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Sarasota, January 16, 2018 – On January 16, 2018, the Board of Directors of The Players Centre for Performing Arts approved a contract for purchase to sell the current property located at 838 N. Tamiami Trail in Sarasota. The terms of the cash offer are confidential; however, the negotiated amount was higher than the listing price of $9,500,000. “We are extremely excited about this opportunity,” said Michelle Bianchi, Managing Director/CEO for The Players Centre. “We are now on track to build simultaneously with Schroeder-Manatee Ranch’s Waterside Place in Lakewood Ranch.” The buyer, who wishes to remain anonymous stated, “We are looking forward to contributing to Sarasota and the re-imaging of the area north of downtown. There are many exciting projects happening in the Rosemary District as well as the Bayfront. We want to be a part of that energy.” In 2016, The Players Centre listed its downtown location with Ian Black Real Estate and announced plans to build a state of the art facility in the center of the Waterside Place in Lakewood Ranch, approximately 9 miles from the current location. The new facility will include a 480-seat main stage auditorium with balcony seating, a 125-seat black box theatre, a 100-seat cabaret theatre with dining and will be the main campus of The Arnold Simonsen Players Studio, the education arm of the organization. The Players is currently negotiating with the Tableseide Restaurant Group to manage the restaurant in the new complex. The Players is in the process of forming a “transition team” to assist with vacating its current property in the summer of 2019. A temporary location for the 89-year-old organization is currently being sought in Lakewood Ranch until Phase 1 of the new theatre in the Waterside Place is completed.