Anna Maria Island Sun August 2, 2023

Single-room rentals in vacation homes prohibited…

Single-room vacation

rentals are not allowed in Bradenton Beach’s R-1 and R-2 residential zones.

BY JOE HENDRICKS SUN CORRESPONDENT | jhendricks@amisun.com

BRADENTON BEACH – City staff recently answered an inquiry regarding single-room rentals in vacation rental homes with a definite "No."

On July 19, Prime Vacations Compliance Specialist Rina Hernandez sent an email to Deputy City Clerk Ruth Stief and City Treasurer Shayne Thompson that said, “Can each bedroom in a five-bedroom property be advertised and rented as individual units or does the property have to be

advertised and rented as a whole?”

According to the Prime Vacations website, the company Hernandez represents manages seven boutique hotels in Florida, including The Bali Hai Beach Resort and The Anna Maria Beach Resort in Holmes Beach and The Anna Maria Island Inn in Bradenton Beach. The Prime Vacations website also lists affiliations with the AMI Locals and Anna Maria Vacations real estate and property management companies.

After consulting with City Attorney Ricinda Perry, Thompson sent Hernandez an email response: “It is the opinion of the city attorney and the building official that this is not a

SEE RENTALS , PAGE 22

Affordable annual rentals on Anna Maria Island are few and far between, which has forced some off the Island.

BY JOE HENDRICKS SUN CORRESPONDENT | jhendricks@amisun.com

ANNA MARIA ISLAND – The Island’s evolution into a vacation rental destination and the resulting lack of affordable housing has displaced many former permanent residents who rented their homes. Alex Bounds, Matt Bauer, Dawn Mathisen, Tracy Eckert and Rick Lewis have left the Island, while long-time renter Sharon Bell is among those managing to stay. Here are their stories.

ALEX BOUNDS, MATT BAUER

In September 2022, after living on the Island for about 15 years, Matt Bauer, a two-time leukemia survivor, moved from a rental home in Bradenton Beach to an apartment in the

SEE RENTERS, PAGE 11

… as are pool, yard rentals

A website invites property owners to rent their amenities, such as pools, yards and tennis courts, for an hourly rate.

BY KRISTIN SWAIN SUN STAFF WRITER | kswain@amisun.com

HOLMES BEACH – A new website invites owners to place portions of their property for rent at an hourly rate, but city officials say that’s not an allowable use for residential properties in Anna Maria Island’s largest city.

The issue was brought up to Mayor Judy Titsworth by a group of concerned residents after a local vacation rental owner put a pool up for rent on the site Swimply.com. The website allows property owners to rent out

anything outside of their house or vacation rental, including parking, pools, backyards, sports courts and even experiences, like a home art studio, for an hourly fee.

The Holmes Beach pool rental popped up on the website the week of July 24. The listing, which was removed by July 29, offered the use of onsite parking and a backyard pool in Holmes Beach for $50 per hour. The host, simply identified as “Craig” in the listing, offered the use of the residential property’s pool area on Swimply.com when not in use by the owner or vacationers renting the entire property.

When The Sun spoke with Titsworth on July 28, she said she had recently been made aware of the

SEE POOLS, PAGE 22

JOE HENDRICKS | SUN

Former Anna Maria Island residents Alex Bounds, left, and Matt Bauer hope to be able to live on the Island again someday.

Displaced renters reflect on their Island years

Sun earns five state press awards

The Anna Maria Island Sun won five awards in the 2023 Florida Press Association Weekly Newspaper Contest.

Outdoors columnist Rusty Chinnis earned first place in the Agricultural and Environmental Reporting category for his column, “Mangroves: Critical habitats.”

Reader Denise Lynn Power won first place in the Reader-Generated Photo contest for “Early Fireworks.”

Cartoonist Steve Borggren won third

place in the Original Local Editorial Cartoon category for “Aqua.”

Graphic Designer Ricardo Fonseca won third place for Front Page Makeup.

Digital Editor Kristin Swain won third place for Website Excellence for amisun.com.

Awards were presented last week at the Florida Media Conference in Sarasota.

FILE PHOTO

Reader Denise Lynn Power won first place in the 2023 Florida Press Association Weekly Newspaper Contest’s Reader-Generated Photo contest for ‘Early Fireworks.’

Cartoonist Steve Borggren won third place in the 2023 Florida Press Association Weekly Newspaper Contest’s Original Local Editorial Cartoon category for ‘Aqua.’

IN BRIEF

Water taxi agreement discussions continue

The Anna Maria City Commission will hold its third budget planning meeting on Thursday, Aug. 3 at 1:30 p.m. During the meeting, the mayor and commissioners will discuss the city’s anticipated general operating expenses and other expenditures for the 2023-24 fiscal year that begins Oct. 1. During previous meetings, the mayor and commissioners discussed anticipated city revenues, anticipated capital projects and improvement expenditures and maintaining the current 2.05 millage rate.

At the conclusion of the budget meeting, the commission will convene for a regular commission meeting at approximately 2 p.m. According to the agenda, the regular meeting will begin with the city attorney providing an update on the legality of the city providing incentives to attract and retain full-time residents. The mayor and commission will then continue their discussions on a proposed interlocal agreement pertaining to Manatee County’s desire to use the City Pier as a landing spot for the county-funded Gulf Island Ferry water taxi service that will soon begin operating between Anna Maria Island and downtown Bradenton. The mayor will also provide an update on the plans for the Centennial celebration sequel taking place at City Pier Park on Sunday, Sept. 10.

Bradenton Beach officials consider increasing business tax, rezoning

The Bradenton Beach Planning and Zoning Board will meet on Wednesday, Aug. 6 at 1 p.m. Under old business is a discussion and draft ordinance of the rezoning of the Azure Shores Subdivision. The City Commission will meet on Thursday, Aug. 6 at 6 p.m. On the agenda is the first reading of ordinance 23-548 regarding a business tax increase. The meetings will be held at the Katie Pierola Commission Chambers, 107 Gulf Drive N. in Bradenton Beach.

Paid parking RFP on hold

On July 20, Bradenton Beach City Attorney Ricinda Perry provided an update on the city’s issuance of a request for proposals (RFP) seeking bids from companies interested in serving as the city’s paid parking operator. She told the city commission the RFP issuance remains on hold until parking agreements can be finalized along Bridge Street and until the design work is completed for the reconfiguration of the unpaved parking lot next to the public works building. Perry said it’s in the city’s best interest to hold off on additional paid parking discussion until the city knows exactly how many city-owned parking spaces would be included in the RFP for paid parking operators to bid on. Perry said she expects to have that information soon.

Election qualifying starts in one month

HOLMES BEACH – Election season is almost here with candidate qualifying week in Holmes Beach beginning Monday, Aug. 28 at noon.

This year, qualifying continues through Friday, Sept. 1 at noon. There are three two-year terms on the city commission up for grabs and five temporary positions on the city’s charter review board. Currently planning to run for re-election to the city commission are Commissioners Pat Morton, Terry Schaefer and Carol Soustek.

City commissioners meet twice a month, on the second and fourth Tuesday, to make policy and lawmaking decisions for the city and its residents.

Appointment to the charter review board is a temporary position planned to span a six-month period beginning in January 2024. Members will review the city’s charter and update the document’s language. A charter review and election of a charter review board is required every five years.

To qualify for either position, a candidate must be a full-time Holmes Beach resident and registered to vote in Manatee County for at least one year. All candidates must present themselves during qualifying at the Manatee County Supervisor of Elections office at 600 301 Blvd. W., Suite 108 in Bradenton. All qualifying paperwork, a candidate handbook and other information can be found at www.votemanatee.com under the Candidate Information tab.

Turner appointed to county commission

Ray Turner will finish the term former Commissioner Vanessa Baugh was reelected to in 2024.

BY JOE HENDRICKS SUN CORRESPONDENT | jhendricks@amisun.com

MANATEE COUNTY – Gov. Ron DeSantis has appointed Ray Turner to replace Vanessa Baugh on the Manatee County Commission.

The governor’s appointment was to take effect Aug. 1. Turner takes over for embattled District Five Commissioner Vanessa Baugh, who recently announced her resignation effective at the end of July.

“I’m honored to be appointed by Governor DeSantis,” Turner said in the press release the county issued on July 27. “I will do the very best job I can to serve the people of Manatee County. I look forward to hitting the ground running.”

According to the press release, Turner has been a Manatee County resident for more than 20 years and was a member of the Manatee County Planning Commission at the time of his appoint -

ment. Turner, the secretary of the Manatee Sarasota Building Industry Association, began his real estate career in 1991 selling custom homes and later transitioned into real estate finance, international marketing and executive management. Turner was scheduled to be sworn into office at an Aug. 1 workshop.

BAUGH DEPARTS

In June, Baugh announced her resignation effective at the end of July, citing family as her reason for resigning. She participated in her final county commission meeting on July 25 and then vacated effective Aug. 1 the remainder of her current four-year term.

During her abbreviated final term, Baugh, a Lakewood Ranch resident, faced intense media scrutiny and was the subject of an ethics complaint and a Florida Commission on Ethics investigation for her role in organizing a pop-up COVID-19 vaccine clinic in early 2021.

Ray Turner, District 5 county commissioner

The pop-up clinic Baugh helped organize provided vaccines for a small number of people on her own personal shortlist and for residents living in two specific Lakewood Ranch zip codes.

In January, the ethics commission investigation led to Baugh agreeing to an $8,000 settlement as a penalty for her role in organizing the clinic. When reaching the settlement in January, Baugh admitted she used her position as an elected official to the benefit or privilege of herself or others.

Baugh

I will do the very best job I can to serve the people of Manatee County.”

Dredging project underway on Greer Island

The use of portions of the beach is prohibited until the beginning of September.

BY LESLIE LAKE SUN CORRESPONDENT | llake@amisun.com

LONGBOAT KEY – A portion of the Greer Island beach will be closed through the beginning of September as a dredging project continues.

According to the Town of Longboat Key’s Public Works Department, an area along the west side of Greer Island, also known as Beer Can Island, is undergoing dredging of the sandspit near the dock area.

