ANNA MARIA – Pending city commission approval, Anthony and Joann Manali plan to operate a 26-space paid parking lot on their commercially-zoned property at 105 Spring Ave.
The couple owns and operates Captain Anthony’s Seafood Market at 107 Spring Ave. on a commercially-zoned property that also contains their home.
Two city commission-approved paid parking lots already operate within a block or two of the Manali’s proposed paid parking lot.
On Nov. 19, Anna Maria Planning and Zoning Board (P&Z) members Jeff Rodencal, Christine Aaron, Don Buswell-Charkow and David Johnson unanimously voted in favor of recommending future city commission approval of a variance request pertaining to the city’s fence and buffering regulations.
In a second and related action, the planning board members recommend city commission approval of the site plan submitted for the proposed paid parking lot.
The Nov. 19 meeting packet included background information provided by City Planner Ashley Austin.
“The subject property, located at 105 Spring Ave., is comprised of two platted lots which have been used for Sandbar restaurant parking since as early as 2006. A site plan request has been submitted to establish a public commercial parking lot as the primary use of the property. As a part of the site plan request, a 6-foot-tall wood fence and 5-foot-wide landscape buffer are required along the northeast (landward side) and southeast (rear) property lines where the property abuts residential uses,” according to the background information.
“The applicant, Monica Simpson, on behalf of the property owner, Anthony Manali, is requesting a variance to the buffer requirements which would allow the property owners to maintain an existing 4-foot vinyl fence along the landward side of the property and eliminate the fence requirement entirely along the rear of the property. Alternatively, if a fence is required, the applicant requests a 4-foot vinyl fence along the northeast and southeast property lines,” according to the background information provided.
When addressing the board, Anthony Manali said they previously leased their two unpaved parking lots to the Sandbar restaurant but that lease expired a couple years ago and they now wish to operate a paid parking lot there themselves. The two adjacent lots are separated by some landscape buffering.
Regarding the variance request, the planning board members support allowing the Manalis to leave in place an existing 4-foot-high vinyl fence that stands between the seafood market building and the proposed parking lot. Additional landscape buffering will be installed between the existing fence and the parking area and a 6-foot-high vinyl fence will be required along the residential section of Spring Lane that runs parallel to Spring Avenue.
As part of the site plan approval process, the Manalis agreed to install a split-rail, corral-style fence along the portion of Spring Lane that’s closest to the Gulf of Mexico and runs perpendicular to Spring Avenue.
When asked about the intended parking rate, Anthony Manali said they would charge the “market rate” and did not provide a specific hourly or daily rate.
New paid parking lot opens
A new paid parking lot is now open and operational at 9806 Gulf Drive at the corner of Gulf Drive and Magnolia Avenue. The lot is across the street from Ginny’s and Jane E’s Café and across the street from a previously opened paid parking lot at 9902 Gulf Drive. Approved by Anna Maria city commissioners in September, the new paid parking lot is owned by Jerry Robert Hynton’s JRHAMI LLC and operated and maintained by Josh LaRose’s Easy Parking Group.
