Newsletter 144

NEWS FROM THE SUNCOAST …..

DID TIME RUN OUT IN TALLAHASSEE?

It was like making the show but never seeing the stage. Indeed, Save Siesta Key had what one could call the “green room” experience from hell as members of the team seeking incorporation of the island watched its House Bill 923 sit in limbo for more than five weeks before fading away into nothingness during the recent meeting of the Florida Legislature that concluded May 5. How this bewildering development, or lack thereof, took place is unknown but the board members, who waited two years and spent more than $265,000 to get to this point, will now be seeking answers. Most puzzling of all was how the bill, assigned to three committees in advance of what would be votes by the House and Senate pending their approvals, shot out quickly with flying colors. On March 29, the Local Administration, Federal Affairs & Special Districts Subcommittee voted 17-0 in favor of it, with the Ways & Means Committee and State Affairs Committees up next. But, despite what appeared to be plenty of breathing room on the calendar, those committees never put the matter on their agenda. The Ways & Means Committee’s vice-chairman happens to be state Rep. James Buchanan, the Osprey resident and former Siesta Key resident who represents District 74. As a member of the Sarasota County Legislative Delegation, he twice voted against the local incorporation effort — in January 2022 when he cited a lack of money in the proposed budget for infrastructure in what would be a 3-3 vote in defeat, and again in January 2023 as the lone no vote when he cited his lack of comfort with the island’s proximity to the city of Sarasota in what would be a 3-1 vote in favor of the bill moving forward. For more on this story, courtesy of Siesta Sand, please click here: Save Siesta Key Fades Away

SARASOTA ONE OF WEALTHIEST COUNTIES IN STATE

Great restaurants, award-winning beaches and great weather (when it wants to be), is it any wonder Sarasota County made it on the list? Out of 67 counties, Sarasota County lands the 8th place spot for Florida’s wealthiest counties, study shows. SmartAsset, a financial technology company, identified the wealthiest Florida counties by comparing investment income generated by each county, property value and per capita income. Here’s a breakdown of the study.

What’s Florida’s wealthiest county?

The Keys’ Monroe County had a median income of $73,153, median home value of $957,819 and investment income of $221,843.

What’s Florida’s least wealthy county?

Glades County received the lowest overall wealth index. The median income is $38,088. Investment income is $20,804, and the median home value is $235,335

To read more on this story, courtesy of Sarasota Herald-Tribune, please click here:

Sarasota Top 10 Wealthiest Counties

BILLIONS ADDED TO LOCAL TAXABLE VALUES

Property values in Sarasota and Manatee counties have continued their dramatic increases, with the latest property tax roll figures underscoring the meteoric rise with another year of double digit growth, according to property appraisal records submitted to local governments. Each year the elected property appraisers’ offices submit the total taxable property value in each municipality, county and district to local government officials. The data is then used to craft budgets for services and building and maintaining roads and other infrastructure and levying taxes to pay the costs. This year Sarasota County’s taxable value increased by 13.4%, from $82.3 billion to $93.4 billion, according to the Sarasota County Property Appraiser’s Office. The Manatee County Property Appraiser’s Office reported its countywide taxable value to be $62 billion, up 17.5% from the 2022 taxable value of $52.8 billion. The jump in both counties is far above average for the past two years as the percentage increase in values from 2019 to 2020 was in the single digits. Since 2019, the taxable value has increased by $30 billion in Sarasota County and by $23.2 billion in Manatee County. This could mean a windfall in tax revenue for area governments if they don’t adopt a “rollback” property tax rate. Last year, several local governments and taxing districts did not adapt a full rollback rate as fears of a recession had governments leaders worried what could happen to local services if a recession struck the country amid fears of rising interest rates and the possibility of an economic slowdown that could cut revenues. If you are interested in reading more, then please click here: Tax Rolls Continue To Increase

ECONOMIC GROWTH PROPELS NEW CONSTRUCTION

This is a recent Op-Ed from Coldwell Banker’s Duff Rubin.

