Bay Park Conservancy welcomes first full-time president and chief executive officer

Sarasota Herald-Tribune
·2 min read

The Bay Park Conservancy, the nonprofit organization responsible for designing and developing 53 acres of Sarasota-owned land on Sarasota Bay into a signature park, has named Stephanie Crockatt as their first full-time president and chief executive officer.

Crockatt will assume overall responsibility for building out the 53-acre park known as “The Bay.” She will also focus on securing funding to support ongoing BPC operations, maintenance, programming and endowment, and build on the strong partnership with the city and relationships with the county, foundations and philanthropists, business partners and friends of The Bay, and the broader community.

"I am filled with great enthusiasm and excitement to join The Bay Park Conservancy,” Crockatt said. "Conservancies are such important public-private partners, and I know this nonprofit will become one of the leading examples of park innovation, community engagement, and mission-driven success."

New Bay Park Conservancy CEO Stephanie Crockatt will assume overall responsibility for building out the 53-acre park known as “The Bay.”
New Bay Park Conservancy CEO Stephanie Crockatt will assume overall responsibility for building out the 53-acre park known as “The Bay.”

As CEO, Crockatt will report to BPC Board Chair Jennifer Compton and work closely with the BPC Executive Committee, Board of Directors and staff.

“Together, Stephanie and I, the board and the park conservancy staff, will endeavor to complete the design and development of a signature park for Sarasota and build a strong dedicated park conservancy team that delivers a delightful park guest experience every day at The Bay,” Compton said.,

Crockatt is an accomplished park conservancy leader with significant development and fundraising experience as executive director of the Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy, the first nonprofit in the nation to manage and operate an entire urban park system, stewarding 850 acres of historic parks and parkways.

Crockatt succeeds AG Lafley, who served as volunteer chair of the Sarasota Bayfront Planning Organization master planning committee and then as volunteer BPC founding CEO since 2019. Lafley plans to stay involved during the transition to maintain momentum and progress already underway.

“At The Bay, we know the importance of being sustainable in every way – environmentally, financially, and operationally,” Lafley said. “Stephanie is the right person in the right place at the right time.”

For more information about The Bay and The Bay Park Conservancy, visit thebaysarasota.org or contact Julia Groom at julia@dreamlarge.org or 941-786-8732.

Submitted by Julia Groom

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Bay Park Conservancy names Stephanie Crockatt president and CEO