Cape Coral Weekend Breeze

By MEGHAN BRADBURY news@breezenwspapers

com

Presented with four options for the future of hurricane-damaged Hector A Cafferata Jr Elementary, Lee County School board members favored building a new K-8 school at a location about three miles away from the current campus The four options provided by district staff this week were Option A, restore the existing Hector A Cafferata building to pre-hurricane status; Option B demolish the existing building and build a new elementary on the same site Option C close the current site and build a new K-8 at a nearby location and Option D, have students attend other West Zone

AOW

Popular weekly sports feature continues: The Cape Coral Breeze presents Athletes of the Week and vote for AOM Page 14A

UEP & YOU

Assessments and real estate sales contracts

P r o p e r l y a d d r e s s i n g u t i l i t y a s s e s s m e n t s i n a s a l e s c o n t r a c t i s v i t a l t o a v o i d d i s p u t e s a n d c l a r i f y r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s a t t o r n e y E r i c F e i c h t h a l e r s a y s i n h i s c o l u m n R e a l E s t a t e L a w t h i s w e e k C o r r e c t c o n t r a c t l a ng u a g e c a n b e c r u c i a l a n d s o m e o p t i o n s a r e o f f e r e d P a g e 4 B

INDEX

schools Option C would build a new school a K8 school 3 3 miles away from the current site at an estimated cost of $100 5 million including an estimated demolition cost of $3 million

Students are currently attending class at a portable temporary campus at the school at 388 Santa Barbara Blvd “We wanted to ensure we brought forth a variety of options, Superintendent Dr Christopher Bernier said, adding that this is

the first conversation about the elementary school Operating Officer Chief Jeff Wagner said the purpose of the discussion was to encourage dialogue around the four options while receiving the school board’s input so district staff can take it back, refine and ultimately make a recommendation School Board Chair Armor Persons said if the district is going to need a middle school it is more prudent to go ahead now when they have the plans and another site to build I am leaning towards C, he said Other board members all had similar thoughts stating Option C was the best

See CAFFERATA, page 15A

‘Proximity’ plan set for vote

By MEGHAN BRADBURY news@breezenewspapers com

A vote on a long-in-the-works plan to assign elementary school children to schools closer to home is expected to come before the Lee County School Board on Feb 7

The new proximity plan would have an immediate impact on incoming kindergarten students, elementary students new to the district and rising elementary students living outside of the current school's proximity attendance zone and needing transportation

The district currently assigns students through a zoned, lottery-based School Choice program Parents rank schools within their assigned zone with most students assigned to

See PROXIMITY, page 15A

New K-8 school could replace Hector A. Cafferata FEMA 2.0 info session to be held

By CJ HADDAD cjhaddad@breezenewspapers com

Aquirky Cape Coral tradition will soon see its fifth installment, as the city s official bird will again serve as the prognosticator of weather to come

The burrowing owl takes center stage as the Cape Coral Friends of Wildlife and Cape Coral Parks and Recreation Department host the annual Ground Owl Day on Thursday, Feb 2, at 10 a m at Pelican Baseball Complex, in what is the city s take on Groundhog Day

The burrowing owl is expected to see his shadow in turn signaling six more weeks of winter in sunny Southwest Florida

Ground Owl Day is probably the only Ground Owl Day in the world, said CCFW past president Pascha Donaldson “It’s such a unique event Of course we want the opposite of what Northerns want because we love our winters here ”

Attendees will have the opportunity to take a photo with Athene, the Burrowing Owl Festival mascot There will be a reading of the official proclamation and CCFW officials will have information about conservation efforts NBC2 meteorologist Rob Duns will also attend as a way to pay homage to the classic film, Groundhog Day

We want people to come out and have a good time, Donaldson said We re campaigning this

year for more residents to have starter burrows ”

CCFW also will provide an update on how local burrows have fared since Hurricane Ian and get the excitement going for the upcoming 21st annual Burrowing Owl Festival on Feb 25

Other than being a fun way to celebrate the burrowing owl and be an event precursor to the annual Burrowing Owl Festival, Ground Owl Day is a way to become educated on the importance of the burrowing owl, how to preserve their population and the ecotourism dollar they bring to the city

“It’s very important to keep these birds safe ” Donaldson said First of all it’s the official city bird Second, they bring a boost to the economy, and third, they are adorable to enjoy It s all about preservation, protection, and enjoying the wildlife we have here while it lasts There’s not a lot of cities that have urban owls Between the hurricane and construction they re losing habitat rapidly which is why we re promotion starter burrows

For more information on CCFW, starter burrows, and the upcoming Burrowing Owl Festival visit www ccfriendsofwildlife org Pelican

By CJ HADDAD cjhaddad@breezenewspapers

com

Want to know more about what recent flood rezoning means for you? Cape Coral residents can attend a FEMA 2 0 Community Meeting on Jan 31 at the Kiwanis Club to g e t i n f o r m at i o n p e r t a i ning to flood i n s u r a n c e F E M A H a z a r d M i t i g a t i o n a n d C r e w Lead Jeffery Parker will be present at the m e e t i n g t o speak

Organizers of the meeting hope the session will help clear up any confusion or misnomers of what the new flood zones mean It continues to be confusing for a lot of people, especially those that are now in a flood zone since F E M A u p d a t e d t h e m a p s i n N o v e m b e r ” s a i d C h a m b e r o f

See FEMA 2 0, page 10A

Cape residents question canal cleanup process

By CJ HADDAD cjhaddad@breezenewspapers com

Cape Coral imposes new restrictions on mobile food vendors

By CHUCK BALLARO news@breezenewspapers

lished locations are going to have to hit the road

Cape Coral City Council voted 6-2 Wednesday to impose new regulations on food trucks including that they move from service locations nightly

According to the regulations the city says it patterned after a Lee County ordinance Mobile Food Vendors MFVs

will need to stay mobile leaving a job site at night and removing any gear Seating areas tented or not will no longer be allowed and permanent onsite utility connection will be prohibited

The code is intended to eliminate food truck based outdoor restaurants ” The regulations exempt vehicles operating at a private event for a duration less than one day vehicles operating as part of a special event or during a state of emergency

The new city ordinance also created an option for the development of food courts, where multiple trucks could be set up in one location for a one-stop shop with amenities

Development of a Mobile Food Court or “Food Truck Park will require full site improvements onsite bathrooms parking, sidewalks, etc , and is designed to accommodate regular and long-term deployment of food trucks These regulations were patterned after a Bonita Springs ordinance officials said

The new regulations will go into effect 90 days after adoption to allow for communication and outreach to MFVs who will need to come into compliance with the new regulations

Gary Aubuchon, who plans to build a food court location somewhere in the city said this would be great for the Cape making it a destination for tourists

“They made the right decision There’s clarity for all mobile food vendors in the city and it mirrors what we have in

the county ” Aubuchon said “We’re ready to construct a food court We’re not at the point where we have much details but we needed this ordinance in place first

Councilmembers Patty Cummings and Jessica Cosden cast the dissenting votes Cummings said she saw a need to have mobile food trucks be mobile and driveable but that the city regulations as drafted were too onerous

These are small businesses and we just had a pandemic and a hurricane and at this time we need to leave small businesses alone They need options and with this they have no options ” Cummings said “They need to be mobile and up to code but if they have permission on someone’s property they should stay there

She said after the meeting she considers the measure an abridgement of rights for established businesses

“This is a right to work state ” she said “After all we call it Freedom Florida So where is the freedom for a small business?”

A majority of Council held a different view

For Mayor John Gunter, it was a safety issue and that the city wasn t asking for much, just that these businesses needed to be regulated like any other company

“Some of these trucks have been at the same location for years These mobile trucks need to be mobile They need clear regulations, Gunter said

City seeking federal, state money for UEP

B y C H U C K B A L L A R O n e w s @ b r e e z e n e w s p a p e r s c o m W i t h p r o p e r t y o w n e r s i n t h e N o r t h 1 W e s t U t i l i t i e s E x p a n s i o n a r e a f a c i n g a $ 3 5 9 3 1 a s s e s s m e n t f o r w a t e r s e w e r a n d i r r i g a t i o n i n s t a l l a t i o n s o m e c i t y o f f i c i a l s h a v e b e e n l o o k i n g f o r w a y s t o s e c u r e g r a n t m o n e y o n t h e s t a t e a n d f e d e r a l l e v e l s i n h o p e s o f r e d u c i n g t h e i m p a c t M a y o r J o h n G u n t e r h a s r e a c h e d o u t t o C o n g r e s s m a n B y r o n D o n a l d s a s h a s C o u n c i l m e m b e r P a t t y C u m m i n g s r e g a r d i n g t h e p o s s i b i l i t y o f g r a n t m o n e y C u m m i n g s t o l d t h e c o u n c i l W e d n e s d a y o f a m e e t i n g s h e h a d h a d w i t h D o n a l d s C u m m i n g s s a i d t h a t D o n a l d s t o l d h e r i f t h e m o n e y

w a s t h e r e h e w o u l d s i g n o f f o n a c o n g r e s s i o n a l l e t t e r o f a p p r o v a l t o h e l p w i t h t h e U E P

G u n t e r s a i d h e w a s t o l d t h e b e s t t h i n g t h e c i t y c o u l d d o w a s r e a c h o u t t o t h e c i t y f e d e r a l l o b b y i s t t o i d e n t if y p o t e n t i a l f u n d s W e w o u l d w e l c o m e a n y d o l l a r s t h a t w o u l d o f f s e t t h e e x p e n s e o f n o t j u s t t h i s p r o j e c t b u t o t h e r U E P p r o je c t s W e h a v e s o m e s t e p s t o t a k e ” G u n t e r s a i d “ I k n o w f e d e r a l d o l l a r s c o m e w i t h a l o t o f r e s t r i c t i o n s s o w e n e e d t o m a k e s u r e w e m e e t t h e q u a l i f i c a t i o n s G u n t e r a l s o s u g g e s t e d t h e c i t y r e a c h o u t t o t h e s t a t e C u m m i n g s s a i d s h e s u p p o r t e d t h a t a s w e l l “ I w a s c o n c e r n e d t h a t w e h a d n o g r a n t f u n d i n g f r o m f e d e r a l o r s t a t e ” C u m m i n g s s a i d “ I c a l l e d D o n a l d s a n d w i t h t h e l o b b y i s t w e h a v e i n p l a c e w e n e e d t o s e e w h a t w e c a n d o t o g e t f u n d i n g G o v D e S a n t i s h a s a l o t o f m o n e y f o r L e e C o u n t y a n d h e s w a i t i n g f o r p e o p l e t o a p p l y ” In other business: ■ C o u n c i l a p p r o v e d a n o r d i n a n c e t o e s t a b l i s h e c on o m i c d e v e l o p m e n t a d v a l o r e m t a x e x e m p t i o n s w h i c h C a p e C o r a l v o t e r s g a v e t h e a u t h o r i t y t o g r a n t i n a N o v 8 , r e f e r e n d u m ■ C o u n c i l v o t e d t o a b o l i s h t h e C a p e C o r a l C o n s t r u c t i o n R e g u l a t i o n B o a r d w h i c h t h e c i t y p u t i n p l a c e a s t h e r e g u l a t o r y b o d y f o r c o n t r a c t o r s a n d v i o l at i o n s b r o u g h t b y t h e c i t y a g a i n s t l i c e n s e d c o n t r a c t o r s D u e t o t h e c h a n g e i n F l o r i d a l a w , t h e c i t y w i l l a b o li s h t h e b o a r d a s o f J u n e 3 0 ■ C o u n c i l g o t t h e q u a r t e r l y r e p o r t f r o m t h e Y o u t h C o u n c i l w h i c h f e a t u r e d a v i d e o t h e y p u t t o g e t h e r r e g a r d i n g H u r r i c a n e I a n a n d w h a t t h e Y o u t h C o u n c i l d i d i n i t s a f t e r m a t h t o e n g a g e t h e y o u t h o f t h e c i t y A m o n g t h e t h i n g s t h e Y o u t h C o u n c i l d i d t o h e l p r e t u r n t h i n g t o n o r m a l w a s t o h o l d t h e S p e c i a l P o p s H a l l o w e e n P a r t y a s p l a n n e d a n d h o l d a w o r k s h o p i n c o u n c i l c h a m b e r s i n v i t i n g a l l s t u d e n t s t o a t t e n d a n d g i v e t h e i r i n p u t ■ C o u n c i l w i l l a d d a s p e c i a l m e e t i n g f o r W e d n e s d a y , F e b 1 a t 2 p m t o C o n f e r e n c e R o o m 2 0 0 A t o d i s c u s s t h e c i t y m a n a g e r ’ s c o n t r a c t , i d e n t i f yi n g a s e a r c h f i r m f o r t h e c i t y ’ s s e a r c h f o r a c i t y a t t o rn e y

