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SATURDAY, SEPT
Water taxi agreement discussed
Manatee County hopes to begin water taxi service to and from the Island in February for visitors and workers.
BY JOE HENDRICKS
SUN CORRESPONDENT | jhendricks@amisun.com
ANNA MARIA – City officials are working on an interlocal agreement that would allow for a water taxi stop at the Anna Maria City Pier.
Manatee County is proposing a countycontracted water taxi service from downtown Bradenton to the City Pier in Anna Maria, the Bridge Street Pier in Bradenton Beach and back to downtown Bradenton.
An interlocal agreement between the city of Anna Maria and Manatee County is needed in order for the City Pier to be used as a water taxi landing spot. A proposed interlocal agreement was discussed, but not finalized, during the Aug. 25, Anna Maria City Commission meeting.
Revisions suggested by the mayor and city commissioners will be made before the agreement is discussed again at the commission’s Sept. 8 meeting. If the commission supports the revised interlocal agreement at that time, it will then be sent to Manatee County officials for their review. Mayor Dan Murphy said additional negotiations between the city and the county may then be needed before the agreement is finalized.
Representing Manatee County, Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau Executive Director Elliott Falcione appeared before the Anna Maria Commission on Aug. 11. Falcione told the mayor and commissioners the county plans to contract a Florida-based water taxi company to operate two pontoon boat-like water taxis from 10:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
According to Falcione, each water taxi could carry 35 to 45 passengers at a time. He said the service days and service routes could, and likely would, be expanded if there’s a need for additional service.
Falcione plans to present the proposed water taxi plan and contractor to Manatee County commissioners on Sept. 13 in hopes of the proposed water taxi service beginning in February.
Falcione said the round-trip fare could be in the $8-$10 range, but those details were still being worked out with the private contractor. Falcione said the plan is for the Island’s restaurant and service industry workers to ride for free.
During the Aug. 25 meeting, Murphy noted one of the “whereas” clauses contained in the proposed agreement states the two main purposes of the water taxi service are to relieve automobile congestion coming to and from the Island and to provide an affordable
MANATEE COUNTY | SUBMITTED The proposed water taxi service would feature water taxis that resemble this vessel. The Anna Maria City Pier is being discussed as a possible water taxi stop.
JOE HENDRICKS | SUN
SEE WATER TAXI, PAGE 32
4THE SUN ISLAND NEWS
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AUGUST 31, 2022
IN BRIEF
RUSTY CHINNIS | SUN This mangrove trimming debris remained in place along the Aqua shoreline as of Aug. 17.
FDEP to re-inspect Aqua mangrove trimming
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) has responded to a letter the department received on Aug. 18 from the Suncoast Waterkeeper organization regarding the trimming debris left behind after the mangroves along the Aqua development and the Sarasota Bay shoreline were significantly trimmed earlier this year. The Waterkeeper letter included a link to several photographs taken of trimming debris that was supposed to have been removed but was not as of Aug. 17. On Aug. 25, FDEP Environmental Manager Hannah Westervelt responded to the letter received from Suncoast Waterkeeper representatives Justin Bloom, Abbey Tyrna and Rusty Chinnis. “The department greatly appreciates the communication and the additional information that you and Suncoast Waterkeepers continues to provide. We are planning on re-inspecting the site this week to assess the information that has been provided to us. I will continue to update you with progress and ensure the (online) Oculus file is up to date as we move forward,” Westervelt stated in her email response to Chinnis.
Stormwater release concludes at Piney Point
The release of about 4.5 million gallons of stormwater from Piney Point into Tampa Bay concluded on Aug. 25, according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP).
The stormwater had accumulated for the last several months in a pond on top of a phosphogypsum waste stack. The water was released at Port Manatee beginning on Aug. 13, and did not come in contact with the phosphate process wastewater contained in separate ponds at the site, according to FDEP.
About 215 million gallons of process water was dumped into Tampa Bay from Piney Point last spring to avoid the potential collapse of a gyp stack and subsequent flooding.
As Piney Point’s closure process continues, the stormwater pond will be modified so that it will no longer accumulate rainwater and will eliminate the need for future releases, according to FDEP.
A new complaint is part of an ongoing dispute between the owners of Hunters Point and Cortez Village Marina.
BY JOE HENDRICKS
SUN CORRESPONDENT | jhendricks@amisun.com
CORTEZ – The Cortez Village Marina ownership group is named in a new complaint that alleges the marina is being operated without a state-issued environmental resource permit or is being operated in violation of that permit.
Representing developer Marshall Gobuty’s Hunters Point Resort & Marina ownership group, Cortez Road Investments & Finance Inc. (CRIF), attorney Susan Martin filed the complaint with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) on Aug. 22.
The complaint seeks injunctive relief to stop the alleged “illegal activities” of the MHC Cortez Village LLC marina ownership group.
The complaint notes Cortez Village Marina is part of the Loggerhead Marinas group that owns 23 marinas throughout Florida and is affiliated with Equity LifeStyle Properties – a company that owns a controlling interest in more than 400 manufactured home communities, RV resorts and campgrounds.
The complaint names MHC Cortez Village LLC, Loggerhead Marinas and FDEP as respondents and says, “CRIF requests enforcement, including a temporary injunction, followed by the permanent injunction, to stop the illegal activities of the marina to avoid irreparable environmental impacts and harm to CRIF’s private canal.”
The new complaint is part of an ongoing dispute between Cortez Road Investments and MHC Cortez Village regarding the proposed construction of 49 Hunters Point docks along the privately-owned canal that borders the Hunters Point property on the three sides.
