IV Siesta Sand - June 2018

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JUNE 2018 | 941.349.0194 | ISLAND VISITOR PUBLISHING, LLC | www.SiestaSand.net | COMPLIMENTARY

SABA SANDS II

Siesta Promenade

|FDOT says it would not perform traffic signal re-timing to accommodate Siesta Promenade project

By Rachel Brown Hackney / SarasotaNewsLeader.com

Gulf Beach Setback Line update

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NEW EVACUATION PROCEDURES

The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) is seeking a number of clarifications from the consulting firm Kimley-Horn and Associates of Sarasota regarding its traffic studies for the proposed Siesta Promenade mixed-use project.

In a document he emailed to Kimley-Horn and Sarasota County Planning and Development Services Department staff on May 4, Nathan Kautz, a traffic services engineer with FDOT’s District One, pointed out, for example, “This development cannot count on new signal timings. Our corridors are re-timed approximately once every five years or so. There is no set schedule.”

Kautz was responding on behalf of FDOT staff to the material Kimley-Horn submitted in March, when it replied to questions FDOT and Sarasota County Transportation Planning staff had provided in reviews of the latest proposals from Benderson Development for Siesta Promenade.

Continued on page 15

Road Swap Coming

|County Commission agrees to road swap

By Rachel Brown Hackney Before the end of September, Sarasota County is expected to take ownership of Midnight Pass Road from the intersection of Stickney Point Road to the intersection of Higel Avenue; Siesta Drive west of U.S. 41; parts of Bay Road and Osprey Avenue, which are designated State Road 758 west of Bee Ridge Road; and the segment of Stickney Point Road west of the U.S. 41 intersection.

That will not include the two drawbridges, which are located on Stickney Point Road and Siesta Drive, county staff pointed out again on May 22.

In exchange, the State of Florida will take over the segment of River Road from U.S. 41 to Interstate 75. That was the formal road swap offer the Florida Department of Transportation made to the county, which the County Commission unanimously approved on May 22.

County commissioners have pointed to frustrations numerous times over the past couple of years that they had not been able to win state funding for the widening of River Road, which is a major hurricane route for residents of both South County and Charlotte County.

History: The Dangers of Dredging Emergency management chief Ed McCrane discusses the new procedures page

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HISTORIC HOUSE

Sarasotans have had a long-term love affair of damaging nature… most of our historical environmental disregard is spurred by arrogance...

Paul Roat, Siesta Sand, December 2013 [https://siestasand.net/sarasota-history-13/] The primary weapon used to damage nature on the waterways of Sarasota County is the dredge. Dredging projects are generally motivated by financial interests and can be both destructive and constructive. Their damaging

Continued on page 20

By Philip M. Farrell, MD, PhD

environmental impacts are immediate, but the long term harm is the greatest concern. During the first half-century of Siesta Key development, a series of dredging projects were completed that either improved or damaged this once pristine barrier island— depending on your viewpoint.

Ecologists and commercial fishermen will argue that the harm has outweighed the benefits, while real estate developers disagree.

Many of Sarasota County’s dredging projects

have been performed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) — an organization that has been responsible for the development and maintenance of navigable waterways in the United States since 1824. Historically, the 54mile long Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) was Sarasota County’s first dredging project and was designed to facilitate transport of goods along the southwest coast.

Continued on page 30

Call for elimination of two potential dredging areas in Big Pass By Rachel Brown Hackney Commissioners grant 10-year tax exemption for historic home

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SIESTA SOUNDS

The Siesta Key Association (SKA) and Save Our Siesta Sand 2 (SOSS2) are using the recommendation of a state administrative law judge to ask the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) to eliminate two areas of Big Sarasota Pass as potential dredging areas for the renourishment of South Lido Key. In exceptions filed on May 23, the SKA and SOSS2 base their arguments on the May 8 recommended order issued by Judge Bram D.E. Canter regarding a December 2017 Florida Division of Administrative Hearings (DOAH) proceeding held mostly in Sarasota.

Canter called for FDEP to modify the permit

the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the City of Sarasota have sought for the Lido project.

In the May 23 filing, SKA attorney Kent Safriet of Hopping Green & Sams in Tallahassee and SOSS2 attorney Martha M. Collins of the Collins Law Group in Tampa noted Canter’s recommendation that dredging not be allowed between April and September in proposed Borrow Area — or “Cut” — B and in a 1,200-foot segment of Borrow Area C. Canter cited a field investigation undertaken

by R. Grant Gilmore Jr., president of the Vero Beach consulting firm Coastal and Ocean Science Inc. that showed the spotted sea trout

spawns in those areas between April and September.

Canter noted that the trout’s spawning sites are not common, they are used repeatedly and “are important to the conservation of the species.” Therefore, unless FDEP were willing to modify the permit for the Lido Renourishment Project to accommodate the spawning, Canter wrote, “it is recommended that the proposed FDEP actions be DENIED emphasis in the document.”

City Manager Tom Barwin stated that the city readily would agree to the permit modification.

Continued on page 36

Support the 2018 Siesta Key Community Fireworks It you love piano music, you’ll love John Hetherington

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SAND CASTLES

A retirement community on the Gulf

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The Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce (SKCC) is proud to announce the 28th Anniversary of the 4th of July Community Fireworks Celebration, Wednesday, July 4th, at Siesta Key Beach. The fireworks show will launch at dusk at the Siesta Key Public Beach (948 Beach Road) and is free and open to the

public.

The celebration is completely reliant on generous community donations from businesses, accommodations, and residents.

All donations directly fund the fireworks!

Donations of all levels are greatly appreciated, however, sponsorship packages of $500 and

above include parking passes and access to the preferred viewing area which opens at 6:00 p.m. and includes complimentary beverages and light snacks. To make a donation, please visit siestakeychamber.com, or call the Chamber office at 941.349.3800.

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Big Pass challenge legal expenses exceed $1.1 million By Rachel Brown Hackney The City of Sarasota had paid a grand total of $685,953.16 as of May 1 in its fight to dredge Big Pass to renourish part of Lido Key Beach.

As of early April, the Siesta Key Association(SKA) had spent about $223,000 in its efforts to preserve the pass in its virgin state, Treasurer Robert Miller reported to members at the April 5 meeting of the nonprofit.

Peter van Roekens, chair of Save Our Siesta Sand 2 (SOSS2), stated that the organization’s expenses thus far added up to $209,185.21.

Combining the three figures, the total outlay for the legal expenses has been $1,118,138.37 by Siesta Sand’s calculations.

Since early April, SOSS2, the SKA, the city and the Lido Key Residents Association had been awaiting a ruling from the judge who presided over a Florida Division of Administrative Hearings (DOAH) proceeding held mostly in Sarasota in December 2017. The judge issued his order, recommending that the dredging go forward but also calling for a permit modification regarding the months the work can be done. (See the related story in this issue.)

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) also participated in the December 2017 hearing.

As requested by Administrative Law Judge Bram D.E. Canter, the parties in early April filed

recommendations for his order in the case.

In response to a formal request, City Attorney Robert Fournier provided a detailed breakdown on May 2 regarding the payments the city has made. He was preparing a report for the City Commission, he said, so he shared the same information.

“As of May 1, 2018, the total expenses associated with these proceedings are as follows,” Fournier wrote the commission: •$376,708.77 to Gray Robinson, the Fort Lauderdalebased legal counsel retained by the City of Sarasota.

•$203,829.20 to Lewis, Longman & Walker of Bradenton, the legal counsel retained by the Lido Key Residents Association (LKRA).

That added up to $580,537.97 in total attorney fees and costs, Fournier noted.

In addition, $29,316.64 was paid to Ocean Sciences Inc. (Dr. Mark Fonseca) for expert testimony, Fournier added.

A total of $609,854.61 has been paid from the City Attorney’s litigation budget, he wrote. “The majority of these expenses were incurred in the current fiscal year FY 2017-18.”

The amounts the city has paid since the hearing in December 2017 for review of the hearing transcripts and preparation of the “Respondents Proposed Recommended Order” are as follows, he continued: Continued on page 37

Happiness is…Counting Your Blessings Last year at this time Jerry and Jill Williams, owners of Abel’s Ice Cream, were enjoying life and all that our beautiful area has to offer.

Little did they know, in a few short days, their faith, devotion, and spirit would be tested so greatly.

On June 27, 2017, Jill suffered a hemorrhagic stroke.

Thanks to Stacey, one of the medical professionals at Thriveology Holistic Health Clinic who recognized Jill’s symptoms, and Jerry, who took immediate action, Jill was quickly treated and the potential damage minimized.

Determination and perseverance have been cornerstones of Jill’s recovery plan and now, as we approach the one-year mark, she is healthy, happy, and strong.

“We are grateful to have such amazing customers and live in such a supportive community,” Jerry noted. “As we’ve shared our story, many of our customers have related their own family experiences.

It’s bonded us in a way we never expected.”

So how exactly do the Williams celebrate the recovery that has taken place during the past year?

With ice cream, of course!

Refreshing and Tangy Tangerine Sorbet is our June headliner. Why Tangerine Sorbet? Let’s just say that

the Tangerine was an integral step in Jill’s recovery. Ask Jerry about it next time you come to Abel’s. It’s a great story!

We’re also celebrating peach season with one of Jill’s favorites, our fabulous Peach Ice Cream (Did you say Georgia? This delicious peach ice cream is loaded with peaches and would make a Southerner proud).

As the season winds down and we take time in June to honor the father figures in our lives, come in and enjoy the slower summer pace at Abel’s.

The store is an easy hop, skip, and a jump from 41 by Carrabbas and New Balance on Stickney Point (1886 Stickney Point Road, Sarasota in the South Bridge Plaza.)

Open Sunday through Thursday from Noon-9:30 pm, and Friday and Saturday from Noon-10 pm. Learn more online at our updated website, www.abelsicecream.com or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

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JUNE 2018

Island Jet Ski, Where Adventure Awaits A tropical adventure awaits at ISLAND JET SKI TOURS AND RENTALS. Here thrill seekers can find top-of-the-line jet skis to soar across the inland waters of the bay and out to the open gulf. Kayaks are also available, as are paddleboards and pontoon boats. There’s something to fit everyone’s inner daredevil, be it laid-back or bold.

Located by Casey Key Fish House at 801 Blackburn Pt Rd. in Osprey, ISLAND JET SKI is but a 10-minute drive from Stickney Point Bridge. Their well-maintained equipment is available for hourly and daily rates, and extraordinary tours are offered which include sightings of dolphins, manatees, ospreys, and exotic seabirds, to say nothing of high-drama sunsets!

I was fortunate to go on the Dolphin Tour— my first time ever on a jet ski. After donning life jackets and given instruction, our flotilla of 7-persons-aboard- 4-crafts took off at 6 pm in the wake of our intrepid leader, Capt. Brian King. We pulled out from the Fish House dock, ducked beneath Blackburn Bridge, and headed north up the inland waterway. Midway past Casey Key, we cut the engines to admire an Osprey nest built high atop a marker post. One tall, stately parent-bird stood glaring at us with glitter-eyes.

Nearing the southern tip of Siesta Key, we slalomed along at a white-knuckled clip riding each other’s wake. Brian motioned us to throttle down and move slowly as we passed a small muffin-shaped island to watch as a vast collection of birds settled in for the night. I saw pelicans, cranes, blue herons, and redstarts, while roseate spoonbills added a spectacular splash of color.

We passed beneath Stickney Point Bridge and flew like motorbike riders across a wide stretch of the bay before slowing through narrow waters near Siesta Key’s east side— water inhabited by manatees. We drifted past beautiful homes at rocking-chair speed, waving at people drinking margaritas on their docks.

Ducking beneath Siesta Key Bridge we headed for Big Pass, our small flotilla racing through choppy waters. We circled the tip of Siesta and entered the open Gulf, whereupon sighting a group of dolphins, we turned off the engines to watch them play.

After cutting across the pass, we pulled our wave runners onto the sands of Lido Park, where we took turns riding solo for a cellphone-video moment. The Johnson family of four from Richmond hammed it up for the camera, as did my son, Kevin, and I. Captain Brian King served as the experienced beachside videographer.

Now it was home-again-home-again-hippity-hop through the bay to the northern tip of Casey Key, where we abandoned the crafts and ran up the dunes to witness a world-class sunset. (Another photo-op!)

Returning to the Casey Key Fish House dock at about 8 pm, we signed up for a table and headed for their Tiki Bar to wait. The Fish House lived up to its reputation, and the meal proved superb! What a way to end a perfect day!

Capt. Brian King is the man behind the adventure. He and his wife, Sharon, started the business in 1993, after watching a guy run an incredible jet ski business in Ft. Myers Beach.

Brian had been into Motor Cross, engines, and going fast, so jet skis were a perfect fit. The King’s built a floating deck, bought 4 brand new jet skis with an assortment of life jackets, got a credit card machine, and opened at Fisherman’s Wharf in Venice. Brian knew he had found his niche: from the very first day, the business was successful.

They opened a second location in 1995 in Englewood where they were the only game in town. They sold Englewood in 2016. Says Brian, “The new guy is doing fantastic! I trained him well!” Today, both the Englewood and Casey Key sites can be booked on line at www.IslandJetSki.com.

In March of 2013, the Kings left Fisherman’s Wharf in Venice and moved to Casey Key Fish House, just in time for spring break. They started with wave runners, kayaks, and paddle boards, and eventually moved into pontoon boats. (They now have a fleet of four.) These boats are good for up to 12 people, while their jet skis will hold up to 3. “We never charge per passenger,” says Brian. “We only charge for the boat.” Prices are available on their website.

Island Jet Ski is located by Casey Key Fish House at 801 Blackburn Pt. Rd in Osprey. 941474-1168. www.islandjetski.com.

(Advertorial)

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

By Diana Colson

Author and Sarasota resident, Diana Colson and Captain Brian King await the setting sun on Casey Key

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Siesta Sand

JUNE 2018

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An Elegant, Relaxed, and Transitional Steak House with a Seafood Attitude March, 2018 marked the opening of the Siesta Key Summer House Steak & Seafood, the latest restaurant opened on Siesta Key by owners Mike Granthon and Chris Brown.

The Summer House, specializes in steak and seafood. The name “Summerhouse” is synonymous with Siesta Key, and a nod to the original restaurant which had a rich history of creating memorable experiences.

The new Summer House pays homage to creating great experiences with a brand new concept. Summer House is a fine dining steak and seafood house with a casual flair featuring carefully sourced steaks, fresh seafood, hand selected wine, and craft cocktails - a must visit for everyone who lives or vacations on Siesta Key. “Our hospitality company is built on the solid foundation that simply says put people first. We pride ourselves on the Servant Leadership approach, says Granthon. “This long-standing tradition empowers our family of employees to be part of the innovative thinking that has, and continues to guide us. Our focus continues to be providing the best guest experience, food, beverage and the service WOW that sets the benchmark for the industry.” Now that Season is

over, Granthon invites you to experience Summer House for yourself.

Online reviews: Elegant and relaxed! Coming from the NYC metro area, we have been to our share of high-end steak houses. The Summer House on Siesta Key rivals ...and exceeds... those places in my opinion. The atmosphere is as advertised...relaxed with just the right amount of sophistication you would expect from a place of this caliber.

We enjoyed this evening as a date night out and were promptly seated on arrival at our 8 pm reservation. The special martinis were very tasty and a fun way to start. The lump crab cake appetizer was outstanding!!! The best I have had. My wife thoroughly enjoyed the wedge salad and was kind enough to leave some for me :) I had the 12 oz. rib eye with blue cheese crust ...and it was the best steak I can ever remember having! I paired that with a glass of Justin cabernet as recommended by our very helpful server, James. My wife thoroughly enjoyed her petit filet mignon with the béarnaise sauce. Although the special dessert sounded awesome, we were too full and took a pass this time around. We will definitely be back to the Summer House the next time we are in Siesta Key. We will also be sure to request James to help us navigate through the menu and wine list.

