SARASOTA, Fla. — It's finally time to wake up and smell the roses...and bromeliads...and orchids, and just so many different kinds of plants.
Sarasota's Selby Botanical Gardens held a groundbreaking ceremony Thursday for the first phase of its downtown master plan.
The project has been three years in the making, and after raising more than $40 million, a portion of the final product is now open to the public. Phase one includes the building of the Living Energy Access Facility, which will be used for parking, a gift shop and a restaurant that uses vegetables grown in the gardens.
The full three-phase plan will cost around $92 million and expand the botanical garden's space while incorporating green building technology.
Selby Gardens is known for holding the world's best scientifically documented collections of orchids bromeliads.
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