Ellenton might get a movie theater after all as developer tweaks county proposal

Planned development is back on the plate for a movie theater, hotel and commercial space near the Ellenton Premium Outlets.

The project plan was originally submitted in September 2016, but the movie theater fell through and the developer opted for a 5-story hotel instead. A modified version of the proposal came before the Manatee County Planning Commission on Thursday.

The new development proposal features a 50,000-square-foot movie theater, a 330-room hotel and 120,000 square feet of commercial retail space on 7.86 acres of land at 5939 25th St. E., along the northwest corner of 60th Avenue East and Factory Shops Boulevard.

Margaret Tusing, a planner handling the proposal, explained that the reason the project has come back before the board is that the size of the proposed developments changed. Before, the hotel was slated to include 220 rooms and the movie theater was only 34,000 square feet.

“We’re very specific in our titles so we determined we had to come back to the commission because we were so specific,” Tusing said. “We said we wanted a movie theater at this square footage and non-residential at this square feet, so the hotel couldn’t be included before.”

According to submitted documents, the development would include two-way access points along both Factory Shops Boulevard and 60th Avenue East. Commissioner Paul Roth questioned how the project might affect traffic, but Tusing noted that a traffic study isn’t required at the general development plan stage but will be conducted in the future.

Tusing clarified that the developer, OHM Teerth Investments & Consulting, will be limited the uses that have been brought before the Planning Commission and the Board of County Commissioners.

Planning commissioners approved a motion to recommend the plan to county commissioners. The board will have the final say on the matter at a later date.

This story was originally published November 8, 2018 at 4:01 PM.