Manatee County Sheriff’s Office Opens New Fleet Facility in Palmetto
PALMETTO — The Manatee County Sheriff’s Office officially opened its long-anticipated Fleet Facility on Wednesday morning with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the new 31st Terrace East location in Palmetto.
The state-of-the-art facility replaces the department’s aging fleet building in Bradenton and marks the culmination of a project that has been more than 15 years in the making. Spanning 27,000 square feet across six secured acres, the new complex is designed to meet the demands of a growing county and a fleet that supports deputies covering millions of miles each year.
The upgraded space features 14 service bays, six 2-post lifts, and a set of column lifts capable of handling heavy-duty vehicles. With this expanded capacity, the facility will service a wide range of vehicles—from all-terrain units to large tractor-trailers—ensuring that patrol cars, specialty units, and support vehicles stay road-ready.
The previous MCSO fleet facility, located on Florida Boulevard in Bradenton, was a 6,000-square-foot building originally constructed in 1975 as a two-lane inspection station. It was adapted for MCSO use and operated for over four decades on a single acre of unsecured property with just four bay doors and five vehicle lifts.
Sheriff Rick Wells called the new facility a “tremendous asset to the county,” noting its role in maintaining critical public safety operations and supporting MCSO personnel as they serve communities across Manatee County.
With the expanded infrastructure now in place, the sheriff’s office anticipates faster turnaround times for vehicle maintenance and repairs, improved fleet performance, and enhanced overall efficiency.
