Brannock Humphries & Berman Helps Prevent Another Challenge to Sarasota Development Project

The Second District Court of Appeal rejected a third attempt to stop a mixed-use project from going forward on 23.8 acres located at the busy intersection of U.S. Highway 41 and Stickney Point Road, near the entrance to Siesta Key.

Known as Siesta Promenade, the development project will include a mix of residential, hotel, retail, and office space on a currently vacant lot. After extensive planning and approvals from Sarasota County, a resident previously brought suit to challenge the project. Brannock Humphries & Berman assisted its longtime client Benderson Development Company in convincing the circuit court first, and the Second District later, to reject that challenge.

This case presented another attempt to ground the project to a halt. Brought by a second resident, this third effort challenged a permit issued by the Florida Department of Transportation to add a traffic signal and to provide access from the development onto Stickney Point Road. The resident contested the issuance of the permit, claiming that the new signal and additional traffic congestion would make it tougher for him to access his home on Siesta Key.

Both the Department and an administrative law judge rejected the resident’s arguments, pointing out that his claims of generalized injury were not sufficient to prove standing under the Florida Administrative Procedure Act. The resident appealed to the Second District where, once again, Brannock Humphries & Berman was called to assist. After written briefing and an oral argument, the Second District issued a per curiam affirmance, upholding without comment the dismissal of the resident’s claims on standing grounds.