Newsletter 90

HEALTH RISKS OF ALGAL BLOOMS STILL UNCLEAR

Chatter about the human health effects of red tide swamps our daily life. But besides the major symptoms – a choking cough, itchy throat and watery eyes – little is known about the long-term effects of the single-celled organism Karenia brevis and other harmful toxins. Barbara Kirkpatrick, executive director of the Gulf of Mexico Coastal Ocean Observing System, was one of 25 scientists who studied red tide risks from 2001 to 2011. She says it’s frustrating to see people swimming in red tide waters due to these unknown risks. To read more on this story, courtesy of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, please click here: Health Risks

EXPERT HELP TO COMBAT RED TIDE

Mote Marine Laboratory and the entire Suncoast is please to have Dr. Cynthia Heil coming in to join forces with Mote’s newly formed Red Tide Institute. The Institute came about by way of a $1 million dollar donation from the Economos Charitable Foundation. Dr. Heil comes to us from the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences in Maine where she focused on water quality, harm; algal blooms and ecosystem management. She will take the helm beginning on January 1. There’s more on this story here: Red Tide Forum

TOURISM SLIDE CONTINUES

Numbers documenting the devastating financial impact of red tide continued to roll in this week. The latest bed tax collection figures for Sarasota County show that in October the county collected just over $1 million, a 12% drop compared with the same month last year. It’s the third straight month of decline in revenue for the tourist tax, which fell by 31% in September and almost 20% in August, according to the most recent data from the tax collector. The bed tax, formerly known as the tourist development tax, is a 5% charge on the revenue from short-term rentals countywide. Click here if you want to read more: Tourism Slide

CONDOMANIA

Home buyers still crave luxury condominiums in downtown Sarasota towers. Which is a good thing, because two more will be rising out of the ground in the coming months, a third and fourth are well underway, a fifth just held a topping-off celebration, a sixth is seeking the city’s blessing to proceed, a seventh sold out before construction ended and an eighth will launch pre-construction sales next month. Three other towers have debuted since 2017. The projects are proving to be quite popular. Please follow the jump for more on this story: Condos

BIG PLANS FOR SANDCASTLE

Plans to transform the aging Sandcastle Resort at Lido Beach, long known as the Helmsley Sandcastle, into a luxury contemporary resort were rubber-stamped by the Sarasota County Commission recently. The commission unanimously approved plans and a rezoning request to redevelop the 176-room hotel, built in 1953, into a flashy four-or-five-star, 304 resort spanning two curved towers that will be eight and nine stories tall with amenities including valet parking, a 10,000-square-foot ballroom, 5,000-square-foot junior ballroom, 7,000 square feet of meeting space – with all three areas available for public use – a spa, private pool with cabanas and a restaurant and bar that will be open to the public. There’s more on this story here: Sandcastle

HOW TO BUILD A BEACH

Sand was being pumped in from the Gulf of Mexico onto Lido Public Beach recently. Crews started the process of restoring the beach, after the season’s storms caused severe erosion to the shore. The project is expected to take about three months. Click here for more: Build A Beach

BOBBY JONES UPGRADES APPROVED

All 45 holes of the city’s deteriorating and financially troubled Bobby Jones Golf Club will be overhauled with the intention of returning it to the profitable destination it was more than a decade ago, during its glory days. The Sarasota City Commission recently voted 4-1 to move forward with a $16.7 million transformation of the golf club, which will include replacing the antiquated irrigation system, adding a $3.4 million clubhouse, creating a golf development center, rebuilding all the greens and significantly expanding the driving range. If you’d like to learn more, click here: Bobby Jones

SIESTA PROMENADE MOVES FORWARD

The fiercely opposed Siesta Promenade Project, criticized by hundreds of residents on and around Siesta Key who claim the mixed-use development plan is incompatible with the area and will worsen traffic snarls, received approval by the Sarasota County Commisson last week. In a series of votes, the commission approved the mix of commercial and residential units at U.S. 41 and Stickney Point Road, after listening to hours of outcry from dozens of residents. There’s more here: Siesta Promenade

GOODBYE, G.WIZ

The city’s Historic Preservation Board decided this week not to try to spare the vacant G.WIZ building from the wrecking ball after it learned a demolition permit has been approved by the city and any action taken against the City Commission’s wishes to tear the structure down could violate city code. The Historic Preservation Board, which serves strictly as an advisory board to the Sarasota County Commission, considered recommending that the commission deem the defunct building a historic structure, possible sparing it from being town down as part of the initial phase of the $250 million to $300 million bayfront development project known as The Bay. Click on the link for more: G.WIZ