proposed development isn’t compatible with the existing community and will “damage the quality of life and rural lifestyle for existing and future residents” out east.
“The roads in Sarasota are deteriorating,” Hutchinson said. “We’re a rich county and we used to have really good roads with no potholes. There’s potholes everywhere now.”
Residents decided to take legal action against the county’s decision last year.
“The amount of traffic, the amount of money being spent is just not keeping up with the growth that’s going on,” Hutchinson said.
Last July, Administrative Law Judge Hetal Desai of the Division of Administrative Hearings conducted a disputed-fact evidentiary hearing over several days. In December, Desai issued a recommendation which stated the Sarasota County amendment is “in compliance.”
The case will now be reviewed by the Department of Economic Opportunity.
