Sarasota Observer 2.9.23

SARASOTA/SIESTA KEY

Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.

Flurry of Tornadic activity

PAGE 18

FREE • THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

VOLUME 19, NO. 11

YOUR TOWN

Taking matters in-house City discusses developing its own housing to address affordability issues. SEE PAGE 3

Show of solidarity

Courtesy photo

Sarasota Mayor Kyle Battie and Special Olympian Mollie O’Connell celebrate the new Wawa grand opening.

Wawa opens new Fruitville store

More than 200 people participated in a cornhole tournament to support local police officer. SEE PAGE 17

With a measure of fanfare, the long-awaited Wawa store at 2257 Fruitville Road opened Feb. 2. Members of the Sarasota Police Department, local first responders and Mayor Kyle Battie — along with Wawa’s mascot Wally Goose, helped the new store open its doors.

“We may be SUB-par sandwich-makers but LETTUCE celebrate being backto-back Hoagies for Heroes champions!” SPD tweeted from the event.

The Pennsylvania-based convenience store chain known for its fresh-prepared foods and signature hoagies is planning to open 75 stores throughout the Mid-Atlantic region and Florida in 2023. The new Sarasota store employs approximately 50.

As a thank you to the community, customers can enjoy free coffee through Feb. 12.

Dariela Delgado

Dale Mahler and Daniel Olalder play cornhole as part of the Sarasota Police Foundation’s fundraiser for Officer Tim Dederick Feb. 4 at the UTC’s The Green.

Lesley Dwyer

Buffett chooses the Philadelphia Eagles for the win.

Split decision on Super Bowl LVII Mote’s manatees made their Super Bowl LVII picks on Tuesday morning, but it’s a split decision. Buffett swam his big snout straight to the Philadelphia Eagles sign, while Hugh pointed his flipper to the Kansas City Chiefs.

“We’ve done this for 15 years, and Buffet has selected right 11 out of 15 years, so he’s 11-4.

Hugh is only 6-9,” Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium Vice President for Communications and Strategic Initiatives Kevin Cooper said.

The now 16-year tradition is based on target training, which is necessary for the manatees basic care. Knowing a treat will follow, the over 1,000-pound mammals will happily agree to a blood draw or a Super Bowl pick.

A+E

Winter festival on ice

Through the artist’s looking glass.

INSIDE

Commission awaits numbers on St. Armands Winter Spectacular before approving it for 2023.

SEE PAGE 5

File photo

A synthetic ice skating rink was a main attraction during the Winter Spectacular at St. Armands Circle.

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WEEK OF FEB. 9, 2023

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

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Fruitville Road exit rebuild expedited

“Everything we do is for our residents. Now however, the question that we have to ask ourselves is which residents?”

As part of his “Moving Florida Forward” initiative, Gov. Ron DeSantis this week announced a proposed $7 billion investment in 20 interstate and highway projects across the state over the next four years. The list includes reconfiguring the interchange at I-75 and Fruitville Road from a partial cloverleaf to a diverging diamond, similar to the junction at University Parkway and I-75.

The fast-track infusion of capital into the state’s highway system must be approved by the Florida Legislature.

The diverging diamond interchange project at Fruitville Road will span from Honore Avenue to Coburn Road and on the interstate from Palmer Boulevard to north of the exit.

In addition to widening about two miles of I-75 from Palmer Boulevard to north of Fruitville Road, the $192 million project will include widening 1.6 miles of Fruitville Road from Honore Avenue to east of Coburn Road. Both bridges across I-75 would also be replaced.

Construction can begin in 2024 if the appropriation gains approval.

Commissioner Erik Arroyo, Read more on page 5

BY THE NUMBERS 20,000

The number of visitors organizers report attending the first Winter Spectacular event at St. Armands Circle.

PAGE 5

$28 MILLION

The amount of capital improvement revenue bonds Sarasota County will float to pay for part of its new administrative center.

PAGE 10

108

Teams that participated in the Sarasota Police Foundation’s cornhole tournament benefiting Officer Tim Dederick.

PAGE 17 Andrew Warfield

Only two units remain in the 17-story The DeMarcay condominium tower on South Palm Avenue.

CALENDAR

Downtown luxury tower nearly sold out A

n Sarasota City Commission regular meeting — 9 a.m., Tuesday, Feb. 21, Commission Chambers, City Hall, 1565 First St. n Sarasota County School Board regular meeting — 6 p.m.. Tuesday, Feb. 21, Landings Administration Complex, 1980 Landings Blvd. n Sarasota County Commission regular meeting — 9 a.m., Wednesday, Feb. 22, Commission Chambers, County Administration Building, 1660 Ringling Blvd.

n under-construction luxury condominium tower in downtown Sarasota is nearly sold out. The DeMarcay at 33 S. Palm Ave. has two of its 39 residences available for sale.

Vertical constriction of The DeMarcay is nearly complete.

The 17th floor deck is being poured this week and drywall is complete through the seventh floor. Installation of windows is complete through the 10th floor.

Unit 1301 is offered at $4.25 million, featuring 3,407 square feet of living space with three

bedrooms plus a den, three full baths and a half bath, two outdoor terraces with waterfront views and two parking spaces.

Unit 1601, the largest in the building occupying the 15th and 16th floors, is priced at $12.5 million. It includes 6,814 square feet of living space with four bedrooms, four full baths and a half-bath and three additional customizable rooms that can accommodate a library, wine room or home theater, among others.

The main living area and primary bedroom offer views of

Sarasota Bay and the marina.

A formal guest suite is on the second level, a complete guest suite with kitchenette is on the first level, and a private internal elevator connects the two floors.

Four parking spaces are also included.

The street-level facade of the historic DeMarcay Hotel has been preserved and incorporated into the architecture of tower.

The DeMarcay is one of several luxury residential developments underway in the heart of downtown.

St. Armands BID renewal falls short The vote among St. Armands Circle commercial property owners to renew the Business Improvement District for another 10-year period has failed.

On Monday, the BID’s business manager Julie Ryan told city commissioners ballots received were 48.89% yes and 7.28% no of the total weighted vote of the district, just short of the 50% required for renewal.

The voting is weighted on property value, not on the number of property owners.

Ryan said two of the ballots returned were deemed invalid for technical reasons; a total of 63 ballots were delivered via certified mail.

The results don’t necessarily mean the BID will sunset on Sept.

30. A second vote is allowed, and Ryan said BID renewals historically take two votes to approve.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

A NEW APPROACH TO WORKFORCE HOUSING Commissioner Erik Arroyo suggests the city build and hold its own workforce housing developments. Staff is now working on a plan.

ANDREW WARFIELD STAFF WRITER

D

MATH OF AFFORDABILITY Here is a formula for a hypothetical feasibility model for a city-owned workforce housing development. n The site would accommodate 200 units, assuming a value of $5 million. n The city would cover $2.1 million for debt service, operating expenses and insurance costs over the construction period. n Construction would be paid through issuing municipal bonds at a presumptive 6.5% interest over 30-year term. n Rents would be approximately $1,400 per month for one-bedroom, $1,600 per month for a twobedroom, utilities included. n Upon completion, the city would own 200 workforce apartments, all renting at 80% of the county’s average median income. n The new apartments would have an estimated market value of $44 million, or $220,000 per unit. Cost to build is approximately $30 million, or $150,000 per unit.

SNAPSHOT OF FINANCES: n Gross rental income:

$3,720,000.

n Misc. income: $111,600 (various fees, lost keys, pet, application fees, late fees, etc.). n Vacancy and credit loss (5%): $186,000. n Net rental income: $3,645,600. n Net operating expenses: $1,072,560. (utilities, insurance, maintenance, repairs, property management, etc.). n Net operating income: $2,573,040. n Annual bond debt service: $796,861. n Net annual proceeds: $1,776,179.

Source: Mark Vengroff, One Stop Housing

espite new comprehensive plan amendments and staff working to identify locations where zoning changes may create workforce and affordable housing opportunities, real progress in Sarasota’s housing shortage remains years in the making.

How to have a more immediate impact on creating workforce housing in the city was a topic of discussion during the City Commission’s Jan. 30 workshop. Free to engage in a more free-flowing exchange than permitted during regular meetings, commissioners embarked on some out-of-the-box brainstorming on how to bring hundreds of affordable rental residences on line at one time.

Why not have the city build workforce-priced apartments itself?

Commissioner Erik Arroyo said.

It was an idea that gained traction with fellow commissioners and staff jumping on board as the discussion progressed.

The city’s comprehensive plan amendments and planned zoning text changes aim to incentivize a handful of units here and there on a voluntary basis, but short of going all-in on inclusionary zoning — in which the city must make a developer financially whole if it requires a percentage of affordable units included in a development — tangible results promise to be sporadic and long term at best.

“That’s a number of years down the road,” City Manager Marlon Brown told commissioners. “Just with the conversations that we’ve been having about a number of apartments coming to fruition, I just wanted to have a conversation with the commission on your thoughts on how can we really move this forward much quicker.”

Mayor Kyle Battie lamented the lack of progress that has been made toward providing workforce-priced housing for decades, only to be exacerbated by the crushing rise in property values here as a result of the pandemic. Housing stock in the city was far outpaced by the sudden rise in demand, causing even formerly affordable neighborhoods to be priced out of the reach of even mid-level professionals.

Apartments and other rental units followed suit, and today remain typically double pre-pandemic rents.

“We did everything we could to spread the affordable housing throughout the city and get these incentives to developers,” Battie said. “Are we really accomplishing that? We’ve done that, but yet we still find ourselves in the place where we’re begging developers to give us some affordable housing.”

Arroyo floated the idea of the city getting into the affordable housing business — not public housing per se, and nothing like the 1960s-era urban housing projects. His idea is to acquire or use currently owned city property, build apartment communities and cap rents at affordable and workforce levels — at or below 80% of the county’s average median income pricing — in perpetuity.

“How could it make sense for the city if it doesn’t make sense for developers?” asked Vice Mayor Liz Alpert.

Developers can’t do that, he said, because they are typically shortterm owners of the apartment communities they build, holding the asset for a few years before selling at maximum price. There are few that build and hold, he said, especially at workforce housing levels.

“I just heard another another story today where a landlord said ‘I’m raising your rent $1,100,’” Arroyo said.

“We’re handicapped by the state in terms of what we can do in these situations, and I think we’re doing what

Andrew Warfield

“We did everything we could to spread the affordable housing throughout the city and get these incentives to developers. Are we really accomplishing that? We’ve done that, but yet we still find ourselves in the place where we’re begging developers to give us some affordable housing — Mayor Kyle Battie

File photo

we can. We’re incentivizing workforce housing in certain scenarios at different tiered levels.”

Arroyo said no other local government in the state has deployed a similar strategy for building workforce housing. Planning Director Steve Cover described the feasibility of the concept.

“You’d be investing in the property, maybe working with a private nonprofit entity to provide housing,” he said. “It can be in the form of land banking, eventually turning land over to entities that could be private or nonprofit. There are really a variety of approaches. Also, you could also create a revolving loan fund, which could be tied into where you build projects. You collect rent and then those monies eventually evolve into the creation of more projects.”

A HOLISTIC APPROACH

Since the City Commission approved the comprehensive plan amendments last fall, a sprinkling of developments that include workforce housing have been making their way through the political and administrative approval processes. One

example is the Bahia Vista Apartments, with 42 attainable residences. Another is the Bath & Racquet Club, which will offer 38 attainable condominiums for purchase.

Those projects and others in the pipeline include a percentage of the affordable units priced at 100-120% AMI, which while by definition is in attainable housing, it remains out of reach for many, particularly when considering the that figure includes the wealthiest communities in the county. The housing mix in those developments include rents at 80% and below and 80%-100% AMI. Rather than the handful of attainable housing units created per development, Arroyo’s proposal would bring entire developments priced below 100% AMI, built on cityowned land or land it would acquire.

“The city really kind of putting its money where its mouth is has some really good value,” Brown said.

The city would fund construction, own the development, and contract with a third party — Arroyo cited One Stop Housing of Sarasota as an example — to manage and operate it.

Rents at sub-market rates are feasible because, unlike the private sector, the city’s mission is housing, not maximizing profit. As a city-owned asset, it will also not be subject to property taxes.

“It will be our land and we’d have a developer come in and build it, then a property management company that would manage it,” Arroyo said.

“All we would do is get a check every month, but 100% of the units would be under 80% of AMI.” Commissioner Debbie Trice likened the idea to a community land trust, with permanent ownership by a not-for-profit entity.

An example of what such a project might look like is Lofts on Lemon at Ninth Street and Lemon Avenue, which opened its first phase in October 2022. A Sarasota Housing Authority development, its 128 units are priced at workforce and affordable housing levels, all at 100% or less of AMI. That equates to a family of three earning roughly $50,000 a year paying $1,266 a month for a two-bedroom apartment.

Brown said he has been working with staff to develop a concept similar to Arroyo’s proposal.

“It stays affordable in perpetuity because we, the city, own the property and there are no issues about appreciation, trying to sell it to the highest bidder, and so on,” Brown said. “We’re exploring some things that we will bring back to the commission that I think really has some viability, and I think is worth taking a look at.”

The first phase of Sarasota Housing Authority’s Lofts on Lemon offers 128 units are priced at workforce and affordable housing levels, all at 100% or less of AMI.

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he years-long saga over redevelopment of the former Doctors Hospital of Sarasota site has neared its conclusion. On Monday, the Sarasota City Commission affirmed its 4-1 approval of Bahia Vista Apartments.

Commissioners on second reading upheld their prior decision to increase the density of the site, which allows the apartment to move forward as proposed. The second reading was required because the matter failed to garner unanimous vote on the first reading.

A site plan is expected to come before commissioners as soon as March.

With 250 rental units, Bahia Vista Apartments will include 42 priced as affordable. It is an early test case of the city’s 2022 comprehensive plan amendments that encourage development of affordable and attainable housing by providing density bonuses and other incentives to developers who include them in their projects.

The 6.09-acre parcel at the corner of Tuttle Avenue and Bahia

Vista Street stands at the edge of the Arlington Park neighborhood, whose residents have opposed plans for high-density apartments on the site since 2019. The developer, Bahia Vista Associates LLC, will raze the remaining buildings there, with the exception of the 400-space parking deck that will be refurbished and used by residents.

Doctors Hospital was demolished in 2016.

The approval did not come without one final, brief debate as Commissioner Jen Ahearn-Koch voiced her continuing objection to the project.

“The impact on the health and safety of the adjacent neighborhood and the community at-large I think is far greater than we can absorb and should be absorbing in the city,” she said. “I see no public benefit from this project, and I would ask that you vote no.”

Countered Commissioner Erik Arroyo: “It was a very difficult decision to make, but it’s whether we want housing on this site that is currently unused, or do we want a commercial enterprise, which would be an assisted living facility with employees and with deliveries coming in and out every single day, which would actually be more units in a more intense manner. We are giving them the less intense alternative of the two things that can go there.”

The project approval runs counter to the Planning Board, which by a 3-2 vote previously recommended denial of the rezoning and site plan.

The parking structure at the Bahia Vista Apartments site will be renovated for use of the residents.

The medical practice building to the right will be demolished. The grass area is the former Doctors Hospital location.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

5

St. Armands’ Winter Spectacular: One and done?

City Commission wants data from staff before deciding whether to permit a return of the Winter Spectacular.

ANDREW WARFIELD STAFF WRITER

D

epending on whom is speaking, the first holiday season Winter Spectacular at St. Armands Circle was either a rousing success or a colossal nuisance.

Both sentiments were on clear display Monday as organizers of the sixweek festival were back before the Sarasota City Commission seeking to not make the first Winter Spectacular the last.

Twenty-three St. Armands-area residents, business owners and others spoke in roughly even numbers of support and opposition during Monday’s commission meeting, ranging in claims from taking an hour to get out of a driveway to traffic actually being lighter than usual. On the agenda was a request by Tom Leonard, owner of Shore restaurant and Jeff Koffman of Ride Entertainment to consider issuing a use permit for to operate the event again in 2023.

Leonard is also chairman of the St. Armands Business Improvement District board of directors. His involvement in the festival, though, is a personal endeavor not affiliated with the BID. In addition to generating more customers for Circle merchants, Leonard said the festival boosted revenue for the city parking deck just off the Circle. He said data from the city’s parking department reported 47% more fees collected in December compared to the year prior — not from more cars, but rather cars parked there longer.

Koffman told commissioners the festival attracted approximately 20,000 visitors, but because they were dispersed over time during

File photo

A synthetic ice skating rink was a main attraction during the Winter Spectacular at St. Armands Circle.

festival hours, the additional traffic generated was negligible.

“We can continue to control crowds through the disbursements of tickets through time slots, diminishing any concerns about traffic, and the issue is traffic,” Koffman said. “At our peak, we had 400 people in a two-hour period. If you assume three people per car, that’s about a car a minute.”

Those speaking in opposition ranged from traffic complaints to questioning the legality of permitting an event that charges admission to be held in a public space. City Attorney Robert Fournier reminded commissioners the circle park at St. Armands, as public right of way on a state highway, belongs to the Florida Department of Transportation, which has long-since ceded authority over use of the space, if not ownership, to the city. In addition, he

said, FDOT had no objection to the festival.

Leonard and Koffman pitched the Winter Festival to commissioners last October as a fitting celebration of the city’s $286,000 grant to replace St. Armands’ 20-year-old holiday tree. Pulling off the event in only 28 days, they brought their request early this year to facilitate more planning.

Citing most of the information provided by the two was anecdotal, commissioners unanimously voted to continue the matter to a future board meeting. They’re looking for traffic data, incident reports from the Sarasota Police Department, parking statistics and other numbers to take into consideration.

