Located north of 10th Street between the Tamiami Trail and the old railroad tracks a block east of Central Avenue, Central Cocoanut is one of Sarasota’s oldest neighborhoods. The subdivision reaches north to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Way. Pioneer Park, at its southern border, commemorates the first white settlers in the area — William and Mary Whitaker, who built a log cabin there in 1842. (Whitaker Bayou, which runs through Central Cocoanut, is named after them.)
PHOTO GALLERY: Central Cocoanut Historic District
Sarasota's settlement era is represented in these two buildings in Pioneer Park at the southern edge of the Central Cocoanut neighborhood. They are the 1882 Bidwell-Wood House, left, and the 1901 Crocker Church. Staff photo / Harold Bubil
The Pioneer Whitaker Cemetery on 12th Street, where they are buried, was Sarasota’s first cemetery, established in 1879. A quiet and peaceful spot, enclosed with an Italian Renaissance-style stone balustrade, it is lovingly maintained by the Sara DeSoto chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
Next door are two historical buildings. The Crocker Church was built in 1901 near the northeast corner of Bee Ridge Road and U.S. 41 by Peter Crocker, a Civil War veteran and retired Key West lighthouse keeper who came to the area in 1873. It was moved in 1927 and again in 1985 before its 2006 move to Pioneer Park, where it is maintained by the Historical Society of Sarasota County. It is a popular venue for weddings and HSSC’s monthly “Conversations at the Crocker” series from October through April.
The Bidwell-Wood House, built in 1882 on Wood Street near U.S. 41 by Alfred Bidwell, and later owned by Luke Wood, is now the home of the HSSC. The infamous murder of postmaster Charles Abbe was planned at the house on Christmas Day 1884; it was carried out two days later by hit men put up to the task by a group of vigilantes called the Sarasota Assassination Society. The house was later moved twice before joining the Crocker Church at Pioneer Park.
Central Cocoanut has an iinteresting collection of Spanish-style cottages from the 1920s. Staff photo / Harold Bubil
During the 1920s Florida land boom, when Sarasota grew by leaps and bounds, much of the area was platted as Valencia Terrace. Many of the original homes — Spanish Mission and Mediterranean-style houses, and one- and two-story bungalows — are still there. In fact, of the more than 500 homes in Central Cocoanut, about half were built before 1947 and are designated “historic resources” by the city.
As a result, the neighborhood has a distinctly old-Florida atmosphere. Lush subtropical flora abounds. Recreational amenities and green spaces including a tennis court, basketball court and two other parks — Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Park, completed in 2003, and Mary Dean Park.
The neighborhood also has contemporary condominiums, such as Broadway Promenade and San Marco along the Tamiami Trail near Pioneer Park.
“I love being here,” says Laura Navratil, a Realtor with Michael Saunders & Co. She and her husband purchased a 1926 Spanish-style house a year and a half ago and renovated the interior. “It’s a storybook home with a sun parlor and picture windows,” she says.
Since then, Navratil has sold several homes in the neighborhood. Her most recent listing, a classic, three-bedroom Florida bungalow at 1435 15th St., was built in 1955. The listing is “active with contract.”
With 56 percent of the population African-American, and about 38 percent white, Central Cocoanut is one of Sarasota’s most diverse neighborhoods. According to Navratil, it’s a mix of retirees, blue-collar working families and young professionals who want to be close to downtown.
“We have a lot of very nice, friendly neighbors. People passing by will stop and chat for 20 minutes,” she says.
“When we moved in, we couldn’t believe how many people knew each other,” she adds. “A lot of the kids have a great aunt or grandma living here. It feels old-fashioned in a good way, and gives the neighborhood a sense of stability.”
There are more children and teens per household in Central Cocoanut than in any other subdivision in town. “It makes for a vibrant neighborhood,” says Navratil. “I live next to the park, and kids who play basketball come and help me plant flowers outside.”
Navratil also likes the convenient location. “The neighborhood is walkable, joggable and bikeable,” she says. Amenities include the Publix at Broadway Promenade, the nearby Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall and Centennial Park, just across the Tamiami Trail. The Players Theater on Cocoanut Avenue is just down the street from most houses. Ringling College of Art + Design is just across the bayou to the north, and downtown Sarasota is an easy bike ride in the other direction.
A number of homeowners have renovated and upgraded their houses, replacing roofs, redoing the interior and putting in new landscaping. “Values can climb a lot,” Navratil comments. “One man bought a home for $120,000, renovated it and sold it a year later for $180,000.”
The neighborhood is not deed-restricted and has no HOA. “You can paint your home any color you want,” she says with a smile. Two houses with purple accents are across 12th Street from Pioneer Park.
With a close-knit community, turnover is not that frequent. Currently, only two homes are listed in the MLS, at $53,000 and $199,000, and one “sold by owner” for $289,000. At Broadway Promenade, seven condo units are available, ranging in price from $195,000 to $550,000.
“People have pride of ownership here,” says Navratil.
Real estate editor Harold Bubil contributed to this report.
