Sarasota County vacates administration building

Sarasota County has permanently moved out of its administration building at 1660 Ringling Blvd. The closure took effect Oct. 24, nearly four years after the county sold the property and surrounding parking lots to east Manatee County-based Benderson Development for $25 million.

Years ago, Sarasota County decided to sell the building so it could move to a location convenient to more county residents instead of spending millions repairing and renovating the Ringling Boulevard structure, which was built in 1973.

A new Sarasota County Administration Center is currently under construction at 1 Apex Road, overlooking the Celery Fields. Ajax and Tandem Construction are building the facility, off Fruitville Road. Construction began in fall 2023 and is expected to be complete in winter 2026.

At a cost of $74 million, the new building will span 120,000 square feet and include Sarasota County Commission meeting chambers along with offices for the county administration, county attorney, clerk and comptroller, communications, human resources, libraries and historical resources, and financial management. There will also be a press room, Access Sarasota television studio, conference rooms, break rooms and wellness center, according to a statement from the county.

Staying at Ringling Boulevard for years after the property’s sale was part of the plan. The county was to lease the building back from Benderson Development for four years, paying $1 million in rent annually, sister paper YourObserver.com reported, citing the purchase agreement.

Approximately 181 employees were moved out of the administration building when it closed in late October, according to a county spokesperson, who notes the building was not fully occupied at the time of the move due to damage from Hurricane Milton.

Now that the Ringling Boulevard building is closed, Sarasota County Board of County Commissioners meetings will be held at the Robert L. Anderson Administration Center, 4000 N. Tamiami Trail, in Venice.

County staff will continue to work from various county facilities until the opening of the new Sarasota County Administration Center or their department’s administration building, according to a statement.

In-person services are available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays at the Sarasota County Operations Center, 1001 Sarasota Center Blvd. People can also access county information at scgov.net or by calling 311.

A spokesperson for Benderson Development did not immediately respond to questions from the Business Observer about plans for the future of the Ringling Boulevard site. In 2023, the company held a three-day charrette to discuss plans that YourObserver.com reported included redeveloping the property to include residential and retail space with the possibility of a hotel.