Commissioner Debbie Trice suggested continuing to an April meeting. Vice Mayor Liz Alpert asked if the research could be completed

“So that’s the rub. Does it belong to all residents or does it belong to a few residents?”

— Erik Arroyo

sooner. Deputy City Manager Pat Robinson responded that staff is already working under his direction to collect the data.

“We have been working on that since about mid-week last week, and as there are four or five different departments that are feeding into that I’m getting streams of information,” he said. “Instead of trying to piecemeal them out, I’d rather put something together and report back holistically on it, especially consid-

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ering there’s been additional comment and questions that have come out of some of the citizens’ input some of the businesses’ input.”

Among festival opponents’ claims were charges that commissioners favor business interests over residents. That didn’t set well with Commissioner Erik Arroyo.

“Everything we do is for our residents. Now however, the question that we have to ask ourselves is which residents?” he said. “Some people believe that St. Armands belongs to the residents that live on St. Armands, whereas there’s another whole group of residents that believe that St. Armands, as a commercial district, is for everyone. It’s for all the residents of the entire city and even beyond.

“So that’s the rub. Does it belong to all residents or does it belong to a few residents?”

Added Mayor Kyle Battie: “We look out for the residents. You may not agree with all the decisions that we make, but make no mistake about it, we do have to take in consideration the residents of the city no matter where they are.”

Merchants who support the return of the festival told commissioners they noted no traffic impact in the Circle throughout the event. Residents who live off the Circle painted a different picture. Trice said the forthcoming traffic report may clear up that inconsistency, positing that drivers traveling to and from Lido and Longboat keys might have avoided the Circle and instead traveled neighborhood streets. “”We have to take into consideration that the impact on the residents and what is being seen by the merchants on the Circle could be two different things,” Trice said. “I want to get the information on the staffing, on the cost and the impacts, and I want a better understanding of the impact on the actual stakeholders — the merchants, the business owners, the residents and the barrier island residents who have to go back and forth.”

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The money will build restrooms, a starter building, range building and a temporary clubhouse at the city-owned golf course.

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As progress continues toward a late summer or early fall opening of the restored Bobby Jones Golf Course, buildings are being planned by contractor Jon F. Swift of Sarasota.

On Monday, city commissioners unanimously approved an amendment to the contract with Swift for a design-build of a temporary clubhouse and some permanent buildings on the course. Swift has proposed a guaranteed maximum price of $5.29 million for a project scope that includes the Gillespie Building at the par-3 adjustable course, a driving range building and on-course restrooms in addition to parking lots and the temporary clubhouse.

The Gillespie Building will essentially be a starter’s house at the par-3 course across Circus Boulevard from the main entrance at Azinger Drive.

It will include restrooms and a small sundries shop. On the main course, two restrooms will be located near the 4th and 12th tees. The driving range building will also include restrooms and a ball dispenser room.

Commissioner Jen Ahearn-Koch asked about the future disposition of the temporary clubhouse, a portable 2,400-square-foot module that will be used until a permanent structure is built.

“We’ll have the option of repurposing it because we will own the

building instead of renting it,” said Sue Martin, the city’s Parks and Recreation general manager. “We did a cost analysis, and it’s actually costwise better to just purchase than to rent this module. The city will have the option to repurpose it somewhere else in the city, or we could always send it to auction and sell it.”

Jason Swift of Jon F. Swift told commissioners the location of the temporary clubhouse will not affect the eventual construction of the permanent facility.

“The whole site plan is designed with knowing where that big envelope for where that future clubhouse will sit,” he said. “We are designing utility infrastructure within this package to serve that building so that when the building is ready to be permitted and the budget approved, (we) are able to start the construction on it without having it interfere with improvements that were already done.”

At $12.5 million, the golf portion of the 307-acre project includes the 18-hole restoration of the original 1925 Donald Ross layout, the adjustable par-3 course, practice facility, temporary clubhouse and eventually a new permanent clubhouse and other utility buildings. The golf complex will cover 187 acres, the remainder of the site comprised of a nature park and wetlands designed to purify stormwater runoff.

The projected is funded by a $20 million city bond, a $3 million Southwest Florida Water Management District grant for wetlands improvement with a 50% local match and a $487,500 Florida Department of Environmental Protection grant.

Golf revenues are planned to cover course operations and be applied toward the debt service.

A view from near the parking area toward where the driving range and eventual permanent clubhouse will be located at the Bobby Jones Golf Course.

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R EDEF INING THE SA R ASOTA LIFEST Y LE.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

OPINION / OUR VIEW

SARASOTA/SIESTA KEY

The War of Education The inevitable has been exposed: State-controlled, taxpayer-funded education doesn’t work. The power needs to shift from politicians to parents.

MATT WALSH

T

he second front of our nation’s Civil Cultural War continues: The War of Education: Who Will Control the Schools and Our Children’s Minds — the Progressive Elites and Professional Educrats? Parents? Or Politicians?

Perhaps another way to state the above is that we have reached the climax of the predictable results of our nation’s 175-year-old, government-controlled, taxpayer financed education system: Inevitable failure.

More and more parents aren’t going to take it anymore. The war for dramatic change — total parental choice — is underway. And Florida has become one of the fiercest battlegrounds.

Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Republican Legislature are using the force and power of the law as heavy artillery; ordinary, grassroots parents are in hand-to-hand combat with school boards; and the deeply entrenched, establishmentelitist, progressive educrats are scrambling inside their institutional fortresses to fortify the gates.

For nearly two centuries, the public-education rulers, university presidents, tenured professors and education union leaders have fooled most Americans into believing the taxpayer-funded, state-run public education systems have been the bedrock and source of America’s societal success.

But shame on us baby boomers.

More than any generation, baby boomers have ignored the obvious signs of what was always known about socialism and socialistic institutions: In time, they fail, leaving incalculable devastation behind.

Employers know the effects well.

Just talk to them about the quality applicants coming from our schools.

As these socialistic, central-government systems reach their end, as happened after more than a century with Communism and the Soviet Union, their failures are exposed for all to see. And that’s what happened with the Chinese coronavirus and resulting shutdown of our schools.

They brought to light what has been happening for decades in our children’s classrooms: The nation’s public education institutions became indoctrination factories and laboratories to spread anti-American, radical, leftist beliefs, emphasizing diversity, equity and inclusion at the expense of academic achievement and teaching students how to think.

For three generations, American students have flatlined in academic progress. U.S. fourth graders rank 36th out of 79 countries in math and 13th in reading, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress. But from the pandemic in 2020 to 2022, average scores for 9-year-olds declined five points in reading and seven points in math, the largest average score decline in reading since 1990 and the first ever decline in math, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

As a state, Florida has been a rising star, compared to its longheld and earned reputation as a

terrible place for public education.

In the 2022 National Assessment of Educational Progress, Florida’s fourth graders ranked second in reading (behind Massachusetts and Wyoming) and third in math (behind Wyoming, Massachusetts and Nebraska).

While that is worth celebrating, when you look at student proficiency in these subjects, the percentage of students who are proficient is dismal. Reading proficiency: 39%; math: 41%.

Ok, we know the argument: The teachers and schools cannot control what parents are doing or not doing at home. Garbage in, garbage out.

But that goes back to pointing fingers at baby boomers. Products of an era when there was more emphasis on fundamental academics and almost none on saving the earth or DEI, baby boomers sent their children to the state-controlled public schools with confidence that the schools did what boomers experienced as students.

We boomers let our children be treated as wards of the state.

But public education succumbed over the decades to what Milton Friedman wrote: the Theory of Bureaucratic Displacement. That is, “in a bureaucratic system, an increase in expenditure will be matched by a fall in production.”

In Florida and every other state, per-pupil spending increased year after year. Teacher unions flourished, embedding themselves with their legislators. Lawmakers in turn meddled and increased the state’s control over what went on in the classrooms.

Education became monolithic; parents had almost no choice.State centralization reduced the power of the consumers (parents) and increased the power of the producers (educrats and the state).

In 1999, though, Gov. Jeb Bush single-handedly began the state’s shift toward school choice and vouchers. Since then, Florida has become among the top three states for offering choice to elementary, middle and high school students.

But expanding choice has been an intense battle for nearly 25 years.

Proponents of choice still encounter fierce resistance at every step from the public-school believers.

While Republican lawmakers continued to pass additional schoolchoice legislation, unbeknown to many, on the state’s university campuses the tentacles of the social justice believers (e.g. America is systematically racist) spread.

In May 2021, this space reported for our readers how the state’s major universities had entered the vortex of incorporating Critical Race Theory into every aspect of their operations.

Then UF President Kent Fuchs sent a letter to all students and faculty outlining the school’s plans: n “UF will require training of all current and new students, faculty and staff on racism, inclusion and bias. n “UF’s Office of Research will make available this academic year competitive grants to faculty on topics of race, equity, justice and reconciliation. n “The 2020-21 academic year will focus on the black experience, racism and inequity. Each of our colleges will feature speakers, seminars and courses.…”

Simultaneously, when the pandemic required Florida public school children to attend school remotely, many parents suddenly became shocked by what was being taught. The Sarasota County School Board became ground zero for parent-school board confrontations.

The War on Education hit full scale — with Gov. DeSantis the Gen. Patton of being determined

DeSantis guillotine beheads NCF This is what we predicted for New College of Florida in this space Jan. 19: “[W]e can all expect another tumultuous chapter in the college’s

six-decade history, one that is likely to last at least two years … “[E]xpect a lot of headlines and controversy. Turnarounds and throwing out old ways are never easy or

to destroy education wokeness in Florida.

“We will never surrender to the woke mob,” DeSantis told his inauguration audience. “Florida is where woke goes to die.”

Yes, get rid of woke in the schools.

But in the process of eliminating woke-ism in education, DeSantis is also demonstrating what has been and will forever be a mortal flaw of State-funded and State-controlled education: It will be at the mercy of whatever politicians are in power.

Customers will never be in control.

To be sure, DeSantis is working on behalf of Florida parents and students to shift the state system’s focus back on teaching students how to write, read, do math and think. That’s the way it should be.

But consider his handling of New College of Florida and the Legislature’s new laws governing what books are allowed in the schools. n New College: Dissatisfied with the school’s performance, DeSantis used his authority to pursue what he wants — a state-supported version of Hillsdale College.

With his authority and the belief he is doing what is right, he handpicked conservative trustees to change the direction of the school.

In turn, the trustees abruptly fired President Patricia Okker, giving her and the board no time to determine whether she could do the job.

The perception of this to the public was not good: Authoritarian governor ousts university president because he thinks she is woke.

And then, DeSantis pledged, according to the Tampa Bay Times, an infusion of $15 million into New College to be spent on hiring new faculty and scholarships for students, with $10 million more every year thereafter.

Again, the perception: Authoritarian governor funneling taxpayer money into a university venture that in its 60 years of existence hasn’t proven to be financially viable. Call us a skeptical cynic, but it reminds us: Throwing good money after bad. n Book vetting: In DeSantis’ and the Legislature’s efforts to keep inappropriate LGBTQ and transgender literature and pornography out of elementary and middle schools (Hear! Hear!), the Legislature created a new layer of education bureaucracy. It has the right intention, but when you read about the labyrinthine process for vetting books and multiply that by 67, you can’t help but think: More government control, more bureaucracy.

The Politburo at work.

To be fair, you can argue DeSantis is doing what any governor would do — trying to shape state institutions to reflect what he believes is best for the taxpayers of Florida.

But therein is the fatal flaw of State-owned education: The power is in the hands of the politically powerful, not the hands of the marketplace or customer.

As long as Florida and the United States continue to have State-controlled, taxpayer-funded schools, the nation’s education system will be what it is today — in turmoil, mediocre at best, at the whims of political power. Ugh. Longtime readers know we have advocated over the years (12 years ago, the last time) that U.S. education should be entirely privatized.

It’s not a realistic proposition, given how Americans have been so bamboozled over the value of taxpayerfunded education.

But in this War of Education, great progress is occurring toward giving parents choice. Arizona is the model. For all Arizona children in kindergarten through high school, they can receive from $6,000 to $6,500 a year from the state to attend any private school or

comfortable. Often, they are nasty and ugly.

“But for sure, (Gov. Ron) DeSantis has sent his opening message: New College cannot and will not maintain the status quo …

“Whenever a business brings in new leadership and a new direction,

“If we are to build a better world, we must remember that the guiding principle is this — a policy of freedom for the individual is the only truly progressive policy.”

A FEW TRUTHS ABOUT PUBLIC EDUCATION

Friedrich Hayek

“Road to Serfdom,” 1944

Milton and Rose Friedman “Free to Choose” First edition, 1979 n “Public education is, we fear, suffering from the same malady as are so many of the programs discussed in the preceding and subsequent chapters.

“More than four decades ago Walter Lippmann diagnosed it as the ‘sickness of an over-governed society,’ the change from ‘the older faith … that the exercise of unlimited power by men with limited minds and self-regarding prejudices is soon oppressive, reactionary and corrupt, … that the very condition of progress was the limitation of power to the capacity and the virtue of the rulers” to the newer faith “that there are no limits to man’s capacity to govern others and that, therefore, no limitations ought to be imposed upon government.” n “… Power has gravitated to professional educators. The sickness has been aggravated by increasing centralization and bureaucratization of schools …” n “There is no case for subsidizing persons who get higher education at the expense of those who do not. Insofar as governments operate institutions of higher education, they should charge students fees corresponding to the full cost of the educational and other services they provide to them.” n “We believe that the growing role that government has played in financing and administering schooling has led not only to enormous waste of taxpayers’ money but also to a far poorer educational system than would have developed had voluntary cooperation continued to play a larger role.”

Murray Rothbard “Education: Free & Compulsory,” 1971 n “… Since the State began to control education, its evident tendency has been more and more to act in such manner as promote repression and hindrance of education, rather than the true development of the individual.” n “One of the best ways of regarding the problem of compulsory education is to think of the almost exact analogy in the area of that other great educational medium — the newspaper.

What would we think of a proposal for the government, Federal or State, to use the taxpayers’ money to set up a nationwide chain of public newspapers and compel all people, or all children, to read them?

“What would we think furthermore of the government’s outlawing all other newspapers, or indeed outlawing all newspapers that do not come up to the ‘standards’ of what a government commission thinks children ought to read?”

purchase state-approved tutoring, educational courses and materials for home schooling.

The tax dollars go with the child.

In Florida, that should be the next step.

The results will create what is needed capitalistic competition — the true bedrock of America’s social success.

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those two things result in a lot of blood, executions and exoduses of the old guard.”

The new New College Board of Trustees fired NCF President Patricia Okker Jan. 31 in its first meeting.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

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One Park project deadline extended While legal complaints were being filed, Quay’s master developer says it has reached an agreement to extend its closing deadline as air rights challenge lingers.

STAFF WRITER

D

espite opposing legal filings between the master developer of The Quay and the partners comprising Quay 1 and 9 LLC, developer of the planned One Park condominium tower, its developers say the project remains a go.

On Wednesday, principals with GreenPointe Developers, which is developing The Quay under the name Quay Venture, said they have reached an agreement with Quay 1 and 9 LLC to extend the closing deadline on Blocks 1 and 9 until later this year.

An extended deadline to close on the property expired on Jan. 31, leading to complaints by both parties filed in 12th Judicial Circuit Court. Daniel Kaplan, principal with Property Marketing Group, said the complaints were a necessary legal maneuver. Meanwhile, however, negotiations were underway to extend the deadline beyond the next scheduled public hearing before the Planning Board in March.

In that hearing, Quay 1 and 9 LLC will be seeking an amendment to the development agreement between GreenPointe and the city, which could clear the way for the conveyance of air rights over Quay Commons to One Park, which plans to span across the private street, creating a breezeway at a height of 22 feet.

Residents of Block 6 in The Quay — commonly known as the RitzCarlton Residences, are challenging that the air rights above the road are required to be conveyed to the master association and may not be

transferred to Quay 1 and 9 LLC. That challenge, and that it has not yet been resolved, has resulted in the delays that caused the Jan. 31 closing deadline to be missed.

The public hearing won’t determine whether Quay Venture has the right to convey the air rights to One Park, only that the 18-story tower can be built over the road should the court rule against the challenge of Block 6. That hearing before the 12th Circuit Court is scheduled for a three-week trial period beginning May 8.

Block 6 has been vocal before the commission on the One Park plan, charging the building will block views and that the breezeway will render a tunnel-like effect at the entrance to the community. Kaplan said plans are to make the breezeway a benefit to The Quay.

“It’s going to be highly amenitized and activated for the benefit of all residents in the The Quay,” he said.

“We are envisioning some combination of an outdoor café, coffee shop or other areas that are conducive to both social activities and light work.

Despite the current controversy, Quay residents will be incredibly grateful when they have a place to take respite during the summer heat or the occasional heavy rainstorm.”

Immediately following the 5 p.m. deadline for the extended closing, Quay 1 and 9 LLC electronically filed complaints with the 12th Circuit Court. Kaplan characterized the actions as necessary protections for both parties, even as negotiations were continuing to extend the deadline a second time.

Quay 1 and 9 LLC, which in Sep-

File photo

tember 2021 entered into a contract to acquire the lots for $31 million, wrote that Quay Venture was in breach of contract as the air rights matter was not resolved in time to close. According to the filings, it had deposited into escrow a $1 million for the property, and committed to an additional $700,000, of which $232,500 was already paid, for the extension. In exchange, Quay Venture was committed to deliver clear title — including the air rights — to the buyer.

Conversely, Quay 1 and 9’s complaint demanded escrow release of the $1 million deposit and the remaining $465,000 closing fee extension.

One Park is planned as an 18-story, 249-foot-high building with 149 residences priced from $1.8 million.

