Inside the Moon
Sinkhole A
Schlitterbahn
2016 Texas Surf Competition
The
Issue 629
Island Moon
The voice of The Island since 1996
May 5, 2016
Live Music A18 Photo By Miles Merwin
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Around The Island
Plastic Bag Ban and Second New Traffic Light Move Forward
By Dale Rankin editor@islandmoon.com We hit a milestone last weekend… or maybe a millstone would be more accurate…our road system from the Port Aransas ferry landings to the top of the JFK Causeway was one continual parking lot. Cars were not moving over the JFK, down State Highway 361, or in Port Aransas. Saturday evening found traffic was still backed up past the city limits of Port Aransas and Corpus Christi in both directions. Travel time in either direction was well over one hour and the line of southbound cars from Port Aransas to Padre Island Sunday morning was bumper to bumper until well into the afternoon. There is currently about $50 million available for road improvements in this stretch of roadway with construction on passing lanes along the SH 361 corridor later this year.
By Dale Rankin
An Island ban on single-use point of purchase plastic bags and traffic lights were the main topics of conversation at the Island Strategic Action Committee Tuesday with the group approving a move recommending that the Corpus Christi Council move on the bag ban, and move forward with studying the need for a traffic light at the SPID/Verdemar/Jackfish intersection in addition to the light already approved for the Aquarius/ SPID intersection.
Tax Season 2016
Islander and New Taxpayer Liaison Officer Offers Tips on Reducing Appraised Home Values By Dale Rankin
Islander Bob Maupin, a longtime consultant for property owners appealing their appraised values, has been hired as the Tax Liaison Officer at the Nueces County Appraisal District. “My main job is to help taxpayers who are appealing their appraisals and to handle complaints,” Maupin said.
The AEP crews using a helicopter to replace equipment on the top of the power poles around the Packery Channel Bridge drew a lot of attention this week. The harsh environment means the equipment must be replaced every few years. The work is expected to continue through next week. But the way things now stand all those lanes will do is get drivers to the traffic jams at both ends quicker. The roadway along SH 361 is now worn to the point that the least bit of moisture makes it slick in a hurry. We also observed a couple of near fights as knuckleheads tried to pass the line of cars on the shoulder kicking up dust and slinging gravel until they were blocked by drivers who moved over onto the shoulder and cut them off. This lead to the exchange of words not heard in the Bible and on a road full of pickup trucks sooner or later will be settled by armed conflict. The rule for Islanders now is run errands on Saturday and don’t travel the Island Runway until at least midafternoon Sunday. After that the road clear because, as we know, what happens on The Island leaves on Sunday.
Port A jammin’ Each week Ronnie outlines the live music in Port Aransas in these pages and over the years the number of live music venues has increased to the point that now there are a dozen live music venues active on any given weekend. Last weekend the Uncle Lucius show at the Back Porch played to an overflow crowd and there were good live bands doing original music all over town from Shorty’s to the Third Coast Studio to Horrace Caldwell Pier with two new venues
Around continued on A3
Property owners, citing six traffic deaths at the Verdemar/SPID intersection since 1998, say a traffic light is needed. The group recommended that the city staff undertake a study of the need for the light.
2016 Sandfest 2nd Place Solo Bert Adams "Gotcha"
Maupin will be particularly busy after he takes office May 16 when a complete list of appraisals from around the county are released by the District, prior to that any homeowner looking for “comps”, the appraised value of homes similar to their own, will have to wait until they are released on the District’s website, or ask for them during their appraisal revue hearing. This will place homeowners who appeal before May 16 at a disadvantage when it comes to gathering background material to use in their appraisal hearing. Maupin said before that time homeowners may check with area realtors for sales prices on homes in their area in an attempt to determine the market value of their home. However, Maupin said there are some basic things that homeowners should know before they appear for an appeal that could help to lower their appraised value.
Meanwhile, city engineers told ISAC members that a contract on the re-design of the Aquarius/SPID
“There are some common things that people miss that can help lower their value,” he said. “As your house ages you can use that to help get your value down.”
