Laurel Park receptive to townhome project

Laurel Park residents are much more receptive to a development project off Ringling Boulevard now that it calls for three-story townhomes instead of a 10-story apartment building.

Jebco Ventures Inc., which purchased 2.05 acres of vacant land at 1750 Ringling Blvd. in April, originally had plans to build a 10-story apartment building containing more than 100 apartments.

The property, which sits just north of Morrill Street next to Laurel Park, is the site of the former Atrium apartment project that went bust during the economic downturn.

Jebco’s CEO, Jim Bridges, said the property is only zoned for 75 apartments, making it impossible to realize his original vision of a large-scale apartment building.

Bridges told the Sarasota Observer he intends to file preliminary plans at City Hall by the end of the year for 45 townhomes on the property. The $300,000-plus townhomes will be three stories and have air-conditioned square footage that ranges from 1,400 to 2,000 square feet.

“We’ve had tremendous response for something like this downtown,” Bridges said. “Downtown is clamoring for new housing.”

Bridges said he hopes to have permits for the project in December and construction on the project can begin in the first quarter of 2013.

Laurel Park residents, who have concerns about how neighboring vacant parcels surrounding their downtown neighborhood are developed, are pleased with the new project concept.

“I can’t speak for the neighborhood because we haven’t seen any plans, but I would say that’s good news,” said Laurel Park President Kate Lowman. “I think certainly many in the neighborhood would be happy to see a three-story project that’s more on par with the surrounding residential neighborhood.”

The downtown historic Laurel Park neighborhood is in the midst of an ongoing dispute over future development that sits just outside its boundaries.

The community of more than 270 homes and small businesses in the heart of downtown is wrestling with how the community should be preserved moving forward and whether it should be more involved in the planning of future developments that sit across the street from its boundaries.

At a March Sarasota City Commission meeting, past Laurel Park President Jude Levy told commissioners the association received unanimous approval from residents at a November meeting to seek an overlay district that would allow Laurel Park to provide input on any large commercial project proposed within 100-feet of Laurel Park boundaries.

In the meantime, Lowman is hopeful Jebco Ventures will communicate its plans to residents in Laurel Park.
Bridges said he intends to discuss his plans with the neighbors:

“We are hopeful this smaller scale project is something Laurel Park residents will be very receptive to.”