Bayfront Park open house sparks debate

The latest concepts for Bayfront Park include a kayak launch, pickleball and shuffleboard courts, small and large dog parks, a pavilion and pier, picnic areas and trails.

Longboat Key residents attended an open house Oct. 30 to discuss these concepts for the park and expressed both positive and negative opinions of the latest plans.

The meeting featured renderings of the revised plan for the park, along with its 2009 and 2012 concepts.
Key resident Bob Hamel expressed his frustrations with the lack of resident input on the newest plan.

“This was voted down twice by the town,” he said. “I see a schedule for construction, but I don’t see the possibility for a referendum. Why are we spending time on this without a referendum first? You have commissioner approval, but we need voter and resident approval.”

The original plans required a referendum because a community center was to be included in the park, which would have cost taxpayers several million dollars. Voters rejected a community center for the property in 2004.

The current plan does not require a referendum because it does not include a community center (although the town has not ruled out the possibility of a community center) and has alternative funding sources available.

“I personally am in favor of the park,” Madelyn Spoll said. “The only reason the town voted down the plan was because it cost that much with the community center.”

There are currently no parks on the Key that allow dogs to run around unleashed, and many residents expressed their support of a dog park as part of Bayfront Park plans.

Bill Anderson brought emails from more than 50 people in the community who could not attend the meeting but expressed interest in the dog park.

“Longboat is the nicest leashed dog park in the country,” he said. “We need an unleashed dog facility where our companions and friends can socialize as we socialize with them.”

One issue residents discussed was the possibility that the park could bring people from outside Longboat Key from areas such as Lido Key, Bradenton and Sarasota — but not everyone was concerned.

“I don’t think we’re going to have a huge influx of foreigners,” Gene Jaleski said. “It’s hard enough for those people to get off Coquina or Lido, let alone Longboat. I don’t think that’s a problem.”

Spoll said she believes mainly Longboat residents will use the park’s amenities.

“We hide our public beach access so well, people don’t know it exists,” she said. “This won’t be any different. This is for the people of Longboat Key.”

PARK AMENITIES
The Urban Land Institute Implementation Advisory Committee found widespread support for the following amenities at Bayfront Park:

• New recreation building
• Pickleball
• Restrooms
• Safe entrance
• Children’s area/playground
• Picnic area
• Covered pavilion
• Bocce ball
• Kayak rentals, storage
• Fishing pier
• Shuffleboard courts
• Multipurpose field, with baseball
• Performance/gathering/multiuse sports court
• Exercise stations
• Track for running, jogging, walking
• Basketball court
• Volleyball/badminton
• Flexible event space
• Exercise/fitness classes
• Technology hub
• Craft making area
• Bicycle facilities