OPINIONS

Showcase of Homes: More than meets the eye

T h e C a p e C o r a l C o n s t r u c t i o n I n d u s t r y A s s o c i a t i o n s p r e m i e r e v e n t i t s S h o w c a s e o f H o m e s c o n t i n u e s t h i s w e e k e n d a n d n e x t F e a t u r i n g 1 5 m o d e l s r a n g i n g i n p r i c e f r o m a r o u n d $ 4 0 0 , 0 0 0 t o m o r e t h a n $ 3 m i l l i o n , t h e a n n u a l t h r e ew e e k e n d e v e n t a l l o w s t h o s e c o n s i d e r i n g a n e w h o m e t o c o n n e c t w i t h b u i l d e r s w h o k n o w a n d c a r e a b o u t C a p e C o r a l ” F o r t h o s e c o n s i d e r i n g n e w c o n s t r u c t i o n o r j u s t c h e c ki n g o u t t r e n d s i t ’ s a l w a y s a n i n t e r e s t i n g e v e n t a n d w e c a n t e l l y o u f r o m p a s t p e r s o n a l e x p e r i e n c e , i t s k i n d o f l i k e a f r i e n d l y r o u n d o f s p e e d d a t i n g w h e r e y o u m i g h t j u s t f a l l i n l o v e w i t h t h e o n e T h e s h o w c a s e w h i c h o p e n e d o n J a n 2 0 c o n t i n u e s o n s e l e c t d a y s t h o u g h F e b 5 T o u r i n g h o u r s a r e 1 0 a m t o 5 p m o n F r i d a y s a n d S a t u r d a y s , a n d n o o n t o 5 p m o n S u n d a y s T h e f e a t u r e d m o d e l s a r e s c a t t e r e d t h r o u g h o u t t h e C a p e w i t h m o s t c l u s t e r e d i n t h e n o r t h w e s t a n d s o u t h w e s t , g i v i n g t h o s e t a k i n g w h a t t h e C C C I A c a l l s a s e l f - g u i d e d t o u r a l o o k a t v a r i o u s n e i g h b o r h o o d s i n a d d i t i o n t o a r a n g e o f h o m e s L o o k i n g f o r s o m e t h i n g s p e c i f i c ? W e i n v i t e y o u t o s e e t h e s t o r y o n p a g e 6 A w h i c h l i s t s a w a r d s i n e i g h t c a t e g o r i e s f o r e v e r y t h i n g f r o m b e s t p o o l o r i n t e r i o r d e s i g n t o b e s t o v e r a l l W e t h a n k t h e C C C I A f o r i t s e f f o r t s t o a g a i n c o o r d in a t e t h i s e v e n t a n d w e t h a n k a l l o f t h e b u i l d e r s w h o a g r e e d t o p a r t i c i p a t e d e s p i t e t h e h a v o c H u r r i c a n e I a n h a s w r o u g h t o n t h e c o n s t r u c t i o n i n d u s t r y a n d t h e f a m il i e s w h o s e l i v e l i h o o d s s o r e l y T h e r e i s m u c h m o r e t o e v e n t s s u c h a s t h e a n n u a l S h o w c a s e o f H o m e s t h a n m e e t s t h e e y e h o w e v e r T h e c o n s t r u c t i o n i n d u s t r y i s a p r i m a r y e c o n o m i c d r i v e r h e r e i n S o u t h w e s t F l o r i d a B u i l d e r s n o t o n l y p r o v i d e h o m e s f o r t h e p e o p l e f l o c k i n g h e r e b u t g o o d - p a y i n g j o b s f o r t h e i n d u s t r y s v a s t a r r a y o f p r o f e s s i o n a l s ; a d d i t i o n a l r e v e n u e s t r e a m s f o r e x i s t i n g b u s i n e s s e s ; t h e “ r o o f t o p s ” n e e d e d t o a t t r a c t n e w b u s i n e s s e s ; a d d i t i o n a l t a x e s f o r c i t y s e r v i c e s a n d p r o g r a m s a n d , u l t i m a t e l y , t h e n e w j o b s f o s t e r e d b y a v i b r a n t e c o n o m y A l s o d e s p i t e H u r r i c a n e I a n , t h e n e w s o n t h i s e c on o m i c f r o n t i s c o n t i n u i n g t o s h o w p o s i t i v e s i g n s S o f a r f o r F i s c a l Y e a r 2 0 2 3 w h i c h b e g a n i n O c t o b e r t h e c i t y h a s i s s u e d 2 0 9 6 2 p e r m i t s o f a l l t y p e s U n d e r s t a n d a b l e , g i v e n t h e d a m a g e w r o u g h t b y t h e n e a r C a t e g o r y 5 s t o r m A c c o r d i n g t o t h a t m o s t r e c e n t B u i l d i n g a n d P e r m i t U t i l i z a t i o n R e p o r t , t h o s e p e r m i t s i s s u e d i n O c t o b e r N o v e m b e r a n d D e c e m b e r i n c l u d e a s u b s t a n t i v e n u m b e r f o r n e w h o m e s 8 3 7 d o w n f r o m t h e 1 0 2 6 i s s u e d d u r i n g t h e s a m e t i m e f r a m e l a s t y e a r b u t n o t b y m u c h , e s p e c i a l l y g i v e n t h e c i r c u m s t a n c e s I n f a c t , t h e c i t y h a s n o t h a d a d o w n c o n s t r u c t i o n y e a r , s a v e o n e s i n c e t h e h o u s i n g c o l l a p s e o f 2 0 0 6 - 2 0 0 9 w h o s e r i p p l e - e f f e c t i m p a c t e d v i r t u a l l y e v e r y b u s i n e s s a n d i n d u s t r y i n o u r c o m m u n i t y T h e r e w e r e 5 , 1 3 9 r e s i d e n t i a l p e r m i t s i s s u e d i n 2 0 2 2 , a 2 3 p e r c e n t i n c r e a s e o f t h e p r e v i o u s y e a r s 4 , 1 8 3 w h i c h w a s a w h o p p i n g 8 4 p e r c e n t i n c r e a s e o f 2 0 2 0 s 2 2 7 6 T h e i m p a c t i n a d d e d p r o p e r t y v a l u a t i o n a l o n e ? N e w c o n s t r u c t i o n i n C a p e C o r a l i n c l u d i n g c o m m e rc i a l , a d d e d m o r e t h a n $ 1 b i l l i o n t o t h e c i t y s t o t a l p r o pe r t y v a l u a t i o n l a s t y e a r , u p f r o m $ 6 2 0 , 4 9 9 , 5 2 5 m o r e i n 2 0 2 1 T h e i n d u s t r y p r o v i d e s m o r e t h a n 4 5 0 0 0 j o b s c o u nt y w i d e w i t h o n l y t h e s e r v i c e r e l a t e d a n d h e a l t h c a r e s e c t o r s e m p l o y i n g m o r e w o r k e r s T h o s e a r e p r e t t y b i g n u m b e r s A n d t h a t s a p r e t t y b i g i m p a c t F o r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n o n t h e C C C I A a n d t h e 2 0 2 3 B u i l d e r s ’ S h o w c a s e o f H o m e s i n c l u d i n g a ( G o o g l ef r i e n d l y ) m a p a n d d e t a i l e d i m a g i n g o f e a c h m o d e l h o m e v i s i t w w w c c c i a o r g B r e e z e e d i t o r i a l

Year-end donations fuel programs & services

Nonprofits across Southwest Florida rely on the generosity of supporters and philanthropic organizations to fund vital programs and services, and ultimately their missions

At the end of each year many organizations make a strong appeal for financial support This funding is critical to give nonprofits a running start heading into the new year For supporters, year-end donations offer a much-appreciated tax break

The Guardian ad Litem Foundation 20th Judicial Circuit was among those Southwest Florida nonprofits making year-end appeals in 2022 The community s swift response to that appeal evoked many emotions appreciation, joy, gratitude and even a few tears

The focus of the Foundation’s year-end appeal was the story of a young woman in Fort Myers The court had taken away her children because of her poor decisions She had been working hard to regain custody of her children, though maintaining her sobriety and demonstrating personal accountability She moved into a new home and the court awarded her custody of the children in September

Jessica Stanfield Guest Commentary

Then Hurricane Ian hit Southwest Florida, obliterating her family s home and everything in it I didn t know metal could shred, she said The home I worked so hard to bring to life is just gone ”

The family’s belongings were scattered through the neighborhood Her children only had the clothing on their backs and days turned into weeks That s when the Foundation stepped in, providing gift cards so the family could purchase clean clothing and other essentials The Foundation also helped provide something else hope With the future bleak and stress levels peaking the mother didn’t turn to alcohol and drugs Instead she turned to the Foundation and a support network that includes volunteer child advocates and donors

Response to that story was immediate and impactful People wanted to help her and families like hers, and they

wanted to help a local organization with its boots on the ground providing hope, comfort and resources during a period of incredible need First Horizon Bank offered a $20,000 donation Members of the Foundation’s Board of Directors which so graciously donate their time and expertise in advisory roles offered a collective $20,000 match to inspire other community members and businesses to donate And they did, providing another $41,214 in monetary contributions

All told the year-end appeal raised $81 214 To a small nonprofit that s a difference-maker Because Hurricane Ian hit right before the start of high season, the Foundation decided to cancel several fundraising events, including the signature Voices of Hope Gala Proceeds from these events help the Foundation accomplish its mission of ensuring that every abused, neglected or abandoned youth in Southwest Florida has a voice as they navigate the judicial education and child welfare systems The nonprofit also raises funds that help meet a child’s health educational and social needs Now, with another year underway, we need to continue rallying around vulnerable children who simply need people in their lives who care about them Things like an afternoon of mini-golf and ice cream with a volunteer child advocate might not seem like much but it is to these children A pair of clean socks shorts and a T-shirt are often taken for granted but not for the mother and children whose home and livelihood were destroyed Donations at any time of the year, for any charitable cause, make a huge impact in Southwest Florida We are blessed to live in a community that doesn’t just respond to challenges; we overcome them Jessica Stanfield is Executive Director of the Guardian ad Litem Foundation, 20th Judicial Circuit For more information, visit VoicesForKids org or call 239-533-1435

How to fix the nationwide doctor supply crunch

Roughly 100 million Americans live in areas without enough primary care doctors

Nationwide we’re short about 17 000 of them right now By 2034 that number could jump to 48 000 according to the Association of American Medical Colleges

To meet our country s growing demand for care, we need to increase the supply of clinicians who can provide it But that doesn t mean just training more doctors In fact, nurse practitioners and physician assistants could be delivering much more primary care but are prevented from doing so by government rules We need to strip away this red tape

Nurse practitioners are highly trained

They typically hold master’s degrees and sometimes doctorates as well as specialist training They’re qualified to diagnose and treat patients including prescribing medication

Agree? Disagree? Weigh in!

Sally C Pipes

Guest Commentary

Physician assistants meanwhile hold master’s degrees and are trained in general medicine They likewise can diagnose and treat

But in many cases state-based “scope-of-practice” laws tie these professionals hands Over 20 states limit or restrict the ability of nurse practitioners to engage in at least one aspect of practice for which they re qualified Similar restrictions exist for physician assistants

And yet, there appears to be little to no medical basis for these rules A study by researchers at Brandeis found that state regulations restricting nurse practitioners scope of practice did not improve quality of care Numerous studies show that physician assistants deliver the same or better patient outcomes as physicians

Patients don t benefit from scope-of-practice laws, nor do they seem to like them More than three-quarters of Americans support “expanded capabilities” for nurse practitioners

In short these laws squeeze the supply of care for no rea-

Suppor t our burrowing owls

To the editor: Give a gift on Valentines Day to help save our Cape s wildlife Noela Chocolate & Confections at 1307 S E 47th Terrace just east of the Merrick Seafood Shop and Restaurant will give Cape Coral Friends of Wildlife $5 for every 16- or 25-count box of chocolates sold To receive this offer just mention CCFW Noela chocolates are of five-star quality and beautifully boxed and packaged Promotion will end on Feb 20

Give her chocolate and save an owl

Other unique gifts from CCFW include our Adopt an Owl promotion Get a beautiful Adopt an Owl certificate and different levels yield different additional items from our store It s a great Valentine gift

Our virtual auction is on the net For Adopt an Owl and auction go to CCFRIENDSOFWILDLIFE org for the links If you do not see the link for our virtual auction go to our home page And come out to our Ground Owl Day on Feb 2 on Pelican Boulevard at the baseball fields parking lot at 10 a m See if our burrowing owl sees its shadow Buy a Tshirt See you there

Carl Veaux Cape Coral Friends of Wildlife

Judge’s

response an abuse of office

To the editor: Your readers may remember that a few months ago an elected state prosecutor was suspended by Gov DeSantis for refusing to enforce certain laws The federal lawsuit that followed was recently dismissed by the judge If a federal judge has no jurisdiction, he/she should simply dismiss the case, a simple judicial recognition that it is none of their business Without jurisdiction, they have no power to decide anything, except that they have no power That did not happen in this case Instead, his honor took the occasion to write 59 pages of pure opinion, giving his version of the merits of the case, making findings of fact that he had no power to make He expressed at some length his own assessment of the situation He shared with us that he is unimpressed with Gov DeSantis The opinion of course got national press coverage The judge in this case is nearing his sell-by date having been appointed by President Clinton back before the turn of the century IMHO this Democratic appointee abused the powers of his office He should have simply dismissed the case and walked away FYI I am a registered Libertarian voter I have no intention of voting for DeSantis or Trump or Biden or the presidential nominee of any party except my own I am writing this letter because I object to the abuse of power, especially if it is a mere federal employee who is doing the abusing IMHO, when any prosecutor (elected or appointed) simply declares that certain laws are beyond the pale and that he

son Allowing nurse practitioners to work without restriction would reduce the number of Americans living in counties with primary-care shortages from 44 million to fewer than 13 million according to a report by UnitedHealth Group

Fortunately Congress is considering bipartisan legislation that would remove barriers in the Medicare and Medicaid systems that prevent nurse practitioners and other advanced practice registered nurses from practicing to the full extent of their training

We need similar rollbacks that apply to the private market and at the state level

There are other ways legislators can increase the supply of care During the pandemic, Congress lifted restrictions on telehealth allowing many more patients to see providers by phone or video chat More than eight in 10 voters with employer-provided coverage would now like to see those flexibilities extended according to another survey by Morning Consult Lawmakers should also consider relaxing restrictions on physicians educated abroad Doctors with degrees from international medical schools provide excellent care the data show In fact according to a recent BMJ study Medicare patients treated by international medical graduates had lower mortality rates than patients treated by U S medical school graduates Yet too often, physicians trained in other countries must jump through hoops to practice in the United States With our growing and aging population, there s no way demand for healthcare services is going to shrink That means we have to find ways to increase supply Measures that deregulate the healthcare labor market would be a step in the right direction

Sally C Pipes is President CEO and Thomas W Smith Fellow in Health Care Policy at the Pacific Research Institute Her latest book is False Premise False Promise: The Disastrous Reality of Medicare for All (Encounter 2020)

will not prosecute, that is nonfeasance of office He deserves to be suspended, as here

Larry Gillis ( Cape Coral

Budget cuts for the poor while political sacred cows get

To the editor:

more and more

Those in the Republican party have proposed no federal legislation to trim any fat off the biggest taxpayer boondoggle Pentagon spending is by far the most bloated budget item responsible for the national debt Neither Scott nor Rubio has insisted, for example, that Ukraine borrow money and pay us back any of the $105 5 billion we have sent them to fight a proxy war with Russia Instead our senators target the U S poor, demanding cuts to Social Security and pouting that the Obama administration s Affordable Care Act to the indigent program be trimmed According to the Friends Committee on National Legislation we spent $785 billion in taxes for the Pentagon last year and the ask for 2023 alone is $813 billion

Goggles s best guess is that a comparatively paltry sum of $5 1 billion in federal funds would be the federal tax burden for medical treatment fee payments in Florida for expanding to Florida the Obamacare Federal government aid The Florida Health Justice Program published a fact sheet in 2020 claiming expanded MediCAID (Obamacare) would generate $7 billion in revenue to the Sunshine state Florida health providers would receive by their guess $4 3 billion per year in Federal reimbursement So if Florida would input $7 billion of national taxes allocated if expansion continues By sharing our costs with the entirety of U S taxpayers we in Florida would gain Remember this is a program that is paid for and effective in most other states Senators Rubio and Scott have expressed no appetite for gathering taxes through IRS audit from those making more than $400,000 per year Evasion is possible from those who are in the best position to hire lawyers to evade tax payment Many is the billionaire who pays little to no taxes The other billionaires in the Senate are cool to have their taxes audited So if there is no appetite for meaningfully cutting waste, nor raising revenue is this merely the GOP suggesting we stiff our creditors in service to an election slogan for a balanced budget? While advocating tax cheats to go uninvestigated?

