“Is it going to be easy? No,” said Alex Rose from the Urban Land Institute on the recommendations resulting from a week-long study by the nonprofit.
ULI panelists presented their study results Feb. 27 at CrossPointe Fellowship, 8605 Gulf Drive. The recommendations address islandwide problems identified by a committee of Anna Maria Island residents.
They included topics of traffic, parking and balancing resident visitor needs and maintaining the “old Florida” character of the island.
The eight panelists, divided into teams on topics, each addressed the audience, evaluating the issues and offering proposed solutions.
The focus of the recommendations was on harnessing available resources and accepting certain realities: the demand for vacation rentals will only increase, people will not “stop liking Anna Maria Island” and any development is redevelopment on a built-out island.
Panelist Dan Conway said the demand for seasonal housing is growing at 2.2 percent nationally, and Manatee County is growing at twice that rate.
This means several things, Conway pointed out, growth is occurring at historically unprecedented rates and Manatee County will be one of the most active real estate markets in the county.
To respond to the challenges it was recommended islanders harness their market opportunities, the sentiment being “visitors need you as much as you need them.”
The symbiotic relationship doesn’t need to mean mutually assured destruction of either the rental industry or residents’ way of life. Residents, business owners and local governments have the power to guide the future with “strategic planning” and collaboration.
Traditional zoning measures was one recommendation to shield residents from the impacts of increased vacationers and maintain the island’s character. Make a preservation zone, or historic district, with stricter rules than those on the books and a “change zone,” allowing redevelopment, said panelist Klaus Philipsen.
Adding to zoning recommendations, the panelists advocated for mixed-use zones in the commercial areas to include residential housing for employees of island businesses.
The move would enhance “the fabric” of the island, panelists said, supporting Anna Maria Elementary School and local churches. Employee housing was mentioned by more than half of the panelists during their respective presentations. The move would prevent the loss of residents and improve traffic conditions.
The panelists said 38 percent of island residents are employed, and of those, the majority work off the island. Conversely, they estimated 90 percent of employees of island businesses live off island. They linked this to annual salaries of those workers being too low to own an island home.
Stricter environmental regulations were strongly recommended to improve the long-term values of land, improve visitors’ experiences and maintain the island character.
Philipsen said ecological regulations can also be tied into preferred development moves, offering incentives to the types of development islanders prefer. He focused on stormwater management plans and fees for not meeting stricter standards.
The stormwater management system could feed into or support another of the panels recommendations: “resiliency.” Panelists suggested infrastructure improvements that will be more self-sustaining, particularly in observance of possible storm damages.
Stormwater is an opportunity to make drinking water, Philipsen said. He also recommended fuel and solar cells for power generation.
The panelists had a lot to say on transportation and parking, but essentially, there are too many cars on the island, said Ross Tilghman.
“It’s simple math,” said Tilghman.
Part of the problem could be solved by getting people to live and work on the island, he said. Another problem is unrestricted free parking. Recommended solutions include free mainland parking linked to a free shuttle with paid “premium” parking for beachgoers.
They also advocated for permit parking on problematic residential streets through resident petitions.
They recommended they analyze the traffic patterns of the different groups of drivers — employees, residents, vacationers, day trippers — to come up with effective solutions.
Adding to traffic reduction, they recommended promoting a “car-free lifestyle” with safer biking and walking paths, creating linkages between paths, a bike share program and more places to park bikes and golf carts.
A number of other recommendations were made during the presentation:
• Ask for more Tourist Development Council money.
• Advocate for beach renourishment that is no longer dependent on free parking.
• Develop an island brand to market desired goals, such as “car-fee vacations” and a family-friendly demographic. The island is already marketed — use it.
• Strongly suggest island-wide leadership committee.
• A main street designation.
• An island-wide planner.
• A city manager form of government.
• Longer terms for elected officials.
The ULI presentation is available online at www.amiuli.com. A full published report of all recommendations will be available in 60-90 days.