As the finishing touches near completion in Nathan Benderson Park for the 2017 World Rowing Championships - the event developers have been dreamed of hosting since the venue became reality - the rowing destination future of Sarasota, Fla. grew even brighter last week when the NCAA booked in their championship regatta for three of the next five years.
The women's Division I, II, and III Championships will be held there for the first time in 2018, and return again in 2021 and 2022, the NCAA announced last week. The championships will be held this spring on Mercer Lake, in West Windsor N.J., in Sarasota for 2018, Oak Ridge, Tenn. in 2019, in Indianapolis, Ind. for the 2020 season and then back to Benderson Park the next two years.
"It's amazing, isn't it?" remarked Robert Sullivan, president and CEO of the Suncoast Aquatic Nature Center Associates, Inc. (SANCA) which manages the park. "We're pretty giddy here. I guess that's the best way to put it."
And why not! Since the park was developed from what was basically an undersized body of water that looked more like a ditch than a world class rowing facility some eight years ago, Nathan Benderson Park has grown to a venue that can not only compare, but can one-up, most other venues around the world for hosting rowing.
What it might lack in the kind of history of the some of the British or European venues, it makes up for in technology, planned spectator amenities and weather - minus the errant alligator or two that require removal from time to time.
"We've been busy," Sullivan said. "We have the World Rowing Championships coming in September. In June, we have the USRowing Youth Nationals, and then with the NCAA coming here next year and then coming back in 2021 and 2022, it's all pretty exciting stuff."
Sullivan is new to the park and SANCA, having taken the position last year, and was not part of the NCAA bid process, but said he is not surprised at the result.
As a community, Sarasota-Bradenton has embraced the development and the economic impact it has had on the area. Along with the continued park construction and improvement over the years, so too have hotels, shopping and dining options been built.
"Between the facility itself, and now the finish tower being completed as well as the hotels and hotel inventory around the park, it's really just a strong package," Sullivan said. "It's always hard getting these thing, but it is not a hard product to sell."
For the immediate future, the venue is going to be busy. With Florida club, scholastic and collegiate events, national championships for all levels, Olympic trials, world championships and now the NCAAs all part of the park's portfolio, there is plenty for the community and the park developers to be happy with. That does not mean they are finished. "We have to sustain it." Sullivan said. "We look at the events we already have, but part of our goal here is to grow the sport as well. We want to encourage the activities taking place.
"But the other part of it is, there are a lot of events we want to go after, and if we can build on the events we have now and keep going after the national events on whatever rotating basis they have, I think we'll be in good shape.
"We're a great place for rowing activities to take place. But the other thing is we want to really grow our training activities. Those school in the Northeast, or Midwest, this provides a great site for them to come down and train when it's cold. We offer a total package coupled with the life in the community. So, things look good."