Hermitage CEO Andy Sandberg hopes his non-profit’s relationship with Sarasota County ‘continues to heal’.
From the January-March 2026 issue of Critical Times. Print versions are available for free at WSLR+Fogartyville and other community gathering spaces in Sarasota and Manatee counties.
By Noah Vinsky
The Hermitage Artist Retreat, which sits on a secluded tip of Manasota Key at the southern end of Sarasota County, has hosted award-winning artists, musicians and writers for more than two decades.
It suffered structural damage to the property’s five buildings as a result of 2024 hurricanes Helene and Milton, which buried the Hermitage in nearly 10 feet of sand.
And it’s still far from reopening.
“Its been a particularly challenging year, not just because of the hurricanes themselves, but because of the bureaucracy surrounding the recovery efforts,” said Andy Sandberg, the CEO and artistic director of the Hermitage.
Through extensive storm recovery and a months-long fight with the county over repairs, the Hermitage has sought—and received—assistance from the community.
The Hermitage sits on nine acres of county land and has been leased from the county since 1988. That agreement makes Sarasota County responsible for hurricane repairs.
The county initially told the retreat it may take until the end of 2026 for repairs to be completed.
Sandberg said the Hermitage received a much cheaper, faster repair timeline from private contractors.
Frustrated by the proposed timeline from the county, the Hermitage offered to purchase the property in August.
After several meetings of deliberation, the Sarasota County Commission presented an ultimatum to Hermitage leadership in October: a one-time payment of $172,258 towards repairs, and an agreement that the county will no longer provide maintenance or restoration.
Carole Crosby, the president of the Hermitage’s Board of Trustees, said the board wasn’t willing to take the offer and forgo a key aspect of the landlord-tenant relationship.
“We basically felt that as fiduciaries for a not-for-profit organization, we could not agree to that,” she said.
The county’s private contractor—A² Group—will now complete the repairs, according to the county. But when that will be done is unclear.
Sarasota County spokesperson Sara Nealeigh said in a statement in December that the Hermitage restoration is currently in the “design phase,” which includes surveys and assessments of the property. A construction timeline is not available until more information is gathered from the design phase, she said.
Crosby and the rest of the Hermitage board and staff are left to observe how the situation unfolds.
“We’re not really in a position to push the county to do it faster,” she said. “They’re just going to do it as they do it.”
Despite the lack of a completed construction timeline, the county said some repairs have been completed, including replacement of the lift station and the restoration of electric and plumbing lines.
Sandberg said he hopes the Hermitage’s relationship with the county “continues to heal.”
“Our audiences know what’s going on, they know our frustration,” he said. “They understand it’s just disappointing because it’s deprived many audiences from the volume of programs and access to artists that we often provide.”
Despite the bureaucratic deadlock, the Hermitage has commenced on its own community-based recovery efforts.
After holding its first public event at the beach since the hurricanes in June, The Artful Lobster fundraiser brought in a record-breaking $450,000 in November.
Sandberg said he was inspired by the community response in the immediate aftermath of the storms, even when neighbors suffered damage to their own homes.
“While they’re waiting on insurance claims, they’re coming over and going, ‘What can we do to help?,’” he said. “I think there’s a spirit of taking care of one another that’s really special down here.”
Sandberg remains thankful for a calm 2025 hurricane season, the first time Florida dodged a named storm in a decade.
“We got lucky, and I don’t think we’re banking or counting on luck,” he said. “We need to make sure we’re always preparing, always diligent and always aware.”