98% of funding for project secured
On Aug. 11, Jennifer Romeniecki, president and CEO of Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, announced that the nonprofit destination had executed a sale of $41.9 million in bonds to pay for Phase 2 of its master plan for its downtown Sarasota campus, with 98% of the total funding having been raised for the project.
She also reported that the Phase 2 construction was getting underway.
In late March 2025, Selby Gardens leaders said they had received 82% of the necessary funding for Phase 2. “The capital goal,” they noted at the time, stood at $60.9 million, with $50 million having been secured.
Phase 1 of the master plan opened to the public on Jan. 11, 2025. The groundbreaking for Phase 2 took place on Dec. 2, 2025, as a news release noted. As of that date, the release said, the Gardens had raised 92% of the funding it needed, with more than $121 million for the entire project having been secured.
A Laurel Park resident did file an appeal late last summer with the Sarasota City Commission, seeking to overturn the city Planning Board’s approval of the Phase 2 plans because of the number of Grand Trees that the Gardens’ project team planned to destroy. Kelly Franklin of contended that, with more effort, the project team could have designed the placement of the buildings to save more of those trees. She characterized the plans as being in violation of the city’s Grand Tree ordinance.
However, on a 4-1 vote on Sept. 15, 2025 — after hearing presentations from Franklin and representatives of Selby Gardens, including attorney Dan Bailey of the Williams Parker firm in Sarasota — the board members voted 4-1 to deny the appeal.
The Aug. 11 update from Rominiecki reported, “High demand from bond investors underscores the institution’s solid financial position and confidence in [Phase 2’s] future impact. The bond offering attracted exceptional investor interest, with 15 unique investors submitting orders totaling approximately 10 times the bonds offered.”
The release continued, “The $41.9 million in proceeds from the bond sale, executed in July, enable Selby Gardens to maintain an aggressive construction schedule while multiyear philanthropic gifts are realized.”
“With this financing in place,” Rominiecki continued in the release, “we are well positioned to maintain our ambitious construction schedule while continuing to create a campus that serves our community, advances our mission, and inspires future generations.”
Phase 2 “consists of a new Conservatory Complex, Learning Pavilion, and key landscape features,” the release explained. “The state-of-the-art, first-of-its-kind hurricane-resilient Conservatory Complex will serve as the crown jewel of the Downtown Sarasota campus, showcasing more than 20,000 plants from Selby Gardens’ living research collections, including the world’s best scientifically documented collections of orchids and bromeliads” the release pointed out.
“The new Conservatory Complex will feature the Selby System, an innovative, hurricane-resilient greenhouse design developed through a multi-year collaboration between Selby Gardens and its partners, for which Selby Gardens is pursuing trademark protection,” it continued.
“Engineered to exceed traditional greenhouse standards and meet the 2023 Florida Building Code for publicly occupied buildings, the system uses lightweight, high-performance polycarbonate glazing to reduce structural weight, material use, construction costs and environmental impact while providing exceptional storm resilience,” the release explained. The design was successfully validated this year “through full-scale testing under simulated extreme hurricane conditions,” the release noted.
“Today,” the release pointed out, “the public can see less than 5% of Selby Gardens’ living research collections; the new Conservatory Complex will make nearly 100% of Selby Gardens’ world-renowned collected plants visible to the public. In addition, a new Learning Pavillion will feature enhanced facilities for all of Selby Gardens’ education programs, as well as enhanced gardens and landscape features that will expand the beauty and resilience of our bayfront sanctuary.”
Phase 2 is expected to open in November 2028, the release said.