Gillespie Park - Downtown Sarasota’s Newest Up-and-Coming Neighborhood

In keeping with reminiscing about my Home Town of Sarasota, Gillespie Park is one of the areas that I have seen change, especially lately, since my childhood days growing up in north Sarasota.

Gillespie Park has become one of Sarasota's great places to live for young professionals and retirees and empty nesters. With its great neighborhood feel, large trees, charming architecture and downtown location convenient to all the of Sarasota's amenities, Gillespie Park’s popularity is exploding. Nestled between Fruitville Road, 10th Street, U.S. 301 and Orange Avenue, the subdivision consists of old bungalows, cottages and Spanish-style townhouses, many of them dating to the 1920s, ’30s and ’40s. A good number have been refurbished and renovated, or are in the process. With its lush vegetation and stately pines and oak trees providing a shady canopy, Gillespie Park has a distinctly Old Florida feeling.

So here’s a bit of history! Gillespie Park honors John Hamilton Gillespie, first mayor of Sarasota. This land was part of the town's experimental farm and when that failed due to poor soil, Gillespie laid out a golf course in 1886. After the turn of the century, the subdivision was platted for residential use. The real estate boom of the 1920s brought a wave of new inhabitants, and the neighborhood was named after Gillespie, who had arrived in town as one of the Scottish immigrants, built a hotel on Main Street and served as the city’s first mayor.

A focal point of the Gillespie Park neighborhood is the historic park named after Gillespie. The city created the park on 10 acres of undeveloped land purchased for that purpose in 1924. Gillespie Park was developed with special emphasis on recreation for children and, in 1926, won an award in the National Playground Beautification Contest. An oasis of trees and green open space, Gillespie Park now provides tennis courts, picnic pavilion, playground recreational facilities, and features a lovely meandering pond.

If you are looking for a great place to live in Sarasota that has on old Florida feel but is close to the many amenities in downtown Sarasota, call me, your Home Town Realtor!

SRQecoseeker.com, Activerain.com, Sarasota Herald Tribune, Sarasotagov.com

Sarasota’s Skyline - Cranes in Action!

It is easy to derive a sense of well-being from the abundance of stunning views in downtown Sarasota. From the azure waters of the Sarasota Bay, to the perfectly poised architecture of the John Ringling Bridge and the eclectic, yet charming design composition of our lovely little city. One addition to the skyline of downtown has added excitement and optimism for many, in the business sector at least, – cranes – and not Sandhill Cranes. Yay! 

Those capricious cranes, so elusive during the recession, have reappeared. There’s a flock of them now with their wondrously long necks causing a lot of ruckus in the Sarasota Downtown area. The tower cranes can be seen in almost every direction in downtown Sarasota, lifting concrete forms and other materials around construction sites and swinging them into place with the stately movements of a giraffe. It's fascinating to watch!

Dozens of projects, some spanning the maximum 18 stories, will permanently change the appearance of the Sarasota skyline, a post-recession surge of building fueled by pent-up demand and confidence in the future. The city has issued building permits valued at more than $1 billion in the past three years. While that total include all types of construction, such as repairs and renovations, the new projects are the top-dollar draws. In the 2016 fiscal year alone, the city processed $442 million worth of permits.

Consider that our country is growing by 3.5 million people a year. That means in 15-years we’re going to have 52.5 million more people living amongst us. And here are more numbers from around the southeast to think about:

• Florida: Current population of just under 20 million people is expected grow to 25.5 million people by 2030, a 27.5 % increase
• Tampa Bay/St. Petersburg: Current population is 2.2 million and expected to grow to just under 3 million by 2030, a 31% increase
• Sarasota County: Current population of nearly 400,000 residents is expected to continue to grow.

As a lifetime Sarasota resident, I have seen many changes to our skyline, both good and bad. However, I remind myself that today’s construction is for tomorrow’s population, and the populace is moving into our urban core at a quick pace. Our city is growing vertically. This is driving the need for more high-density housing. When I first started as a Realtor almost 10 years ago, there was nary a crane to be seen in downtown Sarasota and a lot of concern about the economy…which makes cranes a magnificent sight to behold these days, after years of worry that they might become extinct. And in case you’re wondering –state bird of Florida is the Northern Mockingbird… unless you’re a developer or Realtor in Sarasota! 

If you are looking to buy a home in my hometown of Sarasota, call me at Re/Max Alliance Group and I will share my memories of the growth of our beautiful skyline and find a great home for you Sarasota's paradise!




Sources and Credits: Sarasota Herald Tribune, Allen Morris, SVN Commercial Advisory Group