Newsletter 66

VOGUE SHARES OUR SECRETS: Local tourism officials never could have paid for the type of national attention Sarasota just got. Last week Vogue published a roughly 1,500 word editorial on why Sarasota is one of the Sunshine State’s best-kept secrets. The piece highlighted Southwest Florida’s sugary white sand beaches, but it also praised its architecture, dining and vintage shopping. Visit Sarasota County, the county’s tourism marketing arm, could never afford an advertisement in Vogue, said Virginia Haley, the agency’s CEO and president. Please click here for the list of best cities to live and more on this story, courtesy of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Florida’s Best Kept Secret?

THIRD HEALTHIEST REGION – AGAIN: Once again Sarasota County is riding high among Florida counties in a national tally of healthy benefits and deficits that underscores the fact that where you live can determine whether you thrive. For the third year in a row, the county ranks third for the state for “healthy outcomes” – length and quality of life. And it come in second overall in “health factors” – a complicated mix that includes factors we can and can’t control: lifestyle habits, medical care, regional socioeconomics and the environment. Follow the jump for more: National Study Results

TROLLEY SERVICE TO START IN MARCH: A new open-air trolley service will begin shuttling tourists and residents alike around Siesta Key in late March, continuing through the summer. The Siesta Key Breeze will be a free and classically styled trolley to connect the Siesta Key Village on the north end with Turtle Beach to the south. Sarasota County leaders hope the planned six-month pilot program provides an alternative for beachgoers, shoppers and diners who would normally hop in their own cars, clogging roads and limited parking spaces across the key. The service will be available every half hour from 8:00 am to midnight every day beginning March 20. Please click here for more: Trolley to start in March

LEGACY TRAIL EXPANSION: Sarasota County leaders are setting aside $8.6M to find the Legacy Trail’s northern extension and several major facilities projects in the next two years. The funding is less than half of the $20 million required for by the end of the calendar year under a plan with the Trust For Public Land to buy the railway to extend the trail from Culverhouse Nature Park to Bahia Vista Street. But the commitment sets the stage for the Trust and supporters of the trail to nail down major contributions from local foundations, citizens and other potential grants. There’s more here: Legacy Trail Expansion

MARKER’S REMINDER: THE SEA ALSO RISES: What will be underwater as the sea level rises? It’s a daunting question, but it’s one the city of Sarasota wants residents and tourists alike to ponder as they make their way onto the grainy sands at Lido Beach. Their answer comes in the form of an eight-foot-high marker bearing facts about the projected sea level rise at the beach over time, stating which buildings will be underwater as sea levels rise and noting what people can do to lessen the impacts. The long, white pole greets visitors at the end of the wooden walkway by the northern edge of the public beach. Click here for more: Rising Sea Level Reminder

LABYRINTH OF RULES ON AIRBNB: As travel and short-term rental sites such as Airbnb grow in popularity and in number of participating hosts, sorting out what just what is allowed and where for those renting their properties is a labyrinth of local rules. Despite a new deal between Sarasota County and Airbnb to streamline collections of the local tourist development tax, ensuring that the right taxes are paid and zoning rules adhered to remains a tall order that is only getting more daunting. More than 6,000 guests stayed with about 700 local hosts during the five-week stretch of spring training games, earning those hosts more than $1.86 million in rental income, according to a report recently issued by the company. To read more on this story, please click here: Airbnb

WORLD CLASS: When scientists start working out of Mote Marine’s nw $7 million International Center For Coral Reef Research & Restoration this month, it will the largest facility of its type in the world. The 10,000 square-foot building represents exponential growth compared with the facilities that David Vaughan and fellow researchers labored in when the Summerland Key campus was known the Mote Marine Tropical Research Laboratory, and when he discovered a technique now known as “microfragmenting” that capitalizes on the natural healing process an allows coals to grow 25 times faster than they do normally. Here’s more: Mote Marine’s New Labs