At the same meeting, commissioners fund the start of utilities undergrounding on St. Armands and Lido Key.
By Noah Bookstein
Original Air Date: July 22, 2026
Host: The City of Sarasota is expanding its wastewater treatment capacity—at a cost of $51 million. At its meeting Monday, the Sarasota City Commission took several other key decisions. Noah Bookstein reports.
The City of Sarasota’s wastewater treatment plant is undergoing a $51 million expansion. | Photo: Werner
Noah Bookstein: The Sarasota city commission authorized an over $51 million contract with Palmetto-based TLC Diversified Inc. for the Wastewater Treatment Plant Comprehensive Rehabilitation Project.
Commissioner Jen Ahearn-Koch pulled the item from the consent agenda for discussion and it was approved with a unanimous vote.
The project is funded by a loan from the State of Florida with an interest rate of under 2%.
Verne Hall is the city’s utility director. He described how old parts are failing and touted the much needed upgrade.
Verne Hall: There’s a great deal of planning that goes into these projects. We don’t just willy-nilly decide, “Hey, let’s go spend $51 million of the ratepayers’ money.” Everything that we do is done for a reason that is resiliency, environmental protection, and this is all part of the original master plan we did back in 2019 that takes us to 2040. What we’re doing right now is updating that plan to take us to 2055.
NB: In addition to repairs, the project will add a fourth clarifier and upgrade the wastewater plant’s capacity from 10 million gallons per day to just over 12 million.
Commissioner Jen Ahearn-Koch celebrated the project.
Jen Ahearn-Koch
Jen Ahearn-Koch: It’s quite an important long-coming project. I think it’s deserving of a presentation so the community is aware of the work that is going on here that is very forward-thinking.
NB: The City of Sarasota operates two separate plants on the 12th Street utilities campus: one that treats wastewater and another that treats drinking water. The drinking water facility utilizes reverse osmosis technology but has a lower capacity. This $51 million project is for the wastewater plant; the city’s drinking water plant went through its own earlier upgrade.
Most treatment plants were built to remove just solids, bacteria, and nutrients—not forever chemicals, microplastics or pharmaceuticals, which often pass through unless a plant has specific advanced technology.
Commissioner Ahearn-Koch asked about PFAS, a forever chemical. Hall acknowledged that PFAS and microplastics are current issues that state and federal regulators are looking at. In the meantime, he said the city is working with outside consultants and doing testing to find where these chemicals are captured in the existing treatment process and to find opportunities to remove them.
After the historic damage from the 2024 storm season, the city is moving forward with the process of undergrounding power and communication lines on St. Armand’s and Lido Keys.
The commission approved $8 million dollars of temporary funding to pay for work before the final repayment source is finalized. The city is aiming to be paid for the work through a special tax on local residents that has yet to be finalized.
The commission unanimously approved the agreement with Utility Consultants of Florida, Inc.
Work will take place in a two-phase process. Phase 1 covers preliminary engineering, cost modeling, utility coordination and the development of cost information for affected property owners. Phase 2 is not yet approved but would cover services including final design, construction administration and pole removal.
Commissioner Kyle Battie said undergrounding on the keys is long overdue.
The city’s advanced wastewater treatment plant on 12th St.
Kyle Battie: I see sometimes in this city, Sarasota has a hard time of preparing for the unknown and planning for the unexpected. That’s what happened with these storms. And you heard someone just sit here and say that there are people out there without electricity for so long, and we pride ourselves on trying to be a smart city and a city that works in sustainability and resiliency, and this is the first step in that that should have happened long ago.
NB: Chuck Half was there to express the support of the St. Armand’s Residents Association.
Chuck Half: Collectively, the St. Armand’s Residents Association—which I’m on the board of—we have regular updates with our members open to all of our membership, and we project progress at each of our meetings. We remain very supportive and excited about undergrounding of utilities. Today’s approvals would be very helpful for all of our residents and eventual next steps.
NB: Staff will return in the winter with detailed cost information and assessment ranges, at which point the commission will vote on whether to proceed with the implementation phase.
Rendering of Saravela, a luxury condominium project in the Rosemary District. The developer has marketed the condos for short-term rentals. | Photo courtesy GSP Development via Suncoast Searchlight
Also on the agenda was a discussion prompted by the developer of a luxury condo project near downtown that is advertising its condos as short-term rental opportunities. The commission directed planning staff to research and propose new standards and definitions for condo hotel and apartment hotel developments. No formal ordinance was voted on at this meeting.
Downtown hotels don’t have to follow the city’s residential density limits. Developers are now building units that look and function like apartments with full kitchens and multiple bedrooms, but by renting them short-term with centralized management, they’re classified as hotels, letting them skip the density caps regular housing would have to follow.
Mayor Debbie Trice expressed concern about the friction between transient guests and permanent residents.
Debbie Trice: If we’re freely mixing vacation rental-style apartments with residential apartments, we’re going to ultimately have the same unhappiness on that floor as we’re seeing in single-family home neighborhoods. That’s something, definitely, to take into consideration.
NB: Rosemary District resident David Lowe urged the city to clarify the rules.
David Lowe: Whether we ultimately call these projects condo hotels, apartment hotels or something else, the basic question is, “What exactly is the city approving, and how are these projects being allowed to operate?” The objective is not to discourage innovation or investment. It should be to ensure that Sarasota approves the project; the developer, the purchaser staff and the public, all have a reasonably clear understanding of what is being approved.
NB: Commissioners requested that staff “expedite” this work since there are relevant projects already moving through the development pipeline.
The Commission also unanimously approved an update to the city’s code and application process for special event permits.
St. Armands Circle’s green space is now formally a city park for permitting purposes, city co-sponsorship is limited to nonprofits and the Downtown Improvement District, adjacent blocks cannot host events on back-to-back weekends, and organizers now carry more responsibility for site safety—though they don’t have to name vendors until five days before an event.
Local business owner Chris Voelker expressed concern about competition from outside event vendors.
Chris Voelker: Local businesses should be given the first right of refusal for vendor opportunities at city-sponsored events. I’ve seen pizza vendors set up directly in front of Patellini’s Pizza on Main and barbecue vendors competing just steps away from Brick’s Smoked Meats. When businesses invest in our downtown every day of the year, it doesn’t seem right for city events to bring in outside vendors selling sometimes the very same products right in front of them. Although this issue is not included in the proposed ordinance, I respectfully ask that you consider adding a provision that gives local businesses the first opportunity to participate before outside vendors are approved.
NB: Speaking at the meeting, downtown resident Patrick McNamee expressed concern about enforcement.
Patrick McNamee: I think the audience is a little bit light on enforcement. What are the procedures? What are the fines? What’s the clear method to distinguish responsible event organizers from repeat violators?
NB: Sound is being considered separately, and the commission directed the special events team to return in April 2027 with a formal update on the ordinance’s effectiveness, feedback on enforcement and any recommendations for future amendments.
Reporting for WSLR News, Noah Bookstein.
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