Sarasota/Siesta Key Observer 7.18.24 by The Observer Group Inc.

YOUR TOWN

Fish on the line

Capt. R.C. Gilliland began fishing with his father, Gary Gilliland, when he was about 3 years old and never looked back.

“I had my dad tell me how to run the coffee pot, so I could wake him up easier in the morning so we could go fish,” he said. For close to a decade, he has been owner of Sarasota Fishing Camp, and in the summer, he enjoys sharing knowledge and experience he gained from his father with other young people. He hopes kids will come away appreciating the details of fishing, like how factors such as the tides or the time of year can change the prime locations for catching fish. Registration is available for the July 29-Aug. 2 camp.

The right stuff

On July 11, residents of Sarasota and Lakewood Ranch teamed up to fill backpacks for Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota at Gold Coast Eagle Distributing. The backpacks will be given to children who are enrolled at Boys & Girls Clubs in Sarasota and Manatee counties.

The Young Professionals Committee of Suncoast Builders Association has been stuffing backpacks for the clubs for 10 years. This year’s effort was the biggest yet. The committee raised more than $13,000 to stuff and donate 528 backpacks.

“When we first started this event, we had about five backpacks,” organizer Jessica Seper said. “This year, our goal was 500, and we exceeded it.”

Community theater hits the road

Swaby

Lola Bartolomeo, 10, learns aerial silks during camp.

Courtesy image Jackson Hostetler

Dwyer

WEEK OF JULY 18, 2024

BY THE NUMBERS

$500,000

“In our mind, the most sustainable building is a building that doesn’t need to be replaced after 20 or 50 years. It’s a building that will last 200 or 300 years.”

Renzo Piano Building Workshop architect Kerry Joyce

Selby Gardens names three new trustees

The Marie Selby Botanical Gardens Board of Trustees has elected three new members to the board. Retired businessman Ali Bahaj, executive Hosana Fieber and entrepreneur and economist Richard Sandor will each serve a three-year term on the board.

Bahaj retired as chairman and CEO of Caterpillar Japan and vice president of Caterpillar Inc. after

REPEAT FUN IN THE 941

With seasonal tourism ‘normalizing,’ Visit Sarasota County is ramping up marketing to draw returning visitors.

As Florida tourism continues to normalize from pandemic and post-pandemic highs, Visit Sarasota County has reported a drop in tourist season numbers compared to fall and winter 20222023, but there’s more to that data.

From October 2023 through March 2024, the county’s convention and visitors bureau reported 727,600 visitors here, a decline of 9% from 657,180 during the same period the year before. Fewer visitors, though, spent almost as much money here during the most recent tourist season, at $950.43 million, marking a 1.4% decline from the year prior. That resulted in a 3.8% decline in tourist development tax revenue at $28,545,736 for that period.

That’s nearly quadruple the $7.2 million fiscal year 2025 Visit Sarasota County budget approved by the Sarasota County Commission at its July 9 meeting.

“We went through a few phenomenal years with the pandemic, when Florida was open and other places around the country and the world were not,” VSC President and CEO Erin Duggan told commissioners. “We do know, some of that success was just unsustainable.”

Smaller travel parties staying longer was the trend this past season, which resulted in the decrease in visitors being greater than the decrease in room nights, the latter an 8% decline at 1.73 million.

Visit Sarasota County’s research firm, Downs & St. Germain, reported that in May 2024, one in four visitors came here for the first time, which VSC defines as indicative of success in its efforts to attract both new and

repeat tourists in all of its eight target groups.

Duggan told the Observer the abnormally large, successful years of 2021 through 2023 are not fair comparisons, particularly as other forms of travel reopened long after Florida did during and in the waning pandemic period.

“Even when things did open back up, you still had people who maybe weren’t ready to travel for whatever reason, and that’s just not the case now,” Duggan said. “You’ve now got cruises and people going on European vacations. Everybody that I know and their mother went to Portugal or Italy in the last year, except for me.”

MARKET REACH

In her report to the County Commission last week, Duggan explained that direct marketing to tourists begins before their arrival at Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport, the exponential growth of which since 2019 is indicative of the flourishing local tourism industry.

The scheduled opening of five new ground boarding gates, all leased to Allegiant Air, by the end of the year will significantly increase the airport’s capacity to meet growing demand and add flights.

“Seventy percent of the folks utilizing SRQ are not locals. It’s folks coming from somewhere else utilizing our airport to get here,” Duggan told commissioners. “Allegiant is going to be vacating the gates that they’re currently at. Allegiant is going to be adding some flights. I know some of the other airlines are already talking to the airport and to us about adding some flights, so we want to be ready to make sure that those flights are successful by advertising in the new markets that we’ve never served before.”

Duggan also highlighted the eight target audiences for VSC’s marketing efforts.

They include:

OCTOBER-DECEMBER YEAR-OVER-YEAR COMPARISONS

Leisure travelers: These are often visitors coming here looking to experience something to do. That effort includes reaching sports tournament and business meeting/ convention travelers seeking activities beyond their core scope with the goal of making first-timers repeat visitors.

International travelers: Outreach to tour operators bringing visitors here. That includes Canada, which VSC reported as remaining elevated over the prior tourist seasons.

Nature and outdoor enthusiasts: “That’s the person who enjoys glamping, birding, being on the water, sitting at the beach, enjoying nature and looking at wildlife,” Duggan said.

Arts and culture enthusiasts: Support the arts by showcasing seasons and special exhibits; and promoting arts offerings to meeting planners at trade shows as activities for attendees, to international travel trade and media, and to sports rights holders and governing bodies.

Relocation workforce: In coordination with the Economic Development Corp. of Sarasota County, “Tourism is kind of the front porch of economic development,” Duggan said. “No one is going to want to move here to work or move a business here unless they’ve visited here first.”

Seasonal programming: Regular messaging with local residents through local media that highlight the business of tourism, promoting Savor Sarasota, Fun in the 941 and other signature events.

Meetings and groups: Hotels that didn’t need promotion by VSC during the pandemic and post-pandemic period are asking for assistance in touting the county as a convention and meeting destination. The impending opening of the St. Regis on Longboat Key will provide new opportunities for that market.

“When I go someplace by myself and I look around and I think my husband and my children will love this,” said Duggan of her own meeting travel experience. “You definitely are motivated to go back to that resort or to that destination, and so we do see that a lot.”

Sports: Host industry association meetings in conjunction with sporting events being held, pitching the area and its facilities to sports rights holders and governing bodies and providing welcome bags to visiting athletes and their families.

Many Sarasota County visitors enjoy the shopping and

Armands Circle.

ANDREW WARFIELD STAFF WRITER

Tax transfer

County eliminates business tax as a funding source for the EDC, shifts burden to the general fund.

ANDREW WARFIELD STAFF WRITER

Although Sarasota County commissioners on July 9 unanimously approved a revised funding plan in its new contract with the Economic Development Corp. of Sarasota County, division among the board over the issue of ending the organization-supporting business tax remained evident.

Minutes after passing an ordinance that provides a 50% match on the dollar of private donations to the EDC, commissioners voted 3-2 on a separate ordinance that repeals the tax, which had been in place since 1992.

As they did at their June 4 meeting, when the commission instructed staff to return with a new funding structure for the EDC, Ron Cutsinger and Mark Smith cast the dissenting votes to dump the business tax, which EDC officials told commissioners in June averaged just more than $14 per business per year.

Instead, resident Shari Thornton pointed out during the public hearing that money will now come from the general fund courtesy of all county taxpayers.

“As a taxpayer, knowing that the businesses supported paying this business tax for this service, it doesn’t seem quite right that it come back to the taxpayers to pick that up,” Thornton said. “As a taxpayer, I object to that.”

Director of Governmental Affairs Rob Lewis reminded commissioners of that tax burden shift, which is capped at $500,000.

“To be clear, that money is going to come from general fund. The local business tax is not part of this

agreement,” Lewis said. “We will have general fund money that will contribute to that, and it will also continue to include the per capita.”

The per capita fee is the product of an interlocal agreement between the county and city governments as a funding source for the EDC. For the county, that amounts to $288,097 of the $464,223 total in per capita funding for next fiscal year. That will remain in place. Should the EDC reach its private fundraising goal of $575,000, the county will pay an additional $287,500 from the general fund.

The EDC’s total fiscal year 2025 budget is $1.82 million. Of that, the county will contribute $575,597, and potentially up to $788,097, including the capped amount of the match should the EDC raise $1 million or more.

Citing the commission’s affirmation of the maximum millage rate for next fiscal year at 3.30 mils earlier in the July 5 meeting — touted as the lowest rate in 37 years — Commissioner Neil Rainford praised his colleagues for what he called yet another tax-cutting measure despite a unanimity of business owners, who, at the June 4 meeting, spoke in favor of taxing themselves.

“This is another opportunity to

“I’m not

sure everyone was represented here when we had a few public comments, but certainly they’re hard at work, trying to run their businesses, and every dollar we can put back in their pocket is important to me.”

— Neil Rainford, county commissioner

put tax dollars back in local businesses,” Rainford said. “I’m not sure everyone was represented here when we had a few public comments, but certainly they’re hard at work, trying to run their businesses, and every dollar we can put back in their pocket is important to me.”

Cutsinger, a member of the EDC Board of Directors as the County Commission’s representative, in contrast to the June 4 discussion, did not speak to the matter. Smith, however, had some final words on the subject.

“When you have a group of businesses that are lobbying us to continue to tax them to support the EDC and then you decide not to do that as we’re cutting the millage rate, and so now we’re going to use general fund money to support the EDC — which is worthwhile — I just think this is not a wise idea, to be honest and polite,” Smith said.

His attempt at civility, though, was brief.

“I can’t support the motion,” he added in the same breath. “Because I just think it’s, quite frankly, dumb.”

Neunder, who had not planned to speak to his second of Rainford’s motion to approve abolishing the

PROPOSED EDC PUBLIC REVENUE BUDGET

Sarasota County per capita: $288,097

City of North Port per capita: $86,552

City of Sarasota per capita: $57,005

City of Venice per capita: $27,793

Town of Longboat Key per capita: $4,776

County private business investment match: $287,500*

Tourist Development Tax (film/creative): $125,000

Earned interest: $8,930

Total: $885,653

*Based on $575,000 private contributions, capped at $500,000.

business tax, was compelled to respond.

He said of the multitude of business owners he has spoken with in casual settings, he has yet to hear of one who was familiar with the EDC. And, with respect to the business tax, they’d prefer to use that money elsewhere.

“If they want to support it,” Neunder said, “they have a checkbook, and they have the address.”

Erin Silk is president and CEO of the Economic Develop Corp. of Sarasota County.

Players on the move

Performance group’s new theater heads to South Washington Boulevard

ANDREW WARFIELD STAFF WRITER

It was enough to irritate even the normally mild-mannered Sarasota City Auditor and Clerk Shayla Griggs as city commissioners wrestled with the language in a motion to approve the term sheet for a lease to be drafted with The Sarasota Players for use of Payne Park Auditorium.

As Erik Arroyo made several attempts to amend his motion to appease a bombardment of changes from his colleagues to achieve the requisite supermajority vote, the staff member responsible for recording it accurately had finally heard enough.

“Let me just remind you when you guys do this, you muddy up the motion, and we have no idea what you guys want,” Griggs said.

Arroyo’s original motion was to approve the term sheet with options to consider a lease for 2.1 acres in Payne Park to expand Payne Park Auditorium with an option — in a major departure from The Players’ proposal — to explore a 1.25-acre, city-owned parcel at the nearby northeast corner of Laurel Street and South Washington Boulevard.

There, The Players could consider building a new theater instead of expanding Payne Park Auditorium onto green space, which had enough commission opposition to torpedo the plan.

In addition, the organization could renovate the existing building to accommodate its plans for a black box-type theater space, educational programs and other uses.

The motion also included a 30-year lease rather than a 10-year lease, with two subsequent 10-year renewals, which requires a supermajority vote of commissioners.

Arroyo was attempting to craft

a motion that would garner a supermajority vote, which is needed to amend the lease length and other factors, but it became clear Debbie Trice and Vice Major Jen AhearnKoch were opposed to the proposed expansion. As commissioners made suggestions to achieve that goal, City Manager Marlon Brown chimed in on procedural technicalities that further complicated the issue.

Meanwhile, Griggs was trying to keep up.

“You guys make me look like I’m not doing my job when it’s you all, and it’s kind of pissing me off because I’m trying to do my job,” she said. “I’m trying to understand what to do. There was a motion and a second; you had all this talk. Was there an amendment or not to the original motion? You did a whole bunch of talking. I don’t know what the heck y’all are saying. I know what the motion was when he made it, but was there an amendment because everybody was making suggestions?”

In the end, Arroyo’s massaged motion, which was unanimously approved, requested staff and the city attorney to prepare a lease with The Players Inc. based on the revised term sheet. They include:

■ Payne Park Auditorium will not be expanded, but it may be renovated.

■ The Players Inc. will develop a plan for the city-owned parcel at Laurel and South Washington for its primary theater building.

■ Eliminate the clawback provision in which the city would repay The Players a prorated amount based on depreciation of anticipated $12 million in construction and renovation investment in favor of a 30-year lease to encompass the two parcels, including a clause to adjust for inflation. That lease term required the supermajority.

Representatives of The Players were quick to agree to those terms.

