Buchanan's $1 million donation formally accepted for library

A public library and community hub set to begin construction on Longboat Key in 2027 will officially bear the name of its biggest financial supporters, town residents U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan and his wife, Sandra.

Although it was announced last summer, Sarasota County commissioners officially accepted on Dec. 16 a commitment for $1 million from the Vernon G. and Sandra J.C. Buchanan Foundation. According to the donation and naming-rights agreement, “the county agrees to name the new library in honor of the donor and to use mutually agreed upon signage that complies with applicable laws, zoning, and regulatory requirements.’’

The donations are to be in five installments, beginning this year, and extending no later than 2029.

“Sandy and I have been looking for an opportunity to give back to our Longboat community and when this project was presented to us it was a perfect match,” Buchanan said in a statement last summer when the donation was announced. “We are all about community, and this space will be a gathering place for Longboat residents and visitors for generations to come.”

The library to be built on the Town Center Green is a collaborative effort between the town and county. The town donated the land and the county will design the library with town input. Library and Historical Resources Director Renee Di Pilato said they picked Orlando's Borelli + Partners as the architecture firm and Jon F. Swift Inc. will be the construction manager. While the $11 million library will be paid for through county funds, additional community center space was funded by a private drive that exceeded $3.5 million.

In addition to the Buchanans donations, other naming rights are still unannounced. Among them:

• $500,000 (of which there is one donor): would name both the indoor and outdoor community spaces, referred to as the community hall.
• There would be space to recognize other project donors.

Because these requests are atypical of the county’s naming-rights conventions, county commission approval was required.

Buchanan has represented the region in Congress since 2007. That region has shifted over the years, though. His 16th District now encompasses nearly all of Manatee County and a segment of Hillsborough and none of Sarasota County. Buchanan and his wife, Sandy, have lived in Longboat Key for four decades.

The vision for the library is for an educational and leisure resource and also as a gathering spot for classes, events and other activities for which there is no current central location.

Currently, there are several libraries named in honor of families/individuals including: the Betty J. Johnson North Sarasota Library, the Frances T. Bourne Jacaranda Library, the Selby Library, the Shannon Staub Library, and the William H. Jervey, Jr. Venice Library.