SARASOTA COUNTY, Fla. — "Keep the country, country."
That's what some are saying after a change to historic property in eastern Sarasota County near the Myakka River.
It was first settled in 1840, but developers want to rezone a section of 6,000 acres to build more homes. Currently, it’s zoned for one home per five acres, but the rezoning would allow for 400 homes to be built on lots that are less than an acre each, according to the president of the Miakka Community Club, Becky Ayech.
She says the area is as close to heaven as you can possibly get, with raising animals and growing vegetables. She points out the community has a one-room schoolhouse, a church that’s at least 110 years old and a cemetery dating back to the Civil War.
Ayech says urbanization is encroaching on their area, and there’s a push to do more. She told 10 Tampa Bay Photojournalist Tim Burquest some feel the development is getting too close to home.
We reached out to a developer and a land owner and haven't heard back. There will be a virtual Planning Commission meeting with public comment on Thursday, August 20 and can be accessed here.