It wasn’t the first time The Players considered use of the park-adjacent lot. During a September 2023 community workshop, attendees sug -

gested the organization might be able to use the lot for parking rather than expand parking at the auditorium site. Consultant Marty Black, the former mayor of Venice and developer who oversaw construction of the Atlanta Braves spring training facility in North Port, led that discussion and said he would explore that possibility.

With a tax assessment value of $1.87 million, though, the city would have to determine if that is the highest and best permanent use of the site. Brown told commissioners on Monday that the city paid “three or four million dollars” to acquire that site.

Once the lot was suggested as a consideration by the commission, Black said The Players will shift the focus of the new theater building to that location, providing the city

is willing to enter into a 30-year ground lease. That would allow The Players to amortize over time and get a return on its investment.

“You’ve opened some interesting doors,” Black said. “If the City Commission is willing to lease that corner piece of (Highway) 301 for the new structures and have us use the existing facility without adding the parking and all, certainly. If you prefer to have no clawback and just do a straight 30-year, we will take that as well.”

With Arroyo’s compromise motion approved, The Players will go back to the drawing board, and staff will work to craft a lease agreement to include the changes. Then, the City Commission still must approve the lease. Because of the 30-year term, it requires supermajority approval.

Andrew Warfield

This empty city-owned lot along Laurel Avenue between Payne Parkway and South Washington Boulevard could be home to a new theater to be developed by The Sarasota Players. Courtesy image

A rendering of an expanded Payne Park Auditorium designed by Fleischman Garcia Maslowski architects. That plan was scrapped.

941-708-9555 RamosCenter.com

Village people

Architects meet with residents as concept design begins for Sarasota Performing Arts Center.

Bringing to life a design vision for the Sarasota Performing Arts Center takes a village.

That was the message design team members conveyed during two open house sessions on Tuesday in the Grand Foyer of the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall.

For now, that village comprises the assembling project team at Renzo Piano Building Workshop in Genoa, Italy, the local architect of record, Sweet Sparkman of Sarasota, and the leadership of the Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation and the city of Sarasota.

On Tuesday, it grew to include attendees of Tuesday’s workshops and soon will expand to a global team of experts in engineering, acoustics, designers, modeling, lighting, simulation and more.

WATCH THE WORKSHOPS

Both “Ask the Architects” workshop sessions can be viewed on the Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation’s Facebook page.

“I know the title is ‘Ask the Architects,’ but it’s really more useful to hear your comments,” said Kerry Joyce of RPBW, the associate in charge of the SPAC project. He emphasized the collaborative approach the firm takes to design buildings that are harmonious with their location, approachable and accessible to all and, perhaps most important, sustainable and resilient against weather extremes.

The latter, they said, begins, quite literally, at the drawing board.

“In our mind, the most sustainable building is a building that doesn’t need to be replaced after 20 or 50 years. It’s a building that stands the test of time,” Joyce said. “It’s a building that will last 200 or 300 years.

Andrew Warfield

From left, Kerry Joyce, Todd Sweet, Ronan Dunphy and Jerry Sparkman addressed attendees at the “Meet the Architects” workshop for the planned Sarasota Performing Arts Center.

So it’s also something that you try to apply sustainability to afterwards.”

In addition to the workshops, Joyce and colleague Ronan Dunphy were in town for several days to meet with SPAF leaders along with Todd Sweet and Jerry Sparkman of Sweet Sparkman, research the site of the proposed facility in The Bay Park and explore local architecture. They returned to Italy on Wednesday to begin the process of crafting a design concept to present in September, when another round of workshops is anticipated.

That timeline is critical because the deadline for the city and the SPAF to enter into an implementation agreement is Nov. 30. The SPAC would be built on city-owned land within The Bay at the northeast corner of what is now a parking lot. Like The Bay itself, it is to be funded 50-50 between public dollars — almost all from the tax increment financing district surrounding the park — and philanthropy.

“In September, we will have the initial design concepts, so we expect to have our architects return in September from Italy and present the initial concept designs to you,” said SPAF CEO Tania Castroverde Moskalenko. “Then in October and November, we will reveal final designs and also go to the city with an implementation agreement.”

At that time, a more refined price for the project is expected to be revealed. The working estimate by the SPAF has been $275 million to $300 million, including the up to $36.9 million design agreement with RPBW. That pays for all aspects of the design right up to groundbreaking and for on-site architect services to ribbon cutting.

During the workshop, Joyce and Dunphy highlighted projects in Los Angeles and in Europe that exemplify the firm’s approach to design in harmony with the local environment, outdoor space, shade and human scale. To address questions about resiliency, they described how local environmental factors are incorporated into initial design work resulting in sustainability.

The theater at the Academy of Motion Pictures Museum in Los Angeles, for example, was built above a “floating” foundation that allows the earth below to move 30

inches, while maintaining structural integrity.

Another example is the Istanbul Museum of Modern Art in Istanbul, Turkey, which stands on the Bosphorus Strait connecting the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea.

“Another important fundamental aspect of our work is to create as much public space as possible,” Dunphy said. “In this case, we raised the building on both ends and around the sides to create shade spaces, and we chose also to maintain the vista, not to block the sunset and the water from the city, but to frame the views.”

The location of the SPAF in concert with The Bay Park, he added, is “a really rare opportunity for the city of Sarasota to have this wonderful site looking at that amazing (bay) and a future park that’s going to make a new green lawn inside the city.”

Under the supervision of RPBW partner in charge Mark Carroll, Joyce and Dunphy, along with Genoabased colleagues will work alongside the Sweet Sparkman team from initial concept to final design to completion of construction.

Joyce said selecting a local firm as architect-of-record made the most sense given established relationships with the city, the community and stateside contractors.

“We are a consultant to Renzo Piano,” said Sweet. “They will be the design architect, but we will be working with them from the beginning all the way to the end to develop and conceive the project.”

Added Sparkman, “We love working with outside architects. They inspire us. They show us how to do things and we try to share with them how we do things together.”

Can Buchanan be beaten?

Vern Buchanan is 12-0 in elections. But Eddie Speir, another little-known challenger, believes Buchanan’s RINO-ish voting record makes him vulnerable.

MATT WALSH

Here we are again. Every two years since 2006, former Michigan entrepreneur and Sarasota Ford dealer Vern Buchanan is running for Congress.

So far, comparatively speaking, you could say Buchanan has had the proverbial cake walk each time, except for his first election.

His record: 12-0 in primaries and general elections.

With the exception of his 369vote margin of victory over Democrat Christine Jennings in his entry into politics in 2006, Buchanan’s margins of victory ever since have never been below 53%. In the three primaries he has had against other Republicans from 2008 on, he won more than 80% of the votes. In his 2022 primary, he won 86%; 62% in the general, his highest margins.

What’s more, with money a leading determinant of whether a candidate has a chance, forget it.

Challenging Buchanan is like trying to break into a bank vault. The federal election system is so rigged in favor of incumbents, it truly is a miracle when a challenger unseats an entrenched incumbent.

Buchanan, for one, is listed as the seventh wealthiest member of Congress with a net worth of $157 million. And federal election records show he has taken in $4.5 million in contributions over the past two years, and through March he had $1.7 million in cash in his campaign bank account. As we said, a vault. And yet, Buchanan, 73, has a Republican challenger — a firsttime candidate from Bradenton who is giving it his all to unseat Buchanan in the Aug. 20 primary.

Meet Eddie Speir, 55, a former Colorado software entrepreneur who moved to Bradenton in 2010 for his three children to attend IMG Academy; who is the founder and owner of the private, grades 6-12 Inspiration Academy in West Bradenton; and who is campaigning passionately that Buchanan is part of the political Establishment that has gotten us where we are.

Speir’s slogan: “To take down a RINO, you’re gonna need a Speir.” It’s a longshot. A long longshot.

START WITH THE MONEY

If campaign money is the fuel to get a politician to D.C. and stay there, Speir has little chance to compete with Buchanan.

Take Spier’s campaign contributions. For 2023-24, through July 8, they totaled $1.1 million, with $522,000 coming from Speir himself as a personal loan. Records show 117 contributions made to his campaign, all individuals. Not a dime from a big political action committee. Contrast that with Buchanan. The past two years, he has received 732 contributions, with 61% (448) of them coming from mostly D.C.based PACs that read like a Who’s Who of Forbes 500 companies and industries. The biggest contributor: the Republican House PAC — WINRED, which funnels hundreds of millions of dollars to keep incumbents entrenched in their seats. WINRED alone has contrib-

ELECTION ’24

uted $3.9 million to Buchanan. Meanwhile, Buchanan himself, according to the Federal Election Commission records, hasn’t contributed a dime to his own campaign. He doesn’t need to.

A longtime veteran of SarasotaManatee politics told us it probably would take $10 million for any challenger to have a chance.

But even then, if Buchanan became at all worried, he would just open the money tap and flood District 16 with the tried-andtrue media blitzes directed by Max Goodman, Buchanan’s campaign consultant from the start of his political career.

Goodman is regarded as one of the savviest political consultants in Florida, an expert at emotional advertising that makes his candidate look human and likable and advertising that makes the opponent look unfit for dog catcher.

The veteran political observer estimated to us Buchanan and Goodman likely have spent close to $25 million since 2006 on advertising — probably twice the amount opponents have wasted. Try as they might to sink Buchanan with negative advertising, it hasn’t worked.

Buchanan just keeps going, barely above the radar, plodding through congressional votes as a moderate, rarely if ever drawing attention.

Buchanan has been in office so long he is now the longest-serving Republican congressional member from Florida and serves in Washington as co-chair of the Florida congressional delegation.

Suffice it to say, even if Buchanan is almost never interviewed on Fox News or by other national conservative media outlets the way, say, Sen. Rick Scott is, or the way Ron DeSantis was when he was in Congress, and even if most Floridians outside of his district don’t know anything Buchanan has done or stands for, Buchanan still has remarkable name recognition.

Especially in Manatee County.

Manatee’s staunch Republicans, where they outnumber Democrats almost 2-1, have carried Buchanan to all of his victories.

On top of that, in the last congressional redistricting, the Legislature gave Buchanan the gift of one of the safest Republican congressional districts in Florida. Along with Manatee, Buchanan now represents southeast Hillsborough County, that county’s most conservative region. No longer does Buchanan have to tussle with a liberal Democrat from Sarasota.

SERIOUS VULNERABILITIES?

Despite these seemingly insurmountable advantages, Speir passionately believes Buchanan has serious vulnerabilities.

For one, wherever Speir campaigns, he raises the question with voters and Republican groups: How many of you have ever met Vern Buchanan or seen him in person? Particularly in Hillsborough

■ HR 8035 — Ukraine Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024 — A vote to send additional foreign aid to Ukraine without any provisions for securing the Southern Border.

Buchanan: Yes.

Freedom Caucus: No.

■ HJ Resolution 46 (2019) — A vote to support Trump and build the border wall.

Buchanan: Yes.

Freedom Caucus: No.

■ HR 863 — Vote to impeach

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

Buchanan: Yes.

Freedom Caucus: No.

■ HR 7888 — Reforming Intelligence and Securing America Act

County, few hands go up.

This is a legitimate knock on the nine-term congressman — his low visibility in the district. As time has passed, Buchanan’s presence, especially among the hoi polloi at county fairs or other large public events, has waned.

At the start of a talk in June to the Riverview Republican Club, Speir said this of Buchanan: “If you’ve ever interacted with him, he doesn’t have a social personality. He’s not engaging. He’s not a good speechwriter. He doesn’t inspire confidence.” Buchanan is famous in Sarasota and Manatee for meeting people for the third or fourth time and appearing as if it’s the first.

SPEIR: ENGAGE AND CONNECT

Speir, in contrast, has been on a whirlwind mission since he filed to run for office in June 2023. It started with his team of family members and colleagues from Inspiration Academy walking door-to-door all over Manatee and southern Hillsborough to gather the 5,300 signatures needed to qualify.

“I didn’t want to pay $10,000 to get on the ballot,” Speir told his Riverview audience. “I wanted to actually engage and connect with people.”

Gathering the signatures did two things: It raised his name recognition from zero to something and began his journey toward one of his goals — creating for his candidacy the largest Republican grassroots movement in Manatee political history. In his speeches, he claims it is.

Speir and his volunteers also took their petitions to grocery stores, public parks, the Social Security office, Premier Sports Complex, a chili cook-off in Parrish and the Manatee County Fair. At every one of these, except the fair, authorities booted out the volunteers.

In spite of the resistance, it worked. Speir submitted 6,100 signatures and qualified.

Attending events and speaking to Republican groups has kept apace. Speir keeps his itinerary on his website (EddieSpeirfForCongress.com). In the next 10 days: a candidate fair in Sun City; Tiger Bay Club debate, Bradenton; Sun City golf cart parade; and candidate meet and greet at Gold Coast Eagle Distributing.

“It’s all about name recognition,”

— An amendment to the FISA bill that would require warrants before intelligence agencies can spy on Americans.

Buchanan: Yes.

Freedom Caucus: No.

■ HR 4664 — Amendment 54 — To appropriate $300 million for a new FBI headquarters.

Buchanan: Yes.

Freedom Caucus: No.

■ HR 8 — Background Checks Act of 2021 — Create universal background checks for gun ownership; outlaw private gun transfers.

Buchanan: Yes.

Freedom Caucus: No.

■ HR 9 — Climate Action Now Act — Required President Trump to take environmental; policy actions

“If

Speir told us. And getting the message across.

THE RINO WHO KEEPS WINNING

Speir’s messaging is focused on what he perceives as Buchanan’s weaknesses and Speir’s America First and constitutional patriotism.

