The $100 million move from downtown draws both praise and criticism.
By Noah Bookstein
Original Air Date: August 25, 2026
Host: Sarasota County’s new Administration Center officially opened today. Reporter Noah Bookstein has the scoop on the $100 million move away from downtown.
Noah Bookstein: $100 million later, Sarasota County has a new address. County leaders cut the ribbon this morning on the new County Administration Center—a project years in the making that is drawing praise and pushback alike.
A crowd gathered at the door of the new administration center Tuesday morning. | Photos: Bookstein
The building is four stories and over a hundred and twenty thousand square feet. It sits off Fruitville Road near I-75, right on the edge of Celery Fields, the public wetlands site and birding destination that doubles as Sarasota County’s main flood mitigation zone. County commissioners approved the project back in 2023, and after years of construction, staff are finally moved in.
The county sold the old administration building in downtown to Benderson Development for $25 million.
For many county employees, this is the first time in years they have all been under one roof. Especially since the 2024 storm season, staff had been displaced and scattered across multiple locations around the county.
Solar panels, view of the Celery Fields preserve. | Photo courtesy Sarasota County
The building itself is impressive—bright and modern, with a view of Celery Fields. County officials touted the building’s efficient and sustainable features. The center now houses several administrative departments including the county attorney’s office, the clerk and comptroller, county commission chambers, communications and HR. There’s also a press room, a TV studio, conference rooms, an employee gym and even a private wellness room.
Although plans for the new building were in motion before the 2024 storm season, county officials say the storms further justified constructing the new building. Unlike the old downtown building, this site is outside the floodplain. County officials say that they chose the location for resiliency and that they wanted a building that could keep the government running through a major hurricane. They’re projecting this facility to serve the county over the next century.
At the ceremony, County Commissioner Ron Cutsinger and other speakers leaned into that framing, describing the building not just as office space, but as a public investment—a space that belongs to the community as much as it does to the people who work there.
Commission Chair Ron Cutsinger cuts the ribbon.
Deputy County Administrator and Chief Financial Management Officer Steve Botelho, who’s been with the project since the beginning, spoke to reporters outside the new building.
Steve Botelho: I think the excitement around the building—going back to 2019 is when the first dominoes started in trying to get out of the old building, so a lot of the staff know how long it took to get here. From the storms in 2024, a lot of staff kind of have been all over the county working out of conference rooms, so the excitement to finally get back to their home building, and then what it means for the community.
NB: Botelho said the county hopes that the new facility will also help with employee retention.
Lounge in the new administration center.
Not everyone is applauding the new building, though. Local critic Martin Hyde took to Facebook ahead of the ceremony, and spoke at the first County Commission meeting in the new building that took place today as well. He pointed to features like the staff-only gym and what he called a lavishly appointed executive suite, saying the timing—with a property tax referendum on the ballot and residents feeling the pinch of rising costs—makes the expenditure look tone-deaf.
Hyde argued the ribbon-cutting scissors would be better used trimming what he sees as wasteful spending, and he’s framing the building as a reason for voters to back property tax reforms that could defund municipalities.
While county leaders are calling this a once-in-a-generation investment in public infrastructure, critics are calling it a symbol of government excess at the worst possible time. Either way, the building is open, the staff are in, and the commission now has a new place to meet.
Reporting for WSLR News, Noah Bookstein.
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