Proposal would save three North Port Warm Mineral Springs structures from wrecking ball

NORTH PORT – A proposal to preserve three historical structures at Warm Mineral Springs – based on funding from a combination of state and federal preservation grants, city funds and tax credits – will be discussed by the North Port City Commission Tuesday.

The Springs Preservation Plan, prepared by the Sarasota Alliance for Historic Preservation, builds on much of the groundwork developed by city officials prior to the the commission’s unsuccessful attempt to negotiate a deal with a private developer to pay for restoration of the sales building, spa and cyclorama on the 21.6-acre springs protection site. The preservation work was to be in exchange for the ability to develop 61.4 surrounding acres.

After those talks halted, resident efforts to preserve the entire 83-acre park site intensified.

Should the commissioners adopt the restoration plan, it would likely mean continued use of portable buildings for ticket sales and bathrooms and a vote to reverse the action they approved in March – replacing all three structures with one minimalistic building for ticket sales and bathrooms.

“Tearing those buildings down and building a minimal building for registration is not going to contribute to the sense of special place there,” Sarasota Alliance for Historic Preservation President Dave Baber said.

The commission meets at 6 p.m. in chambers at City Hall, 4970 City Hall Blvd., North Port.

Why are the Warm Mineral Springs buildings historic?

Lorrie Muldowney, immediate past president of the 39-year-old, nonprofit preservation group, served as a consultant for Sweet Sparkman Architects on a master plan co-authored by the architects and Kimley-Horn & Associates that was approved by City Commission in 2019.

The Alliance based the anticipated $11 million to $13.1 million cost to restore the three historical structures at 12200 San Servando Ave. on architectural and engineering reports from Sweet Sparkman.

The  three historical buildings believed to be designed by Jack West of the Sarasota School of Architecture were used for the Florida Quadricentennial Celebration.

The three structures were placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2019.

The cyclorama is one of only three remaining in the United States.

“This complex was really important historically not only locally but statewide and nationally,” Baber said.

The spring itself and a protection zone were put on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.

Once thought to be the Fountain of Youth when it was discovered by explorer Juan Ponce de Leon, Warm Mineral Springs is an hourglass-shaped sinkhole primarily fed by an underground stream that pumps in 20 million gallons of 86 degree water per day.

Bathers believe the waters have healing power. Ever since the resort was developed by the late Samuel Herron Jr. in the 1950s, it has consistently drawn Eastern European visitors, as well as residents to the surrounding community.

How long would it take to restore the Sarasota School of Architecture buildings?

The Alliance proposal is based on a four-year timetable.

“We envision this as being a phased process to keep functioning in the meantime and every step improves the caliber of the facility,” Baber said.

It calls for the city to allocate $5 million of the funding earmarked for Warm Mineral springs to stabilize the structures.

That funding would also be considered matching funds for a special category grant for historic preservation  from the Florida Division of Historical Resources.

Combined, all three structures represent 13,775 square feet of covered area – 3,370 square feet for the sales building; 6,055 for the spa building and 4,350 for the cyclorama.

The original renovation plan included gutting the structures to their “historic bones,” with significant structural repairs, replacement of all windows, as well as mechanical electrical and plumbing systems, and installation of a fire sprinkler system.

“Fortunately because of the materials that were used there we're not looking at a lot of deteriorated wood,” Muldowney said.

Historical renovation grant funds allow for modern construction techniques and materials to be used, such as when the Nokomis Beach Plaza, also designed by Jack West, was rebuilt by Sarasota County.

The historical designation also allows for exemptions from the Florida Building Code requirements that would otherwise require elevation of the three buildings.

The year-one budget projects spending $4 million combined from city and matching grant funds, as well as laying the groundwork to secure up to $1 million by working with a commercial entity to syndicate historic rehabilitation tax credits that could generate another $1 million.

Year-two calls for $500,000 from the city and $500,000 in matching rants, as well as receiving anywhere from $125,000 to $750,000 in a Save America’s Treasures grant from the National Park Service to restore the cyclorama.

Years three and four call for similar city and grant fund contributions of $1 million each.

Another $4 million anticipated for year four would be contingent on whether voters approve a November referendum that would allow the city to borrow money for specific projects.

City officials are drafting language for the referendum, which is also key for the funding of a new headquarters for the North Port Police Department.

Should voters approve that authority, gate receipts could be used to guarantee a bond. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the park generated between $300,000 and $400,000 in profit annually.

Attendance had boomed in 2021 and 2022, with 136,626 people using the springs in 2021, when the city pocketed $874,200 in net profit; and 152,806 people in 2022, when the city pocketed more than $1.014 million in net profit.

What would happen to the surrounding parkland?

The proposal by the historic preservation alliance points to the resident response to a 2023 survey that favored low-impact recreational activities on the surrounding 61.4 acres – a portion of which is eyed as a trailhead for the Legacy Trail.

City Commissioner Debbie McDowell has informally polled county commissioners and area state legislators in hopes of developing solutions.

Jon Thaxton, senior vice president for community leadership with the Gulf Coast Community Foundation, has suggested Sarasota County purchase a conservation easement through the Environmentally Sensitive Lands Protection Program.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Historical nonprofit has a plan to save Warm Mineral Springs buildings