Developer to rebrand $1.9M motel

SIESTA KEY — Henry Rodriguez, the developer behind the Wal-Mart Supercenter and original owner of the 41-acre Bay Street Village and Towncenter in Osprey, bought a historic motel near Siesta Key for $1.9 million.

Rodriguez plans to rebrand the Elephant Ear Suites at 1800 Stickney Point Road, which is comprised of two parcels, as the Siesta Inn & Suites. “I'm going to be investing a lot of money in this property, and remodeling to the point where it's going to be a four-star hotel,” Rodriguez tells the Sarasota Observer, sister paper of the Business Observer.

The properties were known as the Tides Inn Motel and Sunset Lodge for decades. “The one thing I love is the fact that it's an 'Old Florida' hotel,” Rodriguez says. “You can't really emulate that.”

The buildings, which have 21 units, last sold in 2014 for $1.5 million to New Jersey rental owner Daniel Jones. Jones followed the purchase with extensive renovations.

Last year, Rodriguez bought an aging motel in Nokomis for $1.3 million and has remodeled in into the Nokomis Inn & Suites. He says he has several other similar projects in the works.

“I'm very bullish on the Florida economy in terms of tourism and trade, and I think that Sarasota County in particular is an incredible opportunity,” he says.

Eric Massey and Ben Graham of Michael Saunders & Co. brokered the transaction, according to a release. Massey and Graham work together as part of the firm's effort to pair senior brokers with younger, less experienced commercial real estate agents.