Having a ball

Henry Rodriguez is going small.

The prominent Sarasota area developer has traded 1,000-acre land deals for boutique hotels near Siesta Key. “I'm finding my passion,” says Rodriguez, 53, who previously developed a Wal-Mart Supercenter and the 41-acre Bay Street Village and Towncenter in Osprey, among other projects. “I love this.”

His first hospitality project was a 22-room hotel in south Sarasota County, which he bought in late 2014 for $1.3 million and renamed the Nokomis Inn & Suites. His next, and more elaborate project, is a makeover of the old Elephant Ear Suites on 1800 Stickney Point Road, just across the bridge from Siesta Key. Rodriguez paid $1.9 million for the hotel complex in May, and has quickly spent at least $1.1 million in renovations. He renamed the property, with three buildings and two pools, the Siesta Key Palms Resort. It opened for business in late June.