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TDC endorses $60,000 recommendation to host Florida Maritime Museum pop-up during Cortez schoolhouse repairs
Summary
The Tourist Development Council unanimously recommended $60,000 to support a temporary “museum pop-up” near the Anna Maria Oyster Bar in Cortez while the Florida Maritime Museum’s schoolhouse undergoes renovation.
The Manatee County Tourist Development Council on April 21 unanimously approved a recommendation to provide $60,000 to support a temporary “museum pop-up” for the Florida Maritime Museum while the museum’s schoolhouse in Cortez is renovated.
The pop-up would relocate artifacts from the damaged Cortez schoolhouse to leased retail space near the Anna Maria Oyster Bar on Cortez Road, staff said, and would be cross-promoted to tourists and residents as a short-term measure while the county and Clerk of the Circuit Court office work on repairs.
Tourism Director Elliott Feltownie told the council that the pop-up is intended to “buy us time” while the county and Clerk of Court renovate the schoolhouse and to keep the museum’s collections accessible instead of leaving them hidden for “well over a year.” Vera Dolan, director of historical resources for the Manatee County Clerk of Circuit Courts, said the museum has been closed for more than a year and current estimates project reopening “right around mid‑August of 2027.” Dolan said the museum works with local partners including the Cortez Village Historical Society and the Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage (FISH) and that a temporary location would help maintain the museum’s role as a visitor touchpoint for the fishing village.
Mayor Jean Brown moved approval of the recommendation; Rahul Patel seconded. The chair called for the vote and the motion passed unanimously.
Elliott Feltownie said the county’s grants writer, Michelle Davis, was already pursuing historic preservation grant opportunities to accelerate renovation work on the schoolhouse.
The recommendation approved by the TDC is advisory: it directs the council to recommend the $60,000 allocation. Any formal county expenditure will follow the county’s budget and approval processes.
The TDC discussion did not include precise terms of a lease for the proposed pop-up space, nor did the presentation include a detailed implementation schedule; staff said those details would be worked out as the project advances.
