Company files preliminary application with the county, showing that it has purchased two residential parcels in Pine Shores Estates to provide extra square footage
The Benderson Development Co. affiliate that is overseeing the Siesta Promenade project is seeking to add two parcels in Pine Shores Estates to the mixed-use development planned at the intersection of Stickney Point Road and U.S. 41, The Sarasota News Leader has learned.
With the combination of the new acreage, the company — Siesta 41 Associates LLP — indicates that it would be able to increase the number of apartment/condominium units in Siesta Promenade from 479 to 495, according to the materials Todd Mathes, director of development for Benderson, provided county staff in late June.
Sarasota County Property Appraiser’s Office records show that, in August 2019, Siesta 41 Associates LLP paid $825,000 for the parcel at 6331 Glencoe Ave. The company purchased the adjacent parcel, located at 6339 Glencoe Ave., on the same day — Aug. 14, 2019 — and paid the same amount of money for it, the Property Appraiser’s Office records say.
Both parcels are in Pine Shores Estates, the residential community adjacent to the Siesta Promenade site.
This year, the market value of the property at 6339 Glencoe Ave. was put at $206,200, with the land making up most of that, at a market value of $188,200.
For the property at 6331 Glencoe, the market value this year is $240,200, with the land, again, accounting for $188,200, the Property Appraiser’s Office records show.
The Sarasota County Commission voted in December 2018 to approve a variety of petitions to enable Benderson to develop Siesta Promenade. As designed, the project would include a 130-room hotel, 133,000 square feet of retail space and 7,000 square feet of office space.
Todd Dary, the county planner who oversaw the management of the Siesta Promenade application, told the News Leader in a Sept. 10 email, “The next step in the process prior to submitting an application for rezoning is a neighborhood workshop, which has not yet been scheduled. Residents within 750 [feet] of the site will be notified.”
No other work has been done on the development of the Siesta Promenade site, Mark Loveridge, the county’s land development manager, told the News Leader on Sept. 10.
A county Development Review Committee (DRC) document, completed on the basis of a July 16 review of the preliminary Siesta 41 Associates application, notes that adding the 0.78 acres encompassed by the two new parcels will necessitate applications reflecting a revised Development Concept Plan and revised stipulations for Siesta Promenade.
Additionally, the DRC document points out that Benderson would have to ensure that the additional 16 dwelling units “conform to the requirements for affordable housing, based on policy, as may be amended.”
The staff report provided to the County Commission in advance of the Dec. 12, 2018 hearing on Siesta Promenade explained, “At a minimum, 15% of the dwelling units constructed in excess of 13 dwelling units per acre within the boundary of the Siesta Promenade Critical Area Plan shall be Affordable.” It added, “A dwelling unit shall be deemed to be affordable when all housing costs (including Principal, Interest, Taxes and Insurance for homeownership, or total rent inclusive of water and sewer utilities, and parking for renters) do not exceed 30% of the Income of a family of four at or below 80% Area Median Income (AMI) of Sarasota County.”
Later in that report, staff noted that the maximum number of required affordable units would be 25, “based on 479 residential units requested.” It explained that the affordable dwellings “shall be provided for families at or below 80% of Area Median Income (AMI).”
This year, the AMI for the North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton Metropolitan Statistical Area is $76,700. Thus, 80% of the AMI for a family of four would be $61,200.
The DRC comprises representatives of each county department involved with land development, including the Transportation Planning Division.
The DRC also pointed out, on the basis of its review, that Siesta 41 Associates would have to update the legal descriptions for the rezoned property on the Siesta Promenade site, as well as the Critical Area Plan (CAP) boundary.
Benderson applied for the CAP designation for the mixed-use development so it could exceed the standard limit of 13 dwelling units per acre in a Commercial General zoning district. The CAP allows it to go as high as 25 units per acre.
The DRC document further notes that Siesta 41 Associates will be required to undertake another traffic impact analysis, to reflect the addition of the two Pine Shores parcels.
Further, the document explains that if the Special Exception Siesta 41 Associates won from the commissioners in late 2018 to include the hotel in the project will expire prior to the start of construction, the company will have to request an extension of that Special Exception for 18 months or file a new application.