Sarasota is a city continuing to undergo expansion, renovation and extensive growth. In the downtown area, for example, projects abound. A new 23-unit, boutique luxury condo development called Peninsula Sarasota just officially broke ground on May 26. There’s also SIX88, The Edge, and the 18-story One Park. Bayso and The DeMarcay are two additional 18-story residential buildings slated to be completed this year in the downtown region. Additionally, Quay Sarasota expects to be a large, mixed-use area of nearly 700 residences on a 14-acre waterfront area, complete with offices, shopping, dining and hotel space. This development will offer residents walkability and convenience. The downtown area, overall, offers current and future residences easy access within walking distance to the arts, restaurants, shops and the waterfront. This combined convenience and accessibility is not something one can get in many midsize cities. The great weather and amazing coastal views are added bonuses. Outside the downtown Sarasota area, master-planned communities are an integral part of Sarasota’s transformation. In south Sarasota, the massive 33,000-acre Wellen Park – known for also being home to CoolToday Park, the spring training home of the Atlanta Braves – expects to have 22,000 homes when completed. Lakewood Ranch continues to grow and thrive in an eastern area of the county that was once considered pastureland. Both it and Wellen Park are consistently among the top-selling communities in the nation and both have been named to Ideal Living’s”100 Best Places to Live” list. Lakewood Ranch is currently nearly 26,000 homes and growing at a pace of roughly 2,500 new homes a year. It now has more than 500 businesses servicing and employing people in that area. The new construction comes with the added advantage of stricter building codes that make new homes safer than ever from intense storms and hurricane-effect weather. There’s more on this story here: Economic Growth Propels New Construction

TWO PROPERTIES SELL FOR $21M ON SAME DAY

Two properties on Bird Key located side-by-side set record sales recently in two separate multi-million dollar transactions that also closed on the same day, demonstrating the continued growth of the Sarasota luxury market. A property at 626 S. Owl Dr. sold for $11.25 million and another at 622 S. Owl Dr. sold for $9.75 million on June 1. Just five years ago, both properties sold for a combined $8.6 million. Each sale this month topped the previous high for a Bird Key property sale, according to Bruce Myer, a Realtor with Coldwell Banker Realty. While the property at 626 S. Owl Dr. was a vacant lot in 2018 and had a newly constructed residence in 2023, the increase in value of the two properties by $12.4 million can at least partially be attributed to a rise in Sarasota’s national stature that has motivated high-end builders to continue to push the level of luxury higher, according to local Realtors. Please follow the jump for more on this Two Bird Key Properties Sell For $21M On Same Day

TURTLE BEACH PROJECT SET FOR COMPLETION

Sarasota County is making progress on its Turtle Beach repair project and expects to finish it by the end of the month. As of Saturday, June 3, about 67,200 of an expected 92,000 cubic yards of sand had been placed along South Siesta Key’s beaches. The project, which began in late April, is meant to repair damage from Hurricane Hermine in 2016. Dump trucks are moving sand from a mine elsewhere in the state to Turtle Beach Park. They deposit the sand in a large pile, and off-road trucks shift the sand to different parts of the beach. Curtis Smith, the project manager, said the workers are done placing sand on the northern beach.The team is now working its way southward along the beach, adding sand as it goes. As they travel southward, southern beach access points will be closed in approximately 500-foot sections, a Sarasota County spokesperson said. The northern section of the beach is open to the public. Mote Marine Laboratory and Sarasota Audubon Society are doing daily sea turtle and shorebird monitoring at the project site, according to the county. Next week, the contractors plan to rake the northern part of the beach, so it will be soft enough for turtles to dig their nests. Smith said, though, that at last report, 20 turtle nests have been marked in that area, which indicates that the beach is already suitable for nesting. There’s more on this story here: Turtle Beach Project Set For Completion

