City moves forward with downtown land swap

For the second time, a divided City Commission voted to advance a proposed deal with a private developer that would include an exchange of land near U.S. 41 and Fruitville Road.

If the deal is ultimately finalized following Monday's commission meeting, the city would transfer a .13-acre parcel of land at the northeast corner of the intersection to Palsar Developments Inc., which owns the neighboring property at 332 N. Tamiami Trail.

In exchange, the city would receive segments of land along U.S. 41  and Fruitville — property needed to construct a roundabout at the nearby intersection.

Although the swap is still not complete, Monday’s 3-2 vote allows Palsar to submit plans for a development and an application to change their property’s zoning classification. If both the site plan and rezone gain commission approval, the land swap would go into effect.

Originally, plans called for an 18-story building on the Palsar site, including a 225-room Marriott Hotel and a 40-unit condo. The developer put that proposal on hold when it became clear the city would need part of that land to construct a planned roundabout along U.S. 41.

Core Development president Kevin Daves, who is working with Palsar to develop the property, said new plans would focus exclusively on a residential project with about 80 condo units.

The Palsar property is divided between two zoning classifications — a portion is zoned Downtown Edge, and the other Downtown Bayfront. Rezoning the Downtown Edge portion as Downtown Core would allow for a greater residential density than under the current conditions, but Daves said any project would be designed with the existing height conditions in mind.

“From people’s standpoints, they won’t see the difference in the zoning at all except for the density,” Daves said.

Palsar would also transfer another portion of its property to create a new connection between an alley — whose exit onto Fruitville would be closed following the roundabout's construction — and Fourth Street.

Mayor Willie Shaw and Commissioner Susan Chapman voted against the proposed deal. Chapman claimed residents have shared a growing level of concern regarding the impact of new building in downtown Sarasota and said the agreement would just make things worse.

“Every day I get complaints,” Chapman said. “‘How much are you going to build before we don’t want to live here anymore?’”

Commissioner Liz Alpert disagreed with Chapman’s line of thinking. She said the deal ensured the city would not have to purchase land to construct the roundabout in the future, and that coming to terms with the neighboring property owner ensured a more mutually desirable solution.

“Without our approval, this developer could build on this lot based on the current zoning,” Alpert said. “We don’t have the ability to say, ‘You can’t use your property.’”