ITN for Large Infill Opportunity in Sarasota, Florida Offers Site for Community Catalyst

SARASOTA, Fla. - April 11, 2017 - PRLog -- The City of Sarasota, Florida has issued an Invitation to Negotiate (ITN) to provide an opportunity for qualified parties to redevelop the city-owned Marian Anderson Place (the "MAP site"). The 13.19 acre MAP site is located approximately 1.5 miles north of downtown Sarasota and parallel to U.S. 301, which has undergone major improvements by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) including the widening from four to six lanes and landscaping.

The MAP site is well located in North Sarasota, within a community historically known as Newtown.  The growth of the North Sarasota/Newtown area has included major construction projects within a one (1) mile radius of the MAP site in recent years, including: the City's Robert L. Taylor Community Complex, New Booker High School, Sarasota Housing Authority/Janie's Garden residential/commercial and Kingstone residential projects, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Way Streetscape, widening of U.S. 301 to six lanes, Ringling College of Art & Design Soundstage & Library, and the Sarasota Memorial Hospital project.

According to the ITN, it is essential that the development be intertwined with the fabric of the surrounding Newtown-North Sarasota neighborhoods in a way that utilizes community strengths, supports job creation for current residents, increases property tax revenue base, and fosters long-term economic development.

In an August workshop, dozens of Newtown residents offered opinions and insights in the MAP sites potential reuse.  Surveys found retail stores and restaurants were most wanted. A concept for a retail plaza catering healthy, affordable foods choices for residents and new employment opportunities emerged. Small coffee shops and "soul food spots" could also lure younger clientele and families to spend their food and retail dollars in the neighborhood, some people surveyed believed. Office space for small businesses and affordable housing also emerged as top survey priorities.

The Newtown-North Sarasota Community was previously designated a Florida Enterprise Zone in 2002 and Front Porch area in 2003. In 2008, a Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) was established for Newtown with the purpose of implementing myriad redevelopment activities.

The City's objective now is to identify a development partner who can propose and implement a complete redevelopment and ownership plan for the MAP site, which includes a conceptual plan, design, entitlement process, financing, and implementation strategy. To be successful, proposals must enhance the utilization of the parcel and surrounding property, and must be consistent with the CRA Plan.

The MAP site's Commercial Residential District (CRD) zoning allows for a mixture of uses such as retail, office, training centers, an entrepreneurial hub, mixed use projects and residential at a 25 unit per acre density. According to the ITN, the proposal should include superior quality residential/office/mixed-use development along the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Way frontage to new urbanism standards.

The remainder of the site may be uses allowed in the CRD zone district or uses that encourage and promote economic development and local job creation such as:

(1) High-tech industry and light production and assembly types of uses.

(2) Vocational technical training centers or development that promotes local entrepreneurial hub.

(3) Research, higher education or related uses (Ringling College of Art and Design, University of South Florida, New College of Florida and a new sound stage production facility are within a five mile radius).

The City Commission has indicated they will consider rezoning any part or portion of the southern 10 acres of the site to the Industrial General District (IGD) to accommodate high-tech industry and light production and assembly type uses. Job creation potential will be an important element of the review. The MAP site is also located within a HUBZone, New Market Tax Credit entitlement and Newtown Community Redevelopment Area (adopted in 2008).

The MAP site is designated as a brownfield. An unauthorized landfill polluted the site in the 1960s, whereafter it languished in limbo with little economic activity despite many efforts over the years.

Remediation of arsenic in the groundwater began In November of 2013. Through a system of pits, trenches and pumps contaminated groundwater was extracted for proper treatment. Based upon findings that the Arsenic was not anthropogenic in nature and had been reduced to acceptable levels, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) issued a Site Rehabilitation Completion Order (SRCO) releasing the City from any further obligation to conduct site rehabilitation for Arsenic on December 3, 2014. Any additional costs for remediation will be the responsibility of the developer.

As part of the U.S. 301 improvements, FDOT purchased and mitigated contaminates for approximately three acres in the southeast corner of the original boundaries of the MAP site for development as a retention pond. The retention pond area is not a component of this ITN.

Other items to note:

Improvements: 21st Street may be improved to provide a direct connection to the newly expanded U.S. 301 highway.

Power: Existing power lines that are located in the existing unopened East Avenue right of way may need to be relocated in cooperation with Florida Power and Light.

Response to the ITN are due June 30th, 2017.

View this listing and download the ITN at:  https://brownfieldlistings.com/listings/view/935/rfps