Willis A. Smith Construction, headquartered on Lakewood Ranch Boulevard, is managing one of the region's largest cultural building projects: a $41.9 million expansion of Marie Selby Botanical Gardens' downtown Sarasota campus, now rising from the ground.
The firm, founded in 1972 and led by president and CEO F. John LaCivita, is construction manager for Phase Two of Selby Gardens' master plan. The project includes a hurricane-resilient conservatory complex, a learning pavilion and enhanced gardens across the 15-acre bayfront property, the Business Observer reported. It is targeted to open in November 2028.
Selby Gardens announced Aug. 11 that vertical construction is underway following a December 2025 groundbreaking and the completion of permitting. The milestone came alongside a $41.9 million bond sale, executed in July, that funds the aggressive build schedule.
The bond offering drew 15 unique investors whose orders totaled roughly 10 times the amount offered.
R.W. Baird underwrote the sale, and Capital Trust Agency issued the tax-exempt bonds.
"With this financing in place, we are well positioned to maintain our ambitious construction schedule while continuing to create a campus that serves our community," Selby Gardens president and CEO Jennifer O. Rominiecki said in the organization's Aug. 11 press release.
What's being built
The conservatory complex will feature what Selby Gardens calls the "Selby System," a proprietary greenhouse design using lightweight polycarbonate glazing engineered to meet the 2023 Florida Building Code for publicly occupied buildings. The organization is pursuing trademark protection for the design, which was validated through full-scale hurricane simulation testing in 2026.
That changes with Phase Two. When complete, the complex will display more than 20,000 plants, nearly 100% of the gardens' living research collection. Currently, less than 5% of those plants are visible to the public.
Funding and what's next
Selby Gardens set a $60.9 million fundraising goal for Phase Two and reported $59.7 million raised as of Aug. 11, or 98% of the target. Across both phases of the master plan, the organization has raised more than $127 million, with 99% coming from private philanthropy.
Willis A. Smith Construction employs between 51 and 200 people and describes itself as the largest locally owned construction firm in Southwest Florida. The firm recently delivered Wellen Park High School, the largest school ever built for the Sarasota County School District, which received its certificate of occupancy on May 27.
After Phase Two opens in November 2028, Selby Gardens plans to advance to Phase Three: restoration of two historic buildings on the campus, unification of walking paths and reinforcement of the property's seawalls. No start date or funding goal for that phase has been announced.