Republicans demand a cut in services and survival funds and tax audits while the American underemployed are trying to survive unemployment It seems to me cheating the Social Security seniors out of their benefits (remember we pay our own Social Security it’s listed as FICA on your payroll deductions stub) But the Senators who voted for the debts which must be paid now want to dine and dash risking ruination on the good faith credit rating of the nation These petty meaningless quibbles from the GOP playbook could send the U S and the world economy careening into a ditch Ellen Starbird Cape Coral

We e k ly B R E E Z E R e c ap

CCCIA honors the best in home design

By CHUCK BALLARO news@breezenewspapers

com

Every year the Cape Coral Construction Industry Association showcases some of the most elegant model homes and best designs in the city

On Thursday the CCCIA held its 17th annual Builders Showcase of Homes at the Palmetto Pine Country Club where homes of all types and price points were feted for everything from overall design to landscaping

Lynn Boldissar, new executive director of the CCCIA, said the event is to praise the builders and contractors for all the work they put in throughout the year

“It’s an economic development tool for the area because not only do they show our models, we also advertise locally and nationally with our partners, Boldissar said It s a tool to drive revenue to the city

Entries were judged at certain price points and in interior and exterior design landscape pool bath kitchen and outdoor living There were also awards for top overall pool, landscaping, interior design, technology, and best in show

The overall winners were:

■ $350K to $400K: Coral Isle Builders The Ibis

■ $400K to $450K: D R Horton The Del Ray

■ $450K to $500K: Tracy Homes Harbours Edge

■ $500K to $600K: SPO Construction, Costa

■ $ 6 0 0 K t o $ 7 0 0 K : A r n o l d R o b e r t s S i g n a t u r e

Homes: The Savannah Grand

■ $800K to $900K: DMI Homes Builders the Punta Gorda Isles

■ $900K to $1M: SW Florida Dream Homes: Casa Dei Sogni Grande

■ $2M to $2 5M: Windward Construction, The Makai

Windward also won best overall pool design best overall interior design and Best in Show

Many of the winners swept through all the categories, but there was one in particular that caught the eyes of the judges

Windward Construction and The Makai took home all the awards in its category and four of the five overall awards best pool design interior design landscaping and Best in Show SW Florida Dream Homes won the award for overall home technology

Brian Haag with Windward Construction won nearly everything up to and including the raffle at the end of the show said the awards weren’t about him but about the team he has assembled to install everything inside and home and out

We are just a team of dedicated professionals who are individually responsible for different phases of construction ” Haag said “We believe in a team effort that bring these exceptional homes to life I’m blessed to be surrounded by these incredible people Don Vidussi, a partner at Coral Isle Builder, which

62nd annual Cracker Day Rodeo

Friday at Posse Arena

By CHUCK BALLARO news@breezenewspapers com

The62nd annual Cracker Day Rodeo one of the oldest annual events in North Fort Myers will return to the Lee County Posse Arena this weekend

Set for Friday Saturday and Sunday Jan 27-29

the rodeo pays tribute to the tradition of working ranchers moving cattle throughout the state Sherry Groff, arena president, said they lucked out with Hurricane Ian as the arena off Bayshore Road was just far enough away from the river

“We had the bleachers lifted up and we had to weld them back in place But aside from that all we had were some limbs down ” Goff said as opposed to Hurricane Irma in 2017 which forced cancellation of the event after it twisted the scoring tower We re going good this year and we re ready

The youth rodeo will happen on the first night on Friday beginning at 6 p m with the regular rodeo taking place on Saturday at 6 p m (with slack happening for barrel racers at 8 a m ) and Sunday at 2 p m , following Cowboy Church at 10 a m

The rodeo on Friday will feature the youth-oriented events such as barrels breakaway roping pole bending and goat tying for all competitors up to age 17

The open rodeo will take place Saturday night and Sunday afternoon with slack happening Saturday at 8 a m , where the barrel racers, team ropers and others

compete for the money but are not in the formal rodeo

The events at this rodeo tend to be a little different

There is still bull riding, calf roping, steer wrestling and barrel racing, but there are also unusual but popular events such as the Buddy-Pick-up and the new cowgirl trifecta where they have to breakaway rope a calf race barrels and tie a goat all in the same event

There also will be more than 20 vendors selling everything from cowboys hats to Mexican food

The rodeo serves as the biggest fundraiser for the arena a non-profit organization which was founded in 1960 and has survived as an all-volunteer group that gets no financial support from any government entity

Last year was our biggest year ever as far as attendance and fundraising This event pays the bills and insurance and everything else that needs to be done to go another year ” Groff said

Admission for adults is $25 $10 for children 12 and under and free for those 5 and under Parking is $5 Military and first responders get in for $20

Lee County Posse Arena is at 17401 Palm Creek Drive

For more information visit leecountyposse com

Action from an earlier rodeo at the Lee County Posse Arena, host site of the upcoming Cracker Day Rodeo

FILE PHOTO

Cape bicyclist dies in crash on Del Prado

Marvin Lyndale Tory 34 of Oleander Avenue in Fort Myers Tory was in the middle southbound lane of Del Prado when the accident occurred

The bicyclist was not wearing a helmet, police said, and sustained life-threatening injuries Life saving measures were attempted on scene by officers and witnesses Kopins was transported via ambulance to Cape Coral Hospital where he was pronounced deceased Tory was uninjured in the crash

The Cape Police report said the traffic crash was not alcohol/drug related and speed was not a factor

The Windward Construction team is all smiles with the trophies it won for its model home The Makai, during the CCCIA Builders Showcase of Homes Thursday at Palmetto Pine Country Club

CHUCK BALLARO

swept the under $400K category with The Ibis said he has people on board who have great creativity and something new

It has all the things people want and we do it on a budget I have a great sales and construction team We do our own concrete and framing and build our own pools, Vidussi said “We’ve been doing this for a long time and we like what we do We have a lot of fun and this is the cherry on top ”

The CCCIA Builders Showcase of Homes began this past weekend and will run the next two weekends on Friday through Sunday, Jan 27-29, and from Feb 3-5 from 10 a m to 5 p m on Friday and Saturday and on Sunday from noon to 5 p m

The event will showcase 15 homes throughout the city and vary in styles and price points and put the builder s unique style on display

Award-winning author Macomber to headline 2023 Cracker Dinner

Event scheduled for Feb 20 at Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre

Macomber will headline the annual Cracker Dinner M o n d a y F e b 2 0 a t t h e B r o a d w a y P a l m D i n n e r Theatre hosted by the Southwest Florida Historical Society Macomber will speak on the topic The Adventurous Life and Strange Death of the U S Navy Schooner Annie on Our Coast ” Annie was a U S Navy blockade ship during the Civil War that captured five ships Her life was impressively successful her skipper wildly unpredictable and her strange demise is still a mystery to this day, Macomber said

M a c o m b e r i s a m u l t ia w a r d - w i n n i n g a u t h o r b e s t known for his Honor Series of naval thrillers describing the life of a fictional American naval officer Peter Wake His 1 6 t h n o v e l i n t h e s e r i e s

C o d e o f H o n o r , w a s released last April and has received the Editor’s Choice Award by Historical Novels Review He also has been honored as the Florida Writer of the Year by the Florida Writers Association, among dozens of other awards

In addition to his writing Macomber is an internationally-recognized lecturer on 58 maritime topics and has been a consultant to the U S Department of Defense, specializing in strategic vision and planning by utilizing historical analogies

When not traveling the world on research treks lecture tours or book signings, he lives on Pine Island, the same coast where he grew up

The presentation will be accompanied by music performed by local singer John Goulet

Buffet dinner starts at 5:30 p m and the program begins at 7 p m Tickets cost $40 and are available at the Broadway Palm, 1380 Colonial Blvd in Fort Myers There also will be door prizes, a silent auction and a book signing by Macomber

The annual Cracker Dinner is sponsored by George T M a n n G e n e r a l C o n t r a c t o r a n d S u s a n B e n n e t t Marketing & Media L C among others

Funds raised at the annual dinner will be used to support the mission of the Southwest Florida Historical Society which is dedicated to preserving the history of our area by archiving donated historical documents photos and maps and stimulating public interest and appreciation for local history

The Southwest Florida Historical Society was established in 1960 by a group of citizens to “preserve the history of our area In 1983 the SWFLHS received as a gift a building that was destined to be demolished for a new parking lot Harper Brothers Construction donated the building and Flint and Doyle was contracted to move the building to the campus of the Lee County Alliance of the Arts

F o r a d d i t i o n a l i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t t h e H i s t o r i c a l

Society, visit https://www facebook com/SWFLHS/ or call 239-939-4044

For additional information about Macomber who is a Pine Island resident, please visit his webpage at www robertmacomber com

Robert Macomber

PHOTO PROVIDED Pine Island resident Uriia Underhill, who lost all 22 of her hives due to Hurricane Ian, smiles with Mountain Sweet Honey Company CEO Ray Civitts The northern Georgia-based supplier traveled to Southwest Florida to visit beekeepers who lost hives due to either flooding or wind, bringing with him roughly $12,000 in beekeeping supplies

w a t e r l e v e l s r i s e t o t h e h i v e , t h e b e e s j u s t m o v e t o t h e t o p o f t h e h i v e u n t i l t h e y a r e c o n s u m e d O r w i t h m o v i n g w a t e r t h e h i v e g e t s k n o c k e d o v e r a n d t h e y a l s o d r o w n C i v i t t s s a i d b e e s n e e d t o b e m o v e d a t l e a s t 2 m i l e s i n a s e a l e d h i v e t o r e s e t t h e i r i n n e r - G P S “ T h e s e b e e k e e p e r s h a d n o t h i n g a f t e r t h e s t o r m ” C i v i t t s s a i d W h o k n o w s w h a t w a s i n t h e w a t e r , a n d i f t h a t g e t s i n t o t h e h i v e , t h e b e e s w i l l n o t g o i n t o i t T h e y v e h a d t o s t a r t o v e r M o u n t a i n S w e e t H o n e y a l o n g w i t h t h e h i v e s w i l l s e n d 1 0 0 0 0 b e e s a n d a q u e e n f o r e a c h h i v e H e s a i d i n t h r e e m o n t h s a s t h e h i v e s d e v e l o p , t h e y c o u l d b e u p t o 2 0 0 , 0 0 0 b e e s i n e a c h h i v e A n o t h e r S o u t h w e s t F l o r i d a r e s i d e n t M o u n t a i n S w e e t H o n e y t r e a t e d w a s B r a d M a c K e n z i e o n S a n i b e l M a c K e n z i e o p e r a t o r o f S a n i b e l H o n e y , l o s t a l l 5 0 o f h i s h i v e s a c r o s s t h e i s l a n d t h a t w e r e p a r t o f t h e c o m m u n i t y H e w i t h t h e h e l p o f M o u n t a i n S w e e t H o n e y i s d e t e r m i n e d t o b r i n g a f l o u r i s hi n g b e e p o p u l a t i o n b a c k t o S a n i b e l P e o p l e a r e e x c i t e d t o h a v e t h e i r h i v e s b a c k a n d t o h a v e t h e c r o s s - p o l l i n a t i o n , M a c K e n z i e s a i d Y o u h a v e t o h a v e b e e s t o h a v e t h i n g s f l o w e r a n d y o u h a v e t o h a v e f l o w e r s t o h a v e b e e s s u r v i v e T h a t s y m b i o t i c r e l a t i o n s h i p w i l l b e h e l p e d o u t b y b e e s b e i n g h e r e M a c K e n z i e h i m s e l f w a s n e a r l y w a s h e d a w a y b y I a n , a s h e c h o s e t o h u nk e r d o w n H i s h o m e o n 8 - f o o t s t i l t s w a s t a k i n g o n 1 5 - f e e t o f s t o r m s u r g e H i s s i tu a t i o n g o t t o a p o i n t w h e r e h e w r o t e t o h i s f a m i l y o n h i s w a l l i n S h a r p i e T o h i s g i r l f r i e n d w h o e v a c u a t e d : A n d r e a , I w a s w r o n g I l o v e y o u H e a l s o w r o t e “ G r a y s o n I l o v e y o u M o m D a d L a r r y A l i c e a n d D o u g I l o v e y o u C a n t w a i t t o s e e y o u a l l a g a i n M a c K e n z i e r e c a l l e d , H e r e I w a s r e a li z i n g m y h o u s e i s n ’ t g o i n g t o f l o a t A n d t h e r e w a s n o h e l p o n t h e w a y I f I w e n t o u t t o s e a I w a s n ’ t g o i n g t o b e r e s c u e d ” O n c e h i s o w n s a f e t y w a s t a k e n c a r e o f , h e i m m e d i a t e l y b e g a n t o t h i n k a b o u t t h e b e e s a n d w i l d l i f e l o c a l l y M a c K e n z i e s a i d n e a r l y a l l o f t h e b e e s o n S a n i b e l h a v e b e e n d e c i m a t e d a s t h e i r h o m e s w e r e d e s t r o y e d I w a s c o n c e r n e d a b o u t m y h o m e a n d m y c o m m u n i t y , a n d t h e c o m m u n i t y h e r e i n c l u d e s t h e b e e s a n d w i l d l i f e t h a t w e e n j o y a n d m a k e s S a n i b e l s o s p e c i a l ” h e s a i d “ A n d i t w a s s a d a n d f r i g h t e n i n g t o k n o w t h a t I w a s n o t i n t h e w o r s t p l a c e ” M a c K e n z i e a d d e d i t w o u l d b e n e a r l y i m p o s s i b l e t o r e l o c a t e 5 0 b e e h i v e s b e f o r e t h e s t o r m , a n d e v e n i f h e d i d g e t t h e m a l l l o a d e d u p t o g o t h e r e w o u l d b e v e r y m i n i m a l i d e a l p l a c e s t o t a k e t h e m A l l i n a l l H u r r i c a n e I a n s i m p a c t o n t h e b e e p o p u l a t i o n l o c a l l y w i l l b e f e l t

