St. Armands Art Festival welcomes back customers to the Circle

Longboat resident and photographer Mary Lou Johnson admits she didn't expect high attendance in preparing for the St. Armands Circle Art Festival. 

After the first day, she was pleasantly surprised at how many pieces she sold to customers looking to support the community after Hurricanes Helene and Milton. 

“Sales have been over the top, but that is not what I expected at all,” said Johnson. “I thought nobody would come with all the stores closed, but it is honestly great.”

On Nov. 9-10, St. Armands Circle was lined with tents of unique paintings, sculptures and handmade trinkets for the 35th annual St. Armands Circle Art Festival. As the first event after the hurricanes, tons of art lovers, visitors and locals bustled through the different booths of both artists and stores with their hearts full that the circle was back in business.  

“We were just wanting to support the area,” said local resident Leah Wallace.  “I love that the shops on the circle sell unique items that I can’t get anywhere else. So hearing that a lot of them are still not reopened and aren’t getting the income they need to recover, I wanted to help in any way I could.”

In preparation for the event, the St. Armands Circle Association worked closely with Sarasota County to clean up as much debris as possible from St. Armands Circle Park. All businesses were encouraged to participate in the sidewalk sale to gain revenue and visibility. 

“My heart goes out to all of these merchants,” said Rachel Burns, marketing and events director of the association. “A lot of people think that everybody on St. Armands is a millionaire, and it couldn't be further from the truth. Everybody on St. Armands is your typical neighbors and friends. I hope this event gives people hope again that we're going to get these jobs filled and the stores reopened.”

Around 30 businesses of the association are open. Stores that aren't open yet used the sidewalk sale as an opportunity to participate in the festival. Many customers stopped by their tables to purchase the merchandise that was spared from the storms. 

“It is amazing just to be back to work,” said Keisha Freeman, manager of Fugate’s By The Sea. “So many returning customers have come back today to help out and are asking us when we are going to officially open. It was a big surprise.”

Longboaters Julie Eckert and Mary Kileen were excited to see the streets of St. Armands packed again and the schedule filling up after weeks of disappointment from the hurricanes. 

“It feels really good to support,” said Eckert. “We went to the St. Mary's (Star of the Sea Catholic Church) Bazaar earlier today and then came to this. We are just trying to be there for people after the hurricanes. It is awesome to see events happening again and everyone being positive even though we aren’t 100% yet.”