Sarasota Opera House was also known as the Edwards Theater.   The building is located at 61 North Pineapple Avenue, Sarasota.  The building was the plan of the first Mayor of Sarasota A.B. Edwards.  The structure was designed by architect Roy A. Benjamin.  Style was Mediterranean Revival.  Construction contractor was G.A. Miller.

     The Edwards Theater opened April 10, 1926.  There was a three story entrance.  There were 8 shops on the ground floor. There were 12 offices on the second floor.  There were 12 furnished apartments on the third floor.  The theater auditorium featured a pipe organ.

     The theater is currently the home of the Sarasota Opera Company which currently owns the building.  The auditorium current!y seats 1,119.

     In the 1920’s, the theater became a popular venue for live entertainment and movies.  Over the years, the management and the name of the theater changed.  In December, 1936 it was named the Florida Theater.  Over the years, modernization removed most of the art deco features.  The theater closed in 1973.

     In 1979, Asolo  Opera Guild bought theater for $150,000.  Renovations began in 1982.  The theater was renamed the Sarasota Opera House. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places March, 1984.

     Between 2007-2008, further renovations were made. These cost twenty million dollars.The auditorium was gutted. A new seating plan was devised. There was expansion of the public areas and Opera Club on the second floor.  There was opening of a three story atrium to expose a skyline system

    The Sarasota City Hall is located at 1565 First Street Sarasota.  It was built in 1966.  The architect was Jack West .  Al Conyers a concrete specialist assisted.The building is 3 stories ( 35 feet).  The original design was reduced by 30%.  A proposed clock tower was dropped from the plan.

     The McCullough Building 

     The building served as a showroom for Barker furniture.

     After Barker Furniture closed, the building was purchased by Sarasota County.  It was used as a print shop.

     In 2014, the country was approached by Center for Architecture Sarasota with a proposal to lease the building for its headquarters.  The lease was approved.  The Center for Architecture Sarasota began a 6 month,  $500,000 restoration supervised by architect Guy Peterson.  Building was renamed McCullough Pavilion.

    The building as currently configured has  front architecture gallery space,  a a lecture hall and a small administrative office.

     The McCullough Pavilion was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 7, 2016.

Architect was Carl Abbott.

    The former chamber of commerce building in Sarasota was also known as the Blue Pagoda. It is located at U.S. 41 and Avenue of The Boulevard of the Arts. It was built in 1956. The architect was Victor Lundy. The building was notable for blue ceramic tiles on its roof. The roof is supported by curving wooden beams. The walls are glass.   The building measured 30 x 60 feet.  Constructions costs were $50,000.Former tenants include U.S. Masters Swimming.

    The Pavilion is located at 101 the Esplanade. It was constructed in 1961.  Architect was Cyril Tucker.

    The FST is a professional non for profit theater located in downtown Sarasota at 1241 Palmer Avenue.   It was founded in 1973.  The FST consists of 5 theater spaces.

     1) Main Stage (Keating Theater). This was formerly the Sarasota Woman’s Club which was founded in 1903. Keating Theater seats 173.

     2) Gompertz Theater.  Purchased in 2003 by FST.   This was originally a movie theater in 1920’s.  It closed during the Depression. It reopened in the 1940’s.  In the 1951, it was known as the Palm Tree Playhouse.  Building was purchased by FST and renamed the Gompetz.  It seats 237.

     3) Cabaret. Goldstein Cabaret   In 1996, opened the venue. It was renamed Goldstein Cabaret

   John C Court Cabaret .  It opened in 2013.

   Improv and Stage III. Bournes lab theater.   It houses FST stage III series also FST Improv

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     The current Selby Public.Library was built in 1998. It is located at 1338 First Street, Sarasota, Florida.  The architect was Eugene Aubrey.  It is a 2 story building with a large central foyer. The is 73,000 square feet of space.  There is a 200 seat auditorium.  It is the largest public Library in Sarasota.

    This building was completed in 1936. Architect was Thomas Reed Martin. The building was originally designed for Pittsburgh resident Captain Ralph S. Cain. The building style is Classical Revival. It employs cast stone and 12 classical columns. Cain used the building for a variety of businesses including Cain Automotive. A savings and loan and multiple restaurants occupied this space over the years. The law firm of Clyde Wilson,Sr and Clyde H. Wilson, Jr occupied half of the building. In 1973, they bought the office. The building was purchased by Caldwell Trust in 2020 for a future office.