“Florida took a huge hit for future pollination It comes out to about 15% of the total hives in the U S that were lost due to Ian ” Mountain Sweet Honey CEO Ray Civitts, who added that nationwide, due also to flooding in California, the U S has lost 18-19 percent of its hives which likely will impact food prices by fall

y o u r b e e s n a t i o n w i d e , i t s n o t g o i n g t o h a p p e n o v e r n i g h t ” C i v i t t s s a i d H i s c o n c e r n i n t h a t c r o p s n e e d a n yw h e r e f r o m 5 t o 3 0 % p o l l i n a t i o n t o g r o w I s e e f o o d s c a r c i t y , w h i c h m e a n s e l ev a t e d p r i c i n g a t t h e g r o c e r y s t o r e , C i v i t t s s a i d “ W e t h i n k w e ’ r e p a y i n g h i g h p r i c e s n o w w a i t u n t i l t h e e n d o f t h e s u m m e r ” F o r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n o n M o u n t a i n S w e e t H o n e y , b e e k e e p i n g s u p p l i e s a n d e d u c a t i o n , v i s i t w w w m o u n t a i n s w e e th o n e y c o m C o n n e c t w i t h t h i s r e p o r t e r o n T w i t t e r : @ h a d d a d c j

T h i s c o u l d m e a n a l a c k o f l o c a l h o n e y s a l e s a t p l a c e s s u c h a s f a r m e r s m a r k e t s a n d c o m m u n i t y s t o r e s “ F l o r i d a t o o k a h u g e h i t f o r f u t u r e p o l l i n a t i o n , C i v i t t s s a i d I t c o m e s o u t t o a b o u t 1 5 % o f t h e t o t a l h i v e s i n t h e U S t h a t w e r e l o s t d u e t o I a n H e a d d e d f l o o d i n g o u t i n C a l i f o r n i a r e c e n t l y t o o k a t o l l o n b e e k e e p e r s o u t w e s t C a n a d a h a s l o s t h o n e y b e e s a t a n a l a r m i n g r a t e d u e t o s p r e a d i n g v i r u s T h e r e s g o i n g t o b e a p o l l i n a t i o n i s s u e t h i s c o m i n g s p r i n g T h e r e a r e n o t e n o u g h b e e s t o p o l l i n a t e ” C i v i t t s s a i d S o h o w t o g e t t h i n g s b a c k o n t r a c k ? P a t i e n c e a n d g o o d p r a c t i c e C i v i t t s s a i d b y t h e s p r i n g , h i v e s s h o u l d b e a b l e t o b e s p l i t a n d g r o w , a n d a g a i n t h e n e x t y e a r T h e s a d f a c t i s , t h e r e ’ s j u s t n o t e n o u g h b e e s t o g e t e v e r yt h i n g r e s t a r t e d r i g h t a w a y W h e n y o u l o s t 1 8 t o 1 9 p e r c e n t o f Page 7A CAPE CORAL BREE ZE w w w capecoral breeze com Januar y 27 2023

Cape theater companies earn major kudos

By CJ HADDAD cjhaddad@breezenewspapers com

Multiple talented young thespians from the Southwest Florida recently showed they belong with the best the country has to offer F o u r d i f f e r e n t t h e a t e r c o m p a n i e s including two in Cape Coral, were honored a n d r e c o g n i z e d a t t h e J u n i o r T h e a t e r Festival in Atlanta that took place Jan 1315 The Belle Theatre in Cape Coral won a Freddie G Excellence in Music award; the Naples Performing Arts Centers took home a Freddie G Excellence in Ensemble Work award; and Gypsy Playhouse in Cape Coral a n d t h e F l o r i d a R e p e r t o r y T h e a t r e Education in Fort Myers both earned praise and other recognition

The monumental weekend dedicated to rewarding and celebrating excellent student-driven musical theater programs took place at the Cobb Convention Center in Atlanta T h e B e l l e T h e a t r e p r e s e n t e d R o a l d Dahl's "James and the Giant Peach JR " to actor Brion Watson (Hamilton, national tour Wicked national tour); Nina Meehan B a y A r e a C h i l d r e n ’ s T h e a t r e ( B A C T ) founding CEO; and Peter Avery director o f T h e a t e r f o r t h e N e w Y o r k C i t y Department of Education (NYCDOE)

"The Junior Theater Festival is such an electric atmosphere where the excitement and love of theater is palpable " said The Belle Theatre s JTF Team Director Dana Alvarez It is incredibly rewarding to b r i n g s u c h t a l e n t e d a n d h a r d - w o r k i n g y o u n g p eo p le to J TF es p ecially af ter enduring a fall season like we all did in Southwest Florida Our team was 11 students bigger before Ian hit, and sadly many families had to step back in this time of u n c e r t a i n t y B u t b e i n g a b l e t o w o r k through the challenges and have community support to get our team there was such a special feeling especially for our seniors who wouldn t have had another chance to attend after this year "

The 2023 JTF Atlanta featured an incredible weekend of singing dancing acting and learning There were 125 g r o u p s f r o m 2 8 s t a t e s a s w e l l a s Washington DC, Canada, and Australia, p a r t i c i p a t i n g i n t h e f e s t i v a l G r o u p s enjoyed a New Works Showcase of perf o r m a n c e s e l e c t i o n s f r o m u p c o m i n g Broadway Junior® musicals presented by JTF groups and other main-stage performa n c e s f e a t u r i n g p o w e r h o u s e B r o a d w a y guests and took part in workshops

This was The Belle Theatre's first trip to JTF and they showed the talent they possess by taking home a top Freddie G award in Excellence in Music, O f t h e i r p e r f o r m a n c e , A v e r y s a i d , "Wow! The Belle Theatre really brought us into their mysterious world of Roald Dahl's James and the Giant Peach JR I loved their

character work

Meehan added, "This cast had incredible character creation and exuberant storytelling and fabulous vocals It's clear this program is inspiring a true joy and love for musical theater in its students Watson agreed, saying, The way this group embodied this story was that of a professional production Their presentation showed the genuine support that is given to them on a daily basis "

Alvarez said it was such an honor to earn the award, and to be recognized for excellence in music means that the judges considered their students advanced in their musical knowledge and singing voices

"It’s not enough to just sing loudly and nicely, but the judges noted how we paid attention to dynamics and harmonies, the rises and falls in the material, that really built anticipation and elevated the storytelling " Alvarez said "The book-writer of James was in the audience for our set and he told me that musically, it was the best rendition of James and the Giant Peach he has ever heard So that kind of acknowledgment was an incredible honor We are so glad that other people can hear and see what we think is so exceptional about these young people

There's no denying that James and the Giant Peach is an odd and unique story that involves marvel and magic that causes

strange and unusual things to occur: like a g i a n t p e a c h g r o w i n g a n d f i v e i n s e c t s becoming life size who then take the orphan James in as part of their family Alvarez said "Our students who played the insects truly delved deep into the body language and mannerisms of a grasshopper, ladybug, centipede, etc Other students actually built the giant peach out of their bodies As a whole the ensemble portrayed their characters as ones with great mystery intrigue, and depending on the song they were even seagulls or sharks In fifteen minutes, they really spanned a great variety of characters "

Gypsy Playhouse presented Disney's and Cameron Mackintosh's Mary Poppins J R t o a c t o r K a t y G e r a g h t y ( I n t o t h e Woods, Broadway); Michael J Bobbitt, playwright and Executive Director of the M a s s a c h u s e t t s C u l t u r a l C o u n c i l a n d

Bradford Theatre Teacher/Director Holly

Stanfield (2021 Stephen Schwartz Theatre

Teacher of the Year, National student premieres of Groundhog Day, The Musical, Rent School Edition)

Repertory Theatre Education s students

H a n n a h C r u z , V i o l e t S a l c i d o , a n d Emmanuel Tojanci; Gypsy Playhouse's student Robert Gosling; Naples Performing Arts Center's students Suzanna Lawson and Grace Layne Ryan, and The Belle

T h e a t r e s s t u d e n t s A t h e n a R o s e B e l i s , Macy Magas, and River Reed made it to the callback for a yet to be announced special video project which will promote musicals in schools

Florida Repertory Theatre Education s students Hannah Cruz and Danae Teblum; Gypsy Playhouse's students Sophia Brook and Lia Jaquez; Naples Performing Arts

C e n t e r ' s s t u d e n t s L a n t z H e m m e r t a n d Aiden Johnson; The Belle Theatre's students Katae Boswell and River Reed were named Junior Theater Festival All-Stars, a select group of outstanding performers

Of their performance

Bobbitt said "My heart soared when these students sang Anything can happen if you let it It was stuck in my throat and for the first time, Mary Poppins message came through I can tell that Gypsy Playhouse treats its students like artists and not like kids The students truly seemed to own the material and that s the mark of great teaching and directing " Naples Performing Arts Center presented Disney's Moana JR and along with e a r n i n g t h e F r e d d i e G a w a r d f o r i n E x c e l l e n c e i n E n s e m b l e M i a Z o t t o l o r e c e i v e d a F r e d d i e G O u t s t a n d i n g

Individual Performance award Additional recognition went to Florida

As for the impact this event has on young thespians Alvarez who has attended many festivals in the prior year said JTF gives student performers a chance to gain perspective on their art and the world scene of theater They get to see amateur groups sing their faces off and conservatory programs lay it all out there- and they can appreciate the wide array of skills and talents that their peers have Students are also exposed to the stories and performances of real Broadway performers and get to see what the end-game can look like or how challenging the journey can be So it helps them to see they are not alone: other people burst out into song randomly while walking down the hallways and also, they are not the only talented student in the world- there are thousands So it is both reassuring and humbling "

C o n n e c t w i t h t h i s r e p o r t e r o n Twitter: @haddad cj

FEMA 2.0: Flood ratings explained

From page 1A

Commerce of Cape Coral Government Affairs Committee member Gloria Tate

FEMA s Risk Rating 2 0 is an updated rating system for NFIP flood insurance policies with the goal to implement more a c c u r a t e r a t e s T h o u g h t h e p l a n w a s designed to see costs for homeowners d e c r e a s e n a t i o n - w i d e o n l y 2 0 % o f Florida homeowners are predicted to see a total rate decrease while 76% are expected to see an increase of up to $240 per year and 4% seeing increases of $240 or more per year “We hope people get more accurate and current information from the meeting," Tate said The event is free, but attendees must register online as the venue is limited to 125 people Questions can be submitted online beforehand and will be taken during the meeting Tate said any unanswered questions will be addressed outside of the session

“We want people to know what FEMA

2 0 is and how it affects them ” Tate said I m sure it will be very informative for those that attend This meeting will not have to do with Hurricane Ian-related FEMA funds or insurance claims only to do with FEMA

2 0 and flood insurance

Doors to the meeting open at 6 p m with the program beginning at 6:30

For more information on the event and to submit questions call the chamber at

2 3 9 - 5 4 9 - 6 9 0 0 o r e m a i l T a t e a t

gloria@rasorealty com

The Kiwanis Club of Cape Coral is at 360 Santa Barbara Blvd To register for the meeting, visit the event calendar at www capecoralchamber com

C o n n e c t w i t h t h i s r e p o r t e r o n

Twitter: @haddad cj

PHOTO BY AVERY BRUNKUS

The Belle Theatre in Cape Coral sent a team of 24 students, ages 14-18, to the Junior Theater Festival in Atlanta where they took home a Freddie G Excellence in Music Award for their presentation of "James and the Giant Peach JR "

Challenges with local water quality continuing

Beach closures, health advisories, more red tides, hundreds and hundreds of leaking boats still needing to be recovered dare I even say flesh eating bacteria and lots of who knows what else still floating or submerged, moving around with the tides -- to say there are continuing challenges ahead for the local water lovers anglers pleasure boaters visitors and environmentalists is an obvious understatement

Capt George Tunison

The good and bad news Good news first -- no, the fish are not all gone Are the inshore fish safe to eat? Probably as safe as those two double cheeseburgers large fries and large completely artificial chocolate chemical shake you just inhaled Personally I m waiting on inshore fish dinners, choosing to enjoy other offshore bounty but even some of them now carry health warnings

(Check MyFWC for advisories)

Only time the tides and hard work will help us recover from Ian s wrath as the boats and their pollution is salvaged, helping to improve water quality Large debris, possibly even cars, will become new inshore hot spots or, expensive prop and lower unit nightmares I can hear it now:

