Big year ahead for $132M aquarium project in Sarasota County corridor

The project, shaped like a seaworthy ship, nears final stages of construction.

By Jay Heater
| 5:00 a.m. January 21, 2024
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The Mote Science Education Aquarium will be 110,000 square feet. Interior work will speed forward approximately in July.

Manatee-Sarasota

One of the biggest non-residential condo construction projects in years in Sarasota County is primed to set sail by the end of 2024.

The project is the $132 million Mote Science Education Aquarium, or Mote SEA. It's being built near University Town Center and Nathan Benderson Park in north Sarasota, near the border with Manatee County. The area has been a hub of commercial activity of late,. Among the new additions: a Tesla dealership is under construction at UTC; a new Trader Joe's grocery store opened a few months ago across the street; and also across University Parkway a coming soon sign is in place for a Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar.