Sarasota/Siesta Key Observer 7.9.26

SARASOTA/SIESTA KEY

Siesta Key lights up the night.

PAGE 18

Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.

THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

VOLUME 22, NO. 48

YOUR TOWN

County eyes storm funds The county is still waiting on money from FEMA, some of which is from 2016. SEE PAGE 3

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History on display

As the country celebrates its 250th anniversary, the public also has a chance to take a look at Sarasota’s history.

Last year, Thomsen Fine Art hosted a series of paintings that formerly hung in the SRQ Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport.

Gallery staff worked with Ciera Coleman, the city’s public art administrator, to ensure these art pieces remain accessible and do not disappear into private collections.

The result is the ongoing “Echoes of Sarasota” Cultural Heritage Exhibition.

Eight works by Regan Dunnick, and three by Frank Hopper (above), are now on display at City Hall, while three additional works, one created

by Hopper and two by Dunnick, are currently on display at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, located at 777 N. Tamiami Trail in Sarasota.

PATRIOTIC SPARKLE

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Scholarship recipient Julienne Teague celebrates with her mother, Trudy Teague, at The Exchange’s 2026 Grants and Scholarship Awards event.

A generous gift

The Exchange, established in 1962, uses funds from its consignment operation to award grants and scholarships supporting the arts in Sarasota and Manatee counties.

This year, it announced awards totaling $500,000, an amount reached only once before, at a June 11 event.

“These funds often arrive at pivotal moments and can make a meaningful difference for both organizations and emerging artists,” said Karen Koblenz, executive director and CEO of The Exchange, in a media release.

Twenty-five regional groups received support for arts and cultural projects, 27 students received scholarships for pursuing studies in the arts and 10 organizations received funding through the Elizabeth Lindsay Arts in Education grant. $0.10

Ian Swaby

Annalise McLaughlin, 9, reaches out as small bubbles rain down at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens during its July 4 celebration.

Bubbles filled the air at the Fourth of July All-American Cookout at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens. SEE PAGE 16

A+E

Brewing Up Change Courtesy image

The Patio coffee cart first operated next to Swim City’s Longboat Key location. A potential city of Sarasota zoning text amendment would allow it and other food trucks to operate on private property in the Downtown Bayfront zone district.

Food trucks may be rolling to a new area of the city. SEE PAGE 5

A dogged desire to entertain.

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YourObserver.com

SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

WEEK OF JULY 9, 2026

City’s neighborhood tree program returns

“We’ll probably open the retail and the cafe, and then the restaurant shortly after.”

The city of Sarasota’s Neighborhood Canopy Program is back, and that means for just $100, residents can partner with the city to have a tree valued up to $500 planted on their property.

Residents can register for professional installation of a mature, 2-inch caliper tree between the front of their home and the street.

The program is paid for by the city’s Tree Mitigation Fund, which collects a portion of tree removal permit dollars to be used for urban canopy programs.

Participants can choose from 10 species. They include green buttonwood, gumbo-limbo, live oak, D.D. Blanchard magnolia, redbay, royal poinciana, shady lady black olive, southern red cedar, sycamore and winged elm.

Registration for the program ends on Aug. 17. Planting scheduled to occur between Aug. 31 and Sept. 21.

The registration link opened Monday at SarasotaFL.gov. From there, people can search for Neighborhood Canopy Program.

Questions about the program may be sent to NeighborhoodCanopyProgram@SarasotaFL.gov.

— Tom Leonard, owner of Shore Restaurant. Read more on page 6

BY THE NUMBERS $268.5 MILLION

Amount Sarasota County government is awaiting in FEMA reimbursement or recovery project commitment PAGE 3

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New member named to the city of Sarasota Planning Board.

PAGE 9

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Flags that local artist Jing Herman wants to create PAGE 15

CALENDAR n Sarasota County School Board millage and budget meeting — 10 a.m., Tuesday, July 21, Board Chambers, Landings Administration Complex, 1960 Landings Blvd. (black awning entrance) n Sarasota County School Board regular meeting — 10:30 a.m., Tuesday, July 21, Board Chambers, Landings Administration Complex, 1960 Landings Blvd. (black awning entrance)

File photo

Sarasota Little League serves boys and girls 4-16 years of age at Twin Lakes Park on Clark Road.

Little League treasurer sentenced to 1 year T

he woman who pleaded no contest to stealing more than $200,000 last year from Sarasota Little League was sentenced Monday to a year in Sarasota County Jail and ordered to begin paying $176,000 in restitution upon her release.

In court documents, 35-yearold Ahnaysa Kristina Turner was ordered to make a lumpsum payment of $88,006 and begin making $1,000 monthly payments 30 days after her release. She was also sentenced to 25 years of probation.

Turner, as the league’s treasurer, was charged in 2025 with one count each of grand theft and scheming to defraud, to which she pleaded no contest earlier this year. A trial date had been scheduled for August.

Turner, who had served as treasurer since 2022, was arrested the following month on one count of grand larceny in excess of $100,000. There were more than 160 offseason ATM withdrawals totaling more than $159,000 made from November 2022 to September 2025,

according to the arrest affidavit.

There was also $14,527.15 of unauthorized Amazon purchases on a league credit card and 120 in-season ATM cash transactions totaling $95,670, of which $63,780 was paid to umpires.

Among the safeguards now in place, the league has stopped all cash handlings and gone fully electronic so complete records can be kept moving forward. There are also multiple people on its bank accounts so numbers can be double- or triple-checked at any time.

Der Dutchman rated No. 2 buffet in U.S. A Sarasota Amish staple has earned national acclaim for its allyou-can-eat offering. Der Dutchman on Bahia Vista Street ranked No. 2 in USA Today’s 10 best buffet restaurants in the United States.

Open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Monday-Saturday, Der Dutchman has two types of buffets. Its breakfast buffet features Amish favorites like biscuits and gravy, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, cheesy potatoes, hash browns, pancakes, French toast, fresh fruit and pastries. Lunch and dinner buffets offer stuffing, mashed potatoes, creamed corn, homemade noodles, roasted chicken, ham, turkey and roast beef, as well as a salad bar.

Der Dutchman has been in Sarasota’s Pinecraft neighborhood since 1985. The No. 2 ranking is up one spot from the 2025 list.

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TABS

W HAT ’S HAPPENING

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YourObserver.com

SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

Images courtesy of Sarasota County

Tons of sand were removed from roadways along Sarasota County beaches in the wake of the 2024 hurricanes.

Street flooding resulting from the three named tropical weather systems in 2024 is now being addressed by the new Sarasota County Stormwater Department.

County still awaiting $225 million in disaster funds With many projects on hold and others awaiting reimbursement, Sarasota County is awaiting disaster relief funds dating back to Hurricane Hermine 10 years ago.

HOW FEMA/FDEM IS ACTUALLY WORKING

ANDREW WARFIELD | STAFF WRITER

Costs vs. reimbursements for declared disasters since 2016. FDEM is the Florida Department of Emergency Management.

Outstanding to receive are funds the county is waiting on from FEMA/FDEM.

I

n 2016, Hurricane Hermine made the first Florida landfall in the Big Bend area since Hurricane Wilma 11 years earlier. It wasn’t a direct hit on the peninsula, it traveled up the center of the Gulf,

but its impact left just more than $7 million in damage for Sarasota County government to address.

A decade later, the county is waiting for $3.38 million in reimbursements from FEMA and the Florida Department of Emergency Management.

That’s just the start. Since Hermine, there have been seven declared disasters in Sarasota County — including COVID — totalling $352 million in needed expenditures and an outstanding balance of FEMA recovery funds of $224.5 million.

Not all of that has been spent.

The total represents actual expenditures and open encumbrances and, according to county documents, not all of the projects to repair county facilities and amenities has even been tallied.

The Sarasota County Commission received that update from Office of Financial Management Director Kim Radtke during its mid-June, twoday budget session, accompanied by a request to adopt an amendment to the current fiscal year budget to appropriate funding for disasterrelated projects of just less than $91.8 million. It’s more than the county’s presumed obligation, but the county is required to budget additional funds.

That request was unanimously approved.

The formula for disaster recovery is typically 75% from FEMA, 12.5% from FDEM and the remaining 12.5% from county funds. That leaves the county on the hook for a minimum of just more than $44 million, potentially much more pending actual FEMA reimbursements.

County administration warned commissioners since the 2024 hurricane season there is no guarantee of the amount of disaster relief coming their way. This is now set against the backdrop of a possible loss of $87 million in property tax revenue should Florida voters approve a tax referendum this fall, prompting the commission to reverse course on spending growth since the brief post-pandemic fiscal high of 2022 to 2025.

“Currently, how we handle this is we have an account code set up (for disaster recovery costs) and we’re tracking the expenses, but we don’t currently have an appropriation or an adopted budget tied to that,” Radtke told commissioners.

Hence the budget amendment, which was unanimously approved.

RISKS OF NOT WAITING FOR FEMA COMMITMENT

Lagging FEMA relief leaves local governments in a precarious position of deciding whether to move ahead with recovery projects prior to the agency’s commitment to reimburse.

Moving ahead with projects prior to receiving FEMA endorsement can

TYPICAL FEMA ASSISTANCE TIMELINE DAY 0 Disaster event 0-30 DAYS Request for assistance 30-90 DAYS Local government provides damage listing 3-12 MONTHS Develop project 6-36-PLUS MONTHS FEMA reviews, project obligated, obligated funds sent to FDEM

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Sarasota County Office of Financial Management Director Kim Radtke

“We’re recommending that approval of a budget amendment for the projects that are currently in process. This will allow us the budget authority to issue contracts, purchase orders and allow us to post those expenditures.”

— Sarasota County Office of Financial Management Director Kim Radtke

void any chance of payment from the federal agency.

“We really started asking the question, ‘Do you start repairs prior to that FEMA obligation?’” Radtke told commissioners. “Counties like Manatee and the city of Sarasota and town of Longboat Key do complete (projects) if it’s life safety. Some other projects do wait until obligation.

Then we asked, ‘Do you budget for those related expenditures?’ Most do budget, we don’t currently. Again, that’s why we’re here today.”

A typical FEMA timeline is up to three years for FEMA reviews. Once committed, the project goes before FDEM for its scrutiny, which takes up to another three to six months.

“Then another one to 12 months potentially before we actually receive those payments, so you’re talking two to five years,” Radtke said. “We know we’re still waiting on Hermine, which was 10 years ago.”

There are financial risks to moving ahead with repair projects prior to FEMA review and commitment to covering what historically has been 75% of the costs, leaving the remainder to state and local governments.

The city of Sarasota, for example, pulled funds from planned capital improvement projects to address cleanup and limited repair operations from the 2024 storms. However, former Interim City Manager Dave Bullock told the City Commission in February he put a pause on multiple waterfront park repairs costing upwards of $10.2 million because of FEMA reimbursement uncertainty during a partial federal

3-6-PLUS MONTHS FDEM initiates 100% review 1-12 MONTHS FDEM provides payment 2-5 YEARS Reimbursement depending on type and size of the project

government shutdown.

Financial risks of completing work before FEMA obligation include: ■ The project may not be deemed eligible for FEMA reimbursement, so the full cost would be borne by the local government.

■ Lengthy time period prior to FEMA obligation.

■ Not all categories of permanent repair may be authorized under the federal disaster declaration.

■ High demand for FEMA funding, which often causes a strain on delivering assistance.

■ Potential restructuring of FEMA. The commission’s approval permits Radtke’s office to establish an account into which the county’s 12.5% obligation can be transferred from relevant departmental budgets and then drawn down to pay for storm-related repairs and resilience projects.

“We’re recommending that approval of a budget amendment for the projects that are currently in process. This will allow us the budget authority to issue contracts, purchase orders and allow us to post those expenditures,” Radtke said.

“The county’s share of that provides for good fiscal planning and transparency within our funds.”

Commissioner Mark Smith, seconding Tom Knight’s motion to approve, added, “I also have a question. Where is this $91 million coming from?”

The answer is a variety of sources.

“To further clarify that, if it’s a stormwater project, it comes from stormwater, but if it’s a lift station for utilities, that 12.5% will come from utilities, and so on and so forth,” County Administrator Jonathan Lewis said.

2016 — HURRICANE HERMINE Expenditures to date: $7,053,834 Estimated FEMA/FDEM to receive: $6,172,105 Sarasota County portion: $881,729 Total FEMA/FDEM received: $3,670,501 Outstanding to receive: $2,501,604 2017 — HURRICANE IRMA Expenditures to date: $10,693,922 Estimated FEMA/FDEM to Receive: $9,357,182 Sarasota County portion: $1,336,740 Total FEMA/FDEM received: $7,100,977 Outstanding to receive: $2,256,205 2020 — COVID Expenditures to date: $9,744,794 Estimated FEMA/FDEM to Receive: $8,526,695 Sarasota County portion: $1,218,099 Total FEMA/FDEM received: $7,694,124 Outstanding to receive: $832,571 2022 — HURRICANE IAN Expenditures to date: $93,939,606 Estimated FEMA/FDEM to Receive: $82,197,155 Sarasota County portion: $11,742,451 Total FEMA/FDEM received: $25,664,376 Outstanding to receive: $56,532,779 2023 — HURRICANE IDALIA Expenditures to date: $6,041,265 Estimated FEMA/FDEM to Receive: $5,286,107 Sarasota County portion: $755,158 Total FEMA/FDEM received: $2,510,998 Outstanding to receive: $2,775,109 2024 — TROPICAL STORM DEBBY Expenditures to date: $54,585,002 Estimated FEMA/FDEM to Receive: $47,761,877 Sarasota County portion: $6,823,125 Total FEMA/FDEM received: $710,214 Outstanding to receive: $47,051,663 2024 — HURRICANE HELENE Expenditures to date: $17,585,021 Estimated FEMA/FDEM to Receive: $15,386,894 Sarasota County portion: $2,198,128 Total FEMA/FDEM received: $1,707 Outstanding to receive: $15,385,187 2024 — HURRICANE MILTON Expenditures to date: $152,411,488 Estimated FEMA/FDEM to Receive: $133,360,052 Sarasota County portion: $19,051,436 Total FEMA/FDEM received: $36,194,213 Outstanding to receive: $97,165,839 TOTAL Expenditures to date: $352,054,935 Estimated FEMA/FDEM to Receive: $308,048,068 Sarasota County portion: $44,006,867 Total FEMA/FDEM received: $83,547,111 Outstanding to receive: $224,500,957 Total expenditures to date represents only actual expenditures and open encumbrances. Several projects have not been fully scoped and cost assessed.

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YourObserver.com

SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

Bobby Jones clubhouse granted partial DRC sign-off

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ANDREW WARFIELD STAFF WRITER

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lthough the potential impact of a statewide property tax referendum on this fall’s ballot remains unknown, the planning process continues for city capital improvement projects, including the scaled-down Bobby Jones Golf Club clubhouse.

The clubhouse, reduced in size and scope, received partial sign-off from the city’s Development Review Committee at the July 1 meeting. It was originally envisioned as a twostory building with a full-scale restaurant above cart storage with a wraparound veranda, but architects reimagined the structure to a onestory, 6,860-square-foot clubhouse building with a golf shop, offices, bar and grill area and an outdoor patio.

The proposal includes a separate 4,953-square-foot cart barn.

The City Commission voted 3-2 to eschew plans for a two-story, $11.5 million clubhouse at the city-owned Bobby Jones course during its Feb. 26 meeting, as well as to instruct Swift Construction to embark on a onestory design at a not-to-exceed cost of $7.2 million for both the clubhouse and cart barn. The redesign will cost $514,957 in addition to the $544,211 to design the originally proposed two-story structure.

The golf course is currently operating out of a triple-wide modular unit that includes a small golf shop, offices and a grill area. The clubhouse will eventually have to be approved by the City Commission.

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A request by developer Mark Kauffman and Caragiulos restaurant for city right of way vacation and relocation of a portion of the alley adjacent to its almost completed building at 1833 Ringling Blvd. also received a partial DRC sign-off.

“This is being requested to accommodate the encroachments into the

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right of way for the constructed building,” said attorney Macaire King.

They include an 8-inch, aboveground encroachment for bollards as well as an approximately 1-foot, 8-inch underground encroachment for the footers of the bollards and the building itself. The encroachments were not identified until after the Oct. 25 approval of the building permit.

“We’re simply requesting to vacate that portion of the right of way and relocate it two feet north,” King said.

“This will not impact the traffic flow and will not impact the on-street parking, either.”

To accommodate the encroachments, the applicant has proffered a new 20-foot-wide public right of way easement shifted two feet north of the existing alley alignment.

The venerable Caragiulos announced it was relocating to the new space after approval of the rehabilitation of the historic Mira Mar building on South Palm Avenue, which has been vacated as restoration work is underway. The historic building will be accompanied by two new condominium towers that will include 70 new luxury residences.

A conceptual rendering of the proposed clubhouse at Bobby Jones Golf Club.

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SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

City commission considers food truck expansion proposal A local business and a mobile beverage vendor teamed up to press for the expansion of food truck use into the Downtown Bayfront zone district.

ANDREW WARFIELD STAFF WRITER

Tawney, ‘If you’re interested, we have a store downtown, and we’ve never had any issues there.’ We own the property. We were not aware of any restrictions there. She started coming to that location, and everything was fine for a month or so.

“And then the city got involved.”

Once it was identified as a code violation, The Patio ceased operations in the Swim City parking lot but sparked the process to expand food truck use into the district.

“We realize it’s not allowed in our zone district but it is allowed on private property in the Downtown Core, which is a block away,” Johnson said.

