A new plan for the Celery Fields

Nowadays, mammoth condo and apartment communities are popping up all around the animal sanctuary and the nearby Celery Fields, one of the last remaining undeveloped green spaces in Sarasota County. Herald Tribune, 12.22.18.

Celery Fields, Sarasota

To the Board of Sarasota County Commissioners:

A "Critical Area Plan" (CAP) is a technical tool -- an innovation first developed by Sarasota County planning years ago. According to one of the original planners who developed and implemented CAPs over many years, the purpose of establishing a boundary for a CAP project is to insure that all the important changes a proposed development will bring to a specific area are addressed.*

As a tool for gauging compatibility, clearly the CAP boundary is not intended to encompass just the area of the project. That would not make sense.

When the Fruitville Initiative was designed, the boundaries of the CAP benefited from public input, solicited by the County.

On Sept. 12, 2018, the Board of Sarasota County Commissioners decided it was time to revisit the Critical Area Plan (CAP) for the Quad parcels near the Celery Fields in light of the current context and realities. A discussion item on this is scheduled for Jan. 29, 2019 (time to be determined).

This should provide a long overdue opportunity to envision what is possible at the Celery Fields area, considering the mismatch between old plans from 1983 and the new reality of a world-famous birding destination in the area.

Before starting the CAP process, the BCC will first need to approve the boundaries (i.e. aerial extent) and criteria (plan tasks) at a public hearing.

When Restaurant Depot’s giant warehouse proposal came before this board two years ago, their Critical Area Plan was contrived to coincide with the boundaries of its own parcel. That is to say: the impacts of the giant warehouse upon the Celery Fields and other surrounding parcels were explicitly ignored by the very planning tool that's supposed to take those impacts into account.

In advance of setting CAP boundaries and criteria for the Celery Fields, the defined process requires staff to proactively conduct public meeting(s) to solicit public input on the boundaries and criteria, much as was done at this stage of the Fruitville Initiative.

Given the success of the Audubon Nature Center, the expansion of the Big Cat Habitat, and the undeniable need for more parking and complementary facilities for the tens of thousands of birders, recreationalists and eco-tourists who flock to the Celery Fields each year, it is clearly time for the County to re-envision the entire Celery Fields Area to address its current uses, context and future needs for the people of Sarasota County.

The Fresh Start Initiative

*Sarasota News Leader