Laying Bricks in Laurel Park

A neighborhood improvement project organized and sponsored by the Laurel Park Neighborhood Association drew many volunteers that put bricks back onto the street to restore the street to it’s 1920’s look.

The bricks had been reclaimed from city projects that required removal. The neighborhood association had worked with the city to save bricks for eventual replacement. This was the day for replacement.

Bricks needed to be cleaned, laced on a prepared bed, tapped into place and sand swept into the space between the bricks.

It was a good day for preserving the neighborhood character.

By: RTC

Laurel Park Celebrates

A few weeks ago Laurel Park, one of Sarasota's most charming neighborhoods, received the news that they had been accepted as a National Historic District. They documentation for this designation was time consuming but a labor of love for all involved.

Congratulations!

On another note (pun intended), Laurel Park also recently had another of their "Tunes in the Park" neighborhood gatherings. Food, drinks, music and socializing were in abundance. Neighborhood social events like this build community.

Uniquely Sarasota

Anna's Deli is featured in the Pelican Press:

For almost four decades, Anna's Deli has had a simple formula for success: Make and serve sandwiches out of fresh, high-quality ingredients and don't skimp on the filling.



If you haven't been to Anna's, you should give it a try. In downtown Sarasota they are located on Orange across from City Hall.

Sarasota's unique businesses offer some of the best to our community. They contribute good products and services while improving or local economy.

Stop in and see them sometime.

SOS - Saving Our Statues

St Armands has saved the statues.
This story began about 10 years ago when a Boy Scout, Adrian Zack was looking for an Eagle Scout project. Adrian was familiar with the statues on St Armands Circle (Harding Circle Historic District) and knew they had been neglected for a long time. His project grew out of this knowledge and he documented the statues and their condition.

Moving forward to 2007, Ed Pinto had recently moved to St Armands and he became interested in the statues. This was part of a desire to "restore" John Ringling's vision for St Armands. Based on Ringling's original landscape plan for St Armands Circle, Ed and others thought it would be a good idea to complete the long forgotten plans.

Further research on the statute, following Adrian Zack's original work, focused on the 16 original statues that Ringling purchased in the 1920's. These statues were classical design based on Greek and Roman art.

In early 2007, Ed and a number of "partners", the St Armands Residents Association, the St Armands Circle Association, the St Armands Business Improvement District, the Ringling Museum, the City of Sarasota, Sarasota County and the Community Foundation of Sarasota undertook the project to restore the statues and add new statues in a similar classical design.

On February 2, 2008 the statue project was dedicated. Today there are 33 statues, including 21 newly sculptured marble statues.

The partnership that included private citizens, businesses, non-profit groups, and local government resulted in a wonderful addition to Sarasota's cultural heritage.

A walking guide to the statues has been produced and is available at businesses in St Armands as well as public spots near some of the statues.

Take a walk around St Armands and get acquainted with this great new cultural amenity.

To see a video discussion of the Save Our Statues project click on Commissioner's Corner.

Sarasota's champion is gone

Early this week, long time Sarasota friend, Bob Ardren died. He had been battling cancer for a while. Many in Sarasota and nearby that knew him are saddened by the loss of our friend.

The Tampa Tribune obituary:

Former Tribune Columnist Bob Ardren Dies At 67
By Mike Wells of The Tampa
Tribune Published: January 2, 2008

Sarasota's champion is gone.

Bob Ardren
Former Tribune correspondent and longtime Sarasota resident Bob Ardren died Tuesday of cancer, said his longtime companion of 24 years, Cathy Ciccolella. He was 67.

For more than 20 years, Ardren wrote the Tribune's "Suncoast Shelter" column, analyzing new housing developments. His last column for the newspaper was published in July 2004.

At the time of his death, Ardren was the city reporter and a columnist for The Pelican Press, a weekly newspaper based on Siesta Key. He received multiple awards from the Florida Press Association.

He joined the Press in 1994, writing extensively about the city of Sarasota in news stories and his twice-monthly column, "Muttered on Main," covering life and events in downtown.

