Economic Development Report October 18, 2019

We have planned our Economic Development Presentation for November 7, 2019 at the Selby Library in Downtown Sarasota 4:00 pm followed by a Meet and Greet at a location nearby. We will Inform our Members about Economic Development in the City and County of Sarasota, as well as the EB-5 program which provides Visa Green Cards for people who make significant business investments.

We have speakers from the Economic Development Departments of the City and County of Sarasota. Sylva Kanderal and I will explain the EB-5 Program. More info below.

We have written a first draft of a proposal calling for improved air and sea travel between Sarasota and Merida. Details below:

We reworked the Economic Development blog, eliminating most of the historic photographs and posts per the direction of our President. The site is:

www.sarasotasistercities.com

Which forwards to:

https://sarasotasistercities.blogspot.com/

Both addresses work.

We are working with Sister City Communication team to integrate Economic Development information with the Web site. We submitted two alternative drafts of the proposed Economic Development page for the new Web Site.

Sea and Land Connections Merida and Sarasota

Connections Merida and Sarasota

Sarasota has an established relationship with Merida, Yucatan, Mexico, directly across the Gulf of Mexico. The two cities have conducted numerous exchanges and desire to increase travel and economic links among the regions.

At present there is no direct air or sea connection between the two regions. A connecting flight to Houston or Miami is required and there is no sea connection.

A direct connection between Yucatan and the Sarasota / Manatee / Tampa / Clearwater metro area could be very successful. Yucatan including Merida and Cancun have over 2 million people. Tampa / Clearwater / Sarasota / Manatee metros have nearly 4 million people.

Population____Metro Area_

__
2,097,000____Yucatan including Merida

3,142,663___  Tampa Clearwater Metro 
   821,473___  Sarasota Manatee Metro 

3,964,136___  Sarasota / Manatee / Tampa / Clearwater 

Yucatán, the Mexican state, is known for its Gulf of Mexico beaches and Mayan ruins. Famed Chichén Itzá encompasses a massive pyramid, ball court and stone temples. Other Mayan sites include Ek Balam, noted for well preserved sculptures, and Uxmal, with its intricate carved facades. Yucatán’s capital and largest city, Mérida, has a Spanish colonial history reflected in buildings such as 16th-century Mérida Cathedral.

Population: 2.097 million (2015)

GDP: US$ 9,191,180.625 th

Sarasota metropolitan area is a metropolitan area located in Southwest Florida. The metropolitan area is defined by the Office of Management and Budget as the North Port–Sarasota–Bradenton metropolitan statistical area as a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) consisting of Manatee County and Sarasota County.[1] The largest cities in the MSA are North Port and Sarasota (both in Sarasota County) and Bradenton (in Manatee County). At the 2010 Census, the MSA had a population of 702,281. The Census Bureau estimates that its population was 821,573 in 2018.

Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area

The population of the Tampa Bay MSA is estimated at 3,142,663 people as of 2018.

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Action Plan

Sarasota Sister Cities Economic Development will contact air and sea providers in an effort to find a carrier who would establish service.

Click for a Google Doc with this information

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