Built in the late 1950s, the man-made canal extends from the humpback bridge at 127th Street West to the eastern edge of the Holiday Cove RV resort property. When Gobuty purchased the Hunters Point property in 2016, he also purchased the portion of the canal that extends from the humpback bridge to Cortez Village Marina’s western boundary. The canal is the only means for marina clients to access the nearby Intracoastal Waterway (ICW).
The new dispute stems from the permit challenge MHC Cortez Village initiated after Cortez Road Investments received an environmental resource permit from the Southwest Florida Water Management District in 2021. That permit allows for the construction of the Hunters Point docks.
In response to the issuance of that 2021 permit, MHC Cortez Village filed a petition naming Cortez Road Investments and the Southwest Florida Water Management District as respondents. The petition alleged the Hunters Point docks would impede canal navigation for marina clients, especially those with larger boats, and negatively impact marina operations and profitability.
MHC Cortez Village sought and received a hearing before an administrative law judge in hopes of the judge issuing a recommended order for the water district’s governing board to revoke the permit or modify it in a manner that lessens the impact of the proposed Hunters Point docks.
With administrative law judge Bruce Culpepper presiding, that hearing began in June, continued for three days in mid-August and is scheduled to resume on Sept. 1.
COMPLAINT ALLEGATIONS
The complaint alleges Cortez Village Marina is operating without a valid permit because the permit obtained by the previous marina owner was not properly certified when transferred to the current marina owners.
“The permit could not have been transferred because the project was not built and is not operating pursuant to permit conditions. Therefore, there was no automatic transfer of the permit,” the complaint alleges.
“MHC Cortez Village LLC does not have a valid environmental resource permit and is operating without a permit in a manner to cause environmental harm,” the complaint alleges. “Alternatively, if DEP finds the marina legally holds permit number 41-0255306, then there are major violations of the permit conditions. The marina has profited from its illegal activity in the amount of at least $181,000 for the month of July alone.”
“CRIF respectfully requests DEP immediately order the marina to cease the unauthorized activities at the marina. If necessary to stop the illegal activities, CRIF requests that DEP seek an immediate temporary injunction in Manatee County circuit court,” according to the complaint.
JOE HENDRICKS | SUN The Cortez Village Marina is named in a new complaint filed on behalf of the Hunters Point developer.
Hurricane season’s second half could be unusually active
The Florida Maritime Museum’s “Caught in the Storm” exhibit revisits local hurricanes over the past century.
BY LESLIE LAKE
SUN CORRESPONDENT | leslielake@aol.com
CORTEZ - Halfway through a quiet hurricane season, it’s too soon to relax, as experts are still predicting abovenormal 2022 Atlantic hurricane activity.
Atmospheric and oceanic conditions still favor an unusually active 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) annual midseason update, issued this month by the Climate Prediction Center, a division of the National Weather Service. The hurricane season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.
A timely rotating exhibit at the Florida Maritime Museum (FMM) titled “Caught in the Storm: 100 Years of Florida Hurricanes” revisits some of the worst coastal storms to impact the state - several of which hit locally.
An unnamed hurricane in October 1921 covered the Gulf coast in water from Fort Myers to Tarpon Springs, causing devastation to the Cortez waterfront.
“In Cortez, fishermen watched their industry be nearly swept away. The storm’s waves left behind mounds of debris tangled in nets where fish camps and docks once stood,” according to the FMM exhibit. “Left without markets to sell to, the fishermen created their own, some of which still remain on Cortez’s waterfront.”
The Cortez Public School, which still stands at 119th Street West and Cortez Road and is now the Florida Maritime Museum, is the highest point in Cortez and was used as a shelter during that storm, which had an 11-foot storm surge.
In October 1944, a major unnamed hurricane known unofficially as the Cuba-Florida Hurricane “struck the Bradenton/Sarasota area causing trees to fall across the road taking out power lines and disrupting all communications between the Keys and the mainland.”
Hurricane Alma in June 1966 was another storm highlighted in the exhibit, with the following recollection from Cortez resident August Antilla, “…by nightfall Ellen and I had purchased $12 worth of cheeses, cold cuts and candy, and we were looking forward to our cozy hurricane party, just the two of us. The radio was blaring continually… ‘Evacuate, Anna Maria Island. The tide will be 7 to 11 feet above normal.’ ”
The largest hurricane evacuation in U.S. history happened just five years ago in September, 2017 with 6.5 million people fleeing their homes in anticipation of Hurricane Irma. Hurricane track predictions included a “cone of uncertainty” with Irma; that cone covered the entire Florida peninsula. In an abundance of caution, many counties issued mandatory evacuation orders.
So far this year, the season has seen three named storms - Alex, Bonnie and Colin - and no hurricanes in the Atlantic. An average hurricane season produces 14 named storms, of which
SEE HURRICANES, PAGE 33 HURRICANE CATEGORIES Category 1, 74-95 mph, Very dangerous, some damage; Category 2, 96-110 mph, Extremely dangerous, extensive damage; Category 3, 111-129 mph, Devastating damage; Category 4, 130-156 mph, Catastrophic damage; Category 5, 157 mph or higher, Catastrophic damage. Source: National Hurricane Center
HURRICANE KIT
A recommended basic emergency kit includes: Water (one gallon per person per day for several days, for drinking and sanitation) Food (at least a several-day supply of non-perishable food) Battery-powered or hand crank radio and a NOAA Weather Radio with tone alert Flashlight First aid kit Extra batteries Whistle (to signal for help) Dust mask (to help filter contaminated air) Plastic sheeting and duct tape (to shelter in place) Moist towelettes, garbage bags and plastic ties (for personal sanitation) Wrench or pliers (to turn off utilities) Manual can opener (for food) Local maps Cell phone with chargers and a backup battery