TRIANGULAR BARRIERS MAKING WAVES

The Florida Department of Transportation is placing hundreds of wave attenuation devices to protect the south Skyway Fishing Pier access road from erosion, promote seagrass growth and create fish habitats. But some environmentalists take issue with impact credits received by the agency for the project. FDOT will place 844 wave attenuation devices, also referred to as WADs, along the shoreline to protect the fishing pier access road, which provides access to I-275. The $6.3 million project will be completed by the end of summer. The devices are made from fiber-reinforced concrete. Their triangular shape, weight, and size are designed to absorb wave energy during storms to protect the fishing pier access road from erosion. They will be strategically placed to also protect about eight acres of sea grass and create a habitat for fish. The devices will be visible about two to three feet above the water and will be placed so close together that boats or large marine animals would need to go around them to traverse. “Boats really can’t go between them. Fish can swim through them but larger, let’s say a manatee or something would need to go around the outside to be able to get through,” FDOT District Drainage Design Engineer Brent Setchell said. “There is an opening between the shoreline and where the WADs will be placed for wildlife to get through.” Manasota-88 Chairman Glenn Compton said the organization is concerned that the project could lead to overfishing in the area, and add to the impact the Sunshine Skyway Bridge has had on the local ecosystem. The nonprofit organization has advocated for environmental protection throughout the Manatee and Sarasota County region for more than 50 years. “During the construction of the Skyway bridge, significant destruction was done to the seagrasses and marine resources of Tampa Bay,” Compton said. “The proposed wave attenuation project does not come close to repairing the damage that has previously been done to the Bay as a result. FDOT needs to demonstrate overfishing would not occur as a result of placing the wave attenuation devices near the fishing pier, they have yet to do so.” Please click here for more: Triangular Barriers Making Waves

WHAT’S DRIVING RISING INSURANCE PREMIUMS?

Weeks ago, James Benko received notice that his family’s homeowners insurance premium would increase from $5,000 a year to $10,000. The roof was replaced in 2019. He replaced the windows and doors when he purchased the property last year and he has not made an insurance claim. He’s been asking insurance brokers how the insurance costs could be going up so much for his house in Sarasota’s Palmer Ranch. “They can’t give me a reason for why it went up 100%,” he said. He’s spoken with more than a dozen insurance brokers, searching for someone offering a “fair deal.” Benko and countless other homeowners have discovered the painful reality of a collapsing property insurance market where nearly 10 insurance providers have folded and had their policies absorbed by the state’s “insurer of last resort” — Citizens Property Insurance — in the last two years. The number of policies for the state-backed insurance company has nearly tripled in four years, swelling from about 419,000 state-backed insurance policies in April 2019 to 1.2 million in April 2023. The publicly owned Citizens Property Insurance asked for rate increases of 13.1% recently. Citizens Property Insurance President and Chief Executive Tim Cerio said reserves had fallen by 33% and that if a moderately strong hurricane strikes Florida this year, all insurance policies in the state would likely see additional surcharges to cover the costs. Meanwhile, other property owners have been receiving eyepopping rate hikes from their private insurance providers. The highest insurance quote Benko received during his search was a $44,000 quote from Lloyd’s of London. “I had to laugh at that one,” he said. Please click on the link for more: What’s Driving Rising Insurance Premiums?

THOUSANDS OF HOMES OK’D OVER OPPOSITION

A race track owned by YouTube star Cleetus McFarland. The grave of area resident Timothy Tralick’s son. Both block the path of a major new road proposed by developer Carlos Beruff for a massive development called East River Ranch that piggybacks off of the eastward expansion of Lakewood Ranch. Commissioners approved the proposal to build the 1,381.6-acre development in a series of votes recently. Zoning changes allow for the planned development of up to 5,378 residential units, 900,000 square feet of commercial space, 300,000 square feet of self-storage, 300,000 square feet of office space, a school, and a fire station on what used to be agricultural land. The community will be located next to a massive expansion of Lakewood Ranch slated to bring 4,500 new homes approved in March. The East River Ranch proposal includes the addition of a new thoroughfare to the county’s comprehensive plan called River Ranch Boulevard which seeks to connect Rangeland Parkway to State Road 64. That road, however, was proposed to cross directly over Tralick’s property, and the grave of his son, without his consent.