“Caught lots of trout today off Toyota reef” “Ya know just north of the refrigerator Wish I had more good news Of course, taking a slow water tour of your favorite routes and hot spot destinations on a low water, negative tide day during bright skies could reveal potential dangers and or future hot spots

While catastrophic hurricane recovery will be an ongoing process, the cleanup will at some point be over, although the emotional scars, personal tragedies and economic hardship many had and still do face those memories while last a lifetime

Now for the not so good side- state and local water quality issues that are destroying the freshwater and marine environment No secret that for decades Florida s waters have been manipulated for development and agriculture uses to the detriment of the environment and the health and safety of citizens A national treasure the Everglades slowly withers away as it s starved of

CA PE CORA L BREEZE SPORTS

water, instead the water is agriculture run-off poisoned while housed in Lake Okeechobee then sent mostly to the west coast to ruin our river and coastal zones as it enters the Gulf

Once pristine Florida Bay, an incredible fishery, is now in decline due to the lack of clean Everglades freshwater entering that system which in the end upsets the ecology of The Keys

To the north, world famous fishing and nature viewing spot, the Indian River Lagoon, is but a shadow of its former self due to water quality issues similar to ours

The ongoing underwater destruction of Matlacha Pass and Pine Island Sound is freighting Many don t like to hear things like that but we all need to face the reality of the situation and work hard to make drastic changes and tough choices After all weather and clean water are why most of us are here

Unfortunately change takes time, which we are using up quite quickly further hampered by the evil curse of politics ,especially huge money, behind the scenes lobbying I do applaud the efforts of Gov DeSantis and recent legislation but we still lack much more public involvement Politicians love an apathetic public

The one common thread statewide continues to be bad water chemistry killing the very nursery of the sea, our seagrasses

It’s very basic -- no grass no fish

Be it septic systems leaking into the ground table agriculture and livestock toxic run-off phosphate mining untold thousands of older boats statewide docked or sitting in marinas slowly dripping oil month after month, even natural disasters have all together created a chemical stew that has stimulated the growth of undesirable algae forms that are choking out our desirable and vital seagrasses that are the very cradle of marine life as well as contaminating the fish we consume This year, vow to make your voice heard

Capt George Tunison is a Cape Coral resident fishing guide You an contact him at 239282-9434 or via email at captgeorget3@aol com

Voting starts for Breeze Athlete of the Month for January

Breeze Staf f Repor t

news@breezenewspapers com

Voting for the Cape Coral Breeze Athlete of the Month for January is now open

There were a number of top performances from student-athletes in The Breeze coverage area to start the new year and now it s up to readers to decide who will earn top honors for the month

Nominees for January include:

■ I s a i a h N e w s o n f r e s h m a n C a p e C o r a l Seahawks: Newson dazzled during the Nature Coast Tournament, helping the Seahawks to a consolation bracket final victory He was named to the all-tournament team and averaged 23 6 PPG, 6 RPG, 3 APG, and 3 3 steals over three contests

■ Elijah Felix freshman Island Coast Gators: The young standout helped his team take home the Sarasota Christian Holiday Tournament championship and was named tournament most valuable player Over two games Felix averaged 14 PPG and totaled six blocked shots

■ Levontai "Bo" Summersett, senior, North Fort Myers Red Knights: The talented guard put together a triple-double performance versus Gulf Coast totaling 10 points, 11 rebounds, and 13 assists He followed that up with a 16-point 5-rebound 4assist and 4-steal game in a win over IMG Academy Black

■ Antonio Portes senior Bishop Verot Vikings: Portes recorded a hat trick in a 4-0 win versus Lemon Bay

Wednesday Girls Soccer District 5A-11

■ Jaclynn Mars, senior, Oasis Sharks: Mars recorded a hat trick and added an assist in a 7-0 win over Island Coast and followed up with the Sharks lone goal in a close 2-1 loss to Lemon Bay

■ Tyler Kerr sophomore Oasis Sharks: Kerr netted four goals in a 6-0 win over Island Coast last week to help the Sharks boys soccer team set a school record for single-season wins with 11

■ Maximus Brady sophomore Mariner Tritons:

The sophomore coming off a state championship last year, won the 126-pound division at the John Joyce Memorial tournament in North Port with a 6-

0 wining decision and was named MVP

■ Chris Minto, senior, Mariner Tritons: Minto, a two-time defending state champion finished in the top spot in the 160-pound weight class at the John Joyce Memorial tournament in North Port with a 50 wining decision

■ Nicole Bono senior Ida Baker Bulldogs: The Bulldogs leading scorer dropped a season high 22 points in a 69-39 win versus Oasis, adding 8 boards 2 assists and 2 steals Bono is averaging nearly 13 points per game and 6 rebounds per game this season Athlete of the Month nominees are comprised of the Breeze’s staff-selected Athletes of the Week for that respective month

To vote, visit www capecoralbreeze com and click the Athlete of the Month Vote Now icon along the right-hand side Voting is open until Feb 1 at noon

PREP REPORT

At higher seeds all matches 7 p m North Fort Myers 15, Dunbar 0: Two freshmen had hat tricks for the Red Knights (10-2-3), including Hannah Busenbark's double hat trick of three goals and three assists Kinsley Seidl scored three goals with one assist Also for North Lexi Neumann had two goals and an assist Sophia Quartuccio two goals Evie McCarthy a goal and two assists, Nancy Jaquiss a goal and two assists, Carolina Jenkins scored and had an assist, Marissa DeConte had a goal and Sam Connar added an assist Cape Coral 9, South Fort Myers 0: Cape advanced to take on North Fort Myers in Friday s semifinals Cameron Fallacara paced the Seahawks (12-6) with a hat trick, and Mikala Allen had a goal and three assists Emily Carmean, Isabella Cruz and Abby Mourning each contributed a goal and an assist Solpia Fallacara and Emily Graulich scored and Emmy Pardo made an assist Cypress Lake 2, Island Coast 0: The Gators ended their season with a 3-13 record

Today Cypress Lake at Mariner Cape Coral at North Fort Myers

Semifinal winners

Tuesday, Jan 31

District 6A-12

At higher seeds all matches 7 p m

Wednesday Riverdale 8 Immokalee 0

Palmetto Ridge 6, Ida Baker 0: With the loss, the Bulldogs finish at 4-11

Friday Palmetto Ridge at Fort Myers Riverdale at Charlotte

Semifinal winners

Tuesday Jan 31

District 3A-8

At higher seeds matches 7 p m except where noted

Thursday Gateway Charter at Oasis, 6 p m

Monday, Jan 30

GC-Oasis winner at St Petersburg Catholic

Bishop Verot at Cardinal Mooney

Wednesday Feb 1

Semifinal winners

Girls Weightlifting

Cape Coral Breeze Athletes of the Week

Cape Coral Breeze Athletes Week

of the

(Selected by the Breeze Sports staff)

Sponsored by:

Canal: Process more clearing-intensive than some Cape residents want

From page 1A

both vegetative and construction and demolition debris accessible along the canal within the easement itself or in the canal within reach from the easement, according to Cape Coral Solid Waste Manager Terry Schweitzer

“Debris removal crews remove and track out debris along the easement back to the street, Schweitzer said via email sent through the city s Communications Office

“Debris removal crews stage debris at the street (right of way) for collection by selfloading knuckle boom trucks or other suitable hauling units

The debris is then collected and hauled to the closest disaster debris management site accepting vegetation while construction and demolition debris goes directly to the landfill Schweitzer said per the Section 404 permit issued by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, debris removal crews cut downed trees along the canal and flip the stump back into the stump hole

“Debris removal crews then flush cut trees to the best of their abilities given all safety concerns present onsite, he said This may result in stump stems up to 2-feet from an expected flush cut This represents a mitigation measure to prevent additional soil loss from the property entering the canal system by allowing the resulting stump and its roots to hold soil in place

It is the extent of vegetation removal that has some residents concerned Rob Hudson de Tarnowsky lives along Southwest 2nd Terrace with their backyard looking out at a canal and was shocked when their tree line disappeared after crews seemingly cut all vegetation away A buffer of beautiful greenery that they say was minimally damaged after the storm is now a view of traffic across the way which he says has allowed for an increase in noise and light pollution Their neighbor a few houses away on Southwest 2nd Lane and also looked across the way at greenery now looks at traffic moving along Burnt Store Road

To come back and seeing the shoreline right across from us was naked and sand sitting there where birds were nesting, was just a total shock,” Hudson de Tarnowsky said “Hurricane Ian damaged a lot of our other landscaping but the shoreline plants were resilient And to see them torn out was like What? Did we just get hit with another hurricane? Except this one, man caused Hudson de Tarnowsky said he’s all in favor of hurricane clean-up around the area but not to the point where living plants and animals would be impacted

We re at this point months later where things were coming back and starting to look nice again and then here comes these crews ” he said “I understand that there could be a good motivation behind it -- being debris in the canal that needs to be removed It makes sense to do that The way to get it out of the canal is not to take a claw hook and rip out all of the vegetation along the shoreline that

We’ve been bombarded with residents that are concerned about the process related to removing fallen vegetation that’s on the canal bank leaning into the canal By our Army Corps permit, (these crews) have to cut that tree at the root, and then stand it back up on the canal in order to prevent erosion They re not allowed to remove in its entirety they basically chainsaw it at the waterline and then use a bucket to peel it back and fold it back into place

If there s other vegetation in the way of that machinery getting to the canal bank or to that fallen debris in the canal, they’re required by the permit to get to that, to basically cut their way into it They have to clear away to get to that ”

Public Works Director for Cape Coral Mike Ilczyszyn adding there is a monitor on-site with each crew to make sure they re not being “overly aggressive” and clearing properties and are looking out for endangered species such as burrowing owls and gopher tortoise

birds depend on And then leave the plastic behind ”

Hudson de Tarnowskys said while walking along the area by his home where crews had come in to clear debris, he found lots of non-vegetative items scattered about

Public Works Director for Cape Coral

Mike Ilczyszyn said during Wednesday’s City Council Meeting that for crews to get to vegetation that needed to be removed, healthy vegetation would be cleared

“We ve been bombarded with residents that are concerned about the process related to removing fallen vegetation that’s on the canal bank leaning into the canal he said By our Army Corps permit, (these crews) have to cut that tree at the root, and then stand it back up on the canal in order to prevent erosion They’re not allowed to remove in its entirety they basically chainsaw it at the waterline and then use a bucket to peel it back and fold it back into place

If there s other vegetation in the way of that machinery getting to the canal bank or to that fallen debris in the canal they’re required by the permit to get to that to basically cut their way into it They have to clear away to get to that

Ilczyszyn said there is a monitor on-site with each crew to make sure they’re not being “overly aggressive” and clearing properties and are looking out for endangered species such as burrowing owls and gopher tortoise

Our environmental staff have gone out and done random but routine checks to make sure procedures are being followed Sometimes there is healthy vegetation removed in order to get to vegetation that was damaged, he said

From what the Hudson de Tarnowsky has seen in his backyard, he feels the city is going about it the wrong way

“We’re left with bare and sandy shorelines that will wash into the freshwater canal -- is that the right way to clean debris up?

Hudson de Tarnowsky said It s like using a hammer where a scalpel would be the best option It’s probably cheaper to just take a claw hook and remove the vegetation Cleaning is caring, stripping is destruction

The companies the city has contracted to perform the debris clearing work are Tetra

Tech and Ceres Environmental According to city officials they were instructed to remove debris from rights-of-way and canals They are compensated related to cubic yards of debris collected Hudson de Tarnowsky, who documented the effort via photo and video contacted many departments in the city looking for answers as to why this was the way to go about clearing debris and were responded to, after some time, with minimal answers

We used to look at a wall of leaves and birds playing them -- limpkins were just starting to nest in the area ” he said “In fact when I went to take video there were a pair struggling to find a place to nest again right where they had torn up the area by Embers Parkway

“I don’t even know how many birds may have even been grabbed by the claw or how many animals were hurt during the process

To me Florida equals wildlife We have kind of a harsh environment where a lot of the land in Cape Coal has already been cleared and is basically sandy lots Places where there are taller shrubs for animals are fewer and far between These shoreline buffers are really where a lot of them have to nest

On Thursday morning, residents concerned with the closeness of machinery to an active burrowing owl burrow nest in the area of work went out to highlight where the burrow was

They said crews told them they would call the police as they were impeding the work being performed

Hudson de Tarnowsky said now that the shoreline vegetation has gone away “unnecessarily the critical nature of that strip along the shoreline will be detrimental to wildlife

He said he was told by a crew member that if a branch was broken on a tree, they considered it hurricane damaged and take a chain saw and cut it down He said a nearly 7foot-tall cactus across the canal was minimally impacted by the storm -- it had lost one arm, but was still standing

“Well they just knocked it down because they said it was damaged in the hurricane If you go by that logic which of our trees did not get damaged by the hurricane? Unless it s a big limb that absolutely should be removed -- when you looked across our canal, there

was only one sections we could see dead vegetation -- the rest of it you couldn't even see there was something wrong It s confusing and seems uncaring

Schweitzer said upon completion or near completion of land-based canal debris removal operations the contractor will begin collection of all submerged and visual targets identified for removal

Debris removal crews shall remove targets by most appropriate means possible generally using fast picker barge and spud barge ” he said “Debris removal crews will barge debris to Points of Access identified by the City POAs may be public boat ramp, public property used as a POA or possible vacant properties previously used for land-based canal debris removal operations Schweitzer said debris piles placed at public boat ramps or other public property used as POAs are either marked or flagged for debris removal collection by self-loading knuckle boom trucks or other suitable hauling units The debris is then collected and hauled to the closest appropriate site Additionally, sonar may be used to determine if all submerged debris has been cleared that meets FEMA eligibility

“Once a canal is determined to be cleared we recommend that boaters continue to use caution as they would normally navigating waterways, Schweitzer said So, how did the city scope all 400 miles of canals?