The Greer Island Spit Management Project’s tentative schedule, including the mobilization of upland equipment and dredging, began July 17-28, followed by upland clearing and excavation from July 24-31.

From July 31 through Aug. 14, hydraulic dredging of the Greer Island Spit is set to occur followed by hydraulic dredging of Canal 1A from Aug. 5-8.

Beach tilling is scheduled from Aug. 21-23, with demobilization of the project set from Aug. 23 through Sept. 4.

The Longboat Key website notes that the schedule is tentative and subject to change.

In June 2022, the Longboat Key Town Commission permanently restricted the anchoring and beaching of motorized vessels in two areas of the southeast portion of Greer Island, along the east

Man bit by shark near Anna Maria

West Manatee Fire Rescue responded on July 30 to a call about a man being bitten by a shark. The unidentified man was pulled out of the water near Bean Point in Anna Maria by friends and transported by boat to Kingfish Boat Ramp in Holmes Beach, where he was met by first responders. Fire Marshal Rodney Kwiatkowski said that the man suffered from a shark bite to one leg and that someone in his group had applied a tourniquet to the leg before arriving at the boat ramp. The young man, noted to be in his 20s, was transported by Manatee County EMS to an area hospital as a trauma alert. The circumstances leading to the shark bite, as well as the type of shark, remained unknown at press time for The Sun.

Boats collide near Key Royale

side of the Longboat Pass Bridge, across the bay from Jewfish Key. Those areas are limited to beachgoers, waders, kayakers, paddleboarders and other nonmotorized vessels, according to a 2022 town press release. Boaters who violate those restrictions are subject to a $250 penalty for the first offense and $500 for subsequent offenses.

Crews from West Manatee Fire Rescue, along with rescuers from Manatee County EMS, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Manatee County Marine Rescue and the Manatee County Sherriff’s Office, responded to the scene of a two-boat accident in the water near Key Royale in Holmes Beach on July 30, WMFR Fire Marshal Rodney Kwiatkowski said. Patients were taken by boat to Kingfish Boat Ramp where they were transported to area hospitals. Of the 11 people involved in the accident, six adults and five children, one adult suffered from head injuries while the others were treated for minor injuries.

CINDY LANE | SUN

Dredging is underway at Greer Island, due south of Anna Maria Island.

The Anna Maria Island Sun Staff

Owner/CEO

Mike Field

Editor

Cindy Lane

General Manager

Bob Alexander

Reporters/Photographers

Joe Hendricks

Leslie Lake

Jason Schaffer

Kristin Swain

Columnists

Louise Bolger

Rusty Chinnis

Contributors

Joe Becht

Steve Borggren

Jason Gargiule

Capt. Rick Grassett

Isis Mavenyengwa

Monica Simpson

Tom Vaught

Capt. David White

Anne Yarbrough

Layout

Ricardo Fonseca

Digital Editor

Kristin Swain

Advertising Director

Shona Otto

Advertising Assistant

Pamela Lee

Classifieds

Bob Alexander

Graphics

Elaine Stroili

Ricardo Fonseca

Distribution

Bob Alexander

Connor Field

Tony McNulty

Brian Smith

Accounting

Leslie Ketchum

Co-founding publishers

Mike Field

Maggie McGinley Field

Family-owned since 2000

Drop us a line

Got an opinion, a complaint or a compliment? Is there something you need to get off your chest? Send us a letter to the editor and have your say. There are a couple of ways to do it. The easiest and most direct is to email The Sun at news@amisun.com. Remember to put Letter to the Editor in the subject field. Or you can snail-mail

a letter to us at The Anna Maria Island Sun, P.O. Box 1189, Anna Maria, FL 34216. Letters should be kept to 300 words or less and must contain your name and the city in which you reside. Personal attacks and obscene language will not be printed. The Sun reserves the right to edit letters for length or content.

BRADENTON BEACH

HOLMES BEACH

TheGreg LaPensee

O w L i N G

All proceeds support

ANNA MARIA

10005 GULF DRIVE FOR INFORMATION, CALL 941-708-6130

Please visit www.cityofannamaria.com or contact city hall for more information.

Aug. 2, 9 a.m. – Planning and Zoning board meeting

Aug. 3, 1:30 p.m. – City Commission meeting

Aug. 10, 2 p.m. – City Commission meeting

EVENTS

WEDNESDAY, AUG. 2

Bishop Museum Eco Engineers Exhibit lecture, Island Branch Library, 5701 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach, 11 a.m.

One-on-one tech help, Island Branch Library, 5701 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach 2-4 p.m.

THURSDAY, AUG. 3

Sunshine Stitchers Knit and Crochet, Island Branch Library, 5701 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach, 1 p.m.

FRIDAY, AUG. 4

Mah-jongg for experienced players, Island Branch Library,

107 GULF DRIVE N. FOR INFORMATION, CALL 941-778-1005

Please visit www.cityofbradentonbeach.com or contact city hall for more information.

Aug. 2, 9:30 a.m. – Community Redevelopment Agency meeting

Aug. 2, 1 p.m. – Planning and Zoning Board meeting

Aug. 3, 6 p.m. – City Commission meeting

Aug. 16, 9 a.m. – Pension Board meeting

5701 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach, 11:30 a.m.

SATURDAY, AUG. 5

Robinson Runners, Robinson Preserve, 1704 99th St. N.W., Bradenton, 7 a.m.

Mornings at the NEST, Robinson Preserve Mosaic Nest, 840 Ninth Ave. N.W., Bradenton, 9 a.m. to noon

Solar astronomy at the NEST, Robinson Preserve Mosaic Nest, 840 Ninth Ave. N.W., Bradenton, 9-11 a.m.

TUESDAY, AUG. 8

Rotary Club of Anna Maria Island meeting, Slicker’s Eatery, 12012 Cortez RoadW., Bradenton, 11:30 a.m.

5801 MARINA DRIVE FOR INFORMATION, CALL 941-708-5800

Please visit www.holmesbeachfl.org or contact city hall for more information.

Aug. 2, 5 p.m. – Planning Commission meeting

Aug. 15, 2 p.m. – City Commission meeting with work session to follow

ISLAND-WIDE

Aug. 15, 6 p.m. – West Manatee Fire Rescue board meeting, administration building, 701 63rd St. W., Bradenton

Mah-jongg for experienced players, Island Branch Library, 5701 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach, 11:30 a.m.

WEDNESDAY, AUG. 9

One-on-one tech help, Island Branch Library, 5701 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach, 2-4 p.m. Island Time Book Club: “The Golden Couple,” Island Branch Library, 5701 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach, 6:30 p.m.

THURSDAY, AUG. 10

AMI Chamber luncheon, The Feast, 5406 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach, 11:30 a.m., $22 for members or $30 for prospective members.

Hazards impede turtle hatchlings

Turtle Watch asks beachgoers to fill in holes in the sand, keeps lights out and bring in beach furniture at night.

BY LESLIE LAKE SUN CORRESPONDENT | llake@amisun.com

HOLMES BEACH - Four turtle hatchlings that had fallen into a hole on the beach were found by Holmes Beach Code Enforcement staff on the morning of July 16.

While entrapped, the turtles were using up energy they needed for their long swim to the floating sargassum line where they will spend the next few years.

“You can prevent this,” Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring posted on its Facebook page. “Fill in your holes and spread the word that by filling our holes and leaving the beach flat, we can all help share the beach with sea turtles!”

A code enforcement officer called Turtle Watch at 941-301-8434 to report the hatchlings, which were later safely released to the Gulf of Mexico.

“We’ve had at least two nests this season that have had hatchlings trapped in holes on their way to the water,” Turtle Watch Executive Director Kristen Mazzarella said. Besides unfilled holes in the sand, another ongoing hazard to turtles is beach furniture that is left out overnight.

“We are in contact with all (three) municipalities on the Island,”

Mazzarella said. “We let them know when we see beach furniture left out overnight and they usually come to attend to it - either remove it or speak to the folks that left it out.”

She said all of the municipalities are very responsive when they hear from Turtle Watch volunteers.

“We do not tag or remove furniture that’s been left out,” she said. “We leave that to code enforcement. Beach furniture has definitely been a problem on the entire Island, but since hatching season started, our focus has been primarily on lighting and disorientations.”

Lights facing the beaches can disorient turtle hatchlings on their way to the water.

Mazzarella said tent canopy structures with sandbags on the legs have been left on the beach often, with the structure left flat on the ground.

“I don’t think people realize that this is still an entanglement hazard for nesting turtles and needs to be removed just like all the other furniture,” Mazzarella said.

Voluntary Sea Turtle Protection Zone established

Boaters are reminded to look for swimming sea turtles to avoid boat strikes.

BY LESLIE LAKE SUN CORRESPONDENT | llake@amisun.com

SARASOTA BAY – Mote Marine Laboratory scientists have documented sea turtle boat-strike hotspots in local waters and are asking boaters to be especially vigilant in those areas.

Mote established the voluntary Sea Turtle Protection Zone (STPZ) to protect sea turtles from unintended boat strikes in the stretch from Longboat Key to Siesta Key, including Sarasota Bay and extending 1.5 miles offshore.

“We’re excited to partner with the community to help protect sea turtles in the areas where we see the most animals struck by boats,” Mote’s Stranding Investigations Program Manager Gretchen Lovewell said. “By closely monitoring for changes in stranding

SEE SEA TURTLES, PAGE 14

ANNA MARIA ISLAND TURTLE WATCH | SUBMITTED

Four turtle hatchlings trapped in a hole on the beach were discovered by Holmes Beach Code Enforcement staff.

Where’s Suzi?

Suzi is off and paddling as the Tour de Turtles race launches this month.

BY LESLIE LAKE SUN CORRESPONDENT | llake@amisun.com

With the start of the Tour de Turtles race on Aug. 1, adult female loggerhead sea turtle Suzi is off and paddling. For several weeks after her June 27 release at Coquina Beach, Suzi was swimming close to the shore, circling back several times to the familiar area of Anna Maria Island, but around July 20, she took off into the Gulf of Mexico and has continued to swim southwest.

