SCHOOLS update
Neighborhood - Schools Liaison Our neighborhood still doesn't have an official neighborhood liaison at Sarasota High or Alta Vista. The neighborhood association has been unwilling to make this happen; i guess they think it unnecessary. So when problems arise -- often small issues that could be easily solved -- who do we local residents contact? We don't know!!
Sarasota High School 2026 Construction Alert: New Tennis Courts and Volleyball Courts
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Neighbors, expect construction / deconstruction from Jan til possibly summer 2026: removal of 27 portable classrooms (9 will remain) and their infrastructure.
SHS used to have tennis courts, committed to be open to the public off-hours, which were displaced long ago by other structures. Apparently there is a dire shortage of tennis courts throughout Sarasota (many closures), and the students are having trouble accessing play time at other facilities. They HAD been proposing to build on public greenspace in nearby Payne Park, which drew community opposition, but came up with, instead, an on-campus location: on West Campus, the northeast corner, behind the Bay Street homes, just west of School Ave, near the Chiller Plant. Image shows approximate location. |
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The Project Manager has kindly provided answers to some of my questions:
- There are NO plans to allow general public use of these courts.
- They will have high fencing at ends of tennis courts, so balls shouldn't be going over The Wall into people's yards.
- The courts will NOT be lighted, so no night-play.
- Student access will be from inside SHS campus, NOT directly from School Av.
- As for the hours of use, actual days and times of use will be determined by the SHS Administration.
- I also asked about students blaring music while using the courts: "How the school uses the courts, and what rules they implement, will be up to the SHS Administration."
- There are NO plans to allow general public use of these courts.
- They will have high fencing at ends of tennis courts, so balls shouldn't be going over The Wall into people's yards.
- The courts will NOT be lighted, so no night-play.
- Student access will be from inside SHS campus, NOT directly from School Av.
- As for the hours of use, actual days and times of use will be determined by the SHS Administration.
- I also asked about students blaring music while using the courts: "How the school uses the courts, and what rules they implement, will be up to the SHS Administration."
School Security Fails and the Saga of the Batting Cage. A few years back, SHS implemented tighter security measures for protection of their students, including new perimeter fencing, etc. Theoretically, climbing over the fences onto campus can get you arrested for trespassing. On an ongoing basis, students (presumably, and presumably baseball team members) are climbing the fence to use the batting practice facilities when they are not officially open. After ongoing neighborhood resident attempts to resolve, the school has said that they cannot control this. On a related note, then, this calls into question either their willingness to act or the ineffectiveness of the expensive security measures they put into place over the last decade.
The other aspect is that many of these trespassers park cars on the Hatton St sidewalk, blocking the public sidewalk. This is not acceptable! (Presumably, THAT issue will resolve, once Gilbane vacates the empty shell lot site by the canal?)
The other aspect is that many of these trespassers park cars on the Hatton St sidewalk, blocking the public sidewalk. This is not acceptable! (Presumably, THAT issue will resolve, once Gilbane vacates the empty shell lot site by the canal?)
School Zone automatic traffic speed cameras & ticketing. Speed enforcement cameras in Safety Zones on school days, near Sarasota High and Alta Vista Elementary, have been installed, with more to come. These WILL automatically ticket you ($100) if you speed in the posted school zones. Speeders beware!
Parent pickup traffic enforcement. ACTUALLY, enforcement is no longer happening! As of January 2025, the City installed "no stopping" signs on Hatton to prohibit drivers from blocking Hatton Street by School Ave, a location that has, for years, gotten totally blockaded by parent pickup line for SHS in the afternoons on school days, often from about 1:30-2:30pm; they said they would enforce, but that hasn't happened, and the school does not enforce it, either. The City claimed they would also give attention to similar problem further East on Hatton/Shade by Alta Vista Elementary School. SHS has 3 student pickup spots: Bahia Vista lot, School Ave pickup circle, and US301 lot by Sarasota Art Museum; it's a big school, and there's a lot of car pickups. And sometimes a small number of these parents are too special to think of other road users; i just hope they're not teaching their children that inconsiderate attitude.
THREE ongoing Schools / residents issues
SHS Noise Issue: There have been continuing issues with sometimes-excessive noise levels from Sarasota High PA systems (baseball stadium & batting cage, & football stadium) disturbing neighboring residents. Several local residents have been working with school staff on mitigating this problem. Meanwhile, RESIDENTS: if excessive noise (not the usual, to-be-expected sounds) is bothering you, call 941-966-7233 (Sarasota County Schools security) and/or email Principal Ryan Chase and Jody Dumas ( ryan.chase@sarasotacountyschools.net & [email protected] ).
