OPINIONS

Publisher Raymond M Eckenrode reckenrode@breezenewspapers com

Executive Editor Valarie Harring vharring@breezenewspapers com

Editor Paulette LeBlanc pleblanc@breezenewspapers com

Advertising Director Laurie Ragle lragle@ breezenewspapers com

Advertising Sales Charlene Russ cruss@breezenewspapers com

Design & Layout Chris Strine cstrine@breezenewspapers com Obituaries Debbie Carletti obits@breezenewspapers com

As the 2022-2023 school year in Lee County comes to an end, great things have been accomplished by our newest kindergarten students to our graduating seniors When COVID hit in 2020-2021 and then returned in 2021-2022, everyone rallied together to ensure that we addressed the educational needs of our students It seemed like this year students, teachers, support staff, and administrators would be able to return to normal, but then Ian hit! It has been a year of both challenges and achievements for the district

The challenges saw many students and staff faced with the loss of their homes and possessions and most schools damaged and unusable Two schools, Hector Cafferata Elementary and Fort Myers Beach Elementary, were destroyed Many teachers lost everything in their classrooms, and students had their school year instruction delayed for a month

With graduation ceremonies coming up this month to celebrate and highlight the Class of 2023, I am amazed by the accomplishments of this group There is no way to list them all, but here is a sampling:

THE ARTS: Cypress Lake High senior Kristen Noble won the Contemporary A Cappella Society for Best Original Song by a Scholastic Group, TAG There were many outstanding presentations throughout the year in all the arts: Theater, Drama, Film, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts

Chiquita Lock kills manatees; city’s ‘mitigation plan’ questionable

To the editor:

Mr Costello recently wrote that the City of Cape Coral and hundreds of residents would like the Chiquita Lock removed to save the manatees and are willing to make accommodations to “ensure” minimal environmental impact and maybe even benefit

I would like to respond, point by point, as a trained soil scientist, part-time boater and lifelong skeptic

1 Manatees are killed/crushed in the lock

Web Poll

Previous

Ten manatees killed in the lock in 23 years doesn’t seem like a huge number Manatees are also killed by boaters I witnessed a boat speeding through the back bay of Matlacha last year and it suddenly became airborne after colliding with an underwater object on the edge of the channel A manatee carcass was found a couple weeks later near the site

I w o u l d b e i n t e r e s t e d i n r e a d i n g t h e necropsy reports before blaming the lock for the deaths

2 The answer is not a “Manatee Protection

SPORTS: The district offers students many athletic opportunities to compete The following are the 2023 State Champions:

Luke Buzzelli / Ida Baker / Boys

Weightlifting

Reef Gingell / Fort Myers / Boys

Weightlifting

Kassidy Emerick / Mariner / Girls

Weightlifting

Eliana Cook / Riverdale / Girls

Weightlifting

Julia Knowler / Fort Myers / Girls

Weightlifting

Jillian Jacobs / Fort Myers / Girls

Weightlifting

Max Brady / Mariner / Wrestling

Christopher Minto / Wrestling

CAREER & TECH EDUCATION: The district had the second most graduates in Florida with Industry Certifications in 2022 This year, 2023 is on pace to equal or exceed it Courses are offered in all High Schools with 40,000 students participating Some of the many courses offered are: Agriculture, Architecture, Construction, A/V Technology, Business, Education, Engineering, Finance, H

Marketing, Safety, and Security

ADVANCED STUDIES / GIFTED / SPECIAL ED: All the District High Schools

System ” This statement needs to be balanced against manatee density in the Glades County locks area If the manatee population is 2-3 times higher than the Cape Coral area, the protection seems to be working at reducing mortality

3 Those who oppose taking out the lock say they are for the environment, but apparently don’t care about the manatee

The manatee is just one part of the marine environment Sea grass is an important forage for the manatee Anecdotal evidence suggests the sea grass quality and quantity has been degraded in the Matlacha Pass since the removal of the Ceitus Lock Perhaps the manatees are using the locks to commit suicide because they are starving ??

Mr Costello goes on to list the projects proposed by Cape Coral to ameliorate the predicted consequences of the lock removal

1 The replacement of storm water catch basins which drain to the waterway.

H o w d o e s r e p l a c i n g t h e c a t c h b a s i n s change the course of the water leaving in pipes from the catch basin? The catch basins offer either International Baccalaureate (IB), Cambridge Adv a n c e d I n t e r n a t i o n a l C e r t i f icate of Education (AICE), Advance Placement (AP), Honors P r o g r a m s , a n d D u a l E n r o l lm e n t A p p r o x i m a t e l y t w othirds of high school students a r e e n r o l l e d i n a t l e a s t o n e A d v a n c e d S t u d i e s C o u r s e There are 5,484 students participating in Gifted Programs, and 1 2 , 8 2 3 s t u d e n t s r e c e i v i n g Special Education Services

T h e C l a s s o f 2 0 2 3 h a s earned more than 50 Million dollars in scholarships to attend colleges, universities, and technical centers across the United States Job well done!

I would like to thank all our school staff, faculty, and administrators for adapting to the challenges of this year The Board appreciates all your hard work, early mornings, and late nights Thanks also go to our parents, stud e n t s , a n d c o m m u n i t y f o r t h e i r s u p p o r t through another unprecedented year

C O N G R A T U L A T I O N S T O T H E CLASS OF 2023! We are proud of you To all, have a safe and wonderful summer, and we look forward to next year

Armor Persons is the chair of the Lee County School Board He represents District 5 are 50 + years old, they are going to need replacing as a matter of course

2 The replacement of the storm water management system associated with the dog park at Rotary Park Really, What’s going on at the dog park? I’m told by friends, who use that park, that the owners pick up their dog’s poo No poo, no nutrients going into the water Besides, dog poo has organic matter that holds the nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium) for a slower plant useable release, unlike the mineral fertilizer everyone likes to spread on their lawns along with the “bonus” weed or bug control

3 Contributions to the study of the endangered smalltooth sawfish

How much? Fifty dollars, maybe a C-note? How generous is Cape Coral with Ol Mother Nature and the people who want to protect her? Put it in writing!

4 Implementation of an aquatic vegetation removal program. Why? Maybe the manatees are eating that vegetation because they can’t get enough sea grass There’s the outside chance it would go away if y’all would convert to native plants in your yards instead of wasting water, chemicals and mineral fertilizer on non-native species which contributes to c a n a l w a t e r p o l l u t i o n a n d s u b s e q u e n t l y marine life degradation

5 T h e p l a n t i n g o f 3 , 0 0 0 m a n g r o v e seedlings and installing oyster reef balls So the city is going to plant seedlings in the water along the seawall? Are they going to tend them and replace what may sicken and die?

Hurricane Ian took out a couple of oyster reefs in Matlacha Pass, is Cape Coral going to