The impacts of Hurricane Milton made their way to the classroom table of the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art’s MakerSpace on Oct. 19. Ames Morton-Winter, coordinator of youth and family programs at the museum, said the Ringling wanted to create something beautiful from the storm’s destruction.
Kids arranged twigs, leaves and flowers to make sun impressions on sun paper, crayon rubbings or collages.
The event was part of the museum’s weekly family days, which provide families with free admission and art activities.
Healing crystals
Comet A3 and a supermoon were visible at Siesta Key Beach, but there was more that brought the community together there on Oct. 17.
Michael Abramson, cofounder of Ascension Alchemy Ministry, said the sands were a place for people of different faiths to join in prayer and find healing after multiple hurricanes.
He was inspired to hold the event by Hurricane Milton’s downgrade from a Category 5, which he attributed to the power of prayer, as well as “the 100-year native prophecy” protecting Sarasota from storms.
“Let’s bring the individuals together and see how we can bring the 99% quartz crystal and blast it out to all those that were affected, so we can give them prayers; we can give them the light; we can give them love,” he said.
$1.00
Total amount is more than four times that of Ian in 2022.
Ian Swaby
Drew LaPenta pours a drink he mixed at Siesta Key Oyster Bar on Oct. 22. Ian Swaby
Judy Petersen and Nancy Zwolinski visit Marie Selby
Ian Swaby
Braxten Andrews, 11, sprinkles small pieces of a plant onto his sun print, as Cree Paulda, 9, responds to his idea with interest.
Ian Swaby
Michael Abramson leads the group in prayer.
WEEK OF OCT. 24, 2024
BY THE NUMBERS
n Sarasota County School Board regular meeting — 6 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 6, Board Chambers, Landings Administration Complex, 1980 Landings Blvd. (black awning entrance).
n Sarasota City Commission regular meeting — 9 a.m., Monday, Nov. 4, Commission Chambers, City Hall, 1565 First St.
“It
drives me crazy to rewrite substantially contracts that have been negotiated between two parties at the commission table, just flying by the seat of
Sarasota Mayor Liz Alpert. Read more on page 6A
our pants.”
City fills two key charter official positions
Sarasota City Commissioners on Monday unanimously approved two key positions at the highest levels of city government.
On City Attorney Marlon Brown’s last official day in office and at the dais, commissioners selected Public Works Director Doug Jeffcoat as interim city manager while the city initiates a national search for Brown’s permanent replacement. Earlier in the meeting, commissioners also selected Joseph Polzak to replace City Attorney Robert Fournier when he retires
next spring. Both Fournier and Deputy City Attorney Michael Connolly announced earlier this year their intention to retire at the same time.
Once Fournier and Connolly retire, Polzak will be one of three remaining partners in the firm of Fournier, Connolly, Shamsey, Mladinich & Polzak. While Polzak will hold the title of city attorney, John Shamsey and Joseph Mladinich will serve as co-deputies.
Fournier intended to begin his retirement after Feb. 28, but that may be extended should the replacements need more time
to “get their ducks in a row since there hasn’t been much time,” said Fournier. “In that case, it would be the end of May rather than the end of February.”
Fournier has served as city attorney since 2004.
While Jeffcoat is working his temp job as interim city manager, his public works duties will be shared by General Manger of Public Services Todd Kucharski and City Engineer Nik Patel. Jeffcoat has been a city employee for nearly 30 years.
GCCF grants $500K for rapid recovery
Gulf Coast Community Foundation has activated its Rapid Response Fund to provide fast, critical support in the wake of Hurricane Milton. The Rapid Response Fund has provided 18 grants totaling more than $500,000 in life-sustaining support nonprofit organizations that provide immediate shelter, food and water, case managers and case navigators, mental health services and humanitarian “muck and gut” efforts to those impacted.
“Our team began preparations the week before Hurricane Milton’s arrival, and our board met to preauthorize additional funding for our Rapid Response Fund,” said GCCF President and Phillip Lanham. National organizations have contributed to GCCF’s Rapid Response Fund, including support from Humana Foundation and Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Biloxi. Donors who wish to contribute to the fund to the fund can visit GulfCoastCF.org/ RapidResponseFund.
Grants include support for: United Way of South Sarasota County, Second Heart Homes, Better Together, Awaken Outreach Center, Operation Warrior Resolution, Sarasota County NAACP, Gulf Coast Partnership, Disaster Aid USA, Healthy Start Coalition of Sarasota, Second Chance, Last Opportunity, Multicultural Health Institute, One More Child, Take Stock in Children of Sarasota County, Harvest House, Community Assisted and Supported Living, EqualSRQ Inc.
CORRECTION
In the story, “Lido, St. Armands suffer less damage than Siesta,” (Oct. 17 edition) the Observer incorrectly identified a Lido Key resident as Mike Regnier. The correct identification should have been William J. Quinn, former fire chief for the Sarasota-Manatee Airport Authority.
Courtesy City of Sarasota
Interim City Manager Doug Jeffcoat (left) and the next City Attorney Joseph Polzak.
SIESTA KEY SLOWLY COMES BACK TO LIFE
Business owners say there’s still a long road back to normal.
IAN SWABY STAFF WRITER
Many Siesta Key businesses are reopening — and the customers are beginning to turn out as well.
On Oct. 21, scattered visitors eager to support the local establishments could be found strolling the island’s streets.
Among them were North Port residents Sherry Lecorchick and Fred and Susan Galzerano.
They were hoping to stop at Siesta Key Oyster Bar, a restaurant that was bustling with activity that day, and perhaps take a look at T-shirt shops, as well.
A LONG ROAD AHEAD
Kris Pierce, manager at Café Gabbiano, wrote the Observer that following the restaurant’s opening on Oct. 15, it saw a busy weekend with “good turnout.”
At the same time, other businesses have reopened such as Gilligan’s Island Bar & Grill, Beach Bazaar, Daiquiri Deck and The Blasé Café & Martini Bar.
Above the Bar Hospitality Group suffered damage to some of its restaurants during Hurricane Helene, but has seen some progress.
“I don’t know when normal will be, but we’re starting to see a lot of debris getting picked up,” said Katie Spelman, a manager with the company. “The county’s working hard. People are working hard. People are offering their time to come help us. Staff members are offering their time. Things are getting done.”
The company’s open restaurants include Beach Club Siesta Key, Siesta
“I
don’t know when normal will be, but we’re starting to see a lot of debris getting picked up.”
Katie Spelman, manager with Above the Bar Hospitality Group
Poke and My Village Pub.
Summer House was briefly open and relatively busy, but had to shut down following an electrical issue caused by the storm.
She said when it comes to The Hub Baja Grill and The Cottage, there is no definite time line for reopening. However, she noted the community has stepped up to help.
On social media that morning, The Hub had posted an image of several small Tikis it owned and had been using as decor.
The public could come and claim
them by providing donations.
The effort raised $1,440, all of which will go toward supporting the restaurant’s staff who are out of work.
“We’re just trying to work as hard as we can every day to get the staff back to work,” she said. “That’s our No. 1 priority. The quicker we can open, the quicker we will.”
However, one of the challenges for businesses is the lack of residents currently on the island.
“We’re almost up on all cylinders with the store,” said Todd Morton, owner of Morton’s Siesta Market, noting the store is still hoping for more customers.
He said it appears the challenge will be ongoing.
Indeed, many Siesta Key homes were seriously damaged, and others were lost entirely.
“The beach is empty,” said Zach Hupp, who owns a condominium in Midnight Cove. “There’s probably 100 people at the public beach,
where there’s usually thousands.”
Morton also said tourism will need to return before business resumes.
“Really, until the rentals are actually rentable, we’re not going to see it, and we just have a lot more to do to make to make it the vacation spot it used to be,” he said.
Right now, the store is awaiting the replacement of equipment so it can open all of its departments, although he calls its current focus “heavy on the deli, light on the groceries.”
Like Spelman, he also said the community has been stepping up to help.
“It’s really nice to see our neighbors and colleagues getting opened back up,” he said. “That’s a big part of our business, as well, too, and the faster we can get back to normal and work together on that, it’s going to help out everybody on the Key.”
Among those eager to support local businesses, were the visitors such as Colleen Riordan and Tom Krzyski, of Canada.
Riordan said with their first visit 20 years ago, the couple had fallen in love with the island, including “the beaches, the vibe, the fact that there’s no franchises here.”
“It’s Ma and Pa,” he said.
The couple kept in touch with the island’s businesses during the time of hurricanes Helene and Milton, from a cruise ship.
After making the determination that enough businesses were open, they decided to visit.
Krzyski said they had heard that business was slow during the summer, stating that “the owners are hurting and then, of course, they didn’t need this disaster.”
“We figured we want to get the benefit of the businesses in the future, and we don’t want them to go out of business, so therefore, support them now in their time of need, support the businesses, support the community,” said Krzyski.
Riordan said she was pleased to see the community taking shape, with the Siesta Key Farmer’s Market even being held on the weekend.
“It’s amazing how quickly and efficiently they are cleaning up,” she said. “We took pictures on Saturday when we first got here, and I cannot believe the difference already.”
Elit Shroyar, who works as a bartender at Beach Club Siesta Key, said she hopes people aren’t deterred by the news of destruction in Siesta Key.
“It’s really nice to see our neighbors and colleagues getting opened back up. That’s a big part of our business, as well, too, and the faster we can get back to normal and work together on that, it’s going to help out everybody on the Key.”
Zach Hupp, Midnight Cove resident
“I feel like there’s so much media about how everything’s destroyed, but there’s honestly a lot of progress, and I think a lot of people are scared to come here because they think nothing’s open, but the businesses need people to come in,” she said.
Sherry Lecorchick and Susan and Fred Galzerano walk through Siesta Key Village.
Photos by Ian Swaby Andrew Farrell of T. Fyffe Construction Services fixes a sign for Siesta Village Dentistry.
Christian Galicia serves Zac and Trey Yovanovich at Siesta Key Oyster Bar on Oct. 22.
Zach Hupp talks with bartender Elit Shroyar at Beach Club Siesta Key.
Schools seek funding continuance
IAN SWABY STAFF WRITER
At Sarasota High School’s Referendum Community Forum on Oct. 22, Superintendent of Schools
Terry Connor said he hoped to convey that the last item on ballots in the Nov. 5 general election is not last in importance.
Connor said the referendum forums have not been well attended, which the public can interpret how they choose.
However, he calls the property tax extension one of the reasons Sarasota is “a great community to be in,” and said school districts without the additional revenue face significant struggles.
“I have nightmares sometimes with the experiences I’ve had in districts that haven’t been fortunate enough to have that supplemental revenue,” he said.
If approved, the property tax extension would continue levying a 1 mill per year property tax, equivalent to $1 per $1,000 of taxable value, from 2026 to 2030, over which time its total projected revenue is $356 million.
The revenue helps support five facets of the district that include attracting and retaining high-quality staff, elevating workforce education, ensuring safe and secure schools, enriching learning experiences and promoting student achievement.
Connor notes this year’s referendum is unique in being placed on the general election ballot due to the requirements of recent legislation.
This, he said, “changes the game” due to a broader constituency.
FUNDING FOR A VARIETY
OF NEEDS
The 2022 referendum, under which the district is currently operating, passed through a vote of 85.8%, while the referendum has been passed continuously every four years since 2002.
At the forum on Oct. 22, Connor broke down the allocations of the funding.
He said the majority will go toward the recruitment and retention of teachers, with 85% of the school district’s budget being allocated to personnel.
He also noted roughly 20% of the district’s operating budget is provided by the referendum.
The referendum allocates funding to career and technical education programs such as Riverview High School’s construction technology program and dual enrollment programs at Suncoast Technical College.
Connor said instructors in this realm are often drawn back into their field by higher salaries.
The referendum funding will contribute significantly to school safety.
Connor said it will supplement positions from school resource officers and campus security aides who can serve as “eyes and ears,” to counselors who can build relationships with students and prevent issues, in addition to funding technology.
