Money to be used to keep Midnight Pass open among others eliminated from Appropriations list
Only half of Sarasota County’s appropriations requests that won approval of the 2026 Legislature survived Gov. Ron DeSantis’ veto pen this week, The Sarasota News Leader has learned.
In an email sent to the county commissioners early in the afternoon of June 29, Rob Lewis, director of governmental relations for the county, wrote that the projects that won approval were Segment C, Phase 2 of the Lorraine Road extension, at $7 million; the Clark Road/McIntosh Road intersection improvements, at $2.5 million; and the Phillippi Creek dredging initiative, at $2 million.
The funding that was vetoed was as follows:
- $1.5 million for the proposed Beginning Farmer Program.
- $520,000 for an emergency utilities interconnect involving the county and the City of North Port.
- $250,000 for work to ensure that Midnight Pass stays open on South Siesta Key, given the documented improvements to the water quality in Little Sarasota Bay.
“The County did well in what was a challenging state budget year,” Lewis added in his email to the board members.
In response to a News Leader request for a comment on the Midnight Pass decision, Commissioner Joe Neunder, who long has been an advocate for keeping the waterway open, wrote the following in a June 30 email: “Disappointed we did not receive our appropriations request for MNP [Midnight Pass] this year, but extremely grateful for the previous years’ awards! I will continue to work hard with staff on protecting MNP as I know our community really desires its protection.”
A June 29 press release from the Governor’s Office reported that DeSantis had signed the state budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year after he vetoed nearly $810 million in requests that the Legislature had approved in late May, during a special session.
“Over the last seven and a half years, Florida has set the national standard for conservative governance, while breaking record after record in economic strength, education, and environmental stewardship,” DeSantis said in the press release. “The FY 2026-2027 Budget I signed [on June 29] reflects the core priorities I laid out from the beginning, he continued. “This budget protects taxpayers’ interests, cuts spending for the fourth year in a row, and makes meaningful investments to build on Florida’s successes in education, public safety, environmental conservation, infrastructure, cancer research, and more. I’m proud that Florida continues to serve as the prime example of fiscal responsibility and government that works for the people of our state.”
As the News Leader reported in June, the following are details about all of the county projects that made it into the Legislature’s 2026-27 Appropriations Bill:
- Lorraine Road Segment C Phase 2, $7 million — A document that county staff had helped prepare for filing by state Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota, said that the county would match the state funds with $7 million, for a total of $14 million. Segment C, that document explains, is the portion of the planned Lorraine Road extension from the future “Exit 200 interchange on the Palmer Ranch East property approximately 1.5 miles south toward Knights Trail [Road near Venice].”
A section of the county’s preliminary Capital Improvement Program for Fiscal Years 2027 through 2031 notes that the total estimated expense of extending Lorraine Road from 1.84 miles south of Clark Road to Knights Trail Road is $54,630,000. That document adds, “The project will construct 6.0 miles of a [four-lane] divided urban minor arterial with closed drainage, ponds, lighting,” a 12-foot-wide multi-use recreational trail (MURT), 7-foot-wide bike lanes and a 5-foot-widesidewalk on one side.”
The state funding request also pointed out that, since “no north-south roadway connection [exists] east of I-75 south of Clark Road,” the four-lane extension “will … significantly [improve] hurricane evacuation routes and [provide] critical additional capacity during periods of severe congestion on Interstate 75.”
- Clark Road/McIntosh Road intersection improvement, $2.5 million — The appropriations request said that the funds would be used to realign the intersection of Clark Road and McIntosh Road, which is offset and bifurcated by The Legacy Trail. “Completing the realignment will resolve the issue of errant vehicles turning down the [Legacy Trail] entrance, improving the safety of the intersection for all users, motorized and ped/bike, and will mitigate/reduce crashes, aligning with Target Zero goals,” it added.
A document included in the preliminary county Capital Improvement Program for Fiscal Years 2027 through 2031 says the estimated expense of this initiative is $3,642,000. A chart in that document indicates that the work would be undertaken in the 2028 fiscal year.
- Phillippi Creek dredging: $2 million — The relevant legislative document said the county would use the state funding to remove sedimentation and debris build-up from 2024 storm season, “mitigating potential flooding of residential and commercial structures and evacuation routes.” It also pointed out, “Flood prediction modeling” suggests that the sedimentation, caused by previous storm events, could exacerbate flooding during a 100-year event produced by 24 hours of rainfall.
Altogether, the county had requested $8 million, which — it said — represented 50% of the entire expense. The document added that the proposed activities included not just the dredging but the stockpiling and disposal of the sediment removed from the waterway; “pollution prevention controls and reporting; environmental planning; and construction management and oversight to ensure [the] project stays on time and within the budget.”
The following are details about the programs that were vetoed:
- Beginning Farmer Program: $1.5 million — The document regarding that legislative request pointed out, “Sarasota County has acquired a property with existing barns, animal pens, and pastures that with renovations could serve as a demonstration and incubator farm and ranch and location for 4-H youth to house their agriculture- and horticulture-related projects. This hands-on learning environment will support both adults and youth and grow the agricultural economy.” The county sought $3 million for the initiative, formally called the Beginning Farmer and 4-H Youth Agriculture Education Complex, with the county planning to provide a 50% match, for a total of $6 million.
- Emergency utilities interconnect: $520,000 — The county had sought $1,040,000, or 51%, of the expense of “[d]esign, permitting and construction” of an emergency potable water interconnection system between the county and the City of North Port, to benefit the residents of unincorporated Sarasota County as well as those of the city, the state funding request explained. “[T]he transfer of potable water” between the two local governments “is critical during natural disasters, water supply disruptions, and other times of emergency,” the state document added.
- Little Sarasota Bay (Midnight Pass): $250,000 — The county had requested $500,000 from the state, which would have represented half of the proposed $1-million expense, the related legislative document noted. “The restored tidal connection between the Gulf and Little Sarasota Bay” has “improved water quality in Little Sarasota Bay,” the document said. That “will have a positive impact on fisheries, shellfish, and seagrasses,” it pointed out. “It is further believed that the improved marine and estuarine ecosystems within the bay will boost economic and tourism activity in this part of Sarasota County through increased tourism, boating, related retail/commercial activities and property values,” it added.
In late September 2024, Hurricane Helene reopened the waterway on south Siesta Key, which had been closed since 1983. Although the channel between Little Sarasota Bay and the Gulf soon closed again, Hurricane Milton blew it open once more after Milton came ashore at Big Sarasota Pass on Siesta Key the night of Oct. 9, 2024.
County staff and a consultant have been monitoring the waterway, recording data about the size and location of the opening, as well as depth measurements.