"It's going to leave a huge hole for us to fill," Press editor Anne Johnson said.
"He's been a great voice for us, downtown and the city of Sarasota," she said. "He was one of our greatest strengths."

Ardren also wrote about local waters, boating and the environment in another twice-monthly column, "Sarasota Waters.""Bob exemplified a Florida lifestyle," friend George Meyer said. "He came to Florida and it was like 'Ah, here's my home.'"

Many of the civic leaders Ardren criticized in his columns respected him a great deal, Johnson said.

"Some still remained a source for him after he wrote about them, and some ended up being good friends," she said. "He loved downtown Sarasota and it showed," Johnson said.

"He was protective when he felt things were going the wrong way. He could be pretty blunt about things, and yet he was so fair."

After attending the University of Iowa, he became a reporter for United Press International in Indianapolis and Detroit, and later worked in public relations for General Electric in Schenectady, N.Y., and Louisville, Ky., Ciccolella said.

He relocated to Des Moines, Iowa, as an editor for the Meredith Publishing Co.

After moving to Sarasota in 1976, he briefly worked for Walt's Fish Market and Seafood Restaurant before becoming director of public affairs at Sarasota's John and Mabel Ringling Museum of Art, where he was also curator of the Ringling Circus Museum for a time.

Ardren was a regular contributing writer for Sarasota magazine and The Islander newspaper on Anna Maria Island.

He was a former president of the Florida Attractions Association and a founding member of the Sarasota-Manatee Press Club, Ciccolella said.

Other survivors include daughter Traci Ardren of Miami Springs; son "Joe" Eugene Ardren of Sarasota; and four grandchildren. He is also survived by his sister, Betty Hille of Norfolk, Neb.; and brother, William Ardren of Treasure Island.

No formal funeral will be held; instead, a celebration of Ardren's life will be held in Sarasota at a date and place to be announced.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The Pines of Sarasota, Sarasota, FL 34236, or TideWell Hospice and Palliative Care, 5955 Rand Blvd., Sarasota, FL 34238.

Dancing Cars

Cars whizz past the Dance

Sarasota's latest version of the Season of Sculpture is generating interest and comment.

On of the more controversial pieces is named the Dance - it could be subtitled cars interacting. The piece is by Dustin Shuler.

Another of Shuler's controversial transportation sculptures is described in a NPR story.

A review of the display can be found here.

Burns Square Chalk Festival

Burns Square recently sponsored a street art event featuring chalk drawings. Artists ranging from young to old and amateur to professional participated. The drawings were amazing.

Denise Kowal, the organizer, has indicated this would be an annual event.

New Historical Marker

Recently Sarasota unveiled a new Historical Marker.

This marker recognizes the first motel that was built on the beach on Lido Key. It was constructed in 1950.

Today it is a condominium with individual owners who rent their units to visitors. The owners have indicated they wish to keep the character of the 50's motel intact.

The scale and design of the Gulf Beach Resort Motel does remind visitors of an earlier, slower lifestyle enjoyed by Florida west coast visitors.

The motel is located on Ben Franklin Drive, Lido Key.

Downtown Greening

Roger Birkel of Selby Gardens recently wrote a letter to the editor (SHT) concerning a proposed Sarasota Green Policy:

As President of Selby Gardens, and a neighbor of downtown Sarasota, I have had the good fortune to work with many fine citizens interested in the creation of a vibrant downtown business district.

As merchants, developers, residents, and visitors, they share a vision of downtown that is a dynamic and thriving heart of the community, a place to conduct business, to shop, to dine, a place where people gather in the daytime or evening to socialize, a place that draws tourists and residents from our neighborhoods to enjoy a special moment in a beautiful urban environment. Downtown Sarasota can sing with beauty and purpose, and enhance the quality of life for the entire community.

I believe there is a window of opportunity right now to approach the future of downtown Sarasota with vision and creativity and cooperation, to implement the dream we all share.

Success will depend upon many things, but at its most basic level it will be a sense of aesthetics, of “place making,” that drives our urban renaissance. To put it simply, people will gather in places that are beautiful and comfortable.

