Longboat Island Chapel takes in The Paradise Center

Leaders from The Paradise Center and Longboat Island Chapel announced on July 20 the church is set to become the community center's new home.

In May, the center shared it would likely need to relocate from its headquarters at 546 Bay Isles Road with the sale of the larger Tidewell building.

Over the past few months, leaders at The Paradise Center have been determining the best way forward.

This move is a bit of a homecoming for the center, which began as an outreach program at the chapel in 2008 under the name "Aging in Paradise Resource Center" and grew to become an independent nonprofit located centrally on the island.

On Sunday, Executive Director Amy Steinhauser said she, board members and instructors are all excited to still have a home on Longboat Key.

"It really is a godsend," she said. "I'm so grateful that Reverend Brock [Patterson] approached us and said we have space, because we were really concerned."

Photo by Dana Kampa

Steinhauser said she and her team searched the island extensively, but few locations could fit the community center's space needs while still being affordable for a nonprofit.

The chapel has been in the midst of extensive renovations this summer, primarily prompted by hurricane damage from October. 

Patterson explained the church was happy to step up and offer the space if it meant keeping such a valuable on-island service available, one that means so much to residents.

"The work they do is invaluable," he said. "When we first heard about what was happening at The Paradise Center, we said it makes sense."

He continued, "Community center activities, a lot of times, are the only way people stay active and socialize. It's their only opportunity, especially for folks who can't afford to join a country club or able to easily leave the island."

This summer, The Paradise Center has continued to maintain its programming, and Steinhauser said it will continue to offer its regular classes until the last week of August at the Tidewell building. She said the center's regular instructors will hold their programs at the chapel, and some possible new items like bingo.

The center is also closing at 1 p.m. Wednesdays through Fridays while staff work on move preparations.

To help facilitate, the center is calling on community members to lend their support. 

Louis and Gloria Flanzer Philanthropic Trust is matching donations between $5 and $500, through Donate.FlanzerTrust.org. Donations exceeding $500 are tax deductible through GiveButter. Visit GiveButter.com/rokno6.

Final remodeling at the church and other factors will determine the opening date at the chapel.

"If we can start right away in September, we will, but we have a few last things to work out," she added.

They noted the community center will remain open to the public, not solely for congregation members.

Next up to find a new home is Reed Medical Group, which had been using the Tidewell Building as a temporary home after Hurricane Helene.

Director of Operations Sara Lilly said Reed Medical Group will move to a new location soon.

“We have been here since a week or two after Helene hit,” she said. “We were at 6350 Gulf of Mexico Drive — that was our home base. Then Helene came, and we got four and a half feet of water.”

She said the original church leasing the space recently was bulldozed to become a parking lot. But the group is looking forward, preparing to move to a location at the Publix plaza.

Lilly added they always intended the Tidewell location to be temporary. They are still working to determine the exact opening date.

“We are excited for the expansion, especially after we just opened a new space in Lakewood Ranch,” she said. “We’re also doing a buildout in an office near the hospital in Bradenton. That’s expected to open in early to late fall.”

Tom Simonian, a Longboat Key resident, purchased the Tidewell property in a sale that closed March 18.

He explained in an interview he planned to renovate the property, making it an up-to-date asset to the community in a central location.

"Unfortunately, the building and the grounds — really most of the exterior and mechanical systems — have been neglected over the years," he said in an interview after the sale. "It's going to need some investment to get it back to a level A building."

Simonian said he planned to update everything, from the parking lot to landscaping to painting to air conditioning and electrical systems.

Simonian extended residents' leases through August, and he planned to first offer current tenants the opportunity to stay, at the new rates, before marketing to other businesses. 

"We've had a number of folks contact us, interested in taking up occupancy if anyone leaves," he added. "It's a fantastic location."

He explained, "Office space on Longboat Key is limited to begin with. Given the limited inventory and location, it makes for an ideal opportunity."

Simonian said the increase in rent both offsets the renovation costs and brings it more on par with rising property costs across the island.

"It'll be a more attractive, professional, higher caliber look," he said, noting how the area is essential to everyone who does their grocery shopping, banking, postage and business with town hall at the hub that is Bay Isles Road.