On Buchanan, Speir’s themes are that Buchanan’s voting record proves he is too much of a liberal, a RINO big spender; that he is part of the entrenched Washington establishment responsible for the state of the country; and in spite of

previously committed to under the Paris Climate Agreement; blocked Trump from leaving Paris Climate Agreement. Also referred to as the “Green New Deal Act.”

Buchanan: Yes.

Freedom Caucus: No.

■ HR 391 — Global Health Security Act of 2021 — To have the United States participate and fund increased global health systems and establish a pandemic preparedness fund. (Conservatives opposed this for the potential loss of U.S. sovereignty to the WHO.)

Buchanan: Yes. Freedom Caucus: No.

Source: EddieSpeirForCongress.com

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1970 Main St. Sarasota, FL 34236 941-366-3468

File photo

Vern Buchanan celebrates his reelection in 2020 with one of his grandsons.

Courtesy image Congressional candidate Eddie Speir

Conservative D.C.-based think tanks, taxpayer and business organizations produce annual rankings and ratings of all congressional members based on their votes. Here is how they score

Congressman Buchanan.

■ Council for Citizens Against Government Waste — 2022: 93% rating; “Taxpayer hero.”

■ Club for Growth — 2023 score: 84%; Lifetime score: 63%; Rank: 78 ■ National Taxpayers Union — 2023: 62%

■ American Conservative Union

Buchanan’s longevity in Congress, that Buchanan’s influence there is de minimis

At the start of 2023, when Republicans took control of the House, Buchanan was the senior Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee, the tax-writing and one of the most powerful committees in the House. His seniority put him in line to be chairman. What’s more, Buchanan had proven himself a loyal party man, raising $4 million in contributions for the 2022 elections; and, Florida had the secondlargest Republican delegation in Congress. A nice portfolio.

But his Republican colleagues on the House Steering Committee passed over Buchanan. Missouri Congressman Jason Smith promised in his bid to the committee to be aggressive defunding an increase in IRS hiring. Buchanan pitched his business background and ability to work across the aisle.

Speir claims to his audiences: “(Buchanan) actually is not wellliked in D.C.” And then he punches more with: “The senior member (of the Florida delegation) should be making waves and doing things for Floridians. But, in fact, he’s not doing that at all.”

Speir harps on Buchanan’s voting record, with a tab on Speir’s website devoted it. It focuses on nine specific topics on which Buchanan voted on the opposite side of the Republicans’ conservative Freedom

— 2022 rating: 75; Lifetime rating: 72.85

■ The Freedom Index — 202324: 65%; Lifetime: 56%

■ Heritage Action for America/ Heritage Foundation — 118th Congress: 71%; Lifetime: 62%

■ National Federation of Independent Business — 118th Congress: 100%; recipient of NFIB Guardian of Small Business Award

■ Conservative Review/Liberty Score — F/57%

■ 2022-23-24 aggregate: 78.5%

■ Lifetime rating: 62.18%

Caucus (see box, Page 8).

Speir says Buchanan’s voting history puts him in a category of spending more money than each of four far-left, progressive members of “the Squad.” Speir directs viewers to the R Street Institute’s SpendingTracker.org site, which shows that Buchanan’s voting through seven sessions totals $5.5 trillion, ranking him average in Congress overall, but “high” in the Republican Party.

Speir documents votes on immigration, the Second Amendment, the Paris Climate agreement, spying on Americans; and the World Health Organization’s effort to subsume U.S. sovereignty in the next world health crisis.

These votes may be news to Republican voters, but they’re not really a surprise. Everyone who has voted for Buchanan since 2006 knows he is nowhere close to the conservatism of, say, Florida Congressmen Byron Donalds or Matt Gaetz or Reps. Jim Jordan or Marjorie Taylor Green. Everyone who has voted for Buchanan knows he toggles between RINO and moderate Republican. He once touted that he was the most bipartisan member of Congress. In fact, when you look at Buchanan’s ratings among the conservative think tanks and taxpayer and business organizations in D.C., his scores reinforce what voters have long known — and tolerated

(see box). And that toleration explains Buchanan’s longevity and why no one has or is likely to unseat him. After almost losing in 2006 in his first election to Democrat Christine Jennings, Buchanan has always been careful not to go too far right. He has never done so much one way or the other — or, some say, not done much at all — to make voters say: “Vern must go.”

He clearly has learned how to play the political game, which, of course, is all about being reelected. When Gov. DeSantis made his attempt to be the presidential nominee, Buchanan didn’t jump in and pledge his support for the governor. He waited and watched, becoming the eighth — not first or second — Florida congressional member to back not DeSantis, but Donald Trump. Trump, in turn, has endorsed Buchanan once again. Even though Speir positions himself as the “America First,” “Drain the Swamp” candidate, Trump’s endorsement of Buchanan can be viewed as a concrete wall for Speir.

WHO IS JORDAN EDWARD SPEIR?

“This is a David and Goliath situation,” Speir told the Riverview Republicans. “I’m going against the Establishment. I could spend a lot of time on all of the lies and propaganda being used against me on the local level and at the state level that is trying to silence my voice … This is a Marxist war against America and our freedoms.”

Born in Seattle, Speir and his family moved to Colorado when he was 3. He grew up in Denver.

In 1987, he went to the University of Northern Colorado in the hot eastern plains of Greeley, where he competed as a 142-pound wrestler. He admits he wasn’t a model citizen then. “Drugs, fights, I was on a path of destruction” at age 20, he told us.

But he also tells of his conversion to an evangelical Christian. It occurred when he saw a shooting star three times while driving at 3 a.m. on Highway 1 in California on a trip to Seattle. “God got a hold of me,” he says.

After earning a business degree with an emphasis on computer information systems, Speir’s first job was as assistant director for IT

at his university. He did that for a year. Then, in 1993, Speir, 24, started his own company, 3t Systems in Denver, specializing in IT consulting for medical offices.

3t grew over the next decade, expanding into software development for the mortgage origination industry. After a merger in 2004, 3t became the largest IT consultancy in Colorado. At its peak, it reached more than $18 million a year in revenues and 285 employees.

After that merger, Speir spun off the software development operation into a new company, Mortgage Cadence. Its internet-based software became a hit in the post-2008 real estate crash, so much so that the international giant, Accenture plc, acquired 85% of Mortgage Cadence in 2010 and completed 100% of the acquisition in 2013. Purchase price: More than $150 million.

In 2010, with sale proceeds in hand and after Speir’s wife survived a plane crash in the Colorado Rockies (three days, two nights, with wind chill of 40 below zero), they decided to leave the cold of Colorado. They chose Bradenton and IMG.

Then came serendipity.

Speir met Robert Allen Jr., a New College of Florida trustee whose son was attending the tennis academy at Speir’s Inspiration Academy. Speir and Allen’s political philosophies clicked.

This also was the time Allen and Gov. DeSantis had ignited the effort to transform New College into becoming a public Hillsdale College replica. Allen lobbied the governor successfully to have Speir appointed as a New College trustee. It did not go well.

Speir was outspoken, challenged New College’s lawyer and strayed from the tactics and strategy of the new trustees and New College interim President Richard Corcoran. When it was time for the Senate to confirm the new trustees, Speir was the only one not confirmed.

It’s a long, messy story. But here is what it did for Speir: His rejection prompted him to think about running for public office. On the same day he contemplated that, he read the news story about Buchanan losing his bid to be chairman of the

Ways and Means Committee.

“I felt a quickening of my spirits and wanted to get involved,” Speir told us.

FREEDOM FIGHTER DNA

When we spoke about Speir’s chances to win with a Republican who has been in the trenches of Florida politics for 30 years, he said: “He’s delusional.”

Speir doesn’t see it that way at all. When you hear and see his passion and patriotism, it’s palpable and deserving of respect. You can feel he wants what is right to begin the turnaround that’s needed for the country.

“I love this country,” he says. “Freedom-loving people feel like there’s no hope.”

Speir’s platform is simple: Inflation (“You could cut 80% of the federal budget, but they just don’t have the will.”). Secure our borders. (He visited the Texas border.)

“If we get government out of the way, and not look to the government to solve the problems that the government has created, and get back to true, limited-government conservatism, that will unlock and unleash the massive amount of intellectual capacity that we have.

“I learned this in business,” he tells the Riverview Republicans.

“You’ve got to confront the brutal facts, and when you confront the brutal facts, never lose hope that you will be victorious in the end.

“It’s in our DNA. We are freedom fighters. All it takes is political courage and will.”

It is truly rare for a first-time, unknown candidate to slay an entrenched incumbent who has the name-recognition Buchanan has.

But, likewise, we have always been of a mind that serving in Congress should not be a career. Former Congressman Dan Miller, R-Bradenton, did it right. He said 10 years and stuck to it.

If we had our way, we’d flush out every member of Congress, save for a handful. It’s not personal. It’s about freedom.

Which of the two — Buchanan or Speir — is the freedom fighter for you?

We recommend: Eddie Speir

Courts for sport

County and Benderson Park take next step toward building an indoor sports complex and boathouse on the finish tower island.

ANDREW WARFIELD

STAFF WRITER

From what was once a borrow pit for I-75 construction has emerged, over the past 12 years, a best-in-class rowing facility known as Nathan Benderson Park.

The next phase of its evolution from what once was literally a giant hole in the ground is a planned indoor sports complex and boathouse, a joint effort of Sarasota County Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources and the Nathan Benderson Park Conservancy.

The facility is planned to be built on the island next to the finish tower.

Nicole Rissler, the county’s PRNR director, briefed the Sarasota County Commission at its July 9 meeting on the progress of planning for the facility, which has reached the 30% design phase.

That planning began in January 2022, when the Nathan Benderson Park Conservancy procured a consulting agency to perform an initial feasibility study, the results of which were presented to the commission four months later. At that time, commissioners approved dedicating $20 million toward the project from the Capital Improvements/Facilities Fund of the Tourist Development Tax.

“So what have we done since then? A whole lot of data collection, research of other facilities and feedback from various sports and facilities subject matter experts,” Rissler told commissioners. “I think I sat in 15 hours of focus groups of different entities — the pickleball group, the volleyball group, the basketball group, the rowing group — on what if they started with a white piece of paper, what would be the ultimate

NEXT STEPS

Nathan Benderson Park will solicit a request for proposal and award a contract for completion of design and permitting. A project update, including construction costs, will be presented to the County Commission in spring 2025.

facility?”

The results of that input as work begins to take the project to 90% planning includes:

First floor

■ 100,000 square feet of playing

surface

■ 8 basketball courts

■ 16 volleyball courts

■ 30 pickleball courts

■ 24 wrestling mats

■ Boathouse with at least 24 storage racks, boat repair space, performance center and rental shop

■ Locker rooms

■ Restaurant and concessions

■ Multipurpose meeting and/or vendor space

■ Offices

Second floor

■ 100,000 square feet of playing surface

■ 8 basketball courts ■ 16 volleyball courts

■ 30 pickleball courts

■ 24 wrestling mats

■ Boathouse with at least 24 storage racks, boat repair space, performance center and rental shop

■ Locker rooms

■ Restaurant and concessions

■ Multipurpose meeting and/or

vendor space

■ Offices

“As many of you know, we don’t have a whole lot of indoor space here in Sarasota County for community use and for special events,” Rissler said. “In my former life as the director of sports for Visit Sarasota County, one of the areas that we couldn’t go after is events. We just don’t have the indoor space to do it, so that’s part of the feasibility study.”

The indoor sports complex is necessary for the continued attraction of national and even international rowing events at Nathan Bender-

son Park, which bring with them hotel room nights and the economic impact of considerable spending.

Commissioner Joe Neunder pointed out the importance of the highperformance training center for attracting elite athletes here to train and compete.

“That will be a game changer, especially when you talk about Olympic athletes who are looking to peak at the top of their game to qualify for global events,” Neunder said. “I think that’s a huge sell.”

The inventory of indoor sports courts is intended to draw large tournaments in addition to availability for public use. That includes access to the high-performance training center.

“I think being flexible enough allows classes, a membership and those kinds of things when Olympic athletes or college teams aren’t using those facilities,” Rissler said.

Staff and consultants have visited and continue to visit comparable indoor sports complexes to view real-world examples for the next 60% of design that is expected to begin soon. They include:

■ IMG Academy in Bradenton

■ Rock Hill Event Center in Rock Hill, South Carolina

■ Upward Star Event Center in Spartanburg, South Carolina

■ Hoover Met Complex in Hoover, Alabama

■ The Big House in Tavares, Florida

■ Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus in Wesley Chapel

“We know there’s a community need,” Rissler said. “What we found is we really are a sweet spot on the West Coast of Florida. You have Tampa and Orlando from a convention center perspective. You have some smaller facilities like Wiregrass in the Tampa area, but really between us and Hertz Arena in Fort Myers, there’s a big gap in our area.”

Working

Preserving over

Filtering our water before it goes into the Sarasota Bay by creating watersheds at The Bay and in the Bobby Jones Nature Park.

Leading the way for:

• 100% renewable, zero emission energy sources by 2030 for municipal operations

• 100 % renewable, zero emission energy sources by 2045 for the entire city

Finding solutions for storm and climate change resiliency.

Making our Downtown more walkable while increasing transportation options such as the trolley, electric scooters and bikes, and dedicated bike lanes.

The planned indoor sports complex at Nathan Benderson Park will also serve as a boathouse for rowing activities.

Courtesy images

The NBP indoor sports complex and boathouse will have 24-plus storage racks.

