Ah! The wafting aroma of burgers and fries, mingled with beach music and laughter.
The Manatee Public Beach concession is home to the Anna Maria Island Beach Cafe, offering a long list of beach food and beverage favorites and other sand necessities — chairs, hats, towels and, of course, ice cream.
United Park Service of Tampa, which was awarded the Manatee Public Beach concession contract with Manatee County in 2010, has been awarded another five-year contract to operate the facility.
The new contract, which was approved by county commissioners at their Oct. 25 meeting, gives UPS exclusive rights to the cafe and the accessory areas — the gift shop and indoor-outdoor dining areas.
“We feel this partnership with United Park Service provides quality services to enhance the beach and park experience for our many residents and visitors,” Debbie Voorhees, contract manager for Manatee County, said in an email.
Tanner Enoch, manager of the Anna Maria Island Beach Cafe said, “We are so happy to be able to continue our partnership with Manatee County and keep serving the public to the best of our ability at this amazing location.”
Enoch also said, “We truly are living the dream out here and hope to have the opportunity to do it for a long time to come.”
After “lengthy” negotiations, two major changes were included in the new contract.
The compensation to the county will now be a straight 10 percent of gross sales, less sales tax.
The previous contract carried a fixed base rent of $342,000 per year — $28,500 per month.
The former contract also required a 4 percent payment on the gross sales over $2.5 million less sales tax. This, too, has been eliminated with enactment of the straight percentage agreement.
According to Voorhees, “Both the vendor and the county share the risks and rewards” with the new contract agreement.
It ensures that if revenues rise, so does the compensation to the county, she said.
The second stipulation of the new contract is that UPS will now be responsible for more maintenance, though the county will continue to maintain the structural aspects of the beachfront buildings.
The county will soon provide porter services for increased cleanliness of the restrooms and for the convenience of beachgoers. The day porter also will have access to a handicap-friendly beach wheelchair.
Voorhees said that “on the horizon” at the Manatee Public Beach are patio improvements set to begin in November and gutter work, which is underway.
Enoch noted the cafe offers live music seven nights a week and several special events are scheduled, including Sandblast Nov. 19 and Jam in the Sand — an open jam night for musicians — which will return in January.
United Park Service also holds the contract for the concession at Coquina Beach in Bradenton Beach, for which negotiations are underway for renewal.