Longboat Key Community Center nears necessary interlocal agreement

Progress on the Longboat Key Community Center in Whitney Beach Plaza is moving in a positive direction, but Town Manager Howard Tipton said it may take some time, and it requires getting stakeholders talking. 

On July 25, the Manatee Board of County Commissioners approved the motion, allowing staff to work on an interlocal agreement with the Manatee County School District regarding the Longboat Key Community Center. 

Following that meeting, Tipton met with members of the school district on Aug. 4 for some clarification and to get conversations started. Tipton met with the new Manatee County School District Superintendent Jason Wysong, District Deputy Superintendent of Operations Joe Ranaldi and District Executive Director of Adult Career and Technical Education Paul Gansemer. 

At the meeting, Tipton said Wysong was engaged in the idea and the meeting was productive overall. In an email update Tipton sent, he said that as of Aug. 5 the county had not communicated with the school board regarding the interlocal agreement. 

But from the conversation, Tipton said that the school board seemed to be interested in pursuing the space with adult learning in mind. Students in the district could help with technology teaching and could also attend lectures or learn from Longboat Key citizens. 

“There was interest in working to find ways for students to get to meet some of our extraordinary citizens who’ve had successful careers who could share their experiences with students at the center,” Tipton said in the email update. 

One issue Tipton sees is funding, though he said this can be easily overcome. The issue is that property tax generally goes to K-12 education rather than community centers for adult learning. That is typically funded through other fees, something that Tipton believes the county had not taken into consideration.

Tipton also said the school board is “very cognizant” of not wanting to create a space that would be unsuccessful. 

The next steps are more conversations, getting the necessary people talking to further the interlocal agreement and eventually finalizing the lease agreement. 

“Everybody has a lot on their plate,” Tipton said. “It’s an important project to the town, but we certainly understand if this takes a few weeks.”

Changes in county leadership with Charlie Bishop recently named acting county administrator and school starting up for the year have meant both organizations have been otherwise occupied. 

“Progress will track the critical path of commercial lease and interlocal agreement negotiations,” Tipton said in the email. “If we can ignite those, we have a chance of seeing this come together.”