Vote for Jen 20260823 – Vote for Jen

ISSUES

Downtown Parking: Listening After the Vote

The city held a public hearing before changing downtown parking hours and days. The hearing drew no testimony from downtown merchants. In July, after the new rules took effect, they came forward — the changes were driving away business they couldn’t afford to lose.

Jen asked the commission to take the issue back up. Staff and the rest of the commission wanted to wait for more data. Jen knew that merchants were losing business each day, and she felt the city couldn’t afford to wait. She insisted parking be placed on the next agenda.

The commission suspended the previous parking rule changes, putting things back to the way they were. Two workshops are now scheduled to get the policy right, with additional time to hear from merchants and residents.

Jen didn’t treat the vote as the end of the conversation. She pushed to keep listening to the voices coming to the commission, and she always will.

Prioritizing Real Affordability

Sarasota’s density bonus program delivers what the city calls “attainable housing” — one-bedroom apartments at $2,400/month. That’s not affordable by any reasonable definition.

Developers can build 200 apartments where only 50 could otherwise be built — just by agreeing to rent 15 studio apartments for $2,000/month and another 8 for $1,600. Both are higher than the going rate. The average studio in Sarasota rents for less, according to Apartments.com and Zillow Rentals.

Sarasota is a desirable place to build — that leverage should have delivered real affordability. That’s what Jen said in 2023, and the numbers have proven her right. Instead, developers combining the Live Local Act with the local bonus program get even more density, while residents get more traffic and more stormwater problems.

Jen has consistently supported housing that is truly affordable, and has called on the city to do better when its programs fall short.

Holding Growth Accountable

Every new development project changes your neighborhood — more cars, more congestion, more strain on infrastructure that was never designed for this scale. The question isn’t whether growth happens. It’s whether the city is honest about the cost before approving it.

Developers get the density. Residents get the traffic. Jen has objected to that deal consistently — calling for honest traffic impact analysis before projects are approved, not after the building is up and the problems are locked in.

Growth without accountability has a price. Jen has been clear: developers, not residents, should pay it.

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GET TO KNOW JEN AHEARN-KOCH

Sarasota Roots

Jen’s connection to Sarasota goes back to 1970, when her parents bought a home here. She graduated from a local high school, and in 1996 moved back for good, returning with her husband and their two-year-old son. This is her city. That’s not a talking point.

Neighbor Before Commissioner

Before she was your commissioner, Jen was your neighbor. She became President of the Tahiti Park Neighborhood Association, then represented her neighborhood on the Coalition of City Neighborhood Associations. She spent six years on the City’s Planning Board — learning exactly how development decisions get made and where residents get cut out. That’s not background. That’s why she ran.

Career

Before entering public life, she was Art Director at the Asolo Theatre, then founded JAK Consults in 2002 — a marketing firm she still runs today. She understands how institutions make decisions — and where residents get left out.

A Decade on the Commission

First elected in 2017. Served as Mayor in 2019-2020. Now in her second term — and still fighting the same fights she ran on.

DATES AND EVENTS

October 5, 5 p.m.

Voter Registration Deadline

Click here to connect to Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections.

November 3, 7 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Election Day Voting

Click here to find your polling place from Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections.

IN THE COMMUNITY

Help Jen Win in August

Getting Jen’s message out before August takes resources. If you’re able to help, we’d appreciate it.

Donate Now

Florida caps donations at $1,000 per person for the primary (August 18) and another $1,000 for the general election.
If you’d prefer to write a check, you may make it out to Jen Ahearn-Koch for City Commission and mail it to the address below. Please write your current occupation or ‘retired’ in the memo line for reporting purposes.

ISSUES

GET A YARD SIGN

GET TO KNOW JEN AHEARN-KOCH

DATES AND EVENTS

October 5, 5 p.m.

Voter Registration Deadline

Click here to connect to Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections.

November 3, 7 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Election Day Voting

Click here to find your polling place from Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections.

IN THE COMMUNITY

Help Jen Win in August

Jen Ahearn-Koch for Sarasota City Commission

1058 North Tamiami Trail, Suite 108, PMB 190

Sarasota, FL 34236

[email protected]

Paid for and approved by Jen Ahearn-Koch
for Sarasota City Commission.

ISSUES

GET A YARD SIGN

GET TO KNOW JEN AHEARN-KOCH

DATES AND EVENTS

October 5, 5 p.m.

Voter Registration Deadline

Click here to connect to Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections.

November 3, 7 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Election Day Voting

Click here to find your polling place from Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections.

STAY INFORMED

Thank you for signing up!

IN THE COMMUNITY

Help Jen Win in August

Jen Ahearn-Koch for Sarasota City Commission

1058 North Tamiami Trail, Suite 108, PMB 190

Sarasota, FL 34236

[email protected]

Paid for and approved by Jen Ahearn-Kochfor Sarasota City Commission.

Privacy Policy

Paid for and approved by Jen Ahearn-Koch
for Sarasota City Commission.