Visit Sarasota County collaborating with Sarasota Chamber of Commerce on downtown Sarasota Visitor Center
SARASOTA, Fla. (August 16, 2017) – Visit Sarasota County (VSC) will be moving its downtown Sarasota Visitor Center to 1945 Fruitville Road. VSC will be leasing space from the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce.
The Visitor Center currently located at 1710 Main Street will close Friday August 18, 2017 in preparation for the move into the new location. The new location will be open to welcome visitors no later than October 1, 2017.
“Over the past several years we have conducted extensive research on visitor traffic patterns and visitor service needs,” says Virginia Haley, President of Visit Sarasota County. “The Chamber’s location and space was a major driving force in our decision to move. This move further solidifies the strength in our partnership and how we work together to mutually benefit the community and visitors alike.”
“Our community has seen, and I think benefitted from, a long-standing and strong partnership between the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce and Visit Sarasota County. So, for the both of us and this community, the move is a logical progression for that partnership. Relocating a Visitor Center to the chamber allows us to explore new and exciting ways to promote our community, its chamber, and its membership.” says Kevin Cooper, President of the Sarasota Chamber of Commerce.
VSC will continue to partner with other local Chamber of Commerce to offer services to visitors that range from providing postage, VSC visitor kiosks, VSC collateral and collaborations on promotional programming. These chambers include the Englewood Chamber of Commerce, North Port Chamber of Commerce, Venice Chamber of Commerce, Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce, and the Longboat Key Chamber of Commerce.
During the time of the move, VSC will continue to offer visitor services at our welcome center desk, manned with visitor services specialists at The Mall at University Town Center and will also have a Visitor Center at the World Rowing Championships at Nathan Benderson Park from September 23 through October 1, 2017.
In addition to Visitor Center location at the University Town Center Mall, VSC also operates the V.I.V. (Visitor Information Vehicle) which is our portable visitor information center. The VIV travels throughout Sarasota County to meet visitors attending events and festivals.
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About Sarasota County
Visit Sarasota County leads and supports the tourism industry in Sarasota County by providing the highest quality, and most innovative, marketing programs and promotions to ensure the continued growth of tourism and travel from visitors around the world. It is the mission of VSC is to make Sarasota County the must experience destination on Florida’s Gulf Coast.
