SARASOTA/SIESTA KEY
Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
Deep dives.
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FREE • THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2024
VOLUME 20, NO. 12
YOUR TOWN
Dog park demolition starts 26-acre Sarasota Kennel Club site gives way to new development. SEE PAGE 3A
EAT, BARK, LOVE
Ian Swaby
Harper and Steven Harris
Boo’s Ice House enables pet parents to celebrate Valentine’s Day with their best friends. SEE PAGE 6B
Canvas sightseers
Visiting places in and around her home of Sarasota is something that Harper Harris, 11, loves to do. On Feb. 10, she found herself entranced standing in a tent on Main Street and exploring a stand of art prints. “It’s so amazing!” she said as she flipped through paintings of locations like St. Armands Circle and Anna Maria Island. The collection was part of the work on display at the 36th Annual Downtown Sarasota Festival of the Arts, which she was visiting with members of her family. Her father, Steven Harris, said the festival always offers interesting sights that cannot be found elsewhere. “It’s great so far,” he said. “A lot of our favorites we saw last year are back. We’re happy to see repeats and a lot of fresh stuff as well.” The artist of the paintings, Bradenton’s Robert Johnson, said he enjoys painting the local scenes around him, “capturing history and all the places we love.”
Ian Swaby
Janet Guzman celebrates Valentine’s Day early with Kalua and Kiwi at Boo’s Ice House.
Courtesy image
Life of service comes to an end
Sarasota PD debuts new patch The Sarasota Police Department has debuted a new patch affixed with Sarasota’s new city seal. The City Commission approved the new city seal in November 2022. As the department updates its branding, residents will gradually see SPD officers wearing the new patch on their sleeves. Like the original seal, which was designed in 1902, the new seal pays tribute to the city’s waterfront and natural attributes, and includes Sarasota’s 120-year-old motto, “May Sarasota Prosper.” The new seal is a collaboration between Sarasota-based creative agency DreamLarge and city resident Rachel Manzano, a city seal contest design participant whose concept was selected by the City Commission.
Nora Patterson embodied the ideals of a true public servant as a mayor and commissioner. SEE PAGE 2B Courtesy image
Nora Patterson cuts the ribbon for the Nora Patterson Bay Island Park Improvement Project in 2022.
A+E
The ‘Carmen’ we know. INSIDE