“I learned a lot about zoning text amendments and how to request those, and it’s been a very long process, but we’re grateful that they’re considering it now.”

That learning curve included an initial meeting between Johnson and Vice Mayor Kathy Kelley Ohlrich, followed by communications with other city commissioners and planning staff. The result was Monday’s new business discussion with staff seeking commission guidance on a solution that would allow not only The Patio to roll into the DTB, but

Taco Fusion Express operates on a site along Main Street in the Downtown Core zone district. A zoning text amendment may permit such mobile food vendors to set up on private property in the Downtown Bayfront.

Andrew Warfield

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The Patio coffee cart serves a customer. The mobile vendor was once unknowingly operating illegally in Sarasota’s Downtown Bayfront zone district.

possibly any other food truck providing they set up on private property.

A 2021 city ordinance defined what a mobile food truck is and identified commercial zone districts in which they were allowed, Planning General Manager Ryan Chapdelain told commissioners. In 2022, the City Commission expanded the use into the Downtown Core district and in 2024 into the newly created Urban Mixed-Use district.

“Some may ask how come (DTB) wasn’t one of the initial zone districts that were allowed back then,” Chapdelain said. “I think Downtown Bayfront is a little different. There are parts that are more residential in nature. There’s a bit of a commercial area, but a lot of it is generally residential.”

Chapdelain suggested exploring the provisional use option in the zoning code to permit food trucks on a case-by-case basis with annual renewal rather than a blanket byright change to the code.

“Staff haven’t drafted anything,” he said. “There’s been some corre-

spondence from the public on this, so we’re here to address any comments you may have.”

Ohlrich asked if there is a process by which The Patio could continue to operate while a potential zoning text amendment is drafted.

“In the past, if there’s a pending ZTA, applicants have been allowed to operate at their risk, knowing that you know this is pending,” Chapdelain said. “It may or may not be approved, but that’s something that has been (allowed) in the past.”

Nothing was decided one way or another Monday but, if an amendment is eventually approved, Johnson said Swim City looks forward to having the coffee cart, and other occasional food trucks, back to its parking lot at the corner of First Street and North Tamiami Trail.

“We’re a family-owned business.

We’ve been here our entire lives, and we wanted to help out this up-andcoming mobile coffee cart business,” Johnson said. “I think it adds a ton of value for our customers.”

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coffee cart unwittingly operating illegally in the parking lot of a downtown business sparked a movement to change a zoning code to permit mobile food and beverage vendors to peddle their wares in the Downtown Bayfront zone district.

Food trucks are permitted in every other commercial zone district in the city but DTB, providing they operate on private property. Setting up in public spaces requires a city-issued permit. When owners of the Swim City store at 50 N. Tamiami Trail allowed the cart — called The Patio — to operate there, they were unaware of the zoning code violation.

A change could be on the way. On

Monday, the Sarasota City Commission authorized staff to craft a zoning code text amendment that, if approved, will permit food trucks in the DTB, but with a caveat: Seek input from brick-and-mortar restaurants regarding any concerns about competition from the mobile vendors.

At the epicenter of the effort, in addition to Swim City principal Nick Johnson, is Longboat Key resident Tawney Adams, owner of the upstart The Patio coffee cart.

She first received permission to set up next to the Swim City location on Longboat Key, which initially ran afoul of the town’s code prior to receiving a special use permit. That was until the Sips coffee bar opened in the location of the former Turtle Coffee Bar, which was destroyed by the 2024 hurricanes.

That’s when Johnson had the idea to invite The Patio to the downtown Sarasota location, unaware it was in violation of the zoning code.

“Since around COVID, we’ve had different food trucks come and go at our downtown store and just set up for a day. It was more sporadic and not regular,” Johnson said. “We told

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YourObserver.com

SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

Resilient Shore project plans to navigate city approval waters Plans for a flood-resilient new Shore restaurant, retail, cafe and boutique project have been submitted, and could be the first building on St. Armands Circle incorporating pricey flood-proof glass.

ANDREW WARFIELD STAFF WRITER

I

f the city approval process goes as hoped, St. Armands Circle may be re-Shore-d by early 2028.

The buildings at 24 and 28 N. Boulevard of the Presidents, closed since the back-to-back flooding events of the 2024 hurricane season, have been gutted, and the infrastructure is being fortified to bring Shore restaurant and boutique back to the Circle.

Following the two rounds of flooding from the one-two punch of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, owner Tom Leonard shut down operations and later leased the building at 465 John Ringling Blvd. to Tommy Bahama, which moved its restaurant less than a mile east from its also flooded — and closer to the Gulf — location at 300 John Ringling Blvd. on the opposite end of the commercial district.

Shore also operates a restaurant and retail boutique at 800 Broadway St. on the north end of Longboat Key. Leonard plans to go beyond a restaurant and retail store at the new St. Armands location. He plans to include a cafe and, on a new third floor, residential space designed to potentially serve as a boutique hotel if a future zoning code change permits such use in the city’s Commercial Tourist district.

The four business quadrants of St. Armands Circle make up the only CT zone district in the city. The building, which includes planned expansion to cover several parking spaces in the alley between it and the city parking deck, totals approximately 17,000 square feet of mixed-use space.

While Shore’s return to St. Armands will likely be welcomed by many, the third floor — which is permitted in CT providing a build-

ing height cap of 35 feet — will have its detractors. St. Armands residents and merchants have long opposed any type of hotel development on the Key, which was a common theme during recent St. Armands visioning workshops facilitated by the city.

“It’s no hidden secret that I would love to do a boutique hotel, but it’s not approved, so the only thing we can build right now is a residential unit,” Leonard said. “It’s a process we have to go through to build, and maybe I’ll live up there someday the way things are going.”

For now, the top floor is planned to be built as a shell. A site plan shows a total of 4,580 square feet of residential space surrounding a central pool.

Four spaces are labeled as suites.

There is also an area labeled for a gym in the southwest corner.

“We’ll probably open the retail and the cafe, and then the restaurant shortly after,” Leonard said.

“We’ll run the elevator, we’ll run the utilities, we’ll run everything you may need essentially, and put the walls up and any doors and windows to dry it in, but I’m not so sure that we’ll finish (the third floor). It really just depends on timing and budget.”

The project is scheduled to make its initial appearance before the city’s Development Review Committee on Wednesday, July 15.

‘A FEAT OF ENGINEERING’

Conceptual renderings of the new Shore show it as midcentury modern architecture, not unlike Leonard’s now-leased building at the opposite end of the northeast quadrant of the Circle.

Leonard said he sees the design as a complement to the eclectic collection of older structures in the retail and commercial district.

“In a mixed-use shopping cen-

Courtesy image

A rendering of the planned Shore restaurant, boutique, cafe and residential space as viewed from Boulevard of the Presidents on St. Armands Circle.

Elizabeth King

The building at the corner of Boulevard of the Presidents and Madison Drive at St. Armands Circle has been gutted and infrastructure is being built to support plans for the new Shore restaurant, retail and residential project.

ter, which I really think that’s what St. Armand should be, a variation of architecture is kind of cool,” he said.

“I like to see buildings have some different façades and some different character. I would like to see St. Armands be more flood-resilient.

I would like to see the federal government, the state government and our county and city to be more supportive and try to incentivize people,

whether it be through some kind of a tax incentive, to flood-proof buildings. I don’t ever want to go through what I went through a couple years ago again, not only for myself, but to watch fellow merchants lose everything was just sickening.”

To avoid the FEMA 50% rule, which prohibits renovation of floodprone properties whose cost exceeds 50% of the value of the structure

without elevating it above flood level, the partnership of Kauffman Shore Properties LLC is installing flood-proof glass on the ground floor, effectively making it an insideout aquarium.

“It’s a significant cost,” Leonard said of the glass, which comes at a price of $5,000 per linear foot times 10 feet in height. “It’s going to take the whole building to support the price to do all this.”

Hence the top floor condo — or potentially future hotel rooms, to help pay for the building. Leonard offered no specifics about the cost, only that it will be “in the millions.”

“It’s a feat of engineering,” he said of the infrastructure to support the flood-proof glass. “We’re going have a 20-inch slab going through the whole building. If we, heaven forbid, ever do get a storm, which I hope we don’t, and we stay dry, the federal government isn’t in there writing checks.”

Kauffman Shore Properties is a partnership between Leonard and the commercial property developer and owner Kauffman family of Sarasota, the team including Mark Kauffman and his daughter, Mindy Kauffman.

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SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

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SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

OPINION / OUR VIEW

SARASOTA/SIESTA KEY

Lots of loopholes in Florida’s laws on fines With a potential hit to general fund revenue coming, municipalities may have more incentive to supplement their income from fines.

ADRIAN MOORE AND VITTORIO NASTASI

L

ocal governments in Florida and across the country collect approximately $8 billion in law enforcement fines and forfeitures annually.

In most cases, these revenues account for a vanishingly small portion of government budgets — just 0.38% on average.

However, some governments have Vittorio Nastasi come to rely on police and the court system to fund basic operations, creating perverse incentives that divert resources away from legitimate public safety priorities.

A new Reason Foundation report examines financial statements from over 10,000 cities and counties for the most comprehensive picture of “taxation by citation” to date.

The report measures fiscal reliance as the ratio of fines and forfeitures to general revenue. General revenue captures the money a government raises to fund its core operations at its own discretion, mainly taxes and unrestricted transfers. It leaves out money tied to self-sustaining operations like water and sewer utilities, which pay for their own services and don’t underwrite general government. Measuring fines against total revenue would let a city hide heavy reliance on enforcement behind a large utility fund.

This may soon become a much more important issue in Florida, because in November voters will decide on a constitutional amendment that would raise the state’s homestead exemption to $250,000 and is projected to cut nonschool local government revenue by $11.86 billion on a recurring basis.

Research cited in our report suggests local governments often turn to fines and forfeitures revenue to offset losses elsewhere. If the amendment passes, some Florida cities may find ticket revenue an attractive backfill.

Already in Florida, we identified seven cities that collected 10 cents or more in fines for every $1 of general revenue in FY 2023: Lawtey ($0.91), Port Richey ($0.30), Belle Isle ($0.13), Opa-Locka ($0.12), West Miami ($0.12), Orange Park ($0.12), and Green Cove Springs ($0.10).

In per-capita terms, Port Richey leads the pack at $616 per resident.

Much of that revenue likely came from red light cameras.

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A recent report from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles showed that red light cameras in Port Richey generated $1,196,914.42 in revenue from 11,737 citations between July 1, 2024, and June 30, 2025. Port Richey retained $525,923.42, while the remaining $633,046.00 went to the state Department of Revenue.

Notably, the FLHSMV report asked local governments about what factors are used to determine the success or failure of red light cameras within their jurisdictions.

Port Richey answered the number of crashes, pedestrian safety and revenue. Credit for honesty?

Port Richey has been quite explicit about the role red light cameras have played in the city’s budgeting.

Fines and forfeitures revenue in Port Richey surged from $646,416 to $1,183,927 between FY 2015 and FY 2016. The city’s FY 2016 financial report noted that “(t) hrough initiatives such as water and sewer utility rate increases, the reinstatement of the electric utility tax … and the ability to utilize red light cameras, the city has been able to considerably improve upon its financial position.”

That year, the city’s governmental funds increased 18.28%, which the city primarily attributed to $602,565 from red light cameras.

State lawmakers have tried to prevent police from chasing ticket revenue by banning traffic citation quotas since 1992, but reform efforts to date have left major gaps.

The state’s original quota ban only applied to state agencies. County sheriff’s offices and municipal police departments, where most of the traffic enforcement happens, were left out entirely.

That gap surfaced in dramatic fashion when Waldo was found to be generating nearly half its general revenue from traffic citations.

When the story broke in 2014, five Waldo officers alleged their chief and city manager had imposed a quota of one ticket per hour per shift. The department was disbanded within weeks.

The Legislature responded to the scandal with the 2015 “Waldo Bill,” which extended the quota ban to sheriffs and municipal police. But the ban still has no mechanism for officers to report violations and no requirement the state investigate them. Today, an officer who suspects a quota is being enforced has nowhere obvious to go.

Reforms adopted by Ohio in 2025 offer a better model. Ohio now requires the attorney general to maintain a public online form for officers to report quota viola-

tions, anonymously, and obligates the state to investigate every report within a year and order any offending agency to cease and desist.

Even a well-enforced quota ban, though, only reaches citations written by officers. A camera can’t be pressured to hit a quota, so a quota ban has no bearing on red light camera enforcement. As the example of Port Richey shows, that’s true even when a city, by its own admission, is counting on citation revenue to balance its budget. Closing that gap requires reforms aimed at the underlying fiscal incentives rather than officer behavior.

A smaller group of states has tried to do exactly that. Alabama, Maryland, Missouri, Texas and Utah placed explicit caps on the share of revenues local governments may collect from either speeding tickets or fines and forfeitures more broadly, diverting any revenue above the cap to purposes beyond the collecting government’s control.

Because a cap applies to the revenue regardless of its source, it would catch a city leaning on cameras just as readily as one leaning on officers. But the narrow scope of many existing caps has still enabled evasion. Alabama’s 10% cap, for instance, applies only to traffic citations, leaving cities free to generate unlimited revenue from other fines. A cap applying to all revenues flowing from police and courts would be better.

Florida has another law that looks similar on paper but is effectively toothless. Any jurisdiction collecting more than 33% of its law enforcement funding from traffic fines must file a report with the Legislative Auditing Committee.

However, Florida’s threshold triggers nothing but paperwork.

The statute doesn’t require the committee to publish which jurisdictions filed, doesn’t authorize any investigation and doesn’t specify consequences for a jurisdiction that simply doesn’t report.

A handful of Florida cities are deriving a meaningful share of their budgets from citations even though the state has laws on the books that are supposed to prevent this kind of behavior. And that’s before accounting for the property tax pressure that may be headed their way this fall. Adopting a stronger ban on quotas based on Ohio’s model and a cap on fine revenue now, before that pressure arrives, would be far better than reacting to it after the fact.

Adrian Moore is vice president of Reason Foundation and lives in Sarasota. Vittorio Nastasi is the director of criminal justice policy.

The city of Sarasota uses school zone speed cameras and red light cameras.

During Fiscal Year 2025, red light cameras generated $3.28 million in revenue and school zone citations generated $1.14 million.

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SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

Planning Board member reappointed, another named to fill vacant seat The Sarasota City Commission reappointed Planning Board member Shane Lamay to a second three-year term. He was joined by new member Tiffany Nisbet.

9

1899 Fruitville apartment development advances The Sarasota Development Review Committee has granted partial sign-off on an apartment project to remake a block between Fruitville Road and Fourth Street.

ANDREW WARFIELD STAFF WRITER

T

ANDREW WARFIELD STAFF WRITER

O

nly minutes after Sarasota Planning Board Vice Chairman Douglas Christy delivered a brief annual report to the City Commission — one in which he lamented a sometimes one-week notice to review voluminous documents in advance of their meetings — one new member was appointed and a current reappointed.

Ironically, the new member only had two days to review documents for the next Planning Board meeting, which was scheduled for Wednesday.

At its Monday meeting, the commission unanimously granted a second three-year term to the board’s most recent chairman, Shane Lamay, and replaced outgoing member Dan DeLeo, who didn’t reapply for the position, with Tiffany Nisbet.

The commissioners’ discussion leaned heavily toward applicant Rebecca Owens and her residence in the city’s District 1, the only of the city’s three districts lacking representation on the board.

In the end, though, commissioners favored Nisbet over Owens and other applicants Justin Bloom, Norman Schimmel and Marc Gauthier.

Vice Mayor Kathy Kelley Ohlrich suggested full city representation on the board brings added value, a mantle picked up by her fellow commissioners.

“The Planning Board is heavily weighted for District 2 residents,” Ohlrich said. “There’s one District

Andrew Warfield

3 resident and zero District 1 residents. So with that in mind, I would nominate highly qualified candidate Rebecca Owens, who lives in District 1.”

Commissioner Jen Ahearn-Koch agreed that equal representation across all districts has merit, but touted the qualifications of Nisbet and Bloom. Commissioner Liz Alpert also gave credence to district representation, but in the end leaned toward Nisbet.

“We have five really qualified nominees, so it was hard for me to narrow it down,” Alpert said. “There were three (commissioners) who mentioned Tiffany Nisbet, so I’m going to nominate Tiffany Nisbet.”

With that, Nisbet was named to the board by affirmation.

Shane Lamay was reappointed to the Sarasota Planning Board.

he reformation of an entire block of Fruitville Road in the east downtown Sarasota area took a step forward as a project currently called 1899 Fruitville received partial Development Review Committee sign-off at the June 17 meeting.

There is a caveat, though. Representatives of the Bristol Development Group of Franklin, Tennessee, project were told by Certified Planner Rebecca Webster — in her last DRC meeting before leaving city employment — that should the results of a traffic study trigger additional review from any of the city’s development-oriented departments, the 324-unit apartment development must return to the full committee.

Bristol Development Group is proposing a five-story residential project on the 3.44-acre site that covers 22 parcels between Gillespie and North Osprey avenues, bounded to the north by Fourth Street. It will include 36 affordable/attainablepriced units per the city’s bonus density program.

The site is currently home to one residence, as well as small businesses and restaurants.

The property is currently zoned Downtown Edge and no rezoning is requested. It is adjacent to the Downtown Neighborhood zone district — that neighborhood being Gillespie Park — and the project proposes a code-compliant design of four stories along Fourth Street and five stories facing Fruitville Road.

