Here's What's Happening at the Corner of Boulevard of the Arts and Central Avenue
Parkside on the corner of Boulevard of the Arts and Central Avenue.
Image: Courtesy Photo
Curious about what's going on at the corner of Boulevard of the Arts and Central Avenue in the Rosemary District? We've got the answer. A new food-and-beverage-based compound is nearing completion. The project, called Parkside, will be anchored by a 6,200-square-foot American contemporary restaurant called Arts & Central that will feature a large indoor and outdoor bar, as well as ample outdoor patio seating.
A look at the Parkside space before it was developed.
Image: Courtesy Photo
“When we were able to acquire this property, we immediately knew we wanted to do something to bring vibrancy back to this corner; something that was community-oriented,” says Josh Weiner, principal at The Longboat Group, which owns Parkside and the neighboring CitySide Apartments. “The goal is for this to be a community that encapsulates the energy and synergy that Overtown [Sarasota's first Black community and the predecessor to the Rosemary District] was known for."
Arts & Central is a new American contemporary restaurant that will feature a large indoor and outdoor bar, as well as ample outdoor patio seating.
Image: Courtesy Photo
Two more buildings complete the property to the west on Boulevard of the Arts. One is an 8,200-square-foot shopping plaza. It will house four food-and-beverage tenants, including Toasted Mango Café and Great Heights Creamery, as well as a community rental space that can accommodate 40 to 50 people. Its plaza also features an expansive outdoor courtyard.
“The original parking lot was impervious, so, stormwater rolled off onto the street and into the bay,” says Weiner. “Now, we have pervious pavers, so it acts more like natural ground. Anything that does run off runs into a retention pond under the first building. We were excited to be able to return what was a parking lot back into something that acts like natural ground.”
The other building, called Parkside Lofts, was built in 1946 and currently houses two residential rental units and three retail tenants, including a nonprofit called Adventure for All, which works with young athletes with intellectual disabilities, or “exceptionalities,” as the organization calls them.
Parkside has leased all but one space, an endcap in the center building. None of the current tenants have announced opening dates at this time.
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