Newsletter 85

NEWS FROM THE SUNCOAST

ST ARMANDS PARKING PLAN IN PLACE

Starting in December of this year, shoppers and restaurant patrons must pay to park in the city’s iconic shopping and dining district. The city plans to install a combination of pay stations and single-space parking meters sometime before Thanksgiving as part of its plan to pay for the $15 million, four-story, 500-space parking garage near St. Armands Circle on Adams and Madison Drives. On-street paid parking will start in December when the garage is complete, city officials say. The new meters will consist of 40 solar-powered pay stations. Visitors enter their license plate numbers on touch screens, pay with coins, cash or credit cards and get text alerts when their time is about to expire. Hourly rates will vary by how close a visitor parks to stores and restaurants. Spaces closest to stores and eateries are $1.50 an hour; farther spaces are $1.00 an hour. To read more on this story, courtesy of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, please click here: St Armands Paid Parking

SIESTA FEE?

Before imposing paid parking at Siesta Key beaches, the Sarasota County Commission needs more time to evaluate the potential move, officials said last week. The commission will hold a special workshop sometime this year to discuss implementing paid parking at Siesta Key beaches, a move county officials believe would encourage carpooling to unclog roads and free up parking at the crowded tourist destination. The commission, which first considered charging to park last year, said the historically noxious notion is surprisingly popular among Siesta Key residents. A survey of 700 residents conducted last year by the Siesta Key Association found 70% support paid parking on the key and the Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce has endorsed the idea, as long as there is a method for key residents to receive free parking, such as with resident decals. Of similar jurisdictions, only Manatee County also has free parking. Charlotte, Collier, Lee and Pinellas counties and the cities of Sanibel, Clearwater and St. Pete Beach all charge for parking. Please click here to read more: Siesta Paid Parking

COLONY RESORT RAZING DELAYED

The demolition of the vacant and ramshackle Colony Beach & Tennis Resort has been delayed. The Town of Longboat Key has yet to finalize the contract with Unicorp National Developments Inc. as was expected this week, town Planning, Zoning & Building Director Allen Parsons said last week. Paperwork on compliance with asbestos, lead & mold remediation regulations must be completed, Chuck Whittall, Unicorp’s president and founder said. The Orlando-based company, already highly invested in the property with hopes of redevelopment, volunteered to raze the Colony for free. Longboat Key officials accepted Unicorp’s bid. The town issued an Emergency Demolition Order on May 31, after condemning 25 of the 26 buildings. There’s more on this story here: Colony Demolition Delayed

DREDGING PERMIT GRANTED

The state has issued Sarasota a permit to conduct a renourishment project of critically eroded Lido Beach over the objections of Siesta Key residents. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection recently granted the city a permit it needs to dredge up to 1.3 million cubic yards of sand from Big Pass to rebuild parts of disappearing Lido Beach shoreline. The 37-page final order from DEP Secretary Noah Valenstein followed recommendations last month by administrative law judge Bram D.E. Canter, who ruled the city and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers should be issued the necessary permits to carry out the project. Both Canter and Valenstein dismissed claims by Siesta Key Association and Save Our Siesta Sands 2 that the project would negatively affect navigation and cause harmful erosion to Siesta Key. Please follow the jump for more on this story: Dredging Permit Issued

LUXURY MARKET RISING

Southwest Florida – the Sarasota metro area in particular – has a reputation for its wealth of gold-plated residences. The latest Luxury Home Index from realtor.com validates that celebrity status, or, from another viewpoint, notoriety. In the site’s recent report of the Top 10 fastest-growing U.S. luxury markets nationwide, the Sarasota-Manatee market stood atop the list. Collier County, near Naples, came in third in the rankings of the percentage increase of the top 5 percent of the most expensive home-sales prices. The overall transaction total doesn’t matter. Sarasota’s entry-level luxury price rose 19.1% year over year, reaching $993,000. Whether that sales price merits the luxury label is debatable. By many measures, a home’s sales price must reach a least $1 million before entering the so-called luxury market. There’s more on this story here: Luxury Growth Rising

GREEN LIGHT FOR HI HAT PROJECT

A change to the county’s long-range 2050 growth management plan will allow for better planning of a future cluster of villages east of Interstate 75, owners of an expansive swath of ranch land there say. The Sarasota County Commission last week unanimously granted the owners of the 10,000 acre Hi Hat Ranch that sits between Fruitville and Clark roads – also known as the Central Village Planning area – their request to change development rules specific to the vast swath of land. The change will allow for a two-step approval process they say would let them better plan for a massive community, expected to take 30 to 40 years to build. Click here for more: Hi Hat Green Light

SARASOTA WINS 2019 WORLD ROWING EVENT

One of the world’s top rowing events for aspiring Olympians will be held next year at Nathan Benderson Park, the first time the event will be held in the U.S. The 2019 World Rowing Under 23 Championships, the top test of the year for future Olympic athletes and national team members, are scheduled for July 24-28. The event is expected to draw close to 1,000 international athletes, said USRowing CEO Patrick McNerney, who made the announcement at the park. The event will be the third World Rowing competition on the Sarasota-Bradenton regatta course in three years. If you’d like to learn more, click here: More Rowing at Benderson