Parent Pick-up Issues SHS has two main parent pick-up lines, one in the front parking lot off Bahia Vista, and another that renders Hatton Street and School Ave impassable on school days, generally starting around 1.45pm til 2.15pm or so. This is a universal problem, not just for Alta Vista neighborhood. Hatton Street traffic enforcement: eff. January 2025, the City will begin enforcing normal traffic rules that prohibit drivers from blockading the streets here, with signage instructing drivers NOT to park on road (which is too narrow for other cars to pass). Another issue is that this many cars, idling with engines on (for A/C, since it's so hot&sunny) -- some for up to an hour each day! -- spew intense air pollution across the abutting residential area and the playground for SSIS elementary school!. Another issue is that some parents park on neighboring streets (with idling engines) to AVOID the official pickup lines. Over around Riverview High, there are "no pick-up parking" signs on all neighboring streets, but why we don't get those in our neighborhood???...
Public Sidewalk maintenance around our schools (Alta Vista Elementary, Sarasota High, SSIS charter): Several local residents have been working with the City, the School Department (County), and school staff regarding regular maintainance (clearing of debris, cutting protruding vegetation) of public sidewalks around the perimeters of the schools. Note that residents are required by the City to maintain the public right-of-way including sidewalk abutting their lots, yet sometimes the schools, with their long stretches of abutting public sidewalks, have neglected this public duty.
SHS Noise Issue: There have been continuing issues with sometimes-excessive noise levels from Sarasota High PA systems (baseball stadium & batting cage, & football stadium) disturbing neighboring residents. Several local residents have been working with school staff on mitigating this problem. Meanwhile, RESIDENTS: if excessive noise (not the usual, to-be-expected sounds) is bothering you, call 941-966-7233 (Sarasota County Schools security) and/or email Principal Ryan Chase and Jody Dumas ( ryan.chase@sarasotacountyschools.net & [email protected] ).
Parent Pick-up Issues SHS has two main parent pick-up lines, one in the front parking lot off Bahia Vista, and another that renders Hatton Street and School Ave impassable on school days, generally starting around 1.45pm til 2.15pm or so. This is a universal problem, not just for Alta Vista neighborhood. Hatton Street traffic enforcement: eff. January 2025, the City will begin enforcing normal traffic rules that prohibit drivers from blockading the streets here, with signage instructing drivers NOT to park on road (which is too narrow for other cars to pass). Another issue is that this many cars, idling with engines on (for A/C, since it's so hot&sunny) -- some for up to an hour each day! -- spew intense air pollution across the abutting residential area and the playground for SSIS elementary school!. Another issue is that some parents park on neighboring streets (with idling engines) to AVOID the official pickup lines. Over around Riverview High, there are "no pick-up parking" signs on all neighboring streets, but why we don't get those in our neighborhood???...
Public Sidewalk maintenance around our schools (Alta Vista Elementary, Sarasota High, SSIS charter): Several local residents have been working with the City, the School Department (County), and school staff regarding regular maintainance (clearing of debris, cutting protruding vegetation) of public sidewalks around the perimeters of the schools. Note that residents are required by the City to maintain the public right-of-way including sidewalk abutting their lots, yet sometimes the schools, with their long stretches of abutting public sidewalks, have neglected this public duty.
2024-2026 SHS construction alert: Hatton Street DEC 2026 Update: Project is WRAPPING UP!!!
Notice all the orange Gilbane fencing along Hatton Street (canal-side, which is county-owned land); they have fenced off that shell lot west of Shade (across from the batting cage), plus the grass field east of Shade, to use for staging materials & equipment, worker parking, and other construction needs, for the duration of the project. No, nothing's being "built" there, just construction staging. In progress: the long-planned major renovation of buildings at Sarasota High, East Campus: new HVAC (air conditioning) system. Some classes are held in the portable classrooms; they have to do this in six phases; expected to take 2+? years.
Notice all the orange Gilbane fencing along Hatton Street (canal-side, which is county-owned land); they have fenced off that shell lot west of Shade (across from the batting cage), plus the grass field east of Shade, to use for staging materials & equipment, worker parking, and other construction needs, for the duration of the project. No, nothing's being "built" there, just construction staging. In progress: the long-planned major renovation of buildings at Sarasota High, East Campus: new HVAC (air conditioning) system. Some classes are held in the portable classrooms; they have to do this in six phases; expected to take 2+? years.
