County update for Pine Islanders needing permitting services

Due to a decline in demand for permitting services on Wednesdays at the Pine Island Public Library, the Lee County Department of Community Development will streamline its operations to its main office in downtown Fort Myers, but the county will begin a new, temporary weekly service next week for islanders who need transportation to downtown

DCD staff will conclude the final day at the library at 5 p m , Wednesday, March 29 The service has been offered on Wednesdays since Jan 4 to assist those who are rebuilding and repairing their homes in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, which made landfall Sept 28, 2022 DCD has assisted more than 490 residents who were obtaining permits for repairs to existing buildings

Residents with active permits who need to check the status can now use online services, send DCD an email or call DCD staff

Residents acting as their own contractor who still need to submit permit applications now will need to visit the downtown Fort Myers permitting office, as will residents seeking a full demolition or complete replacement of a structure The address is 1500 Monroe St , Fort Myers

For those islanders who do not have transportation, the county is setting up a temporary, weekly LeeTran service beginning Thursday, April 6 Here’s how it will work:

■ Permit applicants must schedule a Thursday appointment between the hours of 10 a m and 2 p m Please call 239-533-8330 for scheduling purposes

■ Applicants must then request transportation by calling LeeTran at 239-533-8726 at least 24-hours in advance of their scheduled Thursday appointment

■ The LeeTran shuttle will leave from the Pine Island Public Library, 10701 Russell Road, Bokeelia, with service beginning at 9 a m The shuttle service will run every 90 minutes for residents with appointments to and from the DCD permitting office

■ Parking at the library and the shuttle roundtrip ride are free

■ LeeTran will continue the shuttle service until the last scheduled customer is returned

■ Continuation of the service will be contingent on demand

Applicants for rebuilding and repairing need only a description of the work and their address, and staff will walk them through the process, which might include obtaining additional documents For example, engineered plans or Florida Product Approvals may be necessary to issue permits Hired contractors are asked to continue to use the existing electronic permitting process

Calusa Land Trust work/fun party Saturday at Chapin Preserve

The Calusa Land Trust's monthly work/fun party will be held Saturday, April 8, at the Chapin Preserve beginning at 9 a m This 91-acre preserve is located at the terminus of Royal Okley Lane (Stringfellow Road to Harbor Drive to Mannheim Road and then follow the signs )

The entrance area/Kell Kellermann Vista now provides a picnic area with ample parking and access to a kayak launch through a mangrove canopied waterway trailing out to Matlacha Pass Hurricane Ian debris and invasive plant removal will be the primary missions of this event

As an all-volunteer land conservancy, the Calusa Land Trust relies upon work/fun parties to accomplish its stewardship mission on its 2,400-plus acres of preserved lands It is recommended that volunteers pack with them, work gloves/clothing, pruning tools and a happy spirit CLT rewards participants with cold beverages, a pizza lunch and lots of warm fellowship

For more information, contact Les Smith at lesmanatee3355@gmail com

Cat of the Week

Little Miss

This picture shows a petite, 1-year-old dilute calico kitty It does not show how sweet, gentle and very food motivated Little Miss is It also can't show how she likes being talked to and scratched behind the ears There are a lot of things pictures can't show about our kitties, but they would be happy to tell you. Stop by Helping Paws Animal Sanctuary and meet some of our fur kids. Little Miss will be glad to see you! For more information call Helping Paws Animal Sanctuary at 239-283-9100. If you’d rather just donate, our address is 10060 Mallory Parkway E, Unit D, St James City, FL, 33956, or there’s always our website www helpingpawsanimalsanctuary com

Of the traditional Mullet Toss, Welch said you can buy it, you can eat it, you can toss it, you can drop it, emphasizing that if there is anything you can do with a mullet, it will be done on Pine Island

“Thanks also to all the volunteers who helped put on the event, as well as the sponsors and vendors also the nice weather making for a fun day We hope you all enjoyed yourselves,” Welch said

Mullet Toss Winners 2023

Longest Toss 2023

153 feet by Cole Christianson

Fry Division, ages 1 – 5, B o y s : G o l d : A b l e , S i l v e r : D a n i e l ,

Bronze: Graham G i r l s : G o l d : S a i l o r , S i l v e r : O l i v i a ,

Bronze: Ava

Fingerling, ages 6 – 10,

Boys: Gold: Isiah, Silver: Kai, Bronze: Benjamin G i r l s : G o l d : S t e p h a n i e , S i l v e r :

Georgia, Bronze: Eden

Juvenile, ages 11 – 15

Boys: Gold: Nathan, Silver: Dawson, Bronze: McCoy

Girls: Gold: Leiana, Silver: Paetyn, Bronze: Paige Grey Mullet, ages 61 +

Men: Gold: Lance V, Silver: Dennis

Thomas, Bronze: Eric Nelson

Women: Gold: Sally Bristow, Silver: Lori, Bronze: Joanne Stevens

Adult, ages 16 – 60

Men: Gold: Cole Christianson, Silver: Nicholas Rosalino, Bronze: Jarod Bigler

Women: Gold: Morgan Riddle, Silver: Ashley K, Bronze: Alean

Parade of Mer maids 2023

Thanks to everyone who took part The Chamber of Com-merce is delighted that it could help keep an island tradition going as Matlacha recovers

The People’s Choice awards

Mermaid Queen: Jules Kayatta and her Fishers of Mermen

Runner-up: Jenny Kayatta

Alden Pines

From page 1 she said, which helped for a while, but now it seems trespassers are making their way onto the private property once again

“We’ve even had people in here after dark, both in the evening and in the morning fishing the other day tires were slashed on a vehicle, so it’s going from bad to worse,” Hembrook said

For now, the HOA is trying to come up with a solution, Hembrook said In the meantime, there will be another meeting this month, to discuss the future maintenance and or development of the Alden Pines community

Captain’s Harbor

people show up offering to help,” White said Fellow Captain's Harbor resident Gary Darling, who watched the tournament, said it’s become a wonderful tradition a m o n g r e s i d e n t s , w h i c h h a d m e a g e r beginnings and blossomed into something they now all look forward to “I don’t know what the future of this

From page 1 event is, but it’s caught on big time Afterwards there’s pizza and they have first, second, third place from the tournament and they even have a booby prize It’s a fun event,” Darling said, describing the event as informal, but great goofy fun

C a p t a i n ' s H a r b o r i s l o c a t e d a l o n g C a p t a i n ' s H a r b o r D r i v e o f f o f Stringfellow Road in Bokeelia