It will serve enrichment programs like Booker High School’s Visual and Performing Arts and Sarasota High School’s Circus Arts magnet programs.
“Having great programs like that is essential, and that’s another big part of what the referendum has supported,” Connor said.
The funding will continue to provide 30 minutes of additional instruction each school day.
Connor noted state legislation mandates start times of no earlier than 8 a.m. for middle schools and 8:30 a.m. for high schools.
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Sarasota faces months of debris collection
The volume of debris left in the wake of Hurricane Milton is estimated at up to four times that of Hurricane Ian in 2022.
ANDREW WARFIELD STAFF WRITER
In the days following the body blows delivered by hurricanes Helene and Milton, Sarasota Deputy City Manager Patrick Robinson said the city faces months of storm debris collection.
That statement was based on city staff estimates of 95,000 total cubic yards of vegetative, construction and demolition, as well as household goods and appliances debris left curbside. At a capacity of 21 cubic yards per truck, that resulted in a rough estimate, at that time, of 4,000 trips to pick up and deliver to the Sarasota County landfill.
That was before the city’s three contracted storm debris haulers got involved.
During last Friday’s City Commission meeting, rescheduled from Oct. 7, Robinson told commissioners that Public Works Director Doug Jeffcoat and Public Works General Manager Todd Kucharski activated the debris haulers in advance of Hurricane Milton, and once they could access the streets, that volume estimate grew exponentially when collection and hauling operations began on Oct. 16.
“They’re estimating, now that our contractors are operational on the ground, 250,000 to 400,000 cubic yards of debris, which roughly equates to, on the conservative side, 12,000 truckloads to be removed from the streets,” Robinson said.
COLLECTION RULES
DEBRIS
Storm debris should be separated in four groupings and kept at least six feet from objects that may interfere with collection equipment, The groupings include:
Construction debris: fencing, carpeting, drywall and other floodimpacted construction materials. White goods: appliances including refrigerators, ranges, washers, dry-
ers, air conditioning units and water heaters. Bulk items: furniture and accessories, mattresses and other items affected by flood water within a home or structure. Vegetative debris: downed tree branches, limbs and vegetative material. That stands in sharp contrast to the 91,000 cubic yards and 3,200 loads left behind by Hurricane Ian in 2022, which took some six weeks to collect.
The commencement of full-scale debris collection, though, comes as welcomed news to residents and city commissioners alike.
“I know all of you are getting requests for individual street removal. I can tell you that Mr. Jeffcoat’s team and the contractors have worked out a plan,” Robinson told commissioners.
That plan prioritizes the barrier islands, which took the brunt of the back-to-back hurricanes and the resulting debris, and around schools where students walk to and from home, then expanding outward along main roads and intersections
before working their way into residential neighborhoods.
“We know that everybody wants it done,” Robinson said. “I read in one of the emails that our roads are like tunnels, and they absolutely are. We’re very cognizant of that, and staff is going to be working diligently to get that removed.”
Included in Robinson’s storm recovery-related comments was an update on how city staff responded in the aftermath of Milton.
“We had well over 200 staff members — including law enforcement, public works, public utilities, parks and rec — in the EOC (Emergency Operations Center) during (Milton) and responded immediately after that storm, at about 3 in the morning, to start stopping the water line breaks from all the trees that went down,” he said.
“We are still working on getting all of the line breaks done because of so much tree uprooting that shifted the ground and damaged some of our infrastructure.”
The city’s Parks and Recreation Department continues assessing and remediating significant damage caused by Hurricane Milton while its Landscape Division clears debris from streets and medians to ensure safety and accessibility.
Remaining closed are Bayfront Park, Bird Key Park, Eloise Werlin Park/Tony Saprito Pier, Gillespie Park, Indian Beach Park, Ken Thompson Park, North Water Tower Park and the School Avenue MURT. Other parks may be closed or have areas that are inaccessible. Payne Park and the Circus Playground have reopened with ongoing debris removal and tree maintenance underway.
Pioneer Park’s north section, including the basketball court and playground, is cleared and open while the southern section is being cleared of large trees. Mary Dean Park has also reopened.
SEVERAL PARKS REMAIN CLOSED
Image courtesy of Max Osiris
A boat ended up in front of the Bayfront Park entrance in Sarasota after Hurricane Milton.
Image courtesy of Matthew Ballew
Hurricane Milton’s strong winds added many downed trees to the debris that was left behind by Hurricane Helene.
Sarasota Players returning home to downtown Sarasota
The century-old performing arts organization’s lease for Payne Park Auditorium has been approved by the City Commission, including plans to build a new facility nearby.
ANDREW WARFIELD
STAFF WRITER
Four years after it vacated its performance space in downtown Sarasota, The Sarasota Players is returning home.
On Friday, the Sarasota City Commission unanimously, if not somewhat reluctantly on the part of Vice Mayor Jen Ahearn-Koch and Commissioner Debbie Trice, approved the terms of a 30-year lease for Payne Park Auditorium.
The commission meeting was rescheduled from Oct. 7 because of Hurricane Milton.
The base term is a rent of $100 per year plus $1 per ticket sold for performances held by The Players and any other performing arts organizations there. The Players is working with other community performing arts groups for shared use of the facility. The intent is that the auditorium serve as a temporary home with long-term plans to build a new facility on a vacant city-owned property at the northeast corner of Washington Boulevard and Laurel Street, just a few hundred yards away.
While the organization may make improvements to the auditorium — any project in excess of $50,000 must be approved by the city manager or a designee — the building cannot be expanded to occupy additional space in Payne Park.
The Sarasota Players, formerly branded The Players Centre for the Performing Arts, has been in pursuit of a new home since selling its building in 2016 and vacating the space in 2020. In 2018, it entered into an agreement with Lakewood Ranch developer Schroeder-Manatee
Ranch to build a $30 million theater complex at Waterside Village. Those plans fell through in 2022.
Performances are currently held in vacant retail space at The Crossings at Siesta on South Tamiami Trail, where it has 140 seats surrounding a central stage.
In July, The Players presented a plan to triple the size of Payne Park Auditorium by building a new performance hall adjacent to the current building, a plan that met with considerable opposition from the surrounding community.
“On July 15, the City Commission voted unanimously to direct the staff and the city attorney’s office to prepare a lease agreement for the Payne Park Auditorium building only, and exclude any other improvements within the park, but limit the lease only to the auditorium,” said Wayne Appleby, the city’s economic development manager.
The commission also directed staff to remove a claw-back provision that would allow The Players to recoup improvement costs to the
building once the lease — then proposed at 10 years with two successive 10-year extensions, is terminated.
The term is now a traditional, nonprofit 30-year lease.
Although the new terms were negotiated at the commission’s direction, there was yet another attempt to make substantial changes at the dais — Trice concerned about yet another lease of city-owned property at $100 per year, albeit with escalators tied to the Consumer Price Index, and by Ahearn-Koch, who wasn’t clear about revenues from ancillary uses and whether it was clearly stated that the primary use of the building is for performances.
After Commissioner Erik Arroyo motioned approval of the lease as presented, changes to the terms were suggested, much to the chagrin of Mayor Liz Alpert. “It drives me crazy to rewrite substantially contracts that have been negotiated between two parties at the commission table, just flying by the seat of our pants,” Alpert admonished.
THE TERMS
Rent — $100 per year plus $1 per ticket sold for each event conducted at the auditorium. On the fifth anniversary, the rent payable ticket surcharge shall be adjusted and shall continue to be adjusted at successive five-year intervals to reflect the compounded changes in the Consumer Price Index.
This rent is net with The Players responsible for taxes, insurance and utilities. Improvements — The Players is authorized to make minor improvements without prior approval such as any work, installation,
City Auditor and Clerk Shayla Griggs, after the roll call vote began, reminded the reticent Ahearn-Koch that discussion time had ended.
“I really want to support this. I really support The Players and this arts organization. I really, really do,” Ahearn-Koch said. “I have difficult time with these terms and some of these words.”
“We already talked,” Griggs replied. “We’re in the middle (of a) vote, vice mayor.”
Followed a brief pause, AhearnKoch joined her colleagues in
construction repairs, etc., of less than $50,000. Improvements at a cost of $50,000 or more must be approved by the city manager or designee. Improvements shall remain the property of city. Enhancements — The Players agrees to undertake capital improvements and repairs for the desired uses as a community performing arts venue including interior space, acoustical and lighting improvements, flexible seating, restroom enhancements, etc. Seating — The Players anticipates installation of removable seating.
approving the lease. Now approved, the lease agreement will commence upon the city vacating Payne Park Auditorium, currently used by Parks and Recreation Department personnel. Although initial term of the lease agreement will terminate 30 years from the commencement date, it may also terminate on the date The Players receives a certificate of occupancy for a new building at the Washington Boulevard site.
File photo
Payne Park Auditorium will be the new home of The Sarasota Players.
Sarasota City Commission
The finish line is in sight. Yay. Election years can get to you. They’re exasperating and, most certainly, mentally exhausting.
That is, if you’re paying attention to the candidates and their pandering. And if you are and haven’t mailed in your ballot or gone to your early voting poll over the past few days, time is waning. You still can get focused and informed on the candidates and their positions on issues and on the meaning of and potential ramifications of Florida’s six constitutional amendments and the local ballot issues.
The Observer has tried to assist voters over the past two months. The box below contains all of our recommendations and links to our elections coverage and editorials on YourObserver.com.
This week, in our final installment of recommendations, we are focusing on the three Sarasota City Commission races.
SARASOTA CITY COMMISSION
So much of voting comes down to personalities, political affiliations and the candidates’ positions on issues, likability, competence and performance.
But instead of addressing those particulars among the six City Commission candidates, we urge city voters to go beyond merely judging one candidate against the other. Take time to assess the greater picture — what has occurred over the past four years in the city and the current state of the city.
The current state isn’t referring to the aftermath of Hurricanes Helene and Milton. City commissioners had no control over those two destructive storms. And while there are some who still may want to bellyache about debris pickup, c’mon, in the overall scheme that should be, at most, a minor, minor factor. Actually, it shouldn’t be one at all in the totality of the policies the commissioners addressed over the past four years.
There will be plenty of time for post-mortems on the storms.
Instead, when you assess the past as part of the referendum on the candidates, three issues should be top of mind: the local economy,
FEDERAL OFFICES
President — Donald Trump
U.S. Senator — Rick Scott
U.S. Congress, District 16 — Vern Buchanan
U.S. Congress, District 17 — Greg Steube
STATE OFFICES
Representative, District 71 — Will Robinson Representative, District 72 — William “Bill” Conerly Representative, District 73 — Fiona McFarland Supreme Court — Renatha Francis, Meredith Sasso. Yes Second District Court of Appeal — Anthony Black, Edward C. LaRose, Susan H. RothsteinYouakim. Yes
CONSTITUTIONAL
AMENDMENTS
Amendment 1: Partisan school board elections — Yes
Amendment 2: Right to fish and hunt — Yes
public safety and quality of life.
LOCAL ECONOMY
Once this region emerged from the economic disruptions and contractions from COVID, the city has experienced extraordinarily strong economic health.
Here is one measurement: Capital flows where it is welcome.
Over the past four years, from 2020-2023, the value of building permits issued in the city totaled $1.84 billion, or an annual average of $459.8 million.
Compared to the four years prior to COVID (2015 to 2018), permits totaled $1.4 billion. From 2009 to 2013, the annual value of permits never topped $200 million a year.
Capital flows where it is welcome.
Likewise, this investment propelled a real estate market in which the city’s property values have almost tripled since 2016 — from $6.7 billion to $18.3 billion. In the past four years, values have risen an astonishing 56%.
By comparison, Bradenton’s property values increased 39.7% in the past four years to $5.9 billion.
