Development Projects in Venice, August, 2026
This article contains a link to a 7-page presentation on active development projects in Venice as the end of August, 2026.
Click to open a city publication that contains maps of the proposed areas as well as a description of the 30 projects currently being considered.
Resident Orientation / Refresher
Bob Harrigan Speaks!
On Monday, August 31, 2026, Bob Harrigan, ABC7 Chief Meteorologist, spoke to the VGRC community about weather and hurricanes. Over 100 people attended the event and seemed to listen with rapt attention. For over forty years, Bob has been forecasting weather, advising people in the Bradenton, Sarasota and Venice area about the threats of storms including tropical storms and hurricanes.
Bob is unusual in that his goal is to alert the communities and not scare them. He suggested that there are many “weather experts” on social media who are into scare tactics to get the viewers to “click on their” postings pages which generates significant income for them. Bob is opposed to these tactics and cautioned the audience to be selective in whom they turn to for weather/storm forecasts.
Bob is very gracious with his time, and though he is a busy Broadcast Meteorologist, he also is generous with his time, speaking to organizations and communities in our areas. His passion for the topics and his ability to share information with the general population in a manner that is understandable is a testament to his skill, talents and dedication.
After the presentation, some of the leaders of the Community Association, the CDD and the POA posed for the picture below with Bob. Other photos of the event are also shown. Dick Foster, a member of the HRT, created and edited a video of the presentation. It can be viewed by clicking HERE
City of Venice Newsletter for October
Please enjoy the latest edition of the Venice City E-News by clicking HERE. Navigate the City’s e-newsletter by using the left and right arrows on your keyboard, or flip to the next page by using the arrows on the viewing screen. Explore additional resources and information by clicking on hyperlinks. Enjoy the many timely and useful articles in this free newsletter!
Water, Water… No where
We have seen various alerts about this topic since at least April, and restrictions have not yet ended. Homeowners should be aware of this not only to avoid being fined but also because it is the right thing to do. Be aware of the distinction between irrigation water and potable (city) water, because the restrictions and penalties are different for each. Irrigation at VGRC (using reclaimed water) is managed by our CDD, who specifies when irrigation can be done depending on your address. Click HERE to open the current CDD schedule. Currently, irrigation is limited to one period per week, usually in the early a.m. hours. Irrigating outside of allowed times can subject you to a warning or fine from our POA, who monitors for compliance. Residents should not attempt to adjust their irrigation timers without full knowledge of the CDD requirements or consultation with their landscaping service, if applicable.
The City of Venice and the SW Florida Water Management District issued a bulletin on April 3 restricting the use of potable water for landscape watering and car washing. Although the bulletin carried an end date of July 1, the restrictions have now been extended to October 1. Watering with sprinklers is restricted to Tuesdays and Thursdays depending on your address, while hand watering or use of soaker hoses may be done any day but only between 6 p.m. and 8 a.m. It is a rather complicated formula best seen by clicking HERE to view the City of Venice webpage. Violation of these government restrictions may result in a citation or fine of $75.
Please do your part to understand and comply with these important requirements. [posted July 6, 2026]
Northeast Venice Park opened
As long planned, the Northeast Venice Park on the south side of Laurel Road near Knights Trail opened to the public on June 15. The Venetian was represented at the opening by Community Association (CA) board members Mark Faford, Tom Jones, Steve Hefler and Roger Effron. As reported earlier, the CA has been appointed “sponsor” of this park, meaning we will participate in quarterly inspections to assess the safety and cleanliness of the park. The park’s many features are listed in the email below, sent to demonstrate our commitment to maintaining friendly and constructive relations with our local government. We hope you and your family will avail yourselves of this new attraction. Lastly – if you would like to participate in the Park’s sponsorship group, please drop a line to vgrcca@gmail.com
June 17 email from Community Association Co-Presidents
To: Mayor Pachota and members of the Venice City Council:
On behalf of the Venetian Golf and River Club’s Community Association, we would like to congratulate all City employees-past and present-involved with the planning, financing, engineering, construction and maintenance of the new Northeast Venice Park located on Laurel Road. This new park is beautiful and has exceeded all expectations! Venice residents will be thrilled with the 8 outdoor pickleball courts, fitness trail and equipment, children’s playgrounds, dog parks, restrooms and paved parking area. We think it will be a significant enhancement to the Northeast Venice neighborhood and will show current and prospective residents why living in our city is a great value.
We had the pleasure to personally meet and thank A.J. Ribas of A2 Group Construction, Kelsie Shy of Kimley Horn Engineers, Ricky Simpson, Venice Public Works Director, Tricia Matero, Public Works Administrative Coordinator and, of course, James Clinch, our City Manager. Clearly, this project, started in 2020, required extensive coordination and you all hit a “home run”!
Our Community Association is honored to be chosen to “Adopt” the Northeast Venice Park and we look forward to assisting the city in maintenance of this beautiful park.
Please extend our congratulations to all involved with this amazing new park! A sincere “thanks” to all of you!
Kind regards, Mark Faford and Tom Jones, co-presidents
Venetian Golf & River Club Community Association
Same day reply from Rachel Frank of the Venice City Council
Thank you for your kind words and for taking the time to share your feedback. We are grateful for the Community Association’s ongoing support of the park.
2026 Annual Hurricane Preparation Meeting well-attended
June 1st was not only the first day of the hurricane season, but also the day that Sandra Tapfumaneyi, Chief of Emergency Management for Sarasota County, James Clinch, Venice City Manager and Frank Giddens, Fire Department Chief educated and motivated our community about the need for hurricane preparedness. They presented information on how to prepare for storm emergencies and explained the roles and responsibilities shared by their three organizations in preparing for and responding to storms.
Sandra, James and Frank were each presented with a plaque indicating our appreciation for speaking at our event and for what they do for our community. The members of the HRT had their pictures taken with each speaker.
The River Club room was largely filled with members of the community, some of whom attend this event annually and others who are new to the community. The audience warmly applauded the HRT members who were recognized for their commitment and service. Several photos of this event are shown above.
We encourage residents who are interested in learning about hurricane preparedness and about volunteer opportunities with our HRT to explore the information on the Hurricane Corner page of this website.
Our HRT shares knowledge with the city-wide community at 2026 Hurricane Expo
The City of Venice hosted another Hurricane Expo on Friday, May 29th at the Venice Community Center. For the second consecutive year, city officials invited our HRT to host a table and to share information with attendees on how to create and maintain a community hurricane response team program. The VGRC was the only community asked to participate and showcase its program, and there was a great deal of interest and appreciation expressed by those who stopped by. A couple attendees said that they had a group of CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) members who are activated after a storm; but unfortunately, most of those with whom we spoke said that there was no team in their community and agreed that one was needed. Handouts with an outline of our program contents and contact information was provided to anyone who was interested. City officials stopped by the booth and, as in the past, applauded the community for such a wonderful program.
New 2026 Hurricane Guide & Facebook for Hurricane Corner
The Venice 2026 Hurricane Guide from the City has been completely revised from past years.
We have created a Facebook site for members of our community, and their families and friends, to be used as a communication tool (in addition to the community emails) for hurricane preparation tips as well as providing post-storm updates. We have found that there is a great need for quick updates and reports of post-storm issues and that this tool may make communication easier. It is a private Facebook site and access has to be approved. The site is “Hurricane Corner-VGRCCA (see https://www.facebook.com/groups/hurricanecornervgrcca). Please sign up for it, as we anticipate that you will be instrumental in providing valuable information after any hurricane has impacted our area.