What could go wrong?

Sanborn Studios is a leader among the 28 Sarasota County companies that have received a portion of $5 million in public funds in exchange for job creation.
That starts with the money — at $650,000 it's the richest incentive for a single company in the history of the five-year program. That also goes for lawsuits and counterclaims, with three since July 28. The situation, to many Sarasota-Manatee business executives, is a symbol of what can go wrong when government entities dole out money to businesses for projected growth.
The crux of the county's legal claim is simple. Sanborn Studios, a Lakewood Ranch-based movie and TV production studio founded by area entrepreneur Ken Sanborn, was given the $650,000 in September 2010. The contract called for the firm to add 117 jobs, at an average annual wage of $72,029, by September 2013. The firm failed to create the jobs and therefore breached its contract, the county alleges.
The remedy: Sanborn Studios, per the contract, must reimburse the county $2,992 for every job it failed to deliver, the county says in the suit filed in Sarasota Circuit Court. That would cover $350,000. The county also asks the judge to consider damages in the case that would make Sarasota whole on its $650,000 investment.
Sanborn Studios and Sanborn himself deny the allegations. The firm filed a countersuit Aug. 25. The suit makes several claims against the county, including breach of duty of good faith and fair dealing; slander of title; disparagement of property; and trade libel. The suit also contends the county violated its ethics codes, disregarded its own audit reports; and, most damningly, deliberately undermined Sanborn Studio's business.