Because the project falls within a downtown zone district, it requires only administrative approval. The

Image courtesy of Poole & Poole Architecture

developer is also seeking these three administrative adjustments in firstand second-floor habitable space requirements: ■ Fourth Street: A 19.3% reduction in inhabitable space from 341 feet, 9 inches of parallel façade to 277 feet, 6 inches. Access points and the courtyard along the street are not included in the calculation.

■ Fruitville Road: A 17.5% reduction in inhabitable space from 499 feet, 11 inches to 492 feet, 3 inches in the first floor and a 21.5% reduction on the second floor. For the first floor calculation, the Fruitville Road access point was excluded from the total building length.

■ A 6-foot inhabitable space forms a corridor around the garage entrance off Fruitville Road, the remainder of the frontage meeting the required 20 feet in depth. Also on Fourth Street, approximately 70 feet of frontage cannot accommodate habitable space due to the essential functional needs including solid waste pick-up and service access, according to the application, which also states alternative garage layouts were evaluated, but all options were constrained by the grand trees and their critical root zones.

An internal parking structure with entrances off both Fourth Street and Fruitville Road will contain 439 spaces. That’s 133 more spaces than the minimum requirement by code.

In one of her final official acts with the city, Webster offered an advisory comment to consider reducing the number of spaces.

A rendering of the Fruitville Road elevation of the 1899 Fruitville project.

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SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

Lighting repair agreement approved for Lido Key

TUESDAY, JUNE 9

TOO MANY TEXTS 12:04 a.m., 1000 block of Benjamin Franklin Drive Harassment: A complainant told an officer his ex-girlfriend from three months prior is now constantly texting and threatening him. The nature of the threats was not disclosed in the incident report, but he said over the last three months they have been frequent.

He showed the officer some of the messages, but none appeared to be threatening in nature.

The officer uploaded the messages into an evidence portal and examined them further. On May 28, 2026, the man requested the woman cease all communication with him, but on June 7 there was a two-way text correspondence.

The man added the woman has sent strangers to random locations where he happened to be at the time to make contact with him on her behalf. He said he has attempted to block her multiple times, but she continues to find new ways to reach him. For the report, the complainant was unable to provide a middle name, middle initial, address or birth date for the woman, leaving in question the extent of their prior relationship.

CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? 2:54 p.m., intersection of Wood Street and Shade Avenue Dispute: Dispatch reported to an officer an incident of one woman chasing another and yelling at her.

Upon arrival, an officer made contact with the caller and a witness.

The woman was dressed in a polo with the logo of a communications company along with a lanyard containing a card that provided similar identification.

She said she was following up on sales leads in the area where residents are flagged in their system as not being customers.

She said she approached a residence in the 800 block of South Jefferson Avenue, knocked on the door and, when there was no response, walked toward the house next door. That’s when a woman began yelling at her about being on her property and accused her of not actually being an employee of the company. The subject

ANDREW WARFIELD STAFF WRITER

TUESDAY, JUNE 9

T

he Sarasota City Commission, via consent agenda, authorized entering into a local agency program with the Florida Department of Transportation to repair lighting on Lido Key. FDOT is providing up to $600,037 for the project with a local match of $108,426.

The project included construction and construction engineering inspection services to replace damaged highway lighting infrastructure along John Ringling Boulevard and Benjamin Franklin Drive. The scope of work includes replacement of lamp heads, lighting arms, wiring harnesses, solar panels, controllers, batteries and other related equipment damaged during Hurricanes Helene and Milton.

Commissioner Jen Ahearn-Koch pulled the consent agenda item for further discussion, primarily to publicly address residents’ frequently asked questions about when the repairs to multiple solarpowered street lighting fixtures will be made.

The answer from Capital Projects Manager Alvimarie Corales: 18 months is a best-case scenario.

In addition to operating at the speed of government, Corales said, “It is also regarding supplies. A lot of the batteries need to be replaced, so we are at the supplier’s mercy, as well.”

The approved consent agenda also included authorization for the utilities department to execute a purchase order with JohnsonLaux Construction to make repairs to the city-owned seawater intake located on Sarasota Bay near the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall.

Built in 2002, the 161-foot-long structure consists of nine concrete spans and supports a pump building at the pier terminus. It provides access to the pump system that

NO REENTRY PERMITTED 11:05 p.m., 1900 block of Main Street Disturbance: A woman attempting to reenter a movie theater was causing enough of a disturbance to bring law enforcement to the scene. The manager called because the woman was banging on locked doors, demanding to be allowed back inside after claiming she left the theater to give an admission ticket to a friend.

The woman was demanding a refund, but after police responded she changed her mind and just wanted to go home.

She said her bag was inside the theater, but her friends had possession of it and she didn’t need it until after the film ended.

The manager said she did not want to press charges but she did want the woman trespassed from the premises.

then attempted to grab a bag the complainant was carrying and demanded she open it.

The woman refused and tried to leave the area, eventually locating a group of construction workers where she felt safe enough to call 911. A witness confirmed the woman’s story. The witness added the subject appeared to be under the influence of a mind-altering substance.

The woman, according to the incident report, “refused to listen and just continued to scream and yell while running in circles.

She was incredibly disrespectful towards law enforcement and impossible to speak with to try and explain what transpired.”

The nature of any further action was not included in the report.

LAST WEEKEND TO SAVE!

4

Courtesy image

supplies salt to the water treatment plant’s ion exchange process.

The pier was inspected in advance of the 2024 hurricanes, which identified significant deterioration, including damaged concrete beams, cracked and broken piles, bent caps and delaminated concrete slabs.

The Utilities Department initially advertised a bid for the rehabilitation work on April 1, 2025, to which no bids were received.

The city engaged a firm specializing in facility and construction management solutions to advance the project. A purchase order was issued to Apollo Construction & Engineering Services, but because of poor performance and workmanship, the purchase order was terminated, work was halted and the county initiated an effort to secure another contractor to complete the rehabilitation project.

Work will commence immediately upon completion of all required documentation.

The commission also approved the second reading needed to increase fees for solid waste collection by $3.63. The additional revenue is for funding the city’s Natural Disaster Collection Reserve Account.

Benjamin Franklin Drive on Lido Key was left covered in sand after storm surge from Hurricane Helene swept the road.

In addition to operating at the speed of government, Corales said, “It is also regarding supplies. A lot of the batteries need to be replaced, so we are at the supplier’s mercy, as well.”

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JULY 9, 2026

ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT In Florida Studio Theatre’s ‘Dog Mom,’ fur babies have a lot to teach their humans.

Animal

magnetism

MONICA ROMAN GAGNIER A+E EDITOR

T

here are few epithets more hurtful than “childless cat lady.” It conjures up images of failure, loneliness and empty wine bottles. Being called a “dog mom” is a different story. It seems fun and open-hearted, even if a dog dad isn’t in the picture.

By definition, dog owners are more social than feline owners. When they take Fido or Fifi for a walk, someone will undoubtedly tell them how cute their dog is and maybe even invite them to a meetup at the dog park.

Pretty soon, they’re part of a pack.

In Florida Studio Theatre’s new play, “Dog Mom,” a newly divorced woman named Liz gets a new lease (Or should we say leash?) on life when she fosters a dog. At first, her sense of connection to her new pet is so tentative she can’t come up with a name for the dog.

Much to her surprise, Liz’s canine companion helps her navigate a new life in the city, where she’s moved back after her married life in the suburbs came to an end.

Thanks to her dog, Liz gets to know her pushy, older neighbor, who is also a dog owner. She also meets an assortment of characters, all played to great effect by Kraig Swartz, à la Alec Guinness in “Kind Hearts and Coronets.”

No spoilers here, but the pets are stars in their own right. For now, the folks who help bring them to life will remain unsung.

The hounds get to know each other and teach their owners how to smell the roses ... and the pizza ... and the poop. (It’s hard to avoid scatalogical humor when you’re dealing with dogs.)

Liz learns how to live in the moment from her dog, whose memory seems to last no longer than a minute or two. She also learns to play. Who knew sticks could be so interesting?

The woman who wrote the play, that’s who. Although she’s never taken a course in writing scripts for screen or stage, Tate Elizabeth Hanyok has spent a great deal of her career on the sets of TV sitcoms, both as an actor and as a coach to young performers.

Hanyok sent “Dog Mom” to FST at the urging of a friend who had performed at the regional theater. The play was accepted for FST’s 2025 Burdick New Play Reading Festival. At the festival, the script-inhand reading for a live audience was directed by Nancy Rominger, who is also the director of the current production.

A FAMILY FOR LIFE

Hanyok said she was inspired to write “Dog Mom” because she wanted to return to her theater roots. Her first

Kelsey Stalter shows Katharine McLeod new tricks in Florida Studio Theatre’s “Dog Mom.”

job out of college was as an intern at Sacramento’s B Street Theatre company, which she still considers “her family” more than 20 years after moving to LA to pursue acting.

B Street Theatre is one of four companies that banded with Sarasota’s FST to produce “Dog Mom” as a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere.

The others are Oregon Contemporary Theatre in Eugene, Oregon, Cadence Theatre in Richmond, Virginia, and EnActe Arts in Sunnyvale, California.

During a wide-ranging conversation with Hanyok, the infectious sense of humor that informs “Dog Mom” is apparent.

To wit: “When you think about what roles you’ll play when you hit middle age, you say to yourself, ‘I’d be a mean Martha in “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” but then what?’”

Or, when asked why she left her beloved theater company: “I broke my coccyx because I had to fall on my bum 100 times in a farce that kept getting extended. While I was recovering, I went to LA and shot a commercial. When I saw the paycheck, I thought, ‘What am I literally breaking my ass in theater for?’”

To support herself in LA while looking for acting jobs, Hanyok worked as a dishwasher at a restaurant and cleaned houses, “anything

IF YOU GO

‘DOG MOM’ When: Runs through Aug. 8 Where: Florida Studio Theatre’s Keating Theatre, 1241 N. Palm Ave. Tickets: $25-$46 Info: Visit FloridaStudio Theatre.org.

Kelsey Stalter finds joy in everyday objects in Florida Studio Theatre’s “Dog Mom.”

to keep living the dream.” She had some success in TV commercials, including “Miss Decisive” for Hyundai and as a spokesperson for Aspen Dental.

Hanyok and “West Wing” creator Aaron Sorkin both experienced heartbreak when the “Saturday Night Live”-inspired TV series “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip” didn’t get picked up for a second season after its 2006-07 run on NBC. Hanyok played a minor character whose uncredited role got scaled back. But the silver lining was she spent hours reciting and hearing lines written by the master of snappy dialogue.

If the late writer/director Nora Ephron was famous for saying, “Everything is copy,” Hanyok’s motto appears to be “Everything you do is leading you to your next job.” You just might not know it at the time.

Hanyok got into screenwriting by writing treatments and scripts for young actors she was coaching. She won recognition after submitting her work to screenwriting competitions held by the Austin Film Festival and other festivals. In 2018, she won Best Comedy screenplay at AFF for “Sex APPeal.”

Hanyok initially pitched her screenplays to Lifetime Productions because the family-oriented network doesn’t require writers to belong to the Writers Guild of America. (She has since earned her WGA card, adding it to her membership in the SAGAFTRA union for film and TV actors.)

Although Lifetime leans into romcoms, it also produces thrillers like Hanyok’s “Friends Until the End,” which was shot earlier this year in Duluth, Minnesota, in lots of spooky locations.

Growing up in an old mill town in Northern Virginia in the shadow of Civil War battlegrounds, Hanyok says she took history for granted.

The future playwright spent most of her time down at the local pond that grew out of a crater created by a cannonball. She was on the trail of “critters.”

But Hanyok has learned to appreciate history, especially since she spends most of her time in Los Angeles, where “The Brady Bunch” split level is accorded the respect usually associated with historic homes like Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello.

Hanyok’s definition of what is historic will no doubt get expanded during her upcoming trip to London.

That’s where Sunnyvale-based EnActe engineered the U.K. pre-

Images courtesy of Sorcha Augustine

miere of “Dog Mom,” at Southwark Playhouse Borough in October.

“Dog Mom” almost got a new title because the British call their mothers “Mum.” In the end, it was decided that because the play is clearly set in America, Liz gets to be a dog mom, even on the other side of the pond.

When Hanyok’s in London for the first time, she’ll be able to visit the reconstructed Globe Theatre, where Shakespeare’s plays are being performed more than 400 years after they premiered at the original Globe, which was located just 750 feet away at a site on the River Thames.

The Bard holds a special place in Hanyok’s heart. Early in her career, she was cast in Arkansas Repertory Theatre’s production of “The Tempest” in Little Rock, Arkansas.

“It was a really magical experience because we did it on a lake,” Hanyok says. “Prospero came in on a little boat in the opening and there was a sunset during intermission. Act Two started in the dark with torches. It was just the most visceral theater experience you could ever have.”

“An audience,” she adds, “is never going to get that from AI.”

Ryan G. Dunkin knows how to make Marina Re feel loved in Florida Studio Theatre’s “Dog Mom.”

Image courtesy of Emiliano Mejias

“Dog Mom” playwright Tate Elizabeth Hanyok reacts during a reading of her play at the 2025 Burdick New Play Festival at Florida Studio Theatre.

SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

SATURDAY “Marvin: A Marvin Gaye Revue” plays Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe from July 15-24.

OUR PICK

THIS WEEK

Image courtesy of Sorcha Augustine

THURSDAY

SUMMER CIRCUS SPECTACULAR 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. at the Historic Asolo Theater, 5401 Bay Shore Road $15-$20 Visit Ringling.org.

The Ringling and the Circus Arts Conservatory join forces for their annual Summer Circus Spectacular in the Historic Asolo Theater.

Ringmaster Ashley Vargas, a veteran of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey and circuses around the world, presides over a showcase of jugglers, roller skaters, hand balancers and a clown she happens to be married to: Davis Vassallo. For $5 more, make it a circus day and tour The Ringling’s Historic Circus Galleries and Tibbals Learning Center, which contains a miniature circus of 42,000 pieces built by Howard Tibbals. Runs through Aug. 8.

JAZZ THURSDAY AT SAM 5:30 p.m. at Sarasota Art Museum, 1001 S. Tamiami Trail Free-$30 Visit SarasotaArtMuseum.org.

The Panama Drive Quartet featuring Art Siegel plays straight-ahead jazz, bebop and R&B on the Marcy and

Michael Klein Plaza. The Thursday series is co-sponsored by the Jazz Club of Sarasota. The evening features extended hours in the shop, Bistro and galleries.

‘THE SPONGEBOB MUSICAL’ 7:30 p.m. at The Players Centre, 3501 S. Tamiami Trail $25 Visit The Players.org.

This hourlong musical based on the friendly cartoon character from under the sea is the culmination of a kids theater camp run by The Players Studio, the youth education arm of The Sarasota Players. Runs through July 12.

FRIDAY ‘SHARED LIGHT: LYNN GOLDSMITH’ 10 a.m. at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, 1534 Mound St. $28 Visit Selby.org.

During the past half century, Lynn Goldsmith’s photographs of celebrities and nature have been featured in magazines like Time, Vanity Fair and Rolling Stone and have been the subject of 17 books,

‘MARVIN: A MARVIN GAYE REVUE’ This is a sneak peek at the show Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe is taking to the 2026 International Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Sheldon Rhoden, who has played Marvin Gaye in four runs of “Prince of Soul,” returns for the musical revue, along with other WBTT artists. Like the man he plays, Rhoden attracts a legion of besotted, mostly female fans.

Runs through July 24.

IF YOU GO When: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 15 Where: Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, 1012 N. Orange Ave. Tickets: $54 adults; $24 students and active military Info: Visit WestcoastBlackTheatre.org.

including “Patti Smith: Before Easter After.” Now, her photos are featured in an indoor and outdoor exhibition at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens.

Runs through Sept. 8.

CLASSIC MOVIES AT THE OPERA HOUSE: ‘DEAD AGAIN’ 7 p.m. at Sarasota Opera House, 61 N. Pineapple Ave. $12 Visit SarasotaOpera.org.

Directed by Kenneth Branagh, this 1991 neo-noir thriller features a starstudded cast including Branagh, Emma Thompson, Andy Garcia, Robin Williams and Derek Jacobi.

Branagh stars as a detective who recruits a hypnotist to help him interview a woman (Thompson) suffering from amnesia. The film features double roles for its actors as they move between the 1940s and the 1990s.

COMEDY LOTTERY 7:30 p.m. at FST’s Bowne’s Lab, 1265 First St. $15-$18 Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.

Florida Studio Theatre’s own improv troupe takes over Bowne’s Lab with “Comedy Lottery,” giving the audience the chance to select the night’s games. If FST Improv isn’t on your radar, it’s time for a new machine. Runs through July 25.

For the first time, John Ringling’s Cypriot treasures have a permanent home in Gallery 12 after a decadelong project that officially opened earlier this year.

JAZZ JAM SRQ 5:30 p.m. at Selby Library, 1331 First St. Free JazzClubSarasota.org.

Jazz Club of Sarasota presents a bi-monthly open jam session for professional and amateur musicians.

SUNDAY

WEDNESDAY

‘SOMETHING BORROWED, SOMETHING NEW’ 11 a.m. at the Sarasota Art Museum, 1001 S. Tamiami Trail $20 Visit SarasotaArtMuseum.org.

‘THE WIZARD OF OZ: YOUTH EDITION’ 1 p.m. at FSU Center for the Performing Ars, 5555 N. Tamiami Trail $15-$19 Visit AsoloRep.org.