Employment shows similar health. From 2020, as we were just coming out of the COVID job wipeout, up to 2024, overall employment rose 15.9% — an increase of 3,906 jobs. Bradenton added 2,596 jobs, a 15.1% increase, in the same period.
Prior to COVID, from 2015 to 2018, total employment rose 1,410, an increase of 5.5%.
The number of businesses operating in the city also has been on an upward trend — from a low of 4,176 in 2021 to 4,474 in 2024, an increase of 298, or 7.1%.
A final measurement to put an exclamation point on the economic health of the city: The growth in per-capita personal income:
2020....... $66,878
2021 $70,884
2022 $69,376
2023 $84,035
That’s a 25.6% increase over four years, or 6.4% per year.
Of course, the “we don’t want growth” naysayers likely would say the robust statistics above are not really all that great because of inflation and population growth.
Yes, to an extent, inflation has pushed up everyone’s wages, which explains some of the increase in per capita personal income.
But their bigger bugaboo would be population growth. There’s the perception that the city’s population exploded after COVID, thanks to people fleeing the tax hells of the Northeast, Michigan and Illinois.
The data don’t show it. City population:
2020 57,683 / -
2021 55,386 / -3.9%
2022 56,489 / +1.9%
2023 57,005 / +0.9%
Population actually has declined slightly since 2020.
The sum of it all: The local Sara-
sota economy is strong. It would not be so if the City Commission spent the past four years enacting more and more burdensome ordinances and increasing taxes.
Instead, the current City Commission and city administration lowered the city’s property-tax millage rate twice — in 2021 and 2022, an 8% decrease altogether.
Those two reductions are key factors in the health of every local and state economy. As economists Arthur Laffer and Stephen Moore have shown in their annual Rich States, Poor States rankings since 2008, areas with declining tax and regulatory burdens always show stronger and faster economic and income growth than those with rising tax burdens.
Government policies matter.
PUBLIC SAFETY/CRIME
Public safety is one of the most important measurements for every region, city and neighborhood.
On this score, the city of Sarasota has had a favorable trend. After a peak of 2,141 violent offenses in 2018, the number every year has fallen between 1,780 and 1,950. Overall serious crime for the first eight months of 2024 shows a 25.8% decline compared to the same period in 2023.
As they should, city commissioners and the city administration see public safety as a top priority.
The city has increased sworn police officers in the past eight years from 161 in 2015 to 190 in 2023, an 18% increase. Sarasota has the highest ratio of police officers per 1,000 residents of any city south of St. Petersburg — 3.29 officers.
Two other public safety measurements:
■ The count for chronically homeless in the city has declined 77% since 2018 — from 351 to 80 in 2023.
■ There were no BLM-related riots in the city in 2020 or 2021.
QUALITY OF LIFE
To be sure, this is the most subjective area on which to measure city commissioners’ performance with data. Quality of life to one person is not the same to another. Nonetheless, consider the following contributing to an improved quality of life over the past four years:
■ The approval of the first phase of the Marie Selby Botanical Garden’s master plan — since judged by Time as one of the 100 World’s Greatest Places.
■ The continued growth and popularity of the Bay Park.
■ Like it or not, the renovation of Bobby Jones and the new 90-acre nature park.
■ Like them or not, the completion of the roundabouts on Tamiami Trail and Ringling Boulevard. Traffic accidents have increased, but they are less severe than before; and
ELECTION
EDITORIALS
Amendment 4: Limit government interference with abortion — No
Amendment 5: Annual adjustments to the value of certain homestead exemptions — No
Amendment 6: Repeal of public campaign financing — Yes
MANATEE COUNTY Supervisor of Elections — Scott Farrington
County Commission, District 1 — Carol Ann Felts
County Commission, District 3 — Tal Siddique County Commission, District 5 — Joseph Di Bartolomeo County Commission, District 7
At-Large — George Kruse School Board, District 1 — Mark Stanoch School Board, District 3 — Charles Kennedy
MANATEE REFERENDA
■ Continue school ad valorem tax: Continue 1-mill ad valorem tax from July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2029. Yes
more cars are moving faster through the intersections than previously.
■ The city’s 50-year partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to help maintain Lido Beach.
■ 87 of 89 lift stations have been rebuilt.
■ $75.8 million is being invested to update the city’s water treatment plant and water mains.
■ And even though city policies haven’t solved the lack of affordable housing, the City Commission adopted in 2022, 2023 and 2024 comprehensive plan and zoning amendments and an urban mixed-use zone with incentives for increased density and attainable units. It’s working, albeit gradually.
RISING TRAJECTORY
Altogether, the city of Sarasota is and, for the past four years, has been on a strong, rising trajectory.
Sure, it has issues.
City commissioners need to be vigilant about spending. City employees per 1,000 population have risen 28.7% since 2016. Flooding and drainage infrastructure have risen to urgent in terms of critical neighborhood issues. After the recent flooding of the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, surely discussions will ensue on constructing a new center on the bayfront. But none of these issues rises to the level of negating or reversing what has been accomplished. Nor do these issues make a case for dumping or replacing the three incumbents —Mayor Liz Alpert and Commissioners Kyle Battie and Erik Arroyo.
Indeed, if you inspect the positions of the three commission challengers — Sequoia Felton, Ron Kashden and Kathy Kelley Ulrich, they all want policies that would stifle the city’s healthy economy. They want more rules, more regulations, more bureaucracy. In the name of being neighborhood advocates, the challengers are echoing calls for more group-rule democracy over individual property rights.
They say we must stop “overdevelopment.” That is the anthem of anti-incumbent candidates in the region’s 2024 elections. In reality, it is a euphemism for wanting to stop what they don’t like: population growth and development in their neighborhoods.
While the commission challengers make the hackneyed and false charge that the incumbents are beholden to developers, the truth is all five members of the City Commission have been respectful of balancing development, property rights and the rule of city law.
We’ve often said the litmus test for incumbents seeking reelection is how they have performed in office. The state of the city of Sarasota proves the incumbents have done well. There is no need to change.
We recommend: Kyle Scott Battie, Liz Alpert and Erik Arroyo.
SARASOTA COUNTY Tax Collector — Barbara FordCoates
49 be approved authorizing Manatee County to levy an additional 1% Tourist Development Tax from all short-term rentals of all lodging or accommodations. Yes
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District 3 — Erik Arroyo
SARASOTA COUNTY REFERENDUM
■ Continue school ad valorem
tax: Continue the 1 mill per year ad valorem millage … beginning July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2030. Yes
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MATT WALSH
Obsidian battle moves to Planning Board
Bay Plaza residents appeal approval of administrative adjustments for the 342-foot condo tower.
The battle over whether the Obsidian condominium tower will be built makes its inevitable shift from the administrative approval process to the political realm as opponents of the project, primarily residents of the adjacent Bay Plaza, have appealed administrative site plan adjustment approval to the Sarasota Planning Board.
In a letter dated Oct. 2 from Director of Development Services Lucia Panica to project consultant Joel Freedman, Panica wrote, “After many months of review and many modifications from the original submittal, I have determined that the proposed administrative site plan meets the standards for review.”
Red shirt-wearing opponents have appeared before the City Commission for more than a year, sounding a warning that in the likelihood an eventual Planning Board verdict is appealed to the commissioners by either developer Matt Kihnke or residents of Bay Plaza, they will be held responsible for the ultimate decision. Obsidian, also referenced as 1260 North Palm Ave., is proposed as an 18-story, 14-unit condomini -
um tower with 5,989 square feet of commercial and retail space on the first and second floors. The project received partial sign-off by the city’s Development Review Committee on May 15.
The primary objection to the project is its height which, at 342 feet, is nearly 100 feet taller than any other building downtown. Opponents have accused the developer of achieving the additional height via manipulation of interstitial space, typically space to run utilities between floors. They contend the tower is out of scale and on too small of a site, about a quarter-acre, to support such a structure.
Prior to the public comments portion of Monday’s commission meeting, City Attorney Robert Fournier informed commissioners that any comments made during that meeting cannot be considered evidentiary in either an appeal to them or, ultimately, the 12th Judicial Circuit Court.
The process is now quasi-judicial — likely eventually judicial — meaning strict rules will apply and all comments made previously or prior to quasi-judicial proceedings are to be disregarded. Only evidence presented during a hearing may be considered.
“I wanted to mention that in advance because I certainly dislike being put in the position of discouraging anyone from coming to testify, and I respect the concerns that have been expressed by these residents,” Fournier said. “That testimony, if any of it is given today, will not count.”
Heeding Fournier’s caution, most Obsidian opponents stood down. Ron Shapiro, though, did speak against the administrative adjustment approval.
“Most residents believe developers get whatever they want in Sarasota. This approval of 1260 shows most residents are right,” Shapiro said. “I am not upset with city staff. They are young, hard-working people ... and they’re under a lot of pressure from developers. But city staff are human beings, and all humans make mistakes ... so we are appealing this decision to the Planning Board.
“We hope and expect that the Planning Board, with their greater and more diverse experiences as well as their broader overview of what’s right for the city, will overturn this decision.”
Since Obsidian was initially filed, the city has closed the interstitial space loophole — the zoning code had not specified limits on the amount of space between floors —
but because the project was already in the administrative approval pipeline, those new restrictions do not apply.
The request of the city by Kihnke was for three adjustments:
n Parallel façade coverage: To reduce the parallel façade coverage by 20.8%, from the 133.61 feet required to 105.87 feet proposed. The lot has 148.45 feet of total frontage.
n Habitable space: To reduce the 20-foot habitable space by 6.5% on the ground floor, from 105.87 feet to 99.02 feet, and by 8.6% on the second floor, from 148.45 feet to 135.7 feet.
n Retail frontage: To reduce the required retail frontage by 9.4%, to 95.89 feet of frontage where 105.87 feet would be required. All three adjustments come as the result of space needed for a required electricity transformer, a fire control room and vehicle access to structured parking. It was determined that Kihnke either satisfactorily mitigated or complied to the extent possible to those standards to warrant adjustment approval.
Per city code, the director of development services is authorized to grant an adjustment for the reduction of a dimensional standard that does not exceed 25%, provided the request is consistent with the code.
“This is not a subjective review,” Panica’s letter reads.
Disdain for height and groundlevel adjustments notwithstanding, the city’s hands may be tied on the matter. Decisions made through quasi-judicial processes can ultimately land in court, another consideration the Planning Board and City Commission will face. Either Kihnke or Bay Plaza is likely to appeal the Planning Board’s decision to the commission, and its determination to the 12th Judicial Circuit where jurisprudence requires whether or not Obsidian conforms to the zoning code as it existed at the time, including the permitted adjustment approval parameters.
“If the Planning Board denies our appeal, we will then appeal to you, our city commissioners, elected by the people to carry out the will of the people with the hope and expectation that the right thing will be done and sanity will prevail,” Shapiro said on Monday.
Andrew Warfield
Obsidian would be built on this site next to Bay Plaza. The single-story building with seven storefronts will be demolished.
Courtesy image
The upper floors of Obsidian would offer bayfront views to the east and downtown views to the west.
Milton damage forces county to vacate administration center
Assessments are underway to determine future use of Sarasota County’s headquarters as construction of its new building continues.
ANDREW
WARFIELD STAFF WRITER
n the wake of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, not only does the Sarasota County government face massive recovery efforts throughout the county, but also how — and perhaps even to what extent — to get its own house in order.
Significant wind and water damage was sustained by the Sarasota County Administration Center at 1660 Ringling Blvd. in downtown Sarasota.
The building was “extensively impacted by Hurricane Milton,” Sarasota County Director of Communications Jamie Carson said in a statement. “We’re working to remediate the building and assessing its future use.”
That future use is in question as construction continues on the county’s new administrative building in Fruitville Commons just east of I-75, the Fruitville area quickly developing as the epicenter of all things county government. In 2021, the county sold the Ringling Boulevard property to Benderson Development for $25 million and is leasing it back through the end of 2025.
A groundbreaking for the new administration center, which is located next to Celery Fields, was held in September 2023.
