As Manatee County weighs the future of storm-damaged waterfront property at the foot of the Cortez Bridge, John and Lacey Cadmus say their third-generation business is facing pressure from multiple projects.
The pressure on their operation, Cortez Watersports on 127th Street West in Cortez, includes planning for a proposed Cortez Marina on adjacent county-owned land to the north and a Florida Department of Transportation-led replacement of the Cortez Bridge to the south.
John Cadmus, in a Dec. 24 interview with The Islander, said the issue is not whether the projects should move forward, but whether overlapping timelines and early development decisions could destabilize waterfront businesses.
The challenges come as Cortez Watersports continues to recover from hurricanes Helene and Milton in 2024, which destroyed neighboring waterfront businesses.
And just after the storms, the county purchased the parcels that housed Annie’s Bait and Tackle and the Seafood Shack restaurant and marina complex. The structures were demolished in the spring and, today, the Cadmus’ operation is the last remaining business on the north side of the bridge.
A proposed Cortez Marina project centers on the county-owned waterfront property. Officials have said the site could be redeveloped for marine-related uses, including boat access, a marina and waterfront amenities.
Meanwhile, the DOT is moving forward with plans to replace the Cortez Bridge connecting Cortez to Anna Maria Island with a high, fixed-span structure. Preliminary utility work has begun, with full construction expected to begin in summer 2026. Officials have said the project is expected to last three years and will involve construction staging and traffic shifts near the bridge.
While supportive of replacing the drawbridge, Cadmus said preliminary sitework has disrupted access to his business. He cited the closure of 127th Street West, the last roadway before driving west on the bridge and the main thoroughfare in front of his shop.
“They had it shut down for nine months. It was only supposed to be 45 days,” he said.
Cadmus said his family has operated at the site since the early 1950s and that his grandparents owned and ran the business when the current bascule drawbridge was built in 1956 and opened in 1957.
“My family’s been here since ’53,” he said, recalling how his grandparents attended earlier bridge meetings and how his family feared coming changes.
“My grandmother would cry on the way home from those bridge meetings,” Cadmus said. “I find myself fighting the same fight.”
He said he has followed meetings related to the bridge and the marina projects and he’s encouraged officials to delay permanent development on the Seafood Shack property, recommending maintaining the site as green space in the near term with safe fishing access, non-motorized launches and observation areas until after major bridge construction begins.
Cadmus, whose business caters to eco-tourism, has said that the county, by clearing the docks and storm-damaged structures, inadvertently restored a natural estuary, with manatees and dolphins returning to the waterfront footprint of the former Seafood Shack.
“This is probably one of those times that it’s better to do nothing and just let this place become a green space for the public,” he said.
County Commissioner Tal Siddique, R-District 3, in a Dec. 19 interview with The Islander, said he is sympathetic to concerns raised by Cortez businesses, but he also said disruption is unavoidable during major infrastructure projects.
“There’s always an impact with any construction project, that’s reality, but based on conversations I’ve had with FDOT, I think the ultimate business impact will be minimal,” said Siddique, who will chair the commission beginning Jan. 1.
Siddique said concept plans for the marina site are expected in February.
“We’ll hear some concept plans and see what happens from there,” he said.
Cadmus said he is not opposed to the county or DOT projects, but he wants to dialogue as plans move forward.
“I want to work with the county, not against them,” Cadmus said, surveying the former Seafood Shack property from his docks. “This place could be something for everybody.”