A once-illegal landfill in Sarasota is set for a major transformation, with plans underway to redevelop the site into a medical office building and related facilities.

The property at 2046 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Way, along U.S. 301, was formerly known as the Marian Anderson Place Brownfield.

The project will include a health care facility with clinics and medical offices, a 100,000-square-foot storage and assembly building, and a 200-foot cell tower.

The redevelopment is led by Woodwater Investments, a Miami-based real estate firm, in partnership with Newtown Gateway LLC—a collaboration between local developers Ernie DuBose, Keith DuBose, and Pastor Al Davis.

Sarasota shut down the unlicensed landfill in the 1960s, but turning the site into usable space required rezoning from residential to Industrial General District. The change, approved unanimously by city commissioners in May, was a key step forward.

While the Sarasota County Property Appraiser valued the land at about $430,000, the city sold it to Woodwater for $50,000. Under the deal, the buyer must handle all environmental remediation—an extensive and costly process.

The sale was originally approved in 2023, with the agreement allowing until 2026 for the city to sign off on the long-range growth plan, which requires a supermajority vote. According to city spokesperson Luke Mocherman, projects involving environmental cleanup often take years to complete.

Progress was further delayed when FEMA temporarily used the site to store vegetative debris after last season’s hurricanes.

When completed, the project will mark a dramatic shift for the site—turning a decades-old dump into a modern health care destination.

Source: Herald-Tribune