It would span across Quay Commons on Blocks 1 and 9 on the north end of the The Quay at Boulevard of the Arts. One Park launched sales for

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The city and Quay Venture entered into a the development agreement for the Quay in 2016. To date, only Block 6 has been completed. Construction is underway on Bayso, an 18-story condo tower near the Fruitville Road roundabout, and on Cordelia, a mixed-use residential and commercial project along Tamiami Trail.

Blocks 1 and 9 at the north end of The Quay next to the Hyatt Regency are currently serving as construction staging areas.

The One Park plan includes 123 luxury condominiums on 18 floors with a 63,000-square-foot amenity deck on the fourth floor. Although not the only 18-story building in The Quay, it would be the tallest building there.

The sales office for One Park at 20 N. Lemon Ave. remains open. The property is more than 60% sold.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

YourObserver.com

County votes to fund new headquarters RICHARDSON RD.

ADMINISTRATION CENTER TIMELINE

The new Sarasota County administration center will cost about $75 million and will be completed in late 2025.

FRUIT VILLE RD.

STAFF WRITER

W

ith no comment from the public or discussion at the dais, the Sarasota County Commission on Jan. 31 unanimously approved $28 million in capital improvement revenue bonds to finance construction of a new county administration center.

Located just east of Interstate 75 in the Fruitville Farms development, the county is planning a four-story, 120,000-square-foot administrative building near Celery Fields and the Fruitville Library.

With site preparation underway, the county plans to moveNfrom its Ringling Boulevard headquarters into the new building in late 2025, just in time for its downtown lease with Benderson Development Co. to expire.

The county sold its 170,000-square-foot administration center at 1660 Ringling Blvd. to Benderson in December 2021, plus two adjoining properties used for parking, for $25 million. In April 2022 it also executed a land swap with

75

Celery Fields

TATU M RD.

ANDREW WARFIELD

APEX RD.

CAT TLEMEN RD.

Project boundary

Site work is underway at the site of the new Sarasota County Administrative Center in Fruitville Farms. To the south is Celery Fields, a county park.

PALMER BLV D. Benderson, trading county-owned land at Nathan Benderson Park for the new site, which is on Apex Road.

The entire project is expected to cost between $72 million and $74 million.

A preliminary floor plan for the ground floor of the new crescent-shaped building shows a 3,500-square-foot meeting chamber, a 2,400-square-foot “think tank,” conference room, functional service areas and a 4,000-squarefoot gym.

On Tuesday, commissioners also approved amending the FY 2023 budget to include a general revenue appropriation of $75.1 million.

The bonds are expected to be issued

resolution amending the FY 2022 SEPTEMBER 2020: Commisbudget to appropriate $5 million in sion approves contract with Sweet funding for the project.

Sparkman for consulting services FEBRUARY 2022: Commission confor county administrative facilities siders a proposed land swap with and to develop space requirements.

Benderson for the Fruitville Farms MAY 2021: Commission receives Parcel for the location of the new update on the new county admincounty administration center. istration center and authorizes the MARCH 2022: Commission adopts next steps. a resolution amending the FY 2022 JUNE 2021: Commission adopts a resolution declaring certain property budget to transfer funding for the new county administration center owned by Sarasota County surplus to county needs and authorizes staff project in the amount of $45 million.

APRIL 2022: Commission adopts a to explore opportunities to dispose resolution approving the exchange of the property.

SEPTEMBER 2021: Commission au- of a portion of a county-owned thorizes the County Administrator to parcel at 5851 Nathan Benderson Circle for a portion of land owned by commence negotiations with all six organizations interested in buying Tatum Ridge Coburn Road LLC, located at 6700 Fruitville Road for the new county the county-owned building and land School Elementary administration center. at 1660 Ringling Blvd., 1646 Morrill MAY 2022: Commission authorizes St. and 1703 Morrill St., Sarasota, the county administration to exand to bring back the top three best ecute an agreement for architectural financial packages for Commission services with Fawley Bryant Archito consider. tects Inc., for design and permitting SEPTEMBER 28, 2021: Commisof the new county administration sion authorizes the county adminiscenter not to exceed $3.9 million. trator to continue negotiations with Commission also authorizes county Benderson Development Co. based administration to execute an agreeon a revised offer and to develop an ment for construction manager at agreement for the county adminisrisk pre-construction phase services trative building and land downtown. with Ajax/Tandem Construction.

OCTOBER 2021: Commission FEBRUARY 2023: Commission adopts resolution amending the authorizes issuing $28 million in Fiscal Year 2022-2026 capital imcapital improvement revenue bonds provement program to add the new county administration center design and a $75.1 million budget amendment to fund construction. project. Commission also adopts a

with an amortization period of 20 to 30 years. The bonds are secured by the county’s half-cent sales tax revenues and the repayment of bonds is Big Cat budgeted from general revenues. The Habitatto annual debt service is structured be lower in the first five years to not affect current overall debt coverage ratios for the sales tax revenues, but will average between $2 million and $2.2 million a year.

The new building is 50,000 square feet smaller than the county’s current facility because some county departments, such as Recreation and Natural Resources, will have their own facilities.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

COPS CORNER

SARASOTA OBSERVER

and then, with a third woman, arrived at the Woman No. 1’s home, the two of them yelling at the her to come outside and fight. After she refused, the perpetrators entered the home and a fight ensued and the parties were taken into custody.

MONDAY, JAN. 30

RETURN POLICY DISPUTE 12:34 p.m., Boulevard of the Presidents Civil dispute: A pair of pants and a strict return policy brought police to a boutique when a customer was upset that the retailer would not accept a return. The store manager explained the woman called police because she was refused a return of the purchase outside of the store’s 24-hour return policy. The officer then spoke with the complainant, who said she knew he could not force the store to accept the return, but that he should tell the manager that the policy wasn’t clear to her.

The disgruntled customer said she would refute the charge with her credit card company. The officer, as requested, explained to the store manager the customer’s dissatisfaction with the alleged lack of return policy clarity. No crime was committed and no further action was taken.

MONDAY, JAN. 30

MÉNAGE A QUAD 12:18 a.m., 2000 block of Adams Lane Robbery: Two women who work together at an assisted living facility were arrested for events following a fight that began on social media over a “shared boyfriend” with a third woman. The victim told police she and one of the offenders had been in an “on again, off again” relationship with their shared boyfriend for months. The victim, call her woman No. 1, claims to have messaged the third member off the trio, Woman No. 2, with the intention of coming to an agreement and putting the fighting behind them.

Woman No. 2 allegedly became upset and felt she was being accused of stealing their shared boyfriend from Woman No. 1. Woman No. 2 stopped replying to messages

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JILTED MAN’S ISSUES EMPTY THREAT 7:18 a.m., 1000 block of Rhodes Avenue Dispute: Police responded to a disturbance at an Airbnb where a couple was engaged in a verbal dispute over infidelity. An officer spoke with a woman who said she and her boyfriend had been arguing because he had discovered that morning she was “cheating on him.”

The woman advised that during the argument the man said he would commit “suicide by cop,” then recanted the story by describing him as “blowing off steam.” The man was cooperative and advised the officer that at no time was he suicidal. A witness confirmed the man had made no suicidal statements. Both parties advised that there would no further issues and, after gathering belongings would be OK traveling back home together.

TUESDAY, JAN. 31

MAN’S SHIRT BECOMES A MIDRIFF 3:15 p.m., 1300 block of First Street Disturbance: An altercation during which a man’s shirt was sliced by a boxcutter-wielding woman resulted in no injuries and no charges being pressed by either party. The footage shows the man grabbing or slapping the woman’s hand, which was holding a cell phone, and the woman reacting with a swipe of her hand that held the cutting instrument, slicing through the man’s shirt.

No injuries were sustained.

While under questioning, the man began to consume an alcoholic beverage in the officer’s presence and became belligerent and uncooperative. Placed in the rear seat of a patrol car the man began to kick the door, causing the officer to employ an ankle restraint. Despite all that, the man was released after the woman declined to prosecute. Both parties, however, were placed on a trespassing notice at the request of the property owner.

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FEBRUARY 9, 2023

SPORTS

“...the more I play the more confidence I get and the more I get into the game.”

— Booker High’s Jakai Peterson SEE PAGE 16

Fast

Break

File photo

Leonardo Dal Boni received the 2022 USTA Florida Player of the Year Award on Dec. 16 at Payne Park Tennis Center.

S

arasota’s Leonardo Dal Boni, who received the U.S. Tennis Association’s Florida Player of the Year Award in December, committed to Furman University on Feb. 6. Dal Boni is the No. 50 player in the national Class of 2023 per the Tennis Recruiting Network. … Don’t forget about the Bridge A Life Superhero 5K, happening at 8:30 a.m. Sunday at Nathan Benderson Park. The foster care awareness event is a chance to put on your favorite cape and get some exercise with the whole family. Registration is $30 (or $15 for the kids fun run). For more information visit 5KHero.com. … Sarasota’s Jamier Jones, who is playing his sophomore boys basketball season at IMG Academy after spending his freshman year at Riverview High, is one of the more sought-after recruits in the country. The 6-foot-6 Jones is the No. 11 player in the Class of 2025 according to 247Sports’ composite rankings. … After a year on the bench, former Booker High boys basketball player Johnnie Williams IV has started to see some playing time at the University of Louisiana-Monroe.

Williams has seen action in nine games and is averaging 2.3 points per game. Not eye-popping numbers, but it is a start for the 6-foot-5 sophomore who has gobs of potential. … Pitchers and catcher will report for Baltimore Orioles spring training on Feb. 16, with the full team arriving Feb. 21 and games beginning Feb. 25 against the Minnesota Twins. In other words, it is the best time of year. You can visit Orioles. com to look at the full game schedule (and promotions schedule) and purchase tickets.

See you at Ed Smith Stadium.

East County’s Olivia Davis is Cardinal Mooney girls basketball’s lone senior.

East County’s Kali Barrett (21) leads the Cougars with 16.5 points per game.

TERRIFIC TRIO The Cougars are seeking a third-straight trip to the state semifinals.

RYAN KOHN SPORTS EDITOR

A

trio of players is looking to lead Cardinal Mooney High’s girls basketball program where it has never been: to a state championship.

The Cougars, one of the premier teams in the state in recent seasons, are seeking their third-straight trip to the Florida High School Athletic Association state final four in Class 3A. As of Feb. 4, Mooney is 17-5 and on Feb. 3 captured its third-straight district title with a 70-30 home win over Bradenton Christian (12-10).

The team has a new coach in Marlon Williams, who has brought a new philosophy to the program, but the Cougars are led on the court by three players who have been to the brink of a state championship and are determined to bring one home in 2023.

Olivia Davis is the team’s lone senior. Davis, the team’s emotional leader on and off the court, is averaging 16 points, 3.5 assists and 3.2 rebounds per game and has signed with the University of Tampa. The 5-foot-7 Davis is joined by two sophomores who have seen their roles and responsibilities expand from a sea-

son ago. Kali Barrett, 6-foot-1, is a versatile player who leads the team with 16.5 points and 8.3 rebounds per game; Sy’monique Simon, 5-foot6, is an aggressive defender and leads the team with 1.7 steals per game while adding 12 points and 7.3 rebounds per game.

Williams and the Mooney coaching staff were bullish on the trio from the start and knew they could carry the load on a successful team.

It took the trio a bit longer to adjust to Williams’ coaching style, which puts an emphasis on conditioning and demands its on-court leaders getting the little things right.

“We hate running ‘suicides,’” Davis said with a laugh. “But they do pay off in games. We can full-court press the whole game. It’s the best thing for us.”

The Cougars run not only typical “suicide” drills — down the court and back, in sections — but a defensive variation, running sideways with bent knees and hands held high, which Barrett said is even more tiring. The trio may not always want to do them, but to set an example for their teammates, they complete them full bore.

Before the team saw the results of the intense training and defensefirst mindset, players were skeptical, Davis said. All it took was a few games for everyone to change their minds.

A 65-47 home win over Tampa Prep (20-8) was especially convincing.

SPRING PREVIEW PAGE 15

East County’s Sy’monique Simon averages 12 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game.

Photos by Ryan Kohn

Cardinal Mooney won a district title Feb. 3 with a 70-30 win over Bradenton Christian.

Of the Cougars’ five losses, only one came against a team with double-digit losses, and that was a 54-51 loss to Brooks DeBartolo Collegiate High (12-10), which MaxPreps has ranked as the No. 8 team in Class 3A. The Cougars beat the teams they should beat and can compete with anyone on their best days.

The trio’s leadership is even more important when its depth is considered. This year, the Cougars have just eight players on their roster. The lack of depth means lots of playing time for Davis, Barrett and Simon, a role the trio has embraced. They do have help — sophomore guard Bri Behn adds 7.1 points and 5.0 rebounds per game, and junior forward Sam Kotasek adds 5.1 points and 3.5 rebounds per game, for instance — but when games get into crunch time, it’s going to be one of the three leaders taking the biggest shots.

Simon said all three players want responsibility put on their shoulders as players who have been to the state Final Four and know what it will take to get back.

“It’s fun to know we’re going to be pushed to new heights,” Simon said.

“You’re going above your limit and reaching your full potential.”

The Cougars’ potential is lofty.

Mooney is ranked fourth in Class 3A and 17th in Florida by MaxPreps.

They will play Bishop Verot High (16-9) in the regional quarterfinals at 7 p.m. Feb. 9; the Vikings are ranked 33rd in Class 3A by MaxPreps. A win would put Mooney in a matchup with either Tampa Catholic (13-10; 24th in Class 3A) or Calvary Christian (12-11; 18th in Class 3A) at 7 pm. on Feb. 14.

Not that the Cougars much care about whom they play. After two years of reaching the Final Four, and reaching the state championship game a season ago, Mooney is not scared of any challenger.

Davis said she does believe there is any extra pressure to take home a state title because it is her senior year, and she always feels pressure to win every game, she said. Davis said the team is doing everything it can to make sure a return trip to the Final Four in Lakeland happens. The Cougars will worry about the rest once they get there.

“Sometimes we come into practice tired or we’re having a bad day,” Barrett said. “That stuff can’t matter.

When we’re in the gym we need to block out everything else. By the end of practice we’re always laughing and having the best time, but during it we need to work. That’s how we’ll get back (to the state championship game).”

“It’s fun to know we’re going to be pushed to new heights.

You’re going above your limit and reaching your full potential.”

— Sy’monique Simon

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PROSE AND KOHN

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

15

RYAN KOHN

Spring forward As spring contests begin next week, a roundup of the teams and players to watch in each sport.

O

f all the sports seasons, spring most consistently catches me off guard.

February does not feel like spring to me, as someone who grew up in the mid-Atlantic region and routinely spent the second month of the year with my heavy coat at the ready. In Florida, though, February is go time, and so it is once again: spring sports like lacrosse and baseball start regular season contests next week, with other sports to follow in the weeks ahead.

With the variety of sports we get at this time of year, the season is a blast to cover. Unfortunately, because winter sports are hitting their playoff peak, I can’t do a multi-week long preview like I do for football. So instead, as in years past, I have compromised by using this column as a preview space for all spring sports. The limitations of this mean I can’t mention all teams in all sports, but I have done my best to mention the ones I think will have an impact on their sport’s playoff landscape in 2023.

This year was especially tough to pack into one column, for there are several teams that I believe are primed for huge seasons.

BASEBALL AND SOFTBALL

The 2023 baseball season will be a strange one, for it will be the first season without the now-retired Clyde Metcalf in the Sarasota High dugout since 1981. Former Cardinal Mooney High skipper Greg Mulhollen — who you may know as a basketball official — will take over

for Metcalf. What does this mean for the Sailors’ fortunes? I can’t wait to find out. The Sailors lost a lot of production to graduation but do return senior outfielder Cale Kreiger, who hit .395 in 2022, and senior pitcher Bernard Barnes Jr., who held a 1.83 ERA over 15 appearances in 2022.

At Riverview High, the baseball Rams are coming off an 18-9 season and a district championship, but also a tough 4-3 loss to East Lake High in the regional quarterfinals.

The Rams will need to find some offense as they lose their top four hitters from 2022 to graduation, but they do return senior pitcher Sam Klanot, who held a 1.58 ERA and a 6-0 record in just nine appearances.

On the softball diamond, Sarasota should lead the way after a 17-8 campaign in 2022. The Sailors bring back a bevy of big-time hitters including senior Miranda Gill, who had a team-leading .419 average among regulars, and junior Brooke Bendel, who hit .392 with a team-leading eight home runs. On the mound, senior Ryleigh Bennett should be the Sailors’ workhorse; she had a 2.64 ERA and an 8-2 record over 21 appearances.

TRACK AND FIELD

The lone Sarasota-area medal winner at the 2022 track and field championships, Sarasota High’s Alec Miller, is back for more in 2023. As a junior, Miller finished second (4:13.50) in the Class 4A boys 1,600-meter run at the 2022 FHSAA state championship meet, approximately 2 seconds behind Hagerty High junior Braden Seymour. This year, now a senior, he finished second at the Class 4A cross-country state championships (15:40.3) in November, approximately 5 seconds behind Nease High junior Matt Ryan.

The cross-country success should serve as a nice warm-up

to track season. Miller will have to compete with Seymour again for the 1,600-meter crown, but running is a finicky sport in terms of development, so any improvement Miller makes could be enough to secure gold.

Other than Miller, the track and field, uh, field, is wide open.

Cardinal Mooney High’s Addison Dempsey is one potential contender. Dempsey, a junior, did not compete in the 2022 track and field season because of an IT band injury, but finished second in Class 2A at the girls cross-country state meet in November (17:54). Dempsey only started competitive running in 2021, so she has plenty of time to crack into her potential.

