On October 22, the Rocky screening at The Bay starts at 7 p.m. on the lawn. Two days later, instructor Michelle Cook runs a Les Mills BODYCOMBAT pop-up there in place of the usual Saturday Bootcamp. Both events are free, and both belong to "One Park FOUR All," the month-long fourth-anniversary celebration that runs from October 1 through November 1. WSLR counted 70 free activities in the program.
A short walk north of the screen, construction fencing closes off the western edge of the lot above the Van Wezel, the whole Centennial Park lot, and the ground between the Municipal Auditorium and the Art Center. That fenced ground holds the pieces of the park that are supposed to start earning money. Every big milestone in this year's anniversary celebrates parts of The Bay that cost money to run. The parts meant to cover those costs are still in design, in review, or pushed to 2027.
Four years in, the numbers behind "free"
The Bay Park Conservancy runs the park for the City of Sarasota. In early October its chief operating officer, Diana Shaheen, laid out the economics in a WSLR report.
"Today, it costs us between $2 million and $2.5 million dollars to do everything in this park."
She told WSLR the plan is for rental income from the buildings the conservancy manages, plus a cut of food and beverage sales from up to three restaurants, to cover "about 50% of our going operating expenses after the park's built out." Those buildings include the Municipal Auditorium, the Bayfront Community Center, the Blue Pagoda and the Garden Club. Right now the only food on site is The Nest Café.
The park has drawn a crowd without those pieces. ABC7 reported more than one million visits by June 2026. The free events are already running. The revenue pieces are what's still behind the fences.
What was promised for this fall, and where it stands
Phase 2 is a $65 million project in three areas, the Canal District, the Cultural District and a Resilient Shoreline. The conservancy's Phase 2 page lists the funding as a $48 million city bond backed by tax-increment financing, plus $17 million in grants and private money. The dates have moved several times this year:
| Piece | Earlier target | Latest published status |
|---|---|---|
| Cultural District Promenade | Fall 2026 | Listed for completion in October 2026 |
| The Plaza, the town square on Van Wezel Way | October 2026, per the May schedule | "To be Completed: 2027" |
| Resilient shoreline and Municipal Auditorium renovation | February 2027 | Under construction, lots closed |
| First bayfront restaurant | Fall 2027 | City pre-application review in early October 2026 |
| Sunset Pier | Part of earlier plans | On hold over cost and timing |
| Sarasota Performing Arts Center | 2030 to 2033 window | Implementation agreement unresolved as of August 2026 |
The Plaza shows the slip most clearly. In May, the conservancy said the town square between the Municipal Auditorium and the Chidsey Library would open this October. It also said the square would carry the name of a 1964 dedication: Mayor Herschel Hayo named that ground Plaza de Santo Domingo, after Sarasota's sister city, and called it "the very hub of our civic life." The new square will be called simply The Plaza. Its centerpiece is a large shade structure with space for programming, events and rentals. The conservancy's own presentation, dated June 25, now lists it as "To be Completed: 2027." The same document shows the promenade next to it finishing this month. So the walkway arrives on time, and the rentable space beside it comes later.
The Sunset Pier on hold is a separate thing from the Sunset Deck. The deck is open now and listed among the park's current features.
The restaurant took its first formal step this month
In the same week as the anniversary events, early drawings for the park's first full-service restaurant went to the City of Sarasota's Development Review Committee for a pre-application conference. The restaurant doesn't have a name yet. WSLR is calling it the "10th Street Restaurant," after the spot where 10th Street crosses the Tamiami Trail and ends at the water. Shaheen described the steps still ahead. After the city's feedback comes a community workshop, then an administrative site plan, then another round at the committee.
The drawings are fairly detailed:
- Size and siting: about 5,000 square feet on the former U.S. Coast Guard station site at the southwest tip of the boat basin. Patios wrap three sides. The north end faces Centennial Park and the canal.
- Seating: fewer than 220 seats indoors and 100 outdoors, on 12-foot pylons for flood resilience.
- Design: Sarasota firm Sweet Sparkman Architecture, working in the Sarasota School style. The plans call for coral stone veneer and floor-to-ceiling glass. The roofline is 26 feet, with a decorative aluminum screen adding nine more feet to hide mechanical equipment.
- Trees: 24 are proposed for removal, including 19 palms and one live oak. Each would be replaced, plus one extra, and nothing can be cut until a tree removal permit is approved.
