Our view

Two topics that appear to be the subjects of many dinner conversations these days on Longboat Key are: the ideas of a town center near Publix and a new cultural center nearby.

Longboaters are not the only ones discussing such issues. Across the bay in Sarasota, a similar conversation is beginning on how to transform the 75 acres comprising the Van Wezel Performing Arts Center, the shuttered G-WIZ museum and the former Quay property into a world-class cultural park.

Longboat Key taxpayers won’t have any electoral power in what the city of Sarasota ultimately decides to do with the cultural park. But as staunch patrons of Sarasota’s arts, Longboat arts supporters may want to make sure they have a voice … or two as those conversations progress.

The results will be crucial to the entire region — Longboat Key to be sure.

Imagine the amazing possibilities.

Over the past few months, Michael Klauber, owner of Michael’s on East and chairman of VisitSarasota, and VisitSarasota President Virginia Haley have spearheaded efforts to bring together the boards of VisitSarasota, arts organizations, economic development organizations and the Van Wezel Foundation to begin discussions on how to make the dream of a world-class cultural center become reality.

And just imagine: A cultural park that replaces the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall with a Kennedy Center-like plaza able to accommodate comfortably halls for Sarasota Orchestra, Sarasota Ballet and Sarasota Opera simultaneously. Imagine a cultural park with the rehearsal studios and facilities to create suitable, permanent homes for these cultural gems.

Imagine a linear, landscaped park for all to enjoy, stretching the length of the property from Sarasota Bay Club south to the Beau Ciel condominium. And imagine an attractive mix of additional hotel and meeting space, offices, condominiums and appropriate restaurants and retail — bustling with visitors and residents alike.

It can happen. And it should.

Getting there, however, is practically a pipe dream.

Here’s why: The Sarasota City Commission and city of Sarasota government.

With all due respect to those good people on the commission and working inside City Hall, history has shown for nearly a half-century these institutions are incapable of big things. Even little things.

Sure, we have the 10-year-old Ringling Bridge, the most significant addition to Sarasota since the 1960s. But even that took a decade to come to fruition. It finally happened not because of leadership from city commissioners or the city itself, but largely because of one man, Gil Waters, who had the persistence and passion to rally public support. It was one of the most excruciating, contentious and ugly times in modern city history.

So imagine. Knowing what you know about how the City Commission has such a knack of bungling and obstructing economic opportunities, imagine the City Commission trying to make decisions on what should or shouldn’t be developed on the Van Wezel property. Imagine the exhausting, interminable debates. Imagine the city commissioners meddling into every detail of what is placed where on the property. Imagine them caving in, as they typically do, to the vision-less naysayers who resist any attempt to make Sarasota a more vibrant place.

Imagine the Sarasota City Commission leading the transformation of the Van Wezel and G-WIZ property into a world-renowned cultural park.

It won’t happen.

There is a way, though.

If Klauber, Haley, all of the interested arts organizations, business leaders, neighborhood associations and believers in the potential of Sarasota are serious about this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, they must persuade the city and commissioners to let go.

Turn over ownership and governing control of the entire 75 acres, including the Quay property, to a special taxing district and authority. In effect, create another Reedy Creek Improvement District — the governing authority over everything that happens within the confines of Walt Disney World’s 25,000 acres in Central Florida.

After the late Walt Disney accumulated all of the property for his City of Tomorrow, he obtained approval from the Legislature to create Reedy Creek. Because it owns the property and appoints members to its board of supervisors, decision-making is fast; bureaucratic delays are non-existent.

To be sure, many of Sarasota’s City Hall meddlers would shudder in horror at the idea of the City Commission giving up control of how the Van Wezel property is developed, governed and managed. But it’s the only way the dream will come true. To leave decision-making up to five elected commissioners will assure failure, or, at best, a frustrating disappointment.