“I’m the guy who has the land that somebody drew a pencil line through, putting a road,” Tralick said. “It goes over my son’s grave. Nobody has ever contacted me about putting the road in. I found out about it from the farmer behind me.” Tralick and several other residents questioned the legality of the proposal because of its impact on Tralick’s property, but commissioners recessed the meeting before voting to allow the developer to add the stipulation that the road would not be built on Tralick’s land. McFarland, whose real name is Garrett Mitchell, owns the land across from Tralick’s property, on the other side of the proposed thoroughfare. Most of River Ranch Boulevard would be located on land owned by East River Ranch 1400 LLC. There is one intersection between four parcels where the road would have to cross into land owned by Tralick or McFarland. Mitchell said the developer had not taken similar steps to compromise with him on the impact the development would have on his east Manatee County racetrack, the Freedom Factory, as Lakewood Ranch did before its expansion was approved. There’s more on this story here: Thousands Of Homes OK’d Over Opposition

ARCHITECT SELECTED FOR PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

An international architectural firm known for such prominent buildings as the Whitney Museum in New York, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles, the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the tall spire known as The Shard in London, among dozens of others, has been selected as the top choice to design a new performing arts center on Sarasota Bay. The Design Architect Selection Task Force appointed by the city of Sarasota and the Sarasota Performing Arts Center Foundation voted recently to recommend Renzo Piano Building Workshop, a company established in 1981 by its namesake architect with main offices in Genoa, Italy, and Paris, France. The task force voted 3-1 for Renzo Piano over Foster + Partners, a British firm founded by Sir Norman Foster, and Snøhetta, a company based in Oslo, Norway. Foster was the second choice by a similar vote of 3-1 and could still be selected if the city of Sarasota is unable to reach a contract agreement with the Piano firm, a process that could take a couple of months. The four committee members said they couldn’t make a bad choice with any of the three finalists, which were among 43 companies that submitted proposals for a new center that would have two theater spaces and cost around $300 million.

“This is a remarkable opportunity, no matter which of the three is the one we choose, this is extraordinary,” task force chair Jenne Britell said at a meeting in Sarasota City Hall. “I hope you and others in Sarasota recognize what an extraordinary gift it is in the city of Sarasota to have that caliber of architect.” Committee member Michelle Hooper said, “We have an abundance of riches with the caliber of the firms we have here. We could throw a dart and be happy if it landed on any of the three. We have to choose one, but all three are world class.”

The proposed center would be the centerpiece of the new Bay Park Conservancy, which is developing a park on what is now the parking lot for the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall. The new center would be on the northern edge of a 53-acre site. The city also is exploring future uses for the Van Wezel, which could, under recent agreements with the City Commission, still be used as a home to some performances. Earlier agreements would have prohibited such uses for the historic, purple-hued building. Click here for more: Architect Selected

THE FINAL ACT

When he closes the door to his office at Asolo Repertory Theatre for the last time on June 30, Producing Artistic Director Michael Donald Edwards will be leaving behind an organization that he helped to transform during his 18-year tenure. With his business partner, Managing Director Linda DiGabriele, and a supportive board of directors, Edwards led a major expansion of the theater’s production capabilities and the creation of a new rehearsal facility designed to appeal to outside producers; arranged to buy condominium apartments to provide housing for visiting guest artists; introduced fall and spring productions of new and classic musicals that became a staple of each season, and altered the shape and scope of both the performance schedule and resident acting company. The budget grew from about $5 million to $11.5 million. The organization’s name was changed from Asolo Theatre Company to Asolo Repertory Theatre. Edwards and DiGabriele are both stepping down at the end of the month. DiGabriele has been with Asolo Rep for 50 years, the last 35 of them as managing director. On July 1, they will be succeeded by new Producing Artistic Director Peter Rothstein, whose production of “Man of La Mancha” just closed, and Managing Director Ross Egan, who will lead the company into its next chapter. Edwards credits his close and supportive relationship with DiGabriele as a reason for the company’s growth and expansion in the range and quality of productions. And that relationship began almost from the first day.