The human experience cries out for a connection to nature. We are more comfortable when surrounded by “green”.

At Selby Gardens I see this basic truth played out everyday.

However, in many people’s minds there exists a dichotomy between the built environment and the natural environment. One is bare, hard, hot, and alienating, while the other is lush, cool and comfortable.

It doesn’t have to be that way. Great cities of distinction like Chicago and Toronto are showing that it is possible to combine the two and create magnificent destinations.

And there are added benefits to increasing the prevalence of parks, plantings, trees, green walls and green roofs in the core of downtown Sarasota. Vegetation cools the air, slows rainwater runoff, absorbs carbon dioxide, produces oxygen, offers habitat, and improves the aesthetic quality. What more can you ask?

There is one more thing that we can and should ask. Developers, planners, business owners and others often voice a concern that green design compromises the merchant’s prerogative.
Can a downtown sidewalk accommodate a merchant’s need for seating and visibility and be a greenscape at the same time?

Recent studies show that trees, and greenscape in general, increase people’s positive perception of central business districts, causing them to stay longer and spend more. Wouldn’t it benefit everyone if we collaborate to ensure that the addition of plantings does not hinder a merchant’s success but in fact increases profitability?

At present, the addition of paving and hardscape to our main downtown streets is the default strategy in the City of Sarasota Downtown Master Plan. The term “urban character” is used to advocate a reduction in greenery of all kinds. This should not be so.

We must strive for the best in urban design and living. When coupled with our continuing commitment to our spectacular and precious natural environment, we will realize a community that supports all of our citizens and neighborhoods, indeed all life, in the best possible way.

Roger Birkel
The writer is president and CEO of Marie Selby Botanical Gardens in Sarasota.

Payne Park Opening

The Sarasota Herald Tribune's coverage of the opening of the city's new Payne Park was disappointing. An article about "politics" and an opinion piece about the displacement of the long time trailer home residents summed up the event for our local newspaper. Both were interesting but missed the point of the amazing transformation of this piece of land into great green space for our entire community. An editorial on Oct 9 provided a much better description of the festive mood:

In an age of budget battles and cutbacks, the opening of a new park is one of the few developments that can truly bring a community together.

And so it was Saturday, as Sarasota celebrated its new Payne Park.

Thousands of people of different incomes, ethnicities and ages -- natives as well as newcomers -- mingled to enjoy the festivities. The all-day party, with music, food, free skateboarding, a movie and exhibitions, was a cooperative effort between city staff, neighborhood volunteers and sponsors. They did an outstanding job.

Stan Zimmerman wrote an e-mail to city staff that came much closer to what everyone attending the grand opening on Saturday felt:

Michael (Raposa): Before I even shower, I'm sitting down to express my profound thanks to you and your folks for making the Payne Park Grand Opening a phenomenal success.

Several observations were striking.

1. The Number Of Kids. The skateboard park was jammed all day. Toddlers were rolling down down the grass of Duane's Mountain. Pre- teens were cruising the sidewalks. Babies were oogling from sidewalks. More kids than I have ever seen in one place in Sarasota. EVER. The average age of folks attending this event reflected so well the TRUE city demographic – average age is coming down.

2. Re-Acquaintances: I heard at least four times, "My word, I haven't seen you in twenty years!" Hugs and smiles. It happened to me twice, smiling faces I thought lost in my past were smiling anew. This event brought folks not only out, but together. In our world of "bowling alone," the stereotype was shattered.

3. Reawakening of Hope: Alta Vista gave away a half-ton of fruit today. Just shy of 1,000 pounds. Kids learned to fly kites, I helped a few myself.

There was a general outbreak of kindness today I haven't seen in town in...well...maybe never. 7-Up Cake, bet you never had that before, baked in an old tradition, and offered up with pride. This was event like no other. Without elbows, nastiness or tears. Spontaneous good will permeated the air. As the movie began, a thousand people jammed together to enjoy a night under the stars.

You helped make this happen. Your staff helped make this happen.

And tonight, I and many others are so glad to live here, where magic can happen.

