Years after engineers warned of deterioration, county still reassessing future of downtown garage

BRADENTON — Roughly four and a half years after engineers first warned that Manatee County’s downtown parking garage required major repairs and further investigation, county officials say they are still reassessing the structure’s future after a solicitation for redevelopment failed to produce a viable proposal.

Engineering reports reviewed by TBT show that structural inspectors repeatedly documented worsening deterioration within the aging parking structure between December 2021 and January 2026, while county officials simultaneously shifted tens of millions of dollars originally allocated for the garage’s rebuild toward the purchase and renovation of a secondary, east campus administration building in Lakewood Ranch.

The reports, prepared by Karins Engineering, identified widespread hollow-sounding concrete that exhibited cracking and spalling on both the tops and bottoms of multiple levels in the garage. The reports also noted water intrusion and deterioration of prior repairs.

In a December 2021 report, Karins wrote that “delamination was detected on very large portions of the total deck area,” adding, “this suggests a need for major, invasive repair involving concrete removal and replacement.”

The engineering firm recommended that the county plan for the repair and replacement of damaged areas "within the next 18-24 months” and advised that demolition and repair work would “likely require partial or total closure of the garage and shoring down to the ground for temporary support of work areas.”

The report included a preliminary engineer’s opinion of cost—also referred to as an Opinion of Probable Construction Costs (OPCC)—estimating repairs at approximately $8.9 million. Karins also recommended the county move forward with “localized destructive testing and investigation” to better determine the full extent of the hollow-sounding concrete and damaged structural elements.

According to each subsequent inspection report by the firm, those findings and recommendations remained consistent through the most recent assessment.

Over the following four years, the county commissioned ten additional inspections by the same engineering firm. Invoices obtained by TBT through a public records request show the county spent approximately $46,000 on the eleven inspections completed between December 2021 and January 2026.

The inspections became more frequent over time.

Records show that while the initial inspection was completed in December 2021, the next follow-up inspection was not undertaken until June 2023. In total, there were two inspections in 2023, three inspections in 2024, four in 2025, and one so far this year, with that report completed in January.

Each report contains nearly identical language documenting continued gradual deterioration.

In the reports, the engineering firm repeatedly wrote, “Karins reinspected several locations of prior repairs in both the topping slabs and in the filigree systems. These repaired locations still showed signs of damage, and the topping slab had a hollow sound. Karins reinspected multiple and extensive locations of hollow sounding, cracks, and spalls on both the tops and bottoms of the systems.”

Each subsequent report also stated, “The existing damaged locations have slightly worsened across all levels of the parking garage,” while repeating prior recommendations that “extensive repairs, including concrete removal and replacement, are required throughout.”

The engineers identified the downtown parking garage as a filigree system, a type of construction that combines precast concrete panels with a cast-in-place concrete topping reinforced by embedded steel rebar.

As explained in the engineer’s report, the hollow sound typically indicates that the top layer of the system has separated from the underlying concrete layer. If more than 50% of a floor sounds hollow, according to the report, “it becomes a general concern for the structure.” The separation can allow water to penetrate the system and reach the steel rebar inside, which can cause the steel to corrode and expand, placing pressure on the surrounding concrete, eventually cracking it and causing large chunks to break or flake off, a process called “spalling.”

In a filigree parking garage, a "hollow sound" over more than 50% of a floor indicates widespread delamination, where the concrete topping has separated from the precast bottom layer.

A comparison of Karins' 2021 and 2026 written observations shows deterioration that expanded across several levels of the garage over the four-year inspection period. While changes between individual inspections were generally modest, cumulative damage increased across multiple levels, particularly in portions of the roof and upper parking decks.

For example, the roof-level parking platform showed 25% under-deck damage and 90% top-deck damage in 2021, meaning the hollow-sounding involved large areas of the deck’s top and underside. Four years later, in January 2026, those percentages had crept up to just under 50% in underside damage and just under 95% in top damage.

Areas of damaged or hollow-sounding concrete on level five’s top increased from approximately 60% of the deck area to nearly 80%, while damage on level three’s top increased from 40% to nearly 55%.

Other levels experienced smaller increases or remained relatively unchanged, with the roof—the structure’s highest, eighth level—showing the greatest deterioration.

In total, the 2026 assessment found that observed damages had increased to just about, or above, the 50% threshold of “concern” on five of the structure’s tops and just one—the roof’s—underside.



By late 2025 and early 2026, the firm noted that its earlier engineer’s opinion of probable construction costs, as well as the original 18-24 month time interval recommendation, were now “obsolete.”

“The POCC has increased due to the increase in damaged areas, as well as the overall construction cost increases in the market. It is highly recommended that measures be taken to determine a better extent of damage and potential costs,” the reports state. 

And in both later reports, Karins again recommended that the county undertake “localized destructive testing and investigation” and said that this more detailed investigation “should be done as soon as possible.”

County officials maintain that the structure is still safe and say they are pursuing a separate structural engineering report as a second opinion.

In an emailed statement to TBT, Manatee County Communications Division Manager Casey Zempel said that the garage’s condition has remained “relatively stable,” and confirmed that the parking garage “remains safe for public use.”

Zempel added that the original engineering report identified concerns related to water intrusion and drainage and said repairs to drainage components, including downspouts, had since been completed “to reduce standing water and prolong the life of the parking decks.”

Following the county’s receipt of the initial inspection report in 2021, then-county administrator Scott Hopes told WFLA, “We have a few years before we actually need to take aggressive action.”

