An uplifting sight downtown

A towering crane, a closed road and a crowd of people looking skyward added up to something you don’t see downtown every day.

Work to lift and remove the FirstSarasota church’s steeple occupied a lot of onlookers’ time Monday and Tuesday.

The steeple, which was damaged in Hurricane Irma when its massive cross fell to the street, was gently lowered to a waiting truck. When it’s repaired and ready to be replaced, the process will likely repeat.

City officials closed Main Street from Adelia Avenue to Pine Place for most of the two days, but traffic is flowing normally again.