Wayne Ruben News Today

The Downtown Improvement District board asks the city to add a fee of $3 per square foot for additional sidewalk cleaning.

Proposal needs City Commission approval before heading to voters.

Downtown leaders are eager to add brick crosswalks to the middle of streets in the heart of the city, but the cost of lighting could make the concept challenging to execute.

3 weeks ago Share From Main Street parallel parking to a garage at the SCAT transfer station site, merchants and property owners are discussing long-term strategies for reshaping the city’s commercial center. Mark Kauffman knows the idea is ambitious, but he thinks it’s worth the time and effort to fully explore it — and perhaps make it a reality. Kauffman, a downtown property owner and member of the Downtown Improvement District, sees an opportunity to dramatically reshap...

2 months ago Share After a year dominated by the effects of COVID-19, there’s hope relief is on the way — but challenges associated with the coronavirus remain. Less than 10 months after the first case of COVID-19 was identified in Sarasota County, health professionals at Sarasota Memorial Hospital began distribution of a vaccine designed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease. SMH hailed the arrival of the vaccines — which were also shipped to other area hospita...