“Something Borrowed, Something New” features major modern artists such as Louise Bourgeois, Chuck Close, David Hockney, Yoko Ono, Kara Walker and Ai Weiwei. Their works have been loaned by private collectors for the show, which runs through Sept. 27. Don’t miss the massive Hockney on loan from Stanton Storer, “Inside It Opens Up As Well.”

REMI GOODE WITH EMILY FROST 7 p.m. at Fogartyville, 525 Kumquat Court $25 Visit WSLR.org.

Come see the newly remodeled Fogartyville when Remi Goode plays the listening room. The upgraded space features new tables and chairs plus more unisex bathrooms.

An indie-folk artist who crosses genres, Goode is on tour to support her debut album, “Things We Said Before.”

MONDAY ANCIENT ART FROM CYPRUS AND THE MEDITERRANEAN 10 a.m. at The John and Mable Ringling Art Museum, 5401 Bay Shore Road Free with $30 admission; Mondays free Visit Ringling.org.

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Asolo Repertory Theatre continues its summer tradition of staging a family-oriented musical with “The Wizard of Oz: Youth Edition.” Follow Dorothy, Toto, the Tin Man, the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion on the yellow brick road to family entertainment. The hourlong show runs through Aug. 8.

DON’T MISS

‘LEAVING ON A JET PLANE’ Created by Aaron Gundy, “Leaving on a Jet Plane” features an acoustic trio who take you on a flight to the feelgood era of folk music in the late 1960s and 1970s. Among the artists whose works are featured in this upbeat show are Simon & Garfunkel, Cat Stevens, Crosby, Stills & Nash and the Lovin’ Spoonful. Runs through July 26.

IF YOU GO When: 7 p.m. Thursday, July 9 Where: Florida Studio Theatre’s Goldstein Cabaret, 1239 N. Palm Ave. Tickets: $42 Info: Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.

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SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

Sarasota Art Colony artist refuses to be forgotten MONICA ROMAN GAGNIER A+E EDITOR

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hen retrospectives for the Sarasota Art Colony were unveiled earlier this year at Ringling College of Art and Design and at Michael Saunders & Co.’s downtown offices, one prominent local artist wasn’t included.

Actually, lots of artists were left out. In post-World War II Sarasota, there were 1,000 artists in a town of roughly 15,000 people, according to Ringling College Chief Curator Tim Jaeger.

“With any historical exhibition, there are always difficult decisions to make,” Jaeger says. “Our goal was to tell a focused story within the available space and resources, and unfortunately, it simply wasn’t possible to include every deserving artist.”

But one of those artists is still around, and her family and friends rallied to make sure she wasn’t forgotten. Her name is Beth Arthur, born in Pittsburgh in 1926. In honor of her centenary, a solo show was held earlier this year at The Field Club.

In May, when Arts Advocates unveiled two of her paintings it acquired for its gallery in The Crossings at Siesta Key mall, Arthur was there, surrounded by dozens of wellwishers.

Founded more than 50 years ago, Arts Advocates is dedicated to preserving the legacy of the Sarasota Art Colony.

Arts Advocates acquired Arthur’s paintings “Bryce Canyon” and “Sky Dreams” at the recommendation of its curator Mark Ormond. He included her work in the Sarasota 2000 Biennial exhibition that he curated when he was senior curator at The Ringling Museum of Art. At age 100, Arthur lets others do the talking for her these days, including her daughter, Robin Draper, and granddaughter, Sandy Arthur.

They’ll tell you how Beth Arthur arrived in Sarasota in the 1950s after earning a degree from the University of Pittsburgh with little more than a Martin guitar, some paintbrushes and an invite to study with Hilton Leech.

After teaching at the Ringling School of Art, Leech founded an eponymous art school in 1946 on Hillview Street together with his wife, Dorothy.

“Mom always thought herself fortunate to work alongside Hilton, considering him her most influential teacher,” Draper said. “Hilton was not only a legend in the local art scene, he personally helped Mom to refine her painting technique, while also introducing her to fellow Sarasota artists as she defined her career as a contemporary artist.”

Arthur became part of the Sarasota Art Colony’s social whirl. The scene revolved around Syd Solomon and his wife, Annie, as well as the Ringling School of Art and the Sarasota Art Association, now known as Art Center Sarasota.

Over the next six decades, Arthur would create mosaic, collage and mixed media paintings and move from oil to watercolor and then to stain color painting. The lat-

Monica Gagnier

ter involves pouring, brushing and spraying paint to achieve luminous effects. She continued to paint until her eyesight began to deteriorate when she was in her 80s.

Arthur always signed her work with her last name only, so no one would know she was a woman.

During the 1960s, Arthur studied at the New College Arts Institute with such renowned contemporary artists as Solomon, Philip Guston, James Brooks, Larry Rivers and Conrad Marca-Relii. Arthur’s late husband, Furman “Brud” Arthur, was one of New College’s first employees and was head of public relations for 25 years.

Like other members of the Sarasota Art Colony, Arthur was inspired by the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, based in Sarasota from 1927 to 1960. She worked as a staff artist for the circus from 1953-57.

Arthur began doing portraits and landscapes. But she became a maverick with abstract painting, considered the province of men.

“Beth’s work does remind me of some other universe,” Ormond says.

“She takes us there, maybe because she practiced yoga. I always found her to be a very meditative individual.”

Adds Jaeger: “I think Beth’s work absolutely deserves recognition.

She has had a long and meaningful career, and her paintings reflect a deep commitment to observation, craftsmanship and the unique character of Florida.”

Draper calls her mom “a Renaissance woman.” In addition to creating and teaching art, Arthur taught yoga, did facials and collected Native American jewelry.

After her marriage ended, Arthur traveled the Southwest, where she was fascinated by rock formations and petroglyphs. These trips fueled an interest in archaeology that began when she took art classes as a child at the Carnegie Museum of Art and wandered around afterward at the adjacent Museum of Natural History.

The artistic tradition continues in Arthur’s family. Her granddaughter, Sandy Arthur, is a chiropractic doctor who pursues her love of art by painting murals of the human spine.

“If you’re wondering where all the artistic talent in the family went, it went to Sandy,” Draper says. Sandy Arthur is also a pilot and a tennis player, yet another Renaissance woman in the family.

Beth Arthur poses with her granddaughter, Sandy Arthur, in front of two paintings acquired by Arts Advocates Gallery, “Bryce Canyon” (left) and “Sky Dreams.”

IF YOU GO ARTS ADVOCATES GALLERY When: 2-4 p.m. on Saturdays Where: 3501 S. Tamiami Trail Info: Visit ArtsAdvocates.org.

OUR SHOWROOMS ARE OPEN Special Financing Available

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JULY 9, 2026

YOUR NEIGHBORS Finding home in the flag Jing Herman, born during China’s onechild policy, came to the U.S. at age 10 and says she is now living her American dream creating 50 American flag paintings.

IAN SWABY STAFF WRITER

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rowing up in Beijing during the 1980s, there were certain words Jing Herman says she heard often.

“In China, they love to talk about the U.S. more than any other topic,” she said. “You have over a billion people just repeating beautiful country, beautiful country, beautiful country.”

Herman, who turned 44 on July 3, didn’t have a lot of time to spend exploring the outdoors growing up in Texas, or later while living in New York. Later on though, she started exploring nature with her kids during the COVID-19 pandemic. The shells she collected became one of the inspirations for her painting “Starfish Spangled Banner.”

Now, with 10 flag paintings completed over the course of a year, the Sarasota artist is on a journey with a goal of creating 50, each highlighting a different aspect of the country.

“My work is meant to be not political whatsoever, but to really just reveal the beauty of the land, reveal the common ground that we stand on, and a lot of people have said that looking at my American flag paintings, it gives them ‘a surprising sense of hope,’ and a lot of people have said that it makes them feel more optimistic about America,” Herman says.

So far, others have taken notice.

After she applied to America250, the bipartisan initiative celebrating the country’s 250th anniversary that was signed into law by President Barack Obama in 2016, she became an official artist on the America250 store.

The online store currently carries three prints of her work, each costing $2,500, and it offers one original for $15,000.

At the time, Herman had to look up every word in her homework, and teachers called her parents in for a conference, thinking she was unable to speak. However, math was easy for her, multiple grades below the level she had been learning at in the highly competitive environment of China.

Herman majored in marketing because of her love of art and design, but after an internship at Bloomberg News that involved a group that was entirely women, she decided the field wasn’t challenging enough.

In Chinese, there is a concept called chī kŭ, which translates to “eat bitterness,” or to endure hardship without complaint, something she says she inherited from her parents, who lived through China’s Cultural Revolution.

“I’ve always felt like I should do the hardest thing, and when I was 22 the hardest thing was investment banking,” she said. “I loved the boot camp environment. Actually, all my jobs, I think, were in a male-dominated environment. When I was little, my mom always said, ‘If a boy can do it, you can do it better. You can be smarter than the boys.’”

Herman attended the NYU Stern School of Business before she was hired by Bear Stearns, becoming a top-bucket analyst. She worked 80 to 100 hours a week, sometimes sleeping at the office under her desk with a pillow. Most of her social life revolved around her co-workers.

She later worked as a vice president at JPMorgan Chase and later became the U.S. CEO of Gett, a leading ground transportation management platform used by over a quarter of Fortune 500 companies, launching and leading the company’s operations in New York City.

During the pandemic, Herman co-founded 28Muses, leading cal-

Jing Herman stands among prints of her artwork.

Ian Swaby

ligraphy workshops for major corporations such as Amazon and Google.

It was around that time, with her attempt to inspire creativity in others through the company, that she began a journey back to the art world.

FOR MORE INFO

Visit JingHeman.com or Store.

America250.org or see “Starfish Spangled Banner” at State of the Arts Gallery, 1525 State St., Sarasota.

BACK TO BRUSHSTROKES

After her oldest daughter said she wanted to be an artist when she grew up, Herman says she returned to the anxiety she felt about the field when she was young, and she set out to prove there was a path for her daughter.

Herman says that over the course of our lives, the American flag has been a largely static symbol, but that wasn’t the case in the 19th century, when it changed many times as new states were admitted to the union.

She says it’s important for people to be able to see themselves in the flag, to feel a connection to the symbol, but also to each other.

“I think when people see the overlap of their city or state, or their love, their environment reflected in an American flag, they see themselves in the flag,” she said.

Herman wanted to source all of her materials from the United States.

Some of the items she used included organic cotton from Texas and wool yarn from sheep in the U.S. She has

FROM CORPORATE TO CREATIVE

Herman took a long journey toward becoming an artist. When she was young, she was skilled in Chinese watercolor painting and loved looking at art supplies, although her family could hardly afford them.

Her family came to the United States when she was 10 after her father, a mathematician, received a full scholarship to the University of Texas at Austin to pursue a master’s degree. He later attended a doctoral program in Dallas.

Her father was busy in the program while her mother worked at a Chinese restaurant throughout the day.

Jing Herman is surrounded by her Chinese watercolor paintings at age 6 in Beijing.

Courtesy images

Jing Herman works on “American Rivers.”

spent a lot of time at gem shows, where she says finding U.S. materials can be difficult beause most of the items are imported.

She embeds items into the surface using a nontoxic paste she developed, and emphasizes the use of nontoxic materials.

Herman’s second painting, “Life, Liberty & the Pursuit of Happiness,” which spells the words of its title in pennies, was gifted to the White House Historical Association around the same time the penny was retired.

It will soon be available through the White House Historical Association website.

That painting was followed by what she calls the “sister paintings.”

Herman says when she meets someone from Chicago or the Great Lakes, they are drawn to her work “American Rivers,” while someone who grew up in the mountains is drawn to “American Mountains.”

“I think that a lot of our identity is actually based on the land itself,” she said. “We don’t think of it that way, but all of our memories, like swimming in the water, going to the beach, or your summer camp or hav-

ing a cabin in the woods, so much of your shared memories is specific to the lands.”

Her latest painting, “Purple Mountain Majesty,” focuses on Americans coming together, incorporating purple barnacles as the animals are filter feeders, removing toxins from the water.

“My hope is for America, is that we start to remove the toxin from social media,” she said. “I think real humans talking, meeting each other; we are able to converse, we are able to have a conversation, and that’s where it begins. So my hope is that systematically, we can remove the toxins, so that people can just come together.”

Herman says while the country may appear divided, she believes people have more in common than anything else. She says people naturally take for granted what is familiar to them, but thinks coming from outside the country allows her to have a different perspective on America.

“Being born an American citizen is the biggest privilege that you can have in the world, but I think if you’re born American citizen, you might not realize that,” she said.

Herman says she is now living her American dream. She continues to work on her flags, which she can complete at a rate of about one per month, amid homeschooling her kids. Herman says it’s good for artists to be “obsessed” with something.

Like Jasper Johns, who created 40 flags in the 20th century, she hopes to produce a large volume of work.

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SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

PLUMBING

Molly Biter (right) and her daughters Maya Biter, 9, Ellie Biter, 9, aunt Katie Moulton, and son Leo Biter, 5, enjoy the event.

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All-American Cookout dazzles with bubbles and food

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olly Rolls says Lights in Bloom at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, its annual holiday lights display, has always been an annual tradition for her family.

As a result, they decided to try the Fourth of July All-American Cookout on Saturday evening.

As they stood in the green of Selby Gardens’ Downtown Sarasota Campus, she said they had just arrived, but it was “amazing so far.”

Her son Mav Catts, 9, was among a group of kids thoroughly engaged with the bubbles of all sizes, including very big, filling the air courtesy of Blaise Ryndes of Spheres Bubble Show.

“I love that he’s able to enjoy this, and what a great place to see the fireworks,” she said. “It’s like the full package, I feel, and it’s nice you don’t have to worry about parking in downtown Sarasota.”

Attendees filled out dozens of tables and chairs as the event got underway, enjoying foods cooked

by Michael’s On East. The oversize chess and checkerboards, as well as the cornhole boards, were busy, too.

Attendees also looked forward to the finale of the night: The chance to view the annual fireworks on Sarasota’s bayfront from the campus of Selby Gardens.

Annalise McLaughlin, 7, reaches high for a bubble.

— IAN SWABY

Amber and Matt Wishon head into the event.

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SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

Sky-high milestones

The fireworks are launched.

T

Photos by Ian Swaby

A sculpture is part of the country’s 250th anniversary celebration.

he Siesta Key Fourth of July Fireworks have been held on Siesta Key Beach for 35 years.

However, the event is sustained entirely through funding from the local community, including individuals and businesses.

Craig Merrill, the event’s pyrotechnician, says it’s the sense of community in the local area that keeps him coming back each year.

“The community’s so awesome,” he said. “They kind of became family to me. I live in Winter Haven, so I enjoy coming down here to see all the people, and they’ve treated me so well over the 23 years.”

This year, Merrill was honored with an award by the event’s host, the Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce, amid his retirement from the event.

Once again praising the community, he called the recognition “pretty special, pretty heart touching” and “just awesome.”

That milestone, however, wasn’t the only one recognized. There was the country’s 250th anniversary and Seacoast Bank, which served as the event’s presenting sponsor, celebrated its 100th anniversary.

Merill said if not for country’s milestone this year, he might have retired last year, but he decided this would be “a good year to go out.” He said he is looking forward to spending the Fourth of July at home with his family next year.

“He’s going to be some big shoes to fill, but I know that Zambelli Fireworks has fantastic technicians,” said Sarah Firstenberger, CEO of the chamber. “We’re really excited for next year.”

Firstenberger says the full cost

Mike Gatz stands beside Craig Merrill as he receives the award from Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce CEO Sarah Firstenberger.

Wendi and Marshall Stevens prepare for the fireworks in the VIP and sponsors area.

of the event each year is $60,000 to $65,000, and said she would estimate 25% of the viewers on the beach were visiting from elsewhere, stating they were from many different countries.

“These are the best fireworks ever because they’re on the beach,” said Wendi Stevens, an attendee in the Chamber of Commerce’s VIP tent.

“We are celebrating 250 years of freedom, liberty,” said Yanet Cisnero, another attendee with the chamber. “We are so proud. A unique event.”

— IAN SWABY

Alona Hymel, 6, plays cornhole.

The Sarasota Chamber’s Grand Expo is back and you’re invited! Enjoy complimentary light bites, beer & wine, raffles, door prizes, and the chance to connect with 80+ local businesses.

THURSDAY AUGUST 27, 2026

4:30 PM 7:00 PM

ROBARTS ARENA 3000 Ringling Blvd.

REGISTER TODAY!

FREE PARKING! FREE ADMISSION! OPEN TO THE PUBLIC!

*VENDOR BOOTHS ARE AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY TO SARASOTA CHAMBER MEMBERS*

464363-1

SCAN HERE TO REGISTER!

YourObserver.com

SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

19

PRESERVING WEALTH FOR GENERATIONS TO COME AMERICAN GOLD RESERVE

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WHY GOLD Helps to preserve wealth during periods of inflation and currency uncertainty.

Physical gold is a real asset that cannot be printed or diluted.

Gold has long been valued as a way to help pass wealth forward and preserve financial security over time.

FINAL RELEASE

419

$

ea.

Minimum order of 5 coins

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American Gold Reserve is releasing Government issued $5 Gold American Eagles completely free of dealer mark-up for only $419 each. These beautiful $5 Gold American Eagles are a perfect way to enter the gold market. They are set for immediate public release and will sell out fast.

LIMITED OFFER Special arrangements on orders over $50,000

AMERICAN

CHECKS

1-866-852-3346

Mention vault release code: SSO-3111

GOLD RESERVE

OPEN 24 HOURS A DAY - 7 DAYS A WEEK 465188-1

Strict limit of 10 per household, per lifetime. For new clients only. Prices and availability are subject to change without notice due to market conditions.

