After four years of planning and $50 million in private gifts and pledges, the Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation has initiated a formal dispute resolution process with the City of Sarasota that could end their partnership to develop a new performing arts center.
The foundation’s board of directors announced Tuesday, Oct. 27, that it was invoking a provision of its 2022 public-private partnership agreement after failing to reach terms with the city over proposed amendments concerning donor funds and operation of the facility. The process gives both parties a formal means of addressing their disagreements and could ultimately lead to termination of the agreement.
Under the partnership established in 2022, the city and foundation agreed to work together toward developing a new performing arts center, with the foundation pursuing private philanthropic support for the project. That fundraising effort had generated $50 million in gifts and pledges by this spring, before the organization had even launched its formal capital campaign.
Some of those prospective donors, according to the foundation, have sought clearer commitments about the project’s scope, financial responsibilities and governance before making substantial investments. The foundation says the proposed amendments have left those questions unresolved, making it unwilling to continue committing philanthropic resources to the existing partnership without further assurances.
With the agreement now in formal dispute resolution, the foundation is also evaluating whether it could develop a performing arts center under a different arrangement, including independently of the city partnership. Its board has made no decisions about a location, financing structure or construction timeline for an alternative project.
“While the path forward may look different than what we originally envisioned, our passion for ensuring Sarasota’s cultural future is unchanged,” foundation board co-chairs Drayton Saunders and Dr. Jenne Britell said in a joint statement. “We owe it to this community to explore every responsible opportunity to bring that vision to life.”
The foundation plans to continue supporting arts education and cultural programming while exploring the possibility of developing a new center, although its announcement did not establish a deadline for resolving the dispute or identify any alternative development partners.