Sarasota aquarium announces last day in preparation to move to $132M facility

July 6 will be the last day members of the public can visit the Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium facility on City Island in Sarasota, the organization announced Wednesday afternoon.

The marine center is transitioning its public outreach to a $132 million facility west of I-75 near University Town Center. Under the name Mote Science Education Aquarium, the new center at Nathan Benderson Park will center around public education. When first announcing the project several years ago, aquarium and county officials anticipated it could draw upward of 700,000 visitors in its first year.

The City Island-based facility will be closed to the public during the transition, allowing researchers to focus on animal rehabilitation and research.