My community featured in the newspaper's Market Snapshot

PRINT STORY  HERE ( Many photo's below)

From the Herald-Tribune

Conveniently located 55+ community was once the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus winter quarters

Glen Oaks Ridge, a 55+ community, occupies part of the southeastern quadrant of the intersection of Beneva Road and 17th Street. The entire area is known as Glen Oaks and has its main entrance just to the west of the Bobby Jones Golf Course. As one of the subdivisions, Glen Oaks Ridge lies on the left side of the ingress road, Prudence Drive, and shares the great location and distinctive history of the entire neighborhood.

In the early 1920s, when the area served as Sarasota County’s fairgrounds, Beneva Road was just a dirt lane. From 1927 until 1960, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus kept its winter quarters there, drawing crowds of locals and tourists to watch performers train animals and refine their various acts. In 1951, Hollywood filmmaker Cecil B. DeMille shot his circus epic The Greatest show on Earth on the grounds.

There are rumors that when the circus moved to Venice, it left some of the retired horses and elephants buried on the property, but none have ever been found.

The next owner of the land, the Arvida Corporation, sold 155 acres to the Paver Construction Company. Owned by Martin Paver and his two sons, Paul and Stanley, its motto was to “build better than the building codes required and create a place where you would like to live and raise your family.”

The Pavers built more than 5,500 affordable homes throughout Sarasota County, including neighborhoods like the Southbay Yacht and Racquet Club, Paver Park and Kensington Park. For Glen Oaks, they constructed four separate subdivisions, each with its distinct look and atmosphere. (The others are Glen Oaks Estates, Manor, and Gardens.)

In the case of Glen Oaks Ridge, developed between 1973 and 1977, they built attached, one-story condominiums with flat roofs and steeply angled, black shingle facades up top. The 195 units come in six different models, all with two bedroom and two baths, ranging in size from just over 1,000 to around 1,600 square feet. The larger condos have den/dining room or living/dining room additions. Screened or fenced-in lanais count as “under air.” Each residence has a covered carport.

“Back when it was built in the 1970s, condo documents indicated that there needed to be sewing rooms for the ladies,” said Pat Emmett, an agent with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Realty. “I suppose men had their smoking rooms, too.”

With no common walls, the condos are connected only by the laundry rooms. “We call them pods — with three or four units in each,” said Emmett,. “No one lives above you, so it’s very quiet.”

She and her husband have resided in Glen Oaks Ridge for the past 15 years and love it there. “It’s a great place to live. The location is wonderful, close to everything, 15 minutes from downtown Sarasota and the Gulf beaches,” she said. “You can walk to Bobby Jones across the street.”

Emmett has sold a number of homes in Glen Oaks Ridge and just had a condo go under contract. There are also four pending sales, listed from $195,000 to $205,000. “We don’t usually breach the $200,000 mark, although many have been completely redone inside,” she said. “People have knocked out the walls between the kitchen and dining room to open the space up.”

The demographics of the community include retirees and people who still work. Many of them are snowbirds, some from as far away as Canada, Germany and Great Britain. “We have a lot of single men and women living here. The age range used to be well above 55 with a number of elderly residents, but now we’re seeing an influx of people who are just over 55, so we have a good mix,” Emmett explained. ”

“We also have a number of artists who all know each other,” she continued. “One painter is 103 years old. A quilter, well-recognized in her community, bought two units and uses one as her studio.”

There are very few renters due to rental restrictions. Owners must wait a year from the time of closing before they can rent out a unit.

Glen Oaks Ridge’s amenities include a community swimming pool and large clubhouse overlooking a large lake with fountain. Residents come together to play bridge, bingo, poker, Mahjong and Sequence, and attend Friday night, potluck dinners.

Condo fees cover maintenance of building exteriors and roofs, as well as all common areas. Regulations permit two dogs or cats.

According to Emmett, there is not a lot of turnover of residences. Last year seven units sold. Currently, there are three condos on the market, ranging in price from $182,900 to $199,900.

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PHOTOS of Glen Oaks Ridge, Sarasota, where I live.  

NB  The triple story buildings are part of an adjoining community called Glen Oaks Garden Condominiums. 

https://www.heraldtribune.com/photogallery/LK/20200328/PHOTOGALLERY/328009999/PH/1