During his first week on the job, Edwards said he asked DiGabriele about the significance of his job title as producing artistic director as opposed to just artistic director. Please click here for more: Final Act At Asolo Rep

SARASOTA RESTAURANT VOTED BEST BUFFET

A Sarasota business with nearly four decades of history in the area has been voted the best buffet restaurant in the country. The Der Dutchman Restaurant in Sarasota has been chosen as the No. 1 buffet in the country as a result of voting by the readers of USA TODAY in the publication’s 10 Best Readers’ Choice Awards contest conducted during the month of May. “Situated in Pinecraft, an Amish neighborhood in Sarasota, Der Dutchman is a popular restaurant offering a daily buffet that combines quantity and quality,” reads the entry by USA TODAY, which is a sister publication of the Herald-Tribune. “Diners can enjoy a wide variety of options, including their unique dish of noodles over mashed potatoes.” Featuring foods that celebrate the Amish and Mennonite traditions of the Midwest, the first Der Dutchman Restaurant opened 54 years ago in the town of Walnut Creek, Ohio. In 1985, the family-owned company opened the Der Dutchman in Sarasota.

“In addition to a varied menu, Der Dutchman Restaurants continue to serve delicious, traditional foods including roasted chicken, noodles, dressing, and real mashed potatoes, all of which are included on the mouthwatering hot buffet at Der Dutchman Restaurant in Sarasota,” reads a statement issued by Der Dutchman. “Visitors can enjoy the extensive buffet and salad bar or choose from the menu, and it is highly recommended to save room for a delectable slice of pie or a scrumptious, freshly-made pastry, from the on-site bakery.” There’s more to read here: Der Dutchman #1 Buffet

80% OBJECT TO AQUACULTURE SITES IN GULF

Public comments on federal plans to create commercial aquaculture sites in the Gulf of Mexico – including areas offshore of Collier, Sarasota and Pinellas counties – were mostly negative and many of those that originated from Southwest Florida targeted a proposed demonstration project off of Sarasota County, rather than the more general issue of the potential for fish farming off Florida’s west coast.

The comments were released in a 455-page document on May 2 by NOAA. The projected release date for a comprehensive environmental review is in early 2024. Between June 1 and Aug. 31, 2022, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration solicited comments on the proposed aquaculture opportunity areas as it started developing a review of how those potential aquaculture areas would impact the environment. Ocean Era, a company based in Hawaii, has been pursuing an offshore demonstration project that would be in federal waters south of Venice and north of Englewood. Proposed changes to the way the Ocean Era fish confinement net pen would be anchored to the seafloor and the type of fish cultivated prompted opponents to urge the Environmental Protection Agency to void a wastewater discharge permit issued. There’s more on this story here: Objections To Aquaculture Sites In Gulf

SARASOTA COUNTY TO RECEIVE $200M+ IN IAN AID

Sarasota County is expecting to receive a $201.5 million grant from the federal government to help with ongoing recovery from Hurricane Ian and preparing for future storms, the county announced. The federal funding can be used for activities like rebuilding homes, fixing damaged infrastructure, and assisting business owners affected by the hurricane. Sarasota County will be coming up with a plan for how to spend the money. “It’s a long-term road to recovery,” Sarasota County Commission chair Ron Cutsinger said in a recorded video interview. “And this money is really going to help with that.” The grant will come from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which announced an overhaul of its disaster recovery efforts in March. The agency will give out over $3.3 billion in Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery funds. Sarasota was one of four counties in Florida to be named a direct recipient of the funding, joining Lee County, Volusia County and Orange County. In addition, the state of Florida is receiving over $910.6 million in grant money. Staff in Sarasota County’s Office of Financial Management said there is a series of steps the county must take before it can access the grant funding. It has to conduct an unmet needs assessment and develop and submit an action plan, which the county will be working on over the next several months. The plan will include projects and programs meant to meet unmet needs in Sarasota County. These projects will primarily assist low- to moderate-income households and will fall within one of these categories: housing, restoration of infrastructure, economic revitalization, and mitigation. Please click on the link for more: Sarasota County To Receive $200M+