History

Below are some key dates and events with regard to commercial development on St. Armands:

January 16, 2001

National Historic Designation

The Harding (St. Armands) Circle Historic District received registration on the National Register of Historic Places on January 16, 2001. It encompasses the Harding Circle Park, adjacent medians along John Ringling Blvd. and the Boulevard of the Presidents, and associated Ringling-era statuary.

April 29, 2002

Definition of St. Armands Commercial Tourism (CT) District in City Zoning Code

The intent and purpose of the CT district is to serve the nonresidential needs of tourists by providing a variety of goods and services for tourists. The application of this district is restricted to St. Armand's Key.

April 29, 2002

Coastal Islands Overlay District

City Commission establishes the Coastal Islands Overlay District with Ordinance No. 02-4357.

The Coastal Islands Overlay (CIO) is intended to protect the environmentally sensitive and fragile nature of the coastal islands and their evacuation needs. The regulations address the density, intensity and scale of development consistent with the Environmental Protection and Coastal Island chapter of the Sarasota City Plan.

July 16, 2002

St. Armands Business Improvement District

City Commission establishes the St. Armand’s Special Business Improvement District (BID) with Ordinance No. 02-4382. This was done three months after the establishment of the Coastal Islands Overlay District.

The BID is authorized to levy an ad valorem tax on real and personal property within the District up to two mills annually, and it may use special assessments to support planning and implementation of District improvements up to $500 per parcel per year.

The BID has a very specific list of powers related to maintaining, improving, safeguarding and marketing the District and is not authorized to exceed those powers.

December 15, 2008

Master Plan of the Commercial Tourist District on St. Armands Key

A consultant prepares this 87-page St. Armands CT District Master Plan for the City. After the City, the BID is the next entity in the list of acknowledgements. The document recommends the addition of a boutique hotel and a market for St. Armands, but it does not say that the Coastal Islands Overlay District is an obstacle that needs to be changed or removed in order to accomplish this. Plus, much has changed on St. Armands, in Sarasota, and throughout the region since 2008 and we believe that a lot of the findings and recommendations in this document should be re-evaluated.

St. Armands Residents Association

P.O. Box 2482, Sarasota, FL 34230

e-mail us at: st.armands.residents.assn@gmail.com