Florida Live Local Act may cut out the city commission from a final say on the Adagio.
By Ramon Lopez
Original Air Date: July 9, 2025
Host: A developer from Naples is trying to leverage a new state law to go big and tall in downtown Sarasota. Ramon Lopez has the details on the Adagio project.
Ramon Lopez: DT Sarasota LLC on July 2 filed a detailed site plan with the City of Sarasota Development Review Committee for its massive Adagio luxury condominium project, which also includes a restaurant and retail space.
Visualization of the Adagio from the west.
The Adagio has drawn public outcry because it was hatched using Florida’s Live Local Act, which could preclude application of Sarasota’s housing regs and building codes.
The 2.24-acre building site in question involves Ringling Boulevard, Palm Avenue and South Pineapple Avenue. The site is zoned Downtown Core, which allows for only 10-story buildings versus 18 floors on the Downtown Bay Front.
Two connected buildings are proposed, one with 18 stories, the other nine. Attainable rental units are included to meet Live Local requirements. The state law would give the developer the right to put up an 18-story tower in the 10-story zone.
Live Local allows real estate moguls to get their lucrative projects approved administratively, meaning without Sarasota city commissioners having a say. But opponents can appeal DRC sign-offs to the city’s political leaders. And they hope the recent rejection of the Obsidian 18-story luxury condo will lead to another thumbs down from the Sarasota city commissioners.
Map showing the proposed site of the Adagio, which encompasses most of a block.
There have been some changes to the plan since its March 5 pre-application appearance before the DRC. The number of luxury condominiums in the 18-story tower has grown from 100 to 103 and the attainable apartments in the accompanying nine-story tower from 67 units to 69.
Live Local requires 40% of the total dwellings of a residential development to be designated as attainable for at a period of no fewer than 30 years.
City staffers requested, in an advisory comment, the developer consider more adherence to the city’s affordable housing ordinance guidelines—specifically, less separation of the apartments from the luxury condos. Such a concession appears unlikely.
And questions have been raised about whether the project is environmentally sound. The developer proposes to remove over 100 trees. Critics say these trees aren’t expendable and essential to sustainability and livability. They say the city’s tree protection ordinances must be enforced to maintain thoughtful and lawful real estate developments. The lack of area parking and traffic management are two additional issues.
Bird’s-eye visualization of the Adagio condo complex viewed from the east.
Dean Scarborough, who lives in the Sansara, the 10-story luxury condo, which would be in the shadow of the Adagio, is fed up with the whole matter. He says: “let’s save the trees…and attainable housing.”
Dean Scarborough: We have a problem here. This Live Local Act potentially allows developers to destroy the integrity of neighborhoods, purportedly for good purpose, but that’s not the outcome. Our argument would be less strong if they were building attainable housing, let’s say, at a 60% level, and really made it affordable, not just attainable. The whole thing just doesn’t make any sense to me—putting up that massive building where it doesn’t really fit. It’s going to be a nightmare in terms of traffic. It’s going to be ugly. It doesn’t really fit there. It’s not how the city’s zoned. The city’s zoned for 10 stories there.
RL: Scarborough outlined to WSLR News his battle plan to stop, or at least modify, the Adagio project.
DS: We’ve hired an attorney, and we’re going to pursue whatever legal angles we have. I think this meeting is important because it will potentially uncover other areas where we can challenge this project.
RL: And Scarborough said the Obsidian’s ultimate rejection by the city commissioners in recent months could impact the final fate of the Adagio.
DS: It could, for sure. Obsidian is a different issue. It’s not Live Local. But what we have here is a situation where the city commissioners could say, “Yeah, Live Local has some interesting objectives, but this project doesn’t really meet those objectives. It’s not giving us affordable housing. It’s challenging the integrity of our own zoning process. We can’t just let people build whatever they want wherever they want if they use Live Local.
RL: This is Ramon Lopez for WSLR News.
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