FST's expansion has first meeting before city staff

With design and construction of a new Arts Plaza, artistic ambitions met with municipal government reality on Dec. 4 as an expansion of Florida Studio Theatre’s campus had its first appearance before the city’s Development Review Committee.

Consultant Joel Freedman, a veteran of dealing with technical and political approval of projects throughout Sarasota, presented the plans for FST’s Arts Plaza which was met with a significant amount of “comments" — government speak for clarification requests and code conflicts — during its initial submittal. 

Florida Studio Theatre plans to develop two parcels adjacent to its current main building at 1221 and 1233 First St., which currently serves as an unpaved parking lot, into a multi-use addition that includes 24 apartments and a 33-room hotel atop structured parking. The intent is to consolidate FST’s housing program, which is scattered throughout downtown, for short- and long-term residences of performers and affordable housing for arts community employees.

“The thought is by bringing all that into one building, it's going to be much easier and much more cost effective,” Freedman said. “That's both apartment group that will be for the longer-term people, but also the hotel will serve actors who are there for a couple weeks, and it'll be open to the public. Obviously parking is seriously a shortage in that area when everything's going on, so that's why they're going to the expense of building this parking garage as well.”

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In total, that expense is estimated at $57 million. More than residential space and parking, though, the Arts Plaza will include a second main stage theater and two new cabaret theaters occupying the first two floors below the 150-space parking deck with apartments and hotel rooms above.

Because it is in the Downtown Core zone district, the FST Arts Plaza will need only administrative approval. However, the design of the parking levels, which will be accessed by an alley running between First Street and Fruitville Road, will need a curb cut in Cocoanut Avenue. That will require an adjustment approval by the Planning Board. So will FST’s desire for multiple signs including vertical building identification signs on the west, south and east elevations of the building. An architectural feature proposed at the top of the building will require an adjustment as well.

Florida Studio Theatre intends to build the Arts Plaza in phases, focusing first on its primary need for housing. The new performance spaces will be built out in later phases. 

In May, Florida Studio Theatre CEO Richard Hopkins told the Observer he anticipates residences to open by mid-2026 with the new cabaret spaces opening one year later and, by mid-2028, the new main stage theater. That, however, was when he expected construction to begin by the end of this year.