Manasota Key Road reopens as Sarasota County eyes permanent solution to continued storm damage

MANASOTA KEY, Fla. - Manasota Key Road in South Sarasota County is finally back open. It comes after a 2,000-foot section north of Blind Pass Park was shut down after Hurricanes Helene and Milton washed out the road in 2024. 

Residents said it's a big time-saver and a bit of relief they've needed. While the road has reopened, though, Sarasota County said another change is also in the works. 

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The backstory:

Having cars come down the newly reopened section of Manasota Key Road is a sight Tim Samalik and others have waited more than a year for. 

"It's helped a lot, especially with getting over into the Englewood area, because the house is here, it’s right here where the road is damaged. To get back to the road, you had to go all the way around, which is about three miles across the bridge, and then go down and go back around. It was like a 10-mile trip to get to the store that normally took half that time to go to," said Samalik. 

The section of the road, which connects Manasota Key to Englewood, washed away as Hurricanes Helene and Milton brought feet of storm surge. Sarasota County approved the emergency road repair last March, but then sea turtle nesting season put a halt to the work. 

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But, work resumed in October.

"It's super important that this road be opened up to traffic. The detour alone on Manasota Key would have been about a 45-minute detour to go around," said Carolyn Eastwood, the director of capital projects for Sarasota County. 

Some minor work on the repair is expected to continue over the coming weeks. 

"While the road is open to traffic, we do have some final work activities to complete. Specifically, we have a little bit more dirt and debris removal to do. We will be replacing the no-parking signs with guardrail. To make sure people aren’t parking on the east side of the road, it’s important, because the material there is mostly sand and people will get stuck," said Eastwood. 

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Why you should care:

Since 2017, Manasota Key Road has been washed out multiple times. In 2023, after Hurricane Idalia passed, the road remained in pieces. 

The road repair is considered a temporary one, as Sarasota County looks at options for building a more resilient road that can hold up against future storms. 

"It's important to get a permanent repair in place that’s more resilient, so we can avoid this type of thing from happening in the future," said Eastwood. 

As Sarasota County continues repairs, residents ask visitors to be respectful. They've had several people park and turn around where they are working to recover, which can often bring more damage to repairs already needed. 

"It's been a year and if you look around here, it still looks like a war zone because of all the damage. It’s going to take several years for this to get done, and please be respectful," said Samalik. 

What's next:

The temporary repair cost just more than $2 million. Sarasota County said they will use grant funding from a number of sources to help cover part of the cost for a permanent solution.