Outdoor kitchens on Siesta Key

Siesta Key is a barrier island off Sarasota, between the Gulf and the bays on its landward side. The 2020 Census counted 5,454 residents and 7,792 housing units in the Siesta Key census designated place, on about 2.3 square miles of land. The sand on Siesta Key's beach is mostly mineral quartz, carried over thousands of years from the southern Appalachian Mountains by rivers into the Gulf and down the coast. Since 1983 Sarasota County has worked to restore the dunes along the beach.

In the 1800s and early 1900s the island was known as Little Sarasota Key and Sarasota Key; the name Siesta came from a development on its north end shortly after 1907 and became official in 1952. The first bridge, built in 1917, brought cars to the Gulf beaches, and Sarasota County bought land for the public beach in 1954.

Siesta Key is not a city of its own but an unincorporated community, so Sarasota County issues building permits there and applies its Unified Development Code. A 2023 bill to create a Town of Siesta Key died in the Florida Legislature. All of Siesta Key's zoning carries the Siesta Key Overlay District, which keeps accessory structures no taller than the main house and caps impervious surfaces, including pool decks and pavers, at 50 percent of a residential lot. New air conditioners, pool equipment and generators must meet the side setback and be screened from neighbors and the street.

In Sarasota County's residential districts, accessory structures may not stand in a required yard, and on waterfront lots anything over 30 inches high must stay at least 20 feet from the seawall or mean high water line, lower decks at least 10 feet. In single-family districts, accessory structures may cover no more than half the footprint of the house. Sarasota County's own Gulf Beach Setback Line, in force since 1979 and drawn along the state's 1978 Coastal Construction Control Line, prohibits construction or excavation seaward of it, including patios and other hard surfaces, with narrow exceptions. A new accessory structure of up to 1,200 square feet seaward of the line needs a written exception from the County, allowed once per property, and anything larger a variance from the County Commission. How your kitchen is classified, we clarify with the County during planning.

Hurricane Milton made landfall on Siesta Key at 0030 UTC on October 10, 2024, the evening of October 9 local time, as a category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds near 100 knots, about 115 mph. Storm surge of 4 to 6 feet above ground occurred from Longboat Key to Venice, and the Sarasota airport recorded a pressure of 959.7 millibars and a gust of 89 knots. The FEMA flood maps for Sarasota County in effect since March 27, 2024 place Siesta Key's Gulf beach in Zone VE, where waves are expected, with base flood elevations of about 11 to 12 feet. Inland streets and canal lots sampled on the island lie mostly in Zone AE, with base flood elevations of about 7 to 9 feet. Sarasota County's flood code names outdoor kitchens directly, requiring them, like decks, patios and pool cages, to be anchored against flotation and built of flood-resistant construction. In the coastal high hazard areas along the Gulf, decks, patios and similar features below the required elevation must be certified by a licensed engineer or architect not to obstruct floodwaters, and new homes must sit at least one foot above the base flood elevation.

Sarasota County's marine turtle code covers Siesta Key, and new outdoor lights visible from the beach must be fully shielded downlights or recessed fixtures with low-wattage bug bulbs, red LEDs or similar sources; floodlights, uplights or spotlights visible from the beach are prohibited. During nesting season, from May 1 to October 31, campfires and bonfires on the beach are banned from sunset to sunrise. In beachfront gardens, we plan the kitchen lighting with these rules in mind.