Hannah Wallace’s “Wide Open Spaces” in the March 2007 issue gives Sarasotans the lowdown on pain-free parking downtown. Here, she discovers more lots that are sure to provide relief to shoppers and diners traversing Burns Court and the Rosemary District.

BURNS COURT
Take heart, Burns Courters, you’ve got spaces galore, too. The City’s lot on Orange Avenue and Dolphin Street offers up 63 spaces, many of them free of occupants and all of them free of charge. Burns Court shops and restaurant are just a block away—some even closer. Head south on Orange half a block past Ringling Boulevard; you’ll see the lot’s expanse to your left.

ROSEMARY DISTRICT
Though Hibbs Farm and Garden has moved to a new location, the plant supplier’s old lot on the southwest corner of Fourth Street and Lemon Avenue still provides about 35 public spaces for folks doing business on either side of Fruitville. Sitting catty-corner from Rustic Grill and Sierra Station and just across Fruitville from chic consignment shops, it’s perfect parking for a day of thrifting bookended by meals at the two stylish restaurants.

Anyone planning a stroll through Rosemary District proper on Central Avenue should leave his or her ride in the city’s well-maintained lot on Fifth Street, just steps from Rosemary’s charming shops and restaurants. Traveling north on Central, turn right onto unassuming Fifth; the lot’s 40-odd spaces will be on the left. But you don’t have to take our word for it: The city’s big blue parking signs will show you the way.