The T-end buildings of the new Anna Maria City Pier are taking shape fast, but negotiations for their use have slowed to a crawl.
Mayor Dan Murphy recently offered Mario Schoenfelder, the pier tenant since 2000, two base payment options for a new lease and expected the tenant’s proposal by Oct. 18.
One of Murphy’s proposed payment options includes a $21,600 monthly base payment, along with either a 3% annual increase — to begin after the first year — or an annual adjustment based on the consumer price index.
The other option includes an $18,900 monthly base payment, subject to the same options for annual increases as the first option. However, this option requires that Schoenfelder pay $250,000 at the signing.
But Schoenfelder is not ready to make an offer.
He told The Islander in an Oct. 17 phone interview that he wouldn’t talk payment options until Mason Martin, the contractor hired to build the T-end restaurant and bait shop, provides a cost estimate for the buildout — an expense Schoenfelder agreed to shoulder.
Schoenfelder said he has worked with Sarasota-based Schimberg Group to coordinate with Mason Martin. He added that Schimberg set a deadline for Mason Martin to submit a bid that ended the week of Oct. 7, but the contractor missed the deadline.
Schoenfelder said he would like to know how much he will invest in the buildout of the T-end buildings before he agrees to any base payment options for the lease.
Schoenfelder, who splits his time between Holmes Beach and Germany, originally signed a lease for 10 years, with two five-year options and a $5,000 monthly lease payment, which was subject to periodic increases of $500.
The monthly payments, which escalated to $11,900, were discontinued after the city closed the pier in September 2017.
In September, Murphy and Schoenfelder tentatively agreed to a 10-year lease with two five-year extensions — the same length of the current lease.
Murphy previously told commissioners he would call a special meeting when Schoenfelder sends his offer for base payments so it could be discussed.
Progress
Meanwhile, work on the T-end buildings progressed smoothly the week of Oct. 14.
“It’s going good,” Murphy said in an Oct. 15 interview. “They’re (Mason Martin) working on the bait shop and bathrooms, so, once that’s finished, they’ll make their way over to the restaurant.”
Murphy said he expects Mason Martin to finish the buildings before their 200-day time frame ends, but doesn’t have an estimated completion date.
He added that he expects to receive an estimated completion date by Oct. 25.