LACROSSE

As the sport of lacrosse continues to grow in Florida and the rest of the country, the tougher the local competition gets. Last year saw the Cardinal Mooney/Riverview rivalries continue to be tough-fought while adding Sarasota High into the mix as a contender for the first time.

In 2023, all three programs have reasons to be excited. On the boys side, Cardinal Mooney is slated to return junior goalkeeper Jacob Brown and six of its top seven goal scorers — and only one of those field players, Sean Laureano (43 goals), is a senior, meaning the Cougars have a ton of growth potential. Riverview does not have quite as much goal scoring talent returning, but does have junior JC Fleming (26 goals) and senior Solano Benitez (21 goals). Meanwhile, Sarasota High is coming off an impressive 11-7 record in its second season as a program and has its top four scorers coming back, including senior captain Kellen Rector (40 goals).

On the girls side, Riverview is coming off a 12-7 season that included an 11-7 district cham-

Ryan Kohn

Sarasota lacrosse players Kellen Rector and Cassius Caragiulo are seniors in 2023.

pionship win over Manatee High.

The Rams will be offensively led by junior Susan Lowther, who scored an 73 goals in 2022 while adding 45 assists; her 118 points points were 12th-best in Florida according to MaxPreps.

BEACH VOLLEYBALL

The team to talk about in beach volleyball is Cardinal Mooney, the defending state champion. The Cougars will not have former star Jordyn Byrd, who enrolled early at the University of Texas to kickstart her college career, but Mooney has so much depth that Byrd’s departure should not change expectations too much.

The Cougars will also be playing on true home courts for the first time in 2023, with a new beach complex situated in the back of the school next to the football field.

Playing away from public courts is yet another advantage the Cougars will have over most local opponents.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

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ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

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Jakai Peterson Jakai Peterson is a junior guard on the Booker High girls basketball team. Peterson scored 32 points Feb. 3. in the Tornadoes’ 63-42 win over Avon Park High.

When did you start playing basketball?

I started for real in sixth grade. I played a little AAU ball before then, but I didn’t take it seriously. Sixth grade was when I got serious. I found out that I could actually be good at it.

What is the appeal to you?

It builds my confidence. When I first started playing I was not as high on myself, but the more I play the more confidence I get and the more I get into the game.

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What is your best skill?

Well, I also run track and field, so my speed helps me get up and down the court and finish at the basketball in transition.

What have you been working to improve?

I have been working on my jump shot a lot. My coaches always tell me I have a nice shot, but I need to use it more, so I’m actually trying to take more shots this year.

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What is your favorite food?

I love chicken and noodles.

What is your favorite subject?

I like math. I don’t know why. It just is easier for me than other subjects.

What is your favorite TV show?

I don’t know if I have one favorite. I like crime shows like “Law and Order,” and I like “Grey’s Anatomy.”

Which superpower would you pick?

I would want super strength so I could move things around however I wanted.

Finish this sentence: “Jakai Peterson is …” … Goofy, once you get to know me.

But I’m shy at first.

What does the team need to do this season to have playoff success?

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We need to come together more.

We’re tight as a team and during games we focus, but during practice, we have to be better. We need to be more of a team in that way.

What is your favorite memory?

Winning the district championship last year was cool. That win helped the team come together. Everybody was so happy we won. It helped us a lot going forward. (The Tornadoes reached the state semifinals last season.)

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If you would like to make a recommendation for the Sarasota/Siesta Key Observer’s Athlete of the Week feature, send it to Ryan Kohn at RKohn@YourObserver.com.

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Classifieds 29 Games 28 Real Estate 25 Weather 28

FEBRUARY 9, 2023

YOUR NEIGHBORS

Photos by Dariela Delgado

The Sarasota Police Department held a charity cornhole tournament at University Town Center’s The Green on Feb. 4 that attracted 108 teams.

Cornhole for a cause

T

Stacey Monroe, Jeff Jamison, Karen Mann and April Shereda come out to support the Dederick family.

Sam Monroe with his dog Blaze come out to support the Dederick family.

he Sarasota Police Department partnered with HaoleNaut 941 Cornhole to hold a charity cornhole tournament Feb. 4 at University Town Center’s The Green.

The relaxing ambiance fostered friendly competition as teammates tossed bean bags with a beer in hand.

A total of 108 teams registered in two divisions to help The Sarasota Police Foundation raise a little over $6,000 for the Dederick family.

The tournament was in support of Officer Tim Dederick, whose wife, Crystal Dederick, died in a car accident on Dec. 30, 2022.

Sarasota’s first responders and community members came out and

participated in the tournament with one thing in mind: supporting the Dederick family.

The cornhole tournament paused for an emotional moment as the crowd stood still and listened to Dederick speak of his late wife.

“I came to Sarasota as a deputy of Escambia County and wanted to make a better life for our family,” said Dederick. “When we moved here one of the things that my wife has always said was how appreciative she was of our community.”

Asked what kind of woman, wife and mother she was, Dederick peered at the sky and said, “She was strong.”

— DARIELA DELGADO

Officer Tim Dederick takes a moment to thank the community members for supporting his family.

The Sarasota Police Department held a charity cornhole tournament in support of Officer Tim Dederick who lost his wife, Crystal Dedrick, in a car accident.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

DENTAL IMPLANTS

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Booker High School Principal Rachel Shelley with Bookerfest co-coordinators Christine Reagan and Daniel Reagan.

Students celebrate Booker nation

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hese tornadoes made landfall and stormed through with Booker pride.

Emma E. Booker, Booker Middle and Booker High School joined together to celebrate their initial year of Bookerfest Feb. 4 at Booker Middle.

What started with an idea of a music festival turned into something much bigger.

“We got the three Booker music teachers together and we all said, ‘Hey, let’s involve all of the arts,’” said Bookerfest co-coordinator Carlos Silva. “We started talking about this last year. This year, we started formally planning.”

Students, teachers and community members were invited to experience and watch Booker’s Visual Performing Arts students showcase their talents along with learning about the history behind the Booker schools.

“It’s a family — that’s the main thing,” said Booker High student Tristan Tran.

“We are all open to each other. We are all friends.”

LONGBOAT KEY

3402 WINDING OAKS DR, UNIT 56 | PENDING $1,095,000

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Bayfront mascot Cash, Ashia and Dakota Zayas.

— DARIELA DELGADO

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465 E FLAMINGO DR | ACTIVE LISTING $7,250,000

SIESTA KEY

651 AVENIDA DEL NORTE | ACTIVE LISTING $2,795,000

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

19

OPPORTUNITIES FOR 2023 NEW PRICE

LA BELLASARA - GOLDEN GATE POINT 464 GOLDEN GATE PT., #503 | $4,298,000

COMING SOON WATER CLUB - LONGBOAT KEY

SIESTA COVE - SIESTA KEY 5212 SIESTA COVE DRIVE | NEW PRICE $3,987,000

COMING SOON AQUARIUS CLUB - LONGBOAT KEY

COMING SOON THE SEA BREEZE - SIESTA KEY

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COREY’S LANDING - LONGBOAT KEY 3414 FAIR OAKS LANE

FAIRWAY BAY - LONGBOAT KEY 2010 HARBOURSIDE DR., #2003

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CALL US TODAY! (941) 387-1820 Longboat Key Office: 595 Bay Isles Rd., Suite 250, Longboat Key, FL 34228 St. Armands Office: 443 John Ringling Blvd., Ste. FL, Sarasota, FL 34236 This is not a solicitation of another broker’s listing.. Market data supplied by Market Quest June 2021.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

YOUR JOB AWAITS!

Photos by Dariela Delgado

Snait Ben-Herut teaches the significance of the almond tree to the students.

Zachary Friedman looks through binoculars to admire the birds and trees.

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Celery Fields’ trees get b-day TLC

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8 AM – 12 PM March 4

ometimes, trees need some tender loving care, too.

Temple Emanu-El Religious School students celebrated “The Birthday of The Trees” Feb. 5 at the Celery Fields.

Students and families joined together to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Tu B’Shevat, the traditional birthday of the trees and celebration of nature.

The celebration started with a song followed by a lesson from Snait Ben-Herut.

She explains that in Israel the almond trees start projecting their beauty and there it is the first sign of spring blooming.

“This is a Jewish month, and many people wonder why we celebrate the

birthday of the trees in the middle of the winter,” said Ben-Herut. “In Israel, which is where this holiday comes from, at that time of the year there’s one tree that starts blooming and it’s the almond tree.”

To signify this, students each received a small bag of mixed nuts before heading off to the various hands-on activities throughout Celery Fields. To honor the holiday, the kids spread hay on the trails, used binoculars to do some bird watching and played various games.

“Trees are very important to our lives because we need them to survive,” said Zach Heller.

— DARIELA DELGADO

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THE STRAND

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

21

The natural choice for luxury coastal living.

Unveiling the newest waterfront village in Lakewood Ranch!

Introducing Wild Blue at Waterside in Lakewood Ranch, a new luxury community with a relaxed coastal vibe and amazing lifestyle amenities, including a 13-acre community park, 25,000-square-foot clubhouse, 6 tennis courts, 8 pickleball courts, sports pro shop, state-of-the-art fitness center, yoga lawn, kayak launch, indoor & outdoor dining, lifestyle director, and more.

Wild Blue at Waterside features outstanding water views, oversized homesites and luxury residences from the area’s finest regional builders.

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BROKER PARTICIPATION WELCOMED. ORAL REPRESENTATIONS CANNOT BE RELIED UPON AS CORRECTLY STATING THE REPRESENTATIONS OF THE DEVELOPER. FOR CORRECT REPRESENTATIONS REFERENCE SHOULD BE MADE TO THE DOCUMENTS REQUIRED BY SECTION 718.503, FLORIDA STATUTES, TO BE FURNISHED BY A DEVELOPER TO A BUYER OR LESSEE. ALL RENDERINGS AND PLANS ARE PROPOSED CONCEPTS SHOWN ONLY FOR MARKETING PURPOSES AND ARE BASED ON THE DEVELOPER’S CURRENT PRELIMINARY DEVELOPMENT PLAN. DEVELOPER RESERVES THE RIGHT TO MODIFY, REVISE OR WITHDRAW THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT PLAN IN DEVELOPER’S SOLE DISCRETION WITHOUT NOTICE. NOTHING HEREIN OR IN ANY OTHER COMMUNICATION SHALL BE DEEMED TO OBLIGATE THE DEVELOPER, OR ANY AFFILIATE OF DEVELOPER, TO CONSTRUCT THE PROJECT OR OFFER ANY OF THE PROJECT FOR SALE, AND NOTHING HEREIN SHALL BE DEEMED A GUARANTY OF ANY KIND. THIS IS NOT AN OFFER TO SALE OR SOLICITATION OF OFFERS TO BUY. PRICES SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE.

SARASOTA OBSERVER

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

Same & Next Day Appointments Available

CALL OR TEXT TODAY FOR AN APPOINTMENT

I have seen Dr Furman twice for my right knee due to osteoarthritis. He is an ace at giving cortisone shots! He is very personable & informative. He has same day appointments which was a blessing for me. He will be honest with you that if he recommends a procedure & if he is not to perform it, he will refer to another physician. I would highly recommend him to my family & friends.

Dr Furman treated me for hip pain and I am a new person as a result of his precise and caring skill. He is a kind, helpful person, and I would recommend him very highly for consult if you want an honest opinion on anything orthopedic.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11

STORYBOOK STREET 9-11 a.m. at Suncoast Technical College, 4748 S. Beneva Road. Join The Early Learning Coalition of Sarasota County’s family-friendly book giveaway featuring dance, drama, art and music performances. Children are encouraged to dress as their favorite storybook character. This is a free event. For information, visit EarlyLearningCoalitionSarasota.org.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 12

RECKLESS SAINTS AFTERNOON FOLK SHOW 2-5 p.m. at Fogartyville Community Media & Arts Center, 525 Kumquat Court. Come out and listen to Roy Schneider and Kim Mayfield play Blue-Twangled Folk ‘n’ Roll music.

Tickets are $15. For information, visit WSLR.org.

ORTHOPEDICS VOTED #1 IN ORTHOPEDIC CARE

VALENTINE’S DAY SIP & STROLL Before 6:20 p.m. at The Bay Park, 1055 Boulevard of the Arts. Start your date at The Nest Concession and enjoy a special chocolate martini. Be sure to head down to Sunset Deck by 6:20 p.m. to provide your special someone with an unmatched view of the sun setting. For information, visit TheBaySarasota.org.

SARASOTA SHELL CLUB 2023 SHELL SHOW 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. at Robarts Arena in Potter Building, 2896 Ringling Blvd.

Summon your inner Floridian at this shell art show. There will be scientific and artistic exhibits, shell crafts, educational programs and shells for sale. Entry donation is $5 for adults.

For information, visit SarasotaShellClub.com.

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CORESRQ: BOOTCAMP 5:30-6:15 p.m. at The Oval, 1055 Boulevard of the Arts. Enjoy a 45-minute outdoor program using

bodyweight exercises to improve your strength and conditioning. This is a free event. For information, visit TheBaySarasota.org.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14

SAY ‘I DO’ AGAIN 6 p.m. at Nokomis and Siesta Key beaches. This Valentine’s Day vow renewal ceremony has been a Sarasota tradition for more than 35 years. Couples can register for $15 for a non-denominational vow renewal by visiting SCGov.net, or just watch the renewals for free.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15

HAVING FUN, WISH YOU WERE HERE! ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF THE POSTCARD IN FLORIDA 2:30-3:30 p.m. at Sarasota Art Museum, 1001 S. Tamiami Trail. Join Sarasota editor and veteran postcard collector Liz Coursen as she illustrates how Florida progressed from ox carts to trains and from alligator-infested waterways to bathing beauties on the beach, using museum-quality postcards to tell the tale. Tickets are $15. For information, call 309-5111.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 16

CORESRQ AT THE BAY: PRIMETIME 7:30-8:30 a.m. at The Oval, 1055 Boulevard of the Arts. Join in on this low-impact class that includes resistance training. This total body conditioning will target muscles in your core. Bring your own mat or towel. This is a free event, but registration is required. For information, visit TheBaySarasota.org.

At FPL, we put the people of Florida first. Every day we work hard to deliver clean, reliable and affordable energy because as your neighbor, it’s what’s best for our community. Learn more at FPL.com/Value

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

23

Compeer celebrates buddy system

G

Photos by Dariela Delgado

Anne Virag and Brian Lipton

Anne Shackman, Faith Goldman, Tere Reis, Jane Rosenstein and Nancy Shapiro

Children First Vice President of Philanthropy Jessica Rodgers and Children First President and CEO Philip Tavil

Compeer Founder Bunny Skirboll and Compeer CEO Chris Munson

rab a buddy and say, “Hello.”

Compeer Sarasota hosted its 2023 annual brunch fundraiser, Pooling Our Strengths: A Match for Every Friend on Feb. 5 at Micheal’s On East.

The brunch started with a speech from Compeer Founder Bunny Skirboll, followed by Honoree Faith Goldman, who is a long-time Compeer supporter and mental health advocate. Compeer promotes mental wellness through one-on-one mentoring and friendship.

Compeer volunteers and mentees spoke on how impactful Compeer Sarasota was in their lives. Then, keynote speaker Allison Schmitt took the stage.

Schmitt is a 10-time Olympic medalist, four-time Olympian and captain of the 2020 USA Olympic Swimming Team. Now, she is a mental health advocate and spoke about her personal struggles with depression and losing her cousin to suicide.

“Mental health is an invisible illness,” said Schmitt. “I believe, as human beings, we can be more conscious of the need to stop and say, ‘Hello.’”

Compeer Sarasota CEO Chris Munson expressed that Compeer is in need of volunteers and asked those who were interested to sign up. “Just four hours a month can change the life of a mentee,” he said.

For information about volunteering, visit CompeerSRQ.org.

— DARIELA DELGADO

2542 17th Street | Sarasota | 941.366.2404 | www.catdepot.org

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ADOPT. FOSTER. VOLUNTEER. DONATE. PROTECT YOUR FAMILY TREE WILLS, TRUSTS, ESTATE PLANNING & PROBATE

It’s never too early to seek to have your loved ones protected.

Call for a free 15-30 min. consultation

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M. Michelle Robles, Esq.

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941-315-2114

Waterfront masterpiece on Cocoanut Bayou.

