Warm Mineral Springs may reopen as soon as saturday

NORTH PORT - Warm Mineral Springs could reopen to swimmers as early as Saturday, providing a couple of key meetings go as planned.

The final closing paperwork needs to be signed with the City of North Port buying Sarasota County’s share of the attraction. City officials also must complete a new management agreement allowing National and State Park Concessions Inc.’s return to run the operation.

Mayor James Blucher said he did not expect any surprises, joking that a couple of alligators might have found their way onto the property since it closed to the public Aug. 31.

The opening will not come soon enough for patrons. “This is our social club, it’s not only the lake,” resident Dan Davidson told North Port commissioners Monday. “It’s where we get together, where we can see each other.”

The closing of the sale is still not firm, but City Attorney Mark Moriarty said Wednesday that a tentative time is at 10 a.m. Friday. The city will pay $2.75 million plus closing costs to buy the county’s half of the 81-acre site.