Suzi was outfitted with a satellite monitor after nesting and is participating in the Sea Turtle Conservancy’s Tour de Turtles race. She will be swimming in the race to draw attention to the cause of light pollution and how lighting near shore can negatively impact nesting turtles and their hatchlings.

The latest numbers reported by the Sea Turtle Conservancy at the end of July show that Suzi swam 43 miles at an average speed of .12 miles per hour. She was named in honor of Suzi Fox, the late executive director of Anna Maria Island Turtle

TURTLE TIPS

During sea turtle season, May 1 – Oct. 31, follow these tips to help turtles:

• Turn off lights visible from the beach and close blinds from sundown to sunrise; lights confuse nesting sea turtles and may cause them to go back to sea and drop their eggs in the water, where they won’t hatch. Light can also attract hatchlings away from the water.

•Don’t use flashlights, lanterns or camera flashes on the beach at night.

•Remove all beach chairs and other objects from the sand from sundown to sunrise; they can deter sea turtles from nesting and disorient hatchlings.

SUBMITTED

Watch and Shorebird Monitoring.

The turtle’s participation in the 2023 Tour de Turtles is sponsored by the Coastal Wildlife Club, the Waterline Marina and Resort and Turtle Watch. Visit The Sun’s Facebook page for weekly updates in “Where’s Suzi?” and visit amisun.com for weekly updates on turtle nesting activity on the Island in “Nesting News.”

•Fill in the holes you dig in the sand before leaving the beach; they can trap nesting and hatching sea turtles, which cannot live long out of the water. You might also accidentally dig into an unmarked nest. To report large holes or other turtle obstacles, call:

•City of Anna Maria code enforcement — 941-708-6130, ext. 111.

•City of Bradenton Beach code enforcement — 941-778-1005, ext. 280.

•City of Holmes Beach code enforcement — 941-778-0331, ext. 260.

Adult loggerhead sea turtle Suzi takes off into the Gulf of Mexico after staying close to Anna Maria Island for several weeks.

Health Department issues warning during heat wave

BY LESLIE LAKE SUN CORRESPONDENT | llake@amisun.com

MANATEE COUNTY – The Florida Department of Health, Manatee (FDOH-Manatee) is advising individuals to take precautions during a National Weather Service-issued heat advisory.

“With temperatures soaring and heat indexes reaching dangerous levels, it is important to prioritize the well-being of individuals and communities,” according to a health department press release.

During this heat advisory, all West Central Florida county health departments are recommending the following safety measures to minimize the risk of heat-related illnesses and emergencies:

• Stay hydrated. Drink plenty of water and avoid excessive consumption of caffeine or alcohol, as they can lead to dehydration.

• Stay cool. Avoid direct sunlight and long exposure to the sun. Spend time in air-conditioned environments. If you do not have access to air conditioning, consider visiting

public buildings or public spaces with shade. Wear lightweight, loose-fitting and light-colored clothing to help your body regulate its temperature. Protect your head and face with a wide-brimmed hat and use sunscreen to prevent sunburn. Minimize outdoor activities during the hottest parts of the day. If you must be outside, take frequent breaks in shaded areas and avoid strenuous physical exertion.

• Check on vulnerable individuals. Keep an eye on elderly neighbors, young children and individuals with pre-existing health conditions, as they are more susceptible to heat-related illnesses.

• Never leave children, vulnerable individuals or pets unattended in vehicle. Temperatures inside a parked car can rise rapidly, even with the windows slightly open, and can be life-threatening.

Stay informed about the heat advisory by following the National Weather Service or your local news. For further information about heatrelated health issues, please visit www. floridahealth.gov.

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RENTERS: Reflect on Island years

FROM PAGE 1

Arium Bristol Bay complex in Bradenton. His friend and roommate, Bounds, moved with him and they now live less than three miles from the Island they used to call home. Bauer owns Reel Clean Marine Maintenance and Management and most of his clients are on the Island.

Before they moved off-Island, Bauer and Bounds rented a house on Avenue B they knew was slated for demolition to make room for a new vacation rental house. At the time, they were paying $1,800 a month in rent and The Sun interviewed them regarding their struggle to find an annual rental on the Island.

“I used to live next to three of my best friends. I had two more up the street. Now I only have a couple friends that live out here,” Bauer said. There’s a growing lack of community. It’s a lot of investors trying to make a quick buck renting or flipping their properties and housing on the Island has been monopolized by vacation rentals.

“I have friends that own businesses on the Island and it’s hard for them to find employees because there’s nowhere to live. And if you live offIsland, you spend so much time stuck in traffic,” he said.

“I was born in 1993. My first house was on the Island,” Bounds said. “I lived out here until I was 4 years old. We lived in one of those little cottages in Bradenton Beach. In all my baby pictures, I’m on the beach. To be on the Island is so important to me and it’s sad to see what’s going on.”

Bauer said he and Bounds are still living at Arium and are doing well.

“It’s kind of weird getting used to living in an apartment with the dogs and everything, but I can’t complain.

I’m still close to the Island. I work out there just about every day, but once I get off work I don’t hang out on the Island much anymore. I usually just go home.”

Bauer hopes to live on the Island again someday.

“Our lease is up in September. I don’t know if I’m going to stay or find something else. I’m still trying to find a long-term rental but some don’t allow dogs. I’d like to rent a house out there for a year or two and then maybe buy one someday. Business has been really good and it’s growing a lot since I took over,” Bauer said.

DAWN MATHISEN

Mathisen now lives in the Pine Bay Forrest condominium near 75th Street and Manatee Avenue, about five miles from the Island. She sells and rents electric bikes at Beach’N Bikes on Cortez Road, just east of the Cortez Bridge, and often rides her E-bike out to the Island. On Saturday, she took one of the new semi-recumbent trikes for a test ride on the Island.

When asked how she’s adjusted to living off-Island, she said, “To avoid cognitive dissonance, I make the best of it.”

The Sun first interviewed Mathisen in 2022, after she’d been displaced from the Island.

“I lived on Anna Maria Island for four years. I started in Holmes Beach, living with a friend from Indianapolis. I’ll never forget the first time I came across the Cortez Bridge. That was magical. After my housemate got married, I met my next housemate, English Jim. He’d been on the Island for 15 years and I lived with him for about three years, until he got cancer, moved back to England and passed away,” she said.

She then moved to the other side of

the Intracoastal Waterway and rented a mobile home in Cortez Park, near the east end of the Cortez Bridge.

“I lived there until the mobile home was sold. I was there three years and that was my first place here without a roommate.”

When asked what she loves about the Island, she said, “I loved everything about it. The natural beauty, meeting the local people and being able to walk to the local pubs. Everyone can see how it’s changed. There are so many more monstrosity-sized vacation rentals and Airbnb’s. The very charm of Anna Maria Island that the gatekeepers like to sell is being destroyed.

“We’ve lost most of our affordable housing on the Island and it’s happening all across the county too. There’s going to be repercussions: staffing shortages and overworked employees. There’s a lot of young people busting their humps working at the restaurants and bars. They make

good money but they can’t afford to live on the Island. Don’t treat the local residents like the Native Americans of the past and tell us to take our things and get out,” she said.

“I was renting for $600 a month when I first moved to the Island,” she said, adding that she now considers $1,200 to $1,400 a month to be affordable housing.

Would she ever live on the Island again?

“Probably not, but I want to because I still love the Island and the people. As unhappy and uneasy as I am with the progression of capitalism on the Island, there are still a lot of things to appreciate - seeing a local band at a local bar, seeing people you’ve known for many years and meeting people you’ve never met,” she said, noting that a return to the Island would probably require roommates and a second job.

SEE RENTERS, PAGE 15

JOE HENDRICKS | SUN

Former Island resident Dawn Mathisen frequently E-bikes to the Island.

Suncoast Waterkeeper seeks members, volunteers

BY LESLIE LAKE

SUN CORRESPONDENT | llake@amisun.com

BRADENTON – In a celebration of World Mangrove Day on July 26, Suncoast Waterkeeper rolled out its newly-acquired patrol boat and launched its new membership levels at a gather ing at Floridays Woodfire Grill.

Following a happy hour where members and potential members learned about volunteer opportunities, the 23-foot boat was christened.

“We’re very happy to have this new patrol boat, so we can keep an eye out on our waters,” Suncoast Waterkeeper Executive Director Abbey Tyrna said at the gathering. “We’re hoping to have more members and volunteers to come on board.”

Tyrna is hoping to fill three volunteer categories.

“Eyes on the Suncoast” asks people who recreate in and around the water to report what they see.

“We seek reports on pollution, such as sediment or sewage entering our waterways, mangroves that have been aggressively cut or removed, and large amounts of debris,” she said.

The “Pollution Action Team” will be a team of

specialized volunteers trained to inspect pollution reports, gather data and submit information to enforcement agencies.

“Mangrove Rangers” will be a team of volunteers who will adopt a mangrove forest and commit to surveying the forest annually using a drone. Each Mangrove Ranger team must include a boat owner/operator, an FAA Part 107 drone pilot certificate holder and a spotter.

The mission of the non-profit Suncoast Waterkeeper is to “protect and restore the Florida Suncoast’s waterways through enforcement, fieldwork, advocacy and environmental education.”

Apply to become a permitted shorebird monitor

The FWC has training opportunities available for shorebird monitors.

BY LESLIE LAKE SUN CORRESPONDENT | llake@amisun.com

ANNA MARIA – If you have experience identifying shorebirds in bird surveys, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has an opportunity to become a permitted shorebird monitor.

Commission-approved Imperiled Beach-Nesting Bird (IBNB) Species Conservation Measures and Permitting Guidelines become effective in September, giving interested individuals time to meet the qualifications for becoming an IBNB Permitted Monitor, including conducting at least three surveys that involve locating and documenting active nests of imperiled beach-nesting birds, including those that nest on Anna Maria

Island.

