Commissioner asks for help with crosswalk visibility

Sarasota County Commissioner Nora Patterson kept a promise Tuesday that she had made Jan. 5 to the Siesta Key Association board: She made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Jon Thaxton, to ask staff to look into ways to improve the lighting for Village crosswalks.

The motion passed unanimously.

During the board’s regular meeting in Venice, Patterson raised the matter during commissioner comments, pointing out that the Village crosswalks are “very poorly lit by the existing streetlights.” Perhaps the installation of LED lights would be a solution, Patterson suggested.

During the Siesta Key Association meeting Jan. 5, Vice President Peter van Roekens had reprised a discussion he had initiated two days earlier, during the regular meeting of the Siesta Key Village Association. “It’s a very dangerous situation at night, particularly when you’re driving. People step out between cars” on Ocean Boulevard,” he said.

Because Ocean Boulevard is not a state road, Patterson responded: “I’m not sure where the dollars come from (for lighting).” However, she speculated that funds for the streetlights probably had come from the state, perhaps through the Sarasota/Manatee Metropolitan Planning Organization, which handles transportation-related issues for both counties.

Regarding any new lighting, Patterson said, “I don’t really know how that would work. It might end up being something the assessment district might have to pick up,” she added, referring to the special taxing district that generates income to pay for the Village upkeep.

When residents of a particular neighborhood want streetlights, she continued, they form small assessment districts to cover the cost. “The county does not pick up (the cost of) lighting every area,” she said, “(but) Ocean Boulevard’s a little special.”

The Key for years has contributed about a third of the county’s tourist tax revenue.

Van Roekens told her that Russell Matthes, the SKVA president, was in favor of action to improve the visibility of the crosswalks. Van Roekens added that during the Jan. 3 SKVA meeting, Matthes had referenced past accidents, especially involving people crossing Ocean Boulevard between the Daiquiri Deck and Gilligan’s.

“Well, it’s kind of a good area to get lit, anyway,” Patterson said, drawing laughter. “Let me rephrase that,” she said after the laughter died down. “It’s a good area to have adequate lighting.”

During the SKVA meeting, members discussed the fact that some parts of the street are darker than others. Since The Pita Shack closed in December, and its neighbor, Jo-To Japanese Steakhouse, has dim outside lighting, that part of Ocean Boulevard is especially dark at night, Wendell Jacobson of Beach Bazaar pointed out.

Glenn Cappetta, owner of Sun Ride Pedicab, had suggested reflective painting as a less expensive alternative than new lights for the crosswalks, an idea other SKVA members supported.