Under terms of the lease, Benderson is responsible for maintaining the roof and structure of the building and the county covers all other maintenance. Remediation teams have already been inside, removing debris and drying the building as the assessment of its future use is made. In addition to administrative offices, the building contains the County Commission’s primary meeting chambers on the first floor
and the third-floor “Think Tank,” where much of its budget hearing process is held.
Meanwhile, the business of county government must go on.
“To ensure the continuity of government for our community, we’ve implemented plans to relocate personnel and equipment during the remediation process,” said Carson.
“As for now, the building remains closed to the public, and we’ll keep the community updated as we continue to complete the remediation process.”
This week, both the Tuesday and Wednesday County Commission meetings were held at the south county headquarters, the Robert L. Anderson Administration Center at 4000 S. Tamiami Trail in Venice, as they likely will be for the foreseeable future. In the short term, at least, the commission meetings will be only audio recorded and posted online the next day and not live-streamed with video.
Meanwhile, county services may be accessed online at SCGov.net, and residents may call 311 or 941861-5000 for assistance.
n I will not submit to political pressure to change SMH from a public hospital serving our community to a private hospital serving investors.
n Your health care is what you and your physician decide, not the state.
n Any treatment you get at SMH is physician-reviewed and proven to work.
Andrew Warfield
Remediation assessments and debris removal are underway at the Sarasota County Administration Center.
CITY COMMISSION RACE: DISTRICT 1
The former mayor is being challenged for his District 1 seat by a political newcomer.
Editor’s note: These questions were asked prior to Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
Sarasota native Kyle Battie is facing a challenge from Sequoia Felton in his first reelection bid for the District 1 seat of the Sarasota City Commission. He has served one of his four years on the commission as mayor.
The Observer surveyed all six candidates for the three district seats on the City Commission, selecting three questions for print. Battie’s full survey answers may be viewed online at YourObserver.com.
Why are you running for election or reelection?
I am running to help Sarasota be a city which respects its history while managing its future. Sarasota has evolving needs, as does my district. We cannot make plans for the unknown, but we can be prepared for the unexpected. We have come a long way in that regard, but we have more work to do.
Private use of city properties such as parks and city-owned buildings has been a major topic of discussion. Recent examples are The Players and Payne Park Auditorium and Ride Entertainment’s proposal for Ken Thompson Park. How do you view such public/private partnerships with regard to city assets?
Any public-private partnership on public property must enhance the experience and provide real value to our residents. For instance, a café in a park or a food vendor at the beach offers amenities that local government may not be equipped to provide — after all, you wouldn’t want me cooking your lunch at the beach pavilion. However, I strongly oppose any partnership that detracts from the public experience or gives away public land without
KYLE BATTIE
Age: 56
Occupation: City commissioner Sarasota resident: 51 years
delivering significant benefit to the community.
The city commission is creating an ad-hoc committee to provide recommendations for a downtown master plan update. Please cite some specific changes you think need to be made to the plan.
I would like to hear input from the community and urban design experts. Downtown is a heartbeat of our city. It should be a comfortable, accessible and pleasant place for all residents. As an economic hub, any changes made cannot undermine that role. We’ve made great strides with new transportation infrastructure and filled storefronts with thriving restaurants and small businesses. However, there is still more we can do to enhance the visitor experience, such as continuing to invest in wider sidewalks to make the city more walkable, and expanded outdoor dining options.
The first-time candidate charges the north Sarasota district’s needs have been neglected by the city.
Editor’s note: These questions were asked prior to Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
Political newcomer Sequoia Felton is challenging first-term incumbent Kyle Battie for the District 1 seat on the Sarasota Commission in one of three races that could change the majority of the five-seat board.
The Observer surveyed all six candidates for the three district seats on the City Commission, selecting three questions for print. Felton’s full survey answers may be viewed online at YourObserver.com.
Why are you running for election or reelection?
I am not a politician. I’m running for office because I care about the people, the community and the next generation. The real-world concerns of the people who live and work here have been neglected by the current commissioner. As I’ve knocked on doors and attended community meetings, I’ve heard from a lot of residents who only see the incumbent when he’s showing up for a party. I intend to be there for the people of Sarasota when there is work to be done. The residents need a representative who will take the time to listen to their concerns, and focus on affordability, public safety and quality of life issues.
Private use of city properties such as parks and city-owned buildings has been a major topic of discussion. How do you view such public/private partnerships with regard to city assets?
I grew up with Sesame Street and I remember the song “one of these things is not like the others.” The Bay is different. Everyone I’ve talked to is on board with the idea of turning that giant waterfront parking lot into a green and open park. But I think the success of The Bay effort has been misinterpreted
SEQUOIA FELTON
Age: 38
Occupation: Porter/entrepreneur
Resident of Sarasota: 19 years
by entrepreneurs who want to build various sports or entertainment or attractions in the public’s parks. Paid activity excludes some from enjoying the shared space. We live in a beautiful place, and sunsets are free. We should be cultivating more green space and making it accessible within the 10-minute walk the city’s parks plan calls for.
The city commission is creating a committee to provide recommendations for a downtown master plan update. Please cite some specific changes you think need to be made to the plan. What do we mean when we say “downtown?” Parts of District 1 north of Fruitville and along 41 have downtown zoning codes. Those codes require lot line-to-lot line buildings positioned right beside narrow sidewalks and busy streets. That doesn’t create a safe feeling for pedestrians, bicyclists or scooter commuters like me. It also creates an uninviting canyon effect for those driving through our city. I think our design standards should be revised to require more setbacks and open air, and we should pay particular attention to places where one- and two-story residential neighborhoods are right by large new complexes.
ONE PARK SARASOTA CONDO CELEBRATES GROUNDBREAKING AT THE QUAY
Downtown Sarasota’s waterfront district buzzed with excitement on October 1st as One Park Sarasota broke ground on its 18-story luxury tower. This 86-residence condominium, offering over 40,000 square feet of amenities, is a joint development by PMG and MoneyShow in The Quay’s bayside community. Coldwell Banker Realty’s Chelsa Vahtomin and Robert Robinson exclusively lead the sales team for One Park Sarasota.
“One Park Sarasota embodies our longstanding commitment to redefining luxury in Downtown Sarasota’s Waterfront District,” said Kevin Maloney, founder and CEO of PMG. “We are thrilled to officially break ground on this project and move forward with delivering a truly premier residential destination to The Quay. We are confident it will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of elevated living along Florida’s Gulf Coast.”
Alongside the groundbreaking marked by a traditional shovel
turn, buyers and local dignitaries gathered to celebrate the occasion with light bites, mimosas, and live music. The event also featured brief remarks from leaders of the One Park Sarasota development team.
“Reaching One Park Sarasota’s groundbreaking marks an exciting milestone for the city of Sarasota and its residents,” said Kim Githler, chair and CEO of MoneyShow. “With beautiful design, one-of-a-kind amenities, and an unbeatable location, this project will undoubtedly enrich our community’s residential landscape for years to come. We are proud to partner with PMG and contribute this signature project to Sarasota’s skyline.”
Designed by Sarasota-based Hoyt Architects, One Park Sarasota will offer 86 fully finished threebedroom residences, each with stunning views of Sarasota Bay, the city skyline, and its neighbor The Bay. The residences feature contemporary lighting packages, built-out closets, fully integrated
kitchens, and high-end Italian cabinetry in both kitchens and bathrooms. Designer-curated flooring options include porcelain, marble, or wood throughout.
Expansive glass walls, private terraces, midnight bars in primary bedrooms, and PMG’s advanced smart home technology ensure an unprecedented level of comfort and efficiency. The tower also includes top-floor penthouses and ground-level townhomes, each
with private rooftops, summer kitchens, and plunge pools.
Beyond its meticulously designed residences, One Park will feature an elevated amenity level brimming with resort-style features. The highlight is a pool area featuring two plunge pools, plenty of lounge chairs, and inviting social spaces. A state-of-the-art Fitness Studio will be equipped with the latest equipment, dedicated rooms for Pilates and spin, and an outdoor yoga/ fitness lawn.
The One Park Wellness Spa offers a tranquil retreat complete with a Hammam Spa and separate saunas for men and women. Entertainment options include a private theater room, a golf room, a wine and piano lounge, an owner’s lounge, and a hospitality suite.
Additional premium services provided by the dedicated concierge staff encompass valet parking, package delivery, and dog walking.
ARTIST CONCEPTUAL RENDERING
THURSDAY, OCT. 3
HE SAID, HE SAID
7:52 a.m., John Ringling Parkway
Disturbance: After what was described as an elderly man told the driver and passenger of another vehicle to pull over, he exited his vehicle and began a verbal altercation over the complainant’s choice in music, or more likely, choice in volume.
During the altercation, the subject is alleged to have mentioned going to retrieve a firearm to settle the matter, but one was never brandished. The subject then drove away as the complainant, who was still standing in the road, was tapped by the passenger side mirror, resulting in a minor injury. A license plate recognition camera identified the subject’s vehicle, and an officer was able to make contact with his cell phone on record. The subject said the incident began when he drove around the complainant, apparently uttering his disdain for his taste in music, who in turn drove around him and then brake-checked him. He also denied threatening the complainant with a firearm, ultimately deciding an altercation wasn’t worth the trouble and drove away. While doing so, he alleged the complainant slammed his passenger side mirror causing the hand injury.
With no more clarity as to the actual sequence of events, no further action was taken.
MONDAY, OCT. 7
A $100 SERVICE CHARGE
10:04 p.m., 300 block of North Brink Avenue
Civil disturbance: Because her son was tossing objects around in his room out of anger, a woman called law enforcement to help manage the situation. Officers were initially unable to make direct contact with the subject, but the mother stated the two were engaged in a dispute over money.
SATURDAY, OCT. 5
WALKING ON EGGSHELLS
1:26 p.m., 1600 block of South
Boulevard
Property damage: A complainant arrived at the front desk at SPD headquarters, complaining of eggs smeared on the front of his residence and eggshells on the ground. He advised he spoke to his mother, who was out of town, who instructed him to file a report.
Ownership of the home was not clearly defined in the incident report.
The complainant said he believes his ex-girlfriend is behind the malicious event, adding that they exchanged text messages the night prior during which time she threatened to send people to his house to fight him. Confronted the next morning, the woman denied involvement in the egging.
The man provided photos of the smeared eggs on windows and eggshells on the driveway. Contacted by phone, his mother was aware the person responsible may be her son’s ex-girlfriend, adding that she didn’t want to pursue criminal charges unless the damage was significant.
An officer attempted to contact the suspect by phone, but the call went unanswered.
unresolved.
The woman said she gave her son her debit card to retrieve $200 from an ATM to prepare for Hurricane Milton. When he returned, she noticed he withdrew $300 from the account, receiving only two-thirds of that amount.
The woman said she got her money back, but the dispute was
Officers knocked on the subject’s bedroom door and announced themselves to no response. They also attempted to enter the laundry room area adjacent to his room, but that door was locked as well. Because the dispute was verbal in nature and the room was locked, officers did not force entry. The complainant was advised if he were to enter the living area of the house and continue to cause a disturbance to call law enforcement. No further action was taken.
LIFE ON THE LAKE
ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
real creatures cavorting on swings suspended over the stage might sound schmaltzy, right up there with Thomas Kincade paintings and garden gnomes.
But anyone who makes that assumption can’t be familiar with Lang, a former dancer for Twyla Tharp’s traveling company who has choreographed for American Ballet Theatre, Alvin Ailey and Birmingham Royal Ballet.
A VARIED BODY OF WORK
“Some choreographers have a style,” says Iain Webb, director of the Sarasota Ballet. “Jessica’s got the ability to create these incredible works that are very different (from) each other. For the audience, it’s going to be tremendous.”
CALLING ON ANGELS
Choreographer Jessica Lang found celestial inspiration for her Sarasota Ballet world premiere ‘A Time of Beauty.’
