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While a buyer could choose to renovate the plaza or lease it out as is, significant redevel- opment is seen as a strong possibility because of the County Commission's approval in February of a proposed Kimpton Hotel proj- ect on an acre across U.S. 301 from the plaza, said John Harshman, a commercial real estate broker in Sarasota. That former county par- cel, located less than a block east of Sarasota Main Plaza, is home to a county parking lot. The 8.6-acre site on Main is zoned Downtown Core, which allows buildings up to 10 stories as well as mixed uses, from restaurants and a hotel to condos, stores and office space. Up to 50 residential units per acre are per- mitted. Harshman said those options do not necessarily mean a potential developer would build towers across the entire footprint. For example, a developer could keep the park- ing deck and movie theater and concentrate allowable residential density limits in certain areas of the parcel. "Doing something a little taller in some sections might make sense," Harshman pointed out. Yet, the opportunity also exists to redevelop the land, Harshman noted, so storefronts or restaurants would line Main Street as speci- fied in the city's New Urbanist construction code. The property for sale does not include the Staples and new Bank of America branch on Fruitville Road just north of the plaza. A red dotted line shows the Main Plaza property in downtown Sarasota. The commercial parcel includes more than 250,000 square feet situated on 8.6 acres in downtown Sarasota. Contributed image Sarasota News Leader August 8 & 15, 2014 Page 9