Please circulate this e-gram to all the city employees who gave their time and attention to create this exquisite event. Without all of their help, none of this would have happened.

s/StanZ

A big THANK YOU to Stan and all the community residents that also worked very hard to make this wonderful day happen. Another THANK YOU to Stan for capturing the feelings and happenings in words.

Pictures of the Payne Park Opening can be found on th City's Website.

Payne Parl Opening Day - Oct 6

Sarasota, FL: The public is invited to attend the grand opening of Payne Park Sat., October 6, 2007 noon – 10pm.

The event, hosted by the City of Sarasota along with area neighborhood associations and Sarasota County, is family friendly and will include a ribbon cutting ceremony at 1pm, live bands ranging from rock to symphonic, food vendors, a skateboard exhibition, a dance competition, a children’s play area, a multitude of exhibitors and free tennis. The day will be capped with a showing of a popular motion picture on a two-story movie screen. The park is free.

Payne Park is Sarasota’s long awaited signature park with 29 acres of beautiful landscaping, located on the edge of downtown. During the past year of construction, 420 new trees were added to the park, 13, 151 shrubs and plants, four flowing fountains, a skateboard clubhouse, a half-mile running/walking path and three additional tennis courts.

The grand opening of Payne Park fulfills the dream of the Payne Family, who donated the property to the City of Sarasota for use as a public park. In 1923, a public “work day” was held and the community built Payne Park. Through the years, the park was the site of spring training baseball and even a mobile home park. About seven years ago, the City began honoring the Payne Family’s request for a true public park by designing Phase I of Payne Park.

The county-wide penny surtax funded the $8.8 million park. Since 2000, a one-percent sales tax was collected throughout Sarasota County and earmarked specifically for Phase I of Payne Park, which voters approved as part of the penny surtax referendum. Phase II of Payne Park, which would include an amphitheatre, a new auditorium and a children’s play area, is slated to be funded by the upcoming renewal of the county-wide penny surtax. The penny surtax renewal is on the ballot Tues., November 6th.

The fee for a daily skateboard pass will be waived for the grand opening. Skateboarders must have a signed waiver in order to participate.

The Mayors Feed the Hungry Program will be on site collecting canned goods, preparing for the upcoming holiday season. All canned goods including soups, meats, and vegetables will be accepted.
Payne Park is located at 2000 Adams Lane. It is bordered by East Avenue to the north, Laurel Street to the south, School Avenue to the east and U.S. 301 to the west.

Parking is available in the Sarasota County parking garage located at Ringling Boulevard and School Avenue.

Schedule of Events

Noon: Suncoast Concert Band

1pm: Ribbon cutting ceremony - Official Payne Park opening at East Ave. and Adams Lane. Sarasota High School Marching Band - leads the crowd around the half-mile trail and stops at the tennis courts

2pm: Ribbon cutting ceremony - Official opening of three additional tennis courts

2:30pm: Papa Schmitz Band (Main Stage)

3:30pm: Concordia Praise Band (Side Stage)

3:45 pm: Big Night Out (Main Stage)

4pm: Jazz Juvenocracy (Payne Auditorium)

5pm: Dance Competition (Auditorium)

5:45pm: Concordia Praise Band (Side Stage)

6pm: Radio Free Carmela and the Transmitters (Main Stage)

7:15pm: Los Independientes del Vallenato

2pm – All Day: Free tennis Skateboard exhibitions Payne Park history slide show (Auditorium) Payne Family history (Auditorium) Food vendors

8pm: “Night at the Museum”, presented outdoors by the Sarasota Film Festival.

The Hazzard Fountain

This fountain is located in front of the Municipal Auditorium. In a city brochure describing the Municipal Auditorium, the fountain is described as follows.

In 1940, Maine shoe manufacturer R. P. Hazzard gifted the city of Sarasota with a lighted fountain designed by Frank Martin (son

of Auditorium architect, Thomas Reed Martin).

Built by renowned artisan Louis Larsen, the fountain was the auditorium's "crown jewel."

