Shore to close well-known St. Armands location, citing floods, storms

Shore plans to close its well-known, two-story restaurant and retail location on St. Armands Circle this December but could expand on the Gulf Coast, according to a statement from the Leonard family, which owns the brand. The family cited the recent storms in driving the decision to move out.

Shore's last day in business on St. Armands Circle will be Dec. 1, Courtney Leonard says in an email to the Business Observer. 

The Leonards purchased the location at 465 John Ringling Blvd. for $2.2 million in 2005, according to Sarasota County property records.

“While we’re making the difficult decision to leave our current location, we’re not saying goodbye to Sarasota,” Susan Leonard says in a statement. “If the right opportunity presents itself in the future, we would absolutely consider bringing Shore back to this community that has supported us so well.”

Since Shore opened on St. Armands more than a decade ago, the brand has expanded to include two other locations — one on Longboat Key and another in Disney Springs.

Shore the brand promotes coastal living through its retail and restaurant operations. Both facets of the business came to a halt on St. Armands Circle after back-to-back hurricanes, according to the Leonards. When Hurricane Helene hit in late September, followed by Milton Oct. 9, St. Armands was covered by floodwater.

Shore co-founder Tom Leonard, in the Nov. 26 statement, says he believes the city has a lack of urgency in addressing infrastructure issues on St. Armands Circle. And that partially led to the restaurant's departure. “The infrastructure on St Armands Circle has remained largely unchanged for years, and while we love this community, it’s clear that the city has a long way to go in terms of modernizing its streets, sidewalks and drainage systems," he says in the statement. 

A spokesperson for the City of Sarasota, in an email in response to questions from the Business Observer, says the weather events of recent months, including "unprecedented rainfall in August" and then 4-5 foot storm surge from back to back major Hurricanes Helene and Milton were "extraordinary." 

"Infrastructure systems up and down the west coast of Florida were overwhelmed by the historic flooding," the city says in the statement. "Sarasota County oversees and maintains the City’s stormwater system. City of Sarasota staff coordinated with the County before, during and after the storms to pump heavily flooded streets, including St. Armands Circle, as soon as safely possible. The city is continuing to provide support to St. Armands as the community recovers and businesses on the Circle reopen.”

While Shore plans to shutter, its space will be put to use. The Leonards have leased the location to Tommy Bahama, which will open a restaurant, bar and retail space there in February 2025.

Tommy Bahama was forced to close its restaurant and bar at 300 John Ringling Blvd. due to storm damage this fall. It will continue to operate a retail store at 371 St. Armands Circle when it moves this winter into the larger space where Shore once was.

With the closure of its Sarasota Shore location, the Leonards say they are open to future expansion.

“This transition allows us to broaden our horizons, and we’re actively looking at new locations on the west coast of Florida and beyond,” Tom Leonard says in the statement. “Our goal is to bring the Shore experience to more communities, creating unique and memorable spaces for our customers to enjoy.”

Managing Editor Mark Gordon and Digital Content Producer Jim DeLa contributed to this report.