Longboat considers kayak vendors for Bayfront Park

As a kayak-rental customer, Longboat Key Assistant Town Manager Mike Hein knows firsthand just how chaotic the rental process on Lido Key can be.

“It’s a bit of a gauntlet, entering and exiting,” Hein said.

Longboat Key management has crafted an ordinance in an effort to ensure Bayfront Park, which will be home to a kayak launch once it reopens after $3.5 million in upgrades, does not experience the same environment that often surrounds watercraft rentals on Lido.

The ordinance, which passed last week at a Town Commission meeting, requires any commercial vendor seeking to operate within any public place on Longboat Key to first enter into a concessionaire agreement with the town.

At the meeting, Longboat Key Planning, Zoning and Building Director Alaina Ray explained why such an agreement is necessary.

“Currently, a kayak vendor can go to one of our parks or one of our bay accesses and essentially stay there,” Ray explained.

Town staff envisions entering into an agreement with one nonmotorized watercraft vendor, Hein said, and the process for selecting the vendor will be competitive. Once the vendor is chosen, the agreement will be brought before the Town Commission for approval.

Hein stressed that financial gain is not the town’s primary concern.

“This isn’t as much about generating revenue as it is about providing a quality service to the residents of Longboat Key,” Hein said.

When the town sends out a request for proposal, which will likely happen within the next few weeks, the spot will not necessarily go to the vendor who offers the highest bid, Hein explained. Instead, the town is more concerned about customer service.

For example, if there is a high demand from Longboat residents for certain activities, like sunset tours, paddleboard yoga or children’s programs, Hein wants to know that the vendor will adapt.

Town staff held an informational meeting with kayak and watercraft vendors two weeks ago to discuss the process and expectations.

Seven vendors attended the meeting, including Bob Nikla, owner of I Kayak Sarasota.

Nikla, who often serves Longboat residents when they rent kayaks on Lido, said Sarasota County’s medallion system is responsible for many of the problems that exist at places like Ted Sperling Park. In this system, a vendor must pay $500 for every kayak in use per year, which can be a challenge when the season only lasts several months.

“It almost works against you,” Nikla said. “The higher the fee, the harder you have to work, the more kayaks you have to put out.”

Nikla said it would be “a miserable mistake for Longboat Key” if the town had chosen to operate under a system similar to Sarasota County’s.

If his business is selected, Nikla plans to offer guided tours of the mangroves near Bayfront Park, which he said have not had much exposure to kayaking. He’s also considering the possibility of full moon tours.

“We’re hoping we have a good shot,” Nikla said. “(Longboat Key is) not looking for someone who will take over the park, and I don’t want to do that anyway.”

At last week’s Commission meeting, Commissioner Ed Zunz expressed concerns about potential issues regarding storage of watercraft. While there will be on-site storage available to the public, Hein said, it is yet to be determined whether the vendor will require on-site storage.

“Some of the vendors we have met with said they would like on-site storage,” Hein said. “Others do not.”

Nikla said, if I Kayak Sarasota is selected, he imagines his business would come and go with its equipment.

Mark Richardson, Longboat Key’s Streets, Facilities, Parks and Recreation manager, said kayak rentals at Bayfront Park started the conversation about the ordinance, but emphasized the ordinance also applies to all potential vendors for any public space on the Key.

Town management hopes to have the vendor in place in June when the park opens, he said.

Along with the concessionaire agreement, the ordinance also includes the addition of a $100 fee for special events in public places, like weddings on the beach, as well as an established reimbursement fee for public resources that are expended during those special events, like beach cleanup.