Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/313059
provided the biggest spike, 9.3 percent, fol- lowed by the Northeast with 7 percent. Fewer tourists from Canada (down 3.2 per- cent) and Florida (also down 3.2 percent) came to Sarasota County in January through March of this year compared to the same months in 2013. Still, the total number of visitors for the sec- ond quarter was up 4.9 percent, with a total of 507,200. OTHER REVENUE FIGURES Along with good news on the tourism front, Sarasota County's April financial report shows the county's Building Department issued 141 permits in March, compared to 80 during that month in 2013, a 76.25 percent increase. The value of those projects reflected in the March 2014 permits is $23.8 million, up 137.35 per- cent from the March 2013 figure. Single-family home sales in March totaled 698, compared to 628 in March 2013, accord- ing to the Sarasota Association of Realtors. The average number of days a home spent on the market was 83 by the time a home was sold in March this year, while the number was 146 for units sold in March 2013. Further, the median price of single-family homes sold in March this year was $188,000, up 4.44 percent from the $180,000 figure of March 2013. Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport also reported a 6.94 percent increase in its passenger figures for March of this year over the March 2013 figure — 149,373 versus 139,677. % THE SARASOTA News Leader Old school journalism. 21st century delivery. The award-winning Sarasota News Leader Sarasota County's #1 digital news weekly! Read it online today at SarasotaNewsLeader.com/webapp The most comprehensive, unbiased coverage of local news and government in the Sarasota County area. Read it on your iPad, iPhone, Kindle, Nook, Android, Laptop, Computer or other Smartphones Available for FREE every Friday Sarasota News Leader May 16, 2014 Page 65