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| $6,500,000 Step into the

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from expansive windows and

Bills to pay

City Commissioners approve another round of legal expense payments for Commissioner Kyle Battie.

On Friday, July 12, the attorney representing Sarasota City Commissioner Kyle Battie filed a response to city resident Kelly Franklin’s amended complaint on civil charges of defamation.

Three days later, city commissioners agreed to pay Battie’s legal expenses, as the city is required to do under the circumstances.

That’s because in his June 12 ruling to grant Battie’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit, 12th Judicial Circuit Court Judge Stephen Walker stated Battie was acting in his role of an elected official when he displayed a printout of a racially charged social media post credited to Franklin. In response, Franklin called the post a hoax perpetrated by an unknown third party and said Battie knew it was a hoax before presenting it in open forum on Jan. 16.

Franklin’s amended complaint, filed on July 2, contains the same five charges as did the original. But Franklin shifted the core complaint from slander to libel because the public presentation can be defined as published. The new complaint places greater emphasis on her allegation that Battie knew in mid-December 2023 that the post, which could not be found on Franklin’s Facebook account, was fraudulent.

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In the motion to dismiss, attorney Brian Goodrich wrote, “As a public official, Commissioner Battie possesses absolute immunity from defamation claims (and related torts) relating to his scope of office. It would not matter if Commissioner Battie defamed Franklin, if he acted with ill will or if he acted maliciously.” He continued, “Even interpret -

ing Franklin’s allegations in the light most favorable to her, Franklin’s amended complaint must be dismissed with prejudice, as Commissioner Battie acted within the scope of his office at the Jan. 16, 2024, City Commission meeting. Further, Franklin does not state a claim for conspiracy or intentional infliction of emotional distress or civil conspiracy.”

Battie’s legal bills in the first round exceeded $26,000, the amount over $25,000 to be paid by the city’s insurance carrier. With the amended complaint, the meter starts again. Rather than the $15,000 commissioners approved — plus the additional $10,000 as required by state statute — for the initial complaint, Mayor Liz Alpert suggested a payas-you-go process this time, settling monthly invoices as they arrive.

Commissioner Erik Arroyo made the motion, which was approved 4-0 — with Battie recused — in part based on the assumption the case will again be dismissed on the same grounds. If so, the city’s expenses would stop again at $25,000, its directors and officers’ insurance deductible.

If rebuffed again, Franklin has vowed to appeal the case all the way to the Florida Supreme Court, which would mean future legal expenses for the city. Should the ruling be reversed at any part of the process, the city would no longer be required to pay his legal expenses.

File image

Kyle Battie speaks at the Veterans Housing Initiative groundbreaking ceremony on Oct. 31, 2023.

THURSDAY, JULY 4

HOOD ORNAMENT

10:52 p.m., North Polk Avenue at John Ringling Boulevard Road rage: A battery call turned out to be a case of road rage between drivers of two vehicles stuck in holiday traffic. An officer arrived on the scene to find one man, who was shirtless and disheveled, advising that he and his family were stuck in eastbound traffic at John Ringling Boulevard as they approached North Polk Avenue. That’s when he noticed a Chevrolet Malibu facing northbound, attempting to merge into eastbound traffic and exited his vehicle to impede its progress “to the chagrin of the Malibu occupants,” the incident report reads.

At that point, the Malibu began inching forward, bumping into him.

The officer then made contact with the driver of the Malibu, who said he was at the stop sign waiting for several vehicles to pass. He finally began to inch forward to merge into the lane when he noticed a Nissan Altima and the irate half-dressed driver. He said the Altima driver walked to his vehicle and nearly sat on the hood, “obstructing his free, convenient and normal use of the public street.” The Malibu driver said he sounded his horn and yelled at the Altima driver to cease obstructing the roadway, all of which was recorded on video. The Malibu driver said he did not want to file a report and only wanted to leave the area and go home. All parties separated, and no further action was taken.

HOTEL HOSTILITY

11:06 p.m., 1000 block of Boulevard of the Arts

Disturbance: Following an evening of celebrating our nation’s independence, a couple was arguing loudly enough to bring law enforcement to their hotel room. An officer spoke to the man, who said he got into a verbal dispute with his wife of three years over her being intoxicated. He said they live in Pennsylvania and were here on vacation.

The officer then spoke with the woman who appeared to be intoxicated and was upset with her husband for an unknown reason. She said she was going to go to sleep, and her husband advised he would stay in a different room.

THURSDAY, JULY 4

EASY DECISION

4:15 p.m., 1500 block of Main Street

Disturbance: Caught in a thunderstorm, two groups of people sought shelter beneath an awning when two women from separate groups began to argue for an unspecified reason. The parties had already separated prior to law enforcement arrival. While on the scene, officers observed in one woman’s possession a capped bottle of vodka that was two-thirds full in a partially opened bag. She was given an option — either allow an officer to dispose of the vodka or face criminal charges. The woman relented, and officers poured out the vodka and disposed of the bottle.

SUNDAY, JULY 7

SOCIAL MEDIA FAUX PAS

8:58 a.m., 700 block of North Tamiami Trail

Dispute: Officers responded to a call to the parking lot of a performance venue where they found a couple continuing an argument that began at their Sixth Street home. The complainant told officers that she observed her boyfriend cheating on her via social media, which led to the argument during which the man drove both of them to the parking lot in her vehicle to continue the discussion. While there, the woman became upset and wanted to drive home. The man, though, had taken her keys and hidden them, he told officers, because she was intoxicated. Eventually, friends came and picked up both parties, and they agreed to stay separated. The man was advised to not take his girlfriend’s vehicle without her permission.

A WORLD of WONDER

Escape the heat and life’s cares at the Summer Circus Spectacular.

MONICA ROMAN GAGNIER

ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

Imagine a world where doctors would treat depression and anxiety, not by writing a prescription for Wellbutrin, but with one for the orchestra, the ballet or the circus.

It’s not as far-fetched as it seems. Academics, such as Dacher Keltner at the University of CaliforniaBerkeley, have been studying the healing benefits of wonder.

Keltner has written a book called “Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life” and was a consultant on Pixar’s “Inside Out.” In case you haven’t heard, “Inside Out 2” has been a surprise summer box-office smash and spotlights a character with the features of anxiety.

Sarasota’s arts institutions are no strangers to the power of wonder. The Ringling Museum recently jumped on the bandwagon with a conference of the same name. (Check out the cool “Wonder” merch in the museum gift shop.) Meanwhile, Sarasota’s nonprofit Circus Arts Conservatory held a concert named “Wonderball.”

Cool beans, huh? That’s what the comedy duo Cheech and Chong used to say back in the day, long before they were promoting cannabis gummies.

Some boomers aren’t ready to leave their wonder years behind. But marijuana isn’t legal in Florida, and tickets to the Dead & Company’s Las Vegas residency at the immersive entertainment venue the Sphere are pretty pricey ($150), especially when you add airline tickets, hotel and food.

IF YOU GO

SUMMER CIRCUS SPECTACULAR

When: 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Runs through Aug. 17. Where: Historic Asolo Theater, 5401 Bay Shore Road Tickets: $20 adults; $15 kids Info: Visit Ringling.org.

FINDING WONDER IN YOUR OWN BACKYARD

Why not find wonder in your own backyard? The Summer Circus Spectacular at The Ringling’s Historic Asolo Theater is just what the doctor ordered, especially if you’ve got restless kids around the house and temperatures are in the 90s.

Ready to escape the heat with a trip up north? You’re in luck. Sarasota’s Circus Arts Conservatory, presided over by the husband-and-wife team of Pedro Reis and Dolly Jacobs, is having a residency of its own, in the Massachusetts Berkshires. “SommerSaults in the Berkshires” will run July 19-28 at the Duffin Theater in Lenox, Massachusetts.

The CAC’s inaugural Berkshires residency builds on Sarasota’s heritage as the longtime home of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. With the exception of one act, Duo Alexander, the lineup in Lenox is the same as last year’s Summer Circus Spectacular in Sarasota. That show included third-generation circus artist Heidi Herriott as master of ceremonies, clowns Dick Monday and Slappy, crystal balance act Serge Sergeev and Aurika Annaeva, speed juggler Tersit Asefa Dersu and Garrett Allen on aerial rope. Locals may remember Dersu and Allen from their triumphant performances at March’s Cirque des Voix, the collaboration between the CAC and Key Chorale.

A SUMMER HOME IN THE BERKSHIRES FOR THE CAC?

Does this mean the performers currently on stage at The Ringling’s Historic Asolo Theater, or the HAT, could be heading to the Berkshires next summer? CAC Executive Vice President Jennifer Mitchell hinted at such a possibility in a statement.

“After several visits to the Berkshires, we felt there were significant similarities between our communi-

ties — especially the focus on arts and culture — and felt that a summer show would be a great way to jumpstart any potential continued presence there,” Mitchell said.

The Berkshires tickets cost a little more ($25-$30) than those of the Sarasota Summer Circus Spectacular ($15-$20). Both shows are in air-conditioned venues and run for an hour, which most children can sit through.

Helping to keep kids engaged from the get-go at the summer circus is the chance that Renaldo the clown could tap any one of them as assistants in his juggling, plate-spinning and magic routines.

At a recent show, about a dozen kids were recruited from the audience as well as an adult or two. (One man was so adept at throwing and catching objects with Renaldo, he seemed like a plant. But maybe he just played sports in high school.)

Don’t let the mention of clowns derail your trip to the Summer Circus Spectacular. Over the years, clowns have gotten a bad rap, and some parents are afraid they will frighten children. Rest assured, the CAC’s clowns are not scary. Co-founder Dolly Jacobs knows a little something about clowns, since her father was the legendary Ringling Bros. clown Ed Jacobs.

A CLOWN WITH CONTINENTAL FLAIR

Renaldo, whose real name is Al Calienes, speaks a weird patois that sounds like a mishmash of English, Spanish and Italian. Along with his zany, family-friendly antics, Calienes exudes a continental flair that fits right in with the European flavor that Reis, a native of South Africa, and Jacobs have given to CAC performances, both during season and in the summer.

In a telephone interview before leaving for the Berkshires, Reis reflected on the growth of the Summer Circus Spectacular, which started in the summer of 1998 at a place called the Wagon Room. “Those were our first ticketed performances,” Reis says.

The summer circus moved to The Ringling at the urging of former Art of Performance Curator Dwight Currie, Reis says, who was a circus fan. Then the summer residency at The Ringling was interrupted by renovations at the museum. The summer circus returned after they were complete.

In the early days of the Summer Circus Spectacular, Jacobs, a veteran of Ringling Bros. and Big Apple Circus, performed as an aerialist, Reis recalls. Jacobs has since retired from performing and is more likely to be wearing an evening gown in her appearances at the circus than a sparkly leotard.

Reis says he’s been pleased with the growth of the summer circus, which this year runs through Aug. 17.

“It’s become very popular. Kids are out of school, and we make it affordable for families in a beautiful airconditioned theater,” he says. “Each year is better than the year before.”

A PERFECT VENUE FOR AUDIENCES OF ALL AGES

The HAT is easy for those with wheelchairs and walkers to negotiate, and there’s room to store the devices on the first floor of the 530seat theater. Indeed, many multigenerational groups, with members ranging from roughly 8 years of age to 80, were in evidence at a recent performance of the circus.

There was plenty of wonder to be found on stage. Slack wire performer Antino Pansa got things started with his brand of derring-do after Renaldo warmed up the crowd.

The hypnotic performance of “hair hang” artist Camille Langlois,

SEE CIRCUS, PAGE 16

in their Summer Circus Spectacular performance.

“Kids are out of school, and we make it affordable for families in a beautiful airconditioned theater. Each year is better than the year before.”

— Pedro Reis

The Bello Sisters demonstrate strength and grace

Slack rope performer Antino Pansa defies gravity at the Summer Circus Spectacular, which runs through Aug. 17.

Images courtesy of David Shapiro

Circus

the crowd.

The haunting broken doll performance of contortionist Uranbileg Angarag was an edgy complement to Renaldo’s baby with a bottle and a Teddy bear act that it followed, but it was not too dark.

The Bello Sisters, an acrobatic trio, were the crowd pleasers of the afternoon (performances are at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.), with their stunning teamwork showcasing both strength and grace.

Ringmaster Jared Walker did a masterful job of introducing the performers, engaging in hijinks with Renaldo and keeping the show moving.

If there’s a performance at the summer circus that doesn’t transport you, not to worry: It’ll be over in a few minutes. Each act is less than 10 minutes long.

MAKE A CIRCUS DAY OF IT WITH MUSEUM DISCOUNTS

If you’ve never studied gymnastics or dance, you may not fully appreci-

ate the training and talent on stage at the Summer Circus Spectacular. The performers make everything look deceptively easy. That’s the wonder of it all.

If you’re ready for more circus, you can take your ticket stub to The Ringling box office and learn about circus history at the Tibbals Learning Center and Circus Museum for just $5, a $25 savings on the admission price of $30. The circus center is not included in the museum’s free Monday admissions.

The Ringling recently added a new installation on the second floor of the Tibbals Learning Center called the “Greatest Show on Earth.” The multimedia exhibit is dedicated to the modern Ringling Bros. circus as it evolved under the ownership of Feld Entertainment, which acquired it in 1967. There are no selfies or videos allowed during the summer circus, but audience members can pose for free with the cast in the lobby of The Ringling. When an audience member remarked how quickly the line was moving, a Ringling employee responded, “These people are pros, on and off stage.”