Widening of US 41 (Tamiami Trail) eventually

forced the fountain's removal. After years in storage, it graced the Ringling Museum entrance until changes there banished it to storeroom obscurity once again.

The only Art Deco-style fountain of its kind in public ownership in the U. S. today, the Hazzard Fountain was rescued by the city, restored and returned to its original site in front of the Auditorium in 1995.

Changing Face of Ringling

Two buildings that harken back to the days of John Ringling still survive on the street that carries his name 80 years later.

The building at 1727 Ringling (La Casa Apartments) was built in 1925 and remains an apartment building today.

Next to it is Hotel Ranola. Originally an apartment building, it is now a boutique hotel. It was built in 1926.

Towering over these buildings is the condo portion of the Rivo on Ringling - an 18 story mixed use project.

Changing Sarasota

An interesting juxtaposition is seen with the new high rise buildings downtown appearing to loom over the older buildings along Fruitville.

While the shop pictured here sells antiques, some may view the building itself as an antique, being replaced by a modern scene. But the building hangs on, providing local character as well as business activity.

Florida Trust for Historic Preservation

From May 17 to 19, the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation held their annual statewide preservation conference here in Sarasota. Workshops, tours and social events were held during the three day affair.

The theme for the conference was "Ringling to Rudolph", definitely a local flavor with a hint of today's issues.

With the headquarters for the event was at the Hyatt, a bit of irony was also present when the wrecking ball made its first plunge into the Quay buildings on May 18 - the midpoint of the conference.

Arts Tour

EXPERIENCE THE 36TH ANNUAL CREATORS & COLLECTORS TOUR

The Fine Arts Society of Sarasota offers the opportunity on March 16-17 to purchase artwork as you visit the home studios of photographer Steven Katzman, painters Olivia Braida and Julie Trigg, sculptor Frank Colson, potter Ann Darling and collector Carolyn Michel.

Also, a Galleria of nine local artists formerly featured on FASS tours:
Jack Dowd
Dee Winterhalter
Ki Woon Hu
Bill Buchman
Larry Forgard
John and Suzie Seerey-Lester
Adrianne Winer
Peppi Elona

will be presented in the Crossley Gallery at the Ringling School of Art as part of this self-guided tour between 10-4 each day.

Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at the artist's homes or the following locations:

SARASOTA CENTRAL
Van Wezel Box Office
Ace Hardware - all stores
Davidson Drugs - all locations
Blue Line, 301 N.Central
BOX Furniture Boutique, 1417 1ST ST
Metro Coffee & Wine Café, 711 S. Osprey
State of the Art Gallery, 1525 State St
Gallery of Colleen Cassidy Berns, 4613 S. Tamiami
Piper Collectibles, Coral Cove Mall, 8419 S. Tamiami
Sarasota Enchanted Flowers,
Plaza at Palmer Ranch, 8419 S. Tamiami

LONGBOAT KEY, ST. ARMANDS KEY
Longboat Key Art Center, 6868 S.Longboat Dr.
Exit Art - all 3 locations

SIESTA KEY:
Davidson Drugs, all locations

LAKEWOOD RANCH
Kemery’s Hallmark, 8322 Market St

VENICE:
Paper Pad 213 W. Venice Ave
Venice Art Center 390 S. Nokomis Ave

Call 941-330-0680 for information.

Garden Club

Below are excerpts from a recent SHT article about the Sarasota Garden Club - one of Sarasota's great spaces.

Article published Feb 24, 2007

Andy Papineau, the new president of Sarasota Garden Club, has something in common with and something in contrast to his predecessors. Like other presidents, he's vigorously dedicated to preserving and promoting the 1.4 acres of city-owned lushly planted parkland on Boulevard of the Arts near busy U.S. 41.

Papineau is the first male ever elected to Sarasota Garden Club's highest office. Mable Ringling established the organization in 1927. Papineau, a Wisconsin transplant, wasn't looking to break an 80-year-old tradition. He was just looking for a garden to putter around in.

