Anna Maria Pier is Not Getting a Restaurant, An Agreement is Signed to Bring a Mote Marine Science Center to end of the Anna Maria Pier
It’s Official. There will NOT be a restaurant on the newly rebuilt Anna Maria Pier. The Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium has partnered with the City of Anna Maria to build a new marine science education and public outreach center at the end of the Anna Maria Pier.
It has been unanimously approved by the city’s commission and signed by Mayor Dan Murphy and Mote President & CEO Dr. Michael P. Crosby.
City of Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy said…. “Our community is thrilled with this new partnership with mote, and all the opportunities this allows to showcase our City Pier. Both visitors and residents alike will enjoy this Center that will help enhance the environment, economy, and quality of life in the City of Anna Maria.”
This project allows construction on the 1,800 square foot space located at the Pier. It should take about six months to build.
Mote's plan for their new Science Center includes several animal exhibits and interactive exhibits:
Live Animal Exhibits
·Sportfish: This exhibit will showcase animals that Pier anglers might encounter, such as grunts, sheepshead, and snappers
·Grassflats: This exhibit will showcase animals that inhabit grassflats, such as filefish, burrfish, trunkfish, and toadfish
·Schooling fish: This exhibit will showcase schooling fish that are normally called baitfish, such as silversides and sardines
·Invertebrate Touch Exhibit: This exhibit will let guests feel things like live sea urchins, sea cucumbers, sea stars, slipper lobsters, and horseshoe crabs
Interpretive Displays
·Sportfish identification: A digital interactive that lets guests explore a vast array of sportfish that live in Florida, many of which guests can find when fishing at the Pier
·Sounds of the sea: A digital interactive that gives guests the chance to explore the sounds that fish make when under the ocean. Mote scientists have been studying these noises for years and will be able to share this with Pier guests
·Tabletop educational items that will include a variety of science tools, like microscopes, scales, measuring tools, anatomy models, biofacts, and interactive games/activities
·Interpretive graphics that will show the local area and what can be seen from the Pier -- above and below the ocean
The Mote’s education team will also provide regular programming for the public that will help them understand the area’s native flora and fauna. They will also teach conservation-minded fishing practices.
The goal, is to show the importance of the marine ecosystem here on the Suncoast.