Lido Beach Pavilion restrooms renovation project wins City Commission approval

Start date has not been determined

The Lido Beach Pavilion is located on Ben Franklin Drive in the city of Sarasota. Image courtesy City of Sarasota

A contract for the final phase of improvements at the Lido Beach Pavilion has won Sarasota City Commission approval, at an expense of $349,119.66.

As part of their unanimous passage of their first Consent Agenda of routine business matters on March 1, the board members agreed to award the Lido restroom renovations project to Holliday Group of Sarasota.

Vice Mayor Erik Arroyo made the motion on Consent Agenda No. 1, but it took Mayor Hagen Brody two tries to get a second. Finally, Commissioner Kyle Scott Battie spoke up. The vote, then, was 5-0.

In response to a Sarasota News Leader question, city Communications Specialist Jason Bartolone wrote in a March 2 email, “We do not have a start date yet — the contract needs to be fully executed via the City Auditor & Clerk’s Office, and then a schedule will be developed with the contractor.”

Additionally, he pointed out, “We do anticipate that once work begins, it will take approximately 3-4 months. A high-quality restroom trailer will be available on site for use by the public for the duration of the renovation work.”

A staff memo provided in the March 1 agenda packet explained that the Lido Beach Pavilion was constructed in 1969 and has undergone minor improvements through the years. The goal of the restrooms initiative, the memo added, is to create the maximum number of toilet fixtures within the facility.

Glenn Darling, president and principal architect of the Sarasota firm Hall Darling Design Studio, is the architect of record, bid documents show.

On Jan. 8, when city staff members opened the bids for the restroom renovations, the staff memo continued, they found that three of the five contractors who vied for the project had failed to upload all the necessary forms, and two of the three had failed to provide bonds for their bids, as required by city policy.

This engineering drawing shows facets of the new restroom design for the Lido Beach Pavilion. Image courtesy City of Sarasota

Hodge Management LLC of Seminole submitted the only other valid bid, the staff memo pointed out. That was for $445,615.

The renovations to the Pavilion began in early fall of 2019. A long-lasting metal roof was placed on the structure, and a new vent hood was installed in the kitchen. Further, as noted in the staff memo for the March 1 commission meeting, the shell patio area was replaced with a new concrete pad, and new concrete furniture that is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was added to the site. Shaded outdoor seating areas also have been provided, the memo noted, and new Florida-friendly landscaping was installed, along with irrigation systems.

Located at 400 Ben Franklin Drive in Sarasota, the Lido Beach Pavilion offers food and beverage service, picnic tables and free parking.

The Lido Pool has been closed during the novel coronavirus pandemic.