Bag Ban continued on A15
Whoop It Up! By Brent Rourk
For instance, if you roof is twenty or more years old you can use that to reduce your home’s appraised value. To determine how much your value can be reduced take the number of square feet of the roof and divide by 84 and multiply that number by $3.60 and that is how much your value should be reduced by. If an air conditioner is more than 10 years old the price of a new unit, about $6000 Maupin said, can be taken off your appraised value. Likewise with an inside paint job that is ten years old or an exterior paint job that is fifteen or more year old.
Heather Reynolds, Chair of the Whoop It Up Committee, is busy with her fabulous and efficient group as they tirelessly work to put on one of the biggest parties on the Island at the best venue. Whoop It Up is the annual party and fundraiser for our own Island Seashore Schools and this year it is going to even bigger and as well different in many wonderful ways. It promises to be one of those handful of events on the Island that we all enjoy and look forward to. What better way to have a great time and support our Island schools than to attend this event on May 14th at Schlitterbahn.
Officials from the Nueces County Appraisal District will be on hand in Flour Bluff on Saturday, May 7 from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Flour Bluff High School Cafeteria located at 2505 Waldron Road, for all property owners in Nueces County who wish to protest their property values.
Rebranding
They will also be in Port Aransas on Saturday, May 21, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Ancel R. Brundrett Middle School Gymnasium located at 100 Station St. Photos by Miles Merwin
A little Island history
How Coastal Settlers Made Peace with the Karankawa Indians
The Karankawa Indians who populated the Coastal Bend prior to the arrival of Europeans, carried out one of the earliest treaties between Native Americans and settlers in Texas, and also one of the few which both sides kept to.
In 1824 a settler named John White and two others had settled in the Austin Colony near the Colorado River. A group of settlers traveled by yawl to the mouth of the river with the intention of purchasing some corn and on the trip they were captured by Karankawa Indians. To save his life White told the Indians he would go up river and purchase some corn there, then return to trade with the Karankawas and rescue his companions. The Indians consented and White set out in his yawl. The agreement was that when White returned back downstream he would set the prairie grass ablaze ten miles inland so they would know it was him returning. White returned to the settlement and told the others what had happened and a Captain Jesse Burnham raised
Reynolds commented about why this year is a ‘rebranding’ year for this fantastic party, “This year is special because it is the 20th anniversary of the charter schools. Beginning with 18 students, there are now over 500 students. Gone from 2 classrooms to two schools. The school system that started out as a few parents who wanted to better educate their children, turned into a school system that serves the children of the Island and exceeds the state and federal testing standards.”
At Schlitterbahn Another distinction of note is that after years at Whiskey River in Corpus Christi, the event will now be held at the Islands premier facility – Schlitterbahn. Having a huge party here on our own Island in a beautiful and expansive venue makes it even more of an attractive proposition. No excuse for missing it. Thinking about the benefit of holding the bash at Schlitterbahn Reynolds stated, “Schlitterbahn is better because it is a beautiful facility. It is on the Island and will become an integral part of the community.
a company of thirty militiamen who headed back downriver. They found White’s two companions sitting in a boat on the river who reported that the Indians were either at the mouth of the river or across the bay on a peninsula. Burnham divided his men into two groups, one half of the men marched about a mile further down the riverbank, while the other remained where they were. That group set the prairie on fire and in a short time a large canoe filled with Indians was seen coming up the river. As they disembarked on the riverbank they were all killed.
A short time later the same tribe of Karankawas approached the settlers. They said they had grown tired of the war and that their numbers were diminishing in the face of Austin’s settlement and they wanted peace. They proposed to meet Austin at La Bahia to make a treaty. Austin collected one hundred volunteers and met them at a creek four miles east of La Bahia where a treaty was signed by which the Indians promised not come go east of the San Antonio River and the Indians were as good as their word.
History continued on A7
Strongly believing that Schlitterbahn is the absolute best venue Reynolds continued, “They are hosting several other community events and activities that are important to Island life. It gives us a central location to gather, network and enjoy our community.”
Great Entertainment – The Rocket Brothers Band It will be a bigger party, not only a fundraiser for our Seashore Schools but a community wide event. They are bringing in a great band from Austin, The Rocket Brothers Band – a fantastic group that jams different
Whoop it! continued on A4