FROM PAGE 15

Monica Gagnier

A family poses with members of the Summer Circus Spectacular, including Ringmaster Jared Walker (left) and Renaldo the clown (right).

THIS WEEK

THURSDAY

PAT GODWIN

7 p.m. at McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre, 1923 Ringling Blvd.

$26

Visit McCurdysComedy.com.

A veteran of NBC’s “Last Comic Standing,” “The Howard Stern Show” and “The Bob & Tom Show,” Pat Godwin effortlessly combines music and humor. Runs through July 21.

‘THE MUSIC OF LAUREL CANYON’

7:30 p.m. at FST’s Court Cabaret, 1265 First St.

$18-$42

Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.

If you know, you know. But not everyone knows about Laurel Canyon, the neighborhood above West Hollywood’s Sunset Strip that became home to folk musicians such as Joni Mitchell, Buffalo Springfield, Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young and The Mamas and the Papas. Runs through Aug. 25.

‘DEAR JACK, DEAR LOUISE’

8 p.m. at FST’s Keating Theatre, 1241 N. Palm Ave.

$29-$46

OUR PICK

NEWISH JEWISH PLAYS:

‘ORIGINAL TENANTS’

If it’s summer in Sarasota, it’s time for play readings. The Sarasota Jewish Theatre enters the derby with Newish Jewish Plays, a three-play series on three consecutive Mondays. The second selection is Carole Braverman’s “Original Tenants,” about a daughter whose memories are stirred when she visits her sick mother in Brooklyn.

IF YOU GO

When: 7 p.m. Monday, July 22

Where: The Players Centre, Studio 1130, 3501 S. Tamiami Trail

Tickets: $12 or $30 for three-play series

Info: Visit SarasotaJewishTheatre.org.

Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.

Acclaimed playwright Ken Ludwig tells the story of his parents’ courtship during World War II. The play follows U.S. Army Capt. Jack Ludwig, a military doctor stationed in Oregon, who begins a life-changing pen-pal relationship with Louise Rabiner, an aspiring actress living in the Big Apple. Runs through Aug. 11.

‘RHINESTONE COWGIRLS’

7:30 p.m. at FST’s Goldstein Cabaret, 1239 N. Palm Ave.

$18-$42

Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.

Created by Nancy Allen Productions, this musical tribute to some of the first ladies of country features such classics as Patsy Cline’s “Crazy,” Tammy Wynette’s “Stand by Your Man” and Carrie Underwood’s “Last Name.” Runs through Aug. 4.

FRIDAY

DISNEY’S ‘THE LITTLE MERMAID JR.’ SHOW

7:30 p.m. at Manatee Performing Arts Center, 502 Third Ave. W., Bradenton $20 Visit ManateePerformingArtsCenter. com.

Based on one of Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tales, “Disney’s The Little Mermaid Jr.” looks at the sacrifices we are willing to make to be loved and accepted. What makes these Disney Jr. shows perfect for children? The adaptations of beloved musicals are just one hour long.

CLASSIC MOVIES AT THE OPERA HOUSE: ‘AMERICAN GRAFFITI’

7:30 p.m. at Sarasota Opera House, 61 N. Pineapple Ave. $12 Visit SarasotaOpera.org.

This classic movie of California cruising in the 1950s recently celebrated its 50th anniversary. Directed by George Lucas (“Star Wars”), “American Graffiti” helped propel the careers of stars like Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Cindy Williams, Mackenzie Phillips and Harrison Ford. It also provided the inspiration for the long-running 1970s TV show “Happy Days.”

THE FUNKY BONZ

8 p.m. at Joyland, 8341 Lockwood Ridge Road 18-20, $26.13; 21 and older, $10.45 Visit JoylandSarasota.com.

The band will play soulful melodies from artists such as Earth, Wind & Fire, Bruno Mars and Dua Lipa in a performance that promises to be a musical tour of the decades.

SUNDAY

HD AT THE OPERA HOUSE: ‘II PURITANI’

1:30 p.m. at Sarasota Opera House, 61 N. Pineapple Ave. $12-$20 Visit SarasotaOpera.org.

In 2007, soprano Anna Netrebko wowed New York audiences in the role of the fragile Puritan maiden Elvira. Filled with exciting arias and ensembles, this bel canto treasure also stars Eric Cutler as Elvira’s love, Arthur, Franco Vassallo as her suitor, Riccardo, and John Relyea as her Uncle Giorgio.

DON’T MISS

SCD IN-STUDIO:

JESSICA OBIEDZINSKI

After a spinal injury left her exploring modes of healing beyond traditional medicine, Jessica Obiedzinski spent two weeks tapping into her subconscious at the Hermitage Artist Retreat. In this “sneak peek” performance, she reveals her discoveries.

IF YOU GO

When: 7 p.m. Saturday, July 20

Where: at Sarasota Contemporary Dance, 1400 Boulevard of the Arts, Suite 300

Tickets: $22

Info: Visit SarasotaContemporaryDance.org.

WEDNESDAY

JAZZ HAPPY HOUR

6 p.m. Geldbart Auditorium, Selby Library, 1331 First St. Free with registration Visit JazzHappyHour.org.

Sarasota Music Archive presents the Jazz All Stars with the program, “The Art of Jazz and Improvisation” featuring Jamie Tremps on vocals.

ZACHARY BARTHOLOMEW QUINTET

7 p.m. at Fogartyville, 525 Kumquat Court $14-$28 Visit WSLR.org.

Award-winning pianist, composer and educator Zachary Bartholomew will be accompanied by Marty Quinn on bass, Rodolfo Zuniga on drums and David Fernandez on saxophone. Bartholomew will also be joined by Emmy-nominated jazz trumpeter and vocalist Benny Benack III.

“Rhinestone Cowgirls” runs through Aug. 4 at the FST’s Goldstein Cabaret.

Courtesy Images

Love letters fly as bombs drop

FST’s ‘Dear Jack, Dear Louise’ is a funny tale punctuated by moments of sheer terror.

en Ludwig’s “Dear Jack, Dear Louise” is now playing at Florida Studio Theatre. Based on the playwright’s track record (“Lend Me a Tenor,” “Crazy for You” and “Moon Over Buffalo,” etc.), you expect clever comedy, engaging characters, snappy dialogue and high-concept situations.

This play meets all those expectations — with one surprise. For Ludwig, the material is very personal.

Jack and Louise aren’t fictional characters — they’re the playwright’s parents. Ludwig didn’t even change their names. This play recalls the courtship of the playwright’s parents. It was a long-distance courtship, delivered via air mail.

How did that happen?

The playwright’s father, Jack (Jordan Sobel) was an Army physician — taciturn, stoic and dutiful. Ludwig’s mother, Louise (Maggie Lou Rader), was an aspiring actress and dancer with Broadway dreams.

Ludwig’s grandfathers were both Jewish refugees who had fled the pogroms of Eastern Europe and come to America. They suggested their kids should write — and they did.

The couple’s correspondence began in 1942 but they didn’t actually meet until the war was over. Their love story unfolded in their revealing letters. Sadly, the playwright’s mother destroyed them. Happily, Ludwig reimagined them — and retells his parents’ love story in this play.

As the play opens, Jack is stationed at an Army base in Medford, Oregon. Louise writes from a boarding house in Brooklyn, New

York. In Jack’s letters, he vents his frustration with a commanding officer who won’t grant leave,and his revulsion at the futile horrors of war. (Jack’s seen it first-hand, treating an endless stream of wounded from the Pacific Theater.)

When she’s not trying to crack Jack’s emotional reserve, Louise writes breathlessly of her ups and downs trying to break into show biz. Her roommate stole the dream role she auditioned for in “Arsenic and Old Lace.” But “Hellzapoppin” has another dream role — and they’re auditioning right now!

The couple is geographically distant but emotionally connected. In Ludwig’s inventive staging, they share the same stage. (He’s on stage left and she’s on stage right.) The letters fly back and forth. They never physically meet, but words unite them.

Jack and Louise read their letters out loud — a continual calland-response. Their conversation theoretically spans continents. But that’s make-believe. In reality, two actors are talking to each other in the same room. It sounds like a normal conversation — with one key difference. The actors never interrupt each other.

The couple’s back-and-forth dialogue resembles the film technique of cross-cutting. It’s a snappy approach, but it could easily feel forced. Director Kristin Clippard smartly captures Ludwig’s rat-a-tat rhythms.

Louise (Rader) is a bouncy, bubbly chatterbox. She’s flamboyant and tries to accentuate the positive, though she can get boiling mad. Whatever’s on her mind goes straight into her letters. Rader’s character wears her heart on her sleeve.

Sobel’s Jack is a man of few words, but he’s got heart too. He’s

IF YOU GO

‘Dear Jack, Dear Louise’ When: Through Aug. 11. Where: FST’s Keating Theatre, 1241 N. Palm Ave. Tickets: $25-$42 Info: Visit FloridaStudio Theatre.org.

a patriot, but that doesn’t blind him to the brutal stupidity of war (or the stupid generals making bad decisions). They’ve both got plenty of chemistry. Rader and Sobel sell you on their growing attraction.

Moriah and Isabel Curley-Clay do a swell job creating the divided world on stage. On one side, Jack’s office is spare and spartan. On the other side, Louise’s apartment is stuffed with knickknacks, mementos and makeup.

Behind both spaces, letters in the backdrop seem to soar like birds in flight. It’s set design as characterization, and it works beautifully. Daniel Ciba’s period

Ringling,

costumes nicely turn back time.

Louise is a 1940s rainbow; Jack’s in uniform. Kudos also to Nicholas Christensen’s sound design — especially in the scenes where Jack is under fire. (You get some idea of what “shell shock” means.)

While we’re on the subject, that’s another twist on the playwright’s expectations. This is a very funny play — but it’s punctuated by moments of sheer terror.

World War II is constantly raging in the background. By the end of the second act, it’s coming on strong like a Category 5 hurricane.

Jack winds up stationed in Europe — on the front lines treating the casualties of D Day and the Battle of the Bulge. And sometimes running for his life.

Pretty suspenseful. (Seeing as how Ken Ludwig was born, it’s a good bet his father survives.)

Knowing that, you’re still on the edge of your seat.

Ludwig’s epistolary play has a great premise. It’s a love letter to his parents — and the “greatest generation,” too. But that sweet notion is packed with nostalgic

baggage.

With a lesser playwright, that material could easily have been sentimental schlock. But Ludwig’s an honest scribe. His comedy is reality-based. As I said, the reality behind the playwright’s fiction is highly personal. Like Proust, Ludwig was trying to recapture lost time. Unlike Proust, the lost memories weren’t his own. His mother burned the love letters, and he had to imaginatively recreate them. Imagine what that means …

Most love affairs click from countless variables, including body language, appearance, physical chemistry and pheromones. What you say counts, but also how you say it. But with letters, words are all you have.

Before their love affair could begin, Jack and Louise had to imagine the person behind the words. It took powerful words to do that. And a powerful playwright to reimagine them. Ludwig did — and that’s his real accomplishment.

Ken Ludwig’s “Dear Jack, Dear Louise” runs through Aug. 11 at FST’s Gompertz Theatre.

Image courtesy of John Jones

YOUR NEIGHBORS

Kids step into center ring

The Circus Arts Conservatory summer camp teaches kids the basics of some of the most popular circus acts.

IAN SWABY | STAFF WRITER

For Anna Owen, 12, performing was just as natural as walking.

After stepping into a pair of stilts, she was headed off across the floor.

Like many kids, she has a natural gift for movement.

The Circus Summer Camp at Circus Arts Conservatory can help kids discover such skills, but it is also intended for those who have never performed before.

A visit to the camp reveals students learning the ropes — or perhaps making their tentative first climbs up the aerial silks — as they prepare to present everything they’ve learned, in the format of a circus show, to their families on the last day of camp.

According to instructor Ryan Weston, the Circus Arts Conservatory is a niche offering and a rarity, the only such circus school in the area, including Tampa and St. Petersburg.

It’s the only place where kids have the chance to swing about 25 feet above the floor (with a safety harness and net) on the trapeze, while also learning acts that include the rolling globe, aerials, rolla bolla, trampoline, wire walking, clowning and juggling.

RARE OPPORTUNITY

The camp offers students a taste of what they can learn from the conservatory, including its Sailor Circus Academy, magnet programs that it hosts in companionship with Booker High School and Sarasota High School and its recreational classes for kids and adults.

Some students have gone on to perform in professional capacities.

Rikki Hettig-Rolfe Meaux, manager of the camp, said camp is also beneficial for counselors who are also students at Sailor Circus Academy.

“They get to choose the theme of their act, and they get to choose the music for their act, and they get to choose the tricks for their act, and I love watching them be creative,” she

said. “I love watching them, seeing what they choose and helping them get better at their job.”

Jon Griggs, a former circus performer and the facilities maintenance and safety manager at Circus Arts Conservatory, said the programs are also helpful for other reasons.

“The people that don’t necessarily continue with circus skills — it teaches them a lot of discipline about physical activity, and they carry that over into their regular lives,” he said.

The skills also intersect with another field as well — sports.

Weston, who is the lead coach for acrobatics, was a 2000 Olympic alternate, is an eight-time national trampoline champion, a USA Gymnastics Hall of Fame inductee and a former coach and artist for Cirque du Soleil.

“Athletes make the best circus artists, because you can teach a gymnast how to swing on trapeze. They’ve already got the strength; they have the flexibility; they have the body awareness. They have all the foundation necessary to be a great circus artist,” he said.

