Newsletter 119

NEWS FROM THE SUNCOAST …..

HOME SALES, PRICES UP

Home sales and prices in Southwest Florida continued to soar in March while inventory dwindled, marking one year into the coronavirus pandemic. Closed sales in the Sarasota-Manatee county market were up 47.2%, amounting to a total of 3,310 homes and condos sold, according to a news release from the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee. In Sarasota County, single-family home sales were up 20.5% from one year ago, with prices up to a median of $379,695. Condo sales increased by 62.6%, jumping to a median sales price of $289,750, an 18.3% increase from March 2020. There were 1,169 single family homes sold in Sarasota County, a 40.2% increase, and 738 sales. To read more on this story, courtesy of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, please click here: Home Sales & Prices Up

BED TAXES BREAK RECORDS

Sarasota and Manatee counties both broke their single-month records for tourist development tax collections in March, as visitors from across the U.S. flooded the area’s beachside and luxury properties on the weekends. Sarasota County collected $4,486,532 in tourist development tax revenue in March, an increase of almost 68% over the same month in 2020. March’s numbers were also up 5% from two years ago, when the economy was roaring back after the end of a persistent red tide bloom. The tourist development tax, which is also known as the bed tax, is a 5% levy on all lodging stays of less than six months. That revenue is used to fund things like beach maintenance and renourishment, sports stadiums and promotions. For more on this story, please click here: Bed Tax Record

SRQ BREAKS RECORD AGAIN

Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport broke its all-time passenger traffic record for the second month in a row in April, as the tourism industry in Southwest Florida continued to rebound after a devastating 2020. The local airport serviced 294,165 passengers in its terminal in April, more than it ever has in a single month of business. April brought in 16,575 more travelers than March, when the airport set its previous record of 277,590 people. The increasing numbers are another sign of the region’s growing strength of tourism, as more people get vaccinated and many go on their first vacations in a year. Sarasota-Bradenton also added Southwest Airlines to its fleet of carriers in February, and has added a lot of new and extended service even since the start of COVID-19. There’s more on this story here: SRQ Breaks Another Record

CASEY KEY HOME SELLS FOR $16.5 MILLION

A waterfront resort-like compound has sold for $16.5 million, the highest home sale price in Casey Key history. The sale also ties the highest home price ever recorded in Sarasota County, according to Premier Sotheby’s International Realty, which marketed the property. The home sold in 40 days, which the firm said is a remarkably quick sale for a property at that price. Jennifer Linehan of Michael Saunders & Company brought the buyer. "This amazingly curated property has everything aligned to maximize its stunning Gulf-to-Bay views, offering the ultimate private escape," Joel Schemmel of Premier Sotheby’s said in a statement. "Homes of this magnitude and price point typically stay on the market for long periods of time. The fact that it sold in just 40 days signals that the Sarasota ultra-luxury market is in high demand." Please follow the jump for more on this story: Casey Key Record Sale

SARASOTA NAMED ONE OF BEST BEACH TOWNS

Citing our most famous museum and best-known stretch of sand, Travel + Leisure magazine recently named Sarasota one of the "10 best U.S. beach towns to live in."
Sarasota placed sixth, right behind Santa Monica, California, and right ahead of Kailua, Hawaii. Our neighbor to the south, Naples, placed first with fellow Florida locales Boca Raton (No. 3) and Vero Beach (No. 10) also appearing on the list dominated by cities in the Sunshine State, California and Hawaii. There’s more on this story: Best Beach Town Ranking

SARASOTA COUNTY SIXTH FOR NEW RESIDENTS

When the Naples Daily News first reported the sudden arrival of New Yorkers and other northeasterners to Southwest Florida in the early stages of the COVID-19 spread, it came down to just spotting all those license plates in traffic. Where they in hotels? In vacation homes? With relatives? And then the anecdotal info began trickling in, especially from real estate agents. It turned out these folks were buying, and buying in huge numbers. Many would "visit" a home digitally, pay cash and show up at the door with their furniture with little human-to-human contact. The heavy-duty activity was eventually confirmed as Realtor associations began their tallying. Please click here for more: Sarasota County New Residents