Beach getaway; one of the best restaurants we have eaten at in the U.S. The meatball appetizer was fantastic! We had the ribeye and my wife had the filet and lobster-all were fantastic! Our server, Delores, was very knowledgeable and friendly!

Summer House Siesta Key Steak and Seafood, located at 149 Avenida Messina, is open Sunday through Thursday from 4 to 10 pm and until 11 pm on weekends.

Reservations can be booked online by visiting www.summerhousesiestakey.com or by calling 941-260-2675. Advertorial

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JUNE 2018

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Variance approved for new 3-story, 2-unit house on pilings at 657 Beach Road that will be 20.5 feet beyond Gulf Beach Setback Line

By Rachel Brown Hackney

It took only about 16 minutes on April 24 for three members of the Sarasota County Commission to approve a new three-story, two-dwelling house built on pilings in the footprint of a 1930s structure at 657 Beach Road on Siesta Key. The house will be on the landward side of the road.

The lone “No” vote was cast by Commissioner Alan Maio, who represents the barrier island as part of District 4. He did not offer any comments about his decision.

Chair Nancy Detert did not attend the afternoon session of the board’s regular meeting in Sarasota. Vice Chair Charles Hines said at the opening of the session that she was felling unwell and had headed home.

The house will be a maximum of 20.5 feet seaward of the county’s Gulf Beach Setback Line (GBSL), which is the figurative “line in the sand” the county uses to protect property on its barrier islands from storm damage.

During the public hearing regarding the petition for a Coastal Setback Variance (CSV) for the project, only one person voiced concern. Lisa Coleman told the commissioners that her home next-door to the property “is a small 1930s, really, truly authentic Old Florida beach cottage” that has been in her family for generations. She was worried, she said, about how the elevation of the new structure would affect potential storm surge on her land.

Weiqi Lin of the county’s Environmental Permitting Division had explained earlier that 169 cubic yards of fill would be brought onto the 657 Beach Road parcel in advance of the new construction. “The flooding is constantly an issue for the area,” he noted during his presentation to the commission.

The addition of the fill, Coleman told the board, will make her land “the low point.

That’s one aspect I wish could be avoided.”

Additionally, she said, because the new house will be 20.5 feet seaward of the GBSL, she is worried that it will block her view toward the public beach, as well as the breezes, which she enjoys while sitting on her screened porch.

“I’m the last holdout, practically, along Beach Road,” Coleman pointed out, “but I hope to continue enjoying the cottage indefinitely.”

Hines asked that she speak with Matt Osterhoudt, director of the county’s Planning and Development Services Department, who was seated in the audience. Osterhoudt could answer her questions about stormwater issues related to the new construction, Hines told her.

Edward Eible, president of the Architura planning and design firm in Sarasota, also addressed the board. “Any new construction on Siesta Key has to conform to the current building code.” His firm has been working on the project at 657 Beach Road, he said.

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) regulations require that any new construction in a flood zone be raised a certain level above the ground to protect against storm surge damage, county staff has explained. A staff memo provided to the board in advance of the April 24 meeting says the first habitable floor of the new structure will be “18.3 feet NAVD” to comply with the 100-year storm elevation requirements.

(FEMA’s website explains that NAVD stands for North American Vertical Datum.

A vertical datum is a surface of zero elevation to which heights of various points are referred, for consistency, the National Geodetic Survey adds.)

Commissioner Paul Caragiulo thanked Eible for making his statement part of the public hearing record.

Lin also had pointed out that the parcel at

655

657

661

657 Beach Road comprises only 5,500 square feet. He characterized it as “a small lot.”

Eible told the board that the building will be in the approximately 1,300-squarefoot footprint the county code allows for a structure on the property. “It’s a nonconforming lot of record.”

Further facets of the proposal During his presentation, Lin explained that not only would the existing 1936 singlefamily residence on the site be demolished, but two sheds also will be taken down. The new house will comprise 4,469 square feet, he added.

The staff memo provided to the board in advance of the April 24 meeting says that of

the habitable area, 1,545 square feet will be seaward of the GBSL. The existing concrete driveway, which is 41 feet seaward of the GBLSL, will remain, Lin noted.

In 2000, he continued, the owner of the adjacent property at 661 Beach Road received County Commission approval to build a new two-story house over parking.

The design also calls for a new walkway comprising 191 square feet and a new 71-square-foot deck, the staff memo points out. The total impervious area — including the building coverage of 1,368 square feet — will be 2,572 square feet, the staff memo notes, which is 48.78% of the lot size. “The Zoning Administrator has reviewed this parameter and confirmed it is consistent with the lot coverage limitations required by the Siesta Key Overlay District (SKOD),” which governs zoning on the island, the memo says.

Lin further pointed out that the house would be 779 feet landward of the Mean High Water Line. “The beach accreted fairly quickly over the past decade in that area ,” he added.

“The Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s August 2016 report Critically Eroded Beaches in Florida did not designate this area of the beach as critically eroded,” the staff memo says.

The owner of the property, Richard Dear, also addressed the commission during the hearing. “I’ve tried to keep everything … modest and clean-cut,” he said of the design.

“I’m not asking for anything unusual.”

Following the public hearing, Commissioner Caragiulo made the motion to approve the Coastal Setback Variance, and Commissioner Michael Moran seconded it.

Commissioner Hines initially thought Commissioner Maio had voted “Yes,” but Maio clarified that he was opposing the variance.

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More details sought on plans for house to be built fully seaward of Gulf Beach Setback Line By Rachel Brown Hackney Sarasota County’s Environmental Permitting Division staff has continued to question a Siesta Key applicant’s assertion that a proposal for a three-story house fully seaward of the Gulf Beach Setback Line (GBSL) would not have a negative impact on the coastal system.

Furthermore, Weiqi Lin of that staff pointed out in a second Request for Additional Information (RAI) that if the applicant — Saba Sands II — continues to plan use of Beach Access 10 for a driveway to the house, then the company would have to construct a new Access 10.

Lin sent the second RAI on May 8 to Robert K. Lincoln, attorney for Saba Sands II, and three other project team members, including Michele Steinbaum of Steinbaum and Associates, author of the environmental report the group submitted to the county almost exactly a year ago.

The proposed house would stand on accreted beach west of the house at 654 Beach Road on Siesta Key. Lin pointed out that he was responding to answers the project team provided the county staff on March 16 and April 4, in reply to the county’s first RAI. Among his questions, Lin asked the project team to explain why it maintains that the Coastal Setback Variance for which Saba Sands II applied on May 18, 2017 “is the minimum variance necessary to permit reasonable use of the property.”

Sarasota attorney William A. Saba is the principal of the limited liability company, state records

show.

“The revised plan,” Lin wrote in the May 8 RAI, “did not show any decrease of construction areas” compared to the facets of the original proposal. The request is for a three-story structure, over parking, totaling 3,496 square feet of habitable space and 2,148 square feet of uninhabitable space, including a ground-level garage, entryways and covered balconies, Lin pointed out, as well as a swimming pool and deck.

In 1998, Lin noted, the County Commission “denied a variance request on the subject property for construction of a residence that was less intrusive seaward of the GBSL than the current proposal.”

In the original application, filed in May 2017, Saba Sands II sought a Coastal Setback Variance to build a house comprising 1,590 square feet.

Furthermore, Saba wants to install a 20-foot paver drive and utilities in the county right of way on Calle de Invierno, which is designated on the west side of Beach Road as Beach Access 10.

Lincoln has indicated that the county’s denial of Saba’s plans would be a “taking” under the guidelines of the state’s Bert J. Harris Jr. Private Property Rights Protection Act. In the project team’s March 16 responses to the first county RAI, Lincoln pointed to a number of changed circumstances since 1998: • The shoreline has continued to accrete.

• “Exotic vegetation has further degraded the proposed affected area.”

• Saba Sands II obtained a title judgment establishing ownership to the Mean High Water Line, increasing the size of the property from 9,800 square feet to 39,370 square feet.

(Sarasota County Property Appraiser Office records show the land area considered for taxable purposes in 2017 was 13,082 square feet. The market value it assigned to the land was $156,000. Saba Sands II paid $175,000 for the property in November 2012.)

Nonetheless, Lin and

Howard Berna, manager of the Environmental Permitting Division, have — on numerous occasions — cited the importance of restricting any new construction to areas landward of the Gulf Beach Setback Line.

The GBSL, they have pointed out, is designed to protect the beach and property east of it. Lin has called it the figurative “line in the sand.”

Among the questions in the May 8 RAI, Lin noted, “The requested variance does not adversely affect Coastal Systems.”

Under county regulations, he continued, “Coastal System” includes not only the beach but also the upland dune system.

Why would the proposed new residential structure and pool “proposed within the dune system … not adversely affect the Coastal System?” Lin wrote.

Moreover, Lin sought an explanation of statements in the March documents saying the construction techniques “would not have significant, permanent adverse impacts to sand dunes, other stabilizing features, or the coastal system,” in the area proposed for the house. “Please provide detailed information on these construction techniques for further evaluation by County staff,” Lin added.

As for impacts to Beach Access 10: The May 8 RAI pointed out that the access “is located within the Calle Del Invierno right-ofway and has served as a public beach access for decades.”

Based on the County Rightof-Way Use Permit Review, the RAI said, “the road cross-section design must meet the County standard of a residential local road with open drainage and not the designed private driveway emphasis in the document.”

Thus, the May 8 RAI noted, a new Beach Access 10 would be necessary, adding, “The public should not be responsible for the burden to create the new Beach Access 10 entry. Please clarify that it is the intent of the Petitioner to pay for these capital improvements.”

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Siesta Sand

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Organic, Vegan-friendly Gelato Made In-house Made In Rome Organic Gelato, located in the Siesta Key Village, churns out small batches of artisan gelato, (a.k.a ice cream’s Italian cousin) transforming simple ingredients into sweet scoops of pure bliss. No hydrogenated fats, colorants, or preservatives are ever used in these creations so all you taste are the pure, clean flavors and silky textures.

Owner, Massimo Cuna has perfected this art, having deep family roots in the gelato business back in Italy. He starts with a world renowned Italian recipe, along with all organic USDA certified natural ingredients, He and wife, Diane, take turns creating flavors like Cioccolato e Nocciola (cholocate and hazelnuts), Croccante All’Amarena (crunchy cherry), or Caffe del Professore (Teacher’s Coffee). The friendly staff will provide generous samples, creating a conundrum when deciding flavor choices.

Diane reveals, “We are proud to be the first gelateria in Siesta Key to make organic handcrafted Italian gelato using the process and equipment found in the best gelateria’s of Italy and we are the only shop serving organic gelato in Florida!”

As a former circus performer at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, Diane has taken a que from her earlier days and takes turns with Massimo showcasing the unique process used to create the cool and creamy delight for those fortunate enough to be there when the gelato is being constructed. The process is so unique, so special, that they want to show it off. They welcome all to stop by and watch them make it. Each batch is kept small with a different flavor being produced

every 15 minutes.

Made in Rome Organic Gelato offers 30 flavors of gelato, nine of which are vegan and includes sugarfree choices. The organic cones are made from gluten free, kosher certified, vegan waffles and the cups and spoons are made of 100% recyclable corn fiber.

Based on the many reviews, this gelateria has the promise of becoming a mainstay in the Siesta Key Village.

They have vegan options for those who need it and believe me you are still getting an amazing, rich, full flavored treat. YUM!!! ~ Karen M. I love this place beyond belief! Their milkshake is a total must try!!!! Never pass by that place. You owe this place to yourself!!! ~ Mark D. This family run shop holds true to its five star reputation!!

Best gelato I’ve ever had! Really loved the smooth and creamy texture of each flavor. They have vegan and sugar free options! You can try as many flavors

and really enjoyed the authenticity of the store. You can taste the fresh ingredients that they promise.

The service was amazing and very friendly. They were super accommodating and helpful in helping us pick our flavors. ~ Ester S. Must try best ever gelato! We went every night! The owner is awesome and the gelato is a must!! Super good quality ~ Maria B. Made In Rome Organic Gelato is located at 5204 Ocean Blvd. in Siesta Village, (941) 960-5344. Advertorial

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JUNE 2018

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New evacuation procedures to be implemented this year if a hurricane approaches By Rachel Brown Hackney Along with significant changes in how Sarasota County will order evacuations in advance of an approaching hurricane, staff also has established a list of 17 “rally points” to aid people who cannot drive themselves to an evacuation center.

Ed McCrane, the county’s emergency management chief, and Rich Collins, emergency services director for the county, addressed Siesta Key Association (SKA) residents on May 3, bringing them up-to-date on the new procedures.

“We discovered that a lot of people don’t drive anymore,” McCrane pointed out as he discussed the county’s response to Hurricane Irma in September 2017. Many older residents, especially, who live well away from designated evacuation centers, he said, need some means of reaching those places.

As a result, McCrane continued, staff has created a series of rally points where people will be able to leave their vehicles and catch a ride to a center. Emergency Services staff has worked with Sarasota County Area Transit (SCAT) and the Sarasota County School District to implement this new system, McCrane explained.

Those who cannot drive at all will be picked up and transported to the evacuation centers, he pointed out.

After the emergency is over and people are ready to return to their homes, he said, those who needed the rides will be returned to the rally points or to their homes.

Members of the public will be able to register in advance if they

do not drive or feel they will need help, McCrane added.

The Sarasota County Government website (www. scgov.net) has details about the new transportation plan on its Emergency Management webpages. A menu on the left side of the pages includes the link, “Transportation Plan (Hurricane Evacuation Centers).”

The transportation plan lists rally points from Englewood to Longboat Key. One of them will be Siesta Public Beach.

Collins explained during the May SKA meeting that Sarasota County is among the few counties in Florida that have undertaken engineering studies to determine the safest buildings among their schools to use as centers.

(McCrane stressed that staff no longer will use the term “shelter.”)

Registering for help The Transportation Plan webpage points out that all county libraries have computers available for the public to use for the online transportation registration system, if persons do not have computers at home.

The registration form, the page notes, “will include guidance for those who cannot drive or walk to a designated rally point.”

It also explains, “Rally points may change depending on the severity of a storm. Residents who pre-register will receive an automated telephone message with information about the location of rally points and when they will be picked up.”

The webpage further notes that

the online registration process will cease when landfall of a hurricane is expected within 60 hours.

Additionally, the webpage reminds the public that space on the buses will be limited, so no one will be allowed more than “two carry-on sized bags” that can be stored under a seat or held in a lap.

Evacuation levels instead of zones During the period when Irma was expected to strike, Collins told the approximately 40 SKA members in attendance on May 3, the county and the Sarasota County School District had about 20,000 people and about 2,200 pets spread among its shelters.

People with special needs because of health conditions were in three shelters, he added.

Following Irma’s strike, Collins said, the County Commission agreed to staff’s proposal for an in-depth “after action” report to determine what went well among all the plans and operations and what needed tweaking.

McCrane then talked of the changes being implemented in regard to evacuation centers. In the past, he pointed out, the county used zones — with A including all the barrier islands — to alert people if they should leave in advance of a storm. However, he said, one problem staff encountered during Irma was a misunderstanding on the part of mobile home residents.

