BRADENTON BEACH – A major development permit application and initial site plans have been submitted for the proposed development of a hotel complex at the corner of Bridge Street and Gulf Drive South.
Architect Shaun Luttrell submitted the land development code/major development permit application and site plan documents on Dec. 2. The permit application lists Shawn Kaleta and Jacob Spooner as the owners of the various properties associated with the proposed development.
Kaleta is a well-known developer on Anna Maria Island. Spooner is a Bradenton Beach businessman and commercial property owner and a member of the Bradenton Beach City Commission and the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency. As a sitting city commissioner, Spooner would have to recuse himself from any commission discussions and votes pertaining to the proposed hotel development.
The submitted site plan proposes 206,987 square feet of total development with a total of 103 hotel units. The ground-level floor plan includes a miniature golf course located along Gulf Drive South and retail space located along Bridge Street, west of the existing Spooner-owned Bridge Street Bazaar and Daiquiri Deck building.
The first-floor plan includes additional retail space east of the Bridge Street Bazaar building, the main hotel entrance, the hotel lobby, a coffee bar, a hotel lounge and hotel offices. The site plan indicates 114 regular parking spaces, eight handicapped parking spaces and four golf cart parking spaces for a total of 126 parking spaces.
The second-floor plan includes 47 hotel units, some with private balconies, a kitchen area, a dining area, a fitness area and a storage/maintenance area. The third-floor plan includes 56 hotel units, some with private balconies, a conference room, a spa and a housekeeping area. The floor plans also include a rooftop swimming pool and deck. The anticipated cost of the hotel project is not known.
Properties included
The permit application lists the following addresses for the properties that would be combined to develop the hotel and other amenities as proposed: 219 Gulf Drive S., 101, 105 and 117 Bridge St. and 106, 108, 110 and 112 Third St. S.
According to the Manatee County Property Appraiser’s Office, the property at 101 Bridge St. S. is owned by the 205 Sycamore LLC, which, as of April, listed attorney Louis Najmy as its registered agent and Kaleta as a manager and authorized person. The Najmy and Kaleta-affiliated Tampa Bayshore Trust LLC owns the adjacent hotel property at 105 Bridge St. and the property at 106 Third St. S.
According to the property appraiser’s office, the undeveloped property at 108 Third St. S., the neighboring properties at 110 and 112 Third St. S. and the commercial property at 117 Bridge St. are owned by Bridge Street Bazaar Inc., which, as of April, listed Spooner and his mother, Deborah Sniadach, as its registered officers.
According to the property appraiser’s office, the former Joe’s Eats & Sweets property at 219 Gulf Dr. S. (at the corner of Third Street South) is owned by AMI Plaza LLC, which, as of March, listed attorney William Saba as its manager and Firkins Nissan Inc. as authorized persons. AMI Plaza LLC is not referenced as a property owner in the permit application.
The Sun reached out to Saba and Najmy with no reply as of press time to determine whether AMI Plaza LLC is involved in the proposed hotel development.
Long road ahead
“The plans are very preliminary,” Bradenton Beach Building Official Steve Gilbert told The Sun on Friday.
According to Gilbert, a proposed development carrying a major development designation must be reviewed by the city’s Planning and Zoning Board and then approved by the city commission. Gilbert said multiple land development code interpretations will be required and multiple land use issues will need to be addressed before the proposed development can be advertised for public hearings before the planning board and city commission.
According to the permit application, the present and proposed zoning designations for the various properties are C-2 (general commercial) and the present and proposed comprehensive plan use designations are Mixed Use Bridge Commercial.