The operator is Venice Pier Group, the family company behind Sharky's on the Pier and Fins at Sharky's in Venice. It will run the restaurant under a profit-sharing deal with the conservancy. That deal is the food and beverage income Shaheen's 50 percent goal depends on. Company president Justin Pachota told WSLR a sunset supper there might be possible "in about a year." The conservancy's May schedule said September 2027.
Taste of The Bay previews the dining side
The anniversary event closest to that future runs Sunday, October 25, from noon to 3 p.m. Taste of The Bay, presented with Sarasota-Manatee Originals, is free to enter. Food tickets come five for $5, most dishes cost three to five tickets, and drinks are sold separately. The announced lineup includes:
- Michael's on East, Mimi Brasserie & Speakeasy, Jack Dusty/Rufa, Tsunami & Hanami, Tamiami Tap, Food & Beer Rosemary District, Masō Steakhouse and Marcel DW
- 1592 Wood Fired Kitchen & Cocktails, Cafe Gabbiano, Harry's Continental Kitchens, Duvals, Figaro Bistro, Miguels Restaurant, Mi Pueblo, Tzeva, Lucky 8, Crow's Nest, Bricks Smoked Meats, Cottonmouth Southern Soul Kitchen, Mean Deans Local Kitchen and The Breakfast Company
- Fins at Sharky's, run by Venice Pier Group, the company expected to operate the 10th Street Restaurant
For now, a restaurant crowd on the lawn at The Bay is a once-a-year event.
The rest of the month, by date
These are the free events still ahead on the conservancy's calendar as of October 12. Weather has already canceled the October 2 sunset paddle and the October 9 and 10 kayak tours, and it pushed Salsa & Sunsets back a week. On storm days, some classes move indoors to the Bayfront Community Center at 803 N. Tamiami Trail.
- Wed., Oct. 14, 6:30–8:30 p.m.: the rescheduled Salsa & Sunsets anniversary party, with a champagne toast, live music from Bri Rivera & Friends and a free anniversary T-shirt. Registration required.
- Thu., Oct. 15, 7 p.m.: Arrival, for its 10th anniversary.
- Fri., Oct. 16: a Ride & Paddle guided kayak tour through the restored mangroves at 9 a.m., which the park calls "a $60 value." At 10 a.m., Architecture Sarasota leads its "Moderns that Matter" tour of the park's historic buildings. A guided sunset paddle follows at 6 p.m.
- Sun., Oct. 18, 6 p.m.: Sundays at The Bay with Shelby Sol.
- Tue., Oct. 20, 6 p.m.: a Sunset Mindful Walk, part of the Sunset Series presented by the REI Cooperative Action Fund.
- Wed., Oct. 21, 6:30 p.m.: Dancing with Donald, taught by Donald Frison, resident choreographer at Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe.
- Thu., Oct. 22: a sound bath with Petra Ratner at 6 p.m., then Rocky for its 50th anniversary at 7 p.m.
- Wed., Oct. 28, 6:30–8:30 p.m.: Silent Disco with DJ Benny.
- Thu., Oct. 29, 7 p.m.: The Silence of the Lambs, for its 35th anniversary.
Parking around the fences
With the shoreline lots closed, the conservancy points visitors to free parking on the north side of Boulevard of the Arts and to the lots in front of the Van Wezel and in front of the Municipal Auditorium, Art Center and Blue Pagoda. It asks drivers to stay out of the Sarasota Orchestra's reserved spaces and off the south side of Boulevard of the Arts. A September 2026 site map shows the walkways open during construction. The park is open daily from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.
The longer timeline still has open questions. In August, Your Observer reported that city commissioners had asked staff which parts of six paused projects could move ahead ahead of November's property-tax referendum, the performing arts center among them. The city and the Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation still had not settled their implementation agreement. The pieces with firmer dates are The Plaza in 2027 and a restaurant whose operator is aiming for about a year from now.
The 10th Street Restaurant and The Plaza will be some of the most closely watched construction on the bayfront over the next year. Next up for the restaurant is a community workshop and a site plan, and its 35-foot height with the screen is already something nearby high-rise residents are watching. If you'd like an experienced builder's read on how projects like these move from drawings to opening day, Fuller Group is glad to walk through it with you. Arrange a Private Consultation.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
