Growing number of Siesta and other county residents expressing opposition to plans
The last public hearing scheduled on the Nov. 19 agenda for the Sarasota County Commission meeting has drawn mounting opposition from Siesta Key residents and others in the county, The Sarasota News Leader has learned.
Saba Sands II LLC, whose principal is Sarasota attorney William Saba, is seeking board approval to construct a two-unit, multi-family residence, plus a pool and pool deck, 229.3 feet seaward of the Gulf Beach Setback Line (GBSL), a county staff report explains.
The building, which would rise three stories over the parking area, would have 6,350 square feet of habitable space and a total footprint of 3,400 square feet, a county staff report points out.
The Gulf Beach Setback Line was established in 1979 to protect dunes and other coastal habitat which, in turn, protect landward structures from storms.
Saba Sands II’s plans also call for 4,000 square feet of driveway access to the structure within Beach Access 10 and the Tenacity Lane right of way, the staff report notes.
Tenacity Lane is a 20-foot-wide platted alley that “separates this parcel from the neighboring developed lot at 564 Beach Road to the northeast,” the county staff report points out. “The parcel is neighbored on the northwest side by the undeveloped portion of the lot west of Tenacity Lane at 560 Beach Road. To the east-southeast is an undeveloped County Road right-of-way (Calle del Invierno) known as Beach Access No. 10, a public beach access facility maintained by Sarasota County,” the report adds. “This access is pedestrian-only and consists of a sandy path through a vegetated dune field leading from Beach Road to the open beach.”
The county’s Environmental Permitting staff points out that a previous Coastal Setback Variance (CSV) request for construction on the same site was denied. That called for a single-family residence to be positioned 185.4 feet seaward of the GBSL. In addition, the staff report continues, a CSV application for the property was filed with the county in 2017. However, it “was deactivated” before a hearing was scheduled, the staff report continues, “due to a lack of response to a request for additional information.”
That application proposed a two-unit, multi-family residence that would have stood 209 feet seaward of the GBSL, with a pool 229 feet seaward of the GBSL, the staff report says.
“The beach is a dynamic system,” the staff report points out. “Between the 1940s and 1970s, the property was a beachfront lot with a portion of the lot seaward of the mean high water line (MHWL).” Moreover, the report says, “The property is in a [Federal Emergency Management Agency] FEMA velocity (VE) flood zone. The site is predominantly less than 4.5 feet above the MHWL and is subject to storm surge inundation and coastal flooding during storm events, as observed following Hurricanes Debby, Helene, and Milton this year.
“Given the relatively low topographic elevations of the site and the dynamic nature of erosion and accretion,” the report continues, “there can be no assurance that the proposed multi-family residence and accessory structures will not interact with the waters of the Gulf of Mexico in the future.”
The report does note that, on Nov. 19, 2015, a 12th Judicial Circuit Court ruling confirmed that Saba Sands II owns the accreted lands “to the mean high water line (MHWL) of the Gulf of Mexico.”
“The entire site consists of dune habitat,” the report adds. Yet, it points out, the county’s Comprehensive Plan, which guides growth in the community, states, “Dune systems and their native vegetation shall be preserved.”
Nonetheless, the report notes, “The project would result in the removal of approximately 5,300 square feet of existing shoreline stabilizing dune habitat and native vegetation on the parcel. Additionally, approximately 4,000 square feet of impervious impacts to the historic dune system and native vegetation can be anticipated within the Calle del Invierno Right-of-Way resulting from the proposed driveway improvements in Beach Access 10.”
Saba Sands II “has provided a mitigation plan that includes removal of nuisance/invasive plants and supplemental planting within those areas,” the report does point out. “Additionally,” it says, “the Petitioner agrees to place the remaining dune habitat west of the multi-family residence in a Conservation Easement,” which would prevent any future construction on that part of the property.