"When my wife, Mary Fran, and I moved to Sarasota five years ago, we settled in Village Walk, which is a no-maintenance, gated community," he said. "I missed my garden. Back in Sun Prairie, I had vegetable and flower gardens, as well as a rock garden; working in those spaces was stress relief from my job. Even though I retired to Florida, I didn't want to retire from gardening."

Architect John Crowell designed the [main building] structure in 1959 in the Sarasota School style with wide overhangs, a discreet profile and a Japanese feeling with the inclusion of shoji screens. Three sides of the function room are walls of sliding glass and when they open, interior and exterior spaces merge and the architecture disappears.

Other garden spaces to enjoy include a butterfly garden (25 varieties), cactus garden and a bromeliad garden. An exotic garden of hybrid hibiscus is dedicated to the military dead of World War II, and throughout the various specialty gardens are comfortable benches that have been given to Sarasota Garden Club as memorials to loved ones.

The potting shed, with its vivid blue-tile roof, reminds visitors of a Japanese teahouse and was a gift to the property from Marie Selby. Bert Brosmith was the architect."Some mornings, artists come to sketch or paint," said Papineau. "Other times, residents from the local high-rise apartments will wander over just to sit and listen to the waterfall and look at all the flowers. I call this place one of the hidden treasures of our town. It's here for the citizens of Sarasota to enjoy, and it's free."

Papineau believes his job as president is to promote Sarasota Garden Club's botanical property as one of the city's attractions and to insure that it remains an asset to the town. "We're in the part of Sarasota slated to change with the expanded cultural district," he said. "I've been attending city meetings to make sure that proposed roadways don't compromise this green space. This special land belongs to the City of Sarasota, but Sarasota Garden Club owns the buildings and leases the property on a five-year renewable contract. We're vigilant about wanting to preserve it."

All Sarasota Garden Club members (there are 185) take turns working at the Boulevard of the Arts property. To be part of Sarasota Garden Club, you join one of eight garden circles, based on interest in the specific activities of the circle. Some circles are craft oriented, others general purpose, others take on community projects. Driftwood Circle, for example, maintains Mable Ringling's secret garden at Ca d'Zan as one of its projects.

Membership in Sarasota Garden Club is $50. These dues support the club's scholarship program and help maintain the botanical park. Additionally, each garden circle has a membership fee. Circle members meet in private homes, but circles meet at Sarasota Garden Club for special events.

Besides maintaining the facilities, Sarasota Garden Club is actively engaged in community outreach through an annual flower show in March, scholarship programs, fee-based educational events, lectures, demonstrations, social activities and a variety of civic beautification projects through its circle members and through Sarasota Garden Club at large.

Saving Sarasota

An interesting approach to saving an historical home can be seen at 1386 5th St in the Rosemary District.

A new condo building is being built next to the home and it surrounds the home on three sides.

We applaud the effort to save this historic home.
The home was built in 1901.

Ringling Removes Neighborhood Nuisance

The Ringling School of Art and Design recently acquired the Shell Station at the corner of N Tamiami Trail and Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. This station had been a hangout for drug dealers for years and the activity could not be stopped.

That is until RSAD bought the property.

After letting the students do a little art work on the building, it was leveled.

RSAD has not yet determined the future of the site but have indicated it could become the location of a signature campus entry building.

North Lido - A Lasting Legacy

Laura Sperling has written another excellent column - this time about a really special place in Sarasota. She writes:

I walked back to the shore, where stillness reigned and a local Audubon club observed the skittering sandpipers. It is this side of North Lido -- improbably remote despite its locale in the heart of condo country -- that made it such a family favorite. I can't objectively state that it's superior to South Lido Park, the environmentally vital acreage whose earlier public acquisition is a story for another day. But with South Lido's crowds and boats and barbecue grills and cars, it has a different character entirely.

To my untrained eyes, today's North Lido -- which like many beaches has seen controversial "renourishment" over the decades -- looks broader and healthier than in the past.

North Lido is a wonderful, natural beach. It gives me a vision of what Florida beaches used to be like.

Take a moment to read her column and learn a bit about how this great space came to be preserved for all of us.