He said he is pleased the conservatory is moving toward having kids be able to compete if they desire.

Campers said they didn’t take the experiences at the camp and conservatory for granted.

“It brings my passion out,” said Amelia Guard, 10. “I like that I can do things that some people can’t do, and it’s unique.”

Although she said she found the acts “very challenging at first,” she said everything is easy for her now, with the mini trampoline and web being her favorite acts.

Owen has been attending camps since she was 7, but later started in the conservatory’s Gold Troupe. At first, she was involved in gymnastics, but eventually quit to focus entirely on circus arts.

“It’s a little bit challenging, but it’s mostly just fun,” she said. “I don’t like competing. I would rather just perform in front of people, and I still get to use my skills.”

She is interested in one day working at the Circus Arts Conservatory, like Siena Hartzell, 26, a coach at the academy and a former camp attendee.

At age 10, Hartzell began attending at the recommendation of a neighbor.

“I came to a show and was immediately hooked,” she said.

She continued to attend the program until her graduation at age 18, and was certified as an EMT before returning as a full-time employee.

“I just love it so much, and it brings me a lot of joy. If you love what you do, you never work a day in your life, so I don’t feel like I’m really working that much,” she said.

Photos by Ian Swaby

Brooke Schultz, 6, spins a hula hoop.

Aden Abu-Yousif, 10, learns about juggling from coach Benito Aguilar.

Camper Annabelle Coone, 12, and counselor-intraining Calvin Owen, 14, practice the Spanish Web.

John Yu, 10, climbs the aerial silks.

Issues of the dais

School board candidates shared their views at the Tiger Bay Club forum.

The ballroom of Michael’s On East was filled from wall to wall during the July 11 luncheon forum for Sarasota School Board districts 2 and 3 hosted by the Sarasota Tiger Bay Club.

In attendance at the club, which promotes political engagement and discourse but does not endorse specific candidates, were District 3 candidates Thomas Babicz and Tom Edwards, a current board member, and District 2 candidate Liz Barker.

Current school board Chair and District 2 candidate Karen Rose, and District 3 candidate Gregory Wood did not attend.

During the event, candidates shared their stances on a range of topics.

BIG QUESTIONS

Bentley’s first question was, if candidates could wave a magic wand, what would they change about the school district?

Barker highlighted “meaningful relationships between families and schools,” stating that currently, “that looks a lot like stacks of permission slips.”

Babicz said he would ensure all teachers learn how to teach phonics, stating his No. 1 priority was for district graduates to be able to read.

Edwards highlighted programming to enhance third grade reading scores and his desire to see a family engagement specialist at every school in a community with many families below the poverty line.

Bentley asked how the district should go about maintaining its long-held “A” rating.

Babicz said teachers were not paid “nearly” enough.

Edwards also said his concern was financial issues, stating the district had exceeded 7.9% of its general fund, despite a policy not to exceed 7.5%.

Barker said she shared his concerns but wanted to look more at achievement gaps between different academic groups and other student demographics.

Bentley also asked what offerings candidates would eliminate if voters do not pass the property tax referendum in November, which is crucial for funding programs not limited to

Ian Swaby

Tom Edwards, Thomas Babicz and Liz Barker answer questions from Morgan Bentley.

arts and STEM education.

The candidates avoided focusing on specific programming, with Babicz again highlighting the importance of teachers’ salaries.

“More what I would say is, how can we be more efficient?” Barker said. “How can we do more with less? And as educators, we’ve been doing that for a long time. Now, I will say to you, I have four kids in public schools. Not passing this referendum is not an option. That cannot happen.”

TEACHER SALARIES

Edwards told the audience that he had worked “as hard as I possibly can” to increase pay to teachers and hands-on staff, calling them “completely underpaid.”

He said all high-level executive staff did not necessarily require the same levels of salary bonuses as teachers.

“With the current administration in the White House, everybody is underpaid, because of the prices jumping 200%,” Babicz said.

He said the district could look into combining multiple jobs, to which Barker replied she did not believe such part-time roles existed.

She said hands-on staff are “not able to live where they work, and that should be a consideration.”

SCHOOL CHOICE

Conversations also touched on school choice.

Babicz was unequivocally in support, stating all taxpayers have a right to use funds provided in the system toward a school meeting their expectations.

Barker called for more guardrails, stating there was no “apples to apples” comparison between schools accepting vouchers and homeschool families and public schools.

Edwards emphatically stated his support for school choice and charters, but said Barker had highlighted some areas where they were problematic.

He also called on the board to stand up to state legislation that has limited its discretion regarding charter applications.

“It has everything to do with why you’re a school board member, and that you’re there to protect public education, and you’re there to do what’s in the best interest of our

students, and I don’t get that from my fellow school board members,” Edwards said.

POLITICAL STABILITY

Discussions also involved culture war issues.

During the Q&A session, candidates responded to the idea of eliminating the U.S. Department of Education.

Barker called this “incredibly dangerous and another example of bringing radical political activism into our schools,” stating the department ensures protections for vulnerable students.

Babicz called the department exactly what he has seen in communist countries, “pushing the agenda on everybody.”

“We can do this without any extremities just by teaching the children,” he said.

“I agree with Liz,” Edwards said.

Babicz also diverged from the other two candidates by expressing support for the firing of Superintendent Brennan Asplen and stating he would sign a pledge by the conservative advocacy group Moms for Liberty also signed by Karen Rose, school board chair.

Edwards said extremists on both sides, and the actions of the conservative-majority school board, on which he is the dissenting moderate, were distracting from the board’s business.

Babicz said, “I also agree that we supposed to work with everybody, and I would work with Democrats, with Republicans, with everybody.”

He also stated, “I absolutely support the LGBT movement, but not in school,” stating “everyone has a right to happiness” but that activists were creating a “total circus at school board meetings” and that “the school goal is not to change student’s genders ... (it’s) to teach children.”

Barker said the majority of board members were promoting a political agenda while accusing concerned parents of political activism.

“I would love for the school board to be boring again, and I guarantee you, the day that they start functioning efficiently, and they show transparency and leadership, you won’t have us there anymore,” Barker said.

Dr. Adam Getzels brings to Intercoastal

Undergraduate: University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida

Medical School: Nova Southeastern University, College of Osteopathic Medicine, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Residency: Internal Medicine, University of Connecticut, Farmington, Connecticut

Certification: Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Geriatric Medicine

Hospital Affiliations: Doctors Hospital; Sarasota Memorial Hospital

Board OKs public comment rule change

The School Board also approved new staff positions and discussed raising school meal prices.

IAN SWABY

STAFF WRITER

During a July 16 board meeting, the Sarasota County School Board covered a range of subjects. It passed previously discussed changes to its public comment policies, which continued to draw public opposition, approved advertising for the alignment of its policy regarding the use of name, image and likeness for high school athletes with a policy currently pending approval by the state, and approved new positions and security measures.

During a prior board workshop that same day, it also dealt with the issue of potential increases to student meal prices. The following are the highlights of those discussions.

CHANGES TO PUBLIC COMMENT

The school board unanimously passed previously discussed changes to the rules and format for public comment.

The new format would allow comments related to the meeting agenda held prior to board discussions, with general comments afterward. Previously, all comments were heard prior to the meeting, which was delaying the board’s work on its agenda.

Multiple speakers once again voiced opposition to the proposal.

Some speakers criticized a related ordinance also passed by the board during the meeting, which stated those who “knowingly disrupt or interfere with” a school board or advise others on how to do so, may be charged with a misdemeanor offense of the second degree.

“As it stands, your lack of decisive, clear description of disruption and interference leaves a dangerous

amount of room for subjective interpretation that kicks the door wide open for weaponization against dissenting voices in this boardroom; the vagueness is unethical and threatening,” said speaker Casanova Daugherty.

Board member Tom Edwards said he had voted for the policy, which had previously been in place, the first time it was enacted.

He said it would provide time for citizens to bring in concerns about items on the meeting’s consent agenda that the board might have to address, something he said had happened several times during his tenure.

“I don’t agree 100% with what was said beforehand, because hate is hate. We know what that is. An attack is an attack. We know what that is. And politics and/or campaigning should not be in here,” he said while stating he was still open to a discussion on clearer guidelines, despite his decision in favor of the rules.

NIL POLICY

The school board approved the ability for the district to advertise a policy allowing high school student athletes to enter into Name, Image and Likeness deals.

The proposed policy was created in accordance with one passed in June by the Florida High School Athletics Association, and will be advertised in the case the original policy is approved by the Florida Department of Education on July 24.

Under the new rules, students would be able to profit from their name, image and likeness through activities such as commercial endorsements or a social media presence, without placing their eligibility at risk.

The proposed rules contain certain restrictions, including not being able to use school logos or uniforms or use school events for this purpose.

NEW POSITIONS INTRODUCED

The board introduced the role of director for the Department of Strategic Improvement and Multilingual Learning. The position will provide oversight and leadership for all federal programs under the Every Student Succeeds Act, while also addressing needs of English Language Learners and overseeing ESOL programming.

School board members said this role fills an important need for an underserved population of students.

The district also added the position of competitive grant specialist,

THE SUMMER SALE

a role which will collaborate with other district departments on grant opportunities.

Connor said this specialist will coordinate the compliance factors in grants and will monitor key metrics in student outcomes.

“Over the years, that was a position that was cut, and the district really suffered for that because grant writing is not an easy thing to do,” said board member Robyn Marinelli.

Another position, a private schools specialist, will work with private school administrators to ensure the implementation and enforcement of equitable services required for all government entitlement grants.

Connor said the district contains 35 private schools that must be consulted regularly on this matter.

The district also approved an English language-learner parent-family outreach facilitator, which Connor said will increase family participation in the district’s instructional programs and support.

SCHOOL MEAL PRICING

During a workshop on July 16, the school board held discussions concerning a potential increase in the prices of student meals.

The proposed increases range from 25 cents to 75 cents based on the specific meal and the school’s educational level.

Sara Dan, director of Food and Nutrition Services, called increases in expenses “unprecedented.”

She said during the past year, the district saw an 18% increase in the cost of food, while employees saw a 4% increase in salaries and a 19% increase in benefit costs, with a 12% increase in benefit costs anticipated for next year. She said this year, the district is no longer receiving the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s supply chain assistance funding due to its sunsetting.

However, she said the district would continue to maximize the benefits of its buying cooperative, HPS Food & Ingredients Inc., from which it receives rebates for pur-

Meal prices for 20232024 school year

Proposed meal prices for 2024-2025 school year

Breakfast Lunch Elementary: Elementary: $2.25 $3.25

$2.25 Middle: $3.75

$2.25 High: $3.75

chased food that now includes produce.

She said while the state of Florida chose not to participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the district receives funding from other governmental departments.

Board members praised the department for its work in navigating the economic situation.

“I’m sorry we have to raise the prices. I wish it didn’t have to be, but as I also said, if Sarah Dan could figure out a way to do it now, she would have, so that’s why I trust her that that was the very, very best dollars and cents that we could come up with,” said Edwards during that day’s board meeting.

Edwards said he will be working on a solution that would allow a free lunch to be offered to every child in the school district.

NEW SECURITY DEVICES

Connor said during the 2023-2024 school year, the district saw success in piloting an OPENGATE weapons detection system.

The metal detector, piloted at Riverview High School, is portable.

The board approved the decision to spend $1.5 million from the district’s capital funds to expand the initiative across additional high schools and middle schools. The hope is that it can be implemented by the end of the school year, an outcome which will be based on supply and demand, Connor said.

Ian Swaby

Sarasota School Board member Bridget Ziegler speaks.

invites you to explore move-in ready and to-be-built homes with hundreds of personalization options. Jingle your way through the festive open house tour on July 20th and 21st, between 10 am and 6 pm, daily. With contemporary single-family homes in Sarasota East and active-adult designs in Lakewood Ranch, see why we’re celebrating year-round!

Only room for 100

Kelly Stilwell explored Sarasota and surrounding areas to write ‘100 Things to Do in Sarasota Before You

Die.’

a series that covers cities around the world.

When she began writing the book “100 Things to Do in Sarasota Before You Die,” Kelly Stilwell wondered how she would find that many things to do.

But once the journey was underway, she found herself swapping out some items in the book for others.

“You can do outdoor things yearround, and there’s just so much to do,” she said. “We’re so lucky with all our arts and restaurants and the museums, the whole Ringling thing. It’s a pretty magical place.”

Reedy Press reached out to Stilwell, a Bradenton resident and the author of the blog “Food, Fun and Faraway Places,” to write a book for the Sarasota/Bradenton area, part of

The book’s contents aren’t limited to the immediate area, also drawing from sites in Venice and North Port — any locations she felt were not large enough for a book of their own.

Stilwell was given a year to explore everything the area had to offer and began venturing out every weekend with her husband, Tim Stilwell.

“I get the opportunity to see so many incredible places, and then, when I come home, I don’t want to leave,” she said.

One of the most difficult parts of the writing experience for her, a selfdescribed foodie, was the limit of 28 restaurants.

After crowdsourcing ideas from friends, the options only grew.

“I ate my way through a lot of res-

Douglas Constant, M.D.

taurants that didn’t make it, and I didn’t just judge on the food, though, that of course, was No. 1,” she said.

She took the quality of service into account as well, and a poor experience — even if on the second visit — resulted in some establishments not making the cut.

Some of her top recommendations include The Sandbar Restaurant on Anna Maria Island, Café Gabbiano in Siesta Key and Sharky’s on the Pier in Venice.