20

YourObserver.com

SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

7324 POINT OF ROCKS ROAD

AHEEEHAPEBECOFEDAEHLPBOMBBDCMHNIIAGCFHBDHNDNPMENLBDEDBMGJPAHEEEHA BNFFFNBPILIOILIKNHFKJCIOFCIDILAHFHAOILFCMGAPEHIHALFDFGJOFPBNFFFNB JCJFNFFGECLPGAIIBDBNIDEIGGIMAHFFAGBBNNHICMGEJBNMCFPHAPHMGFFFODGKD DBBGLGFNOPGFCGMIONLFIHNHKMCJKGPECICAPDMEGHGDCDKKELNKCEHHPNDHDLPDE ICKACKFOECECOJOPFKIAOAEKDOGLIEGDBGOJDMDGJBHMACOHAEIOJCHGJHOAGCLEI MJKONNFLFKEEBMBJLPPHGOADFDDEAAFBOOGFLHOBCNHGLBMFAHHMAMPEEJFPAPEAN AONOIKFOJCHPHKJBEBLCCLGODGALHMACPGGGKBENBNPMGGLHCKNEGEHJPKLGEBPJF HHODIJFJELODHDGNFPLPKDODEKMDBPIJFJIGAEKFPBGBAKGBALDGPFPNIBNFEOPAJ PLAPBNFNBFFFLAHDCEFDIMNFCIJHHJAMEMABINBGGOOCPHMDEBGDGNHNBMEMBDAEC COBLCIFPIEJPKDPPJKHANJJCNLKEIJNMANHADCFEGEPBEHKMANFFGDOLOHIPONNFF FLMJLDFLOFOFMAGBBMNBEKANLENCOPKIOFCJJPLANMHHCFOBAGCBJDOCEFBENEPJI NIFAFGFALHEDELGOPNDFLLADPJMBAGKCMLMNCIGDEPPCNEFIFOHMECHLBEKNNPIFD DPCGPJFBJDFIIMPOLKBMOHNFJNPOBOGCHOCMDJNKEGPDCJCHGDFHEIHNIAIEMJJME OHBIDNFAKADINHGIMOOJDGOGCCHBMFLMKOFCJHDHJKHKEPHPAMKLJDOAPEJHNINAB MFFNFNEHIPDHJCHKKJGIAGFLPFFNGJAHFHADADMDCOPHLGNMGDGCCMHLAHFHADEBL APBBBPAPKPJDCIKKCCLGHFNKHOJBPNDACEBOPHKCEMHIAILOCANKGMGMCHBGEDPCB HHHHHHHPPPPHHHPHPHPPPHHHHHHPPHHPHPHHHHHHPHPPHHPHHPPHPHPPPHHPHHPHP

POINT OF ROCKS 5 Beds | 5 Baths | 5,524 Sq. Ft. | A4643281 | $16,000,000 Karen Chandler, 941.544.4919

AHEEEHAPDGDDKDGDFDFBGAKFJMGBLHGFNDEKKNCMACGGEKCKGNBDEHMGJPAHEEEHA BNFFFNBPNDJCMKJOAHMDIOMOBPAOJPAHFHAKIHJPNHFDALJDNDIDMGIOEPBNFFFNB LBKKOJFCCCEMAHHMCKLKMKHPMGHLBCDCHCCHMAIOEADAMGJDFCJAOPCLDAJJNINGH FLPHIHFNKFLEJOOGELIILKPIPFOGNDCELPLHKLEOBLCJHMNHFINBDKLNPCENDMKEL FEMLPFFKBLFKAKFGPBJAPCCHHELGLDFLHBJHMBHKMAKEIMPCHGGBICCIFIPCHGFLJ JOLDPFFCAALDABJONBJABLFPNIJDAMAFAAKNAPBKKLCAKPJPDAACNLDDDGJAHCDPB APCMOEFNCAOKCOBLDKKGLMJDNLDPMAKOALIIPAMLFLKJFIFIHDNPDLKAOEFBDGMDD LLKBIJFJIAOFLNKCEGAHENPGDDPJAOMJNJAMMJPLKLKJMOGCFEOPKGKCEJNJABNKB BPDLANFNBILCELCAGBJNLGCIPHCHOJANFNBBEELNOJKFILBIFBJJKBCOANENAGHKP FAAEHOFGJBBAPMBLDOAHAOGKOBIIAELJBABDBLEJFLKIFDMMFENKHFKGPLPLJEMPD LDEBMIFEDCHFNAPEOLMFDLIDJHHBOMPBKNOELCPPMPKMJIHPHCNKMCDMEPMHIKDHJ DFCNFOFAGKLCOGCKKDCLMCEONNIOMANJKDEDOIBNJDKBIBICDIJAOECOCDOBIIJOO LAJAHFFFBEOCBNOHINNEAIFOKBDNBMBIMNCDCCMHDILLDOFIHLMIDALCBCPLJCOHD KDBAPFFKPEGDIJJNMKGEJACFHPEDFDLCGIICLAOLKBCAIAGPBFHEODKODLMCJKFPA MFFNFNEHBFEAAINGHBPILNKGCCKBPFAHFHAOPLGJOADAKJBGFMJNOLDMAHFHAMBOH APBBBPAPOLKHCGELKMMPGNKMHABIBKDGFCGBEEFODIAJBGEBHJMFBKDFDAGEFAKNG HHHHHHHPPPPHHPPHHPPHPHHPPPPPPHHHPPHHHPPHPHHPPHPHHHHPPHPHHPHHPHPPP

8501 MIDNIGHT PA SS ROAD SIESTA KEY 6 Beds | 7/3 Baths | 12,000 Sq. Ft. | A4692839 | $29,995,000 Kim Ogilvie & Lynn Morris, 941.376.1717

SIESTA KEY 5 Beds | 4/2 Baths | 6,596 Sq. Ft. | A4679384 | $12,900,000 Jennifer Linehan, 941.266.7555

AHEEEHAPJFIGIAOFDIENFCNLMCLGGHJDIJNMFENPLOAMBMJAMDLILPMGJPAHEEEHA BNFFFNBPNPMCMKIPJPMDNGBLELJGNPAHFHAPFDAGJOICNHMHEGAPALJOFPBNFFFNB NCCGLAFPOOGGKKBCJOFNPAJBMDEHDBFDBFEPBLHPHCIPIAECMKHEFKAIEOMKKLFCK EAGMIKFEOOALPEBALHOFPGOEJBNKGODEHOHLJBJNMHEFOPGNBFBCIFMFCBPHFKDPI EKILJDFFCGDIMGBBIOEKBAPOKMGEGBPFEFNCDEEFOJOHDEJNKIFJOCOOOAJKIIMDP DFAOIJFOIJKINKJPFBCJHCIGKDKNPPPMPPHHLBHLDCLMMAMJOJGMBAIKFIFHKBBBM EIMEFIFJFHIEEFEIFLMNLHOGBKGAOLKBDLMFIIBKIAEBOPOEBIBBKHMLAJHFFCNCJ NDBPABFFECDNJEGKCPKBKFLJMPJOGFMBJJAFIGFCICHLHCBJICFDONHPMJBJMMKDK IKNJAMFNAJLAIJMCNKNHKGFLDKAOPFAMENAAODBGHAAMOFEMKDPGFCJNANFMAJHJC KBNHIEFMECEMJICAOFHMKFFHLKGKFEOEFGKKEJJKMGMCIKHEHOIMKJMOGAMOPOBJJ IDOHOKFEKGJDOJBFDAIBPKJAHFIEKHCGOOMBJOMHKGFLHAAIOFNGKKHOOLKMFMIKP DGOLOCFLDEFGFEDFPCKGLHIEMDJABLMOIBKJLJPDEBBIKFGDMLOJHGBHJNHDDBJML HFKHGOFLDNEMDLDLIFEBANKPKONDIHHIHHEJHCINCFMCMFGHDOBBMEEOOBIHPPDJA KPJAHJFBCOFGBMCBDBNJDGGOKPOABOEENHAJENMGMCHFHIAGIMMKKKPKIDKBHNKHG MFFNFNEPCGCEPAGGCHACJPHPOMPFFDAHFHADMNMEHIAPIGMAKNHDDAIFAHFHAJDAK APBBBPAPIMBEKBIFICIFLDMMMBLPMKFCBDBLCGIJMGNCKNONBDBHLOMPGDFBCCFON HHHHHHHPPHHHHHPPHPHPHHHHHHPPPHPHPPHPPPHHPPPHHHPPPHPHPHHHPHHPHPPHP

SOUTHBAY 4 Beds | 4/1 Baths | 5,337 Sq. Ft. | A4688995 | $5,999,999 Natalie Gutwein & Madison J Brown, 941.993.2660

SIESTA KEY 5 Beds | 6/1 Baths | 5,273 Sq. Ft. | A4686535 | $12,900,000 Nora Johnson, 941.809.1700

14 4 01 MA STHE AD DRIVE

AHEEEHAPEBEHCPAJMCNNHOKAADNAEIFIABGELHDDHBPLJBGBPDCFDAMGJPAHEEEHA BNFFFNBPIPMKEGBOIHMHFOEKMOMDIDAHFHALIOEDMGAPADILMLFHBDIPFPBNFFFNB PGPEICFDBADFCIEOKDLNKCJNMNAAKICFAGCNIFPPGNHDJLPEFFHHENOPFFHBIEAID ENMCGFFLCIJGKFNFNKEAJIGHKMHLABNCPNJKCFEECAHFCDKGGAHOEFGGONDCCKPDE AGJMBBFKGNIDIJFCLGIJNPFDMIJGEKJLECGMHMKFKLPPADOBGAKOJNPGJHOCEALEI OKLGFPFOADBHNALBKNPHGHCCDNIMGCPKBPHBNFHEEHHHNJEHEHHNAEPEEIFMEPAAN BGHMIKFIGJCCKBMDGKDGHHKLFCKJANBFCNMGLLFGENPHGFKHCLNOCCPGPHDHEDPJF NNDKAFFBMBMBNGDNFEKAEDOLPMEFDBMFJJAAEOKENBHDAHHBACDANFPAIJNJAAPFJ PBABANFMAMFPGMEFINMFPIEEEINODNAMFMADFNBOEMGCPFFDANGHCMHJBNENBLGJD AABLNMFPILKPKFFEIECLKBEKAKILADLEKBMGFDFECOPBFFDFAAFDELHLIAAPNNNJF GNJNEJFAHNKEAMHDGAAGAMBEFGNPBOKAJNJFIHDANEFHAFPHAGLFLIGDGBBENEPJI OCFMOBFHNEHPIHFOFFMDKPHBEEABALMFMEILCEHCFPPDNNMLAHPMALHLCMONNJIIC OPBLDOFEFAIDJELFLFBLCALKMFILJBGAJJIEPBFBOHOGCPMEADMDEFOLHFEEMILFE KPFAHBFLKCGINGEBHCOHLMNGCFKCAOHMKCAGFPDJMDHDEPHEEPLLPDOCHHBJOOLIJ MFFNFNEHABNAPDJIENODOHBPAGGPDJAHFHAMGCMCCNGEJHNEELOCCMHLAHFHAHCBL APBBBPAPKMFEPIDNLDIGHBIHBGKGJCDCGDBKDHCBAGHBEIDOCANLGGHMCHBDBHPCB HHHHHHHPPPHPHPHHHHHPHPHPPPPHHHPHPHHHHHHHPHHPHHHHHPPPPPHPPHHPPHPHP

SARASOTA (WEST OF I-75) 4 Beds | 3/1 Baths | 2,820 Sq. Ft. | A4695249 | $1,915,000 Lenore Treiman & Amy Cullen, 941.356.9642

4981 HUBNER CIRCLE

AHEEEHAPJNAJHOPAPBOKOOEHLIPIOFCPEKADEHMPLOEEJLIIMBOIDDMGJPAHEEEHA BNFFFNBPNOIHALADFOBHNGJCBPFGNPAHFHAGJDAHJOIOFHNGEHADELIPEPBNFFFNB MDCCNAFIMELLLGBDDDEFNIELMMKHCIEDBBFPCPPAJCIOIIMBOLHADCLLFOMLMLHAK JEFMHBFFHCJGHEDCEDBFIBEEJFEJKKPJGMLIFBJFNFENOPGBHJIEMMEHCBPHFODPA ACPKPHFIAIOPJHAGICAIJOBOBOEFEEHBOBDACGNFOLHHDEJLIAFJOKHOOAJPMIODP AHKKODFCAOAPOPDJEDDJHDPONDNAMCPCKOHPLJMAHBJJOJEJKJGMBFBKFJFCMFFBM LHMNEJFNLGNPPALOKCAEOPOMDCONAEBDMPAEJAALMEEBKJOEBJAHMJEGAOPADOBFJ FHOHEFFNAOGEHELKCBPCKELKKKJDLGAFNBIIIFEBIBHLFCLJICECKNHEMFBBMEOCP CKELAMFNBCMAPJIKJCFPNMMKPGMNOHBNEMAMPNMBHIBMOAENKPOFFCJPAMFMADFIL DGNHLEFMEGBMJMLFICIDGNNGOLGLKAPDIPACBGIKOGFDJCHFBCBIKBEOAJMFOOBEJ JHHAIJFLOCBCJHMKNKCLDJICGHIMEHCLKEFGBENHKCBAJAAJKFEBOCHMDDKMFMIGP DHOODAFKKFHKLBGCMFPDADNMMHNABLDMHDNMELGCEBBNKGMDKKHOHGAHLNHDDHPAK BBLLELFOOIPOAPDGBGIFLHMHOAECHHFLPPBOIIJDMFMCKHECDAALOFNMOMAHPJHPB CDBAPNFCPHADBOBJOJLHIIHOKBGCKAPENBBOKGNGMDOEHIAJMFGMOLOIIGPAGPOHO MFFNFNEPCMJONIOMELIMNAMKHKHJGIAHFHAFODAEHCBIOHMCIFHDDOBFAHFHAFHAK APBBBPAPIIBIMHKNBDLFLIPKFEJDKOBGAAHNCOIIMPEDMEHNBDBHKMMPGDFBCKHON HHHHHHHPPHPHHHHHHHPPPHPPPPPHHPHHPPPPPPHHPHHHHPHPPHPPPPHHPHHPPHPHP

8 8 89 ENCL AVE COURT SILVER OAK 3 Beds | 2/1 Baths | 3,080 Sq. Ft. | A4696410 | $1,550,000 Judy Nimz, 941.374.0196

7320 BARCL AY COURT

AHEEEHAPEJMNBGEPCLMHJOFCNDBKMMGEEKCKKGCDHNDHBDEHPBAMLNMGJPAHEEEHA BNFFFNBPIOMDBKIGMGIOAGMKNOJDIDAHFHACIKFDNGAHAKILFPFGJHIOEPBNFFFNB OGNDPDFEHLBFJMIECPBCHEKBKDPMBFGFACHHIPPKCMGFJJFMGMPJGOHHHBFANHAID CBILPDFBPPGPMHMAIFMJIDJHKENPJDFIDICKLBHHEEHHCDKIADEOEMHHNNDAABPDM MKAMEMFPOAPLPOLEDGMLFCFKICJLGIDEECAPBIDDJJOMGCOFCOKOJCOGJHOFEAJEI NLIGLHFOPECMMKDPFPMHGLLECJLKPHIPOOHDNMGCCMPPLAMFAHHMAMHEEJEOEFGAN GHIDIKFNOPKDNJFGEJBLHDGBHAHHFDLLCGLHLDMGEGHAGEDHCLNGGEHJNGDFGDNIF LNKMMJFJINCAGBDNFCBMHBMIJDALONIJBFIKBOLBNCPDAJPBAKKBNFPHINFBEEJEJ BNJFANFMBEALNIILGHJHAHBJFEFIJLANFNAJOJFHEOOCPEMECGOEEMHFBMENBJCKC JKBLMBFPIMIPKFAFCGEKCKADBLKKNNMBKNPOCDMGAGFBEHCGAFNGEDHJIEAKMNNJE DHFOPBFEKBGELKMLOKNDKMNCHGGMGPKLOMJMFMDANMPCAJGDGMDINBHEPMJENEPJI AMCBFGFKNFFNHKHLBEBCCCDBBKPBACEBHGOBGHODEPPHNNNJCEOJEHPLAFPNNLMDL CPINFHFGAGEOJIPELDMEOAJKMKLPOLDHEMAJGBEKAGPAEBKDEDEDEEHJOEMEMHPJM OHBIDFFJGBJPNGEJFCMHGOCGCFHNBGEMKMAFJEKELKPNGPHMEGLPPCHGLFFDOGJIJ MFFNFNEPAPANIGFMKFOOHODOGHCMPIAHFHABCNAFAOPEJGNMEPECCPHLAHFHAJGBL APBBBPAPKFBOHGBJMDLGHGODMJFCOEFEDCDILPKEAGHKGJLOCANKGHPMCHBHBJPCB HHHHHHHPPHPHHPHHHPHPHHPPPHHPHHHPHPHHHHHHPPPPHPHHHPPHPHHPPHHHHPPHP

UNIVERSITY PARK COUNTRY CLUB 4 Beds | 5/1 Baths | 7,579 Sq. Ft. | A4665937 | $4,249,000 Bernadette Caswell, 941.320.8265