Schweitzer said the contractor used a helicopter and flew the city and used the NWS Hurricane Ian Imagery App to see where the heaviest hit areas were

Along with these two efforts city employees also conducted a land based visual inspection of different areas of the city to put eyes on ” he said “Also knowing that there is a heavy concentration of Australian Pines north of Veterans Parkway that would be blown over and blocking canals we decided to start north and work south Similar to street debris clearing the canal crew numbers ramp up to approximately 20 crews clearing debris each day

In addition, calls to 311 that reported canal debris are mapped by the city s monitoring firm Tetra-Tech and Ceres to check/ remove when by the address in the canal reported These locations can be seen on the city s canal debris removal interactive map Lee County also put together a Sonar Reported Debris app that pinpoints debris in waterways reported by individuals that debris crews use

With all of the aforementioned processes, one can see it is a complicated process to clear the canals with a lot of foresight made to determine where the debris is located,” Schweitzer said

The Breeze reached out to Tetra Tech and Ceres Environmental for comment but had not received a response by press time

Connect with this reporter on Twitter: @haddad cj

Proximity: Elementary schoolers would be assigned closer to home

From page 1A

one of their top choices

The long-standing program has become more and more challenging due to transportation staffing and cost issues

“What it will do is provide us to get our school children to school on time Every year a kindergarten class gets on board (it will) clear more past existing transportation routes

It is the right step and direction at this time I believe " Superintendent Dr Christopher Bernier told the board this week

Superintendent s Office Coordinator Dr Adam Molloy said the proximity draft plan has new attendance zones that were developed by Davis Demographics On average, there would be a reduction of choices from 12 to four schools It also would provide a reduction of 100 square miles of the school district s transportation

All rising elementary students are provided the option to continue to attend current schools Transportation is provided if current schools are within new proximity boundaries

The grandfather enrollment window will run prior to the new proximity lottery, Molloy said

There was also an update related to selfcontained ESE programs and students that they will maintain the current enrollment and district transportation

The board also talked about K-8 academies, as it holds kindergarten through fifth grade students The proximity plan would only impact those K-5 student levels

There are currently no admission programs at the K-5 level across the entire school district Proximity will not impact those individual school programs, Molloy said

The elementary school enrollment residential, proximity plan zones that include Cape Coral and North Fort Myers are as follows:

Proximity Zone A:

■ Hector A Cafferata Jr Elementary School

■ Patriot Elementary School

■ Skyline Elementary School

■ Trafalgar Elementary School

Proximity Zone B:

■ Caloosa Elementary School

■ Diplomat Elementary School

■ Hancock Creek Elementary School

■ Littleton Elementary School

■ Tropic Isles Elementary School

Proximity Zone C:

■ Bayshore Elementary School

■ J Colin Elementary School

■ North Fort Myers Academy of the Arts

(K-8)

Proximity Zone F:

■ Cape Elementary School

■ Gulf Elementary School

■ Pelican Elementary School School board member Debbie Jordan said even though they are helping all the schools with this process when do they start letting parents know their child may not be at the same school any longer I hear you, but without board approval to move forward to this we have nothing to tell our community until the board approves ” Bernier said “It’s a full-blown blitz to make sure our elementary schools and other people know how to access the data to make it work We need a board decision before we start advertising what the changes are ”

Transportation changes

Student Enrollment Executive Director

Soretta Ralph said they want to make sure parents know that students do have the opportunity to stay in their current school through the grandfathering process She wants to make sure parents know they are waiving that transportation if they are outside of the proximity, or address zones, when they opt for the grandfathering option

“Those participating families would be giving up that opportunity for transportation ” Ralph said

According to the proposed Student Enrollment Plan 2023-2024, school bus transportation will not be provided to those students unless the current school is within the new proximity boundary for the student s residence In addition, it states that students will only receive transportation for elementary schools within the residential choice proximity zone in which they reside Families who require bus transportation will always be guaranteed an available seat at a school with capacity in their proximity zone If a family does not make an enrollment decision before the end of the lottery period the plan states that they will automatically be entered into the “new proximity lottery so that school bus transportation will be available to them Ralph said they will run a list that have not participated and a random application will be generated for them in FOCUS

“If they want to be grandfathered they have the opportunity to be considered if the space is available, she said Ralph said if at any time a parent decides that they would like to change their child’s school during the school year it can be done if the seats are available at the school

Participating families that are new kindergarten enrollments, or new families to the district will rank their schools just like they do for open enrollment ” Ralph said “The difference is they won't have 17 schools to rank The plan also includes sibling preference, which is similar to prior years Ralph said pre-registration for kindergarten started in October and will close in late January She said the parents are anxiously awaiting their school We are still pre-registering kindergarteners We will have to pause that for a short period of time We will continue to take that information and allow it to be put it in FOCUS Parent Portal Ralph said adding that they will not be able to process the registration for a period of time We know that parents are very excited to have the opportunity to submit through the Parent Portal ”

She said they really want parents to use that Parent Portal because that is where they will get their information It is also a great way to keep connections going once school starts Ralph said

“After the lottery runs this year we hope to open a Parent Portal to all families all grade levels, Ralph said

With the new proximity plan, the board asked how classrooms, which are not being utilized to its capacity now would be used

“Proximity will fill the school based on the number of students they can hold ” Molloy said Proximity is built into capacity The buildings do have a space and the kids are there and we can properly program and staff those schools We are set to handle the growth What we don't know is the grandfathering number

Cafferata: Options include repair, rebuild, new K-8 school or teardown

From page 1A

choice moving forward

There are certain available funds under insurance, as well as eligible funds under FEMA for the school “FEMA (dollars) are taxpayer dollars ” Board member Chris Patricca said adding that they need to be good stewards of that money Wagner said FEMA would not reimburse the district for the cost of a K-8, as they did not lose a K-8 school but rather an elementary school He said district staff would combine resources to put the district in the best long-term solution in terms of a capacity standpoint I would be in favor of Option C if that is something doable to the district ” Board member Debbie Jordan said adding it has to be financially sound

Board member Cathleen Morgan said the difference between Option B and Option C is $40 million and three additional grades for the school building

point Wagner said a K-8 school has approximately 1 800 seats “Cost per middle school seat would be lower than if we built a middle school outright cost per seat There is a preference in this district for K-8 in certain circumstances, he said

Board member Sam Fisher also said he is in favor of Option C as that part of Cape Coral has the most number of single family home permits

I think this is a win-win It is a long- term investment that will save the community a lot of money down the road I am fully on board with Option C ” he said adding that he thinks the community would readily accept this option as well

The first option, Option A, would simply restore the building while making upgrades to the current building code an estimated cost of $20 million with a 12- month timeline Wagner said the life expectancy of the current building is 25 years, so they would have another eight years with the upgrades

The restoration would entail replacing all the things that were damaged by Hurricane

Ian, basically stripping the building back and putting it back together again

Option B includes an estimated rebuild cost of $60 million and an estimated demolition cost of $3 million Wagner said the prototype they have for elementary schools does not fit well on the current 10-acre site, as a typical new elementary school needs approximately 20 acres “It is not feasible to use that proto-type We would essentially have to go in and do a one design and absorb the cost and time to put an elementary school on this site, he said Option A would include 310 days of construction a timeline of 12 months while option B and C would be about 455 days of construction, approximately 24 months

The last option, D, would demolish the building and hold onto the site

“You have everything from rebuilding all the way to doing nothing and putting those children into seats as they currently exist ” Bernier said Hector A Cafferata was built 17 years ago as a modular building designed as a series of modular tubular steel units pre-constructed and assembled onsite The elementary school

had 725 students enrolled before Hurricane Ian and now 603 students post storm Wagner said the elementary school had a catastrophic complete failure of the roofing system due to high winds and approximately 10 to 12 inches of rain within 12 to 24 hours

The single-ply roof membrane that protects the building from water was on the side of the building rather than the top after the hurricane Hurricane Ian was a one two punch to Hector A Cafferata, first with the wind and then the torrential downpour The school took on a tremendous amount of water that started at the top of the building and worked its way through the entire structure he said The water saturated the soft surfaces of the insulation, ceiling and drywall to the point where it had to be removed

“We started the remediation efforts immediately following the hurricane ” Wagner said

Removing all the soft surfaces led to other areas such as removing the mechanical system, so they could get to the surface of the drywall

Classifieds

Now’s a good time to start a veggie garden

(Editor’s note: The following column was published previously in The Breeze )

By SHERIE BLEILER news@breezenewspapers com

Yes, in Cape Coral, now is a great time to start your vegetable garden! Our Florida sun is strong, even in winter yet the temperature is mild making ideal conditions for most familiar veggies grown “up north ” Eating food you have grown is so fresh full of flavor and nutrition Plus it only has the chemicals you have added to them

The most economical way to grow veggies is to plant seeds There are plenty of mail order seed suppliers such as Tomato Growers Supply Co right here in Fort Myers Or you can get plants already started from local nurseries, to give you a head start

What s the easiest to grow? For me, it s brocc o l i d e l i c i o u s r a w o r cooked For you the easiest could be another plant that especially does well in your soil or lighting situation

GARDEN CLUB OF CAPE CORAL

To plant, select an area that gets at least 6 hours of sun We naturally have plenty of sand and lime in our dirt, but it could use a lot more nutrition and water-holding properties to make it real soil Some amendments to the soil will help plants grow larger and hold the water in the soil better I add at least 2 inches of peat moss and 2 inches of compost or manure (such as Black Kow) and mix them into the soil

You can double this for very sandy soil After planting and watering your vegetables, add 2-3 inches of mulch, like pine needles or Florimulch from a store such as GoMulch in Cape Coral Cypress mulch is not recommended as you do not know if it is sustainably resourced Mulch will keep water from evaporating discourage weed seeds and add nutrients to the soil as it breaks down

If you have an area with less sun there are still plants to consider Lettuce and some herbs such as basil, parsley and mint appreciate some afternoon shade They will not go to seed as fast, so your season with them will be longer

I have planted more broccoli seeds because my broccoli is ready to harvest I can get another crop in before our growing season for northern crops ends around May This is true for many crops: cilantro, radish and

See VEGGIE GARDEN, page 11B

CAPE CORAL BREEZE

LOCAL LIVING

Business I Homes I Health I Education I Leisure

Januar y 27, 202 3

Members of the Captiva Chapel by the Sea's Executive Committee head to the Historic Captiva Cemetery to discuss the fencing damaged in the storm and other required cleanup

CAPTIVA CHAPEL BY THE SEA

Captiva Chapel by the Sea to resume in-person services following hurricane

By TIFFANY REPECKI trepecki@breezenewspapers com

The Captiva Chapel by the Sea will resume its in-person Sunday service on Jan 29

Marking its 74th season, the chapel typically holds its s e r v i c e s f r o m N o v e m b e r t h r o u g h A p r i l F o l l o w i n g Hurricane Ian's landfall in late September it began posting services on its website and Facebook page in midNovember as remediation and recovery efforts took place at the chapel

“Our beloved Captiva Chapel by the Sea sustained significant damage ” officials reported “Although the chapel itself has not been usable almost 1 000 of our dedicated worshippers have viewed the Sunday services online

The Rev Larry Marshall, who is leading the ministry for his fourth year, suggested at a recent board meeting that he return to the island in mid-January to resume the live services The board agreed

Due to ongoing repairs to the building the services will be held in the chapel yard Chapel attendees will miss the charm and simplicity of the chapel, but there are ordinarily more outside worshippers than those who can occupy the 90 seats in the chapel pews ” officials reported

All are welcome to attend the inter-denominational service, which will take place at 11 a m

As usual, the services will continue to be videotaped and posted online for viewers Officials have been sharing updates on the ongoing

storm recovery efforts

On Jan 5 the flooring pews steeple and cemetery were being addressed A few days earlier sand removal was to begin in order to accommodate folding chairs and walking worshippers In addition, a storage container arrived to hold the pews, which had to be removed to repair the chapel's flooring

The fish on the tip of the steeple was found on the chapel s porch in the aftermath of the hurricane Dating back to the schoolhouse times, it will be remounted on the weathervane In addition, the organ had to be removed from the chapel and stored elsewhere during the renovations until ready for use

As for the Historic Captiva Cemetery the fence may need a total replacement Due to the storm, sand covered many of the gravestones closest to the Gulf of Mexico, which volunteers are cleaning up

“The chapel building is nearly 120 years old and has weathered many storms in the past, officials reported Construction will be ongoing during the remainder of the chapel season ” T o d o n a t e t o t h e r e

captivachapel com/donate html

For additional information about the historic chapel, please visit www captivachapel com

People can also follow on Facebook at www facebook com/Captiva-Chapel-By-The-Sea

The Captiva Chapel by the Sea is at 11580 Chapin Lane, Captiva

National Philharmonic Orchestra of Ukraine wows audience at Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall

By NATHAN MAYBERG news@breezenewspapers com

It was one of those special nights that come along rarely in music A special perf o r m a n c e b y a n e x c e p t i o n a l g r o u p o f musicians during a turning point in the world The Lviv National Philharmonic Orchestra of Ukraine was in Fort Myers M o n d a y a t t h e B a r b a r a B M a n n

Performing Arts Hall just days after 40 people were killed in a Russian missile attack on an apartment building in their home country

For the past year Ukraine has been fighting to save the independence of their country from the invading forces of their n e i g h b o r s , t h e R u s s i a n F e d e r a t i o n Monday’s concert was planned two years in advance but it has taken on all the more significance with the ongoing war The U S State Department is sponsoring the p h i l h a r m o n i c s s i x - w e e k t o u r o f t h e United States, which was in its fourth performance in four nights Monday

So it was fitting that on a night where nearly all 1 800 of the Barbara B Mann

Performing Art Hall s seats were filled as their countrymen battled to defend their nation from the onslaught of their neighb o r ’ s a g g r e s s i o n t h e L v i v N a t i o n a l

Philharmonic Orchestra of Ukraine performed Dvorak’s Symphony No 9 in E minor, Op 95 From the New World

The composition was written in the 19th Century during the Czech composer’s stay in the U S while he served as director of the National Conservatory of Music in New York

