Walking through the numerous themed gardens at Selby is like taking a trip through the looking glass into nature’s wonderland. We live in a fertile part of the world…Selby Gardens provides an opportunity to leave our hectic lives behind for an hour or two and let our senses reconnect with thousands of varieties of local flora.
If you’re new to the Whole Foods experience or simply looking to bone up on healthy living skills, the Whole Foods Market Summer Tour Series provides great tips at the perfect price—free! Laurel Park residents can walk or bike to WFM, located at 1st and Lemon in downtown Sarasota.
Sure, Laurel Park is a historic neighborhood known for its restored Arts & Crafts and Florida Cracker cottages and its proximity to Main Street and downtown Sarasota—not to mention Burns Square and the Sarasota Bayfront. And sure, as the epicenter of Florida’s cultural coast Sarasota is well known for its fine arts. But did you know that Laurel Park also boasts one of the best comics and gaming shops you’ll ever find? The Dark Side, located at 408 S. Washington Boulevard (in a small plaza alongside a yoga studio and barber shop, among several others) is both a comic book shop and the home of Sarasota’s biggest gaming community.
Current Laurel Park residents have probably noticed a caravan of Segways passing by from time to time. They are participants on a guided tour of Historic Laurel Park courtesy of Florida Ever-Glides. According to their Web site, “Florida Ever-Glides Inc. originated the Segway Guided Tour concept in the United States in August 2003. With over 25,000 tour guests, this has made us the #1 mid-market Segway Guided Tour experience nationally!”
“Our dog hates going to the vet, always has,” says Laurel Park resident Josh Grigsby. “But sometimes when we’re out for a walk she’ll insist on going to see Dr. Gary.” Dr. Gary Reinhardt of Vet Center Sarasota isn’t your run of the mill veterinarian. I swear he can speak dog, cat, bird, ferret, whatever. A multilingual pet whisperer and healer rolled into one. And for 25 years, Sarasota’s pet population has been the beneficiary.
Named after the beloved wife of colorful local artist Arlie Gray, Mrs. Gray’s Place is a large two-story 1920s historic building with a beautiful 2BR/1BA apartment on the first floor and a large 1BR/1BA apartment with separate entrance on the second floor. Behind the main house is a quaint detached studio apartment.
Enjoy a Sunday afternoon of great music and good people when the Suncoast Concert Band or Jazz Ambassadors Big Band play at Payne Park. Concerts cost five bucks, payable at the door, with refreshments provided for a dollar each. All concerts are presented in a casual atmosphere, with open seating. Two performances remain in the spring schedule: April 25th and May 9th, both at 3pm. Laurel Park Management encourages all residents to get out there and enjoy everything Payne Park has to offer.
Sarasota is many things to many people: a retirement community, an arts town, home to some of the best beaches anywhere. But a local movement is afoot that might just put Sarasota on the map as, of all things, a college town. New College of Florida is regularly ranked one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country. Ringling College of Art + Design has renowned animation and graphic design programs. East-West College trains students to become doctors of Eastern medicine. State College of Florida, formerly Manatee Community College, offers a vast array of affordable courses and programs that round out the local educational menu. Oh, and the Asolo Performing Arts Center is also home to Florida State University’s graduate theater arts program. This extraordinary post-secondary diversity has been gradually coalescing, and while I’m not sure any studies have been done to verify this, one gets the sense that more and more high school and college students and recent grads are deciding to stay in sunny Sarasota and put their stamp on the place.
On most nights of the year the beautiful Florida skies provide stellar views, but for a week each April Laurel Park residents are given a front row seat to a different sort of stargazing. The Sarasota Film Festival is now in its 12th year, and the 2010 edition promises to be even better than last year’s. A vast assortment of films—from star-studded features to international documentaries to innovative shorts—are slated to show at nearby venues, including the Hollywood 20 Cinemas, Van Wezel Performing Arts Center, even Whole Foods! Most events can be reached on foot from Laurel Park Management’s downtown Sarasota apartments.
Sailor Circus now in its sixth decade of operation has grown from a small high school gymnastics class in 1949 to the present spectacular 4 ring youth circus production known world wide as the Greatest “Little” Show on Earth. Students from the 4th through 12th grades in Sarasota and surrounding counties have an opportunity to experience the performing arts in a circus atmosphere. Our dedicated students practice 20 – 30 hours a week and are trained by volunteer coaches who are retired circus performers, sailor circus alumni and enthusiastic parents. More than 200 volunteers donating over 25,000 hours of their time each season to PAL Sailor Circus demonstrates strong community involvement.
