Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/211425
Sarasota News Leader November 15, 2013 Page 34 Downtown Residential Overlay District. This to slow things down. Steven Seidensticker is a co-owner of Louies Modern in the base of is a first-come, first-served deal. the Palm Avenue parking garage. He is asking The underlying zoning density is multiplied the city to reconsider a plan to start charging by the number of acres in the district. In the for parking in that facility, hoping the comcase of the Rosemary, it is 25 units per acre mission will delay it until after the end of the times 71 acres, or a total of 1,775 dwelling coming tourist season. units. The total number of dwelling units in the overlay district would not change, but The city is running a deficit of half a million dollars per year in its Parking Department — a their distribution could. result of removing brand new parking meters Merrill's client, Rosalyne Holdings, could from downtown. While free parking makes request triple the regular density for a project the city one of the most car-friendly places (say 75 units per acre). If the project covered in the world, somebody has to pay for all the 10 acres, then a developer could build 750 parking facilities maintenance and enforceunits. ment of time limits. However, those units would be subtracted from the overlay's total of 1,775, leaving 1,025 units still available. In other words, an "early bird" could harvest the triple-density bonus, leaving fewer units available for the next triple-density developer. Merrill is asking for a city incentive to get development started across Fruitville Road from downtown. It would produce the type of units experts say is needed downtown — affordable housing for young workers, either rental or for purchase. Merrill does not want to wait for the next City of Sarasota Comprehensive Plan amendment cycle to begin next year. His client "has a short timeline for developing this project and would like to have the Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Text Amendments in place by next summer," the staff memo says. KEEP MY PARKING FREE In an effort to keep on-street parking free, the City Commission decided to charge for use of its parking garages. The plan was set to kick off on Jan. 6, 2014. In a memo, staffers note that if Seidensticker's request is granted, "there is the potential of other construction projects in the vicinity of the garage (the North Palm Avenue drainage, Palm Avenue Hotel offsite improvements, etc.) that could make business activities particularly difficult in this area of downtown." In other words, the requested delay — if granted — could lead to more requests for holding off on paid parking in the Palm Avenue garage as more construction activity gets under way in its vicinity. Staff makes no recommendation, dropping the decision in the commission's lap. A MOMENT OF TRUTH The greatest drama of the evening is expected While Merrill is looking to make some fast to come with the last item on the agenda. Will changes, a downtown restaurateur is trying the city continue to pay for the legal defense