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The residence features travertine tile on the first floor, beamed ceilings, lavish fireplaces and a grand room with multiple French doors to a covered terrace that spans the full width of the home. Other notable highlights include all new wood flooring on the second floor, four bedrooms with en-suite baths, a commercial-grade elevator, whole-house sound system and garage for 12+ vehicles.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

SIESTA KEY 4205 Higel Avenue 4 Beds 4/1 Baths 8,571 Sq. Ft. Maurice Menager & Lin Dunn 941-238-8119 A4539090 $6,950,000

SIESTA KEY 472 Island Circle 4 Beds 3/2 Baths 3,339 Sq. Ft. Lenore Treiman 941-356-9642 A4526972 $2,895,000

SARASOTA 1233 N Gulfstream Avenue 504 3 Beds 3/1 Baths 2,906 Sq. Ft. Melissa Gissinger 941-404-2722 A4549527 $2,690,000

SARASOTA The Ritz-Carlton Tower Residences, 1104 3 Beds 3 Baths 2,985 Sq. Ft. Beth Afflebach & Joan Dickinson 941-914-0496 A4552969 $2,650,000

SIESTA KEY 4193 Roberts Point Circle 4 Beds 3/1 Baths 3,250 Sq. Ft. Kim Eskew 941-587-5999 A4542367 $2,499,000

SARASOTA 650 Golden Gate Point 302 2 Beds 2/1 Baths 1,949 Sq. Ft. Dana Westmark 941-356-5091 A4557001 $2,400,000

SARASOTA 1233 N Gulfstream Avenue 301 3 Beds 3 Baths 2,906 Sq. Ft. Tina Biter 941-932-3367 A4558660 $2,300,000

ST. ARMANDS KEY 315 Jackson Drive 2 Beds 2/1 Baths 2,514 Sq. Ft. Terri Derr 941-356-6694 A4546074 $2,250,000

SIESTA KEY 3902 Somerset Drive 10 3 Beds 3/1 Baths 2,758 Sq. Ft. Barbara May & Fred Sassen 404-822-9264 A4558801 $2,100,000

SIESTA KEY 5400 Ocean Boulevard 14-1 2 Beds 2 Baths 1,187 Sq. Ft. Carol Thomas 941-302-8157 A4552109 $1,999,999

SIESTA KEY 1660 Summerhouse Lane 201 3 Beds 3/1 Baths 2,490 Sq. Ft. Melissa Gissinger 941-404-2722 A4554983 $1,950,000

SIESTA KEY 5740 Midnight Pass Road 106 3 Beds 2 Baths 1,757 Sq. Ft. Mary Jo Violett 941-928-8474 A4553590 $1,900,000

SARASOTA 988 Blvd Of The Arts 1916 2 Beds 2 Baths 1,555 Sq. Ft. Michael Prisco & Eileen Prisco 941-812-1291 A4549566 $1,850,000

SIESTA KEY 525 Treasure Boat Way 2 Beds 2 Baths 2,097 Sq. Ft. Drew Russell 941-993-3739 A4550615 $1,740,000

SIESTA KEY 5790 Midnight Pass Road A-104 2 Beds 2 Baths 1,433 Sq. Ft. Paul Oakes 770-403-0385 A4557335 $1,250,000

SIESTA KEY 5880 Midnight Pass Road 310 3 Beds 2 Baths 1,713 Sq. Ft. Linda Stowe 941-228-5685 A4536003 $1,195,000

SIESTA KEY 6150 Midnight Pass Road VILLA 19 2 Beds 2 Baths 1,044 Sq. Ft. Rudy Dudon 941-234-3991 A4550298 $900,000

SIESTA KEY 5740 Midnight Pass Road 207 2 Beds 2 Baths 1,340 Sq. Ft. Melba Jimenez PA 941-356-3970 A4548376 $899,000

SIESTA KEY 8750 Midnight Pass Road 106 2 Beds 2 Baths 1,650 Sq. Ft. Mina Johnson 941-404-9347 A4541462 $799,900

SIESTA KEY 1265 Dockside Place 114 2 Beds 2 Baths 1,217 Sq. Ft. Matthew Voss 941-237-0877 A4550487 $750,000

SIESTA KEY 5855 Midnight Pass Road 209 2 Beds 2 Baths 1,056 Sq. Ft. Mina Johnson & Mina Johnson 941-404-9347 A4554773 $699,900

SIESTA KEY 711 Beach Road 204 1 Bed 1 Baths 787 Sq. Ft. Rudy Dudon 941-234-3991 A4557919 $640,000

SIESTA KEY 711 Beach Road 202 1 Bed 1 Baths 787 Sq. Ft. Karen Chandler 941-544-4919 A4556646 $625,000

SIESTA KEY 9393 Midnight Pass Road P3 1 Bed 1 Baths 970 Sq. Ft. Gladys Carrasco 941-400-1520 A4554500 $570,000

SIESTA KEY 9200 Midnight Pass Road 25 1 Bed 1 Baths 906 Sq. Ft. David Anthony 941-786-4282 A4556272 $499,999

SIESTA KEY 3722 Flamingo Avenue 5 Beds 5/2 Baths 4,985 Sq. Ft. Barbara May & Fred Sassen 404-822-9264 A4546740 $6,750,000

SIESTA KEY 5400 Ocean Boulevard 14-2 & 14-3 3 Beds 4 Baths 2,463 Sq. Ft. Lenore Treiman 941-356-9642 A4549634 $3,400,000

SIESTA KEY 5215 Hidden Harbor Road 4 Beds 4 Baths 3,497 Sq. Ft. Thomas Cinquegrano 941-284-5049 A4555269 $3,250,000

888.552.5228 | MICHAELSAUNDERS.COM 395708-1

24

YourObserver.com

SARASOTA OBSERVER

ADAM HUGHES

A

home on Casey Key topped all transactions in this week’s real estate. Michael and Lucille Brown, trustees, of Nokomis, sold the home at 4001 Casey Key Road to Waterside Properties LLC for $4.5 million. Built in 1964, it has three bedrooms, three baths and 1,812 square feet of living area. It sold for $3.2 million in 2021.

BOOTH’S OF SARASOTA HEIGHTS Frank and Martina Kinslow, of Sarasota, sold their home at 1747 Arlington St. to Theodore and Virginie Niedermayer, of New York City, for $1.6 million. Built in 1942, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 2,329 square feet of living area. It sold for $695,000 in 2010.

MARK SARASOTA Don and Barbara Costantino, of Sarasota, sold their Unit 1105 condominium at 111 S. Pineapple Ave. to Gary Wood and Lynn Wood, trustees, of Moultonborough, New Hampshire, for $1.5 million.

Built in 2019, it has two bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 1,500 square feet of living area. It sold for $932,200 in 2020.

TOWNHOMES OF ORANGE CLUB Peter and Jacqueline Borden, of Boca Grande, sold their Unit 656 condominium at 656 Rawls Ave. to Warren and Evelyn Silver, trustees, of Denham, Maine, for $1,425,000.

Built in 2017, it has three bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths and 2,092 square feet of living area. It sold for $950,000 in 2021.

Q James and Marta Hobbs, of Boca Raton, sold their home at 211 Cosmopolitan Court to Christopher Rex, of Sarasota, for $1.3 million.

Built in 2018, it has three bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths and 2,588 square feet of living area. It sold for $930,000 in 2021.

CONDOMINIUM ON THE BAY William Denslow Jr., trustee, of Locust Valley, New Jersey, sold the Unit 109 condominium at 988 Bou-

JAN. 23-27

SARASOTA: $1.7 MILLION

South School Avenue Kevin Miller, of Sarasota, sold his home at 4101 S. School Ave. to SRQ RE Development LLC for $1.7 million. Built in 1945, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,698 square feet of living area.

SIESTA KEY: $1.55 MILLION

Courtesy photo

SARASOTA

RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE TRANSACTIONS

Other top sales by area

RESEARCH EDITOR

25

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

REAL ESTATE

Casey Key home tops the week’s transactions at $4.5 million

|

The home at 4001 Casey Key Road was built in 1964. It has three bedrooms, three baths and 1,812 square feet of living area.

levard of the Arts to John Brink, of Sarasota, for $1.25 million. Built in 1982, it has three bedrooms, three baths and 2,315 square feet of living area. It sold for $300,000 in 2001.

PINE SHORES ESTATES Carl Myers, trustee, of Falls Church, Virginia, sold the home at 6239 Hollywood Blvd. to 6239 Holly Blvd Sarasota LLC for $1,165,000. Built in 1974, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,204 square feet of living area. It sold for $595,000 in 2017.

TOSCANO Sean and Alison Fogarty, of Sarasota, sold their Unit 401 condominium at 205 Golden Gate Point to Ross and Meredith Switkes, of Haymarket, Virginia, for $950,000.

Built in 1996, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,535 square feet of living area. It sold for $670,000 in 2020.

ONLINE

BAY VIEW HEIGHTS ADDITION Cynthia Tremblay and William Tucker II, of Charlottesville, Virginia, sold their home at 1794 Cunliff Lane to Jennifer Jordan McCall, trustee, of Memphis, Tennessee, for $1,164,100. Built in 2015, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,469 square feet of living area. It sold for $1,688,800 in 2015.

SARASOTA BAY CLUB Sarasota Bay Club LLC sold the Unit 302 condominium at 1301 Tamiami Trail to John and Mary Jo Deckro, of Sarasota, for $955,000.

Built in 2000, it has two bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 1,832 square feet of living area. It sold for $611,000 in 2016.

ESSEX HOUSE Marc David Thomas, trustee, of Maple Grove, Minnesota, sold the Unit 1003 condominium at 707 S. Gulfstream Ave. to Robert Fleshman and Lori Fleshman, trustees, of Fort Myers, for $950,000. Built in 1974, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,305 square feet of living area. It sold for $145,000 in 1981.

See more transactions at YourObserver.com

The Palm Bay Club of Sarasota Sarasota Palm Bay LLC sold the Unit G-103 condominium at 5966 Midnight Pass Road to Freeze Enterprises LLC for $1.55 million. Built in 1970, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,164 square feet of living area. It sold for $864,100 in 2012.

PALMER RANCH: $625,000 Stoneybrook Golf and Country Club James and Betty Kernan sold their home at 8752 Pebble Creek Lane to Charles Sparks and Rhonda Marcus, trustees, of Sarasota, for $625,000. Built in 1996, it has two bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,728 square feet of living area. It sold for $545,000 in 2022.

OSPREY: $1.65 MILLION

Oaks II Richard and Deborah Riley, of Osprey, sold their home at 438 E. Mac Ewen Drive to Lawrence Ariano and Moira Catherine Ariano, of Warrenville, Illinois, for $1.65 million. Built in 2000, it has four bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths, a pool and 3,489 square feet of living area. It sold for $925,000 in 2018.

In with the new NOW UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Downtown St. Petersburg

400 Central | 727.209.7848 | From the $1MM’s | Call for appointment. | Residences400central.com SOLD OUT

TOP BUILDING PERMITS These are the largest city of Sarasota and Sarasota County building permits issued for the week of Jan. 23-27, in order of dollar amounts.

Longboat Key

CITY OF SARASOTA Permit

Applicant

Amount

707 S. Gulfstream Ave. #507 Windows

Paul Ritacco

$89,923

1364 Harbor Drive

Re-roof

Mitchell Epstein

1850 Oleander St.

Re-roof

Rodney Anderson

$50,900

2807 Greenbriar St.

Pool/Deck

Edwald Filho

$48,500

2131 McClellan Parkway

Pool Cage

Alex Ramos

$47,080

950 Alameda Way

Dredging

Christopher Carrington

$43,815

1354 Harbor Drive

Wall

Marilynn Lee, trustee

$40,815

1326 14th St.

Re-roof

Oscar Johnson

$36,674

1535 Tangier Way

Pool Cage

Greg Towsley

$34,288

3193 Hatton St.

Solar System

Albert Miller

$28,049

$71,377 The Residences at the St. Regis | 941.213.3300 | From $2.4MM to $10.9MM | Call for appointment | SRResidencesLongboatKey.com 1 FINAL OPPORTUNITY AVAILABLE

Downtown Sarasota

SARASOTA COUNTY Address

Permit

Applicant

1618 Pine Harrier Circle

Renovations

Scott Bradley

$200,000

Amount

1280 Northport Drive

Seawall/Dock

Norbert Donelly

$200,000

467 Walls Way

Addition

Lorenzo Spinelli

$180,000

1616 Baywinds Lane

Pool

Michael Rebecchi

$134,254

653 Eagle Watch Lane

Re-roof

Alexandre Calame

$119,340

9020 Wildlife Loop

Re-roof

Dennis Cavanaugh

$80,900

5207 Sand Lake Court

Re-roof

Isaac Barpal

$78,850

7243 Antigua Place

Windows

Lucinda Bell

432 Yacht Harbor Drive

Windows/Doors

Wylan Bernitt

The Collection | 941.232.2868 | thecollection1335.com

Sales galleries open and available for virtual or in-person presentations.

Virtual home tours | OnDemand local experts | Interactive site and floorplans

$77,235 $68,399

mscdeveloperservices.com | 844.591.4333 | Sarasota, Florida Prices as of December 2022

Source: Sarasota County, city of Sarasota

Licensed Real Estate Broker

395720-1

Address

26

SARASOTA OBSERVER

|

YourObserver.com

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

PET PICS

1-4 UN S N OPE

S IEW V AY 2B

Have photos of your four-legged family members? We want to see them! Share them at YourObserver.com/contests/petpics to be published online and for a chance to see them in print!

1372 Point Crisp ON SIESTA KEY $5,750,000 22 Sandy Cove #502

VIEWS, VIEWS, VIEWS! Modern masterpiece with walls of glass and expansive north and south Bay views. Perfect escape, stunning Siesta Key home on exclusive Point Crisp.

Guest casita, private beach, dock and pool.

16,872 SqFt Lot MLS A4555983

$1,800,000

SIESTA KEY PENTHOUSE. Gulf front private beach. Panoramic views of the Gulf and Cedar Lake. 3 en suite bedrooms. Completely renovated unit in coveted Sandy Cove. Kayak storage, fishing pier. Near the Village. Big dogs welcome.

MLS A4533408 T ON R F TER WA

RM HA C ZEN

New Listing: 3455 Anglin Dr $2,350,000 1030 Sylvan Dr

TOTALLY RENOVATED! Open floorplan, perfect for entertaining. On Bay Island, just minutes to the mainland, yet close to Siesta Key Beach and Siesta Village. New heated salt water pool and inviting outdoor living spaces. Move in ready.

MLS A4557968

$1,899,000

SYLVAN SHORES. Waterfront investment opportunity. Build your dream home or rent the existing cottage on Whitaker Bayou, just north of Downtown Sarasota. Direct access to the Bay. MLS A4536183

#1 Agent in the Siesta Key Office for 29 years!

398332-1

Voted Sarasota Magazine’s Five Star Agent “Best in Client Satisfaction” 17 Years in a Row Coldwell Banker - International President’s Premier Agent

cell: 941-914-5540 betsy@betsydemanio.com demanioeberleygroup.com

cell: 201-233-1959 Jackie@JackieEberley.com demanioeberleygroup.com

SPLASHES AND SMILES: Sunny girl is a black Lab rescue from the Sarasota Humane Society living her best life in Sarasota.

Coldwell Banker Realty Owned and Operated by NRT,LLC

Celebrate the joy of

INSPIRED COASTAL LIVING Key Life is a new magazine publishing February, May and November from the Observer Media Group.

Key Life shines a light on the people, experiences, culture, arts, architecture and business that set the keys apart – and makes them so special.

395420-1

396194-1

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27

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

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2807 University Pkwy

BRADENTON 941-201-6076

DELRAY BEACH 561-501-4392 4900 Linton Blvd #3 (In between Poppies Restaurant and Kristi Cleaners)

ROYAL PALM BEACH 561-631-8757 11985 Southern Blvd (Publix at Crestwood Square - next to Carter Healthcare)

(Bradenton Pain and Wellness Center)

BOYNTON BEACH 561-619-9274 4739 N Congress Ave (In between Dollar Tree and Fon Shan Chinese)

JUPITER 561-529-3011 6725 West Indiantown Rd Bay 39 (In Jupiter West Plaza)

2001 Manatee Avenue E. Ste 104

397776-1

In Publix Plaza at University Walk

!

SOUTH CAROLINA LICENSE NUMBERS: HTP-1029, HTP-1024, HTP-1031, HTP-1023, HAS-0573, HAS-0642, HAS-0637, HAS- 0638, HAS-0633

GEORGIA LICENSE NUMBERS: HADS000995, HADS000996, HADS001001, HADS001003

28

WEATHER

SARASOTA OBSERVER

|

YourObserver.com

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

NATURE’S BEAUTY WITH

FORECAST THURSDAY, FEB. 9

Submit your photos at YourObserver. com/Weather.

All submissions will be entered for the 2022-23 Weather and Nature photo contest. In February 2023, you will vote for your favorite photo, and the submission with the most votes will win a $500 gift card.

High: 81 Low: 66 Chance of rain: 7%

FRIDAY, FEB. 10 High: 80 Low: 66 Chance of rain: 17%

SUNRISE / SUNSET Sunrise Sunset Thursday, Feb. 9

7:10a

6:16p

Friday, Feb. 10

7:10a

6:17p

Saturday, Feb. 11

7:09a

6:18p

Sunday, Feb. 12

7:08a

6:19p

Monday, Feb. 13

7:07a

6:19p

Tuesday, Feb. 14

7:07a

6:20p

Wednesday, Feb. 15

7:06a

6:21p

MOON PHASES

SATURDAY, FEB. 11 High: 71 Low: 60 Chance of rain: 50%

SUNDAY, FEB. 12 High: 66 Low: 51 Chance of rain: 15%

Feb. 20 New

Feb. 27 First

March 7 Full

March 14 Last

RAINFALL Monday, Jan. 30

0

Tuesday, Jan. 31

0

Wednesday, Feb. 1

0

Thursday, Feb. 2

0

Friday, Feb. 3

0

Saturday, Feb. 4

0.1

Sunday, Feb. 5

0

*Rainfall totals from Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport

Becky Edwards captured this local cow mid bite in Sarasota.

YEAR TO DATE: 2023 1.53 in.

2022 0.87 in.

MONTH TO DATE: 2023 0.10 in.

2022 0.43 in.

MANASOTA FLOORING INC 941.493.7441 | www.manasotaonline.com

crossword

397845-1

941.748.4679 | Venice

celebrity cipher

I’M EXHAUSTED! by Fred Piscop, edited by David Steinberg 113 The ___ said “I’m shot!”

116 Pub offerings 117 Fencer’s weapon 118 “Gladiator” wardrobe item 119 Husk-wrapped food 120 35mm camera initials 121 Org. with wands 122 Emulate a 53-Across 123 Homes to missiles

52 Overdo the praise 55 BART part 56 Not as congenial 57 Big-box store walkway 59 Suffix with “Gator” or “Power” 62 Woodstock drug 63 Whopper creators 64 Useful attribute 65 “Peachy keen!”