The site access issue
Yet another facet of the application, the staff report explains, is that the variance, if granted, would have an impact on “the historic public uses” within Beach Access 10 “and may pose a risk to pedestrians when vehicles enter or leave the residential property.”
The report does note, “The Petitioner has recorded a restrictive covenant” that calls for Tenacity Lane … to be used as the only access to the site …”
However, the staff report says, the property also “has legal access” from Calle del Invierno, a 60-foot-wide right of way.
In its 2017 CSV application, the staff report continues, Saba Sands II sought “a right-of-way use permit to install a driveway and utilities in the existing County right-of-way, extending from Beach Road on Calle del Invierno to Tenacity Lane, and then north on Tenacity Lane approximately 30 feet to provide access to the Subject Property. A new right-of-way use permit will be necessary to advance the requested construction.”
Neither Calle del Invierno nor Tenacity Lane has ever been vacated, the report also points out. West of Beach Road, Calle del Invierno is designated as Beach Access 10. “In the portion of Calle del Invierno between Beach Road and Tenacity Lane, landscaping has been added and maintained, and bicycle racks, trash facilities, and pedestrian access ways have been established and maintained” by the county’s Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Department, the report adds.
“Tenacity Lane has been partially improved by prior landscaping and use in the area proposed for improvements,” the report further notes.
The installation of the planned impervious driveway would necessitate “the removal of mature stands of native vegetation (predominantly sea grapes and cabbage palms)” from Access 10, the report continues.
The pedestrian use of Access 10 also would be affected by the re-striping of the crosswalk and the relocation of the sand path access, the report says.
Moreover, it points out, the potential also exists for the relocation and redesign of the stormwater drainage system on Beach Road.
Yet another concern, the staff report says, is that because the proposed driveway/access road would be located within Access 10, “the public may interpret the driveway as an accessible place to park,” which staff considers “a likely unintended consequence of this petition.”
Vehicles could block Saba Sands II’s access to the residential structure that is planned, with “No Parking” signage needing to be installed and maintained, along with the potential requirement of Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office intervention to prevent beachgoers from blocking the driveway.
However, the report says, the application proposes that bollards would be set in place across the western limits of the improvements to Calle del Invierno to prevent unauthorized vehicle access to the beach.” Saba Sands also plans to install a privacy gate “at the property line along Tenacity Lane.”
‘It’s selfish’
Although only a few Siesta Key residents had submitted correspondence to county leaders in regard to the Nov. 19 hearing — as shown in documents provided in the agenda packet — others have told the News Leader that they are against the project and plan to be present for the hearing.
Among the emails included in the agenda packet, Tim Keegan, a Palm Island resident, wrote the following to Commissioner Mark Smith, who is a long-time Siesta resident:
“I am contacting you to express our entire [neighborhood’s] discontent
with the owner of properties on each side of beach access 10 attempting to restrict and or change the existing beach access. It’s selfish and the current owners knew the existing access way when they purchased the properties. If we let a few property owners dictate how our neighborhood accesses the beach, what is to keep any home owner on the beach access points from doing the same …? Our neighborhood has been through enough. Step up and stop this.”
Beach Road residents Roger and Stephanie Hochschild sent the following email to all of the county commissioners:
“We are writing to voice our strong opposition to the proposed coastal setback variance on Beach Road in Siesta Key. Allowing construction closer to the shoreline would harm both the ecological balance of our coastal areas and the natural beauty that has made Siesta Key such an asset for the entire Sarasota region. Additionally, granting this variance sets a precedent that encourages further construction and encroachment, in particular for the three lots immediately to the Northwest of the proposed variance.
“Compromising our coastal setbacks could lead to irreversible changes to our shorelines, increasing vulnerability to storm surges and rising sea levels — even more clear now as Siesta Key works to recover from the impacts of hurricanes Helene and Milton,” they continued.
The Hochschilds urged the commissioners “to uphold the current coastal setback regulations and deny the requested Coastal Setback Variance.”