Bruce Franklin to fill a second seat left vacant by resignation
Former Sarasota County Commissioner Jon Thaxton finally has won a seat on the county’s Planning Commission, having failed in multiple earlier attempts to do so — as The Sarasota News Leader has reported — since he had to step down from the commission in 2012 because of term limits.
In response to a News Leader request for a comment after the April 23 vote of the Sarasota County Commission, Thaxton wrote in an email, “This is an appointment I take seriously, and I am honored to have been selected. I look forward to working with my fellow Planning Commissioners, and I hope my decades of land use experience will enhance Planning Commission recommendations to the County Commission.”
Thaxton is the director of policy and advocacy with the Gulf Coast Community Foundation, which is based in Venice.
Asked by the News Leader for clarification in regard to the number of times he had tried to win a seat on that advisory board, which is considered to be the most influential in the county, Thaxton added, “Prior to becoming a County Commissioner in 2000, my planning commission application was turned down twelve times. It was the single most publicly contested appointment ever. More recently, I believe my application has been turned down 11 times. So well over 20 in total, another record!”
The Planning Commission conducts public hearings on land-use applications and proposed amendments to the county’s Comprehensive Plan, which guides growth in the community. Then it makes recommendations to the County Commission for that board’s consideration.
During the April 23 regular meeting of the County Commission, held in Sarasota, Todd Dary, manager of the county’s Planning Division, explained that, because of the resignation of long-time Planning Commissioner Andrew Stultz, one seat was open on the advisory board. The term expires on Aug. 31, 2027, Dary added.
Stultz won his third, four-year term on the advisory board in September 2023.
Then Chair Joe Neunder told his colleagues that he understood “we have the … option to appoint two [new Planning Commission members].”
He turned to County Attorney Joshua Moye for confirmation that he and his colleagues could select someone from the pool of applicants to serve through the end of that second, unexpired term.
Because of a change last year in the county rules regarding the Planning Commission, Moye explained, applications are held indefinitely in a special pool, so those can be considered whenever a seat becomes open on the Planning Commission.
Moye also confirmed that another opening on the Planning Commission had occurred since the April 23 County Commission agenda was published the previous week.
Commissioner Ron Cutsinger asked whether the applicants are aware of the new practice, as some of them might have submitted their forms to county staff as long as six months ago. Moye noted that April 23 marked the first time for the County Commission to be able to take advantage of the new rule, adding, again, that the board members could consider all of the applications in the current pool.
After Neunder sought the thoughts of his colleagues in regard to making two appointments that day, Commissioner Teresa Mast immediately replied, “Two.”
“I’m hearing two,” Neunder said after looking at his other colleagues.
Moye did suggest that the commissioners make certain to identify whom they were appointing to fill out Stultz’s term and whom they would be appointing to fill out the term of another long-time planning commissioner, Colin Pember, who resigned last week.
Pember’s term runs through Jan. 31, 2029. He began his service on the Planning Commission in January 2017.
Mast nominated Bruce Franklin, president of Land Resource Strategies LLC of Sarasota, for Stultz’s seat and Ryan Lieberman of The Barrington Group, a multifamily real estate firm in Sarasota, for Pember’s seat. (Lieberman is vice president and treasurer of the Suncoast Builders Association, for which Mast’s husband, Jon, serves as CEO. See the related article in this issue.)
Commissioner Tom Knight immediately concurred with Mast’s nomination of Franklin. Then, Knight asked whether the board members should handle the nominations on two separate votes.
Neunder proposed that he and his colleagues fill Stultz’s seat first, “to keep [the process] very clean,” though Mast interrupted Neunder to respond to Knight: “I believe that would be up to the person who made the nominations.”
Neunder did not reply to her. He maintained that he and his colleagues would deal with Stultz’s seat first, noting Mast’s nomination of Franklin.
Commissioner Mark Smith then nominated Thaxton for the seat.
Cutsinger said he agreed with the Franklin nomination.