IF YOU GO
SARASOTA BALLET’S PROGRAM ONE: ‘RELATIVE WORKS’
When: Oct. 25-27
Where: FSU Center for the Performing Arts, 5555 N. Tamiami Trail. Tickets: $35-$125 Visit SarasotaBallet.org.
MONICA ROMAN GAGNIER ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
Do you believe in angels?
Choreographer Jessica Lang does — at least as the source of inspiration for “A Time of Beauty,” her ballet making its world premiere at Sarasota Ballet on Oct. 25-27.
Lang, whose official title at Sarasota Ballet is the Virginia B. Toulmin & Muriel O’Neil Artist in Residence, got the idea for “A Time of Beauty” a few years ago. She was in London near St. Paul’s Cathedral when she discovered an installation called “Lunch Break.”
The piece by architects KHBT in collaboration with artist Ottmar Hörl featured 40 golden angels resting on swings.
Even guardian angels need a break every now and then. They’ve since flown away — the installation ran from June 2019 to March 2020 — but their celestial cousins will grace Lang’s second ballet choreographed exclusively for Sarasota Ballet.
To some, a ballet featuring ethe-
In addition to the angelic sculptures in London, Lang drew on the music of George Frideric Handel for “A Time of Beauty.”
“I wanted to do something ... with classical music, but I wanted to go a step forward to include voice,” Lang said in a joint interview with Webb in the Sarasota Ballet’s offices.
“I do a lot for opera and a lot for oratorio music,” she says. “This is Handel’s first oratorio that he ever wrote. He wrote it at 19, and he revisited it three times throughout his career.”
According to Lang, Handel first called the music “Triumph of Time and Dissolution.” He came back again with “Triumph of Time and Beauty” and then “Time and Truth.”
Lang says she is quite fond of a particular aria that Handel borrowed from himself for his opera “Rinaldo,” which she says is one of her favorites.
A SERIES OF LIFE-ALTERING ENCOUNTERS
Lang, who divides her time between New York City and Sarasota, says Handel’s oratorio could be used to accompany a full-length ballet if she used all hour-and-a-half of the composition. Instead, she picked six selections of music to help her embody the battle between time and beauty. Spoiler alert: Time wins. “It always does in the end,” notes Lang. Speaking to Lang about her life as her 50th birthday approaches, one can’t quite decide whether the random encounters that have helped shape her career are fated or serendipitous. For Sarasota ballet fans, they are certainly fortuitous, since they have brought one of the world’s leading choreographers to town.
After dancing for two years for Twyla Tharp’s “Tharp!” company, Lang had her own eponymous dance company from 2011-2019. During this time, both Jessica Lang Dance and the Sarasota Ballet were part of the Fall for Dance program at New York City Center in 2016.
Lang’s company was performing her work, “Tesseracts of Time,” while Sarasota Ballet was on the bill with Sir Frederick Ashton’s “Marguerite and Armand” featuring dancers Johann Kobborg and Alina Cojocaru.
Jessica Lang rehearses with Sarasota Ballet’s Macarena Gimenez and Maximiliano Iglesias for the world premiere of “A Time of Beauty.”
Some of the angels at a 2019 art installation in London that inspired Jessica Lang.
Images courtesy of Mikenna Bowers Sarasota Ballet dancers rehearse for the world premiere of Jessica Lang’s “A Time of Beauty.”
Courtesy image Choreographer Jessica Lang
During the 2016 Fall for Dance gala and dinners, Lang and Webb met for the first time and talked informally about collaborating. The two were aware of each other because Lang had choreographed dances for the Birmingham Royal Ballet under Artistic Director Sir David Bintley, beginning in 2012 with “Lyric Pieces.”
ALL ROADS IN ENGLISH BALLET
LEAD TO ASHTON
Webb knows Bintley from their days dancing together at Sadler’s Wells, where Bintley was also choreographer before becoming artistic director of Birmingham Royal, as Sadler’s Wells is now known.
“We danced together, and I danced in his ballets before he became artistic director. I was already gone by then, but we go back a long time,” Webb says.
With name changes like Sadler’s Well Royal Ballet becoming Birmingham Royal Ballet in 1990, tracing the provenance of English ballet can get confusing.
It’s helpful to remember that all roads lead to Ashton, whose legacy has been preserved by Sarasota Ballet under the leadership of Webb and his wife, Margaret Barbieri, assistant director, both former dancers with Sadler’s Wells.
Lang calls receiving her first commission from Bintley for the Birmingham Royal a “Cinderella” moment. “My husband, Kanji (Segawa), went to the mailbox and came back with a thin letter with a big gold royal seal. ‘Look what you got!’ he said. I was afraid because the envelope was so thin. I assumed it was a polite rejection.”
When she opened up the letter and read it, Lang was “flabbergasted,” she says. “It was a beautiful letter from David articulating how he had watched my work and how much he loved it. It said he was commissioning me for a new work and asked whether I would come over next year,” Lang recalls.
Lang’s potential collaboration with the Sarasota Ballet got a boost when her parents decided to relocate from Bucks County, Pennsylvania, where Lang was raised. She gave Webb a call when her parents were house hunting in Sarasota, renewing their acquaintanceship and the possibility of working together.
But the idea began to take form after a dinner with Lang, her parents, Webb and Barbieri in a restaurant where Roxie Jerde, head of the Community Foundation of Sarasota, happened to be sitting at the next table.
“Roxie said, ‘If you can sign Jessica up, we want to be involved straight away,’” Webb recalled.
A SMALL TOWN WITH STRONG CULTURAL CONNECTIONS
After relaying the anecdote, Webb exults that he loves “the creative energy of Sarasota, where everything is connected, like having dinner and Roxie being on the next table.”
That chance restaurant meeting led to the Community Foundation’s support of Lang’s artist-in-residence position, which also received backing from the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Fast forward to Monday, Oct. 7, 2024. As Hurricane Milton approached, the Sarasota Ballet canceled rehearsals for Program One, “Relative Beauty,” which will feature Lang’s world premiere.
During the storm, Lang sheltered with her parents at their home in The Meadows. She said they experienced some minor damage, but were spared the brunt of Milton, which made landfall on Siesta Key on Wednesday, Oct. 9. Meanwhile, the clock was ticking
down toward Lang’s world premiere on Oct. 25.
“We lost four-and-a-half days of rehearsal, but the show must go on,” Webb says.
A TIME FOR HEALING
Originally, “A Time of Beauty” was to be the first ballet in Program One, followed by Ricardo Graziano’s romantic “Amorosa” and wrapping up with Kobborg’s production of “Napoli Act III,” which continues the legacy of Danish choreographer August Bournonville.
But after Hurricane Milton, Webb and Lang decided the audience should leave on a note of angelic healing. They tweaked the lineup so “Napoli” is the opener and “A Time of Beauty” is the closing performance of Program One.
Now, about those swings. How do they work?
“Sarasota’s a circus town, so we went to the Wallenda family to get their help,” Lang says.
Asked specifically which Wallenda lent their aerial expertise to the ballet, Webb demurred. “The people in the IATSE (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees) union know the right people to call,” he says. “They have the contacts.”
As a choreographer, Lang has been able to bring to life the kinds of dance-fueled tales she had glimmerings of as a child. Even then, she says,
“... As a choreographer, I need dancers who love to perform and go deeper into the role.”
Choreographer Jessica Lang
“I was dreaming about ideas, movement and stories. But at that age, I don’t think you’re mature enough to know what your vision is.”
Lang spent years preparing for her career as a dancer, but when she finally achieved her dream, she discovered it wasn’t what she wanted after all.
“When I went to Juilliard, I assumed I would dance forever,” she says. “I loved it. Then I got into Twyla’s company and we started touring. The job was very different from the education. I didn’t enjoy it. I didn’t like the repetition.”
Lang adds, “Some people love to perform, and that’s a good thing. As a choreographer, I need dancers who love to perform and go deeper into the role. They have to be willing to try again and get enjoyment out of the repetition. I just didn’t have that.”
Webb interjects, “George Balanchine was known for saying, ‘I don’t want people who want to dance. I want people who have to dance.’”
But that’s not enough. Choreographers like Balanchine and Lang don’t exist in a vacuum. They need audiences who want to see their dances. Sarasota’s got them, come hell or high water.
Hurricane Milton shaved four-and-ahalf days from Jessica Lang’s rehearsals with Sarasota Ballet dancers.
Image courtesy of Mikenna Bowers
A SLICE OF HEAVEN
A savory slice from one of these restaurants is guaranteed to steal a pizza your heart.
MPizza My Heart: My dad loved Connecticut-style pizza best, and Il Panificio’s Margherita ($22) landed the superlative “best pie in town.” It’s made with mozzarella, red sauce, fresh tomatoes and basil leaves. In Crust We Trust: My Connecticut roots would unplant themselves if I didn’t mention the clam pizza ($28) with mozzarella, fresh basil, buttery clams and red sauce.
y favorite part of the week hits exactly at 5:01 p.m. on Friday. At that magical moment, I know the dreaded “What’s for dinner?” dilemma will dissolve into deliciousness. My husband and I will embrace our cheesy tradition: Friday night pizza! With a Friday night pie in hand, we know exactly what’s on the menu. Trust me, there’s no better plan than that. Here are my favorite slices of heaven in Sarasota and Manatee counties, just in time for National Pizza Month.
CAPO PAZZO PIZZERIA 2053 Reynolds St., Sarasota; 941-487-8677; CapoPazzo.com
Pizza My Heart: Tuesday through Saturday from 5-8 p.m., grab a personal-sized savory sourdough pizza. Don’t miss the mini curled pepperoni ($17).
Pizza My Heart: Capo’s Sicilian MVP ($28) will make you question why it’s taken you so long to snag a slice (or three) of this sensational pie. It’s made with marinara, pesto, fresh mozzarella and pecorino Romana cheese.
In Crust We Trust: Capo has my best interest at heart with their wide selection of white pizzas. Get the Frank white ($17 and up) with ricotta, mozzarella, caramelized onion and a sesame seed crust.
In Crust We Trust: There are rotating feature pies (like the broccoli rabe, fennel sausage, black pepper and cured egg yolk one I scarfed up a few days ago) that you must try. But the Gucci ($19) is gooooooood: prosciutto, heirloom tomatoes, arugula, fresh mozzarella and that Gucci house tomato sauce.
Pizza My Heart: My dad would salivate over the Clemenza ($18) with spicy Calabrese salami, sweet Italian sausage, garlic confit, Calabrian chili, goat cheese, maple syrup (stay with me here) and arugula.
In Crust We Trust: The Fugetaboutit ($20), made with meatballs, sweet Italian sausage and ricotta, is the right way to end your workweek.
Pizza My Heart: Look no further for the best GF pizza in town. You can order any pie with a cauliflower crust or gluten-free for $5. If you love rich ricotta, the Siesta sands white pizza ($17 and up) is calling your name: olive oil garlic base, spinach, ricotta, broccoli, choice of prosciutto or turkey sausage. In Crust We Trust: The 1837 Chicken ($18 and up) comes with either sweet-with-heat BBQ or the house-made trifecta sauce base and drizzle. (Watch out for the heat!)
Courtesy image
Atria Cafe is a bakery by day and pizzeria by evening.
THIS WEEK
THURSDAY
‘OFF THE CHARTS’
7:30 p.m. at FST’s Court Cabaret, 1265 First St.
$18-$42
Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.
The creative team behind Florida Studio Theatre’s popular cabaret series is at again with “Off the Charts.” Richard and Rebecca Hopkins and Sarah Durham take the audience on a tour of 20th-century pop music, with arrangements by Jim Prosser. Stroll down memory lane with hits that ruled the Billboard Top 100 ranking, which debuted in 1958. Runs through Feb. 9.
