Rowing park gains momentum

As Sarasota County braces to host the 2017 World Rowing Championships, local organizations are throwing their support to seeing plans for Nathan Benderson Park fulfilled as quickly as possible.

By Pam Eubanks
| 5:17 p.m. August 21, 2015

Nicole Rissler and Scott Anderson are eager to see Nathan Benderson Community Park be fully developed and operational.

East County
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EAST COUNTY — Scott Anderson’s coworkers and friends joke about his addiction to wearing his name badge.

But these days, it’s getting him extra attention. His lapel sports two — one for his full-time role as senior philanthropic adviser with the Gulf Coast Community Foundation and another for his temporary post as vice president of philanthropy with the Nathan Benderson Community Park Foundation.

“It’s a great conversation piece,” Anderson said. “I wear both badges everywhere.”

The Gulf Coast Community Foundation has put Anderson on loan for the next six months as the park foundation works hard to raise capital not only for a boathouse to accommodate the 2017 World Rowing Championships at Nathan Benderson Park, but also a larger vision that includes a state-of-the-art playground, a dog park, jumbotrons, a 2,500-seat amphitheater and other amenities, in addition to an endowment to fund the park’s day-to-day operations.

Total park improvements will cost about $22 million, of which $5.3 million has been raised. The endowment would be in excess of that figure.

“Everything’s coming together,” said NBCP Foundation board member Joe Barbetta. “The real linchpin was the groundbreaking for the first building for the finish tower. For years, everything’s been horizontal. The first building is iconic. This is going to send the message that this is going to be premier, one of the top three in the world and probably top in the country for a sports venue.”

Anderson will play a key role in sharing that message, Barbetta said.

“That’s why being on loan is so important,” Anderson said, noting the Gulf Coast Community Foundation manages $300 million and has a donor base of more than 700 philanthropists. “The goals here are massive. There’s not any one person who can take care of it all. It takes a group effort. We had to help in some way.

“The economic impact the park has had on the community has been huge, and it’s only going to get bigger,” he said.

Anderson joins Nicole Rissler, the new chief operating officer for Suncoast Aquatic Nature Center & Associates, the entity that runs the park for Sarasota County, who started her new position Aug. 4. As the director of sports for Visit Sarasota and the Sarasota County Sports Commission, she was on a loan, of sorts, throughout her career and particularly as she transitioned to SANCA, when she split her time 50/50 from July 20 through Aug. 3.

“There were times already when more than 50% of my job was linked to this facility,” Rissler said. “As we ebbed and flowed, we joked about having an executive on loan. Was it fair to other sports entities and other sports that I was spending so much time here?”

In the end, Rissler completed an extended transition from Visit Sarasota to SANCA, and now works to see the park’s business development and help bridge the gap between operational challenges and resources to complete those projects.

“It’s busy but exciting,” Rissler said. “This is a legacy all of us are going to be so proud of.”

She will work closely with Anderson and other park staff members as Anderson takes prospective philanthropists on tours of the parks and promotes the park and its offerings, including rowing camps for underprivileged children, adaptive rowing and other programs.

SANCA, Sarasota break ground on first vertical structure

At 19 years old, Donovan Keene sees the venue at Nathan Benderson Park with a unique perspective. Having grown up with the Sarasota Scullers on the lake there, he now completes his winter training with Harvard University’s rowing team at the facility.

“I had my very first race here and have volunteered here a lot from the time it was a pond to now a course that has hosted national championships,” Keene said. “It’s really cool this could host the world rowing championships and maybe the Olympics one day."
Keene joined more than 50 other officials and members of the public Aug. 21 for the groundbreaking of the park’s finish tower — it’s first vertical structure.

The tower, which is being funded by the private Nathan Benderson Park Community Foundation, will be part of the world-class rowing facility at the 600-acre community park owned by Sarasota County and operated by Suncoast Aquatic Nature Center Associations. The five-story structure will house park offices, event officials and media and have special meting rooms, community space and decks with views of the park, among other features.

The foundation intends to donate the facility to Sarasota County once it’s completed.

At the ceremony, Randy Benderson, president of Benderson Development and son of the park’s namesake, Nathan Benderson, said he’d been among the project’s biggest doubters with Benderson employees pitched a vision to transform a fishing pond into a 2,000-meter rowing course years ago. Now, he might be the park’s biggest enthusiast, and the start of the finish tower is just the start of a larger vision being fulfilled.

“Even though this is called the finish tower, it’s really just the beginning,” Benderson said.

Anderson said the most challenging piece of his new dual role will be dedicating 25% of his work hours specifically to the park, per the agreement. He already has a full set of duties with Gulf Coast Community Foundation requirements, but will use nearly every opportunity meeting with philanthropists to duplicate efforts. He’ll be seeking out corporate sponsorships, local and national, for the park, as well as private donations.

“A person doesn’t have to give a million dollars to make a significant difference,” Anderson said. “My goal obviously is to have some very strong corporate support, and then I want strong community support. The Sarasota community has some of the best philanthropists you could ever meet. Their philanthropy will help transform this part and make it what I cal the central park of Sarasota."

Anderson said he expects the park foundation board to hire a full-time development director to raise capital for the foundation after his “lease” is up, to continue the momentum.

“The success is on the books,” Anderson said. “This is going to be one of the coolest places on the west coast of Florida.”

Contact Pam Eubanks at [email protected].