The former county administrator also announced that, “due to deferred maintenance,” it was in the best interest of the county and taxpayers to demolish the garage and rebuild a new one.

Later, following the next report issued in June 2023, current County Administrator Charlie Bishop—who was serving in a dual role as director of property management and as a deputy administrator under Hopes in 2021—further highlighted the condition of the garage.

During a 2023 work session, Bishop told commissioners, “We just recently received our structural engineer report on the status of the parking garage… the report does show we have approximately two more years remaining on the structure unless we continue to pour millions and millions and millions of dollars into it.”  

In the county's recent response to TBT, however, Zempel offered a different characterization of the report's findings than the one Bishop presented during the 2023 work session.

"It is also important to clarify that the report did not state the structure had 'only two years remaining,'" Zempel wrote. "Rather, it recommended that the county plan for repair and replacement of damaged areas within an 18–24-month window based on observed conditions."

Zempel further added that the subsequent inspections “have indicated that conditions have remained relatively stable and have not changed the 18–24-month replacement recommendation, with that timeframe beginning from the most recent assessment conducted in January.”

The engineering reports themselves, however, repeatedly describe conditions as having “slightly worsened” across multiple levels of the structure and state directly in both the Oct. 2025 and Jan. 2026 reports that the “time interval recommendation” had become “obsolete.” 

According to the county, the engineering firm retained to provide a second opinion conducted its on-site assessment less than a month ago, and officials anticipate the results in mid-June.

In the meantime, says Zempel, the county is assessing next steps, “which may include future repair work, redevelopment opportunities, or long-term replacement strategies.”

Karins Engineering Manatee County Public Parking Garage Observation Report 12/09/2021

Karins Engineering Manatee County Public Parking Garage Observation Report 12/09/2021

Karins Engineering Manatee County Public Parking Garage Observation Report 12/09/2021

Karins Engineering Manatee County Public Parking Garage Observation Report 12/09/2021

Karins Engineering Manatee County Public Parking Garage Observation Report 12/09/2021

Karins Engineering Manatee County Public Parking Garage Observation Report 12/09/2021

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In May 2025, commissioners approved the purchase of the 100,000-square-foot-plus commercial office building at 9000 Town Center Parkway for approximately $23.5 million, along with an additional renovation budget of roughly $11 million.

Through a budget amendment approved as part of the purchase action, the approximately $34.8 million allocated for the downtown parking garage project was transferred in its entirety to fund the 9000 Town Center acquisition.

At the time, county officials defended the decision by arguing that rebuilding the downtown garage as previously envisioned could exceed $100 million and that purchasing an existing office complex represented a more cost-effective alternative.

The county had previously explored major redevelopment concepts for the downtown garage and surrounding sites, including a mixed-use structure with expanded parking capacity, office space, retail uses, and possible residential components.

In 2024, Sweet Sparkman Architects received a $1.8 million county contract to produce a pre-design for the rebuild, and that concept package returned with an estimated $85 million build cost.

Prior discussions about the structure’s redevelopment included possibilities for exploring public-private partnerships, potentially involving the county, the City of Bradenton, and private developer(s).

However, at the time the garage funding was transferred to support the purchase of the 9000 Town Center building in Lakewood Ranch, no redevelopment agreement for the downtown garage site had been finalized.

Though the Lakewood Ranch administration building purchase was approved in May 2025, an Invitation to Negotiate (ITN) seeking redevelopment proposals for the downtown garage and surrounding parcels was not formally opened until August 2025, several months after the funding had already been redirected.

Officials now acknowledge that the ITN process did not bear fruit, and the project currently sits unfunded, without a strategic plan for extensive repair or redevelopment, or a clear funding path.

“Previous efforts to solicit redevelopment proposals through an Invitation to Negotiate (ITN) did not result in a selected proposal, and available funding has since been reallocated,” explained Zempel in response to our inquiry. “As a result, the county is reassessing next steps, which may include future repair work, redevelopment opportunities, or long-term replacement strategies as part of a broader evaluation of downtown parking needs.”

He added, “Looking ahead, the county is focused on prioritizing the most critical repairs while balancing funding considerations and minimizing disruption to the surrounding area.” 

How future garage repairs, redevelopment, or replacement would be funded remains unclear.

Meanwhile, the building that received the redirected garage funds continues to undergo improvements and infrastructure upgrades.

Since purchasing the 9000 Town Center building, the county has invested in furniture, renovations, and infrastructure upgrades at the facility, including HVAC system upgrades, battery backup systems, and elevator repairs.

Earlier this month, commissioners approved a 20-year Supplemental Power Services Agreement with Florida Power & Light for backup generator systems at the building. Once operational, the contract will cost approximately $52,744 per month plus taxes, totaling more than $12 million over its lifespan.

While the county says the downtown parking garage remains safe for public use, engineering reports spanning four years have continued to document the gradual worsening of its condition and the need for significant, potentially increasingly costly repairs.

With no successful respondents secured through the county’s Invitation to Negotiate for the redevelopment of the downtown parking garage, the project currently sits unfunded, awaiting a second engineering opinion, and its long-term future remains unresolved.

Click here to review all eleven engineering inspection reports compiled into a single PDF by TBT.

Dawn Kitterman is an investigative journalist and staff reporter for The Bradenton Times, covering local government news. She can be reached at dawn.kitterman@thebradentontimes.com.