SHS Town/Gown Noise Issue: There have been continuing issues with sometimes-excessive noise levels from Sarasota High PA systems (baseball stadium& batting cage, & football stadium) disturbing neighboring residents. Residents have been working with SHS administrators on minimizing this issue. RESIDENTS: whenever excessive noise (not the usual, to-be-expected sounds) are bothering you, call 941-966-7233 (Sarasota County Schools security) and/or email Principal Ryan Chase and Jody Dumas ( ryan.chase@sarasotacountyschools.net [email protected] ).
Yes, living next to a high school, one expects "the usual" sounds of students, class bells & PA announcements, stadium and sporting events, etc. But one ongoing neighborhood issue that has gotten worse is the overly-loud PA systems at Sarasota High School, including from stadium, baseball field & batting cage, and softball field. Loud music to entertain the students during athletic practices?
As of Feb 2024, Steve M., a TamiSola resident, has been in communication and working with School staff and City staff over the last YEAR AND A HALF (so far!) in an attempt to get SHS to reduce some of this noise encroachment on the neigborhood. He has even gathered signatures on a petition from over 100 local residents concerned about this issue. Below is a report from SHS Principal Ryan on measures the school has taken, so far, to remediate this issue. Thanks to Steve; he got this done!!!
This summer, Principal Chase & his administrators have also been working on testing and adjusting volume levels at the football stadium PA system.
Feb 22, 2024
Sarasota High School's Efforts to Mitigate Sound Production
(courtesy Principal Ryan Chase)
The following efforts have been made since August of 2022 in response to a citizen's complaints about and requests to mitigate the sound generated at Sarasota High School's campus:
- Several meetings, phone calls, and emails to discuss, review, and address concerns
- Lowered bell/announcement volume to a minimum level while still maintaining a standard for safe emergency operations; had it triple checked
- Softball speakers redirected toward center field
- Softball sound system bass frequency turned off (citizen requested to do this himself with softball coach)
- Softball team uses portable speaker during practice instead of stadium speaker to alleviate sound produced
- Baseball speakers repositioned toward center field and speaker facing guest stands repositioned to face the ground
- Noise barrier installed around Chiller Plant on East side of campus -- 3/4 around perimeter to still allow for trucks and other access through fencing
- Communication with stadium announcers to keep volume levels at minimum
- Several instances where citizen called Safety and Security or emailed while administration was campus
- Removed portable speaker and installed new lock in batting cages to prevent access during non-school hours
- Individual conversations with students who rev engines and cause disruption driving down Tami Sola St.
- Coaches shared contact number with citizen to address concerns in real time
- Principal Jones provided the city noise ordinance and instructed citizen to download a decibel-measuring application to provide information any time the school has violated the decibel-level
- Worked with district IT staff to review speaker system in football, baseball, and softball stadiums to identify any upgrades or replacement equipment needed
- District IT staff ordered new mixers for baseball and softball that will allow more robust level limiting (awaiting delivery)
- District IT staff hired third party audio professional to provide training to SHS staff on the operation of audio equipment
- District IT staff removed bass frequency from voice channel at baseball field and minimized on music channel
- District IT staff tested baseball audio system while citizen was at home for real-time feedback.
As of Feb 2024, Steve M., a TamiSola resident, has been in communication and working with School staff and City staff over the last YEAR AND A HALF (so far!) in an attempt to get SHS to reduce some of this noise encroachment on the neigborhood. He has even gathered signatures on a petition from over 100 local residents concerned about this issue. Below is a report from SHS Principal Ryan on measures the school has taken, so far, to remediate this issue. Thanks to Steve; he got this done!!!
This summer, Principal Chase & his administrators have also been working on testing and adjusting volume levels at the football stadium PA system.
