St. Armands parking garage wins two merit awards from Florida Parking and Transportation Association

Project team makes presentation about initiatives that resulted in completion of facility

The St. Armands garage stands on North Adams Lane. Image courtesy City of Sarasota via Twitter

When the St. Armands parking garage opened in February “with much fanfare,” City Manager Tom Barwin wrote in his Dec. 13 newsletter, “we thought maybe we were a bit biased marveling at the thoughtful, eye-catching design. Turns out it, it isn’t just us!”

During its recent annual conference, Barwin continued, the Florida Parking and Transportation Association honored the City of Sarasota’s St. Armands parking garage with two awards of merit: one for the structural design; the other, for architecture.

A panel of parking experts in the fields of planning, design architecture and parking operations bestows awards each year during the conference, he noted.

“Kudos to the project team led by Parking Division Manager Mark Lyons, Solstice Planning and Architecture, and Jon F. Swift Construction,” Barwin added.

During the conference, the project team made a presentation “about the unique community engagement approach taken with this significant project, from the feasibility study to public workshops, studying the parking programming, developing the financing package and ultimately design and construction of the garage,” Barwin pointed out. “Those in attendance found the secret to the project’s success — community engagement and due diligence — to be enlightening.”

The St. Armands garage is located at 57 N. Adams Drive, “just a short walk from the world-renowned shops and restaurants on St. Armands Circle,” Barwin wrote. It provides covered parking for 480-plus vehicles, including five electric-vehicle charging stations, at an hourly rate of 50 cents, Barwin noted.