AHEEEHAPEBEHCPAJMCNNHGCFJLOEGOBMABGELGCDHBPLJBGBPDCFDIMGJPAHEEEHA BNFFFNBPILMKEGBOIHMHFOECJOBDIGAHFHALIKEDMGAPADILMLFGBDIOFPBNFFFNB PGPEICFDBHPFCIEOKDLPLCJKENIAKDEFAGCMIFPPGMGDJLPEFFHNGNOMGFHBIEAND ENMCGFFLCBIGKGOFNKELFIGHKMHLAJFCPNJDJFEECFGFCDKHGAHIEFGEONDCCKPDE AGJMBBFKHJEDIBJALGIBAPFDMIJGEKJLECGMOMKFKBPPACPDEAKOJNPGJHOCEALEI PKLGFPFIJDBHNKHFLNNHGHCCDNIMGCPKBPHLBFHEEHHGNAFBEHHNAEPEEIFMEPAAN OAMLJLFPFJCBKNEGAOAGHHKLFCKJANBFCFNGLLFGENPCCPKHCLNOCCPGPHLHEDPJF MBGBEJFBMBMEDGDNFMKAECMLPMEFDBMFJBIAEOKENBHHAHHBAKCANFPAIJNJAAPFJ LBOBBMFNAMFLHMEFINIFPMDEEINKNNAMFMADFNBOGMGCPFFDAHOHCMHJBNENBLGJD AABLPPFPILKPKFFEIECLKPMKAIJLHDLEKHHGFDFEAOPBFFDFAAFDEKHLIAAPMNNJF GNJNPNFAHNKEAMHDGAAGAENEJBPBFOKKFNJFIHDANEFHAFPHAGLFLCPDGBBENEPJI OCFMOBFHNEGPIHFOFFMDKPHCEDNBABNEBEILCEHCFPPDNNMLAHPMALHLCMONNIOIC OPBLDOFEFHNDJELFLFBAHALFPJILJGGEJJIFOBFBOGOGCPMEADMBCFOLEFEEMILAE KPFAHBFLKIPINFFBHCOPHMNGCFKCAKAMKCAJFPDJMJHDEPHEEPLLPDOALHBJOOLAB MFFNFNEHABBAPDGFANOAFHBPAGGPDJAHFHAPFCMCCHGEJGMOALOCCMHLAHFHAHCBL APBBBPAPKMFEPJEBIBIGHBIHBGKGJCDCGDBEFHCBAGHBEIDOCANLGGHMCHBDBHPCB HHHHHHHPPPHPHHHPPPHPHPHPPPPHHHPHPHHHHHHHPHHPHHPHHPPPPPHPPHHPPHPHP

SARASOTA (EAST OF I-75) 4 Beds | 4 Baths | 4,036 Sq. Ft. | A4694865 | $2,400,000 Lisa Allen & Lindsay Nock, 312.848.1636

OSPREY 3 Beds | 3/1 Baths | 2,665 Sq. Ft. | A4684834 | $2,995,000 Mackenzie Longueuil, 941.961.4023

1428 PINE BAY DRIVE

313 LOOKOUT POINT DRIVE

AHEEEHAPJNIJJCBFFMDJDOEDEBHGCPALAPHLIEMPLKEIBNLCMANIDHMGJPAHEEEHA BNFFFNBPNPJKMHFPNKFPFKEDFONGNCAHFHAPNDAHJOIHJDJPECBPALJPEPBNFFFNB PHCCJEFNOOKHAKJHEMFOOHMMKIEPOOGDBCFLLDHBJCIKIIMCKFHEFCJAEOMKKMBEK HLDNNPFNGDCFDHAEEKAIHKNEJOLAKLHMPIPNPJJIMOFGOPGEBKBCOHEFCBPHDLHPI MCGAPJFDJMDAMAIFIGAKGBDALOKHIFDGONLNEOMGOJGMGFJLOANJOLOOOAJKMEIDP CEBGGNFFLIJMDNCDIABJHIFALDBCMKKHAOHPNJPADAAIOAEJOJGMBIBKFJEBKJDBM CIMOEIFPIPOGLLBEGCKADPGEKAFKICIBOCNEICIKMEEDIDHEBIBGMNOKADOHHIHBJ KGEJIBFNMNAPMOEKCFDMCHKDDAOMEIEBJFMNANMCKJPFFDJJICEJONHNMNJNIMMGG HELABNFMBHCKKGBOFIABOJPEHCMPGBBNFNALGMMDHCIMOOMJIAOEDDIDANFMBDHEO GKNHGIFMEMHMJGJMKBMFOCCDDJHJEGNOAMOMDDJIKMNCIJOBHFJNNIFMIOMEPOBNA DNKAAMFFLOBAKNJGNEPFBGBPHMHEMHCGIOMPDEEHKCBLDAALIGNCIBHMJLOMFMIOP CIMDDCFFGEGKIKAPLLKAPEGEJKPABMLNDPCDNCPCEBBLIHMEOLGLDOJDLEPDDCNEC MFMHFDFOGMHOLDDPNGMEDNMNFLHPPLAKBPHFKKDCMENEOFOEBCJFMOFOGMMHPKHJI CHNILNFLAIOGJMDOPGAIOFMOKJOOKIJENJDAIIFGKKHDDIAAKFEIIAGMILGBFMKHG MFFNFNEHCFINNEPJBDMDGDJOGEFGOJAHFHAFBCBDDCAKIHMEOFPDDAJFAHFHADFAK APBBBPAPIALNDPGPIDLFLIEKEBEOENDFHBFJIMGGIHEHKPHNBDBHKENPGDFECOBON HHHHHHHPPPHPHPPPHHPPPPHPPPHPPPHHPHHPPPHHPPHPHHPPPHPPPPHHPHHHHPPHP

80 96 GR ANDE SHORES DRIVE

AHEEEHAPEBECOFEDAEHLPJGOGHJIMMCMMAGCFHDDHNDNPMENLBDEDBMGJPAHEEEHA BNFFFNBPIOIOILIKNHFKJCILNHFDICAHFHAOILFCMGAPEHIHALFCFGJOFPBNFFFNB JCJFNFFGEGJPGAIIBDBAKDEPKGEMAJDFAGBBNNHICMGEJBNMCFPPCPHHHFFFODGID DBBGLGFNOOIFCENIONLLFHNHKMCJKOPECICOCDMEGFGDCDKKELNOAEHEONDHDLPDE ICKACKFOFKACOLMFMKIACAEKDOGLIEGDBGOEDMDGJBHMACOHAEIOJCHGJHOAGCLEI NIKONNFEKKEEBOMFGMOHGOADFDDEAAFBOPGFFHOBCNHGLIEDGHHMAMPEEIFPAPEAN IEOBJKFEBCHFHCFGNNOCCLGODGALHMACPCBGKBENBNPIGEDHCKNEGEHJPGLGEBPJF NCGAMFFFMLOLDDGNFMDPKBPDEKMDBPIJFJAGAEKFPBGBEKOBACKGPFPNIBNFEOPAJ LDPKBMFMBFFLOAHDCEJDIILFCIJOFJAMENBBINBGGOOCPHMDEFODGNGNBMEMBDAEC COBLLCFPIEJPKDPPJKHANHPCNKIJJJNMAIPADCFCEEPBEHKMANFFGKHLOHIHMNNFF FLMJGGFLOFOFMAGBBMNBEGAGMAIMFOKDAFCJJPLANMHHCFOBAGCBJLOCEFBENEPJI NIFAFGFALHHDELGOPNDFLLAMHMKBAOLHDLMNCIGDEPPCNEFIFOHNECHLBEKNNOMFD DPCGPJFBJHAIIMPOLKBIKHNOPFLOBLNIIOCNDJNKEHPDCJCHGDFFAIHNKAIEMJJIE OHBIDNFAKBIINEHIMOOJKGOGCCHBMNHMKOFBEHDHJAPKEPHPAMKLJDOADEJHNINAB MFFNFNEHILDHJNFLIJGDHGFLPFFNGJAHFHAFBDMDCOPHLGMIEDGCCMHLAHFHADEBL APBBBPAPKPJDCMEMABLGHFNKHOJBPNDACEBOHHKCEMHIABDOCANKGMGMCHBGEDPCB HHHHHHHPPPPHPHHHPPPPPHHHHHHPPHHPHPHHHHHHPHPPHPHHHPPHPHPPPHHPHHPHP

WATERSIDE - LAKEHOUSE COVE 3 Beds | 3/1 Baths | 3,531 Sq. Ft. | A4698212 | $2,000,000 Victoria "Tori" Turner & Steve Swank, 662.614.2783

AHEEEHAPJNIEBMMFABOOLKGPIIPGONKLANKHIEOPLCMIFNKCMAOJPHMGJPAHEEEHA BNFFFNBPNLJCMOELNPEPALBLMPAGNHAHFHADACBGJOIHFGNDEDADELIPEPBNFFFNB JAGFJEFNIICLMGFPLNFHJDILGLJBLGCDBHDDHLOOHCINIKOKLLGIHDAJGMOPOKBEK HOAOKGFIOICFJEBJBJHGHEKEJPLHMCOBDBFGAGIIOGFGOPGEFDLCMGFHCBPBBJDHI IOOLGJFDBCHLAGBNLOAMEICLEAOBDCBDDFBJCENCNJHHHFILMINJOFHOOAJKMIMDP BGKHEBFEGCAJDCPCHCCJHGDMNDJNHMBEAPGHLLGFFJJIMJENIJGMBKBKFIFCKBBBM EHAOEIFKJFOGOKMPIBNFLLGIGBGFMOCGODPFIIJKIOMBODGEBJBCOBMFDLPEHADFJ GPMJMFFFIGLAFOEKCKNIDEKDHEDCEJENNBIIMGNDKJPPFAAJIKFHKNHIMNJBIIICO JDCLANFMANEHGCFEJLKLOHFKKGMOJDAMEMBNLDAPHCIMOEENOJPGDCJHAMFNBFHIC DDNHPCFMEHGMJGJIEHBIGFNJDJHKAAIHGAJFGAJMKNMCJJPGDDJPIIMIEMMIOOBFJ OFOKFDFIAKNMIEAEBIIOHDOEDAGOEGCFNKONAPEHKMNPHCIPIOMCMIOLBGGMFMIOP AMENPPFJMGFBGJEPELCNLOGCHBLABOMHFFJFMKGDEBBNMMNFOJOMBNJFDNPDDDPJD NMNHPNFHJEHAKHHJHGCJJMHLFOAHFOMDOFEGMCJNCEMFODAHDAAPIGNIKJIHPLHMJ CHBEDJFDNLEAFNBGAKGIDLKOKNNFHKHENFHMJHEOLLPLDIAMMHMOKLGOMAGBGGMHG MFFNFNEPCEIOBMJOJDALPGABOIHOCHAHFHAALMNDDJIKIHNAOFPDDCJFAHFHAJDAK APBBBPAPIAJHMCJBBDJFLNEECFGKFBABCHFJIEONMFECIEPNBDBHKFEPGDFACEDON HHHHHHHPPPHPPHPHHPHHHPHHHHPHHPHPPHHPPPHHPPPHHHPPPHPPPHPHPHHHHPPHP

3942 HAMILTON CLUB CIRCLE #13

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SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

JUNE 22-26

ADAM HUGHES

Other top sales by area

RESEARCH EDITOR

S

heree Heap Sibley, trustee, sold the home at 846 N. Casey Key Road to Sandstrand LLC for $4.5 million. Built in 1961, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,481 square feet of living area. It sold for $312,500 in 1986.

SARASOTA

BUNGALOW HILL Corey and Megan Scott sold their home at 948 Citrus Ave. to EchoPoint Properties LLC for $2.95 million. Built in 2017, it has four bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths, a pool and 3,266 square feet of living area. It sold for $2.93 million in 2022.

THE MARK SARASOTA Cathy and Robert Dwyer sold their Unit 1204 condominium at 111 S. Pineapple Ave. to Kenneth Kuettner, trustee, of Marco Island, for $2.6 million. Built in 2019, it has three bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths and 2,845 square feet of living area. It sold for $2,449,000 in 2020.

GREENWICH Edward Stolarski and Blair Ashley Stolarski, of Sarasota, sold their home at 2215 Datura St. to John Cannon Gibson and Betty Lee, of Sarasota, for $1.83 million. Built in 2018, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,319 square feet of living area. It sold for $820,000 in 2018.

THE LANDINGS Corey Alexandre Cowper, trustee, of Sarasota, sold the home at 4689 Pine Harrier Drive to John Clemente and Elizabeth Fleming Clemente, of Sarasota, for $1.65 million. Built in 1986, it has four bedrooms, threeand-a-half baths, a pool and 3,103 square feet of living area. It sold for $700,000 in 2008.

BAY PLAZA James and Joann Grace, of New York City, sold their Unit 408 condominium at 1255 N. Gulfstream Ave. to Wilson Stiles, of Sarasota, for $1,225,000. Built in 1982, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 2,080 square feet of living area. It sold for $1,249,500 in 2021.

ALINARI Alan Kesten, trustee, of Sarasota, sold the Unit 1217 condominium at 800 N. Tamiami Trail to Freeman Smith and Sean Marie High-Smith, of Sarasota, for $1.18 million. Built in 2007, it has two bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 1,830 square feet of living area. It sold for $710,000 in 2018.

RISDON ON 5TH Kenneth and Zoe Folts, of Tempe, Arizona, sold their Unit 306 condominium at 1350 Fifth St. to Alan Sutherland and Denise Sutherland, trustees, of Sarasota, for $960,000.

Built in 2019, it has three bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths and 1,836 square feet of living area. It sold for $850,000 in 2021.

REAL ESTATE

Casey Key home tops sales at $4.5 million

RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE TRANSACTIONS

21

SARASOTA: $4,195,000

Kentwood Estates C.L. Swanson Family Corp. sold the home at 1575 Eastbrook Drive to Alistair Jessiman and Deborah Jessiman, of Sarasota, for $4,195,000. Built in 2025, it has four bedrooms, five-and-a-half baths, a pool and 4,068 square feet of living area.

SIESTA KEY: $2.6 MILLION Courtesy of realtor Adnan Dedic

The home at 1575 Eastbrook Drive was built in 2025 and has four bedrooms, fiveand-a-half baths, a pool and 4,068 square feet of living area.

BAYVIEW Michelle Scott, of St. Petersburg, sold two properties at 1760 and 1762 Wisconsin Ave. to Blubell Investments LLC for $950,000. The property at 1760 was built in 1948, has five bedrooms, three baths and 1,815 square feet of living area. The property at 1762 was built in 1948, has one bedroom, one bath and 360 square feet of living area. They sold for $225,000 in 2017.

Michelle Scott, of St. Petersburg, sold her home at 1761 Siesta Drive to Blubell Investments LLC for $800,000. Built in 1949, it has three bedrooms, three baths and 2,020 square feet of living area. It sold for $285,000 in 2017.

LA LINDA TERRACE Patricia Elmone, trustee, of Sarasota, sold the home at 2254 Hawthorne St. to Danilo ZunigaPedrianes and Robert Petrillo, of Sarasota, for $949,000. Built in 2018, it has three bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 2,332 square feet of living area. It sold for $1,195,000 in 2025.

in 1966, it has two bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,474 square feet of living area. It sold for $212,000 in 2017.

SOUTH GATE David and Louise Kolin, of Sarasota, sold their home at 2904 Homasassa Road to Alexandra Rae Thompson, of Sarasota, for $570,000. Built in 1964, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,386 square feet of living area. It sold for $552,300 in 2023.

Summer Cove on Siesta Peter and Deborah Hilger, of Tampa, sold their Unit 704C condominium at 1660 Summerhouse Lane to Jim Gans, trustee, of Sarasota, for $2.6 million. Built in 2007, it has three bedrooms, threeand-a-half baths and 2,490 square feet of living area. It sold for $1,825,000 in 2007.

PALMER RANCH: $1.08 MILLION

Arbor Lakes on Palmer Ranch Eapen John and Maneesha Lal, of Marietta, Georgia, sold their home at 6347 Anise Drive to Praleshkumar Gunvantray Patel and Sucharita Biswas, of Sarasota, for $1.08 million. Built in 2015, it has six bedrooms, five-and-a-half baths and 5,077 square feet of living area. It sold for $667,000 in 2017.

NOKOMIS: $2.29 MILLION

ONLINE See more transactions at YourObserver.com.

Casey Cove Elaine Ocamb and Braden Sharrer, as personal representative, of Venice, sold the home at 908 Casey Cove Drive to SourceOne Development GP for $2.29 million. Built in 2000, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,813 square feet of living area.

HARBOR HOUSE WEST Philippa Felicity Maroney, trustee, of Sarasota, sold the Unit 32 condominium at 226 Golden Gate Point to Thomas and Melissa Pasta, of Edgewater, Maryland, for $775,000.

Built in 1968, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,454 square feet of living area. It sold for $525,000 in 2018.

SUNNYSIDE PARK

Ashlyn June Falahee, of Sarasota, sold her home at 2280 Sunnyside Place to Robert Falahee, trustee, of Sarasota, for $750,000. Built in 1959, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,473 square feet of living area. It sold for $330,600 in 2020.

BELLEVUE TERRACE Myron and Ramona Stoltzfus, of Sudlersville, Maryland, sold their home at 3018 Browning St. to Jie Hu and Leilei Ying and Amber Hu, of Sarasota, for $615,000. Built in 1958, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,344 square feet of living area. It sold for $565,000 in 2021.

GULF GATE Gina LaRouche, of Sarasota, sold her home at 2486 Breakwater Circle to Abigail Avis Chase, of Lebanon, Pennsylvania, for $570,000. Built

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These are the largest city of Sarasota building permits issued for the week of June 22-26, in order of dollar amounts.

