Sarasota County Schools details $hundreds of millions in capital projects and a plan to boost utilization amid enrollment pressures

Sarasota County Schools officials on Thursday gave local elected leaders an overview of major capital projects and a multi-year strategy to respond to falling enrollment and rising costs.

Dr. Michael Kidd, chief operations officer for Sarasota County Schools, reviewed recent project completions and ongoing builds. He said Sky Ranch opened this year as a K–6 facility after a roughly $103,600,000 project, with first‑year enrollment just under 850 students and plans to add a seventh grade next year. Kidd said the facility meets EHPA standards and will double as an emergency‑evacuation center for its community. He also outlined the Welland/Willard Park high‑school project, budgeted at about $175,000,000, and an $80,000,000 replacement for Garden (also referred to in the presentation as Darden) Elementary that the district expects to open in 2027 and that will include extended stacking lanes to ease traffic during drop‑off and pick‑up.

Kidd described a planned North Port campus refresh — including…