APRIL FOOL: Developer: 'Hard to see' any issues with 32-story Sarasota condo proposal

Sam Y. Osemite says he’s the first to concede the inspiration for his towering proposal on Sarasota’s waterfront isn’t typical. And, as the New Mexico-based developer says, he’s not ashamed to admit he’s been refining that "super-genius" spark of an idea over the six decades since it struck him as an 8-year-old glued to Saturday morning cartoons.

So, when financial backers, technical naysayers and city gadflies begin raising questions about SeaThrieux32, a 100-unit condo coming before the Sarasota Planning and Zoning Board on April 1, he says he’s ready.

“It’s going to be hard to see” grounds for opposition.

“I’ve been trying to be truly transparent every step of the way,’’ said Osemite, president and chief engineering officer of NowYouSeeIt Development LLC. “And we’ll be even more so as the process moves ahead.’’

Osemite made a name for himself in the Southwest throughout the early 21st century, building cutting-edge video systems for sports stadiums, arenas and celebrities’ luxury homes. With SeaThrieux32, at 4126 Palm Ave., it all comes together, he said, as a 32-story structure that will relegate the usual level of Sarasota dissent to the background.

“No more red T-shirts, no more protests about deeded view corridors, no more outrageous memes of elected officials in the pockets of Big Development, no yapping about blocked ocean breezes, nothing,’’ he said.

The secret, he said, is that Saturday morning inspiration drawn from iconic Warner Bros. cartoons. “I could never understand how the Road Runner would simply eat the birdseed in the trap, then simply race through the tunnel Wile E. Coyote had just painted on the side of cliff. I mean, it’s not there. But it was there, he ran right through it. Beep, beep! Until the coyote tried to follow. Splat!”

It’s taken time, Osemite says, but he has the answer to “splat!”

SeaThrieux32’s fascias will consist of edge-to-edge 4K video screens, fed by 4K cameras on the opposite sides of the building. The effect is a structure, through video feeds processed and stitched together by patented AI software, that not only fits into its surroundings but also disappears into them.

“You’ll never see us,’’ the developer said, showing Observer reporters the never-seen-publicly glimpses of his 10-story test building in the Sonoran Desert. As the video footage rolls, at first it’s a stark, black rectangle rising above the desert floor, then fading into a mirage-like visage of the landscape beyond, then all but vanishing into the low hills and cactus in the distance as the video systems come online.

“You’ve seen the future . . . well . . . maybe you didn’t really see it . . . anyway, now be part of it,’’ read draft promotional materials from NowYouSeeIt Homes, an in-house real estate division of the builder’s vertical parent corporation, NowYouSeeIt Holdings Ltd.

In addition to luxury touches normally associated with high-end buildings, residents will have a unique feature, also never before seen in the residential market.

With conventional windows impossible, residents will have their own inward-facing screens instead, which display real-time outside views “or scenery from any one of 100 destinations in our database,’’ Chief Sales Officer Reginald “Pepe” Le Pew said. “Monte Carlo, Vail, St. Moritz, Venice, Nantucket. You name it, we probably have it. This is truly a one-of-a-kind experience.’’

Prices have not been set but likely will be among the most expensive in Florida.

Wind turbines will generate their own sea breezes, matching local conditions, to mitigate the 380-foot-tall building’s wind-blocking effects, and solar panels on the roof will power up to 75% of the video cameras, screens and image-processing equipment. Heat generated by the equipment will be cycled into a closed-loop system not only furnishing hot water to the residential units but available free of charge to surrounding properties.

“See, nothing to protest at all,’’ Osemite said, adding groundbreaking is already set weeks before final city consideration given that the project will meet all administrative approvals.

“Don’t be too sure,’’ said Kelly Hyde, a frequent speaker and social media influencer on matters of development, when contacted by a reporter. “This is Sarasota, we can find something to object to. Even if we can’t see it.’’

Happy April Fools’ Day from the Observer! This story is not real news. Hope you’re as relieved as we are!