When Neunder called for a vote on Franklin, Franklin won the seat, with Smith casting the only vote for Thaxton.
A county staff memo included in the April 23 agenda packet said that the person filling Stultz’s seat would join the Planning Commission on May 1.
Then, when Neunder asked for nominees to fill out Pember’s term, Mast again nominated Lieberman, and Smith again nominated Thaxton.
When Neunder called for that vote, Smith and Knight supported Thaxton, with Cutsinger joining Mast in voting for Lieberman.
Neunder cast his vote for Thaxton.
Franklin provided a letter with his application, explaining that he is a “semi-retired professional Land Planner practicing in Sarasota for 45 years.” He added, “I believe I can provide perspective on land use and development applications based on my history in the community, my professional experience and my desire to give something back in service on the Planning Commission.”
In his application, Lieberman wrote the following in response to a question asking why he wanted to serve on the Planning Commission: “As a resident and second-generation business owner in Sarasota County, I have a deep-rooted commitment to the thoughtful planning and growth of this vibrant community. My extensive knowledge and experience with land use, zoning, and the Sarasota County development code uniquely position me to contribute meaningfully to the Planning Commission.”
In response to the same application question, Thaxton wrote, “Bring life-long Sarasota County planning experience to [the] commission.”
A large pool of applicants
The other applicants for the seats were as follows:
- Becky Ayech, who long has been president of the Miakka Community Club, which represents residents in the historic Old Miakka area in the easternmost part of the county. She listed her occupation as “retired/farmer.” In response to the question about why she wanted to serve on the Planning Commission, Ayech wrote, “I serve on 2 other advisory committees and believe this is a way to give back to the community. I live in the rural part of Sarasota and will bring this perspective to the Planning Commission and I am very interested in the planning of Sarasota County.”
- Brian Faro of Englewood, a real estate broker with Paradise Exclusive Real Estate. He wrote that he wanted to serve on the Planning Commission so he could “help be a voice for the community and help see through the objectives of the planning commission.”
- Brian J. Wilson of North Port, a general contractor with Wilson Land Services LLC. The reason he wishes to serve on the Planning Commission, he wrote, is “[t]o help build a better Sarasota.”
- David Stershic of Sarasota, a retired member of the Sarasota County Fire Department who is a part-time superintendent for the Willis Smith Construction firm in Sarasota. He is interested in serving on the Planning Commission, he wrote in his application, so he can “participate in and hopefully affect the processes, procedures, codes, etc to ensure Sarasota has and is adhering to prudent, comprehensive practices.”
- Randy D. Boyd of Sarasota, who is self-employed with the Boyd Investigative Group/Boyd Security Group. “As a fourth generation resident of Sarasota,” he wrote in his application, “I believe it is my responsibility to help Sarasota move forward with planning and development in a productive, common sense manner.”
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Thomas Arthur. Image from the webpages of Michael Saunders & Co. Ryan Murphy of Sarasota, a senior consultant with Booz Allen Hamilton. Responding to the application question about his interest in an appointment, Murphy wrote, “I have lived in Sarasota County since 1996, aside from a few years in Orlando for college, and I want to support this community. With a strong background in local government, including experience with land development regulations, I feel that my experience would be an asset on the Planning Commission.”
- Shaun Libou, who is involved in real estate and investment banking with Raymond James & Associates in St. Petersburg. In his application response regarding why he wants to serve on the Planning Commission, he wrote, “Based on my comprehensive real estate education at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, current role as a real estate investment banker at Raymond James, prior role as a principal real estate investment officer for GIC (the Singaporean sovereign wealth fund) and general reputable standing across the real estate industry,” he believes he is “a highly qualified” candidate for a seat.
- Thomas Arthur of Sarasota, a real estate agent with Michael Saunders & Co. in Lakewood Ranch. In his application, he explained the following in regard to his desire to serve on the Planning Commission: “As a property rights advocate, and someone who is in the real estate business, I see both the importance of community service and understand the value in both residential and commercial presence within a thriving community.”