Shore owners amend plans for former Moore's Stone Crab restaurant
LONGBOAT KEY -- The new owners of the former Moore's Stone Crab restaurant location amended their site plan to do away with the building's second floor and add retail.
To meet and exceed the town of Longboat Key parking and site plan requirements as well as state and federal regulations, Shore has amended its site plan for the former Moore's Stone Crab restaurant, according to a statement from Shore's marketing coordinator, Britney Guertin.
The decision to remove the second floor came after meetings with the town and staff including zoning, planning, public works, and building and fire. The new restaurant will have 185 seats.
Shore sought a variance with the town and a permit with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to reconfigure the existing submerged land lease, the statement said. The variance and permit was approved, according to co-owner Tom Leonard.
"We've listened to staff comments and recommendations and feel this plan, if approved, will appease and comply with locals and governing organizations," Leonard said in a statement. "Our hope is to bring something
awe-inspiring to the community and we will carry on the Moore's tradition of stone crab while in season."
The new Shore location is currently in the building construction phase and Leonard hopes the project will break ground before the New Year. The design will be similar to the St. Armands Shore location with a boutique shop attached with Shore swimwear, cover-ups and apparel.
The waterfront restaurant at 800 Broadway St. in Longboat Key closed in July after it was sold to Mark Caragiulo and Leonard. The two own the Shore restaurant on St. Armands Circle in Sarasota and plan to make the Longboat Key location a "seafood-y, sexier, funkier version" of Shore, Caragiulo told the Herald in July.
Caragiulo estimated in July they'll hire about 70 to 80 people to work in the roughly 6,000-square-foot restaurant.
Janelle O'Dea, Herald business reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7095 or follow her on Twitter@jayohday.
This story was originally published October 20, 2015 at 11:47 PM with the headline "Shore owners amend plans for former Moore's Stone Crab restaurant ."