The Mira Mar: A case of tradeoffs

Get ready for another episode of “The Resistors,” a 50-year continuing entertainment series on opposition to downtown Sarasota development. 

Seaward Development, one of Sarasota’s premier developers, is scheduled to appear Wednesday, March 12, before the Sarasota Planning Board to request a rezoning and comprehensive plan amendment so it can save and rehabilitate the historic Mira Mar retail complex on South Palm Avenue.

At the crux of the requests: Having heard the repeated desires of Sarasota’s preservationists, Seaward founder, owner and CEO Patrick DiPinto has spent three years trying to figure out how to restore the beloved and crumbling, classic Mediterranean-revival retail shops.

After DiPinto has invested more than $1 million in architectural and engineering restoration experts, the experts arrived at the price tag for restoration: A throat-drying, gulping $25 million to $29 million.

Many developers would just say: “Forget it. Raze it; not worth the hassle.”

But DiPinto, who has created an impressive portfolio of luxury Sarasota residences and the signature, 18-story Epoch condominium on Mound, has devised a proposal that would fund the restoration of the Mira Mar shops.

Staff photo

The plan would require tradeoffs, specifically zoning and comprehensive plan tradeoffs.

To fund the Mira Mar restoration, DiPinto wants to construct two 18-story condominium buildings behind the Mira Mar, much like the 18-story DeMarcay next door. That project preserved the historic facades of the former DeMarcay Hotel and Roth Cigar Factory.

Take a walk on the east side of Palm Avenue. At street level, you’d never realize there is an 18-story condo building behind the old hotel.

DiPinto and Seaward want to do the same behind the Mira Mar. Sales of the upper floors of the two condos (70 units altogether) would provide the $25 million needed for the Mira Mar’s restoration.

To accomplish that, however, Seaward is requesting the city amend its comprehensive future land-use plan and zoning for the property from Downtown Core to Downtown Bayfront. The difference is this: Downtown Core allows up to 10 stories; Downtown Bayfront allows up to 18 stories.

Now, before you roll your eyes and say to yourself: “Here we go again. Another greedy developer more concerned about profits than anything else,” take a breath and consider what DiPinto has done and history surrounding the property.

For one, when DiPinto purchased the Mira Mar from Sarasota developer Mark Kaufman, he knew he was acquiring a crumbling complex. But he didn’t know just how crumbling it was, or that it wasn’t the historic building people think it is.

In fact, DiPinto told us: “The Mira Mar building is not the original historic building that was built 100 years ago. It is a re-make of the original building built in 1922.” It has been patched up multiple times over the past 50 years.

If truth be told, behind the charming Mediterranean-revival architecture you see from the street, it’s not much of a joking exaggeration to say the only way those buildings remain standing is because of all the termites holding hands.

Nevertheless, DiPinto says: “We are locals. We love the property. Our team has decided rather than build a glass modern building that would not fit on this location, we are intending to honor the history of the site. Our goal is to retain the unique charm and character of the neighborhood.”

Score one for DiPinto.

But now come the tradeoffs, which, no doubt, are likely to bring out the resistors. It comes down to this: Without converting the comp plan and zoning to Downtown Bayfront, DiPinto says he would indeed tear down the Mira Mar. Two 10-story condo buildings (with limited views of the bay, mind you) would not generate the $29 million to renovate the Mira Mar.

“If the city denies the 18 stories,” DiPinto told us, “we will then build a 200-plus-unit apartment building. With a rental project there is no sales element, and therefore no pathway to the $29 million and no saving of the Mira Mar.”

The rezoning is neither precedent setting nor unreasonable. For instance, it makes no sense that the DeMarcay next door was and is zoned Downtown Bayfront, but the Mira Mar is not. What’s more, prior to 2005, when the city adopted its current comprehensive plan, the Mira Mar block was zoned to allow heights of 18 stories.

Everyone can foresee how this is likely to go. The usual contingents will come out and complain of overdevelopment and how two more 18-story condo buildings will be out of scale and overburden city infrastructure, and on and on.

It’s all about tradeoffs. Do you want to preserve the character of that portion of Palm Avenue, one of the most unique streetscapes in downtown Sarasota? Likewise, what is preferred: 70 more condo units in two 18-story condos, or 200-plus apartments in 10 stories?

The Resistors would say neither. But consider this: DiPinto has lived, raised his children and developed high-quality residences here for 25 years. He intends to stay. But if he doesn’t redevelop the Mira Mar as he proposes, he could easily walk away and sell that priceless property to a devil you don’t know.

The city Planning Board and City Commission members are about to face another tough call. It would be difficult to reject DiPinto’s plan with the shadow of the DeMarcay hovering next door.