66 Just ___ (not much) DOWN 67 Marie Osmond’s brother 1 Gym dance of old 68 Signaled hello or 2 Nerve cell transmitter goodbye 3 Human-powered 69 One-named British transport pop star 4 When Brutus struck 72 Ton of bricks, e.g.

5 Far from long-winded 75 Island north of Ven6 H, in a frat name ezuela 7 Proposal-defeating votes 76 Update the decor of 8 Four-handed piano tunes 78 Call-in show medium 9 Subway handhold 79 Tie for a Texan 10 Tire problem 80 Played for a fool 11 Victimizes, with “on” 81 “A ___ formality!”

12 Wasabi-coated veggie 83 Arched parts of the feet 13 Subway wall art, 84 Closing bars perhaps 86 It’s measured in gigs 14 Adler of Holmes stories 88 Join the Merchant 15 First known asteroid Marine, say ©2023 Universal Uclick 17 BBQ rod 89 “Swan Lake” heroine 29 James portrayed by 82 Out of the rat race, say 58 Petty complaint ACROSS 19 Caterer’s fuel 90 Star pilot Beyonce 59 “Float like a butterfly” 84 Child’s “Please?”

1 Smoking or nail-biting, 20 Berry in some jelly 95 Hummus holders 31 Shows mercy to 85 “Place” of 1990s TV boxer e.g.

22 Release from prison 96 Pastoral poem 32 French city where Van 87 High on pot 60 Soother in baby wipes 6 Some receivers in 24 Like a 3-4-5 triangle 97 Pursuer of Bugs Gogh painted 88 The ___ said “I’m tired!”

61 ___ Royal Highness football 27 Soothsayer’s deck 98 Armada components 33 Heat rub target 91 ___-Caps (theater 62 After the whistle 10 Android download 30 Partner of 102-Down 99 Poolside number candy) 63 The ___ said “I’m 13 Karaoke need, for short 37 One of two on a 1959 33 On the topic of 100 Boorish sort Cadillac 92 Peculiar bushed!”

16 Rust and laughing gas, 34 Chuck wagon fare 102 Help in a heist 39 Geneticist’s single 93 Smart TV brand 67 The ___ said “I’m for two 35 Cry like a wolf 103 Greedy monarch of 94 Airplane ___ (phone wiped!”

18 Like a tuned piano string strand 36 Fumble or stumble myth 40 Apple pie ___ mode setting) 70 “Got it” 19 Stud horse, perhaps 38 Like Sherpas 106 Neighbor of Ghana 41 The ___ said “I’m fried!”

95 Mary-in-mourning 71 Contraction in “America” 20 Medical researcher’s 40 Home of Iowa State 108 ___ Valley (Los Angeles 46 Made good as new sculpture 72 Hang in a hammock, find 42 Works like a dog suburb) 50 Waterskiing need 98 Regular date, in old maybe 21 The ___ said “I’m all in!”

43 ___ disc (retina part) 109 Plus others, briefly 51 Sweet wine slang 73 Throw in 23 The ___ said “I’m 44 Chopper spinner 110 Beer pong cup brand 52 Non-Mormon, to a 101 Mild Dutch cheese 74 Happy ___ clam spent!”

45 Canadian tribe 112 Butterfly catcher Mormon 104 Twiddled one’s thumbs 75 GPA part 25 Loch monster, infor47 Bluesy Washington 114 Bit of skin art, slangily 53 Hogwarts bird 105 Stressful position 77 Off base with permismally 48 Socially superior 115 Low-___ graphics sion 107 Nile waders 26 Like elms or mansions 54 Repeat 49 Stave off 79 Mooch, as a cigarette 56 Reason to protest 111 The ___ said “I’m beat!”

28 Wrecking ball swinger

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

Each letter in the cipher stands for another.

“H’D U MHX TKAUSAS. H’D ZSRHBX ZP SAHB HZ HB MJZ H VP ZCHBL HZ’T U BHIA TAUTPBHBX PG WUBXJUXA.” PWHFHU IPWDUB

“SY S EDFKA WLC WDRSCP S MXDWLWKU TDFKA WFI S’KK IZKK UDF SC IBZ GLNZ WXZLIB, S KDOZA SI PXDTSCP FM.”

HDCLIBLC WLCVG

“XW AGAECJIA UDP D FXOOFA ZXO IXRAE OJ MAJMFA, OTA UJEFV UJBFV ZA D HBRT ZAOOAE MFDRA.”

TDEEC POCFAP

Puzzle Three Clue: W equals F

941.355.8437 | Bradenton

Puzzle Two Clue: R equals X

Sarasota

KARASTAN, MOHAWK, ARI. O, SMARTSTRAND, ALL PET

Puzzle One Clue: L equals K

CARPET

© 2023 NEA, Inc.

sudoku

Complete the grid so that every row, column and 3x3 box contains every digit from 1 to 9 inclusively.

©2023 Andrews McMeel Syndicate

2-9-23

Made for where you live. Here!

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

RED PAGES INFORMATION & RATES: 941-955-4888

Help Wanted

redpages@yourobserver.com •yourobserver.com/redpages DEADLINES: Classifieds - Tuesday at Noon Service Directory - Friday at 3PM • PAYMENT: Cash, Check or Credit Card The Sarasota and Siesta Key Observer reserves the right to classify and edit copy, or to reject or cancel an advertisement at any time. Corrections after first insertion only. *All ads are subject to the approval of the Publisher. *It is the responsibility of the party placing any ad for publication in the Sarasota and Siesta Key Observer to meet all applicable legal requirements in connection with the ad such as compliance with towncodes in first obtaining an occupational license for business, permitted home occupation, or residential rental property.

Notice: All real estate advertised herein is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act, which makes it illegal to advertise any preference, limitation, or discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin, or intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination. All persons are hereby informed that all dwellings advertised are available on an equal opportunity basis.

TURTLE ROCK on Palmer Ranch Community Sales Garage/ Saturday February 11,

Moving/ Estate Sales

LEADER’S RATTAN Pub Set, 2 swivel stools 31” at seat. Glasstop table, 41”H. Perfect Condition $199. 401-345-6056 SAW horses $40/ea.

Convection oven, $40. Portable “bag” chairs $15. White Golf shoes (9) $50. 941-228-9467

Use the RED PAGES to clean out your garage CALL 941-955-4888

TRAYL BIKE- Like new. Double Roar Sprockets $150 OBO. 941-536-3258 TRIPLE DRESSER and mirror 72”. All wood. Drexl Heritage. $100. (913)645-6469

PRAYER TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN (Never know to fail) Oh, Most Beautiful Flower of Mt. Carmel, Fruitful Vine, Splendor of Heaven, Blessed Mother of the Son of God, Immaculate Virgin, assist me in my necessity. O, Star of the Sea, help me and show me, herein you are my Mother. Oh, Holy Mary, Mother of God, Queen of Heaven and Earth! I humbly beseech you from the bottom of my heart to succor me in my necessity.

There are none that can withstand your power. Oh, show me herein you my Mother! Oh, Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.

Holy Mother, I place this cause in your hands. Holy Spirit, you who solve all problems, light all roads so that I can attain my goal. You who gave me the divine gift to forgive and forget all evil against me and that in all instances in my life you are with me. I want in this short prayer to thank you for all things as you confirm once again that I never want to be separated from you in eternal glory. Thank you for your mercy toward me and mine. Published prayer.

Thank you Blessed Mother~

abbie144@gmail.com

auto

Announcements

ADMINSTRATIVE ASSISTANT Longboat Key Condominium is looking for a administrative assistant responsible for performing administrative and clerical tasks. Duties include providing support for our management company and Board members. The candidate needs excellent interpersonal & communication skills. Create a welcoming environment for owners and renters. Handle owner/renter inquires, answer the telephone, schedule appointments and manage relationships with vendors in a professional manner. Have experience with word processing, spreadsheets and email. Working knowledge of printers, copiers, scanners and fax machine.

Please send resume and salary requirements.

WHIRLPOOL LARGE capacity gas dryer. Under two years old. $199 firm. 575-649-3405

Autos Wanted

DOG GROOMER: Goldendoodles Do you know what a Puppy Cut is? If yes, and being in the company of Goldendoodles warms your heart this posting is for you! Previous experience required. Negotiable hours.

Non-commercial setting.

Dreamsofpeace65@gmail.com

BUY STUFF HERE! YourObserver.com/RedPages

CASH FOR YOUR CAR We come to you!

Ho Ho Buys cars.

941-270-4400.

STORAGE FACILITY Boat/ RV/ Trailer. Secure facility, low monthly rentals, Clark Rd area.

941809-3660, 941-809-3662.

WE BUY cars. top $$ paid for your vehicles.

Call Hawley Motors: 941-923-3421.

RED PAGES AD RATES 15% DISCOUNT FOR 4-WEEK RUN Color background: $5 per week Ad border: as low as $3 per week

PLACE YOUR AD: Call: 941-955-4888 | Email: redpages@yourobserver.com Online: yourobserver.com/redpages

FIND BUYERS & SELLERS HERE!

Beachfront, Bayfront and In Between

941-955-4888 YourObserver.com/RedPages

Houses or Condos Reservations 941-383-5577 wagnerlbkrentals@gmail.com Visa/MC 5360 Gulf of Mexico Dr., Suite 101 Longboat Key, FL 34228 Rental office 9a.m. - 5p.m.

M-F Ask about our special rates!

Wagner Realty Since 1939 www.rentalsonlongboat.com

Adult Care Services PERSONAL CARE GIVERPrivate care: Meal preparation, errands, shopping, and more.

Affordable hourly rates, available weekdays, weekends, and holidays.

Minimal shift 5 hours can also provide overnight care.

Temporary or long term care.

Over 10+ years experience.

References available. No new faces, one consistent caregiver.

COVID Negative.

Call Kati: 941-536-7706.

Auto Transport

Condos/Apts. for Rent LAWRENCE POINTE Enjoy walkingdowntown or to the Ritz. Newly renovated 2/2 with magnificent water views and sunsets. Annual $4,500/mo.

May rent with option to buy.

941-388-3738

Vacation/ Seasonal Rentals SPACIOUS 1,300 SQ.FT., 2 bed, 2 bath furnished condominium, extended patio overlooking Sarasota Bay and city views of Sarasota. Pool, fitness room and beach club included. March & April 2023. $6,000/month. All utilities included. Call 941-545-4471

www.braziliancleaningbymk.com

Landscaping/ Lawn Services Professional Gardener Design, installation, maintenance, flowers, herbs, vegetables, and exotic gardens.

Regular weekly lawn maintenance and restoration 40+ years experience.

Tomlarsen559@gmail.com farmgirlfarmboyorganics.com Please call 334-739-3409

Painting CARLO DATTILO Painting Licensed & insured. Interior/ Exterior painting including drywall repair and retexturing.

Wallpaper installation & removal, pressure washing. Residential & commercial, condos.

Honest & reliable.

Free estimates. 941-744-1020.

35+ years experience.

Adult Care Services

Condos/Apts. for Sale OPEN HOUSE For Sale or Annual Unfurn Rental 555 S Gulfstream #301 2BR/ 2BA Bright 2 Bed 2 Ba corner unit with bay and harbor views within 5 min walk from D'town and Burns Ct. Secure bldg with pool, BBQ, fitness, a/c storage room, assigned covered parking, w/d in unit. $775,000 or $4000/mo rental 843 298 0301

BRAZILIAN CLEANING Service

by Maria. Residential. Meticulous Cleaning. Excellent References.

Free Estimates. Reliable. Lic./Ins. 941-400-3342.

SARASOTA INTERIOR PAINTING

EPIC HOME CARE Personal Care-Respite Care Alzheimer’s Care Light Cleaning Med Administration Meal Prep Shopping, Errands & More Call for a FREE Evaluation!

941-536-6372 Epichomecareprovider@gmail Rosa Torres- Owner

Use the RED PAGES to clean out your garage CALL 941-955-4888

This week’s Crossword answers

HIGH-END INTERIOR PAINTING WE ARE THE BEST!!!

Fully Insured.

CALL or TEXT Don 941-900-9398

Pressure Cleaning PRESSURE WASHING/ PAINTING. 30 years experience. Houses, Mobile homes, pool/patio areas, paver cleaning & sealing. I am prompt, reliable & reasonable.

I take pride in my work.

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Photos by Harry Sayer

Nathan Burnaman has been visualizing and executing many of the gardens’ art installations.

(GLASS) WORKS IN PROGRESS Marie Selby Botanical Gardens staff is preparing a number of stained glass installations ahead of its exhibit on Feb. 12.

GLASS IN THE GARDENS

HARRY SAYER STAFF WRITER

M

arie Selby Botanical Gardens staff members always want to maintain a point of view when debuting new exhibits.

The mantra for the Jean and Alfred Goldstein Exhibition Series — to examine master artists throughout history and highlight their relationship to nature — has led to creative and original approaches to bringing artwork into the gardens each year.

For their upcoming exhibit, the vision is clear. Staff members are taking guests back in time and showcase a type of practical but beautiful stained glass and decorative arts not shown in the garden before.

The “Tiffany: The Pursuit of Beauty In Nature” exhibit, set to debut on Feb. 12, will highlight the many works of American artist and designer Louis Comfort Tiffany.

The stained glass artist and designer put out a number of revered art nouveau works — including intricate lamps, multicolored mosaics, patterned windows and more — in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many of which will now be celebrated at the gardens.

“It’s (showcasing) the decorative

David Berry and Nathan Burnaman have overseen much of the design of the upcoming Tiffany exhibit.

arts at the turn of the 20th century by looking at glass with a connection to nature,” Vice President for Visitor Engagement and Chief Museum Curator David Berry says.

The exhibit’s work is not yet done,

with many of the horticultural displays and museum designs still in progress.

But the creative figures designing both sections are excited for guests to see what they have in store.

Nathan Burnaman, associate director of horticultural exhibits with Selby, has had an idea for one of many art installations that will fill Selby Gardens for the Tiffany showcase.

A mosaic of a wildflower dug right into the earth, with crushed glass and colored stone providing color.

The outlines of the petals would be creeks with flowing water, and the remaining space filled of vibrant plant life to complete the image.

Burnaman felt it would be a union of nature and Tiffany’s style. Where the renowned artist used leading to create lines that delineated his colored glass, the Selby art piece would have streams of jetting water to create the shape of a wildflower.

A year ago, it was an idea. But now, standing in the middle of the installation, seeing the full design take shape and watching the various rivulets begin to fill with water, Burnaman feels a sense of pride.

“It’s super exciting in the beginning,” Burnaman says. “There’s infinite possibilities because we’re usually doing new things. It takes stretching your imaginations and looking for inspiration where you can find it.”

The Flowing Flower will be one of seven installations in the gardens that reflect Tiffany’s style and vision transformed into a tangible garden space.

SEE GLASS, PAGE 2

2

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Burnaman says he has been involved in the design process for the art installations from cradle to grave. That starts with generating ideas that will marry Tiffany’s stylings with the garden space and then finding ways to make them work.

“We ask, ‘what makes the artist distinct?’” Burnaman says. “We focus on those key elements and generate ideas that would be practical to execute … with the language of plants, sculpture and flowers. We’ll think of many ideas and whittle it down from there.”

Many are still works in progress, and all require a good deal of work to execute.

The Living Lampshade, for example, is a vignette that Burnaman says is one of the garden’s biggest ever.

Staff members have constructed a gazebo that has been lined with orchid-shaped, leaded glass shades with vibrant green, red and blue colors. A garden will fill the interior with additional color.

When guests stand inside the gazebo (imitating a lamp shape) and the sun hits just right, they’ll find themselves surrounded by dazzling shades of colored light. “(The gazebo) is a permitted structure,” Burnaman says. “It’s built to withstand Armageddon.”

Color and light (and their relationships) are a common theme in many of the installations that will be seen at Selby this spring.

The Rooted in Nature section has the gardens’ massive Moreton Bay fig tree’s root area planted with more than 1,000 guzmania flowers of various colors to imitate Tiffany’s glass displays.

The Succulents in Silhouette piece that overlooks the succulent garden has a number of tall, colored panels that stretch color and light across the plant space.

As it is still leading up to the exhibit’s debut, other installations are still underway. That suits Burnaman just fine.

“I usually have one favorite (installation),” Burnaman said. “This year, I have a lot of them.”

Photos by Harry Sayer

A CURATED EXPERIENCE

David Berry has been preparing the museum space for the new Tiffany exhibit for some time, and work really kicked into gear once the previous exhibit wrapped.

But during all this prep work, he’s been waiting for one moment — the first time a guest walks inside the museum, stop, and take a look at a Tiffany lamp he placed ever so carefully. It may seem like a small thing, but it’s much more than that to Berry.

It will be proof that his team’s design of the museum’s walk-thru has paid off. “(It’s about) the object you placed in a particular place that just stops someone and they look,” Berry says.

“That’s what it’s all ultimately about, when people make that connection.

They have a better understanding of all this in the context of nature.”

The Tiffany exhibit’s museum segment will have guests entering and seeing a silhouetted display of glass designs meant to evoke Tiffany’s New York studio before walking through hallways and learning more about the artist and seeing his various lamps, mosaics and other designs. Much of the museum’s col-

l a u n th An 4 3 m m VENICE o o r r f f e e iv iv

Nathan Burnaman has been watching the Flowing Flower installation take shape from starting design to its finish.

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“TIFFANY: THE PURSUIT OF BEAUTY IN NATURE” Where: Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, 1534 Mound St. When: Feb. 12 through June 25 Tickets: $16 for adults; $11 for guests Info: Call 366-5731 or visit Selby.org.

lection of glasswork was loaned from a private party.

Unlike some earlier exhibits that had a more open floor plan, the Tiffany exhibit has a guided style that Berry hopes will help guests better understand the artist’s life and style when working in interior design.

