MANATEE COUNTY — Public backlash seems to have only intensified after SSA Marine announced its intention to explore developing a private cruise port at the southern end of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, near the Terra Ceia Aquatic Preserve at the mouth of Tampa Bay. Manatee County officials said last week that public discourse had escalated to the point of “harassment, threats, and intimidation” directed toward staff and their families, including children.
As residents struggle to understand the process and progress of an announced proposed project that carries significant economic, ecological, environmental, and perhaps even cultural considerations for both the immediate area and the greater surrounding region, the local government reports that some of this concern and confusion has turned into panic and anger directed at county staff.
“It has come to my attention that multiple county employees, as well as members of their families, including children, are being subjected to harassment, threats, and intimidation related to a proposed private-sector cruise terminal project in the very early stages of review…. This is unacceptable,” County Administrator Charlie Bishop said in an official statement on Wednesday.
In the three weeks since SSA Marine revealed it was working with the landholder of the 300-acre Knott-Cowen tract, owned by Slip Knott LLC, the potential project site, detailed information about the company’s plans has been scarce.
SSA has provided little information beyond what’s available on its recently launched promotional website, and representatives of the landholder declined media inquiries in the weeks following the company’s announcement—despite initial statements citing the entities working “in partnership.”
SSA’s announcement came like a Friday morning “news bomb” dropped on the community. The significant development proposal for an area of coastal land and water, long recognized for its ecological importance and the need for preservation, created shockwaves of citizen alarm, resulting in a flurry of activity on social media, including calls to action, speculation, accusations, and even the spread of misinformation.
An initial citizen-led online petition, titled “Save Rattlesnake Key,” mistakenly identified the ecologically sensitive parcel south of the Knott-Cowen tract as the proposed site for the cruise terminal. This confusion stemmed from the fact that a subsidiary of SSA Marine purchased Rattlesnake Key last fall from a company tied to the owners of the Knott-Cowen tract. Despite SSA and its subsidiary, the Rattlesnake Key Preservation Company, pledging to preserve the land, the close proximity of Rattlesnake Key to the Knott-Cowen tract—connected by submerged lands—and the shared ownership links only fueled the confusion.
Within days, years-old real estate marketing materials were resurfaced by those seeking answers, featuring conceptual drawings of development possibilities that illustrated the value and investment potential of the parcels owned by Slip Knott LLC and its related company. Some citizens believed they had “found” the official development plans for SSA’s proposed project.
However, there were no official plans publicly available, at least not yet. Neither SSA nor Slip Knott had submitted a formal planning application to the county’s development services department—and, as of the close of business Friday, they still haven't.
The confusion hasn’t been limited to citizens either; some elected officials are even unclear on the details, given the limited information. For instance, in a statement opposing SSA’s plans, Republican Senator Jim Boyd of Bradenton mistakenly identified Rattlesnake Key as the proposed project site. The senator also referenced a conceptual design from a different landowner in the area, who had only proposed his idea after learning about SSA’s plan. Those secondary, unrelated resort development plans appear to be even less official than SSA’s, as no preliminary application has been submitted to the county.
More recently, a county-issued economic incentive qualification letter addressed to Slip Knott has drawn the attention and scrutiny of citizens who were outraged by the perceived tone of county officials in the correspondence, anger that was escalated by misunderstandings of what a Rapid Response Certification meant in terms of where the project was in the overall approval process.
Manatee County’s economic incentive program was established in 2009. It was designed to support local business growth—whether through relocation to Manatee County, expansion, or a new local start-up—and to encourage investment in the local economy. Managed by the Economic Development Division, the program’s goal is to promote job creation, foster local capital investment, and make the county more competitive with other locations.
To achieve these goals, the program offers a range of incentives, including financial benefits such as grants or fee reductions, as well as non-monetary, process-oriented incentives like Rapid Response, which aims to streamline the development application process and fast-track permitting. However, qualifying for the Rapid Response incentive doesn’t mean skipping any part of the development approval process; applicants still need to submit a complete planning application, including detailed design plans, site layout, technical reports such as traffic and environmental studies, stormwater plans, and other required documents.
