Sarasota Orchestra receives $5 million gift for new music venue

As design work continues on the new Sarasota Orchestra Music Center, Tom and Sherry Koski of Sarasota have contributed $5 million to the project estimated to cost between $375 million and $425 million to build.

The Music Center will be located at the orchestra’s 32-acre property at 5701 Fruitville Road. 

Tom Koski has been a member of the Sarasota Orchestra Board of Directors since 2014 and is currently serving as chairman. Although a formal capital campaign has yet to begin, the orchestra has received $75 million across three gifts toward the project.

“There is nothing wrong with this world that a great education can’t fix, and you can’t have a great education without the arts,” Koski said in a news release. “For Sherry and me, this gift is deeply personal, and we feel this is our lasting legacy to the Sarasota community we love. The Music Center and its world-class concert hall will be an important tile in the mosaic for performing arts in Sarasota.”

The orchestra is planning an all-encompassing campus across three buildings — a maximum 1,800-seat concert hall, a 700-seat recital hall and an education wing, all connected by a courtyard. Much of the campus will be for parking and 12 acres of wetlands. 

Recently revealed are schematic designs by William Rawn Associates of Boston, the lead architect for the project. 

“Tom and Sherry’s leadership and generosity embody the spirit that has sustained Sarasota Orchestra for 75 years and cemented Sarasota’s legacy as a beacon for the arts,” said Sarasota Orchestra Vice Chair David Green in the news release. “They give not for recognition, but because they truly care about this orchestra, our musicians and the community we serve. This gift to the Music Center is an extraordinary expression of their faith in the Orchestra’s future and their enduring belief in the arts as a force for good in our community.”

Groundbreaking for the Music Center is anticipated to occur in 2027.