Some thought that if they were in Zone C — well away from the shoreline — they did not need to evacuate. As a result McCrane said, the county will

use evacuation levels, and it will provide more details about who should evacuate. For example, he said, a Level A evacuation would mean all persons living on the barrier islands, as well as those in mobile homes and in the county’s lowest-lying areas, would need to seek another place to ride out the storm.

Emergency Services staff will use street grids, too, when at all possible, McCrane noted, to try to make it clearer to the public about the areas that should be evacuated.

Additionally, McCrane continued, staff no longer will reference “mandatory” or “voluntary” evacuations. Instead, staff will say, for example, “We are evacuating Level A …”

If you evacuate …

McCrane also stressed that the evacuation centers are designed to house people for 24 to 48 hours. Everyone planning to go to a center should bring his or her own bedding and personal items to occupy the time, he pointed out. “They’re very, very rough

conditions.”

Additionally, he emphasized, not all of the centers will have generators. Staff will explain what procedures will be followed if the power is lost, he said, adding the suggestion that people include flashlights among the materials they take with them.

All centers will be pet-friendly, he continued.

McCrane also advised the SKA audience members that if they have friends who live outside Florida who visit them during season, they should consider “returning the favor” and asking to stay with those friends if a hurricane is approaching the state.

Moreover, he said, people who are not in evacuation areas who live in newer homes constructed to meet up-to-date building code standards, with storm shutters and plenty of supplies, should consider staying at home.

McCrane stressed that people who live in areas designated for evacuation should leave.

“Don’t ride it out,” he said of an approaching storm.

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Siesta Sand

JUNE 2018

941.349.0194

www.siestasand.net

Transportation on and around Siesta Key Staff Report Resurfacing for Osprey Avenue The city of Sarasota began work May 29 on resurfacing a 1.4-mile stretch of Osprey Avenue between Siesta Drive and Bahia Vista Street. The resurfacing will be done in phased segments. The first segment of Osprey Avenue, from South Drive to Boyce Street, is expected to be completed by the end of July. To minimize disruptions at nearby Southside Elementary School, work was coordinated to begin shortly after the school year ends.

Osprey will remain open to two-way traffic throughout the duration of the project, with construction anticipated to take place between the hours of 6 a.m. and 9 p.m. Monday through Friday at this time. No detours are expected, and businesses along Osprey Avenue will remain accessible throughout construction. Future segments, and their tentative schedules, include: Boyce Street to Arlington Street (August-October), Siesta Drive to South Drive (November-January), Arlington Street to Bahia Vista Street (January-March). The entire project is expected to be completed by spring 2019.

Planned improvements include resurfacing, new curbs, signalized intersection improvements, Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant ramps and bike lane restriping.

Road swap process clarified Rumors continued to fly about the proposed Sarasota County/FDOT road swap involving River Road in South County and the roads that traverse the Key. In response to Siesta Sand’s questions, Zachary Burch, government affairs and communications manager for FDOT, reported in an email that he was able to confirm that the segment of Stickney Point Road west of U.S. 41 — which is included in the proposed deal — was an FDOT recommendation.

In a telephone discussion, Burch emphasized what L.K. Nandam, FDOT’s District One secretary, had written county staff in a May 2 letter: The goal was to match miles for miles as much as possible in the swap. Burch added in his email, “We take a number of factors into account when looking for road swap options, including lane miles, maintenance responsibilities, regional significance, and many others. Sarasota County leaders did express their unwillingness to take over the Stickney Point Bridge, which was originally part of our offer, and we removed it.”

Further, Burch explained the process to achieve the swap. “ Once both the County and State agree on the road transfer limits and terms, the initiative includes a legal review by both the County and State and the County must pass a resolution supporting the transfer,” he wrote. A public hearing will be conducted, he continued, and a Cultural Resource Assessment Survey will be undertaken by the Florida Division of Historical Resources, which assesses if there are any culturally significant areas that need to be preserved and/or that all sides are aware of them prior to the transfer.”

After all of those steps have been completed, Burch

pointed out, “both the State and County would sign the agreement to finalize the transfer.”

More money for the trolley Thanks to a unanimous County Commission vote on May 8, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) will contribute $431,876 to the Siesta Key Breeze open-air trolley through the rest of the state’s current fiscal year, as well as FY19.

Additionally, a staff memo provided to the board says the Breeze in March recorded its highest ridership mark since it began operating in March 2017: 36,195.

Officially, the board last week approved the execution of an agreement with FDOT for Public Transit Block Grant program funding. The action came as part of the vote on the May 8 Consent Agenda of routine business items.

A county staff memo explained that Sarasota County Area Transit (SCAT) began a new Route 10 on Siesta Key in July 2014 with grant funding through an FDOT joint participation agreement. In March 2017, SCAT launched the Breeze, replacing the buses. To continue operating the trolley, the memo continued, the new joint participation agreement was necessary so FDOT financial support could be secured through Dec. 31, 2019.

On Aug. 24, 2017, the memo said, the county’s Procurement Official authorized an amendment to the contract the county had approved with Ride Right LLC to operate the trolley. That amendment renewed the contract through Feb. 28 of this year. Then, Amendment No. 2 won the Procurement Official’s approval; the contract was renewed for another six months for $627,191.60, the memo explained.

The total amount covered in the agreement is $863,752 for each of two years, the memo noted.

FDOT is covering 25% of the expense of operating the Breeze, the memo explained, while a Federal Transit Administration grant will pay 50% of the expense and the county will pick up the remaining 25% as a match for the federal funds.

Your Go-To Store on the Island Morton’s Siesta Market is your one-stop shop for easy island living.

We offer a large selection of staple groceries, beer and wine, as well as fresh produce, meats and seafood.

In keeping with our Morton’s tradition, we also carry a delicious array of prepared foods, perfect for take-out, picnics, parties and more.

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Continued on the next page

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Continued on the next page

As a result of keeping ridership records, the memo pointed out, SCAT has found the peak period is February through April. “The lowest ridership occurred in September and October 2017,” the memo added.

SCAT adjusted the service levels for the Breeze on May 1, reducing the number of trolleys operating Monday through Thursday, the memo said. The Breeze will continue to run from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and from 10 a.m. to midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, the memo noted.

on parts of the segments. At the behest of MSDS, FDOT already has erected signs on Siesta Drive and Higel Avenue to make the speed limit 30 mph through the nearly 90-degree curve where the two roads intersect. The department also has modified electronic signs to warn drivers if they are exceeding 25 mph as they approach the curve, as that is the recommended speed for that intersection.

Getting at least a couple of crosswalks installed is another one of the MSDS goals.

A fact about crosswalks

Another issue that arose during the May SKA meeting focused on the waiting time of drivers whenever the two drawbridges to the Key open for boats.

SKA Director Joe Volpe presented statistics for December 2017 and January and February of this year regarding the number of times each bridge went up.

For December, he said, the Stickney Point bridge had 190 openings, while the one on Siesta Drive opened 159 times.

In January, the figure for Stickney Point was 203; for Siesta Drive, 160. Finally, for February, the Stickney Point Road figure was 188; for Siesta Drive, 172.

The bridge tenders also reported, Volpe said, that 99% of the time, it took only 5 minutes from when the gates went down to when they went back up, allowing traffic flow to resume.

“Does anyone else believe that one?” he asked.

“So we’re continuing working on this.”

Siesta architect Mark Smith, past chair of the Siesta Chamber of Commerce, has timed the gateto-gate operation as he sat in lines of vehicles at the bridges, and he has found the gate-down-to-gate-up operation to take 5 minutes.

This reporter has sat in lines at the bridges, too, during season. Occasionally, when a sailboat has halted further out in the bay than usual to await the bridge opening, and then maneuvered at slow speed into the Intracoastal Waterway, the waiting time for motorists probably has been a bit more than 5 minutes. This reporter observed such a situation earlier this year.

In working on a variety of crosswalk issues on the island, SKA President Gene Kusekoski has become much more educated about all sorts of facets of those safety measures, as he indicated during the May SKA meeting.

Among his findings, he said, is that state law does not give the right of way to a pedestrian crossing a street unless the pedestrian is in a crosswalk. In fact, Kusekoski pointed out, “You could actually be cited” for impeding the progress of a vehicle.

He was referring to Florida Statute 316.130.

Section 10 of that law says, “Every pedestrian crossing a roadway at any point other than within a marked crosswalk or within an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection shall yield the rightof-way to all vehicles upon the roadway.”

Even Commissioner Alan Maio, who represents Siesta, did not know that fact until Kusekoski told him, Kusekoski added.

“So we’re going to use that to try to put some pressure” on local leaders, he said, so they will agree to help the Make Siesta Drive Safer (MSDS) Committee.

MSDS has been working for more than a year, meeting with local law enforcement officers, elected officials and representatives of the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) to implement measures on Siesta Drive and Higel Avenue to slow down traffic. One big hope MSDS members have is that, if the route becomes a county road under the terms of a proposed county road swap with FDOT, then the speed limit can be lowered from 40 mph

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Safe Alternative for Facial Rejuvenation Before Treatment

How many times have you looked in the mirror thinking to yourself - a little nip here, maybe a tuck there would really help shave some years off your face. But then you think of the amount of time needed to recuperate and wonder how much pain is involved so decide against it every time. Surely there must be a safe, non-invasive alternative?

Massage Experience, Siesta Key has not only been making clients feel good with full body massages, but has been helping turn back the hands of time, one client at a time with a safe alternative for facial rejuvenation.

Among the facial services offered at Massage Experience, Siesta Key, they are the area’s only spa providing micro-current, antiaging facial treatments. This facial therapy has been the favorite nonsurgical treatment for celebrities and royalty in Europe for years.

It’s a very luxurious, pampering, results-driven facial which actually lifts, tones, and tightens the muscles of the face. This process stimulates the production of collagen and elastin. The effects are immediate and cumulative. This uplifting therapy is preventative, as well as corrective. It is a great alternative to surgery as it is non-invasive, requires no recovery time, has no risk of complications, is far less expensive, and above all gives instant results.

Our Micro-current Facial Rejuvenation is a safe alternative to the more invasive treatments on the market today. The gentle and 100% non-invasive treatment works in synergy with your body’s natural energy system. It sends safe, painless impulses to the muscles in the face to relax muscles that are overly tightened and strengthen those that are under-worked with very low levels of electrical current.

A study by the University of Washington proved that micro

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current increases your skin’s elastin fibers by 45%, collagen by 10% and the number of blood vessels by 35%. It can increase ATP, your body’s building block, by 500%.

This is how it works to “rejuvenate” your face, softening wrinkles and toning your facial muscles.

Results of the treatments are cumulative and the best visible results are after a series of 5 - 10 treatments then monthly or weekly treatments are recommended depending on skin condition and desired result.

If you have received facial injections, this treatment will help maintain your lift in-between. Since the process is cumulative: more treatments bring more noticeable and lasting results. Most people see their desired results within seven to twelve treatments. Over time and with follow-up treatments, your results can be even more visible as the body continues to produce higher levels of new collagen and wrinkles smooth out.

Aesthetic benefits of the micro current machine includes softer skin, improved circulation, enhanced muscle function and balance, reduced appearance of fine lines, and enhanced natural production of collagen and elastin.

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Island Chatter

www.siestasand.net

Staff Report

Wastewater Treatment Plant update The target time for the Siesta Key Wastewater Treatment Plant to cease functioning in its original capacity and begin operating as a master pump station was early May, Sarasota County staff reported earlier in late winter.

Dave Cash, the Water/Wastewater Division manager, explained that one could not simply turn a switch. Instead, the transition would be balancing act until all the effluent was flowing off the island to county treatment facilities on the mainland.

As it turned out, the Siesta plant marked its first day as a master pump station on April 10, Robert Luckner, a member of the Environmental Committee of the Siesta Key Association (SKA), reported to members.

Luckner has been the “point person” for the SKA for the years-long process designed to lead to the decommissioning of the wastewater plant adjacent to the Siesta Isles community.

“There are no more discharges to the canal,” Luckner said during the May SKA meeting.

County staff hired a contractor to come to the facility and haul away the remaining water on site and then undertake a thorough cleaning, he continued. The next step in the process will be the demolition of the equipment no longer needed, he added. County staff has told him that work should go out for bid early in 2019, with the project scheduled for the 2020 fiscal year. Each county fiscal year begins on Oct. 1.

Next year, Luckner noted, would be the right time for residents to start giving serious thought to potential uses of the property that will not be needed for the master pump station.

Some people already have been campaigning for a dog park to be created there. A kayak launch is another option, Luckner said.

“Or a high-rise hotel,” a man in the SKA audience called out, alluding to Siesta chiropractor Gary Kompothecras’ plans to build a boutique hotel on Old Stickney Point Road. That comment sparked laughter.

Store closing Lotus Boutique a Women’s contemporary fashion boutique located at 5118 Ocean Blvd in the Village is closing its doors at the end of May. The following comment is mentioned on their Facebook page from May 8, “After five years we are closing our Siesta location. We are so grateful for the loyal following that has supported us. We are continuing to grow our locations downtown.”

Farmers’ Market permit renewed

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As has proven the custom over past years, the County Commission this spring approved the renewal of the Temporary Use Permit under which the Siesta Farmers’ Market operates in Davidson Plaza.

The vote came without comments during the board’s regular meeting on April 11.

Bryan Eible established the Sunday event in 2009, after the commission unanimously adopted an ordinance in 2008 to allow for farmers’ markets through approval of a Temporary Use Permit (TUP). Each TUP is good for a year.

An April 11 memo to the commission from county Zoning Administrator Donna Thompson pointed out, “There have been no complaints against the farmers’ market since its inception, and the community has continued to generally support the farmers’ market.”

Along with his application for renewal of the TUP this year, Eible emailed Thompson a list of the vendors as of Feb. 8. Among them were people selling fruits and vegetables, Italian breads, orchids, wooden sculptures, organic coffee, hand-painted tiles, organic bath products, organic teas, handmade beach blankets, artwork created with shells, glass holders, flowers and other plants.

Continued on page 14

www.siestasand.net

941.349.0194

JUNE 2018

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

13

Siesta couple wins 10-year property tax exemption after undertaking years-long rehabilitation of historic house By Rachel Brown Hackney It took the owners of a historic Siesta Key house longer to complete the rehabilitation of it than Sarasota County guidelines allowed them, one of them has explained to the Sarasota County Commission. Nonetheless, the board unanimously agreed with the couple that they should receive the 10-year property tax exemption for which they had applied.

The commissioners granted the request of Robert and Janet Stein after a 9-minute public hearing on April 24. The tax exemption period will begin retroactively — on Jan. 1 — and end on Dec. 31, 2027, according to the resolution the commission approved.

Robert Bendus, manager of historical resources for the county, explained during his presentation that the house at 12 Rockwell Lane was designed by “acclaimed architect Tim Seibert.” He added, “It is a classic example of the Mid-Century Modern lifestyle … associated with the Sarasota School of Architecture.”

The house, Bendus said, was built in 1958.

It is in the Sandy Hook community on the north end of Siesta Key. Bendus referenced the “simple square plan, its geometric lines, its broad roof overhangs and extensive use of glass.”

In 2007, he continued, the commissioners unanimously voted to designate the structure — known as the Boden-Wilson House — as an historic site.

Under the guidelines of Chapter 66 of the Sarasota County Code, Bendus explained, historic sites within the county may seek an ad valorem tax exemption for restoration, renovation or rehabilitation work. However, to be eligible for the exemption, a project must satisfy specific criteria, as determined by the county’s Historic Preservation Board: • The project is consistent with the design guidelines and U.S. Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation and Guidelines for Rehabilitating Historic Buildings.

• The expense of the work is equal to or greater than 15% of the assessed value of the property, excluding the land, in the year in which the qualifying improvement was initiated.

