Community meeting to be held on possible inclusion of a portion of Nokomis in Sarasota County Fire and Rescue District
Francesco Abbruzzino, The Uncensored Report, LLC
SARASOTA COUNTY – Enhancing public safety service and providing an equitable level of fire and EMS service to the residents and visitors of Sarasota County is a priority to ensure the health, safety and general welfare of our community.
Sarasota County Fire Department will host a community meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 11 at 6 p.m., at Sarasota County Fire Station 23, 1930 N. Tamiami Trail, Nokomis. The community is invited to join SCFD for a presentation to learn more about how the department provides fire protection and EMS services, public education, community programming, and more resources to the community. Additionally, there is a public hearing planned for the Dec. 17 Sarasota County Board of County Commissioners meeting.
To ensure equity in assessment fees and services provided through those funds in unincorporated Sarasota County, the Sarasota County Fire Department (SCFD) is seeking direction from the Board of County Commissioners regarding the possibility of including a portion of the Nokomis area in the county’s 2025 tax year’s non-ad valorem assessment district.
This would make SCFD the primary fire and EMS service in the response area based out of Fire Station #23, which was rebuilt in 2024. SCFD already provides EMS services throughout the Nokomis area.
“We appreciate the work of the volunteers at Nokomis Volunteer Fire Department; there is a rich history in volunteerism in the fire service and to this community,” said Emergency Services Director Rich Collins. “This is not a question of the level of service they provide, this is about the equity of fire assessment rate payment across unincorporated Sarasota County and that residents in the rest of the assessment district are subsidizing fire services in this area.”
Nokomis Volunteer Fire Department, Inc., which currently provides primary fire response in the area, exists as a 501(c)(4) non-profit organization and does not possess the authority to levy special assessments or impact fees.
Residents in the Nokomis Volunteer Fire Department service area currently do not pay into the county’s non-ad valorem fire assessment district.
The result is that unincorporated Sarasota County residents and businesses are subsidizing the cost of fire rescue and protection services, specialized hazardous materials, and rescue responses as well as a Sarasota County fire station in Nokomis. SCFD also provides mutual and automatic aid to the area to make up the effective response force needed to effectively mitigate fire suppression incidents.