Editing Kensington Park, Florida (section)

== History ==
During the [[Post–World War II economic expansion|post-World War II economic boom]] a number of new subdivisions developed up in the area surrounding Sarasota. In 1955, the Paver Construction Company, purchased over 400 acres from Charles Schmid, a local dairy farmer.  Previously, the company built the Paver Park Estates subdivision. Paver Construction was started when Martin Paver, a native of New York state, along with his wife, visited Sarasota in 1949 and liked it so much that he decided to move there and get into real estate development. He also got his two sons involved. Construction would begin in 1956 and had 1,400 homes in it when fully completed. The name of the subdivision comes from where the Pavers had lived at in [[Great Neck, New York]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|date=April 14, 2003|title=Kensington Park was built during Sarasota's second land boom|work=Sarasota Herald Tribune|url=https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/2003/04/14/kensington-park-was-built-during-sarasotas-second-land-boom/28746651007/|access-date=December 21, 2021}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=This Week Newsletter - May 2, 2012_copy|url=http://www.sarasotahistoryalive.com/this-week/this-week-newsletter-may-2-2012-copy/|access-date=December 21, 2021|website=Sarasota History Alive!}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Kensington Park|url=https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=170464|access-date=December 21, 2021|website=[[Historical Marker Database]]}}</ref>

By 1960, Kensington Park also had a 14 acre Swim & Country Club that included an Olympic swimming pool, shuffleboard courts, gardens, tennis courts, picnic areas and an 8,400 square foot main building with "air-conditioned clubrooms", an auditorium, and theatre stage with professional lighting/ sound equipment.<ref>https://www.newspapers.com/image/316729097/?terms=KENSINGTON%20PARK&match=1 {{Bare URL inline|date=August 2024}}</ref> By 1969, only 20% of the households in Kensington Park were paying the $100 per year membership fee, thus operating it at a loss. Even though a majority of residents presented a bill proposing a $50 per household annual fee for all Kensington Park residents to use the facilities, the Sarasota County Commission rejected the proposal.<ref>https://www.newspapers.com/image/331289906/?terms=KENSINGTON%20PARK&match=1 {{Bare URL inline|date=August 2024}}</ref> Two months later, Kensington Park offered the facility to the YMCA free of charge and it became the Kensington Park YMCA<ref>https://www.newspapers.com/image/317054495/?terms=KENSINGTON%20PARK&match=1 {{Bare URL inline|date=August 2024}}</ref>

Kensington Park was unique for being the first sustainable community to ever be built in Southwestern Florida.<ref name=":1"/> Another fact that would make the subdivision unique was how the utilities would work. The utilities would be in the hands of the subdivision but each person who owned property would have a share of ownership in it. Purchasing a home would help pay for its installation and maintenance.<ref name=":0"/> In 1958, Kensington Park started its own sewer and water system at rates lower than the City of Sarasota.<ref>https://www.newspapers.com/image/329245003/?terms=KENSINGTON%20PARK&match=1 {{Bare URL inline|date=August 2024}}</ref>