The score should be recognizable to American audiences as various parts were used borrowed lifted or otherwise influenced the music in blockbuster films such as Lord of the Rings Jaws and Star W a r s T h e m a i n t h e m e i n D v o r a k s

From the New World closely resembles the celebratory and heroic battle cry arch in “Lord of the Rings ” whose ending is what the Ukrainian symphony and their brethren in their native country hope their nation will achieve in their fight to defend themselves against Russia

Monday’s performance was buttressed by mesmerizing Ukrainian art on display in the lobby and a rousing speech from the symphony s conductor about the fight for the independent life of Ukraine

Yet it was tough to top the orchestra s rendition of “Violin Concerto in D major” by Johannes Brahms which is the only violin concerto by Brahms with one of the most dazzling violin solos in classical music Soloist Vladyslava Lucheno played the impossible violin solo work on the

NATHAN MAYBERG

Lviv National Philharmonic Orchestra of Ukraine Principal Conductor Theodore Kuchar directs the group's performance of Tragic Overture, Op 81 by Johannes Brahams at the Barbara B Mann Performance Hall in Fort Myers recently

Legion Post 90 representatives chat with visitors at Art Festival

On Jan 14 and 15 the city of Cape Coral hosted the annual Arts Festival The Rotary Club organized the arts festival with over 200 booths offering exciting art, crafts home goods and food In addition many community organizations took part One of those was American Legion Post 90

rate Interestingly, many of the new people w e r e u n f a m i l i a r w i t h C a p e C o r a l , s o Legion representatives answered questions about the city or how to find information on their own Some just learned that Cape Coral had an American Legion Chapter and a VFW chapter right here in town

Post 90 supports community events throughout the year This year was critical

With hundreds of new residents in the ever-growing city it was an opportunity to let people know of Cape Coral’s veteran’s organization and how the Legion provides community support Over the two-day festival, representat i v e s f r o m t h e L e g i o n a n d L e g i o n

Auxiliary met scores of veterans many new to the city Additionally Legion members met folks from educational and social service organizations that are now familiar with the organization's work in supporting veterans and the community and expressed interest in areas where they could collabo-

Most importantly since the Legion s primary goal is veterans support, many people donated to the Poppy Drive, a veterans' tradition going back to the early 1900s Disabled vets make the poppies and the contributions are returned to them The result was contributions of approximately $2,000 American Legion Post 90 was founded in April 2001 and membership is open to all veterans The post offers a full canteen and lunch and dinner at its location on Southeast 47th Street in Cape Coral, and sponsors scholarships, Boy Scout, and Girl Scout troops, blood drives, V A volunteer and national emergency funds programs to

Cape Coral Computer Club to meet via Zoom Wednesday

The Cape Coral Computer Club meets over Zoom the first and third Wednesday of each month, with the next meeting being from 24 p m , this Wednesday, Feb 1 T h i s m e e t i n g w i l l i n c l u d e i n f o r m a t i o n o n H o w t o r e s e a r c h u s i n g G o o g l e a n d Y o u t u b e , " along with more informat i o n o n A n d r o i d p h o n e s with time for questions and answers All skill levels are welcome to join For additional informa-

tion please visit the club ‘s website at https://www capecoralcomputer club/

PHOTO PROVIDED

Air Force veteran Jeff Zambrana and Navy veteran Ted Clark greet folks at the American Legion booth at Art Festival

REAL ESTATE

addressing

Dear Mr Feichthaler:

I have a question that must be also in the minds of others who own homes in the upcoming Utility Expansion North 1 for your Breeze commentary That would be with regard to the SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS section of the FAR-BAR AS IS purchase agreement It is for certain some are fearful and will want to sell So the question for many including myself is:

Does the Special Assessments: 9 (f) (a) Seller shall pay installments due prior to Closing and Buyer shall pay installments due after Closing

Installments prepaid or due for the year of Closing shall be prorated CHECK BOX absolve the cost of Utility Expansion North 1 Assessment from the seller after the closing Assuming the assessment is not reached an effective date as the contract states? Or should other language be added to the contract? - Terry Lee P

Dear Terry Lee: This is a great question that impacts thous a n d o f h o m e o w n e r s Utilities expansion has b e e n a c o n t r o v e r s i a l topic in our city most notably because of the costs Properly addressing utility assessments in the contract is vital to avoid disputes and clarify responsibilities

T HE BREE ZE 4

Tale of the tape shows poststorm weakness in December

The number of closed single-family home sales in Cape Coral continued its climb from the post-Hurricane Ian lows back in October while median sales prices searched for their new post-storm equilibrium But as shown in the numbers below, December and fourth quarter sales still took a big hit

As of Tuesday Jan 22 there were 1 329 active listings for single-family homes in the MLS with the median list price coming in at $504,990, up just a tick from a week ago The number of pending home sales were up 6 5 percent from 599 a week ago to 638 this week A year ago there were only 470 Cape Coral singlefamily homes listed for sale with a median list price of $519,495 to go along with 933 pending sales in the MLS

and Geri Quinn Homing In

In the overall Cape Coral single-family home market there were 343 closed home sales in December, which was down 41 1 percent from the 582 homes sold in December 2021, but it was up 19 1 percent from the 288 sales in November 2022 In the fourth quarter of 2022 there were 853 closed sales which was 50 percent lower than the 1 706 homes sold in the fourth quarter of 2021 and 33 3 percent below the 1 278 sales in the third quarter of 2022 Last year, there were 5,732 singlefamily homes sold in the Cape, which was 18 7 percent below the 7,048 homes sold during the record setting year of 2021

was 60 3 percent less than the 151 sales in the fourth quarter of 2021 and 28 6 percent below the 84 closed sales in the third quarter of 2022 For the year in 2022 there were a total of 485 homes sold in this segment, which was 33 8 percent below the 733 homes sold for the year in 2021

The median sales price in the Cape Coral single-family direct sailboat access canal home segment came in at $665 000 in December, which was down 16 9 percent from $800,000 in December 2021, but 6 4 percent above the $625 000 in November 2022 In the fourth quarter the median sales price in this segment averaged $736,667 per month, which was down 6 5 percent from the average of $787,833 per month in the fourth quarter of 2021 and 10 5 percent below the average of $823 542 per month in the third quarter of 2022 For the year the median sales price in this segment averaged $847,377 per month in 2022, or 20 9 percent more than the average of $700,702 per month for the year in 2021

Freshwater canal and lake homes

Eric P Feichthaler Real Estate Law

A s y o u n o t e , P a r a g r a p h 9 ( f ) i n t h e standard contract does a relatively good job in addressing the issue but n o t f u l l y I t c o v e r s assessments certified, confirmed, and ratified b e f o r e c l o s i n g ” C o nversely this paragraph does not address assessments that everyone knows are coming, but have not been voted upon yet For assessments already in place, most residents pay them through their tax bill in annual installments In most cases the buyer assumes these assessments and continues to make the payments in future years However there is a box that can be checked that requires the seller to pay off the entire assessment balance at closing

For the clients I represent, this section is one that always receives close attention If you, as seller, check the box to pay them off in full this could result in the transfer of value of tens of thousands of dollars to your buyer which may not have been intended through negotiations When I draft a contract, I include additional language whenever assessments have not been certified Typically the language would disclose the potential for utility expansion and make clear that the seller has no

See UTILITY ASSESSMENTS, page 5B

The median sales price in the overall Cape Coral singlefamily home market was $400 000 in December which was up 3 9 percent from the $385,000 posted in December 2021, and even with the $400,000 in November 2022 In the fourth quarter the median sales price averaged $415 000 per month which was 9 8 percent above the average of $377 825 per month in the fourth quarter of 2021 but down 1 6 percent from the average of $421 667 per month in the third quarter of 2022 Last year, the median sales price in the Cape s overall single-family home market averaged $424 771 per month to finish 21 8 percent above the average median sales price of $348 652 per month for the year in 2021 Indirect gulf access canal homes

In the Cape s single-family indirect gulf access canal home segment, meaning canal homes with bridges in the canal system, there were 22 closed sales in December This was 65 6 percent lower than the 64 sales in December 2021 and 18 5 percent below the 27 sales in November 2022 In the fourth quarter of 2022 there were 68 closed sales in this segment, or 62 percent less than the 179 sales in the fourth quarter of 2021, and 34 percent below the 103 sales in the third quarter of last year For the year in 2022, there were a total of 558 homes sold in this segment or 31 percent less than the 809 homes sold for the year in 2021

The median sales price in the Cape Coral single-family indirect gulf access canal home segment came in at $740,000 in December, which was down 1 7 percent from the $753,000 in December 2021, and 7 5 percent below the $800 000 in November 2022 In the fourth quarter of 2022 the median sales price in this segment averaged $796 667 per month or 8 percent above the average of $737 667 per month in the fourth quarter of 2021, and 3 9 percent more than the average of $766 667 per month in the third quarter of 2022 For the year the median sales price in this segment averaged $798,338 per month in 2022 or 22 8 percent above the average median sales price of $649 917 per month for the year in 2021

Direct sailboat access canal homes

In the Cape Coral singlefamily direct sailboat access canal home segment (homes with no bridges in the canal system to reach open water) there were 29 closed sales in December This was 43 1 percent lower than the 51 sales in December 2021, but 38 1 percent above the 21 sales in November 2022 In the fourth quarter of last year, there were 60 closed sales in this segment, which

In the Cape’s single-family freshwater canal and lake home segment consisting of landlocked canals and lakes with no boating access to the river or the Gulf of Mexico there were 36 closed sales in December This was 49 3 percent lower than the 71 sales in December 2021, but 9 1 percent above the 33 sales in November 2022 In the fourth quarter there were 100 closed sales in this segment which was 50 7 percent below the 203 sales in the fourth quarter of 2021 and 20 percent below the 125 sales in the third quarter of 2022 For the year in 2022, there were a total of 611 sold in this segment, which was 22 5 percent lower than the 788 homes sold for the year in 2021

The median sales price in the Cape Coral single-family freshwater canal and lake home segment came in at $528 200 in December which was up 14 8 percent from $460,000 in December 2021, and up 17 4 percent from $450,000 in November 2022 In the fourth quarter, the median sales price in this segment averaged $516 067 per month beating the average of $455 000 per month in the fourth quarter of 2021 by 13 4 percent but down 4 7 percent from an average of $541 667 per month in the third quarter of 2022 For the year, the median sales price in this segment averaged $524,796 per month in 2022, or 27 7 percent higher than the average of $410 937 per month for the year in 2021

Dry lot homes

In the Cape’s single-family dry lot (non-canal) home segment there were 260 closed sales in December which was 34 percent lower than the 394 sales in December 2021, but 25 6 percent above the 207 closed sales in November 2022 There were 629 closed sales in this segment during the fourth quarter which was 46 percent below the 1 165 sales in the fourth quarter of 2021 and 34 6 percent less than the 962 sales in the third quarter of 2022 For the year, there were a total of 4,050 dry lot homes sold in 2022, which was 13 4 percent lower than the 4,676 dry lot homes sold in all of 2021 The median sales price in the Cape Coral single-family dry lot home segment came in at $379 450 in December which was up 8 6 percent from the $349,488 posted in December 2021, and up 2 6 percent from $370,000 in November 2022 In the fourth quarter, the median sales price in this segment averaged $379 150 per month or 11 6 percent above the average of $339 654 per month in the fourth quarter of 2021 but 1 9 percent lower than the average of $386,667 per month in the third quarter of 2022 For the year, the median sales price in this segment averaged $380,233 per month in 2022, which was 26 7 percent higher than the average of $300 042 per month for the full year in 2021

The sales data for this article was obtained from the Florida Realtors Multiple Listing Service Matrix for Lee County FL as of Jan 22 unless otherwise noted It was compiled by Bob and Geri Quinn and it includes information specifically for Cape Coral single-family homes and does not include condominiums short sales or foreclosures The data and statistics are believed to be reliable, however, they could be updated and revised periodically, and are subject to change without notice The Quinns are a husband and wife real estate team with the RE/MAX Realty Team office in Cape Coral They have lived in Cape Coral for over 43 years Geri has been a full-time Realtor since 2005, and Bob joined with Geri as a full-time Realtor in 2014 Their real estate practice is mainly focused on Cape Coral residential property and vacant lots

REAL ESTATE BRIEFS

REIS meeting to feature presentation from Lee County Por t Authority

Lee County Port Authority will deliver an overview of air transportation and airport expansion plans, as well as airportrelated real development projects at the Real Estate Investment Society luncheon

Tuesday Feb 14 Ben Siegel executive director of LCPA will be the guest speaker The program will include passenger and air carrier information, project updates for Southwest Florida International Airport (and Page Field as well as commercial real estate development at Skyplex Following the presentation, Siegel will respond to questions of interest to the real estate investment and development industry Siegel CPA CM has served as executive director of LCPA since November 2019 and is responsible for the administration, operations and development of RSW and FMY He has been with LCPA since 1992 and is an experienced airport executive with an extensive background in business and finance Under his leadership the LCPA finance team secured $327 million for RSW s Midfield Terminal Complex, which was one of the largest issuances of financing in Lee County history The $330 million terminal expansion and renovation project is currently underway

The meeting is sponsored by DeAngelis

and will begin promptly at 11:45

east of I-75 exit 136 in Fort Myers

Admission is $30 for members and $45 for guests which includes lunch Reservations are required by Feb 9 and m a y b e m a d e a t t h e R E I S w e b s i t e : www reis-swfl org

Royal Palm Coast Realtor Association announces

O'Brien's resignation

T h e R o y a l P a l m C o a s t R e a l t o r

A s s o c i a t i o n h a s a n n o u n c e d t h a t S e a n

O Brien has resigned after five years as chief financial officer effective Feb 2

O Brien s extensive financial and operational background proved an immediate strength for the strategic and business growth of the association

During his tenure, O Brien provided invaluable leadership in guiding the association to improve upon its financial reporting establish operational metrics which assists in understanding the growth opportunities and challenges that the business f a c e d / f a c e s a n d w o r k e d t o i m p l e m e n t cloud-based solutions that protect the business records and assets

O’Brien worked hand-in-hand with the Board of Directors and Finance Committee setting a precedent for financial empowerment

The search for a new CFO is underway and updates will be given when appropriate For additional information about the Royal Palm Coast Realtor Association,

Properly

utility assessments in a contract is vital

Bob

Mitigation experts offering free rebuilding advice in Lee County

As part of a continuing effort to help Floridians rebuild from Hurricane Nicole and Hurricane Ian FEMA is offering free advice on how to rebuild stronger and safer against

storms

Hurricane

Utility assessments

From page 4B

responsibility for it into the future Although leaving this language out may not create a responsibility for the seller in the future, it is best to clarify this sort of detail Sure, you may not be “responsible” legally but do you want pay a lawyer someday to defend you on that point? If there is any doubt on how standard language in a contract impacts your transaction, address the issue through addenda or the additional terms section in the contract Although most parties do not obtain legal counsel prior to signing the contract it is highly recommended This is especially true in our city where assessments plat errors and other unique issues can complicate real estate transactions Although the Realtors involved may have experience and skill, it is not their role to know the intricacies of Florida law Their primary role is to find sellers a buyer, and to assist buyers in finding their property and negotiate price I can’t emphasize enough the importance of knowing exactly what you are signing before committing to a sale or purchase I wish everyone in the new utility areas a quick and relatively quiet expansion!

