Category: News

Looking to share your voice, make an impact, or get more involved? Volunteering on a City of Venice advisory board is an excellent way to do so. The City has the following advisory board seats open:

𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 – has two seats expiring soon. This board meets on the first and third Tuesday of each month at 1:30 p.m. at City Hall, 401 W. Venice Ave. The Commission has seven members appointed pursuant to the City Charter from among residents of the City of Venice. Members serve a three-year term. 

Planning Commission members:

• Acquire and maintain in current form such basic information as is necessary to an understanding of past trends, present conditions, and forces at work to cause change in these conditions.

• Prepare and keep current a comprehensive general plan for meeting present requirements and such future needs as may be foreseen.

• Propose principles and policies for guiding action affecting development in the City and its environs.

• Recommend to the City Council ordinances, regulations and other proposals promoting orderly development along lines indicated as desirable by the comprehensive plan.

• Determine whether specific proposed developments conform to the principles and requirements of the comprehensive plan.

• Keep the City Council informed and advised as to these matters.

• Gather information necessary for drafting, establishing, and maintaining the comprehensive plan and ordinances and regulations related to it.

• Perform other duties which may be lawfully assigned to it, or which may have a bearing on the preparation or accomplishment of the plan.

More information on this board and requirements to serve, as well as an application, can be found online here. You can also contact Amanda Hawkins-Brown in the City Clerk’s Office at ahbrown@venicefl.gov or 941-882-7391.

Deadline for applications is 4 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026.

All past applicants must reapply for consideration. If you are selected to serve on a City board, you will be required to comply with the state public records, sunshine laws, and financial disclosure requirements.

A recent incident involving a local resident serves as a chilling reminder of how sophisticated—and aggressive—phone scams have become. What began as a quiet drive between two friends quickly escalated into a high-pressure psychological ordeal designed to extort thousands of dollars.

See HERE for the complete story.

Comcast mail is migrating to Yahoo. If this news comes as a surprise, you haven’t been informed yet. Since June 2025, Comcast subscribers have been receiving notifications that their mail will be accessed on Yahoo servers. Xfinity assures customers that their comcast.net email addresses, messages, folders, and contacts will remain unchanged. These migrations will be completed throughout 2026, so don’t worry if you haven’t received your notification yet.

Key Details of the Migration

• Email Access: After the migration, users will access their @comcast.net email through Yahoo Mail’s platform.
• Account Notifications: Comcast will notify users via email about 30 days before their specific migration date.
• Account Management: Users must sign in at login.yahoo.com using their full @comcast.net email address and password to complete the migration.

What Happens to Your Data

• Migrated Data: All emails, contacts (up to 10,000), and folders (up to 4,100) will transfer automatically.
• Exceptions: Emails larger than 25MB will not migrate unless deleted beforehand. Folder names over 240 characters will be shortened.

Post-Migration: After migration, users will need to update their email settings on devices or apps to reflect Yahoo’s configurations.

Opting Out: Users can opt out of the migration, but this will result in the closure of their @comcast.net account and permanent deletion of all data.

Yahoo Help Center (Official Support)

• The best way to get actual support directly from Yahoo is through Yahoo Help Central: https://help.yahoo.com — this is Yahoo’s verified support portal where you can get help via online forms, chat (where available), and guided solutions. 

Paid Premium Support

• Yahoo offers a paid support service (e.g., Yahoo Plus Support) that includes phone support in some countries. The number sometimes listed for paid support is:
  📞 800-745-0739 (for paid support assistance in the US) 

In-Account “Contact Us”

• If you can log into your Yahoo account, go to the help screen and click “Contact Us” — Yahoo will show you the verified support options available for your specific issue.

See HERE for details and FAQs.  

Updated February 3, 2026

Venice’s population, comprising both full-time and seasonal residents, currently exceeds 35,000 and is projected to reach 50,000 by the year 2040. The high median house price in Venice has made it challenging for many individuals to purchase a single-unit house, which is the primary reason behind the construction of mixed-use family dwelling housing along Laurel Road and in other areas. Mixed-use developments offer economic benefits to governments, consumers, and developers. 

Roger mentioned that the maximum building height has actually decreased over the years. In 2002, it was possible to obtain approval for a height of 105 feet. However, now it is only 85 feet, with an exception for the new Sarasota Memorial Hospital in Venice. Roger believes that this site will become the main location for the SMH. The site has a potential expansion area of 60 acres, while the location in Sarasota is less than half of that area. 

Roger stated that the Venice government cannot refuse, according to the law, a developer’s plan if it complies with the Comprehensive Plan, Land Development Regulations, and the Binding Master Plan. A plan can only be rejected if there is competent and substantial evidence to deny it. The Bert Harris Private Property Rights Protection Act of 2011 (referenced HERE) provides relief to owners of “inordinate burdens.” This act was the primary reason why local homeowners and residents were unable to prevent the development of the natural area across the road from our entrance. As a result, there is now worrisome and potentially dangerous road traffic outside our main entrance and directly across from the main shopping center entrance, as indicated by an audience question. 

The development process, to which Roger referenced, is HERE.

To schedule a class, email vgrccaweb@gmail.com. Classes are usually Tuesdays at 10 am in the River Club which can be set other times depending on need.