National Public Works Week 2024

It’s National Public Works Week, when we celebrate the teams that provide exceptional service in planning, building and managing Sarasota County’s transportation and stormwater infrastructure. This framework of trails, roads, bridges, flood control and water quality projects form the foundation for the community’s quality of life.
The department is comprised of three divisions: Field Services, Stormwater and Transportation.
Sarasota County has had a stormwater management division since 1981, when the Aquatic Plant Control Department became part of the Department of Transportation. Today, this division ensures regulatory compliance, partners with local neighborhoods and schools to build a culture of conservation through its Neighborhood Environmental Stewardship Team (NEST), develops ways to reduce harmful stormwater runoff that can pollute streams, ponds and bays, helps keep local flood insurance premiums down through the county’s Community Rating System, and works to maintain superior water quality and enhance areas of concern in the county’s abundant water bodies, This team samples 120 points in the county to monitor the health of county creeks and bays. It also manages major watersheds that include the Celery Fields and Dona Bay.
Transportation Planning plays an integral role in funding transportation projects. This includes making state and federal funding requests, calculating fee amounts for commercial development and prioritizing the use of these funds. This group is also responsible for bicycle, pedestrian and trails coordination, including the Legacy Trail, enjoyed by nearly 300,000 people annually.
Field Services is the largest of the three divisions, making up 80% of the department’s staff. Field Services oversees three teams: Road and Bridge, Stormwater Operations and Transportation Operations.
The Road and Bridge team is responsible for the management and maintenance of: roads, bike lanes, curbs, bridges, sidewalks, hand and guardrails; forestry, which includes all tree trimming and maintenance for 30,000 street trees in medians and right of way; mowing over 2,800 acres each month along county rights of way; and landscaping and contract mowing for medians, right of way, bed maintenance and mulching in more than 300 medians.
Traffic Operations manages more than 47,000 road signs and markings, 273 signalized intersections, rapid flashing beacons for crosswalks, hawk signals, and Legacy Trail crossings, all county school zones and 6,867 streetlights and special lighting districts.
Last year, the team maintained 2,385 lane miles of county roads, resurfaced 75 lane miles of road and managed 137 bridges.
Stormwater Operations maintains nearly 300 miles of open drainage in roadside ditches and swales, over 400 miles of closed drainage pipeline and 16,000 structures or inlets, nearly 600 acres of 305 lakes and ponds, moveable weir gates, stormwater pump stations, and canals, waterways, and streams, mowing 194 miles of canal annually. 182 miles of canal are hand-cleared semi-annually.
Learn more about how Sarasota County’s Public Works Department serves the community at scgov.net. www.scgov.net/government/publ...