What do a city in the south of France and Sarasota have in common? More than one might think. In the fall of 1994, Sarasota signed an agreement to become a sister city of Perpignan, the southern-most town in metropolitan France. On March 6, the Sister Cities Association of Sarasota and Mayor Liz Alpert welcomed Perpignan’s mayor Louis Alpert to resign the agreement in commemoration of the 30-year alliance.

Similar to Sarasota, Perpignan is a city that is steeped in history, albeit a much longer one than that of Sarasota’s. Located at the edge of the Iberian Peninsula, at the foot of the Pyrenees Mountains and under 10 miles from the Mediterranean Sea, Perpignan’s roots trace back to the 10th century as one of the Catalan counties in the Marca Hispania during the Middle Ages. As such, citizens of Perpignan typically speak not only French, but also Catalan.

Today, Perpignan is a thriving city with a metropolitan area that over 200,000 call home.

The resigning of the Sister Cities agreement with Sarasota is more than just the upholding of tradition—it symbolizes the willingness from both parties to have an alliance that fosters growth through cultural and intellectual exchange.

“What excites me about the Sister Cities program is that it helps foster friendships, collaboration and understanding between not just the two sister cities, but between the residents and the countries as well,” says Mayor Liz Alpert. “I think that it’s important for us to have those kinds of connections and experiences so that we can understand that people are the same around the world and have the same desires and hopes for the future. We need this kind of cross-nation dialogue to help understand that.”

Pictured (L to R): Sarasota Mayor Liz Alpert and Perpignan Mayor Louis Aliot signing the Sister Cities re-commitment agreement. Photo by Dylan Campbell.

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Habitat for Humanity Sarasota celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2025, commemorating four decades of building strength, stability, and self-reliance through affordable homeownership. Since its founding in 1985, Habitat Sarasota has been dedicated to serving Sarasota families in need, transforming lives, and strengthening the community one home at a time. For more information about Habitat for Humanity Sarasota and ways to support its mission of building affordable homes and performing critical home repairs, visit habitatsrq.org. 

Please join Sarasota County Schools’ Human Resources department for a virtual job fair for instructional positions on Thursday, March 13 from 10:00am to 12:00pm. To register, please visit: scsvirtualevent.easyvirtualfair.com. Questions? Please email recruitment@sarasotacountyschools.net.

The Office of Angelina “Angel” Colonneso, Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller for Manatee County invites residents whose driver’s license is suspended due to overdue traffic tickets and court fines or fees to save up to 30% on collection fees and reinstate their driver’s license at Operation Green Light on Saturday, April 5. This in-person event will take place from 8:30 a.m. to noon at the Manatee County Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller’s office located in downtown Bradenton at 1115 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton. Since 2016, beginning with Driver License Reinstatement Days, the Clerk’s office has helped hundreds of people become eligible for driver’s license reinstatement. 

A powerful coalition of community leaders, concerned citizens, and former board chairs, trustees, and donors has mobilized to protect the legacy of The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art from what they recognize as an ill-conceived, costly attempted takeover by New College of Florida. The newly formed Citizens to Protect the Ringling is working to preserve the museum's 25-year, financially effective partnership with Florida State University (FSU), which would end under a recent proposal to transfer the museum's stewardship to New College – Florida’s smallest public college with an enrollment under 800 students. Citizens to Protect the Ringling has launched a comprehensive community education campaign about the proposed change and is providing resources for concerned citizens to take action. The organization’s website – protectringling.org – offers guidance on contacting state legislators, including customizable email templates and direct links to elected officials. 

Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections Ron Turner was in Little Rock, AR last week to receive a People's Choice Award for Professional Practice Program from the National Association of Election Officials, Election Center. Following the award presentation, staff from the elections office presented on a paper entitled Planning for Elections in a Changing Landscape. The paper focused on the elections office’s use of data to drive decision-making in order to best serve the ever-growing voter population of Sarasota County. The National Association of Election Officials, Election Center provides resources and support to help elections professionals navigate the election process. Their membership consists of election officials at the state and local levels and government officials involved in elections at every level of government. 

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Christopher Alan Homes has climbed one spot to rank 58th in Home Builder Executive’s “Top 100 Private Home Builders” based on 2024 closings. The largest privately held homebuilder in Southwest Florida, Christopher Alan Homes moved up from its 59th position in 2024, closing 580 homes in 2024 and a cumulative total of nearly 3,000 homes closed since its 2017 inception. Home Builder Executive, a leading news network for industry leaders, compiles the Top 100 Builders list by evaluating companies based on their annual closing performance, reflecting their ability to meet market demands effectively while maintaining exceptional standards of quality and service. Headquartered in Southwest Florida, Christopher Alan Homes is a preferred single-family builder in Babcock Ranch, America’s first solar-powered town. The builder-owned company also builds on individual homesites in Charlotte, Sarasota and Lee counties in Southwest Florida and Palm Bay on Florida’s East Coast. Zonda ranked the company 91st in its 2024 Builder 100 list. For more information about Christopher Alan Homes visit christopheralanhomes.com or call 855-44-MYCAH (69224). 

From April 22 through May 6, Sarasota County Public Utilities will temporarily modify its drinking (potable) water disinfection process as part of routine maintenance. The water will remain safe to drink. This process has many benefits, including improving the overall quality of the drinking water by removing any sediments and other materials that may accumulate in pipes and decreasing potential for corrosion in pipes. The last time Sarasota County performed this process was in April 2023. During this period, the water will be disinfected with free chlorine rather than chlorine combined with ammonia (chloramines). This routine process, known as a free chlorine conversion, helps maintain water quality in distribution systems, as recommended by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. 

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