PETITION TO HALT ALL NEW AND PENDING RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT IN SARASOTA COUNTY

To: Sarasota County Board of County Commissioners

We, the undersigned residents of Sarasota County, are demanding an immediate stop to the approval and advancement of any new or pending residential developments, including large-scale projects like the proposed 13,000-home High Hat Ranch development.

Our roads are already overcrowded, and the pace of development has become irresponsible and damaging to our community. The existing infrastructure cannot handle the current population, let alone thousands of new homes.

We’re especially concerned about Lorraine Road, Fruitville Road east of I-75, Clark Road east of I-75, and all corridors along the I-75 area—all of which are overloaded, under-maintained, and unsafe. These roads were not built to handle the level of growth you continue to approve, and it shows every single day in the traffic backups, safety concerns, and increasing delays.

A prime example: Lorraine Road between Fruitville and what used to be Bee Ridge Extension was supposed to be finished in 2024. It’s now 2025, and the project is still incomplete. Meanwhile, flooding has worsened—likely worsened by debris and runoff from all the construction in this area. No accountability. No transparency. Just more approvals.

Fixing Bee Ridge alone does nothing for existing residents—it only gives access to new development. And still, the county has failed to dredge Phillippi Creek, a key flood control priority that has been “in discussion” for over a year.

The reality is:

• We do not want 13,000 more homes in High Hat Ranch.

• We do not support additional development east of I-75 until major infrastructure issues are addressed.

• We do not accept that our safety, roads, and flood risks are being ignored so more homes can be built.

We demand:

• An immediate moratorium on all new residential development approvals

• A stop to all pending large-scale approvals, including High Hat Ranch

• A comprehensive infrastructure and traffic plan for the entire east-of-I-75 region—not just project-specific access points

• Immediate action on overdue road projects (Lorraine Rd., Fruitville, Clark Rd)

• Urgent flood mitigation efforts, including dredging of Phillippi Creek

• True community engagement and respect for the voices of current residents

We are not anti-growth. We are anti-irresponsible growth. And we are calling on our elected officials to start prioritizing the people who already live here.

Enough is enough.