PLAN TO BUILD 9,000 HOMES IN 55 YEARS ADVANCES

A blueprint for a massive development along River Road that will, in the coming decades, pave the way for nearly 9,000 new homes in south Sarasota County began to emerge recently. In a series of votes, Sarasota County commissioners unanimously approved a plan for Winchester Ranch, the proposed development on 3,600 acres of mostly rural land south and west of the city of North Port. The proposed plan by Winchester Florida Ranch LLLP, which should take about 55 years to build out, is the southern extension of, and will be integrated into, the existing West Villages development, now known as Wellen Park. Click here for more: 9,000 Homes in 55 Years

PINEY POINT WASTE WATER PLAN ADVANCES

Manatee County commissioners approved a $9.35 million contract recently for construction of a deep injection well to dispose of wastewater from the closed Piney Point fertilizer plant. The commission selected Youngquist Brothers LLC to construct the Class 1 injection well on county-owned land near the Piney Point property. The contract specifies a 330-day completion time for the well, which has been criticized by those who worry it could contaminate underground water supplies. The decision came shortly after commissioners also voted to extend the local state of emergency declaration first made on April 1 in response to a leak in the wastewater containment pond at the Piney Point facility. There’s more here: Piney Point Waste Water Plan

FPL HARDENS GRID

Florida Power and Light Company is continuing a $5 billion effort to strengthen the power grid since Hurricane Wilma hit the Gulf Coast below Naples in 2005.
"It really wreaked havoc on our system. We knew we needed to build a stronger and more storm-resilient grid," said Marie Bertot, FPL spokesperson. "A few years later, when smart technology began to emerge, we began to leverage that to make it a smarter grid." The 2020 hurricane season set a record with 30 named tropical systems. Forecasters again are expecting more storms than average and have moved up the official first day of hurricane season to May 15. There’s more on this story here: FPL Hardens Grid

LBK MAKING PROGRESS ON BEACH EFFORT

A $35 million beach renourishment project by the Town of Longboat Key continues to bring more of the soft, powdery white sand that attracts residents and tourists to local beaches, replacing sand lost to natural erosion. The Town of Longboat Key is a part of both Manatee and Sarasota counties. Last week, Town Manager Tom Harmer and Project Manager Charlie Mopps presented an update to the Manatee County Council of Governments on the work. Beach renourishment is a cyclical effort, and this year the town is bringing sand from Longboat Pass and Passage Key, on the southern and northern ends of Anna Maria Island, respectively, to addressed erosion since the town’s last renourishment project in 2016. If you’re interested in reading more, then click here: LBK Beach Progress

PARKING SPACE DINING EXTENDED

For the rest of the year, diners in Sarasota will have more room to eat and feel safe in downtown as the city and businesses continue to recover from the pandemic. However, the effort to free up city parking spaces for restaurants to expand outdoor dining will come at a cost. Sarasota’s leaders had the option to reduce some of those losses by charging a small fee to restaurants for the space. But the majority of elected officials felt that shouldering the additional cost will lift some of the burden from a service industry that is fighting for survival because of the COVID-19 pandemic. By continuing to offer expanded dining to area businesses until Dec. 31, the city is expected to lose at least another $130,000 in potential parking revenue. This is on top of other losses incurred by the city since the beginning of the pandemic. Click here to read more on this story: Parking Space Dining

PLAYERS CENTRE NEW HOME FOR NOW

As demolition crews tear down its former theater building near downtown Sarasota to make way for a residential high rise, the Players Centre for Performing Arts announced recently it will create a temporary new home in a Sarasota shopping mall. CEO William Skaggs, who joined the theater last fall, said the area’s oldest performing arts organization will move into a former Banana Republic store inside The Crossings at Siesta Key, the new name of the shopping center that was previously known as Westfield Siesta Key and Southgate Plaza. The 5,400-square-foot store should be able to accommodate a stage, backstage amenities and up to 140 audience members per performance, Skaggs said in an interview before the official announcement was made in an online video featuring a performance of "Home" from the musical "The Wiz." Click here for more on this story: Players Centre Temporary Home.