Affordable Housing

Sarasota County Approves $26.9 Million in Affordable Housing Awards

Commissioners funded four multifamily projects using disaster recovery dollars and directed staff to seek more information on whether the remaining $3.1 million could help advance a 158-unit plan tied to Sarasota's U.S. Recycling site.

01/14/2026 By Kim Doleatto

Concrete Rising

What’s Going Up on U.S. 301 Near Ringling Boulevard?

A 50-unit, all-rental townhome project next to Payne Park is now expected to complete construction by the end of the year, with two U.S. 301-facing retail spaces to fill.

01/13/2026 By Kim Doleatto

Grant Report

Culverhouse Jr. Donates $500,000 to University of Alabama

Plus, a Longboat Key golf instructor raises more than $100,000 for First 1,000 Days Suncoast, and more.

01/12/2026 By Staff

Sprawl Surge

Sarasota County’s Master-Planned Giants Keep Dominating National Rankings

RLCO's 2025 list again places Lakewood Ranch and Wellen Park in the top 10, with more than 3,000 combined new-home sales and a regional growth footprint that now rivals small cities.

01/11/2026 By Kim Doleatto

Q & A

New Realtor Association Prez David Crawford Shares His Insights on the Local Market

Crawford, the 2026 president of the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee, discusses affordability, hurricanes, development pressure and the shifting local market.

01/05/2026 By Kim Doleatto

Final Frame

Tim Jaeger's Recent Work Started During Hurricane Milton

The swirling forms on his canvases are related not only to hurricane movement but, he says, “to what lies beneath the ocean and ourselves—the flow of community, the surge of life.”

01/02/2026 By Kay Kipling

An Artful Embrace

The Annual Embracing Our Differences Exhibition Returns to Bayfront Park

It's the most high-profile part of the nonprofit’s efforts to support the community, but it's not the only one.

01/02/2026 By Kay Kipling

Year In Review

Sarasota County’s Most Expensive Residential Sales of 2025

Even as inventory climbed and prices dipped, Sarasota continued to produce nine-figure luxury volume. Longboat Key took more than half the list, plus, we have two ties, making this year's top ten list eleven.

12/30/2025 By Kim Doleatto

Grant Report

Community Foundation of Sarasota County Awards $445,000 in Community Impact Grants

Plus, the U.S. Department of Transportation awards $280,000 to the City of Bradenton for road-safety initiatives, and more.

12/29/2025 By Staff

Gifts Galore

Our Last-Minute, Ultra-Local Holiday Gift Guide

From foodies to fashionistas, these locally made gifts are perfect for anyone on your list.

12/23/2025 By Megan McDonald

Best of Sarasota

Our 10 Most Popular Stories of 2025

Out of everything we published this year, here's what you clicked on most.

12/23/2025 By Megan McDonald

Best of 2025

Our Top Food Stories of 2025

This year, we covered everything you need to know about Sarasota's local farmers markets, the numerous ways agriculture is shaping the local food scene, how restaurants are recovering from last year's storms, and more.

12/22/2025 By Lauren Jackson

Go South

Render Legacy Trail Opens in Nokomis as South Sarasota County Continues to Grow

The 450-unit rental community joins a series of large projects reshaping South Sarasota.

12/22/2025 Photography by Kim Doleatto

St. Armands Moment

Sarasota County Approves $13.5 Million in Funding for St. Armands Circle

The money, from the Resilient SRQ Infrastructure Program, a HUD disaster recovery initiative tied to last year's storms, comes as private reinvestment plans are proposed for the Circle.

12/18/2025 By Kim Doleatto

Grant Report

FST Receives $1 Million Donation from Anonymous Donor

Plus, the Community Foundation of Sarasota County issues grants totaling nearly $900,000 to 19 nonprofits, and more.

12/15/2025 By Staff

Fast Track

Victor DeRenzi to Leave Sarasota Opera After 44 Years

Plus, Selby Gardens is awarded the 2025 American Architecture Award by the Chicago Athenaeum, and more.

12/15/2025 By Staff

Wellen Up

Benderson Plans 52-Acre Commercial District in Fast-Growing Wellen Park

The new mixed-use project will add 500,000 square feet of retail, dining and services as the master-planned community undergoes a new wave of residential and downtown development.

12/15/2025 By Kim Doleatto

#F0EEE9

Pantone’s 2026 Color of the Year Is... White

Is "Cloud Dancer" a serene “billowy white,” a political statement or the design industry’s admission that no one actually chose anything this year?

12/08/2025 By Kim Doleatto

Taking Root

Demand for Affordable Housing Close to Downtown Threatens Newtown

A new housing preservation effort aims to safeguard the community.

12/04/2025 By Sam Barrett

Saving the Colson

A Black Landmark From the Days of Segregation Is Being Reborn as a Civic and Cultural Hub

The Colson was more than a boarding house. For the city’s Black residents and visitors during segregation, it offered something rare and profound: safety, dignity and belonging.

12/02/2025