Inside the Moon
Moon on a Spoon A6
On the Rocks A7
Winter Texan Roundup A13
Sports A8
The
Issue 612
Island Moon
The voice of The Island since 1996
January 7, 2016
The only Island in Texas where Santa wears shorts and flip flops.
Around The Island By Dale Rankin editor@islandmoon.com We made it through to the other side everybody. The holidays are behind us, the great weather is back, at least for now, and the JFK Causeway will soon be sagging from the weight of RVs piloted by Winter Texans fleeing the Great White North. Islanders living along the waterfront on our little sandbar have noticed that the winter tides this year have been abnormally high. While the tide charts have shown fluctuations of around a foot that incoming water is on top of the extra foot or so that is already here. We are used to wide tidal fluctuations in the winter, due to windblown tides but this is the first time in memory when the water has come in and stayed as long as it has this season. In the days before Al Gore invented the Internet, when The Island was the best ranchland in America (no fences needed, plenty of good grass and water) the ranchers crossed their cattle in the winter on a sandbar that ran from a spot near the end of what is now Whitecap across the Laguna Madre to Flour Bluff. We had some low-water days right before the New Year when that would have been possible, but for the most part those cattle would have to do some swimming to make the crossing this season.
UBER gap We get regular inquiries here about the absence of ride-hailing outfits UBER and LYFT on The Island and in Corpus Christi in general. When Islanders travel to other American cities and use the companies they wonder why we don’t have them available here on The Island. We have written about this before and the short answer is that our city doesn’t appear to want them. While most cities in Texas now have rules in place for drivers ours has been mute on the subject. The city of San Antonio has been the bell cow in Texas in the debate over the main point of contention which is background checks for drivers. They split the baby by passing rules which do not require drivers to have a fingerprint background check but give the customer the option of only using drivers which have had the check; a practical market-driven solution to the problem. Austin is now going to require fingerprint checks and both companies say as a result they will leave the city. Houston has gone the other way and even provides a designated space at their airport for ride-hailing services.
Free
Weekly
FREE
New Law Requires Boat Operators Under the Age of 23 to Have Certification Card
Photo by Miles Merwin
Port Aransas Barefoot Mardi Gras Kickoff Party Plastic Bag Ban January 12 at Mikel Mays in Place
By Dale Rankin It is now illegal for anyone under the age of twenty-three to operate a boat on Texas waters with a motor of more than fifteen horsepower, a sailboat over fourteen feet, or a jet ski without first passing a boater safety education class. The IAW Water Safety Act passed by the 2015 legislature, which took effect September 1, 2015, requires a boat operator to take a state-approved boater education class. The new law is an expansion on a previous law, still in effect, which requires teens between the ages of 13 and 18 to have documentation of a successfully completed, state approved boater education class, or an adult (over 18 years of age) on board any watercraft they are operating, including a jet ski, or to have the same boater safety training required by the new law for operators born after September 1, 1993. “The idea is to create a safer environment on the water by making sure that everyone operating a watercraft has a basic understanding of the skills, rules, and regulations,” said, TPWD instructor Chuck Pendlyshok who is teaching classes on The Island. “Even for boaters over
Boater Education A8
Help kick off Barefoot Mardi Gras at the Kick Off Party at 5:30pm on January 12, 2016 at Mikel Mays on Bob Hall Pier! Admission will be $7.77. Food will be provided and drinks available. A Silent Auction will offer fun deals from around As of January 1 plastic bags are now banned in the City of Port Aransas. The Port Aransas City Council approved the move last year with the effective date of January 1 Shoppers in Port Aransas will have the choice of either requesting their purchase to be placed in paper bags or they will need to bring their own reusable bags. Some businesses may also have reusable bags available at checkout counters. The use of single-use plastic bags will still be permitted for bait and seafood purchases, as well as for raw foods such as meat or fruit and vegetables. Violations carry fines up to $500 for each offense. The City of Corpus Christi currently does not have a ban on single-use plastic bags.
Update on Island projects
Water Exchange Bridge and New Island Traffic Light
By Dale Rankin
The documents required by the Texas Department of Transportation for the construction of a water exchange bridge on SPID between Commodores and Whitecap are in place, a public hearing on the project is expected by the end of February, and plans for construction and funding of the bridge will go to the Corpus Christi City Council by the end of January, according to information provided by city staff to the Island Strategic Action Committee in its
regular meeting Tuesday night.
