Proposed apartments would replace Breakfast House and more on Fruitville

Adjacent to Gillespie Park, a 324-unit building would cover an entire block on Fruitville Road between North Osprey and Gillespie avenues.

By Andrew Warfield
| 5:00 a.m. March 19, 2026

The the site of the proposed 1899 Fruitville apartment development is outlined in red.

Sarasota
News

An apartment building that includes affordable housing units planned to replace an iconic stretch of Fruitville Road has begun its journey through the city of Sarasota’s administrative approval process.

Dubbed 1899 Fruitville Road, a five-story, 324-unit residential project on March 18 had its first appearance before the Development Review Committee. Should it successfully navigate the city’s staff approval gauntlet, it will replace the entire block of Fruitville Road and Fourth Street between Gillespie Avenue and North Osprey Avenue.

That covers 3.44 acres and 22 parcels that developer Bristol Development Group of Franklin, Tennessee, would purchase and demolish all structures to make way for the redevelopment. That includes one residential and multiple commercial buildings, most notably the rainbow row of former residences-turned-businesses along Fruitville Road, including The Breakfast House and German restaurant Siegfried’s.

Current street addresses on the block are 312 and 320 N. Osprey Ave.; 1826, 1834, 1858, 1862 and 1884 Fourth St.; 323, 329 and 335 Gillespie Ave.; and 1813, 1827, 1837, 1843, 1853, 1861, 1869, 1877 and 1899 Fruitville Road.

A sign tucked between buildings on Fruitville Road indicates the property is for sale. A Tennessee developer is proposing an apartment building covering the entire block between North Osprey and Gillespie avenues.

The application is requesting administrative site plan approval plus three adjustments. The property is zoned Downtown Edge with a future land use designation of Urban Edge. Because no rezoning is requested and the site is within a downtown zone district, approval will not include the public process.

With multiple staff comments needing addressed, a resubmittal to the DRC will be required.

Utilizing the city’s downtown attainable density bonus program, the project will include 36 attainable housing units.

According to the application, the proposed project includes one apartment-style building ranging from four stories along Fourth Street to five stories at its highest point. The height transition complies with a requirement that DTE-zoned sites adjacent to the Downtown Neighborhood (DTN) zone district are limited to one story above maximum maximum DTN height within 100 feet of the boundary. This results in the step-up to five stories beyond that 100-foot distance.

Internal to the project is a six-level, 439-space parking structure with one vehicle access point off Fruitville Road and two off Fourth Street.

A schematic drawing of the elevation of 1899 Fruitville facing Fruitville Road.

The proposal continues a trend of high-density residential redevelopment on the eastern edge of downtown.

The most recently completed such redevelopment is Aster & Links, which stands across Fruitville Road from the 1899 Fruitville Road site behind the Sprouts grocery store. Fronting Main Street, that development includes two 10-story buildings with 420 apartments and 50,000 square feet of commercial space.

On North Osprey Avenue between Main Street and Fruitville Road, The High Line is planned for 11 stories and 142 residential units. And just to the east are plans for Fruitville Gateway, a 274-unit multifamily building covering just more than 3 acres within the block of North Washington Boulevard, East Boulevard Fruitville Road and Fourth Street.

“Collectively, these completed, proposed and emerging developments create a cohesive pattern of urban, mid-rise residential density that aligns with and supports the proposed intensity for the proposed redevelopment,” reads the application.

Three adjustments are requested

Bristol Development Group is seeking three administrative adjustments to fit the proposal on the site. Adjustments are at the discretion of the city's Director of Development Services Lucua Panica. They are:

A reduction of 5% of the parallel facade requirement along Fourth Street to preserve two grand trees. Code requires a 70% parallel facade.
A reduction of the required 20-foot habitable space depth at two locations adjacent to the parking garage access fronting Fruitville Road and Fourth Street. Along Fruitville Road is a 6-foot habitable space in the form of a pedestrian corridor proposed between the garage and the building facade to increase pedestrian connectivity. On Fourth Street, the frontage must accommodate vehicle access to the parking garage, plus loading and refuse functions. Combined, those two exceptions total approximately a 5,132-square-foot reduction of habitable space.
Relief from the primary street prohibition of structured parking in the second layer on Fruitville Road and Fourth Street.

author

Andrew Warfield

Andrew Warfield is the Sarasota Observer city reporter. He is a four-decade veteran of print media. A Florida native, he has spent most of his career in the Carolinas as a writer and editor, nearly a decade as co-founder and editor of a community newspaper in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina.