The transfer of 3,000 rural acres to North Port would have allowed up to 9,000 new homes.
By Johannes Werner
Original Air Date: January 30, 2026
Host: This week, the Sarasota County Commission slammed the brakes on a 9,000-home development that would have filled up one of the last big, contiguous chunks of rural land in South County. At issue: Water and sewage. Our report that aired on the Wednesday evening newscast contained a substantial error. We apologize for that. Here is the updated version.
Johannes Werner: On Tuesday afternoon at the Robert L. Anderson Administration Center in Venice, for nearly five hours, the Sarasota County Commission chambers was the site of a high-stakes discussion over the future of South County. It ended in a non-decision.
A developer—Canada-based Mattamy Homes—asked not only for a rezone from rural to moderate density, taking out some 3,000 acres of rural land, but also to move the land into the City of North Port. A yes vote would have paved the way for Winchester Ranch, one of the largest residential developments in the county’s history.
The reason behind the annexation request: Questioned by commissioners, the developer argued the Englewood Water District, which supplies water to residents in this part of unincorporated Sarasota County, is unable to provide the water needed by the residents of the new development. That could be up to 8,999 homes. But the City of North Port could.
The Winchester Ranch land is the last and biggest contiguous chunk of undeveloped land in unincorporated South County. It is sandwiched by Englewood and Manasota Key to the southwest and the Myakka State Forest to the east. And to its north sits the brand new Wellen Park, one of the biggest and fastest-selling planned developments in the United States today. That project is spearheaded by Mattamy Homes, too.
First came 45 minutes of staff and developer testimony. Then three hours of public comment, all of it in opposition, mostly over traffic and flooding concerns. The already congested River Road is not only the main evacuation route for tens of thousands of residents, but it got flooded during the 2024 hurricane season.
A resident of the neighboring Englewood Farm Acres said that adding 20,000 cars to River Road before a planned expansion is a “recipe for disaster.” He also said that residents are being asked to subsidize the infrastructure for a private developer’s profit.
And finally, it was the commissioners’ turn.
It was not what the developers hoped.
When three of the five commissioners lined up to say they were not going to vote for the developer’s petition, the writing was on the wall. Bill Merrill, the lawyer representing Mattamy Homes, asked whether they could change their ask. When told by the county attorney that they couldn’t, Merrill said he would withdraw the petition.
So, no petition, no vote.
Commissioners Mark Smith and Joe Neunder were skeptical mostly over traffic. It was Commissioner Tom Knight who questioned why the county would give up the 3,000 acres to North Port in the first place. He argued the Winchester Ranch residents would be taxed twice.
Tom Knight
Tom Knight: Why would we want to give it to North Port if this board previously, in 2021, already approved the 8,999—why would we even want North Port to take it? Why wouldn’t we keep it in the county? Because people are getting a dual tax that’ll be going to North Port.
Bill Merrill: Because the utility provider in this area is not able to provide service, And that’s not Sarasota County; that’s EWD—Englewood Water District.
TK: North Port can’t provide that while it remains in the county?
Bill Merrill
BM: No, they can’t. North Port cannot, but they do have—
TK: They can’t legally, or they won’t?
BM: No, they can’t, but I don’t know if they will or not. There’s some jurisdictional issues with Englewood Water District if it’s outside their jurisdiction, so I doubt if… [overlapping voices]
TK: …trying to figure all this out because I wasn’t here in ‘21 when it was approved. If it was approved by the Board of County Commissioners at the time, why would we want it to leave the county and go into the City of North Port? I know we don’t have the capacities down here, but is it illegal? Or is it improper? I don’t know. Why wouldn’t North Port not provide the water that they want? Why can’t they just do it and leave it in the county?
BM: Because of the laws of the State of Florida, they aren’t able to do that because Englewood Water District would have—they would be claiming exclusive jurisdiction. There’s some interjurisdictional issues going on here, and Englewood Water District can’t provide the service. North Port can’t provide the service right now outside of their jurisdiction. So what we’re wanting to do is to have this inside North Port so they can serve water and sewer for the project.
Wellen Park. Photo via Moving to Florida Guide
JW: To be sure, both Knight and Neunder praised the Wellen Park development and left the door open for future proposals of Winchester Park. Commissioners Ron Cutsinger and Teresa Mast remained silent during the discussion.
What’s next? We tried to reach Bill Merrill but did not hear back before deadline.
Reporting for WSLR News, Johannes Werner.
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