Annalise Anderson
SARASOTA – City officials and community members gathered on a vast, sandy stage on Thursday to announce the long-awaited completion of Lido Beach s renourishment.
Lido Beach had been eroding for decades and plans for its renourishment were in the works for more than 20 years. Partnered with the Army Corps of Engineers, the city of Sarasota began dredging Siesta Key’s Big Pass and pumping recycled sand onto Lido Key last spring.
Roughly 700,000 cubic yards of sand were pumped onto a 1.56-mile stretch of Lido Key, extending the beach s width by an average of about 300 feet. The affected shoreline reaches from the north public beach access to Ted Sperling Park.
City celebrates completion of Lido Beach nourishment May 28, 2021, by Eldin Ganic
The City of Sarasota
officials and community members gathered earlier this week to announce the long-awaited completion of Lido Beach’s renourishment.
“Officials, project stakeholders and the general public gathered on the beach near the newly renovated Lido Pavilion, 400 Benjamin Franklin Drive, to mark the conclusion of this major project, a partnership between the City and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,” the City said in their official release.
The state and federally permitted work began in the spring of 2020 following years of extensive design and planning, community engagement, legal challenges and the support of the Lido Key Residents Association and Lido Key businesses.
Celebrating the completion of the Lido Beach renourishment project snntv.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from snntv.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Citing the sugary sand beaches, a popular avenue for dining and shopping as well as a historic pier, Travel + Leisure magazine recently named Anna Maria Island one of “The Most Charming Small Towns in Florida.”
Palm Beach, Cedar Key, Mount Dora, Florida Keys, Micanopy, Sanibel, Cypress Gardens, Cape Canaveral and Fernandina Beach were the other places on the magazine s list of “10 of the best small towns in Florida with populations of 15,000 or less.”
“Considered one of the state’s best-kept secrets, Anna Maria Island is home to wide white-sand beaches lapped by emerald and sapphire seas,” reads the Travel + Leisure article published May 20. “While the Gulf Coast barrier island’s shores are wild, natural, and picture-perfect, visitors also love strolling Pine Avenue to check out the shops, galleries, and restaurants. The wooden Rod and Reel Pier, dating back to 1947, is another Instagram-worthy spot to visit.
1 week ago Share Leaders of a grassroots effort called Save Siesta Key are conducting a feasibility study and starting to write a town charter.
Welcome to the town of Siesta Key.
The possibility of a sign greeting visitors and residents with that message on the island side of both causeways to the now-unincorporated community has a nice ring to it, say organizers of a new grassroots push steeped in history that goes back to the 1960s.
At issue is self-rule and a dissatisfaction with county management of the island.
Leading the charge is John Davidson, no stranger to the concept of incorporation. Davidson, the founder of Davidson Drugs and The Pelican Press, has been a resident of Siesta Key since 1958.