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Applicant seeks Mango Avenue rezone and small Aspen Wall vacation to enable one‑story records facility
Summary
Applicant asked to rezone 401 Mango Avenue to the Downtown Edge district and to vacate a roughly 100-by-30-foot section of Aspen Wall so a combined parcel could host a one‑story Sarasota County Clerk of Court records facility; staff granted partial DRC sign‑off and requested additional survey, easement and legal‑description details.
Robert Himes, representing the Swift Family Limited Partnership, told the Development Review Committee that the applicant is seeking a rezone of the Mango Avenue parcel to the Downtown Edge zone and a companion partial vacation of Aspen Wall to accommodate a Sarasota County Clerk of Court records facility on a single, combined parcel.
"We're seeking to vacate a section of Aspen Wall. It's approximately 100 by 30 feet," Himes said, explaining that vacating the street segment — which currently terminates at railroad tracks and is not used by the general public — would permit a more efficient, one‑story layout for the records facility and could reduce costs for taxpayers.
Camden Jenkins of Development Services asked the applicant to provide a sketch and a legal description that include the portion of right‑of‑way proposed for vacation. Reviewers across departments provided technical and advisory comments: transportation staff urged preservation of future trail connectivity and recommended that any vacated segment be accompanied by a dedicated easement; utilities and engineering reviewers requested clarifications to survey orientation, water‑main connections and storm‑pipe locations; planning noted the need to include the rezone number on formal documents.
Transportation reviewers cited the city's comprehensive‑plan guidance that discourages vacating rights‑of‑way that provide public benefit and recommended a minimum 20‑foot pedestrian easement on the north end to maintain legacy‑trail connectivity if the railroad corridor is repurposed. Himes said the applicant would consider locating an easement on the Mango Avenue parcel to preserve potential future trail access.
Staff indicated the applications would receive partial DRC sign‑off pending follow up on survey details, the sketch and legal description, and other reviewer items. Next steps include resubmitting plans that show the requested easement, addressing city engineering and utilities comments, and providing any required no‑objection letters before the item moves to the Planning Board and City Commission.