‘SOUL CROONERS:
SOLID GOLD EDITION’
7:30 p.m. at Westcoast Black
DON’T MISS
‘SKYWAY’ ART EXHIBITION
The triennial contemporary Florida art exhibition encompasses five museums in the Tampa Bay area this year. Even if you don’t have time to visit all five “Skyway” museums, check out The Ringling Museum of Art and the Sarasota Art Museum. The Ringling features the multimedia works of 13 artists, running the gamut from Caitlin Albritton’s whimsical jewelry to Kiko Kotani’s breathtaking crocheted installations. SAM’s juxtapositions of multimedia works speak
Theatre Troupe, 1012 N. Orange Ave. $22-$52 Visit WestcoastBlackTheatre.org.
Created and directed by Nate Jacobs, “The Soul Crooners” returns to Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe’s main stage for the first time since its 2009 premiere. The opening show of WBTT’s 25th anniversary season celebrates the soul music of the 1970s. Runs through Nov. 17.
‘NINETEEN’
7:30 p.m. at Tree Fort Productions, 3501 S. Tamiami Trail $40 Visit TreeFortProductionsProjects. com.
Move over, “Suffs.” Sarasota’s got its own musical about the struggle for women’s suffrage. With her musical “Nineteen,” the multitalented Katherine Michelle Tanner celebrates the sacrifices and victories of suffragists on their long road to winning passage of the 19th amendment, ratified in 1920. Runs through Oct. 27.
‘JENNIFER, WHO IS LEAVING’
7:30 p.m. at Urbanite Theatre, 1487 Second St.
$5-$33 Visit UrbaniteTheatre.com.
Directed by Asolo Repertory Theatre Associate Artistic Director Celine Rosenthal, “Jennifer Who is Leaving” is a comedy set in a Massachusetts donut shop about three overworked women. Runs through Dec. 1.
to the important contributions of Florida immigrants including Havana native Tatiana Mesa Paján, Sue Havens, originally from Rochester, New York, and Kirk Ke Wong, who was born in Shanghai. Runs through Jan. 25 at The Ringling and Oct. 27 at SAM.
IF YOU GO When: 10 a.m. at The Ringling Museum of Art, 5401 Bayshore Road, and Sarasota Art Museum, 1001 S. Tamiami Trail Tickets: $30 at The Ringling; $15 at Sarasota Art Museum Info: Visit SkywayTampaBay.com.
‘THE LIGHTNING THIEF’
7:30 p.m. at 3501 S. Tamiami Trail, Suite 1105
$25-$35 Visit RiseAboveArts.com.
Rise Above Performing Arts presents the tale of a half-blood son of a Greek god who is accused of stealing Zeus’ master lightning bolt. Adapted from the best-selling book of the same name, “The Lightning Thief” stars local students and features a pulsating rock score. Runs through Oct. 27.
FRIDAY
‘9 TO 5: THE MUSICAL’
7:30 p.m. at the Venice Theatre’s Raymond Center, 140 Tampa Ave. W., Venice
$15-$37 Visit VeniceTheatre.org.
This toe-tapping musical is based on “9 to 5,” a 1980 film about sexism in the office that featured the hit song of the same name by Dolly Parton, who also starred in the film with Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda and Dabney Coleman. The Venice Theatre production is one of the community theater’s many revivals during its 75th anniversary season. Runs through Nov. 24.
SATURDAY
‘JUNIE B. JONES: THE MUSICAL’ Noon at FST’s Keating Theatre, 1241 N. Palm Ave.
$12
Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.
There’s plenty of song and dance for kids at Florida Studio Theatre. FST’s new production, “Junie B. Jones: The Musical,” was adapted from the young adult books by Barbara Park. Join the heroine as she embarks upon a new school year, recording all her adventures in her Top-Secret Personal Beeswax Journal.
SUNDAY
‘PURPLE! THE 2024 ORCHID SHOW’
10 a.m. at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, 1534 Mound St. $28 Visit Selby.org.
image
It’s the most wonderful time of year — when Marie Selby Botanical Gardens unveils its latest orchid show. The theme of this year’s show, presented by Better Gro, is “Purple!” Don’t be a shrinking violet; come see an astonishing display of purple orchids in the Tropical Conservatory, along with an exhibition of books, prints, photographs and other materials in the Museum of Botany & The Arts. Runs through Dec. 5.
WEDNESDAY
FORBIDDEN MUSIC IN PRE-NAZI GERMANY
10:30 a.m. at Selby Library, 1331 First St. Free with registration Visit SarasotaMusicArchive.org.
Sarasota Music Archive presents a lecture by Robert Vodnoy, music director of the Chamber Orchestra of Sarasota, exploring the evolution of German music in the early 20th century.
OUR PICK
‘THE LEGEND OF SLEEPY HOLLOW’ It wouldn’t be the spooky season without the Sarasota Players’ annual production of “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” based on the Washington Irving story that follows schoolmaster Ichabod Crane as he battles his rival Brom Bones for the heart of Katrina. A costume contest will take place each night before the show. Bring your own chairs or blankets for seating. Runs through Oct. 26.
IF YOU GO When: 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 24
Where: Sarasota Polo Club, 8201 Polo Club Lane
Tickets: $10-$25 Info: Visit ThePlayers. org.
Courtesy
The Sarasota Players’ “The Legend of Sleeping Hollow” runs Oct. 24-26 at the Sarasota Polo Club.
YOUR NEIGHBORS
The orchid show must go on
Selby Gardens’ Orchid Show 2024: PURPLE!, continuing despite the impacts of Hurricane Milton, highlights a significant color of the plant world.
IAN SWABY STAFF WRITER
The annual orchid show is one of the signature events at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, a place which also happens to be known for having the world’s largest scientifically documented collection of living epiphytes.
Even the impacts of Hurricane Milton didn’t prevent the show from reopening on Oct. 17 at Selby Gardens’ Downtown Sarasota Campus.
“We’re growing plants for them to be the best they can be for research to utilize, so we have a lot of redundancy in our operating systems,” said Angel Lara, greenhouse manager at Selby Gardens.
The Orchid Show 2024: PURPLE!, which is presented through the gardens’ longtime partner Better-Gro, will allow the public to discover a unique concept: the prevalence and significance of purple in the plant world.
It features a display of live orchids in its Tropical Conservatory, as well as a series of other materials including rare historical book artwork in its Museum of Botany & the Arts.
IF YOU GO
The Orchid Show 2024: PURPLE!. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Dec. 1. The Museum of Botany & the Arts closes at 4:30 p.m. at Downtown Sarasota Campus. Visit Selby.org.
A NEW APPROACH TO A SIGNATURE EVENT
The enjoyment of purple in orchids, Lara said, dates back to the Victorian era’s Orchidelirium.
During this time of fever for collecting and discovering orchids around the world, Queen Victoria constantly sought purple Cattleya orchids.
However, the color is also useful to plants in numerous ways.
“It’s really a very important botanical color in our world,” he said.
At first, Selby Gardens’ team had been considering the theme of color in general, said David Berry, who is Selby Gardens’ vice president for visitor engagement and chief museum curator.
However, it ultimately tabled the idea in favor of purple, feeling that there was enough that could be done with the one color alone and that a color-themed show would require planning further in advance.
“We just started rattling off purple hues that are botanical in name, and there are a surprising number of designated purple hues, because purple really isn’t just a single color.
It’s a category of color,” Berry said.
In fact, looking in the Museum of Botany & the Arts, you’ll even find a prominently displayed list of purples specifically named after plants, from violet to eggplant.
The display in the Tropical Conservatory has been carefully curated, Lara said, through a process that goes beyond the plants and even involved steps like acquiring boxes to precisely match the colors of the orchids.
“We like to call it theatrical horticulture, because it’s sort of like making like a set piece out of plants,” he
What most of the plants have in
common is that in some way they sport a purple hue, whether that be on their flowers, on the undersides of their leaves, or somewhere else.
The show requires three hours of maintenance every morning by four staff members and two or three volunteers a week. Every three weeks, all plants must be switched out to keep a fresh appearance.
Despite some broken glass panels due to Hurricane Milton, the structure of the greenhouses themselves are still intact, with Selby’s plant collections unharmed.
“We took it pretty well, given the circumstances,” Lara said. “We tend to lose power, but we have generators, so we always have a backup system.”
Many parts of Selby Gardens’ two campuses saw damage as a result of the storm, with the Downtown Sarasota campus reopening in phases.
Rominiecki said hurricanes Helene and Milton have underscored Selby Gardens’ urgent need to move ahead with Phase 2 of its Master Site Plan.
She said with the garden having safeguarded its preserved plant collections in Phase 1 through the Steinwachs Family Plant Research Center, it will now focus on safeguarding its living collections.
The current greenhouses, which
date to the 1970s, will be updated with newer ones that include Hurricane-resistant glass.
THE COLOR PURPLE Purple serves a few different purposes in the plant kingdom, Lara said.
“For plants, it’s just a really practical method of either attracting pollinators or having predators stay away, and a way to deal with light and stress,” he said.
Also, he notes, if plants are located low in the understory of a forest, purple pigmentation on the underside of a plant’s leaves can help reflect the little light the plant receives, back into its leaves.
Many flowers utilize purple striation, guiding the pollinator towards the pollen.
The color purple can also deter predators by appearing like rotting meat in nature.
One example of this phenomenon is the corpse flower (Titan arum), which is pollinated by beetles and flies that it attracts through its appearance and its strong scent, which resembles rotting flesh.
Lara’s favorite orchids in the collection are its lady slipper orchids, a group known for its pouch-shaped flowers.
The pouches use a series of hairs, which are pointed in a singular direction, to trap curious insects, forcing them to move through the pouch and climb past the staminode, behind which they collect or deposit pollen.
Even though the plants are not carnivorous and don’t survive off the nutrients of animals, not all animals that find their way inside make an escape.
“They add a pouch, they add water in it, and then there’s only one way out, and the way out is how you pollinate the plant. The other way is how you drown and die,” Lara said.
Pointing to one of the lady slipper orchids, he also notes its use of purple.
“Variegation like this, or spotting, also sort of looks like lichen or something very old that you don’t want to eat,” he says.
The orchid show isn’t limited to the greenhouse display, but also includes exhibits at Museum of Botany & the Arts.
These include a photography exhibit and materials from Selby Gardens’ Research Library.
Among those materials are handcolored copper engravings from “The Orchid Album,” which was produced in part by Benjamin Williams, a successful commercial orchid grower in England in the 19th century.
It also features chromolithographs (color prints) from a publication which Berry calls “the apex of orchid books of the 19th century,” Frederick Sander’s “Reichenbachia: Orchids Illustrated and Described.”
Sander ran the foremost commercial orchid growing business in England at the end of the 19th century, becoming a supplier to most of the crown heads of Europe, and was known as the “Orchid King.”
Photos by Ian Swaby Angel Lara, Jennifer Rominiecki and David Berry
Boxes with colors matching those of the orchids are included in the show.
The orchid show is located in the Tropical Conservatory.
From local to national
After departing Sarasota, Kinsey Robb joins Art Dealers Association of America as executive director.
IAN SWABY STAFF WRITER
While serving as executive director of Art Center Sarasota from 2021 to 2024, Kinsey Robb was known for helping revitalize the organization.
However, the impact of her work extended even further when it helped lead her into the role of Art Dealers Association of America in New York City, the leading nonprofit membership organization of the nation’s premier fine art galleries.
“The Art Center really has such an important legacy in Sarasota, and I see parallels with that,” she said, noting the ADAA has a “really unbelievable legacy” and a “high standard.”
Now, among her responsibilities is planning one of the country’s preeminent philanthropic art fairs, The Art Show, which is held for the benefit of Henry Street Settlement, a nonprofit providing social services in New York.
The project is a “huge orchestration,” she said, involving about 75 member galleries.
She noted on Oct. 22 that she was looking over posters with numerous Post-it notes to plan out the show.
Founded in 1962, the ADAA represents more than 200 members across more than 40 U.S. cities and deals with issues that include connoisseurship, scholarship, ethical practice and public policy.