“IBNB-permitted monitors are trained, dedicated individuals with proven shorebird and seabird identification skills and avian survey experience,” according to the FWC website. “IBNB permitted monitors are qualified to assist FWC Incidental Take Permittees with minimizing and avoiding harm or harassment of imperiled beach-nesting birds (American oystercatchers, snowy plovers, least terns, black skimmers) during project activities.”

Online training materials are now available for people interested in becoming IBNB Permitted Monitors. These monitors conduct pre-activity surveys, breeding activity checks, behavioral surveys and posting/protection measures for threatened beach-nesting birds. Learn more by visiting MyFWC.com/IBNB/Monitors.

The non-profit environmental group rolls out its recently-acquired patrol boat.

LESLIE LAKE | SUN

Suncoast Waterkeeper rolls out its newly-acquired patrol boat.

Chiles Hospitality awards nine scholarships

MANATEE COUNTY – A new school year starts soon and students are getting ready to hit the books. The people at Chiles Hospitality are making going back to school a little easier for nine scholarship recipients.

The organization awarded nine scholarships on July 19 through the Chiles Hospitality Scholarship Fund in partnership with the Manatee Community Foundation. This year’s winners are Alanna Bjork, Briana Cochran, Korissa Erdman, Ramon Guerrero, Jamilynn Knowles, Madison McCrae, Shantel Seravalli, Carla Stewart and Jasper Turner.

Bjork plans to attend Manatee Technical College, Erdman will be attending the University of South Florida, Seravalli plans to attend Hillsborough Community College, Stewart is attending the University of Florida and Cochran, Guerrero, Knowles, McCrae and Turner will all be at State College of Florida.

All are employees from the Chiles Hospitality’s three restaurants, Sandbar Seafood & Spirits, Mar Vista Dockside Restaurant and Pub and the Beach House Waterfront Restaurant.

To qualify for a scholarship, students must either be an employee of the organization or the child of an employee. Applicants are judged by the Manatee Community Foundation’s scholarship committee based on grade, volunteer service and leadership ability. Since its inception in 2010, the Chiles Hospitality Scholarship Fund has awarded 62 scholarships.

SUBMITTED | CHILES HOSPITALITY

Chiles Hospitality CEO Chuck Wolfe congratulates some of the nine 2023 scholarship winners.

SEA TURTLES: Protection zone established

FROM PAGE 8

numbers and boater speeds, we hope to expand the zone and our monitoring efforts to all hot spot areas in the county.”

The Sea Turtle Protection Zone initiative was created in 2021 through a partnership between the Loggerhead Marinelife Center and the Archie Carr Center for Sea Turtle Research at the University of Florida, according to a prepared statement from Mote.

“Sea turtles are threatened and endangered species found year-round in southwest Florida waters. During nesting season, sea turtles spend more time closer to the surface and close to their nesting beaches,” according to the Mote website. “With more turtles near the surface, there’s a greater chance that a boat might strike one by mistake. Many of the grass flats in the area are prime foraging grounds for sea turtles, which also puts them at risk for boat strikes. The good news is, boaters can protect sea turtles by slowing down and using vigilance in key locations.”

“Since the 1980s, sea turtle vessel strikes have tripled in Florida and unfortunately more than 90% of sea turtles with definitive boat strike injuries have resulted in fatalities,” said Valerie Nicole Tovar, conservation manager at Loggerhead Marinelife Center. “Our goal with the STPZ is to increase boater awareness and enlist boater voluntary compliance to decrease sea turtle injuries and deaths by creating a united front with our local boating communities. The STPZ has served as a vital tool for sea turtle conservation in Palm Beach County and will continue to do so in Sarasota.”

Mote offered the following reminders to boaters:

MOTE MARINE LABORATORY | SUBMITTED

Mote Marine Laboratory has established a Sea Turtle Protection Zone in these waters.

• Go slow: Follow Coast Guard-approved safe boating guidelines. Go as slow as safely possible in areas bounded by red lines - the voluntary Sea Turtle Protection Zone - and limit your travel time in these areas. Follow any posted speed-zone signs; it’s required by law.

• Wear polarized sunglasses to see and avoid sea turtles in your path, and ask one of your passengers to be the designated wildlife spotter.

• Stow trash: Be sure to stow trash and line when underway. Marine debris that accidentally blows overboard or out of a vehicle can become ingested by or entangled around marine life.

• Report stranded sea turtles (as well as stranded marine mammals) in Sarasota and Manatee counties to Mote at 888-345-2335. Elsewhere in Florida, call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at 888-404-3922.

Everybody out

Morning beachgoers gathered around two Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring volunteers, Linda O’Neal (counting eggshells) and Danielle Kimberly, on Sunday morning as they excavated a loggerhead sea turtle nest that hatched the night of July 27. No live hatchlings were found, meaning that all 136 hatchlings made it out of the nest and presumably into the Gulf of Mexico. The count is determined by unearthing and piecing together remnants of turtle eggs from the nest. The nest was one of three that were laid next to each other, probably because tall sea grapes and Australian pines shade that section of beach from streetlights on Gulf Drive at night, when hatching occurs, and turtles prefer digging in the dark, according to Kimberly. Left: Turtle hatchling tracks headed to the water from the nest.

NESTING NEWS

Turtle nests laid: 385 (Record: 544 in 2019)

False crawls: 435 (Record: 831 in 2010)

Nests hatched: 105 (Record: 453 in 2022)

Hatchlings hatched: 6,447 (Record: 35,850 in 2022)

Hatchling disorientations: 42

Source: Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring

RENTERS: Reflect on Island years

TRACY ECKERT

Tracy Eckert, a retired emergency room nurse, now owns a mobile home in a large mobile home park in St. Petersburg.

He moved to St. Pete in April 2021 after spending 17 years as rental resident on Avenue B in Bradenton Beach.

He spent 11 years in his first rental unit and paid $850 a month. He voluntarily left that location because the building was dilapidated and was later demolished and replaced by a vacation rental home. He spent five years at his second rental unit and one year at his third rental unit on Avenue B.

“In May 2021, after five years there, my landlord gave me written notice that I had to move out. This was during the height of COVID and I was treating COVID patients at the hospital in St. Pete. It put me in a bind trying to find an affordable place to rent on the Island. It was a hardship financially and emotionally during the height of COVID. I was paying $1,150 a month. The place I found after that was $1,700 and it too was later slated for demolition to make room for a vacation rental.”

Eckert and his dog, Martini, then moved off the Island and into an apartment at

Perico Bay Club on Manatee Avenue for a few months before moving to St. Pete.

“I like having my own yard and garden, a hot tub, a billiards room, a pool and it’s not too far from the beach, but it’s not the Island. I miss the Island life. I lived there for about a third of my adult life. I got to know so many people in my 17 years there. I miss my friends. I miss walking across the street to get to the beach. I miss the Island, but its best days have passed and greed has taken over.

“When I moved to the Island, there were

12 residences and two vacation rentals on my block. Now it’s like 10 vacation rentals and four residences. The restaurants are getting more expensive and everything is now geared toward the tourists and not the locals. The ‘old Florida’ experience is gone. It’s more reasonable living off the Island and you get a lot more bang for your buck,” he said.

“I’ll always have good memories of my time on the Island. Everybody seemed to know each other and everybody knew your name. There was a great sense of community but we’ve lost a lot of that. I remember when we were begging for more tourists. Now we have too many. I had a great 17-year run, but unfortunately it came to an end,” Eckert said.

He still visits the Island but doesn’t expect to live there again.

“I can’t afford it.”

RICK LEWIS

Former Island resident Rick Lewis grew up in northwest Bradenton and had a lifelong connection to the Island.

“I was out here a lot. This was part of our playground,” he said.

Lewis now lives on his monthly Social Security benefits and his last Island home was a rented living area in an Anna Maria home he helped care for while the owners were away.

“I was there for three or four years and I moved out last June, in 2022. On Memo-

rial Day weekend, the owners told me they were going to put the house up for sale. I didn’t have a lease. It was just kind of a monthly thing. In early June, I was told I had to be out by the end of the month,” he said.

Lewis stayed with a friend in Port Charlotte for a few months and then relocated to a friend’s home in Parrish. He also travels back and forth to Pine Island to care for a home while his friends are vacationing. He also helped care for their dog, who recently passed away.

Last week, Lewis was back on the Island taking care of a house in Holmes Beach while the owner was on vacation.

“I’ve been bouncing around doing that but I don’t have a stable place,” he said.

TRACY ECKERT | SUBMITTED Former Island resident Tracy Eckert misses walking to the beach.

RICK LEWIS | SUBMITTED Rick Lewis recently visited his canine friend, Baxter, in Pine Island before Baxter passed away. SEE

Generation Alpha speaks out for the future

Reel Time

t seems a little unfair that short-sighted decisions made by politicians in 2023 can have such a profound effect on the future of those who still have no voice in those choices. That’s why it’s important to give them a voice, and why Reel Time is donating space this week to 15-year-old Brice Claypoole

I am 15 years old and live in Manatee County. More than anything, I enjoy exploring our local environment, our land and waters. I love to watch ospreys dive for fish and spoonbills squabble in mangrove swamps.

Sometimes, when I talk with long-time residents of our area, they tell me that I should have seen Manatee County 50 years ago. Back then, there were bountiful fish, few toxic algal blooms, expansive wetlands and an overall healthier landscape. Reckless and greedy developers have since torn out many of our wildlands, resulting in loss of biodiversity, increased storm damage and polluted waters. Our seagrass has declined hugely, our mangroves have all but disappeared, and red tide tortures our communities for unprecedented lengths of time.

To perpetuate this sad situation where corporate profits are valued over community well-being, developers spend hundreds of thousands of dollars slandering smart-growth politicians and promoting their own candidates. Every one

of Manatee’s current county commissioners has strong ties to the development industry. Determined to refill their campaign coffers before the

next election, the Board of County Commissioners (BCC) has opened the floodgates to uncontrolled development and environmental destruction.

They have approved countless ruinous developments, weakened our comprehensive plan and overridden the decisions of local governments. But their latest scheme promises to be one of the most disastrous yet. It’s a systemic change that threatens to allow the unregulated destruction of Manatee’s remaining natural lands.

