Newsletter 78

NEWS FROM THE SUNCOAST:

IRMA INSURED LOSSES TOP $7B

Estimated insurance losses in Florida from Hurricane Irma have reached $7.2 billion in 877,000 claims filed since the September storm, according to information released recently by the Office of Insurance Regulations. More than 83% of the claims involve residential property, with most in south Florida. Irma has been linked to 84 deaths in the state. The insurance figures are expected to continue to increase over the next year as claims continue to trickle in. Just over half the overall claims have been closed with some payment. Another 32% were closed without payment. To read more on this story, courtesy of the Sunshine State News, please click here: Irma Losses Climb to $7.2B

SARASOTA PRAISED FOR IRMA RESPONSE

Former FEMA administrator Craig Fugate, the expert hired for an independent review of local agencies’ response to Hurricane Irma, told a gathering of public officials that Sarasota County did a good job but needed to both make some procedural changes and be more clear when urging people to evacuate. Fugate said Sarasota County – which is responsible for orchestrating emergency response – needed to articulate to residents the need to evacuate ahead of a storm more clearly. Fugate also said that instead of opening shelters in phases – which is easier for staffing purposes – the county should open all shelters capable of withstanding the expected storm strength at the same time. Please click here to read more, courtesy of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Irma Praise

ROBUST HOME MARKET HOLDS PROMISE

Southwest Florida’s residential real estate world is riding a winning streak, and current market conditions indicate continuing prosperity and growth. That’s the consensus evaluation of the robust home market in 2017 and the strong forecast for 2018 among industry insiders. Our informal survey panel represents the home-building and selling sides of the business. Their letter grades for this year’s residential market mostly fit into a tight and bright range – from B++ to A+. “In general, it is a neutral market – neither favoring buyers or sellers in any significant capacity, therefore garnering an A- grade”, reports Michael Saunders, founder and CEO of Michael Saunders & Company. There’s more on this story here: Real Estate Promising

NO EASY FIX TO SARASOTA’S FLOOD-PRONE BAYFRONT

When it rains, it pours, and it puddles along U.S. 41 in downtown Sarasota. Although flooding along the busy corridor is hardly new, it appears to happen ever more frequently and has increasingly frustrated residents and city officials alike over the past summer. In some extraordinary cases, Sarasota Police have shut down the flood-prone stretch of U.S. 41 from Fruitville Road to Gulfstream Avenue, such as when record rainfall drenched the area in late August. Angered drivers point at the Vue Sarasota Bay condominium, which has risen out of the once vacant corner over the same two years that many complain flooding problems have gotten worse. Please follow the jump for more on this story: Bayfront Flooding

‘THE BAY’ PRESENTATION STUMPS FOR CIVIC INPUT

Faced with the task of reimagining the 42-acre city-owned bayfront property just north of The Quay, members of the Sarasota Bayfront Planning Organization and Sasaki, the Boston-based firm charged with shaping the plan, told a recent crowd gathered at The Francis that they were the most important part of the effort. A fairly aggressive series of open and public opportunities designed to collect input on possible uses of the site, as well as bathe feedback on intermediate drafts of the plan are scheduled, in hopes of having a master plan ready for the Sarasota City Commission by July. There’s more on this story here: “The Bay” Looks for Input

FOR TURTLES, NO NEW TITLE

Last year apparently won’t break another record for sea turtle nests in Southwest Florida, but 2017 was still a good year despite Hurricane Irma. Mote Marine Laboratory scientists found 4,503 total loggerhead and green turtle nests across their coverage area from Venice to Longboat Key. Although that number was 85 fewer nests than 2016 record-breaking total – which nearly doubled 2015’s count – Longboat Key, Lido Key and Siesta Key each set individual records. If you’d like to read more, click here: Sea Turtle Nest Results

LEGACY TRAIL CONTRACT APPROVED

The land needed for the next phase of the Legacy Trail is officially under contract. The Sarasota County Commission unanimously approved the $7.9 million purchase of the next segment of right-of-way for the trail from Culverhouse Nature Park to Ashton Road, which formally kicks off the campaign to extend the trail all the way north to downtown Sarasota. The purchase is through an agreement with the Trust for Public Land, which has helped manage the creation of the wildly popular bicycle and pedestrian trail over the past decade. If you’re interested in reading more, please click here: Legacy Trail Contract