That approach has included putting in a new dividing wall in an opening room to give more of a walkthrough experience.

“There’s something always in front of you, to your left or your right,” Berry says. “We want to capture the viewer’s (attention).”

Picking the types of artwork and details from Tiffany’s life — especially those that highlighted his

relationship to nature — to adorn the new layout and gallery was another matter entirely.

“You have the artist and the artist’s work, but what are the stories you’re going to tell?” Berry says. “We dive in as fully as we can … once we commit to an idea, then there’s the research to flesh it out.”

Berry feels he was well versed in Tiffany’s work before the exhibit but says he’s now learned to recognize the sophistications that separate Tiffany’s glass work from other artists.

A Lotus Pogoda lamp, for example, has a water-lily inspired design with a delicate touch that Berry has come to love.

But more than that is Berry’s respect for the artist’s emphasis on creating lamps, windows and other glass work that have real function to go along with the aesthetics.

“With Tiffany, you have glass used for practical purposes at the highest level of craftsmanship and aesthetic quality with the windows and the lamps,” Berry says. “We can see it as fine art because it is, but they were sold with a practical purpose.”

The Living Lampshade installation will be filled with color and light.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

“When X Meets Y,” a fully improvised musical love story. Inspired by one location and three random notes on the keyboard, the troupe takes it from there to spin a fun story with romantic twists and turns.

SUNDAY LET’S CELEBRATE 3 p.m. at Northminster Presbyterian Church, 3131 61st St. $5 Visit SuncoastConcertBand.org.

The Suncoast Concert Band presents this performance of local musicians, which is sure to delight with an afternoon of music in a casual atmosphere.

MONDAY ‘TOOTSIE’ 7:30 p.m. at Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 777 N. Tamiami Trail $42-$97 Visit VanWezel.org.

When an out-of-work actor has trouble getting gigs, he reinvents himself as a woman to secure the role of a lifetime. This good-time musical packed full of laughs will be sure to give you a night off from the real world. Runs through Wednesday, Feb. 15.

THURSDAY

HANZHI WANG, ACCORDIONIST 11 a.m. at Sarasota Yacht Club 1100 John Ringling Blvd. $60 Visit ArtistSeriesConcerts.org.

Young musician Hanzhi Wang is the only accordionist to ever earn a place on the roster of Young Concert Artists in its 61-year history. Hosted by the Artist Series Concerts, enjoy lunch and a performance by this musician, who was named Musical America’s New Artist of the Month in 2018.

THURSDAY JAZZ AT THE SAM 5:30 p.m. at Sarasota Art Museum, 1001 S. Tamiami Trail $20; members free Visit SarasotaArtMuseum.org.

Hot Club of SRQ will perform as the Sarasota Art Museum invites patrons to sip on cocktails and dine on light bites in the Bistro. Hosted by the Jazz Club of Sarasota, this event welcomes attendees to peruse the galleries during extended hours.

TEMPS, TOPS, SUPREMES, & GLADYS: A MOTOWN REVUE 7:30 p.m. at Manatee Performing Arts Center, 502 Third Ave. W. $30-$55 Visit ManateePerformingArtsCenter. com.

For more than 60 years, Motown has held up as one of the most unique and fertile genres for music lovers.

The Soul Sensations and their friends will play the classics and

1734 South Tamiami Trail Venice, FL 34293 941.493.7441

invite the audience to sing, dance and enjoy the best of Motown. Runs through Friday, Feb. 10.

GREAT ESCAPES: DATE NIGHT 7:30 p.m. at Holley Hall, 709 N. Tamiami Trail $45-$108 Visit SarasotaOrchestra.org.

What better prelude to Valentine’s Day than enjoying an evening of romantic music? As part of its Great Escapes series, the Sarasota Orchestra will take audiences on a journey through heartfelt stories paired with music that will make you swoon. Runs through Sunday, Feb. 12.

FRIDAY YAKOV SMIRNOFF 6:30 p.m. at McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre, 1923 Ringling Blvd. $37 Visit McCurdysComedy.com.

Russian-born entertainer Yakov Smirnoff has had a career that has spanned TV, movies and Broadway.

Don’t miss his particular brand of comedy during this two-day special event. Runs through Saturday, Feb. 11.

BEATLES VS. STONES 7 p.m. at Venice Performing Arts Center, 1 Indian Ave., Venice $36-$100 Visit VenicePerformingArtsCenter. com.

Billed as “the greatest concert that

4551 N. Washington Blvd.

Sarasota, FL 34234 941.355.8437

never was …” this performance presents a what-if of the biggest battle of the bands to answer the age-old debate: Which is the better band — the Beatles or the Rolling Stones?

‘A SEA SYMPHONY’ MASTERWORK BY VAUGHAN WILLIAMS 4 p.m. at Church of the Palms, 3224 Bee Ridge Road $35-$45 Visit KeyChorale.org.

Vaughan Williams’ large-scale symphony was one of the first to incorporate a choir throughout it, and it is still considered one of the best first symphonies ever composed. Key Chorale performs this work, which tells the story of a seaward voyage of the soul to uncharted waters. Runs through Saturday, Feb. 11.

PETER FOGEL’S ’TIL DEATH DO US PART ... YOU FIRST! 2 and 7 p.m. at Manatee Performing Arts Center, 502 Third Ave. W. $30-$38 Visit ManateePerformingArtsCenter. com.

What better way to spend Valentine’s Day than making fun of relationships and romance?

No matter what your particular situation, anyone will be able to relate to Peter Fogel’s take on marriage, sex and other things that end prematurely.

SATURDAY ‘ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE’ WITH THE LIVERPOOL LEGENDS 7:30 p.m. at Riverview Performing Arts Center, 1 Ram Way $30 Visit ThePopsOrchestra.org.

The Pops Orchestra welcomes the Grammy-nominated Liverpool Legends, who will delight with this Beatles tribute concert. The Liverpool Legends have a unique connection with Louise Harrison, George Harrison’s sister and a Sarasota resident. Runs through Monday, Feb. 13.

FST IMPROV PRESENTS ‘WHEN X MEETS Y’ (VALENTINE’S DAY EDITION) 8:30 p.m. at FST’s Bowne’s Lab Theatre, 1265 First St. $15 Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.

With Valentine’s Day on the horizon, the hilarious improv troupe at Florida Studio Theatre will produce

2510 1st Street West Bradenton, FL 34208 941.748.4679

OUR PICK

‘CHICKEN & BISCUITS’ This comedy, presented by the Asolo Repertory Theatre, introduces the Jenkins family as they celebrate their recently deceased father and grandfather. When a secret is revealed, this new Broadway show leads audiences through all the hilarious drama and antics that only family can inspire from one another. Runs through April 13.

IF YOU GO When: 8 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 15 Where: FSU Center for the Performing Arts, 5555 N. Tamiami Trail Tickets: Start at $33 Info: Visit AsoloRep.org.

OUR SHOWROOMS ARE OPEN Special Financing Available

www.manasotaonline.com

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TUESDAY

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ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

REAL RAIL presents: 44th Annual

Model Railroad Expo February 18th & 19th• Saturday 10-4 & Sunday 10-3 Bradenton Area Convention Center • 1 Haben Blvd • Palmetto, Fl ADMISSION Adults $8.00 • Kids 13 & Under FREE with Paid Adult

1 person per ad

• All Scales • More than 100 Dealer Tables • Railroad Antiques and Collectibles • Kids can run trains on our kids portable layout • See Downtown Tampa built with Legos

ATLES GRAMMY-NOMINATED BE DON’T MISS

CIRCUS SARASOTA Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of all ages, don’t miss your chance to take part in a long-standing area tradition: Enjoying a night of entertainment under the big top at Circus Sarasota. Be dazzled by a variety of performers all in the best venue for circus around.

VIRTUOSO NIGHT 7:30 p.m. at St. Boniface Episcopal Church, 5615 Midnight Pass Road, Siesta Key $35 Call (219) 928-8665.

For a light-hearted Valentine’s Day, take in a cabaret with crooner Jimmy Mazz, who will take a spin through some of your favorite romantic tunes. Cabaret seating features romantic tables in the front row, along with champagne and a sweet treat for you and your Valentine.

A 13-member professional string ensemble as part of the Chamber Orchestra of Sarasota will perform some of the best works from virtuosos, including Mozart, Bach and Janacek, all in the intimate setting of St. Boniface.

Stroll through Marie Selby Botanical Gardens’ spring exhibition, “Tiffany: The Pursuit of Beauty in Nature,” and enjoy a reception and performance

by Dynasty Dance Clubs.

BAND

PIANIST AWADAGIN PRATT 7:30 p.m. at Riverview Performing Arts Center, 1 Ram Way $30-$85 Visit SCASarasota.org.

The Sarasota Concert Association welcomes acclaimed pianist Awadagin Pratt, who will lend his musical insight and intensity to a performance that spans everything from the works from Philip Glass to Rachmaninoff.

fect Valentine’s Day celebration Join the Pops Orchestra for your per ally acclaimed as we perform with the internation

LIVERPOOL LEGENDS

r ie Hall • 2022 Tribute Band of the Yea Played the Rose Bowl and Carneg er ise Harrison, George’s Sist in Branson, MO • Hand-picked by Lou

ADDED Sat, Feb 11, 7:30pm !

CONCERT Riverview Performing Arts Center

GET YOUR TICKETS TODAY!

Sun, Feb 12, 3pm

Mon, Feb 13, 7:30pm

Riverview Performing Arts Center

SCF Neel Performing Arts Center

thePopsOrchestra.org 941-926-POPS (7677) 390248-1

EXHIBITION EVENING FEATURING DYNASTY DANCE CLUBS 6 p.m. at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, 1534 Mound St. Tickets $60-$65 Visit Selby.org.

CDC REQUIREMENTS APPLY

IF YOU GO When: 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 10 through March 5 Where: Ulla Searing Big Top on Nathan Benderson Park’s Regatta Island, 5851 Nathan Benderson Circle Tickets: $20-$75 Info: Call 355-9805 or visit CircusArts. org.

SILLY LOVE SONGS WITH JIMMY MAZZ 7:30 p.m. at Studio 1130, 3501 S. Tamiami Trail, Suite 1130 $30 Visit ThePlayers.org.

WEDNESDAY

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WEDNESDAY

MARCH 1

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DON’T MISS OUT!

Al fresco dining with Chef Lior

Join us as Israeli Chef, master spice blender, author, and accomplished restaurateur Lior Lev Sercarz shares his passion for world cuisine and complex spice blends with Sarasota-Manatee.

Hear Chef Lior tell stories of the inspiration behind each delicious course, all prepared onsite under his watchful eye.

This is a one-of-a-kind dining experience, filled with the rich scents and flavors of Israel.

Chef Lior with Eric Ripert, Le Bernardin, NYC CHAIRS Keren and Josh Lifrak Lisa and Scott Zelniker Julie and Josh Green

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

TV or not TV? MARTY FUGATE CONTRIBUTOR

P

addy Chayefsky was mad as hell at the top executives of American broadcast television. His anger was understandable. He’d written some of the legendary scripts of TV’s golden age.

In less than a decade, he’d watched the network’s corporate clowns turn this revolutionary new medium into the idiot box. Chayefsky also absorbed tons of insider information about the three big TV networks. For a writer of his stature, that was a stockpile of radioactive ammo. Chayefsky dropped his satiric A-bomb in the mid-1970s. “Network” was the name of his weapon of mass-media destruction.

In 1976, “Network” looked like a dark satire. In 2023, it resembles prophecy. Was Chayefsky a satiric soothsayer after all? Marty Fugate posed that question to Richard Hopkins. (He’s directing the theatrical adaptation at Florida Studio Theatre, and we thought he would know.) His answers may shock you.

Paddy Chayefsky wrote “Network” for the movies. But Lee Hall’s play adaptation made very few changes. Why does the original material survive theatrical translation when so many other brilliant screenplays wouldn’t?

I think it’s because Paddy Chayefsky wrote such great dialogue in his screenplays and teleplays. His command of human speech made his scripts for “Marty,” “Network,” Hospital” and “Altered States” the masterpieces that they are. In these examples, Chayefsky was writing for the screen. He also wrote plays.

Whatever the medium, Chayefsky’s words were always the driving force. His use of language was highly theatrical from the get-go.

In the beginning was the word?

Exactly. And that’s especially true for “Network.”

Why? Because speech is its organizing principle. Like all of Chayefsky’s screenplays, “Network” has its cinematic moments. But it’s not cinematic by nature. It’s more about the words of characters with opposing philosophies.

Chayefsky’s dialogue has the back-and-forth rhythm of theatrical speech. His scenes are a series of fragments. His locations jump from the studio, to the living room, to the bedroom, to the boardroom.

His scenes of back and forth — then come back together. They’re effective against the backdrop of a highly realistic set. But they’d also work in an empty black box theater. The flow of Chayefsky’s language pulls these disjointed vignettes together not action in physical space.

When I saw “Network” in ’76, I figured it was a dark, over-thetop satire of TV, not a prediction.

Now much of his bizarre lampoon has come to pass. Am I crazy to think that?

No, you’re not crazy. Chayefsky was amazingly prophetic. “Network” holds a mirror to the media-saturated world of today.

For me, that’s why Hall’s play works so much better than the film.

Chayefsky railed against the crush of media in the 1970s. Television was shaping and misshaping humanity! The omnipresent boob tube is manipulating our minds! That’s nothing compared to the crush of contemporary media. Chayefsky never fathomed that we’d all be carrying portable screens in our pockets. Our smartphones are little bitty televisions. They’re two-way televisions. It’s so much like “1984.”

Sure. But instead of one Big Brother, we’ve got lots of Little Brothers. Who rat on us.

That’s hilarious, Marty. And weirdly terrifying.

Because it’s true?

Because it’s true. Our smartphones talk to us, watch us, listen to us, interrupt us, give us orders and record our geographic locations.

And constantly try to sell us stuff.

Yes. They do that, too. And it’s not just our smartphones — that’s true

IF YOU GO

“Network.” Through March 19.

Florida Studio Theatre’s Gompertz Theatre, 1265 First St. $25-$39.

Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.

for all the screens of our office computers, home computers, tablets and other digital devices. Media technology is ubiquitous in 2023.

We’re surrounded!

Hall could’ve updated his “Network” adaptation to reflect that reality. But he didn’t. He still set the play in the 1970s. The dominant media technology is still TV. Not cable TV. Broadcast television — on clunky, old-fashioned, low-res screens. I think Hall made a smart choice in sticking to that. The ’70s had big, fat analog screens; we have slim, flat digital screens. So what? “Network” isn’t about mass media technology.

It’s a satire of the corporate executives who profit from it — and the viewers they manipulate.

Despite the 1970s tech, “Network” is still very 21st century. Fat screen, flat screen. Chayefsky’s mass-media satire applies either way. The FST audience will connect the dots.

Let’s unpack Chayefsy’s “mass media satire.” What’s he saying exactly?

I think he’s saying a lot of things.

Mad prophets can be dangerous, even when you agree with them.

Angry rants can be satisfying, but they get you nowhere. Those are some of his obvious points. But Chayefsky wasn’t always on the nose. “Network” also made a lot of indirect, subtle observations.

For example?

First and foremost, Marshall McLuhan was wrong. The medium is not the message. The “message” is just a commodity in network television.

The TV set doesn’t create the shows people watch. Creative professionals do — directors, actors, writers, etc.

But it’s not “art for art’s sake.” TV creatives are hired hands. Network executives tell them exactly what to create — on the basis of ratings, which

Courtesy photo

What affect does TV really have on us? FST’s “Network” pierces the veil between television and reality.

are constantly fluctuating, based on viewer taste … or lack of taste. Who’s consuming media content? That’s important. Who’s controlling that content? That’s the most important question. Not the “message” on the boob tube. The owners and executives who profit from it.

“Network” zeroes in on the network executives at UBS. “Look at them! They’re the bastards in charge of TV.” That’s one thing Chayefsky is saying to us. And also showing us.

Look at the man behind the curtain! Or, in this case, the men and women behind the boob tube.

Yes, exactly. The old guard executives at UBS had standards. But dinosaurs like Max Schumacher are mostly gone. A new breed has replaced them. They have only one standard: ratings. They try to give the people what they want — or what they think they want.

Assassinations on live TV? Well, that depends on the ratings.

What’s the audience share? How many eyeballs are watching? That’s the new breed’s definition of success. I’d be shivering in fear to work with them.

They’re amoral and corrupt. But they don’t see themselves that way.

“It’s a business. We’re doing our job … blah, blah.”

Sure. But Chayefsky also indicts the corruption of the viewers who passively consume the sludge that UBS pumps out.

What’s your ideal takeaway for theatergoers driving home from your FST production?

I hope it’ll inspire a great conversation; it’s just that simple. I also hope they’ll ask tough questions.

What does “Network” mean? Why is its fictional world so broken?

Why is the real world so broken?

What can we do to fix it? I don’t claim to have the answers. But if theatergoers ask the questions, I know I’ve done my job.

THE JEAN & &ALFRED EXHIBITIONSERIES SERIES THE JEAN ALFREDGOLDSTEIN GOLDSTEIN EXHIBITION

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ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT

IF YOU GO

CONTRIBUTOR

B

ack in 1844, Alexandre Dumas wrote a ripping yarn called “The Three Musketeers.” Not just a great story.

Like “The Odyssey” and “The Seven Samurai,” Dumas’ tale is amazingly elastic. The story is so strong, it survives adaptation, translation and appropriation into multiple forms. Speaking of which, it’s alive and well in Ken Ludwig’s farcical take in this Asolo Repertory Theatre production.

The action unfolds in France in 1625. The foppish Louis XIII (Peter S. Raimondo) sits on the throne.