Public comment on the project closed in late 2015 and according to city staffers each of the questions raised has been addressed by city planners who are now waiting for final word from TxDot so a public hearing which requires a thirty-day notice can be scheduled.
rt
20h Padre I 16 sland
No
It’s time to get serious about floats and costumes for Barefoot Mardi Gras as the parade is now only five weekends away. It’s time to get your beads on folks. We’ll see you there and in the meantime say hello if you see us Around The Island.
Meet and Greet for Islanders
All Islanders are invited to attend an island United Political Action Committee Meet and Greet on January 13th beginning at 6:30 PM at the Island Italian Restaurant. This is the third in a series of Meet and Greets provided to inform Islanders about what is happening in our governments and school districts. Joe Kelly from the Flour Bluff Independent School District will
Aquarius canal no matter what the day's climate! At 1:16 on New Year's Day, residents of Jackfish and the surrounding streets jumped from their docks for a very, very brief swim in the 52-degree water on a 45-degree windy and rainy day. Insanity reigns on our Island! Jason Towns
Also featured on the venue will be Guy Watts from Del Mar College who will inform us about the latest happenings at Del Mar. Plan to attend and learn more about what is happening and take time to chat with these representatives.
Impressive Line-up of Classics By Brent Rourk It was straight out of American Graffiti, except the actors were more mature; at least a few years past the youthful escapades comically portrayed in the movie. One of that movie’s great messages was the place of the automobile in American culture in the 1950s and 60s.
sample of their history and beauty. Adra Campbell, one of the founding members of the PIACC along with her husband Bob-O, stated, “We have only been in existence for two months and there were 9 cars in attendance from Island residents. More car owners are planning to attend the next Cruise-In.”
Cars continued on A3
A little Island history
A red beauty drew looks at the Cruise-In.
Many Islanders know of the annual Jackfish Christmas Street party and hundreds attend whether they live on Jackfish or hail from a hundred miles away. However, the Jackfish New Year’s party always seems to be much less popular... Maybe it's because at the latter celebration, you're expected to join in an Auld Lang Syne plunge into the Old
share, along with the CFO, the current status of FBISD including progress on the bond issue and other recent developments.
Padre Island Antique Car Club Shows at Sonic
Jackfish Polar Bear Plunge
Pictured here are-- in no particular order: Andy, Darian, Jason & Shamay Mansfield, Zach Zarbock, Mike & Jody Dunne, Andy Musfeldt, Terry & Sally Palmer, Jason & Lisa Towns, Joseph Saenz, Matt Jimenez, and Polar Bear Plunge Party hosts Charlie & Kelly Lohr.
For additional information email to barefootmardigras@yahoo.com
By Brent Rourk
Projects continued on A14
Barefoot Mardi Gras
the Island and Corpus Christi. All proceeds will benefit Big Brother Big Sisters of Nueces County and the Island Foundation Schools.
IUPAC Presents FBISD and Del Mar Speakers
Design plans call for the bridge, at a projected cost of $10.5 million, to feature three arches of about 40
The debate on ride-hailing companies in Corpus Christi has yet to begin so as things now stand, for better or worse, the nascent ride-call industry trying to take hold OTB does not look like it will become robust enough any time soon to provide comprehensive and reliable service to The Island.
Barefoot Mardi Gras
Live Music A16
Padre Island Real Estate Sales 2015
By Cindy Molnar Coldwell Banker
Racing hot rods, beefed up cars, chrome clad classics, and the automakers’ best proudly paraded down most Main Streets in America while providing freedom and movement to our youth. It was a new phenomenon wildly enjoyed by youth, and the ways the old cars were used defied imagination.
• 106 Waterfront Homes Sold Between $228,000-$1,250.00 Average Sales Price $428,317
The car industry changed as did our culture, becoming used to the automobile, perhaps taking it for granted. But along with the memories of classic and antique cars, there still exists man beauties on the Island and the Padre Island Antique Car Club (PIACC) is making every effort to preserve those classics and to show them off like they did at their CruiseIn on Saturday, December 26th at Sonic on the Island.
Average Sales Price $199,203
Lined up as they might have been in the 1960s, a dozen colorful antique automobiles owned by Islanders in the PIACC offered visitors a
• 152 Interior Lot Homes Sold Between $136,000-$485,000 Average Sales Price $253,136 • 86 Waterfront Condominiums/ Townhomes Between from $40,000-$385,000 • 58 Interior Condominiums/ Townhomes Between $60,000$290,000 Average Sales Price $162,287 • 17 Waterfront Lots Sold Between $117,500-$325,000 Average Sales Price $197,888 • 74 Interior Lots Sold Between $27,500-$210,000 Average Sales Price $46,734