Listing price for Players Theatre in Sarasota drops

The board of directors for The Players Centre for Performing Arts announced on Thursday it would lower the asking price of its current theater at 838 N. Tamiami Trail in Sarasota from $12.5 million to $9.5 million.

“Our market research and intelligence was telling us that the original asking price was not going to bring the kind of serious interest we needed to sell this property,” said Ian Black of Ian Black Real Estate, the firm managing the listing, in a release. “We believe the new asking price is better aligned to attract buyers looking for this special kind of development opportunity.”

Michelle Bianchi, CEO and managing director of The Players Centre for the Performing Arts, said April 17 she hoped the board would be patient with its $12.5 million asking price. She was speaking to 25 theater "ambassadors" at a special function at the Lake Club clubhouse in Lakewood Ranch.

Bianchi cited confidence in the higher asking price because the property offers what she calls, "the last unobstructed view of the bay" in that area.

In May of 2016, the theater announced its planned move to Waterside at Lakewood Ranch. The new $30 million complex will be the anchor of Waterside Place. The theater hoped to build in three stages, roughly $10 million each, if a capital drive and the sale of its existing theater didn't raise enough money to build in one shot.

“The board feels confident that lowering the asking price will open up more opportunities for finding the right buyer for this property,” Bianchi said Thursday in a release. “We see this as a positive step toward fulfilling our ultimate goal of building a beautiful new complex in Lakewood Ranch.”