In the five months since Sarasota County government vacated its former administration center at 1660 Ringling Blvd., the county branding has been removed from all exterior surfaces.
Inside and surrounding the building, Benderson Development subsidiary CCB Associates 1 has been planning for a vertical and horizontal expansion of the building into a mixed-use project, details of which have yet to be revealed.
Although the entire property, which includes a surface parking lot along both sides of Morrill Street adjacent to the historic Laurel Park neighborhood includes 2.88 acres, owner representatives from development consultant Kimley-Horn appeared before the city’s Development Review Committee on April 1 with an application regarding just 1 acre of the site.
It’s an important acre, containing the footprint of the building along Ringling Boulevard and immediate surrounding parking on the north side of Morrill Street. That building currently straddles two zoning districts — Downtown Core to the north and Downtown Edge to the south — and a corresponding split future land use designation of Downtown Core and Urban Edge…