Sarasota has several marinas, boatyards, and yacht basins. A large marina is in the bight just E of Golden Gate Point. At Mile 73.3, a dredged channel leads NE from the waterway to a turning basin at the marina. In 2007, 8 feet was reported in the approach and in the turning basin.
There is a marina at City Island at the NE end of Lido Key where berths, gasoline, water, ice, and marine supplies are available. A 4-ton forklift can haul out craft to 27 feet for hull and engine repairs.
Navigation:
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Sarasota, on the E shore of Sarasota Bay at the S end, is a year-round community and winter resort. A number of tall buildings, water tanks, and radio towers show prominently from offshore.
Big Sarasota Pass, 12 miles NNW from Venice Inlet, leads from the Gulf of Mexico to the S end of Sarasota Bay and the Intracoastal Waterway. The pass lies between Siesta Key and Lido Key, and is marked by lights and daybeacons. A light marks the channel approach. In 2002, the reported controlling depth was 4.4 feet in the approach channel; thence in 1999, less than 5 feet was reported through the pass. The approach channel over the bar and the channel through the pass are subject to continual changes. Mariners are advised to exercise extreme caution. Several large hotel buildings at the S end of Lido Key and along the shore of Siesta Key are prominent.
New Pass, 2 miles NNW from Big Sarasota Pass, between Lido Key and Longboat Key, affords passage from the Gulf of Mexico to Sarasota Bay and the Intracoastal Waterway. A dredged channel leads from the Gulf through the pass and crosses the Intracoastal Waterway to a turning basin at Centennial Park. The channel approach is marked by a light, and the channel is marked by a light, buoys, and daybeacons. In 2010, aids to navigation were relocated to mark the best water in the entrance channel to Light 7 due to shoaling to bare, thence the controlling depth was 7.4 feet (8 feet at midchannel) to the highway bridge, thence 5.6 feet (6.4 feet at midchannel) to the Intracoastal Waterway, thence 8 feet in the remainder of the channel, thence 7.4 to 8.0 feet in the turning basin except for lesser depths at the E end of the basin. The channel is subject to shoaling.
The Ringling Causeway, Mile 73.6, crossing Sarasota Bay from Sarasota to Lido Key via Bird Key, Coon Key, and St. Armands Key, has a fixed span over the waterway with a clearance of 65 feet. In 2006, submerged rocks marked by unlighted buoys were reported in the vicinity of the center span of the bridge; caution is advised. Over the channel between Bird Key and Coon Key there is a 46-foot fixed span with a clearance of 10 feet. The causeway continues W between Coon Key and St. Armands Key. Two fixed highway bridges connect St. Armands Key with the N and S ends of Lido Key. The N bridge has a 27-foot span with a clearance of 7 feet; overhead power and telephone cables on each side of the bridge have a clearance of 19 feet. The S bridge has a 33-foot span with a clearance of 6 feet. Overhead power cables on the E side of the bridge have a clearance of 25 feet.
