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Commission rejects diocesan variance to install retaining walls along Myakka River
Summary
After hours of expert and public testimony, Sarasota commissioners unanimously denied a variance request from the Diocese of Venice seeking buried retaining walls and driveway realignment inside the Myakka River Protection Zone. Opponents cited the county's Myakka River Protection Code and potential harm to tree roots, seagrass and river ecology.
Sarasota County commissioners unanimously denied a variance Dec. 17 that would have allowed Our Lady of Perpetual Help Retreat Center to install two buried retaining walls and realign a driveway within the Myakka River Protection Zone.
The request (variance 2021-163022-RL) sought permission to place 107 feet of bulkhead at a northern site and about 272 feet at a southern site, with some segments proposed as close as 10 feet from the river. Applicant engineers and representatives said erosion had undercut access and threatened safety and that the proposed buried walls—set landward of the bank—were a long-term solution to protect access. The applicant said it had moved the proposal inland by 10 feet since an…
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