Cerveza, please.
“The biggest thing people are saying today is, ‘Where can I get a beer and something to eat?’” Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy said Aug. 13 about the new city pier.
A city meeting that day invited questions from business owners interested in bidding on a lease to operate a grill and bait shop on the T-end of the new pier.
People attending the meeting remotely or in-person included Jason Suzor, owner of the Waterfront Restaurant, across from the pier; former Commissioner Brian Seymour, owner of the Pine Avenue General Store; Nicholas Graham of Pine Avenue Bait and Tackle; Vic Mattay, owner of Dips Ice Cream, all in Anna Maria; Patrick Coleman, an officer in FP Growth Partners and Poppo’s Taqueria, based in Anna Maria; and Karen Bell, owner of A.P. Bell Fish Co. and Star Fish Co. Market and Restaurant in Cortez.
Commissioners Carol Carter, Jonathan Crane and Joe Muscatello also attended as the mayor led a discussion on the updated request for proposals for pier space.
The RFP is for a small grill to offer beverages, takeout food and bait on the north side of the T-end and was issued after the city ceased negotiations with the Ugly Grouper restaurant in Holmes Beach to lease the restaurant on the south side of the T-end.
The larger area will remain vacant until the city determines a use for the space.
The pier opened Friday-Sunday with limited hours June 19 due to concerns over the novel coronavirus and lack of a pier tenant to maintain the space.
The original pier, 101 Bay Blvd., had been in operation since 1911, but was closed due to damages by Hurricane Irma in September 2017. The city demolished the pier and construction on the new pier began in 2018.
At the meeting, Suzor asked how long the city would allow the tenant to finish a buildout of the space for the grill and bait shop.
Murphy said the city wants to move “as quickly as possible” and would work with a potential lessee on the specs and contract negotiations.
The mayor said he would meet once or twice with a possible tenant to agree on the contract.
“We are in a hurry. We would like to get it up and flying before season, maybe November or December,” Murphy said.
Graham asked about expectations for the bait shop.
Murphy said the options are left to the bidder.
“We would make that negotiable,” Murphy said. “Some people have a grandiose idea about bait, while others just sell frozen squid.”
Murphy said questions and answers from the meeting would be posted at cityofannamaria.com.
The deadline to submit bids and the opening will be at 1 p.m. Friday, Aug. 21.
Murphy said the details of the bids would remain confidential for up to 30 days or until a shortlist or a single bidder is selected and presented to the city commission.