• The project has an exterior component equal to $2,500 or 15% of the budget for the improvements, whichever is greater.

• The work meets the criteria established by the Florida Department of State.

Bendus added, “The Historic Preservation Board has certified that the rehabilitation of 12 Rockwell Lane meets all the criteria for an ad valorem tax exemption.” County staff made site visits during the process to ensure the work was consistent with the appropriate standards, Bendus noted.

A staff memo provided to the commission in advance of the April 24 meeting says that in 2015, the Sarasota County Property Appraiser’s Office valued the improvements of the property at $71,000; $57,300 of that was for the house, while $13,700 was for extra features. The overall cost of the rehabilitation, the memo adds, was $480,000.

Sarasota County Property Appraiser Office records show that the Steins bought the house from Marjorie L. Friedman, trustee, for $570,000 on April 25, 2011. The total market value of the structures and land in 2017 was $954,600, the records note.

‘A long process’ The initial approval of the Stein’s pre-construction application was granted on Jan. 28, 2014, the staff memo points out. To comply with the two-year deadline for completion, the memo says, the work should have been finished by January 2016. However, the project was not completed until May 2017.

During the June 27, 2017 Historic Preservation Board meeting, the memo continues, “the applicant stated that significant delays were incurred primarily because of an unscrupulous terrazzo floor contractor whose work had to be removed and replaced.”

On April 24, Bendus told the commissioners that the Historic Preservation Board recommended they waive the two-year construction requirement in this case. “Staff was able to conduct its post-construction inspections and determine the rehabilitation is consistent with the earlier approved plans,” the staff memo says.

Moreover, the memo continues, “staff recommends the commission consider a code amendment in the future which grants staff discretionary authority to extend the two-year window for good cause shown by the applicant …”

After Bendus completed his remarks, Robert Stein addressed the board. “My wife, Janet, and I bought the property actually seven years ago tomorrow,” he said. “It’s been a long process. Quite an education.”

They wanted to extend their appreciation to the Historic Preservation Board members for their guidelines and encouragement,

Stein added. “We met with them many times before we got approval.”

Stein also thanked the commissioners for offering incentives for preserving historic structures.

The house “was in significant disrepair,” Stein pointed out. He and his wife have added new electrical; plumbing; and heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems to the structure, he said, along with new windows and doors and a new roof. “We’ve rebuilt the house. Our house is now sound and will be here for many years to come.”

Part of the project entailed adding a carport with living space above that, Stein added. “I think that the new structure complements

Vacation

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It’s our Summer Season which seems to last from May 15th to October 15th and it’s a good time to head out on trips and vacations or try to escape the heat.

Many things have to be considered and plans have to be made but most of us don’t consider that minor aches and bothers can become major problems while away from home, especially on cruises and when out of the USA. Make sure those little tooth things you’ve ignored or dealt with are taken care of before you leave. If you have a spare denture - take it.

Consult with your dentists for their opinion of what can wait and what shouldn’t.

If you have any questions or comments, please don’t wait until the last moment.

Let’s work toward a truly happy and healthy vacation season.

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the original in a very nice way. I’m very proud of the work we’ve done.”

Stein also told the board members that if any of them are on Siesta Key in the future and would like to stop by, he and his wife would be happy to show them the house.

With no comments from any other persons, Commissioner Alan Maio made the motion to grant the 10-year property tax exemption, and Commissioner Paul Caragiulo seconded it.

The 4-0 vote reflected the absence of Chair Nancy Detert, who had left the meeting at the lunch break because she was feeling unwell, Vice Chair Charles Hines explained.

14

Siesta Sand

JUNE 2018

941.349.0194

Island Chatter

Salute to all you Grilling Dads

Continued from page 12

Live Mariachi band Come to Plaza Mexico Restaurant Bar & Grill and enjoy listening to a live Mariachi band June 3 and Father’s Day, June 17, performing both days from 6-9 pm. Also on Father’s Day June 17, the restaurant will offer 2 for 1 drinks, full bar for dads. The restaurant is located in the Southbridge Plaza 1894 Stickney Point Rd. (former Stonewood Grille) 941-702-5963.

Discount offered Looking for jewelry? Take advantage of a special offer in this month’s Siesta Sand. Mount –N-Repair Sterling Silver Jewelry store has a 15% off coupon on page 11. Stop in and shop their large selection.

The store is located at 5105 Ocean Blvd in the Siesta Key Village. Hours are Mon-Sat 10-6 and Sun 10-5, mountnrepairsiestakey.com, 941-346-7218.

Dispelling rumors

Smoking and joking! Mark and son Matt Rebhan, owners of Alpine Steakhouse and “Old-fashioned Butcher Shop” spend everyday doing what fathers across the country do on Father’s Day. Salute to all you grilling dads.

Come in and select a great steak for the grill or enjoy the steak of your choice, cooked to your likings at the restaurant. Alpine Steakhouse was named #1 Steakhouse by Sarasota Magazine 2017.

Make sure to pick up all your side dishes such as double baked potatoes ready for the grill or our homemade Italian sausages.

Alpine Steakhouse is located at 4520 S. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. www.alpinesteak.com serving Sarasota since 1975, 941-922-3797.

(Advertorial)

When Sarasota County Emergency Management Chief Ed McCrane appeared at the May SKA meeting to offer an update on new hurricane procedures, he took questions, as usual, after he concluded his presentation.

Erin Kreis, a new SKA board member, asked whether the drawbridges were opened after the evacuation of the Key was ordered ahead of Irma’s arrival in September 2017. She stayed with friends in Georgia, she pointed out, but people told her that such action was taken with the bridges.

McCrane assured her that the bridges are locked in the down position. Notices to Mariners are sent in advance to owners of vessels tall enough not to be able to proceed under the bridges, he added.

Kreis said she also heard that county staff turned off the water to the island after the Irma evacuation was ordered.

The staff of the Public Utilities Department does depressurize the water and sewer systems after people have had time to evacuate, McCrane explained. “We do it to protect the equipment,” he added. It is not a measure designed to make people more likely to evacuate, he said.

In response to a question from Margaret Jean Cannon about returning to the island after a storm, McCrane explained that county staff will employ a color code system. Red will mean conditions remain unsafe; yellow will mean access will be restricted to property owners. Green will be the sign that anyone can go onto the island.

Residents will need photo identification, he pointed out, if they want to go onto the Key during a yellow code, McCrane added. If someone has an out-of-state driver’s license, he explained, the person can use a Sarasota County utility bill, for example, to prove that the person is a property owner on Siesta.

Additionally, he said, if a property owner has hired someone to assist with clearing debris after a storm, for example, that contractor will need a letter from the property owner making it clear that the contractor has permission to go to that specific address.

Responding to a related question, McCrane acknowledged, “We kept the bridge blocked for a little bit” after Irma so the Public Utilities staff could

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get the water pressure back up on Siesta.

A longer delay was imposed on access to Lido and Longboat keys, he pointed out. Lido had 12 Australian pines that blew down, blocking the roadway, while Longboat had power lines down.

Great rapport with the audience In years past, when the SKA hosted its annual hurricane outlook program, county Emergency Management Chief Ed McCrane came alone. Last year and again this year, McCrane was joined by Rich Collins, his boss, who is the county’s emergency services director.

Collins seems as at ease with the public as McCrane and is ready to flash his sense of humor.

On May 3, before McCrane began his in-depth report on changes in county procedures for hurricane season, Collins stepped to the podium. How many of the approximately 40 people present, he asked, watched “all the spaghetti models” the National Hurricane Center provided last September as weather prognosticators tried to figure out where Irma was going to go?

A lot of hands flew into the air.

“I quit eating spaghetti after Hurricane Irma,” Collins said.

His daughter, he continued, has teased him that if she has a daughter one day, she plans to name the child Irma.

Collins also described the county’s Emergency Services staff watching Irma’s path shift as she approached the Florida peninsula. On the afternoon or night of Sept. 9 — before she finally struck the Florida Keys on Sept. 10, he pointed out — the National Weather Service team in Ruskin underscored the potential danger for the west coast of the state. “Their almost exact words were, ‘This is the storm we never hoped would happen.’”

Then, after Irma “took a jog to the east,” Collins continued, instead of 10 feet of storm surge the westerly track could have brought to the county’s shoreline, Irma ended up pushing all the water out of Sarasota Bay, leaving manatees aground. “To me,” he said, “it speaks to the force and power of a hurricane.”

Collins wrapped up his remarks with the comment, “I like to say the next storm’s going to be 14 years from now, after I retire.”

A new SKA board member Erin Kreis, a property manager on the Key — and a devoted volunteer, as she pointed out — is the newest member of the Siesta Key Association Board of Directors.

SKA President Gene Kusekoski introduced Kreis to the approximately 40 people attending the May SKA meeting, and he then asked Kreis to offer some remarks.

“I’m really happy to be here with you on the board,” Kreis said.

She and her husband moved to Siesta three years ago from Michigan, she said.

Continued on page 19

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Siesta Promenade project Planned for the northwest corner of the U.S. 41/Stickney Point Road intersection, Siesta Promenade would have 414 residential units, a 130-room hotel and 140,000 square feet of retail/commercial space, based on updated documents Benderson Development delivered to the county in March.

In January 2017, the Sarasota County Commission approved a request by Benderson Development for the county to consider designating its Siesta Promenade proposal a Critical Area Plan (CAP). Ultimate CAP approval would give Benderson more leeway with dwelling-unit density. In the meantime, the County Commission action enabled county staff to request more intensive studies than if Benderson had pursued a regular rezoning process for approximately 24 acres that long was the site of a mobile home park.

The very last line in Kautz’s 1¼-page response on May 4 was, “As traffic from Siesta Promenade increases, so do the frequency” of expected traffic backups on U.S. 41 at the Stickney Point Road intersection.

In its mid-March update, KimleyHorn wrote that its analysis of road conditions and traffic counts following a February 2017 analysis “assumed signal re-timing as project mitigation, including the signal cycle length at the intersection of State Road 72/Stickney Point Road & US 41.”

While changing the timing of that signal “may make the intersection of US 41 and SR 72 seem to function better,” Katz replied on May 4, “ that would serve to throw off the rest of the signal corridor along US 41.”

Katz added, “Please confirm the turn lane queues at that intersection were performed with current signal timings.”

One of the primary focuses of Kimley-Horn’s recommendations has been a traffic signal at the intersection of Stickney Point Road and Avenue B and C. In its March report, the firm also noted that its traffic analysis showed that during the weekday afternoon peak traffic time for that proposed signalized intersection, the maximum queue for the westbound approach to the intersection was predicted to be one vehicle. However, its Saturday peak-hour analysis showed the

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Continued from cover story

NOW OPEN FOR

LUNCH DAILY number would be 13.

“One vehicle still seems unrealistic,” Kautz wrote.

Kimley-Horn’s report added, “The intersection of Stickney Point Road and U.S. 41 is approximately 1,000 feet from the intersection of Stickney Point Road and Avenue B and C . Therefore, the westbound queue at the intersection of SR 72 & Avenue B & C is not anticipated to back up into the signal at the intersection of SR 72 & US 41.”

Residents who live in the area of the proposed project — and a number on Siesta Key — have complained that the periods of the days Kimley-Horn conducted its traffic analysis did not match peak traffic times for beach-goers during high tourist season.

In a related issue, Kautz pointed out in his May 4 response that the signal timings Kimley-Horn used to analyze the intersections of U.S. 41/Stickney Point Road and the proposed signalized intersection of Stickney Point Road and Avenue B and C “seem not to allow enough time for pedestrians to cross US 41.” That would create several issues, Kautz added. For example, if a pedestrian or bicyclist crosses at the U.S. 41 crosswalk, that will throw the U.S. 41/Stickney Point Road intersection timing “out of coordination with the rest of the signal system. This will cause issues on U.S. 41. … Queue lengths and Level of Service of the corridor will be negatively affected.”

“Level of Service” refers to the amount of congestion a driver perceives on a roadway, with A being the least problematic.

Kautz also noted that the proposed signal at Avenue B and C “seems to encourage very light queuing. Please note that this is assuming the proposed signal is synched with the US 41 and Stickney Point Road signal.

If a pedestrian crosses US 41 and

throws the signal out, the Avenue B and C queues will no longer be optimized and it is not known how far traffic would back up.”

Therefore, Kautz wrote, FDOT recommends that the proposed signal at Avenue B and C “be synched (not coordinated) with the signal at US 41 and Stickney Point Road .”

When a question was asked to county staff about the next steps, Media Relations Officer Drew Winchester reported that the Transportation Planning Division staff “is in receipt of FDOT comments and is conducting a sufficiency review of the CAP application.” No timeline was provided.

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Sheriff’s Report

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April 20-May 23, 2018

There were a total of 18 crimes reported on the Key between 4/20-5/22/18 4/20/18 Battery 5200 Block Ocean Blvd.

Officers responded to a battery at a village bar. The victim stated he was sitting down eating when the defendant muttered something under his breath. The victim didn’t understand what the defendant said so he ignored him. He then said, “What?” due to the fact that he couldn’t understand the defendant.

The defendant said, “What did you say?” in an aggressive tone.

He then walked over and struck the victim in the face and pushed him to the ground. After trying to stand up, the victim was pushed down a second time. The victim’s sister was witness to the event and corroborated the story. The event was also caught on the security camera. The defendant was charged with battery and is not allowed back in the establishment.

4/22/18 Battery 6300 Block Midnight Pass Rd. A woman was arrested for battery after striking her boyfriend.

The victim explained the woman had hit him while she was inside his residence. He advised the couple had been dating off and on for approximately two years. The victim said she had shown up on his doorstep wanting to talk. He allowed the defendant to enter and they began to argue. The victim asked her to leave his residence. On her way out she hit him with closed fists on his shoulder and top of the head. The officer made contact with the defendant away from the incident location and made her aware of her Miranda rights. She had a small bleeding laceration on her hand and her knuckles appeared red and bruised. There is a history of domestic violence between the victim and defendant.

Based on the officers investigation, the woman was charged with Battery /Touch or Strike. The two subjects live at separate residences and separated for the night.

4/25/18 Theft Public Beach A woman advised her beach bag had been taken and several items were missing. The bag had been left near the volleyball net while she

was in the water. Upon her return she saw it was missing. She did not see anyone near her belongings or observe anyone physically remove them from their location. The bag contained a driver’s license, credit card, debit card, $10 cash, a pair of sandals, two towels, a beach blanket and a set of car keys. The total value of the missing items is approximately $78. The officer checked nearby areas to see if any items were discarded in the trash or ground to no avail. There were no security cameras in the area.

5/4/18 Possession Marijuana 100 Block Beach Rd. An officer on routine patrol noticed a car parked at beach access #4 with the windows down and parked next to it. He could smell the strong scent of marijuana emanating from the vehicle. As he walked towards the vehicle he could see a glass pipe in the center console that appeared to be similar to those used to smoke marijuana.

Based on these observations, the occupants of the car were asked to step outside the vehicle. The officer noticed the male passenger hide something between the seat and the doorframe. The occupants were cooperative and stepped to the rear of the vehicle. The male passenger was searched but did not have anything on his person. The female passenger admitted to having a small bag of marijuana in the center console. The male defendant said he had an unknown amount in a baggy inside the car. The officer searched the car and found the small bag of leafy substance (minimal amount).

He also found a large Ziploc bag, which contained two smaller bags, one of which contained green leafy material that later tested positive for marijuana. This was found where the defendant had hidden something earlier. A scale was also found and the defendant admitted he used it to weigh marijuana purchases. Post Miranda, the defendant asked that only he be charged and not the female passenger with possession. The officer issued a Notice To Appear for possession of Marijuana to the male passenger. Due to the defendant’s cooperativeness, he

was not charged with the additional charge of possession of drug paraphernalia, but they will be entered as evidence.