CITY OF SARASOTA Permit

Applicant

Amount

2175 Sunnyside Lane

Pool/Spa

Brad Dees

$120,000

The Edge Sarasota | 941.866.3068 | From Mid $3M Sales Gallery at 1801 Main Street | TheEdgeSarasota.com

435 S. Gulfstream Ave. #303 Remodel

Joseph Wietecha

$45,882

941.951.6650

1100 Imperial Drive

Remodel

Thana Sakas

$45,000

MSCDeveloperServices.com

1671 South Drive

Re-roof

Alex Ramos

$39,200

1738 Siesta Drive

Windows

Ryan Adamson

$37,000

3003 Bay St.

Windows

Samuel Stoltzfus

$32,094

1826 Boyce St.

Re-roof

Grant McGowan

$28,917

1651 Floyd St.

Driveway

Paul Cardi

$25,000

1610 S. Orange Ave.

Plumbing

Brian Glassel, trustee

$22,993

3300 Winton Ave.

Pergola

Merlyn De La Perez

$20,000 Source: City of Sarasota

Prices as of January 2025

Issa Homes at SeaFlower | 941.491.7879 From $1.29M | SeaFlower.IssaHomes.com

463722-1

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SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

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BEST BET FRIDAY, JULY 10

PARK AND RECREATION MONTH — FIELD DAY AT RLTCC 9:30-11:30 a.m. at Robert L. Taylor Community Complex, 1845 34th St. Free for all ages. The event, held in celebration of Parks and Recreation Month, will include Italian ice, sports games, classic backyard games and a dunk tank, where attendees can try to soak the Park and Rec staff.

Visit SarasotaFL. gov.

COMMUNITY FRIDAY, JULY 10

941-280-1479

TheGroutMedic.com/Sarasota

MOTE SEA MORNING FAMILY YOGA 8-9 a.m. at Mote SEA, 225 University Town Center Drive. $30 per child and one adult. There is no better way to begin the day than with zen, connection and oceanic scenes.

Samskara Yoga is a family-friendly yoga practice that helps control breathing, movement and stretching through playful poses. Families will explore the deep connection with the ocean and themes of balance, curiosity and ways to care for the planet. The event is geared toward families with children 4-7. Visit Mote. org.

Veteran Owned & Operated Paul Kennedy

SATURDAY, JULY 11

AMERICA250 CELEBRATION AT SELBY LIBRARY 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Selby Library, 1331 First St. Free. Sarasota County Libraries and the Historical Resources will celebrate America250 with live music, presentations from Florida author Doug Alderson and family-friendly activities. The event also includes community art projects, history exhibits and interactive activities. Visit SarasotaFL.gov to see the full schedule of events.

Spend $30, GET $10 OFF!

463478-1

EXPIRES 7/24/2026

Anytime.

Anywhere.

Observer.

BUBBLES UNDER THE BANYANS — FEATURING SPHERES BUBBLE SHOW WITH BLAISE RYNDES 10 a.m. to noon at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, 1534 Mound St. Enjoy the fusion between art, science, magic and comedy from July 11 to Aug. 1. Ryndes has an extensive performance resume including Disney, Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital and Season 13 of “America’s Got Talent.” Visit Selby.org.

MONDAY, JULY 13

RIBBON CUTTING AT THE NATURE PARK- PHASE ONE 9 a.m. at Nature Park, 1000 Circus Blvd. Free. The city of Sarasota will host the ribbon-cutting ceremony in celebration of The Nature Park — Phase One. This will mark

Celebrating America’s 250th

phase one of the park’s project completion. This follows the park’s initial opening in December 2023. The ceremony will recognize highlights that include the planting of more than 200 native trees, installation of over 18,000 native shrubs and planned future amenities. Visit SarasotaFL.gov.

THE TAMÁS NAGY EKSPERIENCE WITH JACK BERRY (THE GARBAGE-MEN) 3-4 p.m. at Gulf Gate Library, 7112 Curtis Ave. First come, first seated.

Experience an uplifting and personal performance by Hungarian artist Tamás Nagy on guitar and vocals, Jack Berry on bass and Jared Johnson on drums. The performance will bring a personal touch through Tamás’ heritage and influences.

Discover what happens when culture and music come together. Visit SCGovLibrary.LibraryMarket.com.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 15

TAI CHI AND QIGONG 8 a.m. at the Sarasota Garden Club, 1130 Boulevard of the Arts. Free.

Learn and practice the ancient Chinese exercise forms of tai chi and qigong with Gail, who is a Level 3 graduate and certified tai chi and qigong instructor. Referred to as “moving meditation,” these exercises reduce stress and benefit the entire body and mind. Visit TheBaySarasota.org.

THURSDAY, JULY 16

OPEN MIC NIGHT 6-7:30 p.m. at Katy’s Cat Cafe, 1490 Boulevard of The Arts. Katy’s Cat Cafe hosts its monthly Open Mic, where attendees have five minutes to say whatever it is they want to say. This includes poetry, spoken word, stories, stand up and even journal entries. Calm your nerves or performance jitters with a kitten by your side. Registration starts at 6 p.m. Visit KatysCatCafe.com.

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463205-1

22

JULY 9, 2026

SPORTS

“My goals would probably be to win our district and then have five to six bombs (home runs).”

— Evan Poznanski, Sarasota Christian baseball SEE PAGE 25

FAST

BREAK

Private-turned-public Meadows Golf Club reopened June 19 under new management after filing for bankruptcy last summer.

JACK NELSON SPORTS REPORTER

A

rnold Palmer Golf Management posed a question to Michael Blair. The company asked if he’d be interested in checking out a new club it acquired in Sarasota.

Blair, employed by the company at Walt Disney World Golf since 2025, happily obliged. He made the trip from Orlando to see what was then The Meadows Country Club with his own eyes.

“I was very excited about it,” Blair said. “I saw tremendous potential in the opportunity to revitalize the club, and I felt that we could do great things in this area.”

The club faced financial disaster at this time last year. Now, under new management and bearing a new identity, it hopes to card more birdies than bogeys.

Meadows Golf Club opened June 19 for public play, welcoming golfers from all over the area to its restored 18-hole Meadows Course.

It also features an 18-hole Groves Course, which is still undergoing turf improvements and will open to the public in November, per Blair.

In July 2025, then-The Meadows Country Club filed Chapter 7 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida, shuttering its facilities. That marked the end of nearly five decades in the golfing business dating back to the opening of its first course in 1976.

Arnold Palmer Golf Management, however, swooped in. It has overseen the club’s courses since March 9 and reports to Benderson Development, which signed a long-term lease with The Meadows Community Association earlier this year for the rights to operate the property.

The signature red, yellow, white and green umbrella — synonymous with one of golf’s all-time greats — is attached to this new beginning.

“We don’t do (that) lightly. We’re very selective in the clubs that we associate with,” said Blair, the general manager. “But we really felt like this was a hidden gem of an opportunity to bring a previously private club into a public forum and present great golf opportunities for the whole city of Sarasota.”

A number of different companies managed the club’s courses over the years.

Troon managed from

Photos by Jack Nelson

The course updates being done at Meadows Golf Club include new flags and flagsticks on all 36 holes. Once restoration of the Groves Course is completed in November, the club will be able to accommodate even more golfers.

Jack Nelson

Elijah Golden was a dominant force in the trenches during his time with Cardinal Mooney football. The 6-foot-4, 292-pound defensive lineman is now preparing for his freshman season with Notre Dame.

Out of the

rough?

N

Meadows Golf Club off Longmeadow Road in Sarasota has been with Arnold Palmer Golf Management since March 9. The company restored its 18-hole Meadows Course and is working to restore its 18-hole Groves Course.

As one of many golf clubs in Sarasota, Meadows Golf Club hopes to set itself apart by offering year-round public play on “premium quality” courses, per General Manager Michael Blair.

2022-25 after acquiring ICON, which managed from 2020-22. Billy Casper Golf Management — also acquired by Troon in 2021 — was in charge from 2015-20.

Arnold Palmer Golf Management, based in Dallas, is tasked with turning a recent failure into a rousing success.

To do so, it has brought the formerly private club into the public eye.

That’s the reason behind the rebrand of Meadows Golf Club.

“Country club” carries a private, exclusive connotation whereas “golf club” carries a public, inclusive connotation.

Unlike many clubs in Sarasota, this one will be open to the public yearround. It seeks to distinguish itself from public competitors like Bobby Jones Golf Club and Serenoa Golf Club.

Some such as University Park Country Club are private, but open to the public during the summer.

Others are private year-round and entirely unavailable to nonmembers.

“There’s a niche in the marketplace for premium golf course quality at a middle tier that we fit into perfectly — during the summer and during the winter,” Blair said.

Sam Schriber, a Sarasota resident and golf instructor, has become a regular on the Meadows Course. He played the Groves Course before the club filed for bankruptcy.

He had “no prior attachment” to the club, but now spends his time and money there instead of at other clubs nearby.

“It’s convenient being so close,” Schriber said. “They have range balls that aren’t so worn through that they don’t have dimples anymore, so the range is pretty good.”

Since reopening last month, Meadows Golf Club has averaged over 150 golfers per day. The average course in Sarasota hosts about 75 rounds of golf per day during the

summer, per Blair.

He sees the club’s numbers as “phenomenal” for this time of year and has received “rave reviews” from those who have played the restored Meadows Course.

“I’ve played it quite a few times now,” Schriber said. “It’s in great shape, and it’s a lot better bang for your buck than anywhere else I’ve found.”

Blair attributes much of Meadows Golf Club’s early popularity to its “Players Club,” of which, Schriber is a member.

Members can schedule tee times five days in advance for 25% off standard fare, pay just $20 for 18 holes after 2 p.m. in the summer and hit one medium bucket of balls per day, among other benefits.

Membership was initially priced at $30 per month. It’s since been upped to $40 after 400 were sold over the past three weeks.

Blair believes top-notch hospitality is most crucial for any golf club to succeed in this day and age. He’s intent on translating that belief to Meadows Golf Club.

“You’ve got to treat people like they are the most important thing at that moment every day,” Blair said.

“Greeting them, taking their clubs, putting them on a cart ... Everybody is here to help you have a good time ...

If you’re doing those things, people are going to come back.”

An 18-hole golf course, he said, can typically accommodate no more than 250 players per day. He also said that number could be the norm during the winter if their momentum continues.

His confidence that Meadows Golf Club will stay in the green and out of the rough comes from what he’s seen since their doors opened.

“We’re filling the golf course, far beyond what they ever did before,” Blair said.

MICHAEL BLAIR’S BACKGROUND

Meadows Golf Club’s general manager has an extensive background in golf, dating back much further than his previous position at Walt Disney World Golf from 2025-26.

From 1981-88, Blair served as general manager for various clubs with Club Corporation of America.

He managed Canyon Crest Country Club in Riverside, California; Crow Canyon Country Club in Danville, California; Metropolitan Club in Denver; and La Cita Country Club in Titusville.

He was also general manager for The RitzCarlton Golf Club in Orlando from 2003-06.

Later on, he worked as assistant general manager for the American Golf Corporation in Long Beach, California, from 2008-13.

otre Dame rising freshman defensive lineman Elijah Golden, who played for Cardinal Mooney football from 2024-25, collected a unique honor late last month. He was named the fastest among all collegiate defensive tackles in EA Sports College Football 27 — a video game which will be released July 9. His speed is set at 85 on a scale of 1-99. Golden was a four-star recruit, per 247Sports, and ranked No. 116 nationally by ESPN for the Class of 2026. He powered the Cougars’ defensive line with a team-high 17.0 sacks and 39.0 tackles for loss en route to the FHSAA Class 2A state title. Notre Dame went 10-2 last season and infamously withdrew from bowl game consideration after missing out on the 12-team College Football Playoff. ... Cardinal Mooney football’s Amarian McRae earned an offer from Boston College on July 2, marking his 13th from an NCAA Division I FBS program.

That list includes several Power Four schools like Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, UCLA and Notre Dame. The rising sophomore defensive back/ wide receiver played primarily on defense last season and recorded 35 tackles, 19 pass breakups and two interceptions.

The Cougars held six opponents to 10 points or fewer with him in the fold. Their season opener is set for 7 p.m. Aug. 21 at home against Berkeley Prep. ... Owen Ayers, who graduated from Sarasota High in 2019, has continued to hit well since promotion to the Knoxville Smokies — Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs — on April 21. The 25-year-old catcher carries a .311 batting average, 15 home runs and 41 RBIs with the Smokies, as of July 5. Overall this season, he owns a .321 batting average and .436 on-base percentage through 70 games.

This is Ayers’ third season in the pros following time spent with Marshall (2023-24) and the State College of Florida (2019-22). He was selected by the Cubs with the 572nd overall pick in the 19th round of the 2024 MLB draft.

ROWING FORWARD PAGE 24

24

YourObserver.com

SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

NELSON’S NOGGIN

JACK NELSON

In this boat together Sarasota rowing programs pull together to close the gap between them and the national hotbeds of the sport.

Y

national championships in every event we enter, and sometimes it’s like, ‘Oh man, we wish we could be better,’” Brown said. “But when you look at the population we’re drawing from compared to the population a lot of those places are drawing from, it’s pretty impressive (what we’ve accomplished).”

The Crew serves around 500 youth rowers during the year, and that number has increased in Brown’s six years with the organization. As of December 2025, the Scullers had about 35 rowers, per head coach Bernhard Stomporowski. Manatee County currently supports around 40, and has grown by 38% since Courtney Schleifer took over as head coach and program director in September 2024, she said.

“The community wanting to invest in the sport has really grown it,” Schleifer said. “From seeing it back in 2013 to now, it has well over doubled in size, just the rowing community as a whole, because of those efforts.”

Nathan Benderson Park has helped move the dial in Sarasota.

It’s a world-class venue, featuring the only permanent Class A 2,000-meter sprint rowing course in North America as recognized by World Rowing, the sport’s international governing body.

The six-story finish tower, opened in 2017, cost $5.8 million.

An events center and boathouse, expected to cost $60 million to $70 million, is planned to be finished by the time the venue hosts the World Rowing Championships in August, 2028.

Sarasota-Bradenton’s youth rowing scene has garnered more national — and even international

File image

Sarasota Crew’s U16 Women’s Eight races to a title at the 2025 USRowing Youth National Championships hosted by Nathan Benderson Park. The Crew had 16 entries at this year’s championships, but did not bring home a title.

— attention since the USRowing Youth National Championships began hosting its event in 2018. The park also hosted the 2017 World Rowing Championships.

It’s all a lot different than when Schleifer attended Cambridge Christian School from 2011-15.

Nathan Benderson Park actually opened in 2014.

“When I was in high school, it was actually a dirt lot,” Schleifer said of what would become Nathan Benderson Park. “I would not have described it as ‘world-class.’ When it rained, it was muddy. There was just dirt everywhere.”

Even now, with all the development at Nathan Benderson Park and enough organizations to serve the community, there are still many parts of the country where youth rowing is stronger. Schleifer saw that on her visits to Boathouse Row in Philadelphia and the Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston.

“No matter where you went — any hotel you went to — everybody was talking about rowing, because people from all over the world were there to compete,” Schleifer said. “Yes, (Sarasota-Bradenton)

is a powerhouse, but it’s more so become a melting pot for the international rowing community.”

Rowing has legitimate footholds in those heavily populated areas.

Sarasota-Bradenton continues to play catch-up nationally since the sport is less established.

For this area to have more success at the highest level, it must be aggressive in growing at the lowest level. It needs to pull even more kids into rowing and then find a way to keep them around.

Brown said the Crew program has historically attracted more youth rowers from the south side of Sarasota County than the north side.

The program would like to expand its reach into Lakewood Ranch.

“We’re looking at expanding our marketing, as well as the transportation options. It’s something the sport struggles with,” Brown said.

“Even with a world-class venue, you still need to get the kids to that venue. It’s not something that’s on campus.”

Those kids who Sarasota Crew, Manatee County Youth Rowing and Sarasota Scullers welcome into their respective programs also

need to be shown what truly can be accomplished in rowing.

That’s where Nathan Benderson Park and its annual events come in handy. Schleifer is intentional about bringing her rowers to major competitions whenever she can.

“I’ve loved making the sport of rowing — and the high level of it — accessible to the athletes,” Schleifer said. “That way, the athletes can see that it’s not far out of reach. Whatever they want to achieve within the sport is attainable.”

Youth rowing is already plenty strong in the Sarasota-Bradenton area. Where it was a couple decades ago doesn’t even compare to where it is now.

Still, there’s more work to be done to truly go oar to oar and boat by boat with the nation’s best.

Jack Nelson is the sports reporter for the East County and Sarasota/Siesta Key Observers. Contact him at JNelson@ YourObserver.com.

463574-1

outh rowing has exploded in the Sarasota-Bradenton area over the past few decades. That’s no secret among local coaches and athletes who have seen such growth firsthand.

While rowing is a niche sport, more youths want to be part of that niche. Rowing isn’t just something kids here try — many have tried it and then have stayed involved.

At the regional level, local organizations such as Sarasota Crew, Manatee County Youth Rowing and Sarasota Scullers have performed well in various competitions. They even have held their own against rowers from across the country.

At the USRowing Youth National Championships, held from June 11-14 at Nathan Benderson Park, Sarasota Crew’s 16 entries were tied for second most among all clubs.

The Crew regularly cracks the top five in that regard.

Los Gatos Rowing Club of California, though, captured an eventhigh four titles this year. Deerfield Academy of Massachusetts won the men’s eight, while RowAmerica Rye of New York won the women’s eight. Those would be considered hotbeds of rowing in the U.S. Could Sarasota be considered a hotbed of rowing? Perhaps, but not quite yet.