Feb 22, 2024
Sarasota High School's Efforts to Mitigate Sound Production
(courtesy Principal Ryan Chase)
The following efforts have been made since August of 2022 in response to a citizen's complaints about and requests to mitigate the sound generated at Sarasota High School's campus:
- Several meetings, phone calls, and emails to discuss, review, and address concerns
- Lowered bell/announcement volume to a minimum level while still maintaining a standard for safe emergency operations; had it triple checked
- Softball speakers redirected toward center field
- Softball sound system bass frequency turned off (citizen requested to do this himself with softball coach)
- Softball team uses portable speaker during practice instead of stadium speaker to alleviate sound produced
- Baseball speakers repositioned toward center field and speaker facing guest stands repositioned to face the ground
- Noise barrier installed around Chiller Plant on East side of campus -- 3/4 around perimeter to still allow for trucks and other access through fencing
- Communication with stadium announcers to keep volume levels at minimum
- Several instances where citizen called Safety and Security or emailed while administration was campus
- Removed portable speaker and installed new lock in batting cages to prevent access during non-school hours
- Individual conversations with students who rev engines and cause disruption driving down Tami Sola St.
- Coaches shared contact number with citizen to address concerns in real time
- Principal Jones provided the city noise ordinance and instructed citizen to download a decibel-measuring application to provide information any time the school has violated the decibel-level
- Worked with district IT staff to review speaker system in football, baseball, and softball stadiums to identify any upgrades or replacement equipment needed
- District IT staff ordered new mixers for baseball and softball that will allow more robust level limiting (awaiting delivery)
- District IT staff hired third party audio professional to provide training to SHS staff on the operation of audio equipment
- District IT staff removed bass frequency from voice channel at baseball field and minimized on music channel
- District IT staff tested baseball audio system while citizen was at home for real-time feedback.
And now, on to OTHER school items ...
SHS New Principal effective Sep 2023, Former Principal David Jones has moved on to a leadership position within the School District. New principal is Ryan Chase. [email protected] (941) 955-0181
Summer 2024, the SHS MURT (multi-use path) around Sarasota High School, a pedestrian mitigation project that the School Dept committed itself to, in conjunction with the 2019 permanent closure of School Ave, is essentially, finally, complete, including the final phase of promised (in 2019) pedestrian mitigation -- widening & landscaping of the sidewalk along Tamiami Trail in front of the Sarasota Art Museum has begun March 2024. The SHS Murt page has details.
FOR THE FUTURE:
At the Aug 15, 2023 School Board Workshop, Jody Dumas presented schools updates including a brief summary of the Sarasota High School Master Plan. (You can view this on youtube, find it from the School Dept website., starting about 1hr & 50 minutes into the 3-hr video.)
Several significant changes are in the works (over the next few years -- no definite timeline yet): Tennis Courts, Performing Arts Center. See below.
September 2023: they constructed a fire road east to west across the northernmost edge of West Campus, for emergency vehicle access, paved the curb cuts and new public sidewalk sections there, reconstructed the little drainage swale impacted by fire road construction. Also, they are beginning a major HVAC (air conditioning) rehab of buildings on East Campus -- which is the reason they installed the "trailer park," that village of portable classrooms. Three grand oaks, which were deemed "in decline," were cut down to clear this corner of campus.
At the Aug 15, 2023 School Board Workshop, Jody Dumas presented schools updates including a brief summary of the Sarasota High School Master Plan. (You can view this on youtube, find it from the School Dept website., starting about 1hr & 50 minutes into the 3-hr video.)
Several significant changes are in the works (over the next few years -- no definite timeline yet): Tennis Courts, Performing Arts Center. See below.
September 2023: they constructed a fire road east to west across the northernmost edge of West Campus, for emergency vehicle access, paved the curb cuts and new public sidewalk sections there, reconstructed the little drainage swale impacted by fire road construction. Also, they are beginning a major HVAC (air conditioning) rehab of buildings on East Campus -- which is the reason they installed the "trailer park," that village of portable classrooms. Three grand oaks, which were deemed "in decline," were cut down to clear this corner of campus.
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Tennis Courts
SHS used to have tennis courts, committed to be open to the public off-hours, which were displaced long ago by other structures. Apparently there is a dire shortage of tennis courts throughout Sarasota (many closures), and the students are having trouble accessing play time at other facilities. They HAD been proposing to build on public greenspace in nearby Payne Park, which drew community opposition, but came up with, instead, an on-campus location: on West Campus, the northeast corner, behind the Bay Street homes, just west of School Ave, near the Chiller Plant (where all the portable classrooms are now). Image shows approx. location for tennis courts, AFTER, presumably, the current big HVAC project is complete and all the portable classrooms go away. |
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Performing Arts Center Currently budgeted for 2027.
SHS is the last Sarasota County high school that still has an old auditorium but not a performing arts center. Plans show a new PAC, to be located off TamiSola, between School & Shade Aves, between two large SHS parking lots, where the softball field currently stands. No doubt, more info should be available in future... |
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