The Musketeers of the Guard protect him. These elite warriors take their name from muskets, but they’re far more deadly with old-school swords. Good thing.

Cardinal Richelieu (Jay Russell) is the King’s enemy — and he’s got his own set of deadly warriors.

D’Artagnan (Evan Stevens), a clueless country kid, tries to join the Musketeers in their fight against the Cardinal’s sins. The unlucky lad gets on the bad side of three badass Musketeers — namely Athos (Leighton Samuels), Porthos (Dean Linnard) and Aramis (Ray Huth filling in for Rasell Holt). They initially want to kill him, but decide to train him instead. D’Artagnan’ sister Sabine (Erin O’Connor) joins the struggle. The fight against evil begins! After that, things get complicated …

Stevens shows panache as the plucky young D’Artagnan. He wants to fight evil? Be careful what you wish for, kid. His sister, Sabine, popped out of Ludwig’s imagination, not Dumas’ original novel.

O’Connor brings her vividly to life on stage. Her Sabine loves her big brother. But she’s got a severe case of sibling rivalry.

Samuels’ Athos is the three musketeer’s leader. He’s brave and smart, not flashy and boastful. His Athos has mastered the art of swordfighting. He doesn’t yap about his skill. He lets his rapier

‘THE THREE MUSKETEERS’ When: Through March 26 Where: FSU Center for the Performing Arts, 5555 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota Tickets: $33-$93 Info: Call 351-8000 or visit AsoloRep. org.

do the talking. Linnard’s Porthos is also a masterful swordsman. But he’ll crack jokes and clown around.

His silly antics make foolish foes drop their guard. Big mistake.

Huth’s Aramis is a darkly brooding romantic — a lover and a fighter.

Raimondo’s King Louis XIII is a royal poseur. Queen Anne (Imani Lee Williams) is doing a royal job of cuckolding him.

Jay Russell’s Richelieu is a nasty piece of work. He’s good at being bad. Why? Because he likes it.

Deadly Machiaevillian schemes are Richelieu’s bloody game of human chess — and his idea of fun. He’s been playing the game so long, he’s reached the master level. Lane’s unladylike Milady is every Walt Disney villainess rolled into one.

She can smile and smile — then stab a knife in your back. That’s her idea of having fun.

That’s not the entire cast by a long shot. But it’s a fair sample of the talent.

The actors are all pretty, pretty good.

Dumas’ novel ran to 700 pages or so. The playwright squashed his sprawling tale down to two, highvelocity acts.

Ludwig’s comedy doesn’t crush Dumas’ tough, elastic story. His adaptation of “The Three Musketeers” is still a rousing yarn. On top of that, it’s a love story, an adventure and a gripping struggle of good against evil.

Above all, it’s a celebration of solidarity. “All for one and one for all,” isn’t the fashion lately. Here’s hoping it’ll come back in style.

Sounds crazy, I know …

It’s so crazy it just might work.

ATTEND OUR MARCH FOR MEALS EVENT FRIDAY, MARCH 3 11:30am-1:00pm Sarasota Yacht Club $75 per person.

Sponsorships Available.

What better way to kick-off our March For Meals campaign than with a high energy lunch with friends? Join us for lunch to discover our impact in the community, show your support, and enjoy an uplifting performance by Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe.

Thank you to our sponsors:

Scan QR code to

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SERVING MEALS. SAVING LIVES. DELIVERING HOPE.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

More Than A Meal.

REVIEWS

Swordplay & silliness

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Bradenton Gulf Islands

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The community’s gathering place

Tickets are Limited Get yours Today at:

CenterAMI.org/events

Highlights from the Stanton B. and Nancy W. Kaplan Collection of Photography

Grand Funk Railroad February 25 th

LAST CHANCE—CLOSES FEB 12

The Orchestra

Starring ELO Former Members

INFORMATION + TICKETS

March 21 st

ringling.org

Doors Open at 6pm Opening Act at 7pm Headliner about 8pm

Supporting Partner Community Foundation of Sarasota County.

Paid for in part by Sarasota County Tourist Development Tax revenues.

Sponsored in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Arts and Culture, the Florida Council on Arts and Culture, the National Endowment for the Arts, Herald Tribune, and the Selby Foundation Ringling Endowment.

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS:

Henri Cartier-Bresson (French, 1908-2004) Brussels, Belgium (detail), 1932; printed later.

Gelatin silver print, 14 1/4 × 9 1/2 in. Gift of Stanton B. and Nancy W. Kaplan, 2019.

SN11678.93 © Fondation Henri Cartier-Bresson / Magnum Photos

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

PALM BALL Saturday, Feb. 4, at Bay Preserve at Osprey | Benefiting Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast

T

Photos by Cliff Roles and Harry Sayer

he Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast brought wild color and energy to the Bay Preserve at Osprey during its annual Palm Ball on Feb. 4.

This year’s event had a “Call of the Wild” theme and boasted plenty of decor and color to match. The interior of the tented event space had a wild green aesthetic that played up the natural energy of Southwest Florida.

Guests dressed up in dazzling clothes to match and spent a lengthy cocktail hour at the preserve mingling and enjoying light bites and drinks near outdoor heaters.

Eventually, though, it was time for the program to start and guests took to their seats. There they heard from Conservation Foundation figures on the importance of the organization’s programs protecting land and water in Southwest Florida.

After food and been served, guests took part in a paddle raise for a number of nature-themed experiences, including a sunrise kayak and brunch, dinner at the Burrows-Matson house at the Bay Preserve and more.

The night finished with dessert and dancing.

Co-chair Jeremy Wright, honorary Chair Cornelia Matson, Co-chairs Rosemary Eure, Elizabeth Moore, Kathy Coffey and Leiza Fitzgerald

— HARRY SAYER

Dru Greene with Bill and Barbara Little

Paul McFeeley with Patricia and Charles Clark

Victoria and Jack Chapman

Lindsay Morrison and Luke Simonds

The night had a wild green aesthetic.

Amber Lamerson, Webster McDonald, Lee Ann Rodriguez and Jennifer Johnston

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Project PRIDE SRQ donor party

New RCLA lecture series, new RCLA executive director It’s a new year, and that means a new slate of celebrity and influential figures speaking at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall as part of the Ringling College Library Association’s Town Hall lecture series.

But there’s also new leadership handling the series as well. After Stephanie Grosskreutz’s retirement from RCLA in early December, Lauren Kurnov has stepped up to serve as the organization’s newest executive director.

It wouldn’t be a new season without some curveballs, of course.

While the series’ opening lecture was meant for 2021 Nobel Prize win-

(941) 263-6799 • (800) 826-9303 A N I N T I M AT E E V E N I N G O F S O N G S A N D STO RYT E L L I N G

Harry Sayer

Antonio Pinho and Rogelio Capote were on hand at Project PRIDE SRQ’s donor party.

ner Maria Ressa, that was changed to inviting Carlos Alvardo Quesada, the 48th president of Costa Rica, to the Van Wezel on Jan. 17.

Kurnov introduced the political and climate change figure on stage and felt like the event went well.

“There’s always nerves when it’s your first time doing something, but I was excited,” Kurnov said.

Quesada spoke to his climate policies and programs pursuing sustainable energy while in office.

Fittingly, President Christine Johnson of the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast served as moderator and spoke with Quesada on a number of ecological issues.

“We realized we didn’t have another speaker in the series that was a climate change policy expert,” Kurnov said.

Kurnov notes future lecture events will see additional community experts serving as guest moderators to bring more knowledge to the Q&A discussions.

“We want to strengthen the community connection,” Kurnov said. “We want the program to have deeper relevance to our community.”

Following the Michael Phelps lecture series event that was held on Feb. 6, the next event in the series will feature Admiral James Starvridis on Feb. 27.

FEATURING VANESSA FREEBAIRN-SMITH

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28 • 8PM

RITA RUDNER ROBERT KLEIN THE MUSIC OF

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 17 • 8PM

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 22 7:30PM SPONSORS: Lexus of Sarasota and WSNN-TV

Monday-Friday 10-6 • Saturday 10-4 Open later Saturday and Sunday (on show days only) Prices, dates and times subject to change without notice.

2023 ANNUAL LUNCHEON

VAN WEZEL FOUNDATION’S

COLLABORATION PARTNERS

MARCH 10, 2023 WITH KENNY LOGGINS An intimate experience featuring exceptional dining and Grammy-winning musician Kenny Loggins to support the Van Wezel Foundation.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2023 11:30AM - 1:00PM MICHAEL’S ON EAST 1212 EAST AVE S, SARASOTA, FL 34239

Gala Co-Chairs: Kathy Martella & Susan Travers

TICKETS $90 MEDIA SPONSOR

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Buy Tickets From VanWezel.org

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Project PRIDE SRQ has had something of a busy year.

That involved merging with the Sarasota Pride organization, donating more than $102,000 to local organizations and helping organize a Say Gay emergency rally at the Ringling Bridge in early February.

It’s been a lot of work and activity, and Project PRIDE staff recently thanked its many donors and supporters with its first appreciation party on Feb. 4.

More than 150 Project Pride supporters met at the Benderson Family Finish Tower at Nathan Benderson Park, where they sipped on drinks and enjoyed light bites.

The audience heard from new President Jason Champion, as well as representatives from other Sarasota organizations Project PRIDE has supported, including ALSO Youth, SRQ Kickball, Second Chance Last Opportunity and the Asolo Repertory Theatre.

Project PRIDE’s upcoming events include supporting a transgender memorial garden dedication at the Church of the Trinity MCC on March 5, joining a Manatee Pride Parade in Bradenton on March 11 and being part of a 99 Bottles give-back night on March 12.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

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LEAD SPONSORS Paul Seed, Startech.com Jim and Susan Travers PRESENTING SPONSORS Amicus Foundation Julie A. Harris HOST COMMITTEE Gerald and Sondra Biller Jenne Britell The W. Dale Brougher Foundation Jaclyn Brunckhorst

Design Works and Kirkplan Kitchens Michele Hooper and Lemuel Seabrook Joan K. Lieberman Michael and Kathy Martella John and Eilene Maupin William and Elaine McClure Karl and Ricky Newkirk Walt and Donna Pearson Drayton and Kara Saunders

GS-HumanServices.org/event/Celebration2023

The 2023 Collaboration Celebration luncheon brings together nonprofits, businesses, and donors to celebrate the important work of collaboration on the Campus of Caring and beyond.

This event introduces the Emerging Leader Awards.

Three individuals will be recognized in the categories of health, human services, and arts & culture, each winning a $1,000 grant to be used in their leadership journey.

The awards aim to develop the leaders who will shape Sarasota’s human services community in the years to come.

*As of 2/2/23

RSVP 2/17/2023 TO ATTEND

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For information about sponsorship opportunities, please contact Julie Schwartz at 941-271-4180 or jschwartz@vwfoundation.org

CONNECTING, SUPPORTING, AND SUSTAINING A NETWORK OF HUMAN SERVICE NONPROFITS FOR A STRONGER COMMUNITY

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

Kathleen Gordon and Shirley Wiginton

Nicole Randazzo and Kelli Soukup

Junior League Legacy Luncheon Thursday, Feb. 2, at Michael’s On East | Benefiting Junior League of Sarasota

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he Junior League of Sarasota celebrated 20 years of its Legacy Luncheon fundraiser with an emerald event Feb. 2 at Michael’s On East.

Guests met for a lengthy champagne reception to celebrate the organization’s many years of volunteer programs and ini-

tiatives to develop the potential of women.

Legacy Luncheon Chairwoman Melissa Hembree welcomed the crowd before President Lindsay Nock took to the stage to thank the audience as well.

Guests also heard from Georgia Pellegrini, host of PBS show “Modern Pioneering” and the event’s guest speaker.

Junior League staff later led a raffle drawing for a custom emerald necklace.

The event ended with closing remarks

by Hembree.

Chairwoman Bridget Spiess, the Rev. Frank Dewane, pianist Giovanni Marradi, Mary Beth and Ralph Cotran and Edgar Sandoval

Co-chairwomen Beth Cannata, Marilee Roberts, Sabrina Gibson, Judy Kozlowski and Marcia Norris

— HARRY SAYER

Lauren and Candice Henry

Catholic Charities Ball 2023 Saturday, Feb. 4, at Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota | Benefiting Catholic Charities Diocese of Venice Inc.

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Photos by Harry Sayer

he 2023 Catholic Charities Ball brought hope and elegance to The Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota on Feb. 4.

The annual affair, put on by the Catholic Charities Diocese of Venice Inc., had 300 guests attending the event.

Guests joined the Rev. Frank Dewane, the bishop of the Diocese of Venice in Florida, during lively social hours accompanied by bagpipes from Kevin Wiegand of the Knights of Columbus.

Ray Collins emceed the program, which started with words from Catholic Charities Diocese of Venice CEO Eduardo Gloria.

Once dinner and the live auction had ended, guests heard from people who have benefited from Catholic Charities programs.

The night ended with music from pianist Giovanni Marradi, violinist Edgar Sandoval and the Phase 5 band.

Special guest Georgia Pellegrini, middle, with the Junior League committee members

Photos by Harry Sayer

Scarlett and Riley Beaver

— HARRY SAYER

2023 WINTER OPERA FESTIVAL

MUSIC BY HENRY KRIEGER LYRICS AND BOOK BY TOM EYEN DIRECTED BY NATE JACOBS

VICTOR DeRENZI, Artistic Director RICHARD RUSSELL, General Director

MADAMA BUTTERFLY OPENING SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 18!

All operas performed in the original language with translations above the stage.

Puccini’s MADAMA BUTTERFLY Feb. 18 - Mar. 24

FEB 22–APR 9, 2023

Massenet’s THÉRÈSE Mar. 17 - 25

Paid for in part by Sarasota County Tourist Development Tax revenues. Additional support provided by: Gulf Coast Community Foundation; Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation; and State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Arts and Culture, Florida Council on Arts & Culture.

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(941) 328-1300 | SARASOTAOPERA.ORG 388958-1

1012 N ORANGE AVE, SARASOTA

Verdi’s ERNANI Mar. 11 - 26

TICKETS ON SALE NOW!

westcoastblacktheatre.org

941-366-1505

Mozart’s DON GIOVANNI Feb. 25 - Mar. 25

YourObserver.com

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

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www.instagram.com/observergroup

It’s Greek Time!

39th Annual “Glendi”

Brian Woodring, Lisa Kiesel, Sheriff Kurt Hoffman and Caroline and Lee Wetherington

Steak & Burger Celebration

FEBRUARY 17-19 Authentic Greek Food & Wine Live Music by “The Ellada Band” Greek Dancers Perform Daily Marketplace & Crafts Kid’s Adventure Zone Church Tours & More!

Friday, Feb. 3, at Lee Wetherington Club | Benefiting Boys and Girls Clubs of Sarasota and DeSoto Counties

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Tickets Available:

Online: www.stbarbarafestival.org Email: stbarbara34243@gmail.com Phone: (941) 355-2616

GRAND PRIZE

2023 MERCEDES-BENZ GLA250W or CLA250C or $35,000 Cash!

2ND PRIZE $4000 Cash

Friday & Saturday 11 – 9 Sunday Noon – 6 A portion of proceeds to benefit Guardian Angels of Southwest Florida

3RD PRIZE $3000 Cash

DRAWING SUNDAY: FEB. 19, 2023 @ 5:30 pm

ST. BARBARA GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH

7671 N. Lockwood Ridge Rd. Sarasota, FL 34243 • 941-355-2616

www.stbarbarafestival.org

Raffle is open to citizens or permanent residents of the USA who are 18 years of age or older. Car winner is responsible for payment of all applicable federal, state and local taxes, title and license fees. Each winner will be issued a 1099 IRS form stating the prize value. Winners need not be present to win. Additional rules available at the church office.

Photos by Cliff Roles

President and CEO Bill Sadlo

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Free additional parking Church of the Trinity, free shuttle to & from festival.

THE SARASOTA BALLET PRESENTS

February 24 - 27 | FSU Center Box Office: 941.359.0099 | SarasotaBallet.org

MEDIA SPONSOR

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—HARRY SAYER

$100 Donation - Only 2000 Raffle Tickets!

3-Day Pass - $5 Children Under 12 - FREE

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he Boys and Girls Clubs of Sarasota and DeSoto Counties saddled up for its annual Steak & Burger celebration event at the Lee Wetherington Club on Feb. 3.

Guests dressed up in their most country attire for the annual Youth of the Year celebration that started with light bites and mingling before it was time to fill the Lee Wetherington event space for the event.

The audience heard from Boys and Girls Clubs President and CEO Bill Sadlo before the 2023 Youth of the Year was announced.

WIN A CAR OR $35,000 CASH!

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2023

AWARD-WINNING

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INTERIOR DESIGN

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FINE FURNISHINGS

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CLIVEDANIEL.COM

ooks You’ll Love!

CDH is proud to partner with Stock Development to design extraordinary model homes in Lakewood Ranch, Lake Club community!

■ Total Home Creation

■ Chic Gift Boutique

■ In-Stock Designer Styles

■ Designers on Staff

■ Exclusive Collections

■ World-Wide Shipping

■ 70,000 sq. ft. of Inspiration

■ Immediate Delivery

■ One-of-a-Kind Rugs

■ and so much more!

BOCA RATON, FL 1351 NW BOCA RATON BLVD. 239.261.HOME (4663) NAPLES, FL 2777 TAMIAMI TRAIL N 239.261.HOME (4663) FORT MYERS Coming Soon!

Financing is now available.

WINNER! Best Showroom in the USA!

Inspiration Starts Here

SARASOTA, FL

3055 FRUITVILLE COMMON BLVD. (located at the corner of I-75 & Fruitville Rd) 941.900.HOME (4663) IB26001785

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