The experience also gave her the

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KELLY STILWELL’S TOP THINGS TO DO IN SARASOTA

chance to discover new corners of the area she hadn’t known before.

One of her favorites was behind an unassuming freezer door: the speakeasy at Dive Wine & Spirits on Clark Road.

The owners of the site hope to keep the speakeasy, a space that seats only a handful of people, a cozy experience.

“It’s shocking. You wouldn’t know it was there if someone didn’t tell you,” she said. “The more they become popular, the more crowded it’s going to be. I had to do it because it’s just so cool.”

She also enjoyed her time with her husband and friends during a full house at McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre.

“It’s so fun to have that right in our

own backyard,” she said.

One place was indisputably the highest priority.

“I knew of course, that Ringling was going in,” she said. “We love the circus museum, but also the art museum, the view and Mable’s rose garden, just so much.”

She also highlighted some more distance locations she found worth the trip.

One was the Manatee Viewing Center at Apollo Beach in Hillsborough County.

She said after having trouble spotting manatees in Sarasota, she was able to find them at the site, to which the animals are attracted due to warm water created by a local power plant.

Another site she found fascinating was Warm Mineral Springs Park in North Port, where the 85-degree springs are said to be 2 million years old.

“Here’s your chance to wade where saber-toothed tigers and giant sloths walked,” the book states.

She hopes the book, which was released July 15, will succeed despite the summer pace of life in Sarasota.

“It’s one of the first books Reedy has ever released in the summer, which made me a little bit nervous, because summer’s not our season,” she said.

You’ll find her in the community promoting the book, including the Jimmy Buffett Tribute at The Bazaar on Apricot & Lime on Aug. 31.

Courtesy images

Kayaking on Anna Maria Island is one of Stilwell’s suggestions for things to do in the area.

Kelly Stilwell Circus Sarasota

Chamber of info

The Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce cut the ribbon on its newer, larger office.

IAN SWABY STAFF WRITER

The Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce may have moved just a block over from its original location, but its space has certainly grown.

At roughly 3,000 square feet, the new office is approximately three times larger than the previous space, said Executive Director Ann Frescura.

During a ribbon cutting on July 11, attendees admired the tropical vibes of the office. The turquoise walls featured beach-related decor and also included plenty of information on local businesses in its Visitor Center.

Located at 5223 Avenida Navarra, the new office is the former location of Siesta Dental and is found directly beside Siesta Key Village, near the chamber’s former space at 5114 Ocean Blvd.

“It was an interesting transformation from a dental office to our space, but we had really great help and support,” Frescura said, stating many members provided and donated services, time or equipment leading up to the move on May 1.

She also highlighted some of the

features of the space.

“We have a wonderful Visitor Center, which is just brimming with a variety of information that supports and promotes our members,” she said.

Other assets not seen in the previous location include on-site storage and a conference room, as well as a larger kitchen space for staff.

Marisa Merlino, marketing and event manager for the chamber, said with the new on-site storage, the chamber no longer needs to rely on storage units for events like its annual Easter Egg Hunt.

She also described the office as “a little bit happier, bigger, brighter space” with more opportunities for members to showcase their information.

Constance Lewis, owner of Spa Experience Siesta Key, was among the attendees who enjoyed the feel of the new office.

“It’s beautiful, spacious,” she said. “You feel like when you walk in here that you’re in a high-end place. It’s different from the old place ... The welcome center is very welcoming. ... They deserve this. It’s been a long time coming.”

Sarasota County Commissioner Mark Smith, who is also an architect and cut the ribbon during the ceremony, helped the chamber with the process of entering the space, including minor remodeling.

The Paisley Craze, a talented band playing all your favorite music from the 1960s, covering the incredibly wide range of styles of that historic decade.

Performers include Marty Bednar, Bob Dielman, Bob Lunergan, and Dave Mankes.

Ian Swaby

County Commissioner Mark Smith cuts the ribbon for the chamber’s new digs.

Casey Key home tops sales at $3.65

ADAM

HUGHES RESEARCH EDITOR

Ahome on Casey Key tops all transactions in this week’s real estate. Bosartine LLC sold the home at 3109 Casey Key Road to Dean Francis Lebaron and Donna Sammons Carpenter Lebaron, of Nokomis, for $3.65 million. Built in 1952, it has three bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 2,297 square feet of living area. It sold for $1.96 million in 2011.

SARASOTA

MARK SARASOTA

Roger Laurendeau, of Nokomis, sold his Unit 1011 condominium at 111 S. Pineapple Ave. to David Bruce Solomon and Tanya Elizabeth Solomon, of Northbrook, Illinois, for $1.66 million. Built in 2019, it has two bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 1,482 square feet of living area. It sold for $1.25 million in 2022.

ALDERMAN STREET

James Matthew Greene and Alexandra Ingram, of Sarasota, sold their home at 3446 Alderman St. to Earl Dean Miller and Wilma Jean Miller, of Bristol, Indiana, for $720,000. Built in 1950, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 2,449 square feet of living area. It sold for $610,000 in 2022.

THE 101 Gurkan and Staci Taviloglu, of Sarasota, sold their Unit 14-B condominium at 101 S. Gulfstream Ave. to Kevin and Gina Shulman, of Sarasota, for $715,000. Built in 1974, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,320 square feet of living area. It sold for $647,500 in 2023.

Nell Leffel, trustee, of Sarasota, sold the Unit 5-G condominium at 101 S. Gulfsteam Ave. to John Norris Stone and George Gaines Thurman Vasu, of Sarasota, for $510,000. Built in 1974, it has one bedroom, two baths and 965 square feet of living area. It sold for $355,000 in 2021.

GULF GATE EAST

Maria Antonia Fayman, trustee, of Bryan, Texas, sold the home at 6619 Waterford Lane to Nathan and Monica Ladendorf, of Lake Ozark, Missouri, for $520,000. Built in 1980, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,639 square feet of living area. It sold for $225,000 in 2003.

SIESTA

KEY

SIESTA BEACH HOUSE

Boulder Asset Management LLC, trustee, sold the Unit 301 condominium at 5950 Midnight Pass Road to KH Properties II LLC for $750,000. Built in 1957, it has two

bedrooms, three baths and 988 square feet of living area. It sold for $385,000 in 2016.

WHISPERING SANDS VILLAGE

Timothy Patrick Murphy and Diane Murphy, of Sarasota, sold their Unit V-38 condominium at 111 Whispering Sands Circle to Timothy Desmond, of Sarasota, for $655,000. Built in 1968, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,160 square feet of living area. It sold for $375,000 in 2016.

PALMER RANCH

ESPLANADE ON PALMER RANCH

Thomas and Margaret Tirjan, of Indian Land, South Carolina, sold their home at 5275 Cicerone St. to The Warthan-Sharp Trust for $1,175,000. Built in 2021, it has three bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths, a pool and 2,103 square feet of living area. It sold for $581,500 in 2021.

ARBOR LAKES ON PALMER RANCH

Matthew Herman and Jing Wang, of Sarasota, sold their home at 5714 Hydrangea Circle to Jun Xu and Agile Francis, of Coral Gables, for $950,000. Built in 2017, it has four bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths and 3,224 square feet of living area. It sold for $501,500 in 2017.

Mark Grogan and Kelly Morgan Grogan, of Sarasota, sold their home at 5748 Liatris Circle to David Shea Meehan and Elmira Rezvanirad, of Sarasota, for $720,000. Built in 2017, it has four bedrooms, three baths and 2,400 square feet of living area. It sold for $679,000 in 2021.

LA VISTA

Gillian Marie Goslinga and Phillip Goslinga, of Cornville, Arizona, sold their home at 7654 Calle Facil to Harry Housen, of Marina, California, for $729,000. Built in 1998, it has four bedrooms, twoand-a-half baths, a pool and 2,712 square feet of living area. It sold for $105,000 in 1997.

VILLAGEWALK

James De Angelo, of Middletown, Delaware, sold his home at 5829

TOP BUILDING PERMITS

Ferrara Drive to J A & A Group LLC for $555,000. Built in 2002, it has three bedrooms, three baths and 2,008 square feet of living area. It sold for $393,000 in 2015.

OSPREY THE WOODLANDS AT RIVENDELL

Joseph and Katherine Polino, of Fairport, New York, sold their home at 630 Rivendell Blvd. to Anthony and Kerry Napoleon, of Osprey, for $770,000. Built in 2004, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,326 square feet of living area. It sold for $362,000 in 2011.

ONLINE

See more transactions at YourObserver.com

Other top sales by area

SARASOTA:

$1.9 MILLION

Bay View Acres

Stephen and Deborah Herbert, of Sarasota, sold their home at 1624 Baywood Way to Charles and Lauren Fizer, of Maitland, for $1.9 million. Built in 1963, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 2,060 square feet of living area.

SIESTA KEY:

$1.49 MILLION

Dolphin Bay

Michael and Karen Koblenz, of Sarasota, sold their Unit 301 condominium at 1260 Dolphin Bay Way to Happy Florida Paradise LLC for $1.49 million. Built in 1997, it has three bedrooms, three baths and 2,200 square feet of living area. It sold for $340,500 in 1997.

PALMER RANCH: $1,815,000

Prestancia

Thomas Taylor, trustee, of Sarasota, sold the home at 4103 Boca Pointe Drive to Louis and Deborah Capparelli, of Morris Plains, New Jersey, for $1,815,000. Built in 1989, it has three bedrooms, three-and-ahalf baths, a pool and 4,095 square feet of living area. It sold for $695,000 in 2009.

OSPREY: $2.5 MILLION

Southbay Yacht and Racquet Club

John Lyth and Annette Beckett-Lyth, of Osprey, sold their home at 419 Yacht Harbor Drive to Christopher and Michele Ann Brown, of Osprey, for $2.5 million. Built in 1978, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,417 square feet of living area. It sold for $1.1 million in 2017.

Courtesy of Realtor J. Patrick Ritchey

Baywood Way (front) recently sold for $1.9 million. It has two bedrooms, two baths and 2,060 square feet of living area.

SATURDAY, JULY 20

ZUMBA AT THE BAY WITH YA’EL CAMPBELL

10:30-11:30 a.m. Free. Dance at The Bay in this energetic workout with Ya’el Campbell’s group of Zumba Rockstars. Visit TheBaySarasota.org.

FRIDAY, JULY 19

LEARN ABOUT COMPOSTING WITH SUNSHINE COMMUNITY

COMPOST

3-4 p.m. at Betty J. Johnson North Sarasota Library, 2801 Newtown Blvd. Free. Learn about composting in this workshop for families, which discusses the process of turning organic matter, like food scraps and leaves, into rich soil. Visit SCGovLibrary.LibraryMarket. com.

SARASOTA BALLET: DANCE FOR ALL LECTURE AND DEMO

3:30-4:30 p.m. at Selby Library, 1331 First St. Free. This introduction to ballet combines narration, demonstration, audience participation and a Q&A session. Visit SCGovLibrary.LibraryMarket.com.

SATURDAY, JULY 20

TO SUNDAY, JULY 21

13TH ANNUAL MYSTIC FAIRE

10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, at Sarasota Municipal Auditorium, 801 N. Tamiami Trail. $7 for one day; $10 for both days. Free for ages 12 and younger. Now in its 13th year, this event brings together lecturers, psychics, healers and vendors with unique items. Visit MysticFaires. com.

SUNDAY, JULY 21

BRUNCH AT THE BAY

FEATURING LIVE MUSIC

BY EDDIE MANZANARES

8 a.m. to 2 p.m. (Live music 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.). Free admission. Enjoy new brunch items at The Nest Café as you listen to Latin music styles performed by singer-songwriter

guitarist Eddie Manzanares. Visit TheBaySarasota.org.

MONDAY, JULY 22 FORT BUILDING

1-3 p.m. at Betty J. Johnson North Sarasota Library, 2801 Newtown Blvd. Free. Ages 5 and older. Kids prepare for their next camping adventure as the kids zone is transformed to test fort-building skills. Visit SCGovLibrary.LibraryMarket. com.

TUESDAY, JULY 23

FLORIDA STUDIO THEATRE WRITING/PERFORMING WORKSHOP

3:30-5:30 p.m. Free. In this interactive workshop exclusively for teens, participants are guided through the process of crafting a commercial or public ser-

vice announcement, then have the chance to see their scripts come to life on screen through a video production session. Visit SCGovLibrary.LibraryMarket.com.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 24

WRITERS & RENEGADES TRIVIA Doors open 6 p.m. Trivia from 6:30-8 p.m. 821 Apricot Ave. Free admission. Kat Wingert, executive editor & COO of Observer Media Group, leads this trivia session on “rebels of the storytelling world” ranging from songwriters to literary giants. The first place team wins $40 to Hamlet’s Eatery, the second place team wins $20 and the losing team earns free fries. Proceeds benefit the Library Foundation for Sarasota County. Visit HamletsEatery.com.

Connecting with your doctor when you need them most is crucial. At Gulfshore Personalized Care, it’s possible to meet your medical needs anywhere at any time. Thomas Arne Jr., DO, FACC, proudly offers patient-centered care through concierge services, such as 24/7 access and same-day visits.

Call us to schedule your no-obligation meet & greet with Dr. Arne today.

Ya’el Campbell leads a Zumba class.

File image

Brunch at The Bay featuring live music by Eddie Manzanares will be held Sunday, July 21.

