Mote facing March 10 deadline for pier inspection

Materials are piled up and at least one Willis Smith Construction worker is on the job March 1 in the main T-end building on the Anna Maria City Pier, where the Mote Marine Laboratory educational outreach center buildout is underway. Mayor Dan Murphy said Feb. 23 that he wants a Mote update at an upcoming meeting but Murphy wrote in a March 4 email to The Islander that “the update meeting has not been scheduled yet, and I have no construction updates at this point.” According to Mote’s lease terms with the city, it has until Friday, March 10, to apply for a certificate of occupancy, which triggers a city inspection for completion of the facility. And, if Mote meets that deadline, the outreach center needs to be operational by April 7. Mote vice president for communications and strategic initiatives Kevin Cooper, who has said much of the work was being completed off-site, did not respond to a March 2 phone call from The Islander. Islander Photo: Ryan Paice