Northern & Mid-County: Sarasota, Longboat Key & Siesta Key
The northern half of Sarasota County centers on Sarasota Bay. Downtown Sarasota is divided into walkable sub-districts: the Main Street and Lemon Avenue market core, the galleries of Historic Palm Avenue, the bungalow studios of Towles Court, the design-focused Rosemary District north of Fruitville Road, and Southside Village near Sarasota Memorial Hospital.
Directly offshore lie the Town of Longboat Key, St. Armands Key, Lido Key, and unincorporated Siesta Key—connected to the mainland by three causeways (John Ringling Causeway, Siesta Drive North Bridge, and Stickney Point Road South Bridge).
Osprey, Nokomis & The Venice Island Corridor
Continuing south on US-41, Osprey preserves some of the oldest pioneer and prehistoric Calusa history on the Gulf Coast at Historic Spanish Point and Blackburn Point Park. Neighbouring Nokomis provides direct bridge access to southern Casey Key, Nokomis Beach, and the North Jetty.
Across Roberts Bay, the City of Venice features John Nolen’s 1926 master-planned boulevard layout, wide green medians, Italian Renaissance architecture, and direct Gulf beach access.
South County: North Port, Wellen Park & Englewood
By land area, the City of North Port is the largest municipality in Sarasota County, encompassing the Myakkahatchee Creek environmental corridor, the master-planned downtown lakefront of Wellen Park, and CoolToday Park (spring training home of the Atlanta Braves). To the west along SR-776, Englewood straddles the Sarasota–Charlotte county line around Lemon Bay and Manasota Key.