Manatee County’s Land Development Code (LDC) and Comprehensive Plan are responsible for laying out regulations and procedures for land use. The goal of the LDC and comp plan is to plan land use and protect communities and resources. The county commission will soon vote on changes to the LDC and comp plan that were requested by the Manatee-Sarasota Building Industry Association (BIA).

SEE REEL TIME, PAGE 19

RUSTY CHINNIS

15-year-old Brice Claypoole wants your attention.

REEL TIME: Generation Alpha speaks out

FROM PAGE 18

Emails reveal that BIA president Jon Mast, multiple county employees, Commissioner Amanda Ballard’s husband and then-county administrator Scott Hopes met in January to discuss changes the BIA wanted to the LDC and comp plan. The meeting and changes were kept secret. The proposed changes, targeted mainly at gutting environmental protections, were written by local land use attorney Scott Rudacille. Rudacille is connected to local builders, including political power broker Carlos Beruff, who has contributed thousands of dollars to the campaigns of county commissioners. Before the redlined (proposed) LDC was leaked, the county intended to present changes as if their staff – not the industry which would benefit – had initiated them.

The content of the redlined documents is disturbing - protections for wetlands, our most valuable natural resources, have been removed. Along with deleting the comp plan’s policy 3.3.1.1., which prohibits the destruction of wetlands, county staff slashed much of policy 3.3.1.3. This means developers would be allowed to destroy wetlands without taking any action to mitigate the devastation.

Staff also removed the county’s requirements for wetland buffers of up to 50 feet, stripping protections down to the state’s bare minimum of a 25-foot average. Larger, more functional wetland buffers would no longer be required between developments and outstanding Florida waters or aquatic preserves. Studies show this would lead to increased water pollution and degrade Manatee residents’ quality of life. The buffers currently

required by the LDC are already inadequate to safeguard natural resources and avert declining water quality. Buffers must be at least 100 feet to be fully functional. The state's minimum 25-foot average does nothing to safeguard resources.

Denying this unjustified gutting of our LDC and comp plan should be an easy decision. However, the BCC has a massive conflict of interest in this matter, one that appears strong enough to make this Faustian board disregard their constituents’ wellbeing. Commissioner Mike Rahn is the former president of the BIA. BIA Treasurer Raymond Turner was just appointed to fill a vacant seat on the board. Commissioner Ballard’s husband worked for BIA. Floridians United for a Sustainable Economy PAC, which is funded by the BIA, has donated to the campaigns of all the commissioners. The BIA’s members include developers Patrick Neal and Carlos Beruff, who have poured thousands of dollars into the campaigns of our BCC. Convincing the commissioners to do the right thing won’t be easy.

As red tide and gumbo algae make life miserable for local communities, as starving manatees and poisoned sea turtles wash up on our beaches, we are experiencing the effects of bad governance. Now developers are demanding we turn bad governance into no governance and allow them to trade our future for profit.

In 10 years, what will life be like in Manatee County? How much worse will our lives be as seagrass dies, fisheries collapse, our tourism industry fades away, manatee and dolphin populations go extinct, and severe red tides become a yearround phenomenon?

It sounds like Rachel Carson’s dystopian essay, “A Fable for Tomorrow,” in which she imagined the demise of both nature and humanity at the hands of pesticide corporations. That threat has so far been averted, in no small part due to Carson herself, but the threat of overdevelopment now takes its place. The only thing that made a difference, the only thing that stopped the slow poisoning of the Earth by DDT, was a public outcry.

Public outcry. That is how we make a difference in this world.

I asked former 22-year Manatee County Commissioner Joe McClash what could convince the BCC not to cater to the BIA’s demands. McClash, a smartgrowth proponent who lost his seat on the commission after a large-scale, developer-funded smear campaign, answered without hesitation. “The public needs to get out and tell the commission that this isn’t supported by science, that it isn’t supported by the community,” he said.

Our nature, our waters, and our communities cannot withstand this abuse. Without the LDC and comp plan regulations, our natural resources will collapse.

Will you tolerate our quality of life being sold to developers? Contact the commissioners (https://www.mymanatee.org/government/board_of_county_commissioners) and tell them that you won’t put up with this destruction.

Sign Suncoast Waterkeeper’s petition (https://www.suncoastwaterkeeper.org/save_our_welands) against BIA’s demands.

Attend the first commission hearing on the LDC and comp plan changes on Thursday, Aug. 10 at 9 a.m.

Don’t let the commission sell our future.

August fly fishing beats the heat

CAPT.

RICK GRASSETT

Many tarpon will move into estuaries this month. You may also find juvenile tarpon in creeks, canals and turning basins. Reds should be schooling on shallow flats and big trout will prowl the same waters at dawn. Also, look for trout on deep grass flats mixed with blues, pompano, Spanish mackerel and more. Catch and release snook fishing should be good around lighted docks at night or in the surf. Look for false albacore (little tunny) to possibly show up in the coastal Gulf later in the month.

Tarpon addicts will still be able to get their fix this month. You should still find a few tarpon in the coastal Gulf. As tarpon thin out along beaches, they will move to inside waters where you may find them schooling around bridges or rolling on deep grass flats. They will also feed in schools of ladyfish that are feeding on the surface. You should also find juvenile tarpon from 10-30 pounds in creeks, canals, turning basins and around dock lights. Fly anglers should score on juvenile tarpon with 8- or 9-weight fly rods, floating or sink tip lines, depending on water depth, and scaled down tarpon flies.

You’ll find snook this month around lighted docks and bridges in the ICW and in the surf. Small white flies, like my Grassett Snook Minnow or Gurglers, should all work well. The same flies will work at night and in the surf, although you should be observant of what size baits are in those areas.

CAPT. RICK GRASSETT | SUBMITTED Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers President Ken Babineau had good action catching and releasing snook and a red before daylight and trout on the flats at the golden hour of the morning while fly fishing Sarasota Bay.

The Manatee County Sheriff’s Office and West Manatee Fire Rescue responded to a call to help free a kitten on July 25 that was stuck behind a cement block wall. After the kitten was freed, the team and homeowner got the tiny animal to pose for a photograph.

The Center of Anna Maria Island sees program revenue up and fundraising down.

BY LESLIE LAKE SUN CORRESPONDENT | llake@amisun.com

ANNA MARIA – The Center of Anna Maria Island released its end of fiscal year and June financial statements and according to director Christopher Culhane, it was a good year financially for the non-profit community center.

“Overall, The Center had another great year, with total program revenue up $234,452

Sign up for college admissions workshop

In a five-week workshop at The Center of Anna Maria Island, 407 Magnolia Ave., Anna Maria, high school students will learn how to make the most out of the college admissions process from William College graduate Luke Valadie. Valadie will cover some of the key elements he offers his clients in this

or 30% over the previous year thanks to new programs and increased participation,”

Culhane wrote in an email to The Sun.

Culhane said fundraising revenue is down due to the tight economy and lack of COVID-19 and other government grants and funding. The overall deficit comes from planned capital improvements at The Center totaling $207,484.

“Looking back to this time last year, The Center finished the previous year $210,646 in the black with the plans to utilize these funds and the excess funds from the four previous years to begin working on many of

workshop series and will provide an in-depth look at the various stages of the admissions process. He will present information to make every stage of the process less daunting. Workshops will be held on Wednesdays starting on Aug. 23 and ending on Sept. 20. Teens in 9th through 11th grades will meet from 5-6:30 p.m. and high school seniors will meet from 6:30-8 p.m. The cost for the course is $300 for members of The Center and $400 for non-members. The price includes a 30-minute individual session with Luke to discuss the particulars of each student’s college admissions

our deferred capital needs,” Culhane said.

Two years ago, the Center's board concluded there was enough cash on hand to begin its long-term campaign to address improvements needed to the facilities. In addition to the $207,484 spent in the past 12 months, the Center spent over $144,458 last fiscal year for facility improvements, according to Culhane.

During the two years prior to that, The Center spent less than $6,000 on facility improvements.

“The Center's board and I remain focused on being fiscally responsible,

Improvements underway at The Center CENTER NOTES

process. To register, visit centerami.org/ culture or call 941-778-1908.

Bowling tournament sponsorships available

The Greg LaPensee Bowling Tournament, which supports The Center of Anna Maria Island, is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 9 and lane sponsors are needed in the following categories: A Signature Lane Sponsor at a cost of $750 will include six players - each will receive a tumbler and The Center fishing shirt with your logo on it, and a pitcher of beer

balancing investments, and improving the facilities while offering a wide range of programs at an affordable cost to its members and program participants,”

Culhane said. “The focus will continue to be on managing expenses while pursuing additional fundraising opportunities.”

The non-profit community center meets the human service needs for those living on or near Anna Maria Island. The Center offers programs in fitness, culture and education, sports, along with specialized youth and senior programs.

“In doing so, The Center is often seen as an 'Educational Center,' a 'Recreational Center,' a 'Youth/Teen Center,' and a 'Senior Citizen Center,' and also serves as a 'Post Hurricane Shelter,' ” according to The Center website.

at your lane; a Lane Sponsor at a cost of $500 for six players will include the team logo displayed at lane and check in; a lane of six players costs $350, a Lane Sponsor without players costs $275 with the sponsor logo displayed at lane and check in. The bowling tournament will be held at Bowlero Bradenton, 4208 Cortez Road. Check in will begin at 5:30 p.m. and bowling will be from 6-8 p.m. There will be a costume contest and raffles, with awards and raffles at 8 p.m. For information, email info@centerami.org or call 941-778-1908.

Anna Maria

RENTALS: Single-room rentals prohibited POOLS: Also prohibited

FROM PAGE 1 permissible use for properties in areas that are zoned residential.”

In response, Hernandez wrote, “So, this wouldn’t fall under the jurisdiction of shared housing?”

Thompson suggested Hernandez contact Building Official Steve Gilbert for more information.