Fast Break SPORTS

Nathan Benderson Park

will hold a watch party for Sarasota rower Clark Dean as he competes in the U.S. men’s eight in the 2024 Paris Olympics. The event will be 1-4 p.m. Aug. 3. A Jumbotron screen will show the action. Food trucks, kids games and a learn-to-row clinic will also be offered. The event is free to attend.

Former Sarasota High baseball catcher Owen Ayers was selected by the Chicago Cubs organization in the 19th round (No. 572 overall) of the 2024 MLB Draft on July 16. Ayers, who played college baseball at Marshall University, hit .292 with 25 doubles (a Marshall record), eight home runs and 28 RBIs as a senior this season. Ayers also had a .969 fielding percentage.

The Sarasota Paradise pre-professional soccer team clinched its first USL League Two South Florida division title and playoff appearance with a 1-0 win over St. Petersburg FC on July 13. Kai Tamashiro scored the game-winning goal. The Paradise will play Brave SC in the first round of the postseason at 4 p.m. July 19 in Asheville, North Carolina. The game will be streamed on the Asheville City Soccer Club YouTube channel.

The Sarasota American Little League 12U All-Star team advanced to the state tournament with a 5-1 win over Golden Gate American Little League at Twin Lakes Park on July 14. The team will play Lake Mary Little League in the first round of the tournament on July 19 in DeFuniak Springs.

“I want to get better at it for the longer events while still staying good at the shorter events.”

Mooney star is ...

Kali Barrett, a rising senior at Cardinal Mooney High, said she values her relationships with Cincinnati’s coaches.

RYAN KOHN SPORTS EDITOR

If Kali Barrett isn’t answering her phone, she is likely doing one of two things — sharpening her basketball skills or sleeping.

Aside from basketball, resting is Barrett’s favorite thing to do.

“I value taking care of my body,” Barrett said.

Barrett might share her penchant for naps with a lot of teenagers, but her basketball skills separate her from the pack.

On July 7, Barrett, a rising senior at Cardinal Mooney High, committed to the University of Cincinnati. It marked the end of a years-long recruiting process for Barrett, a 6-foot-2 small forward. Barrett is ranked by Prep Girls Hoops as the No. 4 player in Florida in the class of 2025, as of July 13.

Other than Cincinnati, Barrett held offers from Georgetown University and St. John’s University among other NCAA Division I schools.

At times, Barrett said, the attention from coaches could be overwhelming. Barrett said the process was made harder because she did not know anyone who had previously gone through it. She and her family navigated it as best they could. Ultimately, Barrett is happy with how it ended.

“The next day (after the commitment) felt weird,” Barrett said. “I just thought, ‘I’m actually going there.’ All the worries were gone. I have thought a lot about how far I have come and how far I still have to go.”

Barrett received her offer from Cincinnati in May. She has not taken an official visit to the campus yet — she’s going in September — but she decided to commit anyway. Barrett said that is because of her relationship with Cincinnati’s coaching staff.

“Relationships are what mean the most to me,” Barrett said. “Both the head coach (Katrina Merriweather) and the assistants, they have shown that they care about me. They are always talking to me, sometimes randomly calling just to see how things are going for me.”

The Bearcats went 14-18 last season, Merriweather’s first with the program. It was a six-win improvement on the previous season. Barrett still has a senior season at Cardinal

“I’m a smart player. I can slow the game down for myself and for my teammates. I see everyone on the court.”

bound to be a Bearcat

KALI BARRETT FAST FACTS

Sport: Girls basketball

Height: 6-foot-2

Position: Small forward School: Cardinal Mooney High Travel team: Atlanta Entertainment Basketball League Favorite hobbies: Resting and window shopping

Stats (2023-2024 high school season)

■ 14.8 points per game ■ 8.8 rebounds per game ■ 2.5 assists per game ■ 1.4 steals per game ■ 0.8 blocks per game

Mooney to play, but when she arrives on campus for the 2025-2026 season, the Bearcats will be getting a physical, hard-working defender and a capable outside shooter.

Barrett averaged 14.8 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.4 steals per game last season. Her play and

leadership helped the Cougars to a 22-7 record and a fourth-consecutive trip to the Florida High School Athletic Association Class 3A state championship game, where they lost 75-51 to Miami Country Day School. Barrett said she is excited to end her high school career with a bang, but she’s also thankful to finally consider herself a Division I-caliber player. Barrett said it is something she has wanted for a long time.

Barrett grew up in Box Elder, South Dakota, before moving to Florida in 2019. Barrett said she played “almost every sport” while she was young, but quickly fell in love with the pace of basketball. She started playing competitively in second grade. She would hone her skills by playing against her family as well as her neighbors down the street — most of whom were male. Barrett said playing against boys helped her gain toughness, something that is now a hallmark of her game.

While she has always had the right attitude and physical skills on the court, Barrett has worked hard to improve her basketball knowledge.

At Cardinal Mooney, Barrett said she has learned to see the game in ways others cannot.

“I’m a smart player,” Barrett said.

“I can slow the game down for myself and for my teammates. I see everyone on the court.”

Barrett also knows her development as a player is not done. This offseason, she said, she has been working on “a little bit of everything,” including her ability to drive to the basket and her on-ball defense. Though she plays small forward at Cardinal Mooney, Barrett said she believes she has the ability to play every position besides center, and she wants to prove it. Barrett is currently playing on the travel ball circuit. She participated in the U.S. Junior Nationals “March to the Arch” event in St. Louis with her Atlanta Entertainment Basketball League team on July 12-15.

On July 18-22, Barrett will play for with team in the Adidas Girls Palmetto Road Championships in Rock Hill, South Carolina. Come November, she will be back on the court with Cardinal Mooney. She’s excited for all of it. In terms of her recruitment, she’s excited to do her other favorite activity.

Rest.

“I’m just happy to be a Bearcat,” Barrett said.

Clark Dean said his time with the Sarasota Crew got him started down the right path to eventually reach the Olympics.

— Ava DiPasquale, Sarasota Tsunami. SEE PAGE 31

Kali Barrett averaged 14.8 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.4 steals per game as a junior at Cardinal Mooney High.

Photos by Ryan Kohn

Cardinal Mooney High rising senior Kali Barrett committed to the University of Cincinnati on July 7.

It’s

in the game

‘College Football 25’ brings back memories, creates new ones.

It took me a solid hour to make my choice.

Committing to rebuild a college football program is no small matter. You have to win, of course, but you also have to plan for the future.

I always start as a coordinator and work my way up the coaching ladder. What school would give me the best opportunity to advance my career? Should I win with already established players — the easy way — or go to a small program and make more of a name for myself? I chose the latter, and I chose Troy University. The Trojans are a Sun Belt Conference team, a conference I adore for its typically all-gas-no-brakes style of play, and they had a strong 2023, finishing 10-2. But they lost a lot of senior leaders, and 2024 will be a test to see if last year was a fluke or if the Trojans are actually on the rise.

That’s where I come in.

Welcome to “College Football 25,” the long-awaited video game from EA Sports, which releases this week on PlayStation and Xbox consoles — July 15 for those who purchased the deluxe edition (me) and July 19 for everyone else. I do mean long-awaited: The last edition of the franchise released 11 years ago. It was a staple of my childhood and millions of other people’s childhoods. It was the reason homework assignments went uncompleted and the reason we were tired each morning, after staying up until 1 a.m. putting the finishing touches on our recruiting classes. In no small sense, it is a reason many college football fans love the sport the way they do. The game

puts the pageantry unique to college football front and center.

The reasons for the delayed release are worth a search, but they are not what we are here to discuss. We are here to celebrate, to reminisce and to make new memories — even some involving names you will know from the Sarasota football scene.

Riverview High offensive coordinator Brody Wiseman is a fan of the University of Florida. Always has been, he said. He’s been playing this franchise since the days of the original gray PlayStation, trying to resurrect the Gators to glory; Sony is on to the PlayStation 5 now. Wiseman has played EA Sports’ “Madden” NFL game over the years, he said, so his digital football skills were relatively sharp when he played the game on the July 15 drop date.

Without those formative childhood gaming experiences, who knows where he would be now?

“It was a lot of my interest in football, other than playing,” Wiseman said. “When it comes to coaching, I always enjoyed the strategy of it. When you’re growing up, you’re spending a lot of time playing (video) games, and for someone who is getting into football, I think the game is a good way to catch their interest in that (coaching) side of things.”

The game is designed for fun, but it can also be a legitimate learning tool. Wiseman said that while the execution of various plays is different than how they would work in real life, the concepts behind the plays are real. Wiseman said he’s instructed his quarterbacks to flip through the game’s playbooks to find the same concepts the Rams plan on running this fall. It’s a way to ingrain that knowledge in them while having a different kind of fun, Wiseman said.

For any locals who grab a copy of

this year’s game, you’ll be able to play as several of Sarasota’s gridiron stars. Cardinal Mooney High graduate Zy’Marion Lang is a freshman at the University of Toledo; he’s rated a 64 overall (out of 99), an average rating for a young player. The CFB25 development team clearly likes his deep-threat and red zone potential, though: His speed is a 91, tied for second best among Rockets wideouts, and his 89 jump rating is also second best.

At Central Michigan University, you can find former Booker High wide receiver Josiah Booker rated a 65 overall. The 5-foot-9 target has been given 88 speed and 91 acceleration, plus a 78 awareness rating, surprisingly high for a freshman. The EA Sports team must know that Booker stays cool in the most pressure-filled moments. You’ll want to get him the ball late.

The wideouts are hardly the only Sarasota athletes in the game.

Dr. Kansara

at Coastal Eye Institute, is a leading expert in the field of ophthalmology, specializing in:

• Glaucoma Management & Surgery

• Minimally Invasive Glaucoma Procedures

• Micro-Incision Cataract Surgery

• Routine Eye Care

Whether you’re seeking

Don’t

Former Riverview High and Venice High cornerback Charles Brantley is on the Michigan State University roster (76 overall), for instance. But there are also players missing, perhaps because they chose not to opt into the game via their Name, Image and Likeness rights. Brantley’s Spartan wide receiver teammate Jaron Glover, a Riverview alum, is not present. He caught 14 passes for 261 yards in 2023.

For these players and their friends, family and coaches, it must be surreal. If college football fans didn’t know their names before, millions of them soon will.

As for me, I’m turning 30 next month, but right now I feel 15 again. Troy Trojans, we ride. Why? Well, the Trojans’ quarterback is named Goose Crowder, and one of their wideouts is named Mojo Dortch. Those are two of the best college football names I’ve ever heard. It helps that the team runs a wide-

open passing attack and has some serious athleticism for the Sun Belt level. We may not win the National Championship in year one, but a solid bowl game is on the table. Goose, Mojo and I won our first game 22-14 at home over the University of Nevada. But now things will get tough. Road games against the University of Memphis, a sneaky good and fast team, and the University of Iowa, a black hole of a defense, await. We’ll probably get our behinds handed to us. I’ll love every second of it.

Ryan Kohn is the sports editor for the Sarasota/Siesta Key Observer. Contact him at RKohn@ YourObserver.com.

Screenshot by Ryan Kohn

A digital version of Booker High alum Josiah Booker (8) snags a pass for Central Michigan University in front of a University of Akron defender in “College Football 25.” Booker is a freshman wide receiver at CMU.

Ava DiPasquale

Ava DiPasquale is a 12-year-old swimmer with the Sarasota Tsunami. DiPasquale won the 100-meter butterfly (1:07.44), the 200-meter butterfly (2:31.76), the 200-meter backstroke (2:34.48), the 200-meter individual medley (2:26.96) and the 400-meter freestyle (4:37.77) at the Florida Summer Age Groups Championships, or FLAGS, held July 11-14 in Ocala. According to Tsunami head coach Ira Klein, DiPasquale’s 200-IM time is the second-fastest in the country this year for her age group, while her 400 freestyle is third, her 100 butterfly is sixth and her 200 butterfly is eighth.

DiPasquale also helped the Tsunami’s 200-meter freestyle relay team (1:55.82), 400-meter freestyle relay team (4:17.19), 200-meter medley relay team (2:11.46) and 400-meter medley relay team (4:48.89) to firstplace finishes. All four relay times were Tsunami records.

When did you start swimming? I started when I was 9, so about three-and-a-half years ago. I did ballet before, but that was basically it. I started swimming because it was COVID-19 time and I needed something to do. I liked it right away.

What is the appeal to you?

It’s just a good thing to do. When ever I go to school or wherever and I have a bad day, I can always go to practice. I always feel better after that.

What is your favorite event to swim?

I like the 200 and 400 indi vidual medley. They give me the opportunity to swim all of the strokes. When I get to one that I’m good at, I can catch up and win.

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

What have you been working to improve?

I am trying to improve my freestyle. I want to get better at it for the longer events while still staying good at the shorter events. I think it’s important to try to be good at everything.

What is your favorite swimming memory?

It was at FLAGS, just watching my relay teams wins. We won all four of them. It was fun to be part of that. I was excited but also proud of my teammates. We have worked hard, and to see that pay off was cool.

What are your next goals?

In the 200 IM, I would like to go under 2:25 and make the 2024 Futures Championship cut. I also want to make the cut in the 800 freestyle and go under 9:30.

What is your favorite food? Sushi. I like it from anywhere.

What is your favorite TV show? I like to watch “The Office.”

Finish this sentence: “Ava DiPasquale is …” … Determined. If I have a goal, I will set my mind to it.

NATURE’S BEAUTY WITH

UH, RIGHT by Sam Koperwas, edited by Jeff Chen By Luis Campos

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