Manatee commits $5 million to new Mote aquarium. Tourists are the ones paying for it
Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium in Sarasota secured a total of $5 million from Manatee County’s tourism taxes to help pay for the organization’s new Science Education Aquarium at Nathan Benderson Park.
Tuesday morning’s approval came more than a year after the Sarasota-based research aquarium asked the Manatee Board of County Commissioners to provide $15 million in funding toward the 1-million gallon facility. The board voted 6-1 to approve a much lower annual contribution of $1 million for five years.
The county’s money will pay for the naming rights of a new manatee habitat exhibit that also raises awareness about water quality and red tide, according to Mote documents.
“I think there’s nothing more important than protecting our coastlines and our water quality, and we can do it while promoting tourism,” said Commissioner Misty Servia.
Commissioners have debated the allocation for several months, with some arguing that the funds would be better spent within county lines. While tourism taxes are collected from fees attached to hotel and short-term rentals, the funds cannot be spent on construction outside of Manatee County. The Mote SEA will be built in Sarasota County, just south of the county line, and is expected to cost around $130 million.
As a compromise, Manatee agreed to use tourism taxes to pay for naming rights that will promote the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, the county’s tourism arm.
“The main thing we need to understand is that with it being (tourism) taxes, this is a project that will benefit tourists and our citizens. From that standpoint alone, it’s a win-win,” said Commissioner Vanessa Baugh.
The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic are still having an effect on local tourism, according to County Administrator Cheri Coryea. The industry hit a peak 73 percent decline in June but has recovered to a 21 percent decline in August. Overall, tourism numbers are 13 percent lower than last year, Coryea said.
Predicting that shortfall, the Tourist Development Council voted to recommend smaller payments of $50,000 a year for the next 20 years — a total of $1 million — at a meeting in February.
Commissioner Priscilla Whisenant Trace, who cast the dissenting vote at Tuesday’s meeting, said she couldn’t bring herself to support spending any money outside of Manatee County when there are other tourism-boosting projects that should come first.
“I might consider $1 million over five years, but I do not like spending money we do not have,” Trace explained. “We were projecting this on the growth, but we’re not growing. We’re going backwards. I always have a problem spending money that technically is not in the bank.”
“With Premier Sports Campus and (the Bradenton Area Convention Center), to spend that money, that’s money you’re going to need here today because we already have those projects in the pipeline, and I don’t like throwing this one into the front,” she added.
Commissioner Carol Whitmore expressed similar concerns, noting that she previously received complaints from citizens about the county’s plans to spend tourism taxes elsewhere.
“I have a feeling that if this gets approved, nothing else will. My constituents want tourism taxes to stay in Manatee County,” Whitmore said. “I can’t just vote for this today and say, ‘Oh, we’ll deal with Manatee County later.’”
Following the board’s approval of the $5 million Mote funding, Whitmore asked for a motion that expresses Manatee’s commitment to also funding local projects with tourism taxes. The vote passed 6-1, with Commissioner Stephen Jonsson dissenting.
Mote Marine CEO Dr. Michael Crosby thanked the board for their support and described how the funding will assist the organization’s overall mission. With the new facility coming soon, Crosby said Mote will be able to re-imagine its City Island Aquarium.
“As we transition, that is going to free up space for us to expand the research enterprise. We’re hiring more scientists every year, and I have to turn down scientists from all over the world with grants who want to spend their own dollar on research,” he explained. “Our vision beyond 2020 is to pivot and begin the evolution of the current campus to become an international marine research park.”
According to Crosby, the Science Education Aquarium will have a $280 million impact over the 2-year construction period and a regional annual impact of $28 million. Mote plans to host a groundbreaking ceremony in October.