A formal planning application review process comes after a less stringent preliminary application review—the step the proposed cruise port is currently in—as a requirement for participation in the Rapid Response program. It is only during an official in-depth planning review that staff would be able to examine whether the detailed site and engineering plans are compatible with the comprehensive plan and in compliance with the county's land development code, before it could be scheduled for multiple required public hearings before the county’s planning commission and county commission. An applicant’s plans still don’t receive final approval until they secure a majority vote of support from the county commission.
To some in the public, the January 15 certificate stating that SSA’s project could qualify for “Rapid Response” gave the impression that the county had already aligned itself with SSA and the private cruise port project, even before development plans had been reviewed, impacts had been studied, or public input had been gathered.
However, the certificate is a form letter with pre-set phrasing—a standard document issued when an applicant declares hypothetical scenarios about a project's potential value to the local economy. “Fast-track” review or permitting isn’t guaranteed by the certificate’s issuance; the applicant will still need to complete all planning review requirements and provide evidence that its proposal will deliver the economic benefits it claimed it would before county permits are even issued under the program’s benefits.
SSA’s proposal introduces additional complexities, unlike other proposed developments reviewed by the county, as its permitting process would almost certainly involve entities outside Manatee County, including state and federal agencies. Even if the project qualified for local “rapid response,” it is a local program that does not preempt other government agencies.
Speaking with TBT by phone, Manatee County’s Director of Government Relations, Stephanie Garrison, acknowledged that the project’s complexity and size meant it would be impossible, regardless of meeting the economic qualifiers to be processed under Rapid Response, for staff to review a complete planning application with a design plan within the 21 days.
To be considered a candidate for any of the county’s economic development incentives, interested applicants must submit an incentive application to determine eligibility. A copy of the application form and instructions can be viewed here.
According to county officials, confusion over the Rapid Response certificate issued to Slip Knott led to intensified outrage from citizens, some of whom began directing their anger at county employees who were “just doing their jobs.”
“I want to clarify the facts and the process,” County Administrator Bishop said in a statement. “As part of routine economic development operations, county staff may send preliminary letters to private-sector entities that meet basic statutory criteria, indicating that a project is eligible for economic development incentive programs. Consistent with Florida Statutes, this administrative correspondence does not constitute project approval, guarantee funding, or advance a project through the development review process.
“Any proposed project must proceed through the normal development review pathway, including technical review, compliance with all applicable codes and regulations, and, where required, public hearings before advisory boards and the Board of County Commissioners. These processes are public and provide multiple opportunities for community input.
“County staff do not approve projects. The Board of County Commissioners is the ultimate decision-making body for discretionary land-use matters.”
At a Manatee County Planning Commission meeting on Thursday, a half-dozen citizens provided public comment during Future Agenda Items, expressing strong opposition to any possible future approvals for a cruise port project should one come before the board. Public comments also included the denunciation of any abusive behavior toward staff, as alleged by county administration.
Planning Commissioner Matt Bower thanked the residents for their comments and also addressed some of the misinformation and misunderstanding that has spread concerning SSA’s announced intentions. He also emphasized that any plans for a private cruise port are in the preliminary stages and that the company has not submitted a formal, complete planning application.
Bower added that he felt confident that it was true that county staff, their family members, and even children (in at least one case) had experienced unacceptable harassment over the cruise port matter.
“At the end of the day,” explained Bower, “staff have a job to do. Whether they like it or not, they must proceed according to their roles, policies, ordinances, and state laws… that’s their job, their livelihoods.”
Several hours after the meeting, more than two dozen Terra Ceia residents issued a joint open letter addressed to Manatee County Commissioners affirming their position and agreement that harassment of county staff is an unacceptable response to the opposed development. They alleged that opponents of the proposed cruise port had also faced disturbing conduct, which was deemed threatening enough to be reported to the sheriff's department.