5/6/18 Burglary- Business 5200 Block Ocean Blvd.

A neighboring business owner observed a side window of a jewelry store was smashed and called law enforcement. Officers observed the front glass display cases were entered into and jewelry was taken.

A key holder arrived and opened the front door for law enforcement and the alarm went off, but the motion sensor did not appear to be working. Pry marks were seen on the front door deadbolt.

The business specializes in fake jewelry. Ten of the gold bracelets, custom made for this store ($1500 each), were taken. No markings or serial numbers are on the jewelry.

Twelve silver rings ($200 each) and 10 silver rings ($450 each). None of the fake jewelry in the store or the $120 cash drawer was taken. There are no witnesses and no security video available from surrounding businesses. Touch DNA, prints and photos were taken and submitted.

5/6/18 Grand Theft 1200 block Old Stickney Pt. Rd. The owner of a business on the south Key placed the bank deposit for the business in a hidden compartment of the center console in his truck. The deposit was approximately $13,000 in cash and three checks contained in a onetime use, white bag, marked with only the account number on the outside. On this same day, with the deposit still hidden in the car, the complainant attended a meeting at a Sarasota restaurant and returned to his residence afterwards. The next morning he stopped at his business before driving to the downtown bank branch where he planned to make the deposit. At this time, he noticed the deposit was missing. Security footage from the business confirms him walking out to his car with the bank deposit.

He continues to view footage to see if his car was burglarized. The restaurant is checking their footage and the car will be processed for prints.

Continued on page 29

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941.349.0194

Following up on complaints

By Rachel Brown Hackney During his report to SKA members on May 3, Sgt. Jason Mruczek also offered updates on a series of issues members raised during the April 5 SKA meeting.

First, he asked member Dave Thomas, who lives on the Grand Canal, whether boating problems had eased, noting that he had asked representatives of the Sheriff’s Office Marine Patrol to contact Thomas about speeding boaters.

“I spoke to several people,” Thomas replied.

Sgt. Jason Mruczek They referred him to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), Thomas added, whose staff updated him on efforts regarding signage for the canals to warn boaters not to speed.

“I’ve seen the sheriff’s boat twice this week on the canal ,” Thomas noted. “They were going nice and slow, so I didn’t have to yell at them,” he joked.

The volume of boaters has declined since the height of tourist season ended, Thomas told Mruczek, but some drivers still “push the limit” in terms of speed.

Thomas noted other types of situations that have caused him concern, as well. For example, he continued, “Sometimes you see a boat with no driver; guy’s going into the cooler for a beer.

Sometimes it’s a 5-year-old kid driving,” which would not be as much a cause for alarm if an adult were seated next to the child, Thomas pointed out.

SKA President Gene Kusekoski also noted that he lives on the Intracoastal Waterway, and he has been seeing speeding jet skiers.

“Is it worth calling somebody about that?” he asked Mruczek. By the time an officer could get to the scene, Kusekoski added, the skiers would be gone. Kusekoski said that most of the problems occur between the Stickney Point Road and the Siesta Drive drawbridges.

If the situation is a recurring one, Mruczek responded, Kusekoski should let him know. Then, Mruczek would contact the Marine Patrol about keeping an eye on the area.

“Most days, it’s random,” Kusekoski said, noting that on one occasion, he saw “a couple of kids” run aground on an oyster bed.

A woman in the audience told Mruczek that she has been worried about people in kayaks and on paddleboards who have had near misses with speeding boats as they move from the bayous into Sarasota Bay. “No Wake Zone” signs used to stand at the locations where the bayous empty into the bay, she said.

When Mruczek asked her about the specific spots she was referencing, she said she was talking about Bayou Louise and Bayou Hansen on the northern end of the island.

“I will pass that along to our Marine Patrol, as well,” he replied.

Regarding issues at Beach Accesses 1 and 2, Mruczek noted that deputies have “been to Access 1 a lot, especially after 9 p.m.,” when the public parking hours end there.

A couple attending the April SKA meeting complained about loud partying and about people letting dogs run loose on the beach at Access 1, which faces Big Pass at the end of North Shell Road.

“I think we’ve had a lot of success with enforcement there,” Mruczek told the May SKA audience.

Additionally, he continued, “Access 2 has been a lot better.”

Nonetheless, he noted, the Sheriff’s Office has received some reports of “vehicles going very fast on Avenida Messina,” toward the heart of Siesta Village, from Access 2.

The previous day, he said, a person in a big truck was ticketed for careless driving on Avenida Messina. “Hopefully, that will deter some other behaviors.”

When Mruczek started taking questions, a man in the audience asked whether it is legal to pass the Siesta Key Breeze trolley when it stops to pick up passengers on Midnight Pass Road. (The trolley circulates between Turtle Beach Park and Morton’s Siesta Market on Canal Road in the Village.)

“I’m going through my rolodex of traffic laws,” Mruczek replied as he thought about the question. “I’ll look into that one.”

In a May 9 telephone interview, Mruczek said his research had determined that no one can pass the trolley when it is in a No Passing Zone. Given that almost all of the Breeze’s route is along roads with double yellow lines, he added, people just need to be patient. “That is my official answer.”

They cannot pass the Sarasota County Area Transit (SCAT) buses, either, he pointed out, when those vehicles are picking up or dropping off riders in No Passing Zones.

Yet another question at the SKA meeting focused on service vehicles parking for long periods of time in the center turn lane on Midnight Pass Road.

“That can’t be done,” Mruczek replied.

It is common for beer and food delivery trucks to park in the center turn lane in Siesta Village, Mruczek continued, but they usually complete their business quickly enough that deputies do not ask them to leave. Short periods for such parking are all right, he added.

Then Kusekoski explained that he had made note of a cement truck parked in the center turn lane near his home on Midnight Pass Road for an hour or two.

Mruczek told Kusekoski that deputies would keep an eye out for that type of situation.

JUNE 2018

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

Buzzfeed names Fresh Catch top new Florida restaurant to try in 2018 According to a list published on the popular website Buzzfeed. com, Fresh Catch is the top new restaurant diners should check out in Florida in 2018.

Data focusing on new restaurants that opened during the past year from the restaurant-review site Yelp.com was used to compile the list. Only one restaurant was chosen from each state, adding to the impressive recognition this small restaurant is receiving.

Fresh Catch’s, father/son duo, Bob and Devon Provost have a serious passion for seafood which started way back when the family lived in the Boston area. Their simply prepared, neverfried, never-frozen dishes are paired with a variety of simple sauces that serve to complement, so the freshness of the seafood shines.

Your fish/seafood selection goes from the case onto the grill.

Prepared grilled or blackened, topped with lemon and butter, Pico de Gallo or tropical salsa. Served with a fresh ear of corn on the cob and baby roasted potatoes. Soups, salads, sandwiches and steam pots round out the menu. If room permits, be sure to order a slice of their homemade key lime pie. Bob’s wife, Debra, makes the key lime pie, using freshly whipped cream. The restaurant also offers a nice selection of beers and wines.

Fresh Catch Fish Market & Grill, located at 7119 S. Tamiami Trail, just south of Stickney Point Road in the Buccaneer Plaza, is a casual restaurant/market with indoor and outdoor seating for close to 30.

Here’s what more patrons are saying about the restaurant on line: Yelp review: I see why this place is all five stars. Amazing find, tucked away in a nondescript strip mall adds to its local, simple vibe.

Best seafood I have had in a long time. Service made it feel like we were part of the family, four happy diners tonight. If you read this post, stop searching and start eating. Seriously do not pass up this little gem.

“If you love delicious seafood prepared flawlessly, this is the place for you. Everything is cooked to highlight the high quality, pulled fresh from the gulf.” —Yelper Scott B. “Our favorite!! Best fresh fish and crab claws!!! The fish list is changing daily. The Key lime pie is the best there is.” —Yelper George C. Tried this place last night on a whim and it did not disappoint!

Everything from the staff, to the menu, to the meal itself was perfection.

It’s a small place and luckily we’d come in between dinner rushes and got a table right away. Within 10 mins the place was full again. The wait staff was smiling and helpful.

We shared stone crab soup to start with a couple of ice cold beers, tons of crab in the soup and excellent flavor. For our meals we got blackened tripletail and snow crab claws. Each came with a side of roasted potatoes.

I can’t say enough about how fresh and delicious the entire meal was.

We will be back!

Due to its popularity, reservations are strongly recommended to avoid a long wait.

Fresh Catch Fish Market and Grill is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Saturday. 941-413-7133, freshcatchfishmarketandgrill.com (Advertorial)

The Provost Family Wishes all Dads a Happy Father’s Day

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Siesta Sand

Off Key

JUNE 2018

941.349.0194

www.siestasand.net

By Robert Frederickson

From Modern Quests to Support Animal Pets Tales of Brave Ulysses?

I-4 was recently listed as the number one, single most dangerous highway in the nation, which comes as no surprise to anyone who has traveled along it in recent years. The roadway was of course built to quickly funnel as many vacationing families as possible to the Enchanted Realm of the Mouse that Consumed Central Florida. But no one envisioned the highway itself would turn into the real-life thrill ride it has become.

It kinda makes sense though, in an admittedly twisted ‘only-in-Florida’ sort of way. All those wildly enthused families hurtling through I-4’s gauntlet of mayhem and terror to reach the object of their obsessive desire: three or four days of frenzied fun and fascination in the land of the Giant Mouse King.

The real-life danger only adds to the adventure...

It may not rank up there with the Odyssey or the Iliad, but by modern standards, an epic pilgrimage just the same.

Mis-opportunity Zones?

Tampa mayor Bob Buckhorn wants the state to designate the proposed site for a new Tampa Bay Rays stadium in Ybor City as an ‘economic opportunity zone.’

Well, of course he does. Because that way, state, local and federal tax dollars can be used to help build the team a shiny new pleasure palace on the dime of citizens, most of whom will never set foot in the place. (Though in the interest of full disclosure I should add that as a lifelong baseball fan, that doesn’t include me. Still, why should non-fans subsidize folks like me who are)?

We’ve seen this movie before, no?

Just what sort of ‘opportunities’ are promoted in these ‘zones’? All sorts, for sports franchise ownership groups, restauranteurs and sports bar owners. But beyond that? Well, plenty of low paying jobs for waiters and waitresses, parking lot attendants and hot dog, beer and program vendors in the new stadium; but what about real long-term opportunities with the higher wage positions our politicians are forever proposing our tax dollars should be used to attract?

(Crickets...)

Sticking with the Sports Theme...

Way back in their inaugural season of 1962, the New York Mets managed to lose 120 of 160 games. During one particularly

dismal on-field performance that season, legendary manager Casey Stengel, then 72, looked up and down his dugout, shook his head and posed a question to no one in particular “does anyone here know how to play this game...?”

Well, fast-forward 54 years and the 2018 Mets squad has managed to pull off an ignominious feat that eluded even that hapless 1962 team. During a recent game against Cincinnati, the Mets actually batted out of order, snuffing out a rally that just might have won them the game, given that the score was tied after nine innings.

Fittingly, the Mets went on to lose...in extra innings.

As Yogi Berra would say, “Deja Vu all over again...”

What Are the Odds?

Kateri Schwandt and her husband Jay already have 13 children romping around their Rockford, Michigan homestead, and get this...all of them are boys. Can you imagine?

So when Kateri gave birth to her 14th child last month, it was no surprise...yup, another boy.

What are the chances? Well, someone at NBC news did the math: less than 0.02 percent.

If this family is ever blessed with a daughter, what a princess she will be… imagine having 14 brothers to look after you!

The Unseen Perils of Social Media....

Most of us are aware of the welldocumented dangers lurking online... from all manner of scams, fake news, identity fraud, even getting reeled in as a cat-fishing victim.

But we tend to discount our own role in the perils we face. Oftentimes, it’s not so much what we hear or see from others that gets us into trouble. Rather, it’s what we say or do in response.

How many of us have casually clicked the ‘like’ icon under a message without fully reading or absorbing a friend or coworker’s post, just to be supportive?

We all want to stay in the good graces of those in our online circle, right?

But therein lies an under appreciated peril.

Just ask former Venice High School football Coach John Peacock. He led the Indians to a state championship last season but stumbled into a racial controversy he says he never saw coming. It happened after he ‘liked’ a tweet posted by a VHS

student commenting on the complexion of a rival coach, Curt Bradley of Braden River High.

That controversy was at least partially responsible for Peacock getting fired from his head coaching position last month.

The original tweet Peacock ‘liked’ showed a photo of a bottle of Nivea Sun Touch tanning spray. Below it was a rhetorical jab aimed by the student sender at Braden River’s Coach Bradley. It read: ”Is this what you use?”

Bradley took offense to Peacock’s ‘like’ of the post and in a letter later released to the public, called him out on his behavior.

“I had no clue he was multi racial” was Peacock’s response on WWSB’s web site.

Who knows how much thought went into that ‘click’ but the loss of one’s coaching position seems like an oversized price to pay if you believe Peacock’s pledge of ignorance.

Giving someone the ‘benefit of the doubt’ seems to have become a quaint concept these days, one fully purged from what passes for modern civility.

Then again, coaches are often frustrated by unforced errors on the field of play; it must sting all the more when that error is of one’s own making.

In another case, was it again an ‘unforced error’ that led to the dismissal of former New Orleans Saints cheerleader and Sarasota resident Bailey Davis, 22, from the NFL team’s squad after she posted a picture of herself on her instagram account dressed in what the Saints described as lingerie, something prohibited under team rules?

Posting on instagram is almost reflexive behavior for millennials like Bailey. But for the folks running the NFL? Well, not so much.

Davis told the Herald Tribune the outfit in question was not lingerie at all, but rather a one piece dance costume that covered more of her skin than the cheer leading uniforms she performed in on game days for the Saints.

That this controversy involves the NFL’s New Orleans franchise is mildly amusing, given the lack of modesty regularly displayed along the city’s most renowned thoroughfare, Bourbon Street, on any given day or night, or – as Bailey points out – by the cheerleaders’ own team sanctioned attire.

For her part, Bailey has filed a gender discrimination suit with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) alleging discrimination on the part of the Saints for having different rules for male and female employees.

In any case, it can be a hard lesson to

learn, but get used to it: the line between private and professional life online is about as ‘virtual’ as it gets.

But your transgressions? They will be all too real.

Presidential Faux Pas No, not Trump this time, but rather French President Emmanuel Macron. At the end of his recent state visit to Australia, he turned to his host, Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and thanked him and his ‘Delicious’ wife for their hospitality.

Sounds like he really did have a good time.

But in all seriousness, it’s a good thing it wasn’t Trump, otherwise we’d probably have to suffer through a second special counsel investigation.

Bad News for Climate Change Evangelists I had to chuckle over the headline in the Herald Trib last week that read: “Next Hurricane Season a Puzzler.”

Yes, but predicting what the climate will be like 50 years from next Tuesday, well, that’s no mystery at all.

That’s because the models used to create these long-term forecasts are – we’re told - based on ‘settled’ science.

But as it turns out, sometimes ‘settled’ science turns out to be wrong.

The journal ‘Science,’ reports CO2 is much less impactful than anyone knew in terms of climate warming because there’s much more nitrogen than anyone knew, soaking it up, mitigating its impact. So the long term impact of global warming will be “much, much less.”

This of course will be dismissed by the global warming crowd as blasphemy despite its coming in a peer-reviewed article in a respected scientific publication.

Emotional Support Animal Blowback...

