FDOT says work still could be completed ‘before Christmas holidays,’ if no issues arise with weather and availability of materials
As it turns out, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) will not begin its maintenance of the Siesta Drive bridge to north Siesta Key until mid-April, after Easter.
That was the news in an advisory distributed the afternoon of March 11 by Barbara Catlin, a member of the communications team for the initiative.
Easter is on April 5. Traditionally, the end of March marked the finale of high tourist season in the county. However, over the past decade, Easter has proven to be the end of season. In fact, starting in 2023, April has become one of the top months for collections of the county’s Tourist Development Tax revenue. The 6% tax is charged on accommodations rented for six months or less time.
In April 2023, the April collections exceeded $5.1 million. Though the total for April 2024 was closer to $4.5 million, the revenue tally for that month climbed above $5 million again in 2025, as shown in the data that the Sarasota County Tax Collector’s Office issues each month.
In April 2024, Easter fell on March 31; last year, it was on April 20.
Catlin added in her March 11 advisory, “The project is still expected to be completed before the Christmas holidays, if weather permits and materials are available.”
She further noted that after the project gets underway, FDOT’s weekly RoadWatch reports will provide details about the work; updates also will be posted on the project webpage: https://www.swflroads.com/project/451280-1, Catlin wrote.
As The Sarasota News Leader has reported, the initial timeline called for the bridge work to get underway early this year. Yet, when the News Leader checked with FDOT staff in late February, Patricia Pichette, a communications specialist with FDOT District One — which includes Sarasota County — wrote in a Feb. 25 email, “At this point in time, there is no firm start date on the maintenance project for the north bridge to Siesta Key.”
Nonetheless, she did not indicate that she anticipated the start date would be pushed back until early spring.
When the News Leader checked the FDOT webpage dedicated to the initiativeafter receiving the March 11 timeline update, the News Leader found that the webpage still was reporting “Early 2026” for the start of the maintenance.
However, the News Leader read in small print at the bottom of the project homepage that the information had not been updated since Feb. 27.
The entire bridge will be the focus of the initiative, the webpages point out. The length of the bridge, the webpages note, is 0.24 miles.
The bridge ends on what technically is Bay Island. Long-time Siesta residents explain that drivers do not arrive on Siesta Key until after they cross the “hump” bridge on Siesta Drive, which is between Flamingo Avenue and White Lane, just east of the Higel Avenue intersection.
The bridge project webpages also note that the upcoming work has been planned as a means of minimizing future maintenance on the structure.
FDOT has pointed out that temporary nighttime lane closures may be required, adding in a fact sheet, “Bridge openings to test mechanical systems will coincide with normal openings when feasible.”
In researching past maintenance on the bridge, the News Leader found no indication of work since FDOT pursued improvements of the structure in 2012.