In an email, Gilbert provided Hernandez with the following information: “Renting by the room is a ‘boarding house,’ either transient or permanent, and with or without meals, by definition. The Florida Building Code treats such structures as commercial buildings. You would need two separate means of egress, non-combustible construction or at least fire-rated assemblies, perhaps a full sprinkler system, and full ADA compliance for all sleeping rooms, bathrooms, cooking facilities, and vertical access, including a commercial elevator.

“From a zoning perspective, boarding houses, bed and breakfasts, and multi-unit buildings, including those with multiple sleeping rooms as defined in the Florida Building Code, are permitted uses in the C2 zone district. They would not be a permitted use in either single-family (R1) or two-family (R2) zone districts,” Gilbert wrote.

“From a zoning perspective, the advertisement to rent is for a single-family or perhaps a two-family dwelling, not individual sleeping rooms. From a life safety and building code perspective, advertisement is for a single-family or perhaps a two-family dwelling, not individual sleeping rooms,” Gilbert wrote.

“From a local licensing perspective, the advertisement is for a single-family or perhaps a two-family dwelling, not individual sleeping rooms. From a state

DBPR (Department of Business and Professional Regulation) licensing perspective, the advertisement is for a vacation rental, not a hotel/motel, not a transient boarding house, and not a bed and breakfast. The state licenses and inspection requirements are very different for these more intensive uses. In sum, you may not advertise rentals by the room,” Gilbert wrote.

In response to Gilbert, Hernandez then wrote: “Thank you for clarifying. We had a guest that had a reservation booked with us and canceled because they were able to book an individual room with another management company.”

Hernandez included in her email a link to an Airbnb vacation rental home in Bradenton Beach that advertised single-room rentals.

FROM PAGE 1 website and that renting pools and other amenities without renting the entire property was not allowed in the city. She added that the city’s code compliance officers had been alerted to the situation and were responding. There were no other listings on Anna Maria Island on the website at press time for The Sun.

In Holmes Beach, Titsworth explained, city codes do not allow for only a piece of a property to be rented, such as a pool, for an hourly rate. The city’s vacation rental regulations allow for residential properties in the R-1 residential zone to be rented for a minimum of 30 days to the same renter. In other residential zones in the city, properties can be rented for no less than 7 days. The city’s code defines a “day” as a 24-hour period for property rental purposes. Only hotels and motels are exempt from the regulations and are allowed to rent daily. And while part of a property, one half of a duplex for example, can be rented independently from the rest of the property, owners are not allowed to rent out single bedrooms in their homes to different groups of people or rent only amenities, such as pools, without renting the rest of the property or unit.

SUBMITTED | SWIMPLY.COM

One pool rental was posted for Holmes Beach on July 26, offering the pool at a vacation rental when the property is vacant for $50 per hour. The listing was removed by July 29.

JOE HENDRICKS | SUN

This vacation rental home at 206 Church Ave. was mentioned in an inquiry about single-room vacation rentals.

SEE RENTALS, PAGE 28

Solid Rock comes out on top

BY MONICA SIMPSON SPECIAL TO THE SUN

ANNA MARIA – The final week of regular season adult co-ed flag football play energized The Center gridiron last Thursday night. For the four teams in the middle of the pack, every play and every second mattered.

By the end of the night, team Solid Rock Construction captured the third-seed position in the first round of the playoffs, narrowly defeating the Salty Printing squad with a score of 14-12.

Despite a late-game injury, Tuna McCracken and the Solid Rock team won by two points in what proved to be a defensive battle. With 36 total flag pulls recorded by both teams, Evelyn Long led the league in flag pulls for the week.

Long’s eight flag pulls Thursday night put her in third to end the regular season in defensive stops. Her 29 total pulls were only topped by teammates Tyler Brewer and McCracken, each with 30 in the sevengame season.

With McCracken on the sideline, receiver Connor Ludwig took the snaps for the last several minutes of the game. Throwing for a touchdown to Brewer

and receiving for one from McCracken, Ludwig helped clinch the team’s playoff position.

On the flip side, Brandon Rolland had the only offensive scoring for Salty while teammate Zaon William scored six points on defense for his team.

Williams also finished the season tied with Long for third in flag pulls with 29 big stops.

Making the scoring difference for Solid Rock Construction was Brewer’s two one-point conversions, giving the squad a marginal lead. Brewer had seven catches in the game, lead ing his team and adding to his season total of 38 receptions.

Solid Rock’s win put them in the third quarterfinal game bracket with Sandbar Seafood & Spirits. Sandbar lost to #7 Gulf Drive Café in the first game of the night, giving the Gulf Drive team only their second win of the season.

Playing in the last game this Thursday night against the second seed Moss Builders team, team Gulf Drive Café will need to play strong and with no mistakes.

Salty’s loss placed them in fifth position behind Cortez Deep Sea Fishing.

In the second playoff game Thursday night at 7 p.m., the two teams will face off for a spot in the semifinal next week.

Playing in the heat of the 6 p.m. game, the underdogs of #8 The Banks Home Lending Team hope the curse of the first-place team continues to rear its ugly head as they face the

top-seed Luxury Services team.

As the quarterback, Luxury’s Chase Richardson leads the league in passing touchdowns with 32 this season. Between them, The Banks Home Lending’s Cruz Rodriguez and Cory Banks managed to pass 20 total touchdowns in seven games.

Key Royale golf heats up this summer

JULY 3 - MODIFIED STABLEFORD

First Place - John Kolojeski, +2

Second Place - Nelson Eagle and Art McMillan tied, +1

JULY 6 - SCRAMBLE

First Place - Jim Hill, Hoyt Miller, Tom Nelson and Terry Schaefer, 28, 4 under par

Second Place - Don Grau, Dom Livedoti, Art McMillan and Quentin Talbert, 29, 3 under par

JULY 10 - MODIFIED STABLEFORD

First Place - Chuck Patrick, +5

Second Place - Don Grau, +4

Third Place - Ken Kari, Art McMillan and Kurt Snouffer all tied, +3

JULY 11 - LOW NET SCORE

First Place - Sue Wheeler, 29

Second Place - Helen Pollock, 37

Third Place - Peggy Cummings with a score 51 (chip-in on Hole #1)

JULY 13 - SHAMBLE - COUNTING TWO SCORES FROM EACH FOURSOME - PAR 64

First Place - Mike Clements, Don Grau, Jim Hill and Quentin Talbert, 65, one over par

JULY 17 - MODIFIED STABLEFORD

First Place - Art McMillan and Dave Richardson tied, +2

Second Place - Chuck Patrick, +1

Third Place - Bill Shuman at even

JULY 20 - SCRAMBLE

First Place - Jim Bailey, Bill DiMenna, and Dave and Deb Richardson, 29, 3 under par

JULY 24 - MODIFIED STABLEFORD

First Place - Jim Hill, +5

Second Place -John Kolojeski, +3

Third Place - Ed Harrell and Mike Pritchett tied, +2

Luxury Services also closed out the season number one and three for receiving touchdowns with Tim Holly finishing with 13 TD catches and Alonzo Lemus securing 11 scoring nabs.

The team’s regular season dominance continued on defense with Holly’s 11 QB sacks, as well as a total of 12 interceptions by teammates Derrick Carey, Jasmine Muldoon and Richardson, each with four picks.

This week’s play will see if the top team prevails or if the undefeated Luxury Services team has their championship hopes stopped short Thursday night.

JULY

JULY 25 - LOW NET SCORE

First Place - Anne Klein and Terry Westby tied, 34 Second Place - Helen Pollock, 36

JULY 27 - SHAMBLE PLAYING THREE-PERSON TEAMS, COUNTING TWO SCORES ON EACH TEAM - PAR 64

First Place - Mike Gillie, Jim Hill and Jerry Martinek, 68, 4 over par

Second Place - Don Grau, John Kolojeski and Dom Livedoti, 69, 5 over par.

Evelyn Long gets in position for the rebound.

Florida seniors caught in trap

Last week we talked about the insurance nightmare affecting all homeowners in the state of Florida. However, there is one group of residents having a more difficult time resolving their insurance issues, and those homeowners are seniors.

As I pointed out last week, homeowner’s premiums are increasing rapidly for everyone and that’s assuming your current company even offers you a renewal. Also, properties with aging roofs are a target of insurance companies. They will either not renew your policy if you have an old roof or give you a time frame in which to replace the roof.

This impacts everyone in the state, but seniors are hurt the most since they may not have the resources to replace roofs, and I don’t just mean the funds, I also mean the ability to go through the process of roof replacement and interfacing with insurance companies. Nevertheless, this is something that has to be done not only in order to have insurance on your property but also in the event that you need to sell, a situation many seniors are finding themselves in.

Castles in the Sand

LOUISE BOLGER

Even if your insurance company hasn’t asked for a roof replacement yet, when you want to sell your property, a home inspector will point out to prospective buyers the age of the roof and the liabilities involved in having an aging roof. Most buyers will not proceed without some guarantee of roof replacement, and most won’t even enter into a contract without the roof being replaced. This is only further complicated by the shortage of replacement roofing materials, particularly when they are dictated by condo documents, and the shortage of workers, resulting in long lead times for roof replacements.

In Manatee County, we have many seniors living in over-55 condo communi-

ties. As previously stated, condos have been particularly hard hit by new roof requirements, and many of the older communities with older populations have not adequately set aside reserves for this purpose, resulting in assessments to residents. Florida living, which attracted senior citizens because of the affordability of properties and living expenses, is suddenly making living in Florida unaffordable for the most vulnerable of our population.

Seniors can also anticipate the possibility of repairs based on the milestone inspections the state has approved for condominiums based on location, height and age. Again, not all community associations have done their due diligence in maintaining properties and this law could impact these senior communities where people have lived for decades.

Everyone in the state needs to budget for the possibility of maintenance issues and repairs in their single-family homes or condos, but seniors particularly need to educate themselves on how this may

affect their wealth and lifestyle. Certainly, younger family members should be made aware of these issues and start making plans to assist this generation.

Manatee County has elder law legal aid and pro bono services available, but not all seniors will qualify for this service. The state has a legal helpline that is free to all seniors over 60 with limited ability to answer complicated issues, but they could point you in the right direction. It’s called The Department of Elder Affairs Florida Senior Legal Helpline at 888-895-7873. However, if you have the financial ability, the best thing for seniors to do when facing one of these problems is to hire a private elder attorney.

