Commissioner Robin DiSabatino talks issues with Bayshore Gardens residents

BAYSHORE GARDENS -- Infrastructure, neighborhood crime and Southwest Tax Increment Financing District funding were among the top concerns of South County residents at District 4 Commissioner Robin DiSabatino's town hall meeting Wednesday night.

"It's a big group tonight, which is wonderful," DiSabatino said. "You are really concerned about your community and moving forward."

About 40 residents attended the two-hour meeting at the Bayshore Gardens Recreation Center. Representatives from the Manatee County Sheriff's Office, the Code Enforcement Division and Neighborhood Services Department were among the individuals answering questions Wednesday.

"Bayshore Gardens seems to fit right in," Restore Bayshore President Suzanna Young said. "We are perfect for millennials to get a start. We get a lot of visits from the sheriff's office."

DiSabatino said the Public Works Department has a list of streets without sidewalks and streetlights in the Bayshore Gardens area.

"We are looking for a plan from the county administrator and a budget and maybe some of that money will come out of the TIF to do sidewalks and infrastructure here," DiSabatino said.

"The county should be well aware of the streets that we want sidewalks on," Young added.

With a plan still being developed for the TIF funds in addition to follow-ups to infrastructure questions, DiSabatino said they will have another meeting after the first of the year.

Resident Maynard Boyce said Bayshore Gardens has been paying taxes since 1956 yet there are still infrastructure issues.

"They've walked away and forgotten us," he said.

DiSabatino told residents she's recently been meeting with the principals at the schools in District 4.

"I just wanted to find out what we can do to help them and have them identify streets that need extra patrolling after school and additional lighting," DiSabatino said. "We want to make sure we are identifying these areas and make it as safe as we can for our little ones."

DiSabatino said she wants sidewalks up and down U.S. 41 as well as streetlights and streetlights not placed in the middle of the sidewalks.

"I've been a staunch supporter and advocate for streetlights and sidewalks along 41," she said. "It's just so unsafe."

The sheriff's office reported Wednesday an 11 percent decrease in crimes in the area with residential and vehicle burglaries down significantly.

"It's great to see our crimes are down 11 percent in this district," DiSabatino said.

Bayshore Gardens resident Debbie Korell thanked the sheriff's office for its work.

"I want to thank you for the increased police protection," she said. "Just driving around our blocks, it makes our neighborhood safer."

The Bayshore Gardens area is a great place for millennials, said Ogden Clark, who works with the Neighborhood Services Department.

"They are going to be the workforce," he said. "It is very important for us as the county to attract and retain millennials. One of the great things about the Bayshore community is you are located in a very great place. It's a very exciting location for millennials."

At the end of the meeting, attorney Melton Little discussed his idea of South Park Athletic Center, which he is proposing to be built at the former Manatee Technical Institute campus south of Bayshore High School. It would revitalize South County neighborhoods, he said.

"We are in the process of undergoing a feasibility and impact study," Little said. "This is our park."

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

This story was originally published October 21, 2015 at 10:40 PM with the headline "Commissioner Robin DiSabatino talks issues with Bayshore Gardens residents ."