We’re not sure an exact replica of the Reedy Creek Improvement District would apply to a Sarasota cultural park. In the case of Disney World, the Walt Disney Co. essentially is the Reedy Creek Improvement District. As such, it has had access to capital and counted on its attraction to generate the cash to fund construction and maintenance of its City of Tomorrow.

Similar financing may not feasible for a cultural park. Certainly it would help if the privately owned Quay property paid in taxes to a special cultural district taxing authority what it would otherwise pay to the city and county.

But those are details to be addressed. The key point here is if there is to be a world-class cultural park, there must be owners — an independent governing authority — with “skin” in the game. It won’t work with just “renters” and elected politicians. Just look at what exists now as proof of that.

City commissioners must give up control.

+ About that Wolfer purchase
Here’s an issue the new Longboat Key Town Commission will likely face when the election is over.

As Longboaters now know, the Town Commission voted to approve a $1.5 million purchase of the Einisman-Wolfer property near Publix. They saw it as a way to help secure property for the potential future development of a town center.

The funds for the purchase came from the town’s parks and open-space land acquisition fund. This fund was set up to extort — our term — money, land or both from developers in exchange for permission to build on Longboat Key. It typically only applied to big projects, mostly all of the big condominium projects on the Key.

In the process of approving the purchase of the Wolfer property, town commissioners were told that if the town found a developer for the town center, the town could sell the Wolfer property to a developer and then re-deposit the funds back in the land-acquisition fund.

So just for clarification, we read the town code. Here is what it says:

158.017 Parks and open space land acquisition. (J) The fees collected under this section shall be paid to the town at Town Hall, 501 Bay Isles Road, Longboat Key, Florida. All such fees, including any fees collected pursuant to Ordinances 79-7, 80-1, 80-9 and 81-27, shall be placed in a reserve account in trust within the general fund and shall be known as the reserve for lands for parks land open space. Monies in the reserve account shall be used and expended solely for the acquisition, improvement and expansion of town parks and open space land.

Key words: “Shall be used and expended solely (italics added) for the acquisition, improvement and expansion of town parks and open space land.”

It sounds like once a park, always a park. Uh-oh.

+ ‘Medical’ marijuana
Here is a future scene in Florida based on “The Weekend Interview” in the March 15 Wall Street Journal. Associate Editorial Features Editor Bari Weiss interviewed Justin Hartfield, a marijuana entrepreneur in California. Here’s an excerpt:

“The people I met who are involved in the California weed industry emphasized marijuana’s healthful benefits. A young couple passing around their homegrown weed asked: ‘Will you be medicating with us?’ (I wouldn’t be.)

“But not one person I met with a medical-marijuana card was actually sick. It took me $150 and under an hour to get a card from a physician in Venice, even after admitting I was just in town for a visit. (My malady? Stressful deadlines.)

“Though Mr. Hartfield naturally falls into the same tropes, using ‘marijuana’ and ‘medicine’ interchangeably, when I challenge him on it, he admits that the system is a ‘farce’” …

+ Jeb Bush is in
He’s running … For the GOP presidential nomination. Bank on it.

The evidence? In March he’s campaigning for shoo-in governors in New Mexico and Nevada; speaking to leaders of the Republican Jewish Coalition, an influential group backed by casino magnate Sheldon Adelson. And then he’ll co-host an education conference in Texas, where Hillary Clinton is also expected to speak.

DON’T FORGET TO VOTE
The official election day is next Tuesday, March 25, for two Longboat Key Town Commission races and whether to extend for four more years in Sarasota County the one-mill property tax for the county’s public schools.

In the Longboat Town Commission election, last week we recommended:

• Terry Gans

• Irwin Pastor

In the Sarasota County one-mill property tax extension, the Longboat Observer said on Feb. 27:

“We’re not going to advocate either for or against Sarasota County’s one-mill, four-year school tax. To no surprise, it is earmarked to continue the centralized, union-controlled model of delivering education. If you’re happy with that, vote yes. If you’re not, and believe in more choice, send a message.” — Ed.