Undoubtedly life isn’t fair, and seniors who may not have had a real estate transaction in decades are finding out they can’t sell their home until they have a new roof, then finding out the new roof could take months. Plan ahead and ask for help is my best advice; the insurance issues will not go away anytime soon.

Cortez native Wanda Jones Fulford dies

BY LESLIE LAKE SUN CORRESPONDENT | llake@amisun.com

CORTEZ – Following the July 23 death of 90-yearold Cortez native Wanda Lavonia Jones Fulford, villagers remembered her as a pioneer of Cortez.

“I knew Wanda and Blue for 48 years,” Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage (FISH) Treasurer Jane von Hahmann said. “Because he was so important in the fishing industry, as the spouse of a major fisherman, she was just as important. She was very involved in the community. She was truly a pioneer of the village.”

In 2020, she was honored with the Pioneer Award by FISH.

At the time, von Hahmann congratulated Fulford on a “simple life, well lived.”

Fulford was a proud native of the Cortez community. She attended grade

school in what is now the Florida Maritime Museum, formerly the Cortez Rural Graded School, and later worked at Tropicana Products.

Born Wanda Lavonia

Jones on March 23, 1933 to James K. and Elizabeth Jones, she was married to the late Thomas “Blue” Fulford. She is survived by sons, Larry Fulford and Paul Fulford; daughter,

OBITUARIES

Wanda Lavonia Fulford

Terrie Cannon; three grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

Those who knew her took to the internet with fond remembrances.

“I loved Miss Wanda,” Rhonda Guthrie Ellis wrote on the Cortez Cultural Center Facebook page. “Will definitely miss that beautiful smile. I know there’s a big Cortezian reunion happening this week.”

Sheila Pagano Mora wrote: “Deeply saddened Wanda has left us. She was a class act… she was courage, laughter, kindness and the best smoked mullet maker ever.”

She was also a bit mischievous, like her husband, Blue, who once told a Sun reporter that her first name was spelled “Juanda.” She smiled and didn’t correct him - or the reporter.

Wanda Lavonia Fulford, 90, of Cortez, Florida, passed away on July 23, 2023. She was born on March 23, 1933 to James K. and Elizabeth Jones. She was a proud native of the Cortez community and of her commercial fishing heritage. She was married to the late Thomas “Blue” Fulford. She is survived by sons, Larry Fulford and Paul Fulford; daughter, Terrie Cannon; three grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. Visitation for Wanda and Blue will be on Friday, Aug. 4, 2023 from 5-7 p.m. at Brown & Sons Funeral Homes & Crematory 43 Street Chapel. Condolences may be made to www. brownandsonsfuneral. com.

CINDY LANE | SUN Fulford received the Pioneer Award from the Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage in 2020.

BEACH BEAT

HOLMES BEACH

7/18, 2:09 p.m., parking violations, 100 block 72nd Street. Officer responded to scooters illegally parked in an alley. The officer found that the vehicles, marked as belonging to Robinhood Rentals, had tags that didn’t belong to the vehicles, both registrations were expired and the VIN numbers were not registered. The rental company was called to retrieve the vehicles and the tags were seized.

7/18, 8:41 p.m., unlawful speed, Manatee Avenue. Officer stopped a driver going over 70 mph in a 35 mph zone. The driver was issued a mandatory infraction citation for violating the speed limit by more than 30 mph.

7/20, 10:16 p.m., shoplifting, 3900 East Bay Drive. Officer responded to Publix in response to a call for assistance. The store manager advised that a suspect had shoplifted alcohol. The officer searched the area and could not find the suspect. A copy of the surveillance video was obtained and the officer requested that an attemptto-identify bulletin be created.

7/21, 1:41 p.m., driving on a suspended license, 4000 Manatee Ave. Officer stopped the driver after the driver failed to obey a posted yield sign. The driver was stopped and issued a citation for driving on a suspended license.

7/22, 4:06 a.m., reckless driving, 43rd Street. Officer stopped a driver observed speeding at 63 mph in a 35 mph zone. Once stopped, the driver became argumentative with the officer, resulting in the driver being arrested for reckless driving and transported to Manatee County Jail.

RENTERS: Reflect on Island years

FROM PAGE 15

A few months ago, Lewis bought a rooftop tent for his old Toyota pickup truck. After he clears up a medical issue, he plans to take his truck and tent to North Carolina to try living there. He also hopes to take some road trips in his mobile rig.

Before moving to Anna Maria, Lewis rented a studio apartment in Holmes Beach for about eight years.

“I lived on the Island for 10 or 11 years. I can’t afford to live out here anymore. When I first moved to the Island, my studio apartment in Holmes Beach was $550 a month, plus electricity. Then it went up to $600. My landlord died and his son took over and sold the place. Then I found the place in Anna Maria that I lived in until last year. There’s still a few hidden gems around, but they’re hard to find and you have to get lucky,” Lewis said.

When asked what he misses most about living on the Island, Lewis said, “Being able to ride my bike to wherever I want to go. And the salt air. I need to be around water. I’m happier around water,” he said. Lewis doesn’t think he’ll live on the Island again.

“I’d like to, but I can’t afford $1,200 to $1,600 a month for a one bedroom, and that’s the market rate almost everywhere

else too. In the old days, people worked on the Island and lived on the Island. Now they can’t afford it, or they need three or four people living together to afford a place. Normal working people can’t afford to live out here and we’ll never have that again,” Lewis said.

SHARON BELL

Sharon Bell recently moved from her previous apartment on Avenue C to a two-bedroom apartment on Avenue C where she now pays $1,850 a month in rent. Bell tends bar at The Doctor’s Office in Holmes Beach, where she mixes and serves martinis and other craft cocktails.

“It’s the most rent I’ve ever paid, but it’s still a good deal. The reason I have the place is the guy who lived here for 22 years before me, Don White, recommended me. His girlfriend, Cindy, has an apartment in the same building and they decided to consolidate into one apartment. I don’t think I would have got this place without his reference,” Bell said.

“I moved to the Island in early 2018 after I started working at the Drift In in Bradenton Beach. I moved into one of the ‘Carter Cottages’ on Third and Highland that have since been mowed down. There were four units. Charlie Woods lived back there. So did David Marshall and Martha

Kelley. Jen from Island Time too. I paid $650 a month – $600 if I paid before the first of month. I could walk to work and live on the Island.

“Then I moved to Avenue B and 24th Street on a 10-month lease, then I moved to a triplex near the entrance to Seaside Gardens in Holmes Beach and lived there until it was sold. Then I spent a couple years in a four-plex behind the Anchor Inn until the owner sold it. I was paying $1,350, then $1,450 a month. It sat vacant for six months or so and someone just told me it’s now renting for $2,000 a month,” Bell said.

Although her monthly rent consumes a considerable chunk of her earnings, Bell’s grateful she still lives on the Island.

“I feel blessed. Most places are going for more, even off the Island. Thank God I don’t have any big outstanding debts. I drive a car that I own and I keep my bills low. I have a small second bedroom but I prefer to live by myself. The longest I stayed somewhere was the two years in the four-plex. It’s hard moving all the time, but I love it out here and I don’t want to go anywhere else. Good timing and being part of the community has saved me so far,” Bell said.

When asked if she ever considered leaving the Island, Bell said, “Yes, but this is where my people are. Rent’s gone up everywhere and I’m paying the same as a lot of people are paying in town. I don’t think there’s another employee I work with that has a place on the Island. They don’t even think it’s possible anymore.”

As for what she loves about the Island, Bell said, “The people, the water and it’s a really great community. I’ve had a lot of loss in the past few years and that’s what carries me. One of the things I love about my industry is people come here to make a memory – to get married or celebrate a birthday. They work a whole year to be here for a week. I’m blessed to be here for the whole year surrounded by positivity, sunshine and the water.”

SHARON BELL | SUBMITTED Sharon Bell still lives and works on the Island.

RENTALS: Single-room rentals prohibited

FROM PAGE 22

“Is this something that is going to be addressed? Please let us know if there’s something we can do about it to avoid losing future guests,” Hernandez wrote.

The Airbnb link Hernandez provided referenced the Playa Esmeralda Boutique Inn located at 206 Church Ave. in Bradenton Beach. According to the Manatee County Property Appraiser’s office, D&C Properties of Tampa LLC owns the home and property, and the Florida Division of Corporations lists Maria Trim as the Tampa-based LLC’s registered agent and Mark Dexter as an authorized person.

The Airbnb link Hernandez provided offered for rent a single-bed bedroom with a private bath for $229 per night.

The Playa Esmeralda Boutique Inn is also advertised on the independent Guest Reservations website, www. GuestReservations.com. That website offers the boutique inn’s “superior king room,” “king room with balcony,” “king room with garden view,” “standard king room” and more.

When contacted by The Sun, a Prime Vacations representative confirmed Prime Vacations does not manage the Playa Esmeralda Boutique Inn.

COMMISSION DISCUSSION

Hernandez’s inquiry became the subject of a brief discussion during the July 20 city commission meeting.

While providing her attorney update, Perry said, “We are now being asked if you had a home with seven bedrooms could seven different renters rent out those bedrooms separately?”

“That would almost be like a boarding house,” Mayor John Chappie said.

Commissioner Ralph Cole asked if the city can enforce its prohibition on single-room vacation rentals.

In response, Perry said, “The fire department has a lot more power than code enforcement does. They have the actual authority to go into the property and investigate it. We do not.”

Perry reiterated some of the information Gilbert provided Hernandez and she noted the city has existing zoning prohibitions in the R-1 and R-2 residential zone districts that relate to this particular type of bedroom use. She said the city is further protected by the state’s fire and building codes.

In response to a question from Cole, Perry said the single-room rental

prohibition does not apply to several people sharing a rented home as their full-time residence.

“Staff’s working on this and will report back,” Chappie said.

“It was a formal request,” Perry said. “We had to respond to it and Steve did an outstanding job outlining why it’s prohibited.”

