SARASOTA — Despite pleas from the owners of one downtown condo, the crane used in building a new tower next door will continue to operate. City planners, inspectors and attorneys all say the operation has been properly reviewed, is well within city rules and does not carry any heavy loads over the Essex House building.
But according to the owners this is unacceptable said Lottie Varano, president of the Essex House Condominium Association board of directors. The association filed a lawsuit last month to stop the crane from operating and to demand repayment for the destruction of four trees along the property line between the two site.
On Wednesday, Circuit Court Judge Brian Iten denied a request for an injunction against the crane, saying it does not qualify as an emergency circumstance. He has ordered the two parties to try to settle their argument out of court before scheduling a hearing in the case, according to the filing.
According to the Herald Tribune, at the heart of the disagreement is whether, in tight quarters downtown, construction crews are allowed work right up to the property lines and even swing equipment like cranes over other properties during lengthy building projects.
Echelon on Palm contractor BCBE Construction has agreed it is responsible for damage to landscaping and an irrigation system along the Essex House property line, Deputy City Building Official Larry Murphy wrote in an email last month. It has no plans to change the operation of its crane, however, said Brenda Patten, an attorney representing the Echelon project in the lawsuit.
At one point, Varano — a retired radiologist and medical school professor — even submitted to city leaders that his blood pressure and pulse are higher when looking at the crane than not, and long-term stress can cause lasting damage to the body.
There is no city policy regulating cranes’ use of airspace, rendering Varano’s argument about aerial trespassing moot, Deputy City Attorney Michael Connolly wrote to city leaders last month.
“There is nothing in the city code or the zoning code which requires a developer to obtain air rights from a neighboring property owner,” Connolly wrote. “Consequently, the city does not have any regulatory authority to require the developer to obtain such air rights as a condition of a site plan or building permit.”
A half-dozen other cranes currently operate in similar fashion across downtown Sarasota. Numerous construction projects planned over the next year, including several large hotels, will make even more cranes part of the downtown skyline.
By Zach Murdock
