The Sarasota County Board of County Commissioners voted unanimously on Oct. 8 to offer a capped county contribution to repair the Hermitage Artist Retreat campus if the Hermitage board agrees to assume responsibility for future repairs.

The offer is limited to $172,258, a figure county staff said approximates the countys out-of-pocket share relative to a FEMA reimbursement path and picks up earlier evaluation costs; the board directed staff to draft terms that would make the payment contingent on the Hermitage boards approval of the agreement. If the Hermitage board does not accept those terms, the county will proceed with the existing design-build procurement route and pursue FEMA reimbursement under county-led procurement.

The Hermitage, a 501(c)(3) cultural nonprofit that leases county-owned beachfront property at Blind Pass, has pressed the commission for months to allow the organization or its contractor to perform repairs more quickly than the county-led plan. County staff have been negotiating a design-and-engineering amendment with a firm called A Squared; staff said executing that amendment and completing permitting would still likely put full campus restoration at least a year out.

Why it matters: The Hermitage campus was damaged in recent storms. The county owns the land and is the applicant for FEMA public-assistance reimbursement, which requires federally compliant procurement. If the Hermitage performs repairs under its own contract without following the countys procurement process, county staff said those costs would not be eligible for FEMA reimbursement and the county (taxpayers) would bear more of the final cost. The board tried and failed earlier to adopt a different route that would have turned the repairs fully over to the Hermitage without the county contribution.

County staff and FEMA counsel outlined the constraints. Lee Prince, the countys disaster financial recovery manager, reminded the board that FEMA permanent work grants reimburse 75% of eligible costs, while the state and county each normally cover 12.5%. The countys procurement and grant rules require full and open competition, and staff warned that accepting an unsolicited contractor bid would jeopardize reimbursement.

Hermitage supporters and staff urged the commission to let the retreat use a contractor familiar with its campus to speed repairs and reduce cost. Speakers at the public-comment portion included Hermitage board chair Carol Crosby, managing director Stacia Lee, attorney Steven Solowski and several longtime supporters and donors. They said the Hermitage had privately raised or pledged funds, had contractors ready and believed it could finish repairs faster and cheaper than the county path.

Commissioners said they are sympathetic but constrained. Several commissioners, while praising the Hermitage as a cultural asset, emphasized duty to protect taxpayer dollars and the countys obligation to pursue full FEMA reimbursement when legally possible. Commissioner Kutzinger proposed the boards deal: a fixed county payment (staff calculated $172,258 after subtracting evaluation costs and estimated county cost-share) combined with a written agreement that the Hermitage would assume responsibility for future hurricane-related repairs; the Hermitage community asked for time to take the offer to its board.

Board action and next steps: The commission voted unanimously to add the conditional offer (often described during deliberations as option 3) and to ask the Hermitage to return with a board decision. Staff will draft the written terms (an amendment or addendum) that memorializes the cap, the countys expedited permitting cooperation and the Hermitage acceptance of long-term repair responsibility. If the Hermitage does not accept the terms, staff will proceed with the countys design/engineering amendment for A Squared and continue the FEMA reimbursement track.

Public comment and background: Public commenters repeatedly said the Hermitage has invested private funds in maintenance and emergency response and argued county delays risk further deterioration and higher costs. County staff documented prior actions: the county owns ~61 acres at Blind Pass Beach, purchased a 1.67-acre adjacent parcel (the Palm House) in February 2014 for $2.3 million using a neighborhood parkland-purchase program, and in April 2015 entered a 20-year lease with the arts council that was reassigned to the Hermitage in 2005 and amended most recently in July 2024 to address post-disaster repairs.

Ending: The Hermitage board must decide whether to accept the countys conditional offer; if it does, the commissions action aims to speed repairs by letting the nonprofit manage construction, while shifting future repair risk to the nonprofit. If the Hermitage declines, the county will continue with its federally compliant procurement and FEMA-reimbursement pathway, a process county staff said could take about a year to reach full restoration.