Longboat Key, split in two, clashes with Manatee County leaders over one-county initiative

The town of Longboat Key all but said, “It’s not you, Manatee County. It’s us.”

While Mayor Terry Gans and Town Manager Tom Harmer both say the town has not chosen sides in its quest to decide whether to move into one county, tensions heated up Tuesday with what some barrier island officials say is a lack of action from its northern neighbors.

Manatee County Commission Chairwoman Priscilla Whisenant Trace shook up the agenda items in the joint meeting between the two municipalities to first address what was referred to several times as the “elephant in the room” that lasted for half of the three-hour meeting.

The town’s main argument for wanting to move into one county is the tax discrepancy — residents who live in the Sarasota portion pay $2.5 million less in ad valorem taxes than residents in the Manatee County portion do. They also listed the struggles of being in two counties: two supervisors of elections, two property appraisers, different ordinances that may apply depending on which county they’re in and differences in how each county responds to emergencies.

“We’re really dealing with an accident of history,” Gans said of how the island was split.

Some former Sarasota County officials have moved into Longboat Key slots, such as former Sarasota County Administrator Tom Harmer and Isaac Brownman as public works director. A similar presentation was made to the Sarasota County commission in November.

Manatee commissioners were on the defensive. Commissioner Carol Whitmore felt as though some Longboat Key residents “don’t want to be in Manatee” and wanted to take action to show the town that staying in Manatee was a better deal.

“It’s a really good working relationship and I’m happy about that,” she said.

The crux of the discussion fell upon what the counties do (or don’t do) for the town. Former Longboat Key Town Manager Dave Bullock told Sarasota County commissioners in November that it’s “hard to say (they get) equal services from either county.”

When Commissioner Betsy Benac asked for how “Sarasota County provides positive response,” Gans was ready with an answer. He pointed to Greer Island, also known as Beer Can Island, which is in need of erosion control and litter cleanup but feels Manatee County doesn’t take responsibility for the land.

Sarasota County on the other hand, Gans said, is “heavily invested” in Bayfront Park, adding that none of the Manatee commissioners attended the park’s ribbon-cutting ceremony.

“This winds up sounding petty,” Gans said.

Former Longboat Key mayor and current commissioner Jim Brown added that he felt as though he was being “tolerated” by Manatee County and said county commissioners had an “attitude.”

“I’ve always felt bad when I left Manatee County,” he said.

It wasn’t all barbs: the town brought a $9 million idea of building three rock groins and funneling in more sand to combat erosion on Greer Island, and County Administrator Ed Hunzeker and Harmer agreed to team up to solve the issue.

Gans was blunt with commissioners on what the town meant to either county: “We’re a cash cow. We know it.” Whatever happens, the town intends on getting the opinion of its citizens before asking the legislature to legally change the boundaries, if at all.

After discussing hurricane response and traffic, by the end of the meeting tensions had settled. Baugh commented on one thing the two municipalities needed: more communication.

This story was originally published February 27, 2018 at 6:14 PM with the headline "Longboat Key, split in two, clashes with Manatee County leaders over one-county initiative."