Officials say the program is intended to address a unauthorized activity in county waterfront parks while operators warn it could further strain a storm-battered marine tourism industry
By ChrisAnn Allen
Following several years of research and deliberation, they decided it was time to act on a difficult decision.
The Sarasota County Commission Jan. 27 unanimously approved plans for a one-year pilot permitting program for commercial charter boats and tour operators that use county parks for passenger pickup and drop-off, advancing a policy officials say was prompted by rising unauthorized activity and delayed by storm damage in 2024.
The commercial water-based charter boat and tour operator pilot permit program was presented by Nicole Rissler, the county’s parks and natural resources director. Commissioners approved a motion by Commissioner Joe Neunder to adopt the pilot program with up to 100 permits available.
“This item is a really longstanding item, as you can see,” Rissler said as a timeline was shown at the meeting. “Going back to 2022 and 2023, when staff completed a board assignment and were asked to research the feasibility of developing a potential permit program for fishing charter and tour operators.”
“This came as we continued to see a rise of unpermitted activity and unauthorized commercial watercraft using county parks for pickup and drop-offs,” she said.
County staff described the issue as commercial operators using public water-access parks to load and unload passengers without formal authorization, creating parking and capacity conflicts at sites meant for public use. People operating illegally could be fined $500 per violation.
Rissler said hurricanes Helene and Milton in 2024 caused extensive damage to some parks used for docking, reducing available capacity and forcing delays. Given those constraints, she said staff recommended a smaller pilot so the county can collect data and adjust as facilities reopen and more possibly come online.
The earlier permitting plan, devised by a county appointed task force of people in the industry, was built around three zones — north, mid-county and south — and allowed boats operated by captains carrying an “Operator of Uninspected Passenger Vessels” license, often called “six-pack” charters because they can carry a maximum of six people.
The task force’s framework set permit totals based on 50% of available parking at each park, resulting in 124 permits: 37 in north county, 48 in mid-county and 39 in south county. The final rule described in county materials allowed two permits per business per zone, one vessel per permit, and permitted operators to pick up and drop off customers at parks within their zone.
In the latest version, staff proposed two geographic zones — north and south county — with two permits per business per zone and one vessel per permit. The staff recommendation set 30 permits for each zone, totaling 60.
“About half, but when you look at the capacity of those sites that are available, we are at about half the capacity right now,” Rissler said.
The pilot would last one year with an option for a one-year renewal.
“This gives us a really good opportunity to gather the data, see how it’s working, hopefully get some of our capacity back in either the proposed sites or maybe some future sites that would come online,” Rissler said.
Commissioner Tom Knight asked whether the uptick in unauthorized commercial activity remains a problem. Rissler said, “Yes,” but said it has “cooled” with lower park capacity. She said she still receives complaints.
Commission Chair Ron Cutsinger asked when capacity might increase. Rissler said repairs should be made after the first year and new acquisitions might be available. She also said staff would need to develop the program and complete a three- to four-month bid process, so a launch would likely come in fall 2026.
“This has been quite a journey,” Cutsinger said. “There has been a lot of good work done on it and there’s just not going to be any perfect solution.”
Cutsinger urged building flexibility into the pilot – up to 100 permits instead of 60 – so staff could add permits as parks reopen without returning for another vote. Commissioner Mark Smith, whose district includes Siesta Key, argued the county should wait.
“The problem I have is we’ve got folks out there that are making a living,” Smith said. “For me, I believe we should pause this until we have 100% capacity up and running in our parks.”
Neunder said the county had spent years on the issue and should not stall further.
“I prefer not to get paralysis by over analysis here on this one,” Neunder said, adding that the county could proceed “with the understanding it might not be perfect, yet.”
The Jan. 27 vote followed a policy path that began in 2022, when staff started researching a permit program as unauthorized commercial activity increased. In 2023 and 2024, commissioners directed the formation of the task force, which held seven meetings and delivered recommendations. Commissioners accepted the task force report in September 2024 and adopted an ordinance in October 2024 prohibiting docking, mooring or anchoring in county parks without a county-issued permit. However, activities were delayed following the 2024 hurricanes.
The recommended process included bids starting at $1,200 per permit, per year, with a three-year term and two one-year renewals available. Proceeds after management costs were intended to support acquisition of additional waterfront properties for those uses, according to the program description.
On Jan. 27, multiple speakers urged commissioners to delay again, arguing that tourism and bookings remain depressed and that a permitting system based on limited access could add costs and uncertainty.
“I’m a little discouraged,” Matt Fueyo of Reel Tight Fishing Charters out of Siesta Key said. “I’m a little upset. I’m a little unhappy with what’s going on, understanding that we’re going to be having a lottery system for these charter boats is bad for business.”
Fueyo continued, “We are talking about jobs, we are talking about families. We are talking about over 1,000 families, captains… that this is their business, this is their livelihood… By having a bidding war with everybody against each other, you are going to create animosity amongst everyone.”
Doug Ricciardi, speaking on behalf of the Professional Charter Captains of Sarasota, said the group represents more than 100 businesses and asked for more time. “We respectfully request the proposed medallion program for charter operators be delayed further and carefully reconsidered,” Ricciardi said. “Regulating an industry without first rebuilding the infrastructure it depends on doesn’t create order; it creates failure,”
Sherman Baldwin, a Sarasota County resident, tour boat business owner and a member of the county task force, also asked commissioners to hold off. He said he “ultimately went along, reluctantly,” with the task force’s final draft after it was pared down from earlier versions but said the program would still harm small operators.
“By conservative estimates, the charter fishing reservations are down close to 70% still,” Baldwin said, adding that 40% to 60% of small charter operators have gone out of business following the 2024 storms.
“The problem this policy was designated to address largely no longer exists,” Baldwin said. “Reintroducing this now is not thoughtful governance; it is disconnected from grounded reality. It risks punishing the very people who survived storms, economic loss and months of uncertainty.”
Commissioners nonetheless voted unanimously to approve the pilot and direct staff to proceed, increasing the cap from staffs proposed 60 permits to “up to 100” to allow expansion as parks reopen.