ANNOUNCEMENTS

THE BEST VOLUNTEER position on the island. The AMI Historical Museum needs docents and bread makers. Call Kathy Primeau at 989-560-6381.

ROSER FOOD BANK needs donations of cash and non-perishable food, PAPER & PERSONAL HYGIENE PRODUCTS. Donations boxes are located at the Church, Moose Club, and Walgreen’s.

HOSPITAL VOLUNTEERS

WANTED to assist at our information desk, especially weekends. Great for teens needing volunteer hours (16yrs+). Other assignments available. Please call the Blake Volunteer Office at 941-798-6151.

BOAT SLIP WANTED

IN SEARCH OF BOAT SLIP for rent or sale (preferably with lift)

Kelly Gitt The Gitt Team KW on the Water 941799-9299

COMMERCIAL SALES,

RENT & LEASE

HAVE YOU BEEN thinking of selling? We NEED properties to List for SALE!!! Duplexes, multi family, small resorts?

Call BIG Alan Galletto of Island Real Estate to get it SOLD 941-232-2216

CLEANING SERVICE

TOTAL HOME SERVICES CLEANING: Residential, Commercial, Rentals, VRBO. Professional and Reliable. Call 941-756-4570 or 941-565-3931

EMPLOYMENT

POSITIVE, ENERGETIC RENTAL AGENT for a growing company on Island. Take reservation, interacting with guest, owners & vendors, etc. Knowledge of RNS a plus. $17hr. depending on experience. 941-778-4800.

The award-winning ANNA MARIA ISLAND SUN, a weekly newspaper on Florida’s Gulf Coast, is looking for a freelance reporter/photographer to cover events on this tourism-driven island. The ideal candidate will have reporting and photography experience at a daily or community newspaper and have some experience writing for a news website. Local residents or those with previous local knowledge and willing to relocate here a plus. Resumes and cover letters may be mailed to The Anna Maria Island Sun, P.O Box 1189, Anna Maria, FL 34216, Attention: Cindy Lane, editor.

FISHING CHARTERS

CAPT. MAC GREGORY

Fishing Charters. Full Day, Half Day, Night, Inshore & Near Shore. 941-809-5783

U.S.C.G. Certified/Insured

HOME IMPROVEMENTS

TILE! TILE! TILE! All variations of tile supplied and installed. Quality workmanship. Prompt, reliable, many Island references. Free estimates. Neil 941726-3077

RENOVATION SPECALIST

ALL carpentry repairs, Wash Family Construction, locally owned and operated CBC 1258250 Call 941-725-0073.

KERN & GILDER CONSTRUCTION, INC New Homes & Remodel. Design/Build. Since 1968. License # CBC 1261150. Call the Office. 941-7781115

GET’R DONE DRYWALL, INC Specializing in Remodels & Repairs. Island Resident for 20+ years. Call Neil. Cell 941-9621194

JSAN CORPORATION

Renovations Construction & Handyman Services 941-243-0995

Lic# CRC1332505

jsancorporation@gmail. com Flooring, Drywall, Painting, Repairs, Kitchen and Bathrooms, Trim & Doors Free Estimates. Credit Cards Accepted.

API’S DRYWALL REPAIR 15+ years experience. Free estimates. No job too small. Love to help you. Call 941-524-8067.

ISLE TILE specializing in Custom Bath/Shower & Backsplash installation. Pressure washing available. Call 941-302-8759 isletileservices.com

GORILLA DRYWALL REPAIR, LLC. 15+ years of experience. Free Estimates. Let’s solve your Drywall problems together. Call 941-286-0607.

CABINETS 2 HOME Quality Kitchen & Bath Cabinets. Can install within two weeks of contract. Many Island References. Call Paul 859-468-1934

HOME SERVICES

CONCRETE FUSION, CRACK REPAIR sidewalks/ driveways, pool decks, concrete grinding. Why fix 95% of concrete when only 5% bad? Number 1 in concrete repair. Insured. Free estimate. Call Bobby 941-374-7670.

LANDSCAPING & LAWN CARE

R. GAROFALO’S Interlocking brick pavers, driveways, patios, pool decks. Free estimates. Licensed & Insured. Call Rafael 941-778-4823 or Veronik 941-526-7941

SHELL DRIVEWAYS & LANDSCAPE. Specializing in Old Florida Seashell and Lime rock driveways and scapes. Also River Rock, Sand, Mulch, & Soil. Call Shark Mark 941-301-6067

ISLAND RESIDENT. TREE/ BUSH Trimming, removal. Sweeping, blowing, and weeding. Weekly, bi-monthly or monthly schedule. Pressure washing. Call Bill Witaszek 941307-9315

LOST & FOUND

LOST KEY FOB at Pickle ball courts in Holmes Beach. Please call 941778-2919.

LOST GOLD RING High School Graduation with PA on Top. Please call 941243-1444

MOVING & STORAGE

MARTIN’S MOVING YOUR Island movers! Offering dependable, competitive rates. No hidden costs. 941-8095777.

PAINTING & WALLCOVERING

PAINT! PAINT! AND MORE 28 years of experienced interior/exterior custom painting. Pressure cleaning, drywall repairs and texture finishes. Many Island references. Please call Neil for free estimates. 941-812-0507

“WIZARD OF WALLS” Established 1980 Prompt quality service. Wallpaper installation/ removal. Mary Bell Winegarden 941-794-0455

DONALD PERKINS

ABRACADABRA PAINTING LLC fully insured. 30 years experience. Many Island references. Call 941705-7096

PROFESSIONAL PAINTING SERVICES. Prompt & Reliable. Island Resident. Quality Workmanship. Interior/Exterior. Minor repairs & carpentry. Free estimates. Bill Witaszek 941-307-9315

POOL SERVICES

FOUR SEASONS POOL SERVICE AND CHEMICAL SERVICES. Certified Pool Operator. 10 + Years Experience. Residential/commercial. Chemical Service

Licensed & Insured. Call Dennis Clark 941-7375657

COLE'S TROPICAL POOL SERVICE Call Cole Bowers for all your pool maintenance needs! Affordable and Dependable!! 941-7131893

PRESSURE WASHING & WINDOWS

TOTAL HOME SERVICES CLEANING: Residential, Commercial, Construction, Vacation, VRBO Rentals . Also available Pressure Washing, Roof Cleaning, Paver Sealing and Windows. Call 941-5653931.

T & B PRESSURE WASHING Licensed & Insured. Driveways/sidewalks, Roofs, Pool cages, Fences, House (soft wash/ downstream). Call 813638-7636. tandbpressurewashing@yahoo. com Family owned and operated.

REAL ESTATE HOMES & CONDOS FOR SALE

Have you been thinking of selling? We NEED properties to List for SALE!!! GULF FRONT, CANAL FRONT, BAY FRONT CONDOS or HOMES ASK for BIG Alan Galletto of Island Real Estate to get it SOLD` 941-232-2216

LOOKING FOR A highly motivated real estate broker to buy or sell your next home? Darcie Duncan, Broker Duncan Real Estate a lifelong island resident bringing success to her customers for 30 years. Proven track record brings you results! 941-725-1589

RUNAWAY BAY ISLAND

CONDO $430,000 Across from Beach. Water views Sold furnished. Christine Kourik Re/max 314-4407574 LOWEST PRICE PROPERTY ON ISLAND

419 CLARK HOLMES BEACH 2990 sqf home with Private large lot and caged pool. Weekly rental allowed Christine Kourik Re/Max 314-440-7574

5708 HOLMES BLVDHOLMES BEACH home 4+ bedrooms- Weekly rental allowed, sold turnkey furnished $2,250,000 Christine Kourik Re/Max 314-440-7574

112 OAK ANNA MARIA 4 bedroom $1,690,000 furnished with updates Nightly rental allowed. Christine Kourik Re/Max 314-440-7574

BUSINESS & SERVICE

RENTALS: ANNUAL

ANNUAL RENTALS

WANTED! We have well qualified tenants for beach and mainland annual rentals, Full management or Finders fee. Call today for details. Ask for Paige DUNCAN REAL ESTATE 513-382-1992.

SUNNYSHORES/ SAGAMORE ESTATES AREA: Annual rental, home with 3BR/1.5BA. Includes washer, dryer, screened in patio, parking under carport, and access to boat ramp and park by Palma Sola Bay. $1,900 per month.

ANNUAL RENTAL BRADRENTON BEACH 2BR/2BA. Deck, Garage. $2200/mo. First, Last and security deposit. Call 716877-6291

AMI 12 MONTH ANNUAL Rental 3BR/3BA $4000/ mo + utilities. Please call 518-210-5358

RENTALS: SEASONAL & VACATION

TIFFANY PLACE Gulf Front Condo for Rent Incredible views from living room and master bedroom. 2BR/2BA Green Real Estate Call 941-778-0455

TRANSPORTATION

SEASONAL RENTAL in PALMA SOLA. 3BR/2BA weekly or monthly rates. Contact Barb Grace 941-201-2190

ANNA MARIA ISLAND CONDOS Large pool, beach access, free WiFi, 1&2 Bedroom $900 to $1200 per week redekercondosonami.com Tim 941-704-7525

AMI TAXI credit cards, cash, Venmo accepted. Airport: Tampa $105, Sarasota $50, St. Pete/ Clearwater $105, Orlando $220. Call 941-447-8372, www.amitaxi.com GOLF CART RENTALS

ANYTIME TRANSPORTATION to all Airports, Casino, etc. Tampa/St. Pete $80. Sarasota $40. Pets welcome. Very dependable. Reasonable rates. Contact Jeanne. 941-7795095

Katie Self

Joey Hutchinson

Sales Associate

Lindsey Leech Strickland Broker Associate Tom Aposporos Sales Associate

Martha Jones Robel Sales Associate April Green Sales Associate

Michelle Laade Sales Associate Cindy Jones Broker- Owner

Darcie Duncan

Sales Associate Diann Roberts

Sales Associate Sales ssociate Broker Associate Sales Associate

Paige Rogers Sales Associate

Robyn Hawk