- May 5, 2024
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With three weeks still to go before the Jan. 28 groundbreaking of the $21.5 million Siesta Beach Park renovation project, the Siesta Key Village Association is already on edge about the project potentially limiting access to the area’s top tourism draw.
The association of Siesta Village business owners met for the first time in 2014 on Tuesday, and wedding permits for Siesta Beach Park were the meeting’s hot topic, foreshadowing what will likely be a two-year-long dialogue between county officials and Siesta business owners about how best to mitigate the potentially harmful impacts of the Siesta Beach renovations to the island’s tourism industry.
Association members raised concerns about rumors that Sarasota County Parks and Recreation would be canceling all wedding permits at Siesta Beach in 2015, claiming such a move would negatively impact the revenue of restaurants, retailers and hotels that depend on tourist dollars for their bottom lines.
“This could really impact businesses on the Key,” said Russell Matthes, co-owner of the Daiquiri Deck Raw Bar. “You can't just say no to people wanting to get married at Siesta and have them go to Venice Beach or Turtle Beach.”
County officials, however, rejected the rumor, declaring that wedding permits will be available for all of 2015. The only caveat, according to Sarasota County Press Information Officer Curt Preisser, is that during the 2015 “wedding season,” which runs from March through June, the park’s historic pavilion will be under construction, requiring couples to move their ceremonies to other beach access sites.
“It’s not that we aren’t going to be doing weddings at the beach, it’s just that we can’t guarantee a particular section of the beach will be available,” Preisser said. “County Parks and Recreation know that wedding days are very special days. There are access points to the beach that are going to be accessible, and staff will be willing to work with couples wishing to get married during that time.”
To plan a wedding at Siesta Key Beach, couples are required to obtain a permit from Sarasota County Parks and Recreation, which costs $54 per hour with a three-hour minimum.
Preisser said 212 permits were issued in 2013 by Sarasota County Parks and Recreation staff for events at Siesta Beach Park, the majority of which were for weddings.
When asked if construction could potentially limit public access to the beach, Preisser said: “The beach is going to remain open during the project,” adding, “We’re not doing any construction on the beach; we’re not touching the sand.”
Other topics discussed at Tuesday’s meeting:
Siesta residents still have concerns about a proposed U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project to mine Big Pass for Lido Beach sand. Siesta Key Association Member Michael Shay, who attended Tuesday’s SKVA meeting, said the Army Corps had yet to follow up with a detailed study on how the proposed dredging and its three erosion control jetties (known as groins) would impact Siesta Key beaches. Shay said the Corps had pushed back the release of the study from January to March. “The fact is they don't know what impact it will have on Siesta,” said SKA Member Peter van Roekens, who also attended Tuesday’s SKVA meeting, referring to the Corps’ study of the dredging project’s impact on Siesta beaches.
SKVA members also discussed county waste management policies for Siesta Key as well as maintenance issues related to recycling containers located along Ocean Boulevard.
SKVA members also called for an update from the Sarasota County Commission on the status of a proposed trolley service intended to provide transportation out the Key.
The next Siesta Key Village Association meeting is scheduled for 8:30 a.m., Feb. 3, at the Daiquiri Deck Raw Bar, 5250 Ocean Blvd., Siesta Key.
Contact Nolan Peterson at [email protected]
