The Sears Catalog Cottage Move

What's happening today?

The historic Sears Catalog Cottage on Pine Avenue in Anna Maria, is being preserved and moved to its new home just down the street on the site of a new development, the Anna Maria Historic Green Village. The cottage, an original mail order home from the Sears Catalog, was constructed on its present site in 1935 and is being moved along Pine Avenue at 9am this morning.

What is a Sears Catalog Cottage?

Sears Catalog Homes (sold as Sears Modern Homes) were ready-to-assemble houses sold through mail order by Sears Roebuck and Company, an American retailer. Over 70,000 of these were sold n North America between 1908 ad 1940. These kts included all the materials needed to build a house.

Why is the Sears Cottage moving?

The cottage is presently located on a property owned by Pine Avenue Redevelopment (PAR). The PAR partners wanted to see the cottage saved and offered to donate it to the village whose new owners, Mike and Lizzie Thrasher, found was an offer they were only too happy to accept. Once all the final plans have been agreed and permits signed, the cottage will then be unloaded and set into place as part of the Anna Maria Island Historic Green Village.

What is the Anna Maria Island Historic Green Village?

The Anna Maria Historic Green Village is a retail project incorporating 8000 square foot of buildings across four lots, including 3 historic buildings, one of which is the 1935 Sears Catalog Cottage, and 2 other homes built in 1911 and 1915. The Historic Green Village is likely to be home to a medical centre, a gallery, other professional services, retail and cafe space as well as beautiful gardens for the public to enjoy. The design and style of the Historic Green Village will mirror the historic buildings in both scale and styling but will all be subject to some modern improvements, most notably, that the complete development will be powered by green energy sources.

What Green Energy sources specifically are going to be incorporated into the Anna Maria Historic Green Village?

The Historic Green Village will be powered by renewable energy. And, over time, as each of the recycled buildings is restored, the following will be incorporated:

• High levels of insulation to ensure that heating and cooling needs are minimized
• Breezeways will be restored to maximise cooling air movements
• Ground-source heat pumps to supplement heating and cooling inside the buildings
• Photovoltaic electricity generation via solar panels on the south sides of the roofs
• Solar hot water heating via solar collection panels on the south sides of the roofs

Who is behind this project?

A British couple are behind the creation of the Anna Maria Island Historic Green Village. Mike is a British Designer andLizzie is a Green Entrepreneur. Together, they created the Organix Children's food company, a hugely successful enterprise since 1002 and a key driver in the transformation of children's food in the UK. Having discovered Anna Maria Island on holiday in 2003, they have spent most of the past five years, developing seven luxury vacation villas under the Pineapplefish name across the Island.

Why are Mike and Lizzie creating the Anna Maria Historic Green Village and saving these buildings?

Mike and Lizzie are so passionate about Anna Maria Island and the wonderful community here. They are dedicated to creating useful businesses in appealing buildings, run by green energy, with an end vision to pass them onto the local people here to own and run. They would like to see Anna Maria work for everyone.

How are the Islanders reacting to this project?

Mike and Lizzie are working with the local community to ensure that they deliver what Islanders want. So far, the reaction has been positive. Betty Yanger, Director of the Anna Maria Historical Society said "we at the AMI Historical Society are dedicated to preserving and celebrating Anna Maria's living past. It is with a great deal of enthusiasm that we look forward to these efforts at property reinvigorating and utlising some of our most precious historic cottages".

When will the Anna Maria Island Historic Green Village be open to the public?

It is intended that the majority of the Anna Maria Historic Green Village will be open to the public by the Anna Maria Pier Centennial in Spring 2011.

Who else is involved in this move today and the development of the Anna Maria Historic Green Village?

Dan Gagne, a local contractor, well known and respected for the restoration of an old cottage on Pine Avenue into his office, will be the contractor for the Green Village project and will coordinate the move of the Sears Cottage to its new location.

The Green Experts for the Historic Green Village is Tom Stockebrand.

The Architect for the Historic Green VIllage is Gene Aubry.