Ok, American Airlines has had enough.

Service ‘goats’ will no longer be allowed on their planes. Or Peacocks. Or miniature horses. Or mongooses.

Good News?

But seriously, where does the line get drawn? As commentator Kat Timpf said on the Greg Gutfeld show recently, all pets are emotional support animals...otherwise why would we have them? It’s not like they help out with the housework.

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Island Chatter

JUNE 2018

Continued from page 14

she said. “Volunteering is very important and very, very close to my heart.”

Another sign of a busy season Erin Kreis Kreis was a manager at GM who specialized in public policy, corporate relations, philanthropy, disaster relief, sustainability and employee volunteerism, she explained. “I have pretty broad credentials on the corporate side.”

Additionally, she told the audience, from 1994 to 2015, she chaired the planning commission in the community where she lived, and she also served as chair of that community’s zoning board of appeals from 2010 to 2015.

After attending several SKA meetings and hearing discussions about zoning and planning issues involving the island, Kreis added, she became interested in getting involved with the nonprofit.

“I believe firmly in volunteerism,”

During the May quarterly meeting for Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce members, Michael Shay, manager of the Siesta Key Village Maintenance Corp., reported that the height of tourist season this year meant “a lot of garbage, literally and figuratively.”

“We had a busy spring break,” he added. “Based on the volume of garbage in the Village, this was probably one of the busiest five or six weeks before Easter that I can remember.”

He had been managing the Village upkeep on behalf of the Maintenance Corp. since 2009, he noted. The Maintenance Corp. represents all the property owners who pay a special district tax each year for that upkeep.

The garbage is picked up five days a week, Shay continued, all year long. Tuesdays and Saturdays are the off days.

Continued on page 30

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

19

20

Siesta Sand

JUNE 2018

Road Swap

941.349.0194

Continued from cover story

Finally, on Sept. 13, 2017, thenCounty Administrator Tom Harmer announced that staff had begun discussing a proposed road swap that would lead to River Road becoming a state road. If that could be achieved, commissioners agreed, the state would be able to make the longsought improvements.

In more recent months, however,

residents who live near the intersection of Stickney Point Road and U.S. 41 — and a number on Siesta Key — have voiced alarm that if the state no longer had authority over Stickney Point Road, then the likelihood would increase that the proposed Siesta Promenade project would win approval.

Commissioner Charles Hines

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voiced his belief on May 22 that FDOT will have significant say in traffic issues related to Siesta Promenade, which Benderson Development has planned on about 24 acres on the northwest corner of the Stickney Point Road intersection with U.S. 41.

“I really believe there has been miscommunication going on” in regard to the Siesta Promenade issue, Hines said. FDOT will remain completely responsible for the U.S. 41/Stickney Point Road intersection, he stressed. “FDOT is still going to have an interest in what transpires with Siesta Promenade. I think that needed to be made clear.”

Sura Kochman, a spokeswoman for the Pine Shores Neighborhood Alliance, was one of three speakers on May 22 who opposed the road swap. Pine shores Estates is the community that would be immediately adjacent to Siesta Promenade.

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told the board that in July 2016, FDOT sent a letter to county staff, noting its staff members “were especially concerned” about the fact that the U.S. 41/Stickney Point Road intersection was on the department’s list of the top vehicle crash locations in Sarasota County. From 2010 to 2014, Kochman said, FDOT statistics showed a 175% increase in those crashes. “I find it very difficult to believe that the situation has changed for the better,” she told the commissioners.

Commissioner Alan Maio said during the later board discussion, “I explicitly asked for the elimination of the leg of Stickney Point Road … from Midnight Pass Road to U.S. 41.”

However, Spencer Anderson, interim director of the county’s Public Works Department, emphasized that FDOT refused to accept any counter proposal county staff made regarding the road swap, except for the

suggestion that the state maintain control of the drawbridges on Siesta Drive and Stickney Point Road.

Maio also noted that he had worked alongside County Administrator Jonathan Lewis to seek the inclusion of improvements — at state expense — to the almost 90-degree curve at the intersection of Higel Avenue and Siesta Drive on north Siesta Key. County staff will design those improvements, Anderson said, stressing, “It is a fully constrained roadway. … The rights of way for all intents and purposes are already in use.” Still, he added, the goal will be to make the intersection safer.

The agreement also calls for FDOT to complete the resurfacing of Midnight Pass Road from the Stickney Point Road intersection to Shadow Lawn Way in the 2022 fiscal year; the distance is about 1.6 miles.

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941.349.0194

JUNE 2018

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

VILLAGE MAP pgs 22 - 23

ACCOMMODATIONS PAGE 43

GULF GATE SHOPS pg 28

CRESCENT BEACH MAP pg 24

LOCAL MAPS INSIDE

LIVE MUSIC PAGE 26

21

The Publication with “Key” Information | www.SiestaSand.net | 941.349.0194

Siesta Key Drum Circle Before You Leave...

If you have any non-perishable food items that have not been opened, the Siesta Key Chamber, located at 5114 Ocean Blvd, in the Village at the Davidson Plaza along with St. Michael’s Parish, located at 5394 Midnight Pass Road will gladly take these items and pass them on to the less fortunate in the Sarasota area.

Chamber hours for items to be dropped off are as follows: Monday – Friday: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Saturday: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

For instructions on after hour drop-offs, please contact the Chamber office at 941-349-3800.

St. Michael’s hours for items to be dropped off are as follows: Monday – Thursday: 8 a.m. – Noon and again from 1 p.m. – 4 p.m.

Friday: 8 a.m. – Noon.

If you are dropping off items after hours, please leave any items at the front door of the parish office.

For any additional questions, please contact the office at 941-349-4174.

Every Sunday is a perfect time to come to the Key to reconnect with Mother Nature and to enjoy some wonderful entertainment. I’m talking about the Siesta Key Drum Circle that takes place each Sunday starting about an hour before sunset and lasting until about 10 p.m. The gathering meets up just south of the main pavilion - just follow your ears and watch for the swelling crowd.

Please note the following rules of etiquette that need to be observed at the Drum Circle so that all can enjoy the experience: the inside of the drum circle is for participants only, not for people standing around.

Feel free to enter the circle, take a picture and dance, but always keep moving. Never play someone’s drum without getting clearance from the owner. Always ask before borrowing other people’s property, especially hula hoops. Flash photography and bright video lights are distracting, so photograph during daylight or use a night vision camera. And finally, please do not drink alcohol or smoke inside the circle and respect our beach by placing all trash in the appropriate receptacles.

Photo posted by Linda Skel Pupke on the Siesta Key Drum Circle Facebook page.

Before you leave Sarasota, you must try this one!

As seen on the Food Network Guy Fieri’s “Diner’s, Drive-In’s and Dive’s” show. The TurDucKen “One big bird” Boneless chicken stuffed in a boneless duck stuffed in a boneless turkey with a variety of great seasonings. Alpine Steakhouse just off of Siesta Key located between the bridges at 4520 S. Tamiami Trail.

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Lunch Turducken Sandwich $8.95 and Dinner Turducken $18.95 w/mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy and cranberry sauce

22

Siesta Sand

JUNE 2018

941.349.0194

Hundreds Of Volleyballs Sail Through The Air On Siesta Beach More than 600 Pro, Amateur and Junior beach volleyball players participated in the “Dig The Beach Volleyball Series” tournament on spectacular Siesta Beach.

Thousands of dollars in prize money is awarded to top men’s and women’s Pro Division winners. Adult and Junior players each have their choice of four amateur divisions as well as divisions for Pro and Co-Ed teams. Tournament Director, Diogo Sousa commented, “This tournament attracts some of the best volleyball players in the nation.”

Sousa was excited to announce they have partnered with AVP (Association of Volleyball Professionals). As a result, both pros and juniors who participate in “Dig the Beach Series“ volleyball tournaments can earn AVP national ranking points.

Body Armor is now their electrolyte sports drink sponsor and Cora Physical Therapy provides complementary care for all their athletes at all their tournaments. Rox Volleyball continues to be one of their title sponsors.

Founded in 1991, the Dig the Beach Series is the longest standing and largest

DISCOVERTHEYEAROFTHE

series of its kind in the United States. The Dig the Beach Volleyball Series is the most established and successful grassroots series of its kind. Since 1992 they have catered to both professional and amateur players.

This tour has graduated some of the top professionals on the Domestic & World Tours. Annually the series makes 8 stops throughout Florida from April through August. Each tournament features 2 person teams in Adult & Juniors divisions.

“We have created and developed the largest Junior’s Program in the U.S., totaling over 200 hundred Juniors teams at some events. Our Junior’s Program consists of children ages 18 years old and younger, and caters to both boys and girls.” This program involves the parents, family members, and friends. “We have created a platform that has created the visibility for close to 40 young women to get scholarships to play Sand Volleyball in College. We will continue to grow the visibility for the young women to be seen as potential college players,” Sousa said.

(Source help: www.digthebeach.com)

Collegiate player, Brad Connors of St. Petersburg, leaps high in the air to block a spike during a tough Men’s Pro Division match on incredible Siesta Beach

Daiquiri

ACCOMMODATIONS Siesta Key Beach Resort & Spa........ Map-A #38A ART GALLERY / STUDIO Calle Studios..........................................Map-B #32 The Gallery on Siesta Key................... Map-D #11 ATM / BANKS PNC ATM.............................................. Map-C #61 Martin Funding.......................................Map-E #1 Sun Trust Bank & ATM..........................Map-E #4 BARS & NIGHTCLUBS Blaśe Café.............................................Map-A #38 Daiquiri Deck Raw Bar.................Map-B #42-43 Gilligan’s.............................................. Map-B #33 Siesta Key Oyster Bar......................... Map-B #45 The Beach Club..................................... Map-D #22 The Cottage........................................... Map-C #58 The Hub-Baja Grill............................... Map-D #59

SOUTH SIESTA KEY • ISLAND OF VENICE • SIESTA KEY VILLAGE • ST. ARMANDS CIRCLE Map B #42

COFFEE SHOPS LeLu’s Coffee Lounge........................ Map-B #31 The Local Bean.....................................Map-D #62 DRUGSTORE Davidson’s Drugs................................Map-D #65 FASHION & ACCESSORIES Beach Bazaar’s & Swin Shack........... Map-C #28 Blvd. Beachwear....................................Map-B #30 Comfort Shoes-Birki & More...........Map-D #64 Everything But Water.......................... Map-D #12 Foxy Lady Fashions............................. Map-A #40 Gidget’s Coastal Provisions.............. Map-B #44 Island Boutique.....................................Map-B #50 Island Style............................................ Map-C #53 Marley Vibes........................................... Map-D #9 Sea Shanty............................................. Map-C #24 Siesta T’s.................................................Map-B #30 The Sandal Factory...............................Map-B #46

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GAS STATION Circle K Store...........................................Map-E #6 GIFTS & SOUVENIRS Beach Bazaar........................................ Map-C #28 Island Trader......................................... Map-C #51 Sea Pleasures & Treasures.................. Map-C #29 Siesta Key Outfitters...........................Map-D #11 Siesta Kids..............................................Map-B #36 HEALTH & FITNESS Indep. Lifestyle Solutions .................. Map-D #10 Siesta Healing......................................... Map-D #9 Siesta Key Fitness............................... Map-B #73 ICE CREAM/TREATS Big Olaf Creamery............................... Map-C #52 Ciao Gelato............................................ Map-C #50 Made in Rome Gelato........................ Map-C #53 Meany’s Mini Donuts.......................... Map-C #24 SubZero Ice Cream/Yogurt................ Map-D #16 Sunni Bunni Frozen Yogurt................ Map-C #53 INTERNET / WiFi SERVICES Davidson Drugs..................................Map-D #65 LeLu’s Coffee Lounge........................ Map-B #31 The Local Bean.....................................Map-D #62 JEWELRY Created Gems....................................... Map-C #51 Mount -N- Repair Jewelers.................Map-D #9 Map C #61

Morgan Thomas (R) of Sarasota, and her teammate near during a Women’s AAA Division Match on amazing Sie

For those that have enjoyed th cuts and camaraderie at the Villag Barber over the years, you can sti continue to see Scott Reich at hi new Gulf Gate Barbershop locatio at 6575 Gateway Ave. in Gulf Gate The Siesta Center was sold an the new ownership of the Ocea Blvd building wasn’t quite meetin up to expectations.

Notice: Change of Phone Numbe Call Scott at 941-600-4533. Hi hours are 8:30-4:00 Tuesday thr Friday and 8:30-12:00 Saturday.

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LIQUOR STORES / FINE WINES Gabbiano’s Wine Club.......................Map-D #70 Gilligan’s.............................................. Map-B #33 Siesta Key Wines................................. Map-C #61 Siesta Village Liquors........................ Map-C #26 The Beach Club..................................... Map-D #22

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JUNE 2018

23

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

A Men’s Pro Division player stretches to set up his teammate at the Dig The Beach Volleyball Tournament on beautiful Siesta Beach

Mackenzie Morris of Jacksonville delivers a perfect set for her teammate during a Women’s Pro Division match

Florida State player, Macy Jerger of Ft. Meyers striking a powerful jump serve during a Dig The Beach tournament match. She’s been playing in these tournaments for eight years See more Volleyball photos on page 44

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MASSAGE Hands of Light Massage......................Map-B #35 Massage Experience Siesta Key........Map-D #62 Massage Therapy....................................Map-E #1 MEDICAL - DENTAL Siesta Dental........................................ Map-B #49 Siesta Key Physical Therapy............... Map-D #20 Siesta Medical Center.......................... Map-D #63 Siesta Village Dentistry....................... Map-D #63 MISCELLANEOUS Chamber of Commerce....................... Map-D #67 Positive RePercussion..........................Map-D #9 Roberti Enterprises.............................. Map-A #39 Tarot Card Reading & Gifts.................Map-B #50 PROFESSIONAL SERVICES Edward Jones Investments................. Map-D #68 Smith Architects...................................... Map-E 74

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REAL ESTATE / RENTAL SERVICES Coldwell Banker Realty....................... Map-D #20 Horizon Realty......................................Map-B #34 Island Homes........................................ Map-C #51 Keller Williams Real Estate................. Map-D #11 Key Realty.............................................. Map-E #5 Michael Saunders Realty................... Map-E #72 ReMax Alliance Group........................ Map-C #29 ReMax Tropical Sands.......................Map-D #67 Robasota Rentals & Real Estate.......... Map-A #39 Waterfront 7 Realty.............................. Map-C #56

48 47 46

RESTAURANTS / CAFÉS Another Broken Egg................... Map-C #54 & 55 Blasé Café.............................................Map-A #38 Bonjour French Cafe............................ Map-C #47 Café Gabbiano.....................................Map-D #71 Daiquiri Deck Raw Bar.................Map-B #42-43 Flavio’s Brick Oven & Bar....................Map-B #29 Flavio’s Italiano Ristorante..................Map-B #30 Gilligan’s Island Bar & Grill............ Map-B #33 LeLu’s Coffee Bar................................ Map-B #31 Lobster Pot............................................ Map-C #23 Old Salty Dog Rest. & Pub.....................Map-E #2 PI Pizza & Craft Beer...........................Map-A#37 Señor Siesta........................................... Map-D #69 Siesta Key Oyster Bar......................... Map-B #45 Solorzano Bros. Pizzeria....................Map-D #15 Subway Sandwiches.............................Map-B #30 Summer House..................................... Map-C #57 Sun Garden Café.................................. Map-D #19 The Cottage........................................... Map-C #58 The Hub - Baja Grill............................. Map-C #59 Village Café..........................................Map-D #14 SPAS - HAIR & BEAUTY LaPlaya Spa........................................... Map-C #50 Sassy Hair Salon..................................Map-A #40 Siesta Key Nails & Spa........................Map-D #9 SPORTS INTEREST/RENTALS CaliFlorida............................................. Map-C #29 Robin Hood Rentals........................... Map-B #34 Siesta Village Outfitters....................... Map-C #53

