Environmentally Sensitive Lands and Neighborhood Parkland acquisition programs to expire at end of 2029 without voter approval for continuation
In late March 2023, the Sarasota County Commission voted unanimously to direct administrative staff to begin preparations for a 2026 referendum on extending the county’s Land Acquisition and Management Program, which comprises the Environmentally Sensitive Lands Protection Program (ESLPP) and the Neighborhood Parkland Acquisition Program (NPP).
The voter-approved funding for the programs is scheduled to expire at the end of 2029.
At the time of that 2023 discussion, then-Commissioner Mike Moran stressed his concern that the programs would run out of money before the end of 2029.
Commissioner Mark Smith also talked of the need for county staff to take a more aggressive approach to purchasing appropriate properties, even though the overall maintenance expenses would rise. “We better buy it while it’s out there — before it’s gone,” he said.
Since then, the board members have continued to focus on plans for the referendum.
This week, they took another step in that process: In unanimously approving their March 24 Consent Agenda of routine matters, they authorized the advertisement of a public hearing on the draft ordinance calling for the referendum on the Nov. 3 General Election ballot.
That public hearing has been scheduled for April 7 at the Robert L. Anderson Administration Center, which stands at 4000 S. Tamiami Trail in Venice, as noted in another document that was part of the March 24 agenda packet.
A staff memo that also was in agenda packet explained that voters’ approval of the extension of the 0.25-mill tax for another 20 years would enable the county to issue bonds valued at up to $250 million to enable the county to continue to purchase environmentally sensitive lands and property that could be used for parks. The bonds would be backed by the tax revenue.
One mill represents $1,000 of the value of a parcel.
The memo pointed out that the first ESLPP referendum was conducted in 1999, implementing the tax through 2019.
“After protecting over 14,500 acres within the first six years and with the goal to maintain flexible program funding,” the memo continued, the commissioners authorized another referendum in November 2005. It won the support of 80% of the voters who cast ballots on that proposed extension through 2029.
That referendum also authorized “new related debt not to exceed $250,000,000.00,” the memo noted.
As of March 24, the memo said, the county had protected more than “100 properties totaling almost 42,000 acres of [environmentally sensitive] lands. In addition, 31 Parkland sites have been acquired, totaling approximately 143 acres. Together, these acquisitions protect native habitats, water resources and provide diverse recreational opportunities,” the memo pointed out.
A warning about violating voters’ trust
One person addressed the board members about the planned referendum as part of the Open to the Public comment period at the start of the March 24 meeting.
Lourdes Ramirez of Siesta Key, president of the Sarasota County Council of Neighborhood Associations (CONA) and a nonprofit called Protect Siesta Key, told the commissioners that she supports the extension of the ESLPP and NPP programs through 2049. She added her appreciation for the fact that county staff kept the ballot language the same as it was in 2005. “That really matters.”
However, Ramirez continued, in a county video produced about the programs, Nicole Rissler, an assistant county administrator who formerly was director of the Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Department (PRNR), “talked about these lands being protected in perpetuity.
“That stuck with me,” Ramirez said, “because that’s exactly what the voters thought they were approving. The problem is, we’re still fighting to protect lands that were bought with the NPP funds on Siesta Key in 2017, and that shouldn’t be happening.”
Ramirez was referring to a 4-1 vote during the commissioners’ regular meeting on Nov. 5, 2025, when they approved a Coastal Setback Variance that Siesta Key business owner and property manager Michael Holderness needed to be able to construct a house on the parcel located at 162 Beach Road. That vote was one facet of the settlement of a federal lawsuit that Holderness had filed against the county. Another part of that settlement calls for the county to transfer ownership of the 162 Beach Road parcel to Holderness. As Ramirez has stressed, the county used $1.4 million in Neighborhood Parkland Acquisition Program money to pay for that property.
Although she and two other plaintiffs subsequently filed a complaint against the county in the 12th Judicial Circuit Court, seeking to overturn the Nov. 5, 2025 vote, Circuit Judge Hunter Carroll dismissed the lawsuit in February. Carroll explained that he could not find sufficient evidence that Ramirez or the other plaintiffs met the criteria for “standing” to file their Petition for Writ of Certiorari.
“Standing” is a legal term regarding plaintiffs’ ability to prove that they will be harmed more than the rest of the general population by a specific action.
Therefore, Ramirez told the commissioners on March 24, with this new referendum coming up, “I think it’s really important to make sure that the protections are solid. People need to feel confident that once land is purchased, it stays protected: No loopholes; no changes down the road.”
She added, “This comes down to trust. If people start to feel the rules can shift later, it’s going to be a lot harder to get support. So I ask you to keep that promise front and center as you move forward.”