Eric P Feichthaler has lived in Cape Coral for over 35 years and graduated from Mariner High School in Cape Coral After completing law school at Georgetown University in Washington, D C , he returned to Southwest Florida to practice law and raise a family He served as mayor of Cape Coral from 2005-2008, and continues his service to the community through the Cape Coral Caring Center Cape Coral Museum of History and Cape Coral Kiwanis He has been married to his wife Mary for over 20 years, and they have four children together He earned his board certification in Real Estate Law from the Florida Bar He is AV Preeminent rated by Martindale-Hubbell for professional ethics and legal ability and is a Supreme Court Certified Circuit Civil Mediator He can be reached at eric@capecoralattorney com or 239-542-4733

This article is general in nature and not intended as legal advice to anyone Individuals should seek legal counsel before acting on any matter of legal rights and obligations

While at each Home Depot FEMA mitigation specialists will answer questions and offer free home improvement tips and proven methods to prevent and lessen damage from future disasters Mitigation is an effort to reduce the loss of life and property damage by lessening the impact of a disaster

The information is geared for do-it-yourself work and general contractors In addition to receiving in-person advice, Hurricane

For Hurricane Nicole visit fema gov/disaster/4680 Follow FEMA Region 4 (@femaregion4) / Twitter and facebook com/fema

DePuma named to Buena Vista University's Fall 2022 Dean's List

STORM LAKE, Iowa -- Grace DePuma of Cape Coral was named to Buena Vista University's Fall 2022 Dean's List DePuma was among more than 500 students named to the Dean's List this semester

The Dean's List recognizes full-time students achieving a 3 5 grade point average or higher for the semester Buena Vista University's campus on the shores of Storm Lake hosts students in a variety of in-demand majors, while 15 community college partners across Iowa - as well as graduate programs - help expand student potential through a variety of convenient online and hybrid programs Visit bvu edu for more information

Croke named to University of Iowa

dean's list for 2022 fall semester

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- Lily Croke of Cape Coral was among the more than 7,500 undergraduate students at the University of Iowa named to the dean's list for the 2022 fall semester Croke is a fourth year student in Iowa s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and is majoring in speech and hearing science D e a n ' s l i s t s t a t u s w a s earned by only 2 427 first year undergraduates during the 2022 fall semester at Iowa, only 1,768 second year students, only 1,503 third year students and only 1 845 fourth year students

Founded in 1847 the University of Iowa is the state's oldest institution of h i g h e r e d u c a t i o n a n d i s located alongside the picturesque

Ukraine Philharmonic Orchestra: Wows Mann Hall audience

From page 2B

piece on a Francesco Gobetti violin of 1710 on loan from a private collection

The impeccable flourish of her violin solo was met with multiple applauses including a round of applause after the first movement The symphony opened the concert with a performance of “Tragic Overture

Op 81” by Brahms

The crowd handed the orchestra multiple standing ovations

After Monday s intermission before the symphony performed the Dvorak symphon y t h e i r A m e r i c a n - b o r n c o n d u c t o r

Theodore Kuchar spoke to the audience

about the nation’s history its dire state and the philharmonic’s journey to the U S which was planned two years ago before war broke out after Vladimir Putin s invasion in February of 2022

“We believe (Ukraine) will once again return to being a safe democracy for many years to come after this completely unnecessary and pointless war comes to an end, Kuchar said Kuchar, a first-generation Ukrainian American who was born in New York said the brave fight Ukrainians are putting up against Russia is the result of an incredible amount of pride patriotism and nationalism Kuchar said if the U S hadn t supported Ukraine the war might

have been over already

Speaking before the concert to the Fort Myers Beach Observer, Kuchar spoke of the importance of the philharmonic s tour amid the war in Ukraine

“Nobody could have imagined in their wildest dreams that what has happened right now in a daily basis ” Kuchar said

We are extremely happy to be here We see ourselves as ambassadors for a free, loving country which wants nothing more than to simply be a respected accepted democratic nation that is respected by the rest of the world

Kuchar, who has directed Queensland Philharmonic Orchestra in Australia, the S l o v a k S i n f o n i e t t a , t h e J a n a c e k P h i l h a r m o n i c O r c h e s t r a ( f o r m e r l y t h e Czech Radio Orchestra) and directed the Australian Festival of Chamber Music and Nevada Chamber Music Festival, said we are extremely grateful to the United States of America” for its support Maestro Kuchar said the entire orchestra is dealing with issues from the war What s happening right now with lack of stability, with no electricity, with no run-

ning water in some places with no gas existence is very much taken for granted when you have all those things, Kuchar said Rations for electricity in many places in Ukraine is limited to four hours for 24h o u r p e r i o d

u c h a r s a i d “ e v e r y Ukrainian believes that this war and this onslaught will result in the independence Ukraine seeks Though he was born in New York City

when he was 10 He learned to play the violin and then switched to the viola After studying at the Cleveland Institute of Music, he would go on to become artistic director of the National Symphony of Ukraine and later as resident conductor of the Kent/Blossom Music Festival, the educational institution established in cooperation with The Cleveland Orchestra where he was responsible for the orchestral program

“This tour I regard as a very important very symbolic trip, Kuchar said

PHOTO BY NATHAN MAYBERG

An exhibition of Ukrainian art in the lobby of the Barbara B Mann Performing Arts Hall drew art admirers during the intermission of the Lviv National Philharmonic Orchestra of Ukraine's performance in Fort Myers recently

EDUCATION NOTES

Dougher ty named to Mercer University Fall

Obituaries

Founded in 1833 Mercer University is a center of

d u c a t i o n T h e u n i v e r s i t y enrolls approximately 9,000 students in 12 schools and colleges - liberal arts and sciences law pharmacy medicine business engineering education theology music nursing, health professions and professional advancement - on major campuses in Macon and Atlanta, medical school sites in Macon Savannah and Columbus and at regional academic centers in Henry and Douglas counties

F o r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n , p l e a s e v i s i t www mercer edu

Retirement planning seminars to be held at Hodges University

Hodges Connect Professional Education and Training, and Investment Concepts will present a series of three seminars about the many aspects of planning for a successful retirement The February seminars will be held from 6-8 p m at Hodges University in Building H

Attendees will learn about strategies to manage day-to-day finances tax reduction a n d i n v e s t m e n t m a n a g ement Additionally, attendees will learn about proper planning to be prepared for a c o m f o r t a b l e f i n a n c i a l future Some of the seminar t o p i c s i n c l u d e f i n a n c i a l basics, retirement income, r i s k m a n a g e m e n t , i n v e s tments, and estate planning

The seminar dates are Thursday Feb 9 16 and 23 The cost is $75 and i n c l u d e s o n e F i n a n c i a l S t r a t e g i e s f o r S u c c e s s f u l Retirement workbook

H o d g e s U n i v e r s i t y i s located at 4501 Colonial Blvd Fort Myers To register and get more i n f o r m a t i o n , v i s i t h t t p s : / / w w w h o d g e s e d u / r e t i r ement-seminar

Humana book drive benefits

local Literacy

Buddy Program

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A virtual book drive by H u m a n a e m p l o y e e s i n December 2022 has resulted in 200 books for preschool children in Southwest Florida This is the f o u r t h y e a r H u m a n a e mployees in the Central/North Florida region came together to buy books and promote early literacy through the Early Learning Coalition of S W F L ’ s L i t e r a c y B u d d y Program Employees used an Amazon Wish List created by the Coalition to select a n d o r d e r f r o m a n a g eappropriate book list H u m a n a e m p l o y e e s scheduled times to deliver the books and read to 3- 4and 5-year-old children at preschools in Lee, Collier, and Hendry counties Humana encourages its employees to give back to the community where they live and work Each year an employee receives 8 hours o f V o l u n t e e r T i m e O f f Employees can use the time in any way that benefits their community The Early Learning Coalition of SWFL s Literacy B u d d y P r o g r a m c o n n e c t s volunteers with young children in preschools Volunteers respond to children s letters and send them books t h r e e t i m e s d u r i n g t h e school year The program is o p e n t o i n d i v i d u a l s a n d groups Visit the Early Learning C o a l i t i o n w e b s i t e a t w w w E L C o f S W F L o r g t o learn more about volunteer opportunities

Anderson receives Garden Club of Cape Coral’s Service Award

The Garden Club of Cape Coral has announced that Charlene Anderson has won the prestigious Club Service Award

Anderson has been a member of the club since 2009 and has held many board positions from 2nd vice president and membership chair to recording secretary and corresponding secretary She has been the special events chair from 2009-2011, served on the Ways and Means Committee

and Holiday Committee from 2011 to 2018 She is the chair of the club's Penny Pines from 2020-2023

She is also involved as a board member of the Fort Myers – Lee County Garden Council holding the positions of treasurer and recording secretary positions from 2015 In addition, she holds the treasurer board position since 2021 for the Florida

Veggie garden: It’s a good time

From page 1B

lettuce types Pick and plant again! The more heat loving vegetables may grow through the summer such as peppers fennel and eggplant

Vegetables thrive better if you look at them every couple of days or so Whether you plant them in a pot, in a raised garden or tuck them among your landscape plants,

they thrive better if you fertilize them often, water twice per week and keep your eye out for pests If using pesticides, try to use the least toxic material You will be eating the pesticide! Pick off bugs/caterpillars and drop them in a bowl of soapy water Spray with insecticidal soap or oil

Caterpillars often come to my tomatoes Spray with caterpillar killer (Bt) for tomato pinworms If large caterpillars

HEALTH NOTES

Free hearing testing, hearing aid fittings offered

Hearing the Call SWFL and Life for Relief and Development will be proving free hearing testing and hearing aid fittings to income eligible Floridians Saturday, Jan 28, at All Souls Episcopal Church at 14640 N Cleveland Ave in North Fort Myers Audiologists health care professionals and hearing aid manufacturers are coming together to provide vital hearing services to those that cannot afford treatment Hearing the Call is a nonprofit campaign bringing hope and healing to persons with hearing loss locally and globally

Through quality healthcare, we help people connect with family, education, and opportunities

The

f S o u t h w e s t Florida, offers a free monthly autism spectrum disorder screening for toddlers 18 months to five years of age

The next screening will be held on Feb 3, from 9 a m t o 2 p m , a t t h e Pediatric Specialist Office 1 5 9 0 1 B a s s R o a d S u i t e 102 Fort Myers The ASD screening is conducted by the Golisano C h i l d r e n s H o s p i t a l o f S o u t h w e s t F l o r i d a

this new role he will continue to see patients at Physicians Primary Care of SWFL s Fort Myers Family Medicine office located at 7381 College Parkway

As a graduate of Purdue University

Burdzy received his doctorate in osteopathic medicine from Nova Southeastern

U n i v e r s i t y C o l l e g e o f O s t e o p a t h i c Medicine in Ft Lauderdale This was followed by an internship in internal medicine at Genesys Regional Medical Center in Grand Blanc Mich and a residency in family medicine at Florida Hospital East Orlando

Dr Burdzy is on staff at Lee Memorial Hospital and Health Park Medical Center

Physicians’ Primary Care of Southwest Florida a physician-owned and operated medical practice, was formed in 1996 by many long practicing local physicians and has grown to become the largest independent physician-owned primary care practice in Southwest Florida

For more information visit www ppcswfl com

Federation of Garden Clubs

Service is the lifeblood of any organization Everything flows from it and is nourished by it! The club values Anderson’s membership and willingness to help with anything the club needs No matter how busy she may be, she will step up to help

For more information about the Garden Club of Cape Coral visit www gardenclubofcapecoral com

to start planting

appear they can be cut in half with scissors For fungus diseases, try to keep water from splashing onto the plant by using mulch Water early in the day and hope it is dry by sunset Cut off infected leaves which are getting brown and throw in the trash to keep it from spreading Plant them in a different place each year to avoid fungus diseases What are your favorite veggies? Why don’t you try growing them this winter?

Sherie Bleiler is Past President of the Garden Club of Cape Coral

p o s t l e M e t r o p o l i t a n C o m m u n i t y C h u r c h 3 0 4 9 M c G r e g o r B l v d F o r t M y e r s T h e screening is free and no appointment is necessary D O H - L e e a l s o o f f e r s routine HIV/STD testing in the clinic by appointment or walk-in For information or to schedule an appointment call 239-461-6100

C a l l 1 - 8 0 0 - F L A - A I D S o r v i s i t t h e D O H - L e e H I V / A I D S W e b p a g e o r w w w K n o w Y o u r H I V S t a t u s c o m f o r a d d itional information

For more about the Florida Department of Health p l e a s e v i s i t w w w F l o r i d a Health gov

Burdzy managing physician at Physicians'

Primar y Care

D r J o n

PHOTO PROVIDED

Anderson, left, receives

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