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Siesta Sand

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ATM & BANKS Bank of America........................................ A-3 #3 BARS & NIGHTCLUBS Capt. Curt’s Backroom Saloon................B-3 #7 Crescent Club........................................... C-3 #13 Sniki Tiki....................................................B-3 #8 DELIS / BAKERIES A Taste of Germany................................ C-3#14 Anna’s Deli & Sandwiches.................. C-3 #14 Nutritious You......................................... C-3 #14 The Beach Deli @ Crescent Beach Grocery......B-3 #1 DRUG STORES Davidson’s Drugs................................... C-3 #14 FASHION & ACCESSORIES CB’s Island Outfitters.............................. A-3 #2 CB’s Saltwater Outfitters........................ A-3 #4 Coconuts Fashion......................................B-3 #1 Coconuts / Island Colors..........................B-3 #8 Green Turtle Swimwear......................... C-3 #14

941.349.0194

CRESCENT BEACH SHOP INDEX

Key Casual Fashions............................... D-3 #17 Things You Like...................................... C-3 #14 GIFTS & SOUVENIRS Capt. Curt’s Souvenirs.............................B-3 #8 Green Turtle Shells & Gifts................. C-3 #14 Sunshine Sand Hidden Treasures........ D-3 #17 Silver City Jewelry.................................. C-3 #14 HEALTH & BEAUTY Sanctuary Siesta Key............................... A-5 #12 Siesta Key Salon & Spa........................... D-3 #17 The Key Spa & Salon.............................. A-5 #12 ICE CREAM & TREATS Orange Octopus .......................................B-3 #8 INTERNET / WiFi SERVICES Davidson’s Drugs................................... C-3 #14 Mail Pack Center..................................... C-3 #14 LIQUOR STORES Crescent Beach Grocery...........................B-3 #1 Crescent Club............................................B-3 #13 Siesta Spirits............................................. C-3 #17

MAILING & SHIPPING Mail Pack Center..................................... C-3 #14 US Post Office Sub Station..................... C-3 #14 MARKETS 7-11 Store.................................................. C-3 #16 Big Water Fish Market.......................... C-3 #17 Crescent Beach Grocery...........................B-3 #1 MISCELLANEOUS Moving & Storage....................................B-3 #10 Flowers by Fudgie................................... D-3 #17 REAL ESTATE / RENTALS Beckmann Properties.............................. C-2 #15 Homes & Condo Rentals........................ D-3 #17 Re/Max Tropical Sands............................B-3 #1 Siesta 4-Rent............................................ C-3 #14 Waterside Realty.................................... C-3 #17 RESTAURANTS / CAFES A Taste of Germany................................ C-3#14

Boatyard Waterfront Bar & Grill...............A-5 #12 Capt. Curts Crab & Oyster Bar.................B-3 #7 City Pizza Italian Restaurant................. D-3 #17 Clayton’s Siesta Grille...............................B-3 #9 Daiquiri Deck.................................................A-3 #2 Spear Fish Grill..............................................A-4 #5 Toasted Mango Cafe....................................C-3 #17 Miguel’s Restaurant................................ C-3 #17 Munchies.................................................. C-3 #17 WATER SPORTS - FISHING - RENTALS A to Z Beach & Bike Rentals.................. A-5 #12 FIN Island Co. . ........................................ A-3 #2 CB’s Saltwater Outfitters........................ A-3 #4 Parasail Siesta............................................ A-3 #2 Siesta Key Bike & Kayak . ......................B-3 #8 Siesta Key Marina.................................... A-4 #5 Siesta Key Jetski . ...................................... A-3 #2 Siesta Sports Rentals............................. C-3 #14 Waves Boat & Social Club...................... A-5 #12

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Willkommen

GERMAN BAKERY & CAFE German café offering fresh soups and sandwiches on freshly baked breads!

Rum Cakes Breakfast Lunch German Beers and Brats

941-346-1800 • www.ATasteofGermany.net 6575 Midnight Pass Rd., Siesta Key (South of Stickney Pt.)

Map C-3 #14

Map B-3#8

A Taste of Germany 6575 Midnight Pass Rd.

MAP C-3 #14

Anna’s Deli 6535 Midnight Pass Rd.

MAP C-3 #14

Big Water Fish Market 6641 Midnight Pass Road

Boatyard Waterfront Bar & Grill 1500 Stickney Point Rd.

MAP A-5 #12

CB’s Saltwater Outfitters 1249 Stickney Point Rd.

MAP A-3 #4

Coconuts Fashion MAP 1215 Old Stickney Point Rd. B-3 #1&8

Crescent Beach Grocery 1211 Old Stickney Pt. Rd.

MAP B-3 #1

Siesta 4-Rent 6555 Midnight Pass Rd.

MAP C-3 #14

Toasted Mango Cafe 6621 Midnight Pass Rd.

MAP C-4 #17

MAP C-3 #17

www.siestasand.net

941.349.0194

JUNE 2018

Snapshots of Island Visitors

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

Photos by Jaye Clements - Sarasota Photography 2

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5

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3

7

6

9

8

11

10

1. Pat, Denyce, Zoe age 2 ½, David, and Rosie from Orlando 2. Lindey, Haley, Taylor, Jeanie, Amber, Megan, Rachel, Shelby, Anna, and Katie 3. Emma age 9, Michelle, Justin from SRQ, Dee from Iowa, and Jimmy age 10 from SRQ 6. Alma and Alex from SRQ

7. Mike and Jackie (dog – Lorenzo) from PA

4. Drake and Kennedy from IL

5. Rue and Deanna from IL

8. John, Kayley age 5, and Yvonne from Ireland

9. Back row - Kris, Lauren, Aaron, Lauren, Yvette, Heather from Sarasota, front row – Mia age 3, Bella age 8, Rhea, age 4, Sophia age 7, and Veda age 1 ½ 10. David and Caitlin from OH

11. Chris, Emma age 2, and Priscilla from Tampa

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26

Siesta Sand

JUNE 2018

Siesta Sounds

941.349.0194

By Charmaine Engelsman-Robins

If you love piano music of any style, you’ll love John Hetherington, Fridays at Flavio’s Brick Oven and Bar. There are a lot of people for whom childhood piano lesson memories are, shall we say, “less than great.” They suffer through for as long as their parents insist, practice as little as possible, look forward to the day the torture is over, and would rather be doing just about anything other than sitting at that keyboard. (My mom was a piano teacher, so I know this stuff.) Well, not so for John Hetherington. He started taking piano lessons when he was nine years old and has been loving playing ever since, becoming “really serious” about playing around the time he got out of high school (2013).

When asked what he enjoys in addition to his music, he’s hard-put to come up with an answer. After a painfully long pause he laughs at himself for not being able to think of anything. ANYTHING. Not one single thing. In all the world there is nothing John Hetherington enjoys as much as music. About the only way to diversify his interests is to divide music into different genres so it sort of feels like multiple choices, but even then, he says he loves and plays them all. Classical, jazz, funk, soul, standards, lounge, originals … it’s all good. In fact, it’s all wonderful. He does, naturally, lean toward the sound that has been coming out in his original compositions, which he says are “a little tough to describe stylistically,” beyond that they are heavily influenced by his deep interest in composition.

While John’s explaining this I realize that, despite a decade of interviewing people of all types, our conversational rhythm is a bit off. I pinpoint the distraction: on the surface he sounds like any bright young guy his age, but when we talk music, he sounds like an older, more sophisticated soul.

It’s a little jarring, but enjoyable. Especially a few minutes later when he randomly throws out that he does enjoy the beach. Apparently another channel of his brain has been working on that while we moved on to other topics. It makes me silently smile; he’s entertaining all right, even to talk to like this.

A self-described “army brat,” John takes a shorter pause when asked where he’s from originally. Specifying that

CLUB BLASE CAFÉ In the Village 941-349-9822 DAIQUIRI DECK RAW BAR In the Village 941‐349‐8697

Photo by John Hetherington

John Hetherington

naming a home town is “pretty convoluted,” he says that he grew up all over the east coast, and then decides that he probably considers himself to be “from” northern Virginia, where he and his folks lived before moving to Sarasota about five years ago.

Comfortably confident and adaptable, just as John is up for pretty much any style of music, he’s also comfortable working in any playing configuration from solo performer to member of a full band. His blues/soul side is satisfied working with popular SW Florida group The Hydramatic, known for their great covers of such classics as Al Green, Earth, Wind & Fire, and other equally excellent classic R&B guys. They’ve had a steady blues gig at Sarasota’s Main Street Gator Club every Monday for quite some time and their popularity

MONDAY CLOSED

TUESDAY

Evan Eastmoore & Zak Yoder 7‐10 PM

WEDNESDAY

Savanah Brady & Zak Yoder 7‐10 PM

RPM LIVE 6‐10 PM

Lelu’s Coffee Lounge In the Village 941-346-5358

1‐5 PM: th Ryan Carney (4 ) th Rob Viola (11 ) th J. Gilton (18 ) st Frankie Lombardi (25 ) ……………………………….

Al Donadi 7‐11 PM

1‐5 PM: th J. Gilton (5 ) Gabe Strange (12 & 26) th Michael Mac (19 ) ……………………………..

Open mic night 7‐11 PM

1‐5 PM: Deven Starr (6 & 20) Frankie Ray (13 & 27) …………………….

Kettle of Fish 7‐11 PM

Karaoke Mondays 8 PM ‐ Midnight

THURSDAY

Rob Viola (7th) Howling Bob & Burt Engelsman (14th) Amandah Jantzen (21st & 28th) 7‐10 PM

temporary straight jobs that she lists on a secret “resume” titled “My Little List of Things I Never Want To Have To Do Again.” She won’t have to if you keep reading her articles, and she thanks you all very much for saving her from that horrible fate.

FRIDAY

Callie & the Whole Band 7‐10 PM LIVE MUSIC (3‐7 PM) DJ TJ (10 PM)

Rodney Shenk 6 ‐10 PM

THE COTTAGE In the Village 941-312-9300 THE HUB‐BAJA GRILL In the Village 941-349-6800 BACKROOM SALOON @ CAPT. CURTS Crescent Beach Shops 941‐349‐3885 SNIKI TIKI @ CAPT CURTS Crescent Beach Shops 941‐349‐3885 Turtle Beach Grill Southern end of SK 941‐349‐2280 BOATYARD BAR & GRILL Over the South Bridge 941‐921‐6200 SAND DOLLAR POOL BAR @ Best Western Plus 6600 S. Tamiami Trl. 941‐924‐4900 CASEY KEY FISH HOUSE 801 Blackburn Pt. Rd, Osprey 941‐966‐1901

* https://www.facebook.com/john.hetherington.3576 ** www.johnhetheringtonmusic.com *** https://www.facebook.com/TheHydramatic?fref=mentions **** http://www.flaviosbrickovenandbar.com

LIVE MUSIC SCHEDULE 6 – 10 PM Mike Tozier (6 & 20) Rev RC (13 & 27) DJ Tuesday – 10 PM

THE BEACH CLUB In the Village 941-349-6311

promises to keep it going for quite a while.

But he’s equally enjoying a completely different, more intimate solo gig on Siesta Key at Flavio’s Brick Oven and Bar, located in the Village (5239 Ocean Blvd).

When asked what he most likes about this solo gig, he says it’s the connection he can make with the audience. He doesn’t go in with a pre-determined set list for the night, finding one of the most enjoyable aspects of playing there to be figuring out just what it is that the crowd that particular night would most like to hear. Unlike a club that’s consistently frequented by a young audience seeking loud, high energy dance music, this room is much more personal.

And yes, he is open to requests.

Classical*****, jazz standards, “even piano bar,” it doesn’t have to be his particular favorite in order for him to enjoy playing it; he enjoys knowing how pleasing it is to the audience that sits really listening and absorbing these songs. It can be pretty diverse, both from night to night and even within one evening. It’s a great challenge, and one that he’s well up to. (There’s that old soul again.)

While John’s working his way up to recording some of his originals, you can hear a little bit of several different styles he plays by visiting his Facebook page*, his inprogress website**, The Hydramatic pages***, and of course by coming out to Flavio’s Brick Oven and Bar**** every Friday night in June for his solo performances. It should be an interesting experience to watch this talented man playing music with his young hands and the heart of an old soul.

Enjoy.

Charmaine Engelsman-Robins is a Chicago-born, awardwinning writer of screenplays and articles, including a 10 year stint writing for the Sarasota Herald Tribune. She has lived in SW FL most of her life and, as an animal rescuer, has occasionally been forced to support this work with

GILLIGANS In the Village 941-346-8122

SIESTA KEY OYSTER BAR (SKOB) In the Village 941‐346‐5443

www.siestasand.net

6 PM: RPM LIVE 10 PM: DJ Ryan

1 PM: Chris Otto (1, 15, 29) 1 PM: Frankie (8 & 22) 6 PM: Gabe & Thorson (1st & 22nd) 6 PM: Cabana Dogs (8th) 6 PM: Chris & Thorson (15th)

1‐5 PM: Dana & Co. ……………………….

FolkLab 7‐11 PM

DJ Coz or DJ Kensi 9 PM – 2 AM

DJ COZ: 10 PM

1‐5 PM Whiteleather 8‐Midnight Boss Hog Band (1st) Big Daddy Boys (8th) Deven Starr Band (15th) Jason Haram Band(22) Jason Haram (29th) 8 – 11 PM: Funks (1st) Torched (8th) Tropical Ave (15th) Scott Koffman (22nd) Sweet Spot (29th) Live DJ 11 PM ‐2 AM

SATURDAY

Lady B & the Buzz (2nd, 9th & 23rd) T Bone (16th) Kat Crosby (30th) 7‐10 PM

LIVE MUSIC (3‐7 PM) DJ Crawford (10 PM) 1 PM: Acoustic Pete 6 PM: Skyway (2nd) 6 PM: Ted (9 & 23) 6 PM: Beach (30th) 10 PM: DJ KConn

SUNDAY

rd

Latin Rendezvous (3 ) th Lisa Ridings (10 ) Birdtribe th th (17 & 24 ) 7‐10 PM BREE (3‐7 PM) 1 PM: KoKo Ray & the Keepers (3rd), Kettle of Fish (10), Skyway (17th), Cabana Dogs (24) 6 PM: Nextlevel (3 & 24), Bird Tribe (10th), Alowicious (17) 10 PM: DJ Tuesday

Eddie James Jazz Band 7‐10 PM 1‐5 PM: Bri Rivera (2,16, & 30)

Evan Eastmore (9 & 23) ………………………………

Mike Tozier 7‐11 PM 8 –11 PM: 22N (2nd) Stereo FM (9th) New Divide (16th) No Filter (23rd) Torched (29th) Live DJ: 11 PM‐2 AM

10 AM ‐ 1 PM Vince Colaiocco (3 & 17) Mike Tozier (10 & 24) 2‐6 PM: One Dog Riot (3 &24), Danny Fox (10), Ty Kirkland (17) 8 PM ‐ Midnight: The Whole Band (3 & 17) Hatley Band (10 & 24)

7‐11 PM rd Propaganjah (3 ) th Jah Movement (10 ) th Live Reggae (17 ) th Nostaljah (24 )

Live Music 6-9 PM

Live Music 6-9 PM

Live Music 6-9 PM

Live Music 7-10 PM

Live Music 7-10 PM

Live Music 7-10 PM

Live Music 6-9 PM

Live Music Noon – 3 PM 3:30 – 6:30 PM 7-10 PM

Live Music Noon – 3 PM 3:30 – 6:30pm 7-10pm

Live Music Noon – 3 PM 3:30 – 6:30 PM 7-10 PM

Live Music Noon – 3 PM 3:30 – 6:30 PM 7-10 PM

Live Music 1 – 4 PM 4:30 – 7:30 PM 8:30 PM –midnight

Live Music 1-4 PM 4:30 – 7:30 PM 8:30 PM - midnight

Live Music Noon – 3 PM 3:30 – 6:30 PM 7-10 PM

LIVE MUSIC 6‐10 PM

LIVE MUSIC 6‐10 PM

LIVE MUSIC 6‐10 PM

Island Sounds Dezi/Dami Canies (5‐8 PM)

KARAOKE 9 PM – CLOSE

KARAOKE 9 PM – CLOSE

LIVE MUSIC 6‐10 PM

LIVE MUSIC 6‐10 PM

LIVE MUSIC 6‐10 PM

LIVE MUSIC 6‐10 PM

LIVE MUSIC 5‐9 PM

LIVE MUSIC 5‐9 PM

LIVE MUSIC 5‐9 PM

LIVE MUSIC 5‐9 PM

RPM (5‐9 PM)

Bri Rivera (5‐8 PM)

The Richy Kicklighter Band 5‐9 PM

Joker’s Duo 5‐9 PM

Tribal Love 4‐8 PM LIVE MUSIC 3‐6 PM

Marcel Almanzor (5‐8 PM)

KARAOKE 9 PM – CLOSE

LIVE MUSIC 3‐6 PM

LIVE MUSIC 3‐6 PM

LIVE MUSIC 4‐8 PM

LIVE MUSIC 3‐7 PM

Above information is subject to change. We suggest calling venues for confirmation.

