Development project searches for home

Sarasota might lose out on a potential $11 million medical spa development and corporate headquarters project that could bring more than 100 jobs to town.

And entrepreneur Jim Abrams, who built Clockwork Home Services into a $215 million franchise business based in Sarasota, says he's out at least several hundred thousand dollars in site plans and other costs. Abrams seeks to build a corporate headquarters for Fyzical, his latest business, a nationwide franchise network of physical therapy centers. The development would include a spa, holistic health center, physical therapy floor, nutritional restaurant and a fitness center.

Abrams first tried to buy Warm Mineral Springs, a south Sarasota County tourist destination, to build the complex there. He says he would have spent his own money on the project, $9 million to $11 million, with no subsidies required.

Warm Mineral Springs, co-owned by Sarasota County and the city of North Port, has been closed since last summer, partly due to intra-government bickering. Abrams talked informally with a few officials about his plan, but got nowhere. The county and city recently launched a bid process for a management firm to run it, not buy it.

“I was told that's not the direction they were going,” Abrams tells Coffee Talk. “I thought I would be able to provide an answer for them. But I never got the chance to be heard.”

Then Abrams took his vision to the city of Sarasota.

He had multiple meetings with city officials about a project on top of a planned parking garage on State Street in downtown Sarasota. He again crafted a proposal for a project that would house the Fyzical headquarters and other features. This one would also be with his money, no incentives.

But the city balked. City Chief Planner Steve Stancel says the Abrams plan was one of several the city looked at in a preliminary phase, but there were some issues with it. “Mr. Abrams' proposal was not as attractive as some of the others,” Stancel tells Coffee Talk. “The city of Sarasota bends over backwards for people, and sometimes there's not a perfect fit.”

Abrams has since looked into other places in and around Sarasota, including some beachfront properties. But the prices were too high. He's also looked at a few sites in Palm Beach County — now a strong possibility. “It's still not out for Sarasota, but I don't know where we will do it,” says Abrams. “It's been a frustrating process.”