Sarasota's Longboat Key Club and Resort is planning a major
redevelopment if approved by the Longboat Key town commission. The
improvements include a LEED-certified, five-star hotel with an
additional 196 units, a redesigned golf course and clubhouse, a wellness
center and meeting center.
Longboat Key Club
spokesperson Katherine Songster says the club's redevelopment is vital
to
Longboat's
longevity. "Forty percent of our visitors are repeat guests. Families
who come back generation after generation for vacations, weddings and
other major family events. And many of them end up buying property, So
many of our residents originally came here for a business conference,
brought their families back for vacation and then ended up buying a
home. By that second or third visit, they fall in love with Longboat and
end up buying property here."
Songster
estimates 500 jobs will be created by the redevelopment project, which
will cost $400 million to complete. She says the club is the largest
employer on the island, and one of the highest in the
Sarasota/
Manatee
area.
The redevelopment has caused some
controversy among residents. The club made concessions in its original
plan and hopes the new one will be approved at the town commission
meeting on June 7, 2010.
Fishkind & Associates was hired
to analyze the project and its financial effect on the community. "The
results were very revealing," says Songster.
According
to a project brochure, the redeveloped property will generate $17
million over the next 30 years and increase foot traffic on the island,
which will in turn increase tourism-related jobs. Construction is
estimated to generate $6 million in revenue.
Writer:
Missy KavanaughSource: Katherine Songster, Longboat Key Club and Resort
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