Robb assumed the role in late September, succeeding Maureen Bray, who had served as Executive Director since 2018.
Prior to moving to Sarasota, the home of her parents, Eileen and Paul Robb, Robb had worked in a few con-
VISIT
To learn more about the ADAA, visit ArtDealers.org. To learn more about Art Center Sarasota, visit ArtSarasota.org.
temporary galleries in New York City.
Thanks to her work at Art Center Sarasota, she had been able to explore the world of the nonprofit sector of the fine arts, bridging the two sides of the ADAA.
“I think that those experiences for me really helped position me in understanding the holistic ecosystem of a different sector of the fine arts, which would be the nonprofit area, and that was really motivating, and helped grow me as an individual and as a professional, and also as a member of the arts community,” she said.
During her time at Art Center Sarasota, she said she led a focus on a high level of professionalism and the fair treatment of art and artists. Some other aspects of her new role include the grant-making side of the organization, which serves museums with smaller operating budgets, as well as its relief fund, which provides funds to nonprofits and galleries in natural disasters such as hurricanes.
Through the role, she hopes to bring diverse new voices to the arts, a goal she said the organization is behind and will involve the cultivation of internships, mentorships and efforts to open galleries to new artists.
File image
Kinsey Robb at Art Center Sarasota
BEST BET
FRIDAY, OCT. 25
BOO! AT THE BAY | FAMILY HALLOWEEN CELEBRATION
6-8:30 p.m. at The Bay, Common Ground, 1055 Boulevard of the Arts. Free. Join The Bay for trickor-treating, free pumpkin pickings, yard games, a haunted decorated trail, a showing of “Despicable Me 4” and more. This event includes a sensory-friendly experience. Visit TheBaySarasota.org.
SATURDAY, OCT. 26
BOO! AT THE BAZAAR
11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at The Bazaar on Apricot & Lime, 821 Apricot Ave. Free. Celebrate Halloween with treats, live music and surprises throughout the Bazaar. Belle’s Princess Parties brings favorite Disney princesses and villains. Visit HamletsEatery.com.
1ST ANNUAL GHOULFEST POKER RUN
8 a.m. to 2 p.m. (Must arrive by 12:30 p.m.) at 7177 Bee Ridge Road. $20 per vehicle driver (up to three passengers); $15 per passenger. Visit a variety of locations to try your hand at poker, with proceeds going to SRQVets. Each location will have two games for $1 a chance. Visit Zeffy.com.
SARASOTA DOG-A-WEEN COSTUME CONTEST
9-11 a.m. at Sarasota Farmers Market, 1490 Main St. Free. Dogs can don Halloween costumes for a costume contest and parade at the Sarasota Farmers Market Halloween Festival. Visit Facebook.com.
HALLOWEEN BAR CRAWL
3-11:30 p.m. at 1525 Fourth St. Unit
B. $20 to $25. The Downtown Crawlers host Sarasota’s premier Halloween bar crawl, taking attendees through popular bars and restaurants in town. Visit EventBrite.com.
SUNDAY, OCT. 27
SELBY SPOOKTACULAR
10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Selby Gardens Downtown Sarasota Campus, 1534 Mound St. Free. This family friendly Halloween event includes trick-ortreating, arts and crafts, fun and educational activities, and frightening-but-not-too-scary options for older children. Visit Selby.org.
ASTRONOMY AT THE BAY
7:30-9:30 p.m. Free. Suncoast Stargazers and Sidewalk Science offer an array of telescopes to help attendees catch a glimpse of Venus and Saturn and other celestial bodies including Ptolemy’s Star Cluster, Butterfly Cluster and the Lagoon Nebula. Visit TheBaySarasota.org.
MEET THE PUPS!
4-5 p.m. at Selby Library, 1331 First St. Free. Meet therapy dogs and their owners and enjoy the benefits of spending time with therapy pets. Visit SCGovLibrary.LibraryMarket. com.
WEDNESDAY, OCT. 30 THE SARASOTA MUSIC ARCHIVE
PRESENTS: ‘FORBIDDEN MUSIC’ 10:30 a.m. to noon at Selby Library, 1331 First St. Free. Dr. Robert Vodnoy offers a lecture exploring music and art in early 20th century Germany, from the creativity and experimentation of the Weimar Republic to the repression and censorship of early Nazi Germany. Visit SCGovLibrary. LibraryMarket.com.
Bringing fab back
Fabulous Arts Foundation joins with the community as it repairs new LGBTQ+ center following Hurricane Milton.
IAN SWABY STAFF WRITER
The Fabulous Arts Foundation may have a lot of work to do on the facility of its new LGBTQ+ center as it moves forward from Hurricane Milton.
Yet, community members and partners are behind the organization, said founder and director Shannon Fortner.
“We’ve really seen a lot of folks coming together,” they said. “I think that really is what keeps us all going.”
An LGBTQ+ nonprofit focused on using the arts to facilitate healing and social change, the foundation initially postponed the soft opening of the center to Oct. 11 due to Hurricane Helene.
That was before Hurricane Milton arrived on Oct. 9.
“With heavy hearts we are informing you that we lost everything in the hurricane,” the organization wrote on social media after the storm. “Starting with the roof to our center.”
REPAIRING THE CENTER
With the roof gone, rain from the storm was able to enter the new center, leaving the interior in disarray, with many wet materials having to be discarded.
Fortner said several areas of the 1,500-square-foot building will need to be gutted and a new roof needs to be installed.
The foundation is also seeking mold removal, as well as equipment, furniture and more.
“I think our main focus is just trying to get things back to where they were,” Fortner said on Oct. 14. “A lot of people showed up and volunteered to help clean up the space, just trying to get it to be able to have humans in it.”
Fortner said on Oct. 22, the plan moving forward remains to be seen.
Located in the Limelight District, northeast of downtown Sarasota, the center takes up a place in an area that includes other arts-related enterprises such as Creative Liberties and The Bazaar on Apricot & Lime.
Fabulous Arts Foundation is known for its events and advocacy in the community, including the annual BE Fabulous festival, formerly known as the Harvey Milk Festival.
Once open, the center will serve as a “safe space,” for the community, as well as a place that it can host mental health services, arts programming and other programming year-round.
In fact, the center had originally been planned to offer a respite for the community after Milton, in a collaboration with community partners, if it retained power.
“We weren’t able to do that. I think that probably happened to a lot of
folks,” Fortner said.
Nonetheless, Fabulous Arts Foundation is still benefiting from community partnerships.
“It’s nice to be able to work with
community partners and find ways we can support each other and through different needs around hard times for the community, but still focus around lifting up the commu-
nity,” Fortner said. The foundation is working on a partnership with Urbanite Theatre, a donor of seating to the foundation, to use the theater’s rehearsal space for community support groups. Fortner hopes this service can begin next week.
Some other nonprofit community partners have also offered space.
A page on Givebutter has also been helping to raise funds for the repairs. By 1 p.m. on Oct. 22, it had raised $6,666 out of its goal of $10,000.
“It’s been nice knowing that we have support,” Fortner said. “We just look forward to the day of having a space so we don’t have to keep bouncing around, but we’re very grateful.”
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A crew helps clean up the impacts of Hurricane Milton in the LGBTQ+ center.
Hurricane Milton impacted the interior of the new LGBTQ+ center.
Ben Beronda, Summer Hoop and Zach Hillier offer a performance at the BE Fabulous festival at Fogartyville in 2024.
POST-STORM PUMPKINS
“I had no idea this existed, and she’s having a lot of fun,” said Devin Tumpkin, of Palmer Ranch, referring to her daughter, PJ Tumpkin, 4. “The adults are having a blast, sometimes even more than the kids.”
Held each weekend on Saturday and Sunday through Oct. 27 and now in its 36th year, the festival offers vendor booths, a pumpkin patch, circus performances by the Torres Family Circus and activities for kids from pony rides to pumpkin decorating.
This year, it includes a new attraction, Hollowgraves Haunted Manor, which was formerly located in Keansburg, New Jersey, where it was a staple in the area.
“This one’s always a good time,” said Nicole Hinchcliffe, of Yemi’s Moon, an Englewood business selling candles, crystals, herbs and other items, who said the turnout remained highly satisfying.
“Everybody was cooped up inside, so we’re happy to be out and mingle and be in the beautiful weather,” she said.
— IAN SWABY
Jennifer Remi and Elliott Remi, 11, enjoy their time inside the pig pen.
Photos by Ian Swaby Dominic Chaviano, 6, and Giovanni Martinez, 4, paint their pumpkins.
Leland Wilk, 5, took plenty of flips while bungee jumping.
A Message to Our Community
Together, we rise
For nearly 50 years, this region has been more than just a place we do business—it’s where we call home. As we face the challenges brought by recent storms, we are reminded of the incredible resilience and unity that define our community. While there is much to rebuild and restore, these moments also offer opportunities to reimagine the future of this vibrant place we share.
As part of that commitment, the below offices are open to serve as community hubs—providing free WiFi, water, and a welcoming space where you’ll always find a friendly face. Whether you need a place to recharge, connect, or simply take a moment to breathe, we are here for you.
Downtown Sarasota | 1605 Main Street
Lakewood Ranch | 8325 Lakewood Ranch Boulevard
Bradenton | 4400 Manatee Avenue W
Palmer Ranch | 8660 S Tamiami Trail
Siesta Key | 5100 Ocean Boulevard
Longboat Key | 440 Gulf of Mexico Drive
Plantation | 490 Rockley Boulevard
Venice | 110 Nokomis Avenue N
Punta Gorda | 101 Taylor Street
Nowhere but here.
A Lynnhurst home on Hillview Street sells
HUGHES
ADAM
RESEARCH EDITOR
Editor’s note: Because Sarasota County offices were closed for Hurricane Milton, this week’s real estate includes transactions from Longboat Key and Sarasota transactions from last week.
Sonia Rivera-Jusino, of Sarasota, sold her home at 2737 Hillview St. to Jock Armour and Jade Alexa Douglas-Hiley, of Sarasota, for $585,000. Built in 1976, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,612 square feet of living area. It sold for $130,000 in 2011.
FLORA VILLA
Ruslan Pshichenko, Marina Tupikov and Vitaly Pshichenko, of Arvada, Colorado, sold their home at 4529 Worcester Road to Ofir and Vered Levy, of Sarasota, for $540,000. Built in 2018, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,436 square feet of living area. It sold for $525,000 in 2022.
HOMECROFT
Clifford and Carolyn Stoltzfus, of Cochranville, Pennsylvania, sold two properties at 3467 Bimini St. to George and Jolene Stoltzfus, of Parkesburg, Pennsylvania, for $500,000. The first property was built in 1993 and has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,060 square feet of living area. The second property was built in 1993, it has one bedroom, one bath and 266 square feet of living area. It sold for $25,100 in 1997.
SIESTA KEY
SIESTA COVE
George Rauch IV and Kathleen Hogan Rauch, of Sarasota, sold their home at 5317 Siesta Court to Lennartz Investments LLC for $1,395,000. Built in 1994, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,918 square feet of living area. It sold for $629,600 in 2013.
SIESTA TOWERS
Jeffrey Milone and Linda Ann Insano-Milone, of Sarasota, sold their Unit 4-C condominium at 4822 Ocean Blvd. to Michael Sondel and Melissa McKay, of Boston, for $860,000. Built in 1973, it has three bedrooms, three baths and 1,991 square feet of living area. It sold for $669,000 in 2021.
GULF AND BAY CLUB
Lawrence and Kerri Spellman, trustees, of Berkley, Massachusetts, sold the Unit 407 condominium at 5740 Midnight Pass Road to Joseph and Rita Armideo, of Homer, New York, for $850,000. Built in 1986, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,340 square feet of living area. It sold for $900,000 in 2021.
See more transactions at YourObserver.com
SAND COVE
Heather and Dale Hurlock, of Orlando, sold their Unit 303 condominium at 4900 Ocean Blvd. to Kenneth and Margaret Apple, of Lido Beach, New York, for $660,000. Built in 1978, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,200 square feet of living area. It sold for $400,000 in 2021.
SUNRISE COVE
Cynthia Gregg, trustee, of Vail, Colorado, sold the Unit 325 condominium at 9011 Midnight Pass Road to Sunrise Headquarters LLC for $600,000. Built in 1974, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,420 square feet of living area. It sold for $225,000 in 1994.
PALMER RANCH
TURTLE ROCK
Gerald and Mary Hailey, trustee, of Sarasota, sold the home at 4721 Sweetmeadow Circle to Linda Smith and Robert Young, of Holly Lake Ranch, Texas, for $925,000. Built in 1996, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,154 square feet of living area. It sold for $355,000 in 1997.
THE COUNTRY CLUB OF SARASOTA
Paul Andrew Johnson and Carolyn Ann Johnson, trustees, of Novi, Michigan, sold the home at 3924 Spyglass Hill Road to Paul Corral Holmwood and Beth Lynn Holmwood, of Buffalo, New York, for $710,000. Built in 1984, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 2,637 square feet of living area. It sold for $640,000 in 2002.
OSPREY
SOUTHBAY YACHT AND RACQUET CLUB
Carol Allen, of Osprey, sold the home at 244 Four Knot Lane to Gerard Glass, of West Islip, New York, for $833,300. Built in 1979, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,600 square feet of living area.
TOP BUILDING PERMITS
LONGBOAT KEY
WINDWARD BAY
A condominium in Windward Bay tops all transactions in this week’s real estate. Seth and Carrie Kalinsky, of Chantilly, Virginia, sold their Unit 205 condominium at 4540 Gulf of Mexico Drive to Thomas Stieber and Claudia Fraser Stieber, of Longboat Key, for $712,000. Built in 1975, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,312 square feet of living area. It sold for $740,000 in 2021.
FAIRWAY BAY
Brigitte Boltz and Klaus Hansen, of Simsbury, Connecticut, sold their Unit 155 condominium at 1930 Harbourside Drive to Robert Louis Fischer and Marjorie Anne Lane, of Potomac, Maryland, for $530,000. Built in 1982, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,270 square feet of living area. It sold for $175,000 in 1985.
Ian Swaby
Bedrock helps those in need
The Sarasota church gave out a total of 1,465 meals.
hile driving down South Tamiami Trail after Hurricane Milton, you might have glimpsed someone holding a “free meals” sign beside the road.
If you were driving by Bedrock Church Sarasota, the idea came from the church’s young people, according to Pastor Blake Harcup.
“Young people are amazing, and they just have such a heart,” he said.
They were just some of the volunteers who stepped up to help the church offer food to the community after Hurricane Milton.
Harcup also noted the caring of the church community in Sarasota.
Churches throughout the area were also showing their dedication, with some others which helped in various capacities including Grace Community Church, Ascension Lutheran Church, Crosspointe, Evergreen Church, South Shore Community Church and The Way Church.
Harcup said thanks to the dedication of volunteers, it was able to provide 1,465 meals during the time it was offering the service, from Friday, Oct. 11 to Friday, Oct. 18.
A HOT SPOT
The decision to offer the hot meals happened organically, Harcup said.
It began with one church staff member, Chris Stape, who decided to evacuate to the church, which has an industrial kitchen.
After he decided to cook himself a meal, Stape told Harcup he would make some extra pasta to send to anyone in need.
The church made a post on social media and received 30 to 50 people on the property that night to eat or take home meals for others.
“I think for us, it was such an organic thing, and I think that God really knew what people needed in this time, and when you don’t have
power, the comfort of a hot meal is really very powerful, I think,” Harcup said.
After the church began to see the slow speed at which power was being restored, Harcup consulted with Stape about the idea of providing hot meals until the majority of power was restored in the city and county.
The next day, the church made the call for volunteers. While it estimated 50 to 100 people would come per night, the demand “grew exponentially,” Harcup said.
Over the seven nights that the church fed whoever showed up, from Friday, Oct. 13 to Friday, Oct. 20, and gave out a total of 1,465 meals.
Stape would go shopping at about 9 a.m. to purchase all of the needed supplies, while between 20 and 30 volunteers arrived each day to help, many of them coming early, to get started with the preparations.
Currently, he said, the church is waiting to see who reaches out with further needs, at the same time he is encouraged by the work that has been done.
“I think that probably one of the things that made me most encouraged by this whole moment, was that we really pulled together as a community and showed our community that we love them and care for them, and so many churches are doing that right now, and I think that’s such an encouraging thing to see.”
SPORTS
BROTHERS’ GOAL: THE OLYMPICS
Cardinal Mooney graduates
Sean and Christian Laureano get closer to their Olympic dreams by playing for Puerto Rico at the USA Lacrosse Experience in Indianapolis.
LIZ RAMOS SENIOR EDITOR
Christian and Sean Laureano were thrilled when they heard the Puerto Rican team fans cheering for them as they competed in the USA Lacrosse Experience in Indianapolis on Oct. 11-13.
Because their father, Jason Laureano, was born in Puerto Rico, the brothers are eligible to play for the U21 Puerto Rican lacrosse team.
“I think any Puerto Rican would agree that we probably have the best fan base in terms of our lacrosse support,” Christian Laureano said. “They would be waving Puerto Rican flags, and you couldn’t miss the flag or the fact that they were Puerto Rican. There’s a lot of pride in it, and it makes it inspiring to play for a team that has so much support.”
That inspiration made them want to show those in Indianapolis what Puerto Rico could do on the lacrosse field against teams from a much larger population base.
The competition gave the brothers, who both graduated from Cardinal Mooney High, and the rest of their Puerto Rican teammates a taste of what it would be like to compete on the international stage at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. A new six-on-six format will be used for lacrosse in the Olympics.
Lacrosse hasn’t been a medal sport at the Olympics since 1908, and the last time it appeared as a demonstration sport was 1948. Both those Olympics were held in London.
A FASTER GAME
Sean Laureano, who is a sophomore and plays lacrosse at Rollins College, said “sixes” makes lacrosse, which by some is considered the fastest sport on two feet, an even faster game that is exciting to watch and play.
He said players are constantly running, rather than sticking with a set position. For example, Sean Laureano said his usual position is attack, which involves focusing on offense, but sixes makes him concentrate on both offense and defense.
Christian Laureano, who is a senior playing lacrosse at Mercer University, described Puerto Rico’s team as gritty with a lot of hustle, which he said will help in sixes.
“There’s not a lot of (time to stop running) or time to kind of regroup, so when we’re out there thinking on our feet, that’s kind of playing into
USA LACROSSE EXPERIENCE
RESULTS
Puerto Rico vs. Great Britain:
Puerto Rico victory 16-14
Puerto Rico vs. U.S.: U.S. victory 18-6
Puerto Rico vs. Colombia: Puerto Rico victory 17-8
our strengths,” he said.
But playing against the world’s best teams will require more than just hustle.
“There’s a lot of work to be done in terms of how we can be better,”
Christian Laureano said.
Sean Laureano said having the sport in the Olympics means the world to him.
His brother agrees. He said representing Puerto Rico would be an honor.
“We’re going to turn a lot of heads in terms of what type of on-field product we can produce,” he said. “I know it’ll mean a lot for all the people back home to be able to turn on the TV and say, ‘Hey, there’s Puerto Rico lacrosse. They’ve worked really hard to get to this point.’ I just want people to be able to watch and be proud of our heritage. I hope we can represent them all in the Olympics.”
At the USA Lacrosse Experience, Christian Laureano said playing against the U.S. team was surreal. He was playing against professionals he had admired and watched growing up and through his college career.
“I remember being 14, 15 (years old) watching these guys on TV and thinking they’re untouchable,” he said. “You idolize these great lacrosse players. You want to prove it to yourself and the island of Puerto Rico that we can compete against these countries with already established lacrosse programs.”
Christian Laureano said the team’s game against Great Britain on Oct. 11 was a chance for redemption. The Puerto Rican men’s senior team lost in a tight match against Great Britain during the 2023 World Championship in San Diego.
Puerto Rico was able to notch a 16-14 victory against Great Britain at the USA Lacrosse Experience. It was the first time the Puerto Rico men’s team had beaten Great Britain in international play.
“A lot of these guys on this roster played in those World Games, so I think everyone was kind of remembering how that loss felt,” said Christian Laureano, who played in that event, while his brother did not. “It was a playoff contention game, so it kind of stung for a lot of us. A lot of us were channeling how that loss felt when we were going into the game to give us a little bit more motivation. We always view it as an opportunity to prove ourselves as Puerto
Ricans, as an island, of what we can do against larger, more developed nations that have been in the lacrosse world for a little bit longer.”
The biggest highlight of the USA Lacrosse Experience for the brothers was playing on the same field together again.
The brothers have been playing lacrosse since they were old enough to hold lacrosse sticks, tossing the ball around in the backyard all the time.
They haven’t played together since the 2022 World Championships in Ireland.
Sean Laureano will play with Puerto Rico in the 2025 U20 World Championships in South Korea. Playing for Puerto Rico has given the brothers opportunities for them to travel the world. He said traveling gives eyeopening and unique experiences.
CONNECTING WITH THEIR HERITAGE
Playing for Puerto Rico has given the Laureano brothers an opportunity to learn more about their Puerto Rican heritage. Neither brother recalled visits to the island when they were younger, but since they tried out for national teams beginning in 2019, they’ve worked to connect with their heritage.
“When I play with all the guys here, it’s just a special thing to be able to play the sport that you love and then also be able to represent your heritage,” Christian Laureano said. “It’s not something everyone gets to do.”
Christian Laureano had the opportunity to travel with the men’s senior team to Puerto Rico in July 2023 to host a lacrosse clinic for a group of
Christian and Sean Laureano play for Puerto Rico lacrosse, connecting with their family heritage while playing the sport they love.
OLYMPICS BOUND?
Sean and Christian Laureano hope to play for the Puerto Rico lacrosse team in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, California.
The game will be played in a new format, sixes, which is a fast-paced version of lacrosse played on a 70-by-36-meter field with six players from each team on the field at once.
The game will consist of four 8-minute quarters and a 30-second shot clock.
“We’re going to turn a lot of heads in terms of what type of on-field product we can produce.”
Christian Laureano
children. He visited San Juan, the country’s capitol, and saw Old San Juan, toured Castillo San Felipe del Morro and more. He tried new Puerto Rican foods such as mofongo, a dish made with crispy green plantains, garlic, olive oil and usually meat like pork.
The most interesting lesson about his heritage came the moment his plane touched ground. Jason Laureano let his son know of a Puerto Rican tradition when a plane lands — everyone claps.
“I did not realize it was uniquely Puerto Rican, but I remember my dad, when we landed, prepared me,” Christian Laureano said. “He was like, ‘You have to clap because everyone else is going to clap,’ and right on cue, when we landed, we ended up clapping. I always think about doing that when I’m flying in the States, and I think more people should clap and kind of honor the pilot. I thought that was pretty cool.”
But there’s still more for the brothers to learn, including how to speak Spanish.
“Maybe it’s time to sign up for Rosetta Stone by the time the 2028 Olympics come around,” Christian Laureano said.
Besides teaching Puerto Rican children about the sport in a clinic, the brothers had an opportunity to talk about how their participation in the sport pays off. Christian Laureano said he saw future lacrosse players at the clinic.
“You can tell how much they looked up to us in terms of learning the game and understanding what it was about,” he said.
Brandon Aviles, Owen Fasulka, Joshua Balcarcel, Christian Laureano and Sean Laureano play lacrosse together for Puerto Rico. They won two of their three games at USA Lacrosse Experience.
Courtesy images
NATURE’S BEAUTY WITH
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BREAKING THE SOUND BARRIER by Evan Park and Jeffrey Martinovic, edited by Jeff Chen
By Luis Campos
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