Town Center Green is still mostly lawn. An oval sidewalk loops around it. The Karon Family Pavilion bandshell sits at one end, and the Longboat Key Historical Society uses a small building on the grounds. On Monday, Nov. 2, the Town Commission voted unanimously, with little discussion, to approve the development plan for a Sarasota County library on the open ground next to the Chase Bank and Publix parking lot. The plan includes an outdoor terrace facing the bandshell.
The next day, Florida voters passed Amendment 3, which expands the homestead exemption and cuts revenue for counties and towns. In Sarasota County, 63% voted yes. Before the election, the county had said it would not build the Longboat branch if the measure passed.
The money to build the library is in place. Library impact fees would pay for the core building, and Longboat donors would pay for its additions. What puts the project at risk is the cost of keeping it open, more than $1 million a year from the county's property-tax-funded general fund. That is the budget Amendment 3 reduces.
What the Commission Signed Off On
The planned unit development agreement carries seven conditions. Town Planning Manager Elma Glisson called them standard. Among them, construction plans must follow town code and FEMA rules, and a licensed surveyor must verify open space and lot coverage. The commission also approved an 18-foot setback change. County planners said the building needed it to fit the larger footprint created by community-funded additions. According to Assistant Town Manager Isaac Brownman, neither Chase Bank nor Publix objected.
Parking was settled in October. Your Observer reported that the site's 78 existing spaces are double the 39 the library needs for everyday use. Special events would need their own parking and transportation plan, which could draw on 603 nearby off-site spaces if their owners agree. If an event outgrew the combined 681 spaces, measures such as busing would be required.
So the town's part of the work is done. The building has its site, its setback and its parking plan, and the outcome now rests with the county.
Who Pays for What on the Green
| Piece | How it got there | Where it stands |
|---|---|---|
| Karon Family Pavilion and phase two | $2.3 million total, with $1.5 million from the town and $800,000 in private funds, mostly from the Karon family | Open; unveiled in 2023 |
| Historical Society building | Former Whitney Beach Resort laundry and linens cottage, moved to the Green in 2021 | Reopened October 2026 |
| Library meeting space and terrace | About $4 million raised by the town and Longboat Key Foundation, including a $1 million pledge from U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan | Approved; tied to the library |
| The library itself | $11 million from Sarasota County, funded by library impact fees | Awaiting a county decision |
| Running the library | More than $1 million a year from the county's property-tax-funded general fund | The open question |
Donor money paid for the expanded meeting room and the terrace. The library was originally planned without them, and the private campaign is what added them. Of the county's $11 million, $1 million was set aside for design and $10 million for construction. In June, Your Observer reported that this construction money sits outside the general fund. The general fund pays to operate county facilities, and the county projected it could lose as much as $87 million starting in fiscal year 2029 under a $250,000 homestead exemption. In its Nov. 9 coverage, Your Observer described the risk plainly: the town could have money ready for the meeting space and terrace and no library to attach them to.
What the County Said Before the Vote
The county's caution goes back to the summer. At a June 17 budget workshop, Capital Projects Director Carolyn Eastwood said design was 70% complete and would continue. County Administrator Jonathan Lewis said no library decision would go to commissioners before the election.
At the same workshop, Steve Botelho, the county's deputy administrator and chief financial management officer, put a figure on what the branch would cost to run once built. He projected about $740,000 for a partial year in 2028, $1.1 million in 2029 and $1.4 million by 2031. Commissioner Teresa Mast said officials would face "tough decisions" and would have to prioritize. According to the Observer, that yearly operating bill was enough to make commissioners hesitate about committing to construction at all.
In September, Commissioner Nick Gladding asked what a yes vote would mean for the library. Your Observer reported Brownman's answer: "The county has made it very clear because of the magnitude of the impacts of Amendment 3 they will not be constructing a library on Longboat Key at this time if Amendment 3 passes." He added that the county was still pushing ahead "full steam, full blast" with design, permitting and the land use amendment. At the same meeting, outgoing Town Manager Howard Tipton said groundbreaking was scheduled for March.
On Oct. 29, Your Observer quoted County Commissioner Mark Smith. He called libraries and parks "low-hanging fruit" for cuts because they are "not essential," and contrasted them with paramedic services.
"Not Technically Dead Yet"
In the week after the election, Town Manager George Landry, Tipton's successor, began working through the fallout. Here is how he described the library's status to Your Observer on Nov. 9:
"The county didn't take any official action on killing the library or any service yet. They said it was something on the table to potentially not be funded. Because of that we reached out and asked what's the deal with the library and when are they planning to take that formal action with the board so we can be present for that talk. Until they actually put it on the agenda for their board to ratify a decision on what's on the table, it's not technically dead yet."
The town has budget work of its own. It expects a $1.4 million revenue cut, and the Town Commission will start discussing it at workshops in December and January. James Buchanan won the state Senate seat that includes the southern half of Longboat Key, and he campaigned for Amendment 3. He told the Observer he wants to talk with town and county leaders about how the library could still go forward, and he encouraged that conversation before the legislature takes up the implementing bill.
Manatee County did not wait. Commission Chair Tal Siddique said the county will "absolutely" cut its planned north-end community center on the island, along with "a few other things." On the Manatee side, the planned community center has already been ruled out.
The Money Already Raised
According to the Sept. 20 Observer report, $1.6 million of the private money had already gone to the county. Tipton said at the time that if Amendment 3 passed, "then we'll have to figure out how to refund the money that's been raised."
There is an earlier answer on record. In June, Your Observer reported that a county spokesperson said contributions would go back to donors if the project did not proceed. Most donations went through the Sarasota County Library Foundation, which kept records of each contribution and passed the proceeds to the county. Donors with questions about their own gift should take them directly to the Foundation or the town.
The Library Longboat Already Has
The Key already has a library, and residents built that one too. The Longboat Library is independent and volunteer-run. It opened in 1957 in a storefront with 1,200 books and moved to Bay Isles Road in 1972. In 2017, Your Observer counted 55 volunteers running it, with no affiliation to the county system.
This year it began preparing for its replacement. At its Valentine's Day sale, the library put out titles it normally keeps in order to shrink its collection ahead of the groundbreaking for the new building. Proceeds benefited Save Our Seabirds. Your Observer listed its hours then as 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Monday through Friday, at 555 Bay Isles Road. Those hours date from February, so call ahead before you go.
The nearest county branches are on the mainland. Gulf Gate Library is at 7112 Curtiss Ave., and Selby Library is at 1331 1st St. in Sarasota, according to Sarasota County Libraries.
On the Green This Month
The parts of the Green already built are open now. The Historical Society's cottage reopened in October, with visitor hours reported as Thursday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Light Up Longboat is on the 2026 calendar for Saturday, Nov. 21, from 5 to 7 p.m. at Town Center Green. Your Observer's events preview lists live music, food trucks, local vendors, Santa and a tree lighting. The ground beside the Publix lot, where the library and its terrace would go, is still lawn.
Town Center Green is the closest thing Longboat Key has to a town square, and the county's decision on the library will shape what it becomes. If you want to talk through how county budget decisions like this one may affect the Key you call home, Leisa Erickson Group is glad to sit down with you. Let's Connect.