But the residents wrote that the lack of specific details from county officials about the claims of threats and harassment of staff left them wondering whether any of the alleged incidents rose to the level that law enforcement had been notified. They wrote that they fear that the lack of specifics about the alleged harassment could create a chilling effect, where legitimate citizen opposition is silenced out of fear of being unjustly labeled as disruptive or extreme.
A spokesperson for the county confirmed in an email to TBT that officials had received the letter from the residents, but that the county does not plan to issue an additional standalone statement in response.
To replay the February 5, 2026, Planning Commission meeting public comment and board comment regarding the cruise port development proposal, click the video below.
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careline
I’m curious why the development entity - Slip Knott, LLC - also owns the parcel on the SW end of Terra Ceia Island (east side of Flounder Pass).
Sunday, February 8 Report this
pdsinc
Manatee County was a great place to grow up. It was a great place to raise children. It is no longer that way.
Sunday, February 8 Report this
dougeggerrealtor
Ms. Kitterman, your report is well researched and informative. Unfortunately, it will be read by too many blind eyes, and discussions will fall on too many deaf ears. Opposition to and distrust of our local and State governments is at an all-time high and people are simply fed up. All the studys, and all the discussions, and all the proposals are not going to change the fact that a large contingent of Manatee County residents simply wants developement to slow down and even stop. A cruise port developement which would only be necessary to simply accomodate a few large ships that cannot fit under the Skyway is a bad idea, in my opinion.
Sunday, February 8 Report this
nellmcphillips
Caroline, the Slip Knott LLC property on the SS end of the skyway bridge is the site proposed for the cruise port.
Sunday, February 8 Report this
dreed135
The kneejerk reaction by local citizens to the perception that Manatee County and state officials are predetermined to approve the proposed cruise ship port is founded, unfortunately correctly, in the decades old history of mass approvals for unbridled growth throughout the region without regard for the degradation of quality of life, concurrent infrastructure expansion, increased costs for all residents and, not least, the threat of actual death when a massive hurricane hits directly here and we are so over populated that evacuation is impossible.
Make no mistake, I am completely opposed to anyone making personal threats to any officials or staff over this or any other matter up for consideration and find such activity abhorrent, but it is time that regulating and approving officials begin to understand the pent up frustration. Year after year we are promised better controls and year after year rules are bent, broken or rewritten to the benefit of development and the onslaught marches on. We now have stormwater flooding in areas never before flooded and officials want to blame it on global warming and completely ignore the fact they have been violating stormwater management rules and regulations for decades in conjunction with paving over large swaths of ground which before then was natural surface water management. I could go on for many paragraphs expanding on the huge losses and the tremendous detriment which over development has caused and cost all of us, but most of us already see and recognize it all.
Many of us see nothing but futility in objecting to this abdominal proposal based on the past history of officials and developers ignoring our pleas and bulldozing us just as they are bulldozing our environment and way of life. I beg of all officials to prove us wrong and to do the right thing here. Stop bowing to the developer interests to the detriment of your constituency. This request goes well beyond the port idea. We are not Miami or even Pinellas County.
Sunday, February 8 Report this
sandy
I remember a few years ago a meeting at the convention center for Long Bar Point's request for a harbor to be carved out in the development. The meeting went past 1:00 a.m. before there was a vote denying Beruff's harbor. This proposal can be beat if we all stick together and speak out at the Planning and BOCC meetings, but until then we need to wait to see the actual proposal. A pre-application meeting is just a chance to get general information, nothing written in stone. It does not mean they will get approval. They need to get a Comp Plan amendment before zoning/site plan. You will have the opportunity to speak at the Planning Commission and again at the 2 BOCC required meetings for the Comp Plan change before the zoning/site plan where you can speak again. They also will require state and federal permits. Contact your representatives at both levels, contact USGS, DEP.
Sunday, February 8 Report this
serenowens
We really don't need any more loss of mangroves, not even one! A number of years ago I wrote that development was a cancer on our county. Every new project proves me correct! Sadly!
Tuesday, February 10 Report this