The next step in the evolution of this region’s rowing would be to become more competitive on the national stage.

Rick Brown, the Sarasota Crew CEO, pointed to the population differences between SarasotaBradenton and the more established rowing hotspots, and larger metropolitan areas like Boston, Philadelphia and San Francisco.

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What you have been up to this summer to prepare for next season?

I’ve been doing speed and agility three or four times a week, then I have baseball practice once a week for my travel ball team (Bay Area Pro). We’ve been playing all over Florida in tournaments. We play for five days, get the week off and then we play again.

What are your goals for your senior season with Sarasota Christian?

My goals would probably be to win our district and then have five to six bombs (home runs).

When and why did you start playing baseball?

I started playing baseball when I was 2 years old. That was my first sport I ever really got into, and from there, I really developed a love for baseball.

I just decided to stick with it. Even though it’s a game of failure, when you do succeed, it’s a really great feeling.

How did you improve from sophomore to junior year?

I switched my stance from a lowerwide to a taller and better bat position. Now, I’m starting to hit balls with backspin and they’re starting to fly out. Usually, they hit the wall.

I think baseball really supports growth in who you are as a person. God would also probably be a person who has helped me stay in baseball.

Which quote or piece of advice have you always carried with you?

Baseball is a game of failure. You succeed three out of 10 times. It’s a sport where you can fail and still be one of the best ever. All you have to do is play the best you can.

Struggling with Depression or Anxiety?

What’s a fun fact about you not many people know?

I can dunk a basketball.

Who is your favorite professional athlete and why?

Mike Trout. He’s a really good person. He was a good athlete in high school, obviously got drafted and now he’s a strong person to look up to.

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When he’s not fine-tuning his craft at the plate or in the infield, Evan Poznanski has worked on his speed.

That work paid off June 23, when the rising senior third baseman/ shortstop for Sarasota Christian baseball recorded the third-fastest 60-yard dash (6.85 seconds) at Prep Baseball’s West Florida Top Prospect Games. As a junior for the Blazers, he posted a .393 batting average, .525 on-base percentage, 29 RBIs and three home runs. Poznanski, known as “Poz” by his friends, is the Sarasota Athlete of the Week.

If you would like to make a recommendation for the Sarasota Observer’s Athlete of the Week feature, send it to Jack Nelson at JNelson@ YourObserver.com.

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

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WEATHER

SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

NATURE’S BEAUTY WITH

FORECAST THURSDAY, JULY 9

SUNRISE / SUNSET Sunrise Sunset

High: 95 Low: 80 Chance of rain: 12%

FRIDAY, JULY 10 High: 95 Low: 77 Chance of rain: 82%

Thursday, July 9

6:42a

8:28p

Friday, July 10

6:42a

8:28p

Saturday, July 11

6:43a

8:27p

Sunday, July 12

6:43a

8:27p

Monday, July 13

6:43a

8:27p

Tuesday, July 14

6:44a

8:27p

Wednesday, July 15

6:44a

8:26p

MOON PHASES

SATURDAY, JULY 11 High: 91 Low: 78 Chance of rain: 68%

July 14 New

July 21 First

July 29 Full

Aug. 5 Last

RAINFALL

SUNDAY, JULY 12 High: 90 Low: 78 Chance of rain: 34%

Monday, June 29

0

Tuesday, June 30

0

Wednesday, July 1

0

Thursday, July 2

Gordon Silver took this photo of a yellow-bellied warbler striking a pose at Celery Fields in Sarasota.

0.25

Friday, July 3

0

Saturday, July 4

0

Sunday, July 5

0.46

*Rainfall totals from Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport

Submit your photos at YourObserver.com/Contests. All submissions will be entered in the 2026-27 Weather and Nature photo contest. In February 2027, you will vote for your favorite photo, and the submission with the most votes will win a $500 gift card.

YEAR TO DATE: 2026 14.40 in.

2025 22.48 in.

MONTH TO DATE: 1.21 in.

2026 2025 0.28 in.

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Daily crossword puzzles available at YourObserver.com/crossword

By Luis Campos

47 South Bend’s state (Abbr.)

48 “Give ___ rest!”

52 Prefix for “amorous” 53 R&B singer Lennox 56 Tennis icon Arthur 57 Type of salami 58 501(c)(3) grps., etc.

61 See 14-Down 63 Insult 64 Chinese philosophy DOWN 65 Rustic stopovers 1 Haiku great Matsuo 67 First Nations group 2 They, in Spanish 68 “Take a Byte” singer 3 Coral ring Janelle 4 Tartare and sashimi 70 Suspect’s out 5 Some HS promgoers 72 Mont Blanc, e.g.

6 “Victory is ours!”

74 Oranges’ white parts 7 Oscar winner Cara 75 CEO, e.g.

8 Evergreen tree 76 Wedding vow 9 “Home run!”

77 Director DaCosta 10 Pilfer 78 Pumpkin dessert 11 Compensates 80 Person making a 12 HI instruments getaway 13 Long for 83 NBA tally 14 With 61-Down, mess 84 That woman up plans, or a hint to the 85 Contacted on Insta second way that six titles in 87 Betrayed by snitching this puzzle are transformed 90 Coder’s industry 15 2009 Disney princess 91 “That’s not so!” retort 31 Population’s stock of 60 Dutch flower 85 German article 16 Hunter constellation 92 Kicks out of a rental DNA 62 “The Blacklist” actor 86 Flashing light 17 Ivy League school that 94 Boat for rapids 33 Atkinson who plays Mr. James 88 Sworn statement sounds like a ballpoint 95 Patriotic song Bean 64 Bathroom flooring 89 Novella in which a 19 Humble 98 Cars 34 Change for a five 66 Harsh review traveler goes to the future 23 Major enthusiast 99 Smelled bad 36 NBC sketch show 67 Rom-com in which a ... to fix brake pads?

25 “Jumbo” suffix 100 Word after “free” or 37 Name that anagrams to comic artist ... tries to date 93 Wipe clean 29 Kick back and relax “talent” “eaten” lots of people at once?

96 Summer, in French 32 Hushed “Hey!” 101 Overused 39 Novel in which boys on 69 “___-ching!”

97 Far-reaching 35 Restaurant touch screen 102 Out of bed an island ... vie to take the 71 Gawked 98 City on the Nile button 104 False name best social media pics?

73 “Going already?”

100 Psychedelic experience 37 Madre’s hermano 105 “Inferno” poet 45 V-E Day conflict 74 Suffix for “cine” or 103 “Voila!”

38 Sleep lab test, for short 106 Emo emotion 49 Afternoon nap “biblio” 107 Crime film in which 39 Exam on “Suits” (Abbr.) 107 Labor safety org.

50 Suffix for “medal” or 76 Shoe cushion George Clooney ... doesn’t 40 Cover with grease 108 Savior “motor” 78 Anti-smoking ad, e.g. get the chicken he ordered?

41 Tangible investment 109 Pigmented eye part 51 Beagle’s loving owner 79 Japanese generation 110 Gimbap grain like gold 114 Bee product 54 Chicken ___ king hidden backward in “ties 111 Flair 42 Skater’s pelvis protector 115 Sgt., e.g.

55 Hardly suitable in knots” 112 Maze instruction 43 “Como ___?”

57 ___ long way (help a lot) 81 Veto 113 Surprising conclusion, 44 Rx-regulating org.

59 Tater Tots brand 82 Zero-calorie soda brand or a hint to the first way 46 Give an opinion about that six titles in this puzzle are transformed 116 Clown nose sound 117 Sportscaster Andrews 118 Hall’s pop partner 119 “Trench” garments 120 Inquires 121 Nearly all 122 Plow beasts 123 Initial stage

ACROSS 1 Teddies and grizzlies 6 Cafe amenity 10 Tater 14 Sporty car roof 18 Wedding vow site 19 Earn 20 Point of view 21 Give a job to 22 Spy thriller series in which Jack Lowden ... shampoos for hours?

24 Fatigue from excessive screen time 26 ___ dozen (six) 27 Japanese noodle 28 Mystery film in which Daniel Craig ... wears a tumbler-shaped patch?

30 Norwegian capital

Celebrity Cipher cryptograms are created from quotations by famous people, past and present.

Each letter in the cipher stands for another.

“ZAG LHZS HQGATF YPG GA BA GCVF: QTPHGP H UIXX QCHTHQGPT ... HZB GCPZ HQGIHXXS LHOP GCP QCAVQP GA QALP GA H QXAFP.”

FHZBTH AC

“RNG BMSGHV XHRCTR CT JMHDCVL JCRN TFXUG XVS RCBG, XVS GPFHGTTCVL NCT ZGGICVLT HXRNGH RNXV CIIATRHXRCVL.” OXUDTMV FMIIMUD

“HT HIUVPG HRFP JYGP NP VRF HIAPT DIG HP UI URSP KPJJIAJ, QYU NP FXFA’U VRZP HIAPT UI BI UI UVP UVPRUPG.” QPGARFPUUP OPUPGJ Puzzle Three Clue: F equals D

SCATTERPLOTS by Vu and Jessica Zetzman, edited by Taylor Johnson

©2026 Universal Uclick

celebrity cipher

Puzzle Two Clue: N equals H

crossword

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Puzzle Two Clue: T equals R

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This week’s Crossword answers

This week’s Celebrity Cipher answers

Puzzle One Solution: “Not many actors get to do this: Create a full character ... and then actually make the choice to come to a close.”

Sandra Oh Puzzle Two Solution: “The modern artist is working with space and time, and expressing his feelings rather than illustrating.”

Jackson Pollock Puzzle Three Solution: “My mother made sure we had money for me to take lessons, but we didn’t have money to go to the theater.”

Bernadette Peters

This week’s Sudoku answers

©2026 Universal Uclick

STEVE PANEBIANCO H R S

You’re only cheating yourself.

464972

Handyman

941.302.5850

Pinnacle Home Watch.com Stop Worrying About Your Home While Away

peekers’ place

464809

941-735-3362

SERVING SIESTA KEY & SARASOTA COUNTY

Administering medication 30+ years Exp. & Excellent References

CALL PINNACLE TODAY! 941-306-1999

Pegatronics.com

Accepting Credit Cards

Cat sitting & Cat/Kitten Introductions

Dave and Connie Grundy

Learn Computer Basics Phones/Tablet Help Apple & Microsoft Problems Solved On-Site and Off Much More! Call Today!

HANDYMAN SERVICES

Dog Walking (sm/md)

Home Watch

DON’T THROW YOUR COMPUTER OUT THE WINDOW – CALL LORITECH!

Carpentry • Painting Pressure Washing

Dog Sitting (sm/md)

The Only Thing You Have To Lose ... Is The Pain!!

New & Refurbished Computers Servicing PC & MAC on Site or In Shop Virus and Spyware Removal- Free Software We Make Windows 10 User-Friendly!

C.T. MALLETT

Serving South Sarasota Only including: Palmer Ranch – Osprey – Nokomis

www.SarasotaDiscCenter.com DrCifra@SarasotaDiscCenter.com

COMPUTER REPAIR SALES & SERVICE

941-929-9095

Pet Care by Melanie Gates

Midtown Medical Park 1215 S. East Ave. Suite 210 Sarasota, FL 34239

Computer

(Next to Beneva Flowers)

Pet Services

DR. DAVID CIFRA, DC

Call to reserve your ad space: 941-955-4888 YourObserver.com/RedPages

464813

5-Star Rated

HoHoBuysCars.com

Hardware Repair Virus / Malware Cleanup Software & Printer Install New Computer Setups New Purchase Consults Seniors & Beginners

DRGRABBARS.COM

*DRILLING CHARGES MAY APPLY FOR MARBLE, GRANITE OR PORCELAIN. COUPON REQUIRED. 464810

941.270.4400

INCLUDES22MOEN MOEN STAINLESS INCLUDES STAINLESS STEEL STEELANTI ANTISLIP SLIP CONCEALED PEEN CONCEALED SCREW SCREW GRAB GRAB BARS (16”BARS & 24”)(16” & 24”)

941.966.0333

www.ezslider.com

FAST • EASY • SAFE

249 235

* $ $235

$

463931

464808

Auto Service

DON DI STEFANO (941) 893.8475

CALL BEFOREYOU YOU FALL CALL BEFORE FALL

IN-HOAMTEES ESTIM

YoderAluminum.com

NEW AGAIN

Kitchen/Bath Remodeling

FREE

941.650.9790 941.650.9790 YoderAluminum.com

Owner /Insured Operator Insured

LOOK LIKE

463500

Dustin Yoder

Dustin Owner Yoder/ Operator

453820

WINDOWS be a PANE!!

GROUT

DO YOU HAVE LOOSE & HOLLOW TILES?

364556 463515

Aluminum

CALL 941-955-4888 YourObserver.com/RedPages

©2026 NEA, Inc.

28

YourObserver.com

SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

Rescreening & Repairs

Screening

Eldridge Re-Screen

SCREEN MACHINE

Serving Longboat Key Since 2005

RE-SCREENING

941-879-3136

Transportation

464420

BLACK LABEL CAR SERVICE “Luxury for Less”

Formerly known as Sunrise Windows

941 - 248 - 4734 463495

Roofing

All Florida Airports, Concerts & Dinners - Hourly Cruise Ships & Medical | See Specials at: www.blacklabelcarservice.com

UP TO

Trees

Kenneth Fuhlman Inc.

INCLUDING SCREENS, TRACKS, MIRRORS & FANS

Building & Roofing Contractor

463932

• Aluminum, Vinyl, & Wood Soffit and Fascia • Metal & Shingle Roofing • Pool Cage, Pan Roofs & Lania Fabrication • Aluminum Welding & Fabrication

941-626-3194 kennethfuhlmaninc.com

463494

Tree Removal Tree Trimming Lawn Maintenance and More!

20 years local experience Licensed & Insured

Screening

Pool Enclosure Specialists Established in 1989 Serving Our Area for Over 35 Years • Pool Enclosures • Front Entry Screens • Lanais • Concrete & Pavers

463498

Call Today: (941) 925-3200 info@bishopsaluminum.com

FREE ESTIMATES, CALL TODAY!

(941) 544.5663 | luislopezlanwservice@gmail.com

Find anything in the RED PAGES

SCC131150987

941-955-4888

TREASURES

found here.

Looking for something? Your lucky discovery is closer than you think.

RED PAGES Made for where you live. Here!

Call 941-955-4888 or visit YourObserver.com/redpages

160

25 $

STANDARD WINDOWS

SPECIAL 00 5

$

senior citizen discount.

www.sunsetwindowcleaningsrq.com

PURIFIED WATER WINDOW CLEANING AVAIL ABLE!!

Call Tibor for FREE ESTIMATES 941- 284 - 5880

CREATE BUZZ! Advertise your business or services in the Red Pages.

Call 941-955-4888

YourObserver.com/RedPages

463496

• Pet Screen • 20/20 No-See-Um Screening • We Paint Pool Cages

Licensed & Insured CCC - 058059 CBC - 1253936

Res. | Com. | Lic. | Ins.

464811

Screen Repair | Per Panel Pricing Building | Under Truss | Lanais | Entryways Prompt Estimates (usually no visit necessary)

“No Job Too Small” Insured

941-270-1561

Windows

410036

Licensed

29

ACTIVE | 6154 MIDNIGHT PASS ROAD, #7C | CASA BLANCA VILLAS SIESTA KEY | $620,000 | WEB# A4687416

ACTIVE | 612 LAUREL ROAD W | BAYFRONT ACREAGE | NOKOMIS $5,495,000 | WEB# A4694029

1350 MAIN STREET, SARASOTA, FL 34236. 941.867.6199 © 2026 DOUGLAS ELLIMAN REAL ESTATE. ALL MATERIAL PRESENTED HEREIN IS INTENDED FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY. WHILE THIS INFORMATION IS BELIEVED TO BE CORRECT, IT IS REPRESENTED SUBJECT TO ERRORS, OMISSIONS, CHANGES OR WITHDRAWAL WITHOUT NOTICE. ALL PROPERTY INFORMATION, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO SQUARE FOOTAGE, ROOM COUNT, NUMBER OF BEDROOMS AND THE SCHOOL DISTRICT IN PROPERTY LISTINGS SHOULD BE VERIFIED BY YOUR OWN ATTORNEY, ARCHITECT OR ZONING EXPERT. EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY. *REALTRENDS VERIFIED BASED ON 2025 SALES. **BASED ON CAREER SALES. ***BASED ON 2026 DOUGLAS ELLIMAN TRANSACTIONS (BOTH PENDING AND CLOSED).

ACTIVE | 1714 SOUTH DRIVE | CHEROKEE PARK | WEST OF TRAIL SARASOTA | $2,095,000 | WEB#A4686448

ACTIVE | 5132 JUNGLE PLUM ROAD | HIDDEN HARBOR | SIESTA KEY $5,985,000 | WEB# A4651663

ACTIVE | 7366 POINT OF ROCKS ROAD | SIESTA KEY | GULF-FRONT ESTATE | $26,000,000 | WEB# A4673754

M: 941.587.4894 | O: 941.867.6199 joel.schemmel@elliman.com schemmelsodagroup.com

Sales Associate Executive Director of Luxury Sales

JOEL SCHEMMEL

Trust Is the Difference

SARASOTA OBSERVER | THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026

455395-1

SOLD AND PENDING IN 2026 ***

+ $88M

SMALL TEAM BY SALES VOLUME IN FLORIDA*

#25

IN CAREER SALES **

+ $1.2B

SMALL TEAM BY SALES VOLUME IN SARASOTA*

#2

30 YourObserver.com