A group of residents and business owners works to secure funding for repairs and enhancements

By ChrisAnn Allen

Time — and the impact of the 2024 hurricanes — has taken a toll on Siesta Key Village.

Once part of Tripadvisor’s “Best of the Best Beaches,” the village is now widely viewed as overdue for aesthetic upgrades and safety improvements.

County commissioners met Dec. 12 at the Nathan Benderson Park Finish Tower in Sarasota for their annual planning retreat, where they set priorities and outlined initiatives for the coming year. During the meeting, Commissioners Mark Smith and Joe Neunder — the two board representatives for Siesta Key — added “Siesta Key Beautification and Funding” to the county’s strategic priorities.

“This deserves a workshop, in my opinion,” Neunder said, noting that the village is a mix of residents and businesses that would benefit from an open discussion with the full commission present.

Smith said the hurricanes have contributed to a steep decline in visitors, resulting in a significant drop in tourism tax revenue for the county.

“So, this is an investment,” Smith said.

The commission agreed, unanimously determining that a workshop would be scheduled shortly after the start of 2026.

At the beginning of the Dec. 12 meeting, Natalie Gutwein spoke on behalf of the Siesta Key Village Maintenance Corp., an additional taxing district of approximately 100 parcels. The district was created 18 years ago to fund maintenance following a previous village makeover spearheaded by Smith.

Members of the corporation have conducted regular walk-throughs with county staff and commissioners to assess damage and identify needed upgrades, including the lack of street trees, signage, damaged sidewalks, irrigation systems and paver areas, as well as crosswalks, landscape beds and sidewalk edges.

Gutwein said the assessment base for the district generates about $275,000 annually.

“That funding covers maintenance, garbage service, landscape repairs and irrigation repairs within the Siesta Key Village Public Improvement District,” she said. “It was never designed — and is not sufficient — to cover capital improvements.”

She added that the district’s structure is unique within Sarasota County.

“There is no other public improvement district in the county where a small assessment base is expected to fund ongoing maintenance while also absorbing major capital responsibilities,” Gutwein said.

In addition to the maintenance corporation, a group of residents, business owners and landowners — along with members of organizations such as the Siesta Key Association and the Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce — formed the Siesta Key Beautification Alliance.

For nearly a year, alliance members have met regularly with county representatives to advocate for improvements. Gutwein said the village currently lacks a functional irrigation system and has inconsistent electrical service.

“The reason there are very few Christmas lights is because of issues with electricity,” she said.

Those concerns are part of broader discussions within the alliance, which privately funded an engineering report to be presented at the upcoming community workshop.

“We don’t want to spend thousands of dollars to repair irrigation when we’re hoping for a complete renovation,” Gutwein said. “But we’ve needed to find a way to keep things acceptable while moving forward with the bigger picture.”

Gutwein said she appreciates the commission’s willingness to take steps toward enhancing the village.

“A workshop will be an excellent opportunity for everyone to share ideas, including how we might secure state and federal support,” she said, adding that many alliance members have spent significant personal time working to secure funding. “It’s been a great collaboration.”

Mike Holderness, a Siesta Key business owner and alliance board member, said he is encouraged by the county’s engagement.

“It’s taken many years to have the county’s ear, and I’m proud to say the county is now engaged and proactive,” Holderness said. “It’s important that we all thank this commission.”

Gutwein called the outcome of the Dec. 12 meeting a major step forward.

“What they included in the strategic plan gives much stronger definition to what they intend to work toward,” she said. “Once it’s on the strategic plan, they can do a lot more with us, and I see this as a huge victory.”