Manatee tax collector expansion to be complete by late next fall

MANATEE -- The Manatee County Tax Collector's Office will occupy a new location in Bradenton next fall, according to a county official.

As the remnants of the former ABC Fine Wine & Spirits building were hauled off Friday, work continued on the $3.3 million project, which will allow the DeSoto tax collector's branch to expand at 904 301 Blvd. W.

Charlie Bishop, county Property Management Department director, said the project is "on budget and a little delayed" but should be complete next fall.

"We are moving forward," he said. "It's not going to take a lot once we get going."

The new 8,500-square-foot addition is intended to address anticipated increases in driver's license renewals.

Due to the life of a driver's license being extended from six to eight years, Tax Collector Ken Burton Jr. said he anticipates a spike in the number of renewals per year.

Manatee County averages 25,000 driver's license renewals a year.

In 2017, the number of renewals is projected to increase 48 percent to 37,000. In 2018, the number could increase another 19 percent to 44,000.

"We are planning for this hit that we are going to have to absorb in 2017," Burton said in March. "We are in a down cycle now. It has given us an opportunity to plan and get ready."

The DeSoto branch, the busiest in the county, opened in 1994.

"It has taken this long to outgrow it," Burton said in March. "We are slowly adding staff. We are getting ready for the time to come."

Claire Aronson, Manatee County reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7024. Follow her on Twitter@Claire_Aronson.

This story was originally published December 18, 2015 at 7:06 PM with the headline "Manatee tax collector expansion to be complete by late next fall ."