LIVE MUSIC 3‐7 PM

www.siestasand.net

941.349.0194

JUNE 2018

Island Humor

27

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

...

h t n o M e h T f o r e d Barten

You know you’re a Floridian if....

• Socks are only for bowling.

• You never use an umbrella because the rain will be over in five minutes.

• A good parking place has nothing to do with distance from the store, but everything to do with shade.

• Your winter coat is made of denim.

• You can tell the difference between fire ant bites and mosquito bites.

• You’re younger than thirty but some of your friends are over 65.

• Anything under 70 degrees is chilly.

• You’ve driven through Yeehaw Junction.

• You know that no other grocery store can compare to Publix.

• Every other house in your neighborhood had blue roofs in 2004-2005.

• You know that anything under a Category 3 just isn’t worth waking up for.

• You dread love bug season.

• You are on a first name basis with the Hurricane list. They aren’t Hurricane Charley or Hurricane Frances. You know them as Andrew, Charley , Frances , Ivan, Jeanne, Wilma...Irene...Cheryl...

Rita, Mary..Alison • You know what a snowbird is and when they’ll leave.

• You think a six-foot alligator is actually pretty average.

• ‘Down South’ means Key West.

• Flip-flops are everyday wear.

Shoes are for business meetings and church, but you HAVE worn flip flops to church before.

• You have a drawer full of bathing suits, and one sweatshirt.

HOTTEST BAR IN GULF GATE...

• You get annoyed at the tourists who feed seagulls.

• A mountain is any hill 100 feet above sea level.

• You know the four seasons really are: Hurricane season, love bug season, tourist season and summer.

• You’ve hosted a hurricane party.

MLB/College Packages FULL BAR

• You can pronounce Okeechobee, Kissimmee, Withlacoochee, Thonotosassa and Micanopy.

• You understand why it’s better to have a friend with a boat, than have a boat yourself.

• You were 25 when you first met someone who couldn’t swim.

• You’ve worn shorts and used the A/C on Christmas and New Year’s.

6500 Gateway Ave • 941.554.8905

• You recognize Miami-Dade as ‘Northern Cuba.’

Congrats with a tip of the hat and highlight to KIM, who bartends at THE HUB BAJA GRILL, located at 5148 Ocean Blvd, in the Village.

KIM’S hometown is right here in Sarasota.

Here’s a light-hearted Q&A on KIM as our bartender of the month.

Q: What’s your bartending experience and how long have you worked at THE HUB BAJA GRILL? What drink have you perfected?

A: I have been bartending for 8 years – 4 years here at THE HUB. I enjoy putting a twist on classic drinks – spicy margaritas ‘n mojitos, espresso martinis, etc.

Q: What was the strangest or funniest experience you witnessed or were party to at work?

A: I can’t really say one specific instance; however, my nickname at work and within my circle of friends is “Tequila Kim” and there are MANY stories that go along with that… swing by sometime and maybe a few of them will be told!

Q: Any hobbies, goals, etc. you enjoy when not working?

A: When I’m not working, I enjoy anything outdoors, particularly beach days as well as cooking and traveling the globe!

Q: How would you describe yourself?

A: I am a well-traveled magical unicorn! :) Q: What makes THE HUB BAJA GRILL a special place to visit?

A: THE HUB is a great place because the staff has a very strong sense of family and camaraderie that you can feel when you walk in the door.

Q: What specialty drink is THE HUB BAJA GRILL noted for?

A: THE HUB BAJA GRILL is known especially for our hand-crafted made to order margaritas. The skinny is my favorite and a MUST-TRY! Q: When is the best time for locals and visitors to enjoy your company at THE HUB BAJA GRILL? A: My schedule varies from week to week, but you can always find me behind the bar Monday nights, Saturday nights, and Sunday during the day. Saturday nights tend to be my favorite with the ‘TJ Hitt Shitt Show.’

TJ covers a lot of classic rock songs, as well as putting a rock twist on current hits, and always brings a great time.

For more info on THE HUB BAJA GRILL, please visit their website at www.thehubsiestakey.com or call them at 941-349-6800.

Karaoke Thursday, Friday & Saturday

28

Siesta Sand

JUNE 2018

941.349.0194

www.siestasand.net

DISCOVER GULF GATE’S SHOPPING VILLAGE

Piccolos Italian Market & Deli (G-47) carries a full line of imported cheeses, fresh baked bread daily, homemade sausages, fresh mozzarella, and numerous hard to get items.

They now carry Khorasan Wheat which is an ancient and organic grain. Their deli is complete with huge hot and cold sandwiches, salads, fresh homemade lasagna and baked ziti. And, you cannot leave without trying their cannoli filled with their own homemade cannoli cream or the tiramisu or Sfogliatelle from Brooklyn.

Here is where you will find great Italian specialty gourmet items without the gourmet price.

Tony’s Chicago Beef Company (S-16) is owned and operated by true Chicagoans. Dedicated to deliver Chicago’s best food - Chicago style Hot Dogs wit’ the works...

Dragged through the garden on poppy seed buns with fresh cut fries, Italian Beef Sandwiches anyway you like, dipped or dry, sweet or hot. All served in true Authentic Chicago Style.

Sarasota Brewing Co. (G-4) Sarasota’s first micro brew pub always has something new to offer.

From over 20 seasonal beers that rotate throughout the year, the Brewing Company always has at least five unique brews online as well as several favorites from around the world. Established in 1989, their menu has been a winner in the Reader’s Choice Awards of the Sarasota Herald Tribune featuring their mouth watering burgers, Chicago style Pizzas, and Chicago beef sandwiches. With dozens of televisions, it’s a great place to catch a game with friends and 1

family.

West End Pub (G-49) Where else can you watch your favorite game with a great selection of beers, wines, and liquors served by a friendly staff AND where you’re allowed to bring your own restaurant or deli food? Right here.

The Shop SRQ (G-2) Local owners, Erick and Dawn use a back to basics approach to grooming with precise attention to detail. Their commitment to excellence has provided them with many loyal customers. Their old school barber traditions, clean contemporary shop, coupled by their southern hospitality and humor are what separates them from the rest. They welcome the opportunity to earn your trust. Hours: Tues. - Fri. 8:30am - 6pm, Sat., 8:30am - 3pm. (Nov. 1st - May 30th) and Sat., 8:30am - 1pm (Jun. 1st - Oct. 31st).

Closed on Sundays and Mondays. 6625 Gateway Ave, 941-626-4894.

At the original Word of Mouth Restaurant (G-31), every seemingly insignificant detail receives special attention from the warm, inviting decor to each specially crafted variety of freshly baked muffins to the signature menu items. This small diner is where the locals come to eat breakfast and lunch.

Each staff member works hard to make sure you receive the best service and quality food so you’ll want to return often. Take a look at their mouth-watering menu at www.originalwordofmouth.com. Hours: Mon-Sun.: 8AM-2PM. 6604 Gateway Ave., Sarasota, 34231, 941-925-2400.

Pride of the South (S-34) has been awarded Top 2

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© Island Visitor Publishing, LLC 2018

Ba Am nk o eri f ca

Panera Bread

Marshall’s

Bed Bath & Beyond

This section helps highlight what you’ll find within this walkable Gulf Gate shopping Village.

Ross

Dress for Less

Iberia Bank

Five Below 1

2

3

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G14 G13 G12 G11 G10 G9 G8 G7 G6 G5 G4 G3

G1

S30 S29 S28 S27 S26 S25 S24 S23 S22 S21 S20 S19 S18 S17 S16 S15 S14 S13 S12 S11 S10 S9 S8

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S7 S6 S5 S4 S3 S2 S1

Gulf Gulf Gate Gate Drive Drive

Gulf Gulf Gate Gate Drive Drive

GG1 GG2 GG3 GG4 GG5 GG6 GG7 GG8 GG9 GG10 GG11 GG12 GG13 GG14 GG15 GG16 GG17 GG18 GG19 GG20 GG21 GG22 GG23 GG24 GG25 GG26 GG27 GG28 GG29 GG30 GG31 GG32 GG33 GG34 GG35 GG36 GG37 GG38 GG39 GG40 GG41 GG42 GG43 GG44 GG45 GG46 GG47 GG48 GG49 GG50 GG51 GG52 GG53 GG54 2

G-4

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PICCOLO

SRQ

Italian Market & Deli

6

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THE SHOP SRQ 6625 Gateway Ave.

Traditional, Old School Barber Shop 15 Years + Experience

www.TheShopSrq.com

& Vegetarian Sandwiches

941.626.4894 / 941.536.1656

Authentic New York Italian Market & Deli We carry a full line of Imported Cheeses, Boars Head Luncheon Meats, Pasta, Olive Oil, Assorted Imported Olives, Khorasan Wheat (ancient & organic grain), and more.

GG-46 G-47 Specialty Italian gourmet items without the gourmet price

Come See Our New Location Store Hours: Mon.-Sat. 10am - 6pm 6518 Gateway Ave.

941-923-2202

www.PiccoloMarket.com

G-2

“We Straight Razor Shave”

Hot or Cold

S-16

G16 G15

G2

G24

5

S59 S58 S57 S56 S55 S54 S53 S52 S51 S50 S49 S48 S47 S46 S45 S44 S43 S42 S41 S40 S39 S38 S37 S36 S35 S34 S33 S32 S31

G23 G22 G21 G20 G19 G18 G17

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Lo Ho ng rn

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Beall’s Outlet

Mall Mall Drive Drive

G50 G49 G48 G47 G46 G45 G44 G43 G42 G41 G40 G39 G38 G37 G36 G35 G34 G33 G32 G31 G30 G29 G28 G27 G26 G25

Superior Avenue

Books-AMillion

A

Michaels

Gateway Avenue

C

Original Word of Mouth 6604 Gateway Ave. Sarasota, FL 34231

Publix

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M22 M21 M20 M19 M18 M17 M16 M15 M14 M13 M12 M11 M10 M9 M8

Hooters

Sun Trust

Stein Mart

Sarasota Pavilion is a popular shopping destination for numerous locals and visitors alike. Its prime location is close enough to the island for frequent trips with a nice selection of chain stores set in one convenient location.

But what truly lends to the uniqueness of this district is the host of small, locally owned, specialty shops, boutiques, restaurants, and neighborhood bars bordering this pavilion. It makes for a fun and rewarding shopping experience.

Over 150 businesses make up this district.

D

HOURS: Monday - Sunday 8:00AM to 2PM www.originalwordofmouth.com

M7

GULF GATE

G-31

941-925-2400

6

M6

M5 M4 M3 M2 M1

E

Eat Where The Locals Eat!

Barbeque in Sarasota for 2016 by Trip Advisor and Yelp. It has been awarded for the best Southern Hospitality. Pride of the South has a brisket BLT, hands down, one of the best sandwiches you ever tasted. The smoked chicken wings are unbelievable.

Backed up with the pulled pork sandwiches, the smoked bologna, the smoked turkey, the collard greens, fried corn on the cob, fried okra, fried green tomatoes, and one of the best mac ‘n cheese you ever tasted. We do catering with no limit to the size of the group. Come in and follow your nose to 6616 Superior Ave, Sarasota, FL 34231. Call (941)926-0099. See you soon.

One Minute Key Shop (GG-51): Left your keys in the car? No worries, the One Minute Key Shop will help you safely unlock and retrieve your keys. They specialize in high security locks, keys, re-keying, master keying, and safes for residential, commercial or automotive. Give them a call at 941-924-8020 or visit their showroom where they have a large display of locks and safes. 2120 Gulf Gate Drive.

Solorzano’s Late Night Pizzeria (S-32): At every Solorzano’s, they offer an experience familiar to those who understand the importance of family and dedication. Their recipes and techniques have been perfected through three long generations based on the traditional simplicity of the methods used by their Italian ancestors. Dine inside, outside, pick up, or DELIVERY anywhere on Siesta Key, or in Sarasota until 4:00 a.m. 6670 Superior Ave., 941-924-5800.

• No Appointment Needed •

TONSORIAL ARTISTRY

BY ERICK & DAWN

Open Tues.-Fri. 8:30 AM-6 PM Sat. 11/1 - 5/30; 8:30-3 PM Sat. 6/1 - 10/31; 8:30 AM - 1 PM

S-34

Catering Available

We Put the South in Your Mouth 6616 Superior Ave. Sarasota

941.926.0099

COUPON

FREE SIDE With the purchase of ANY entreé

www.siestasand.net

941.349.0194

JUNE 2018

Celebrating the seasons on Siesta Key

Hurricane Season

Lovebug Season This past May was an exceptionally bad season for these brazen little hordes of plecia nearctica. Luckily, their time for making whoopee was short-lived thanks to the heavy rains that came through in mid-May. These marsh flies filled the air with unbelievable mass. They seemingly came out of nowhere, paired up and started their mating ritual in plain view and everywhere. Note of caution: they are especially drawn to light colors so if you happen to own, say, a light colored car, good luck trying to get into it without at least a handful following you inside. You do have a choice though, you can either gently shoo them out through the window as you speed away or watch helplessly as they copulate

If you were one of the visitors to Siesta Public Beach Pavilion you would have witnessed this site, as the Lovebugs really enjoyed the shade and the cool breeze from the gulf. This year the flies were so bad, the Beach Ambassador booth at the Pavilion was temporarily closed.

in front of you, behind you, beside you and who knows where else.

Per Wikipedia: Lovebugs do not swarm, but congregate in thousands. [Almost sounds like a church revival.] The slow, drifting movement

Sheriff’s Report Continued from page 16

5/10/18 Theft 200 Block Canal Rd. An employee of a village donut shop reported a customer had taken money. The unknown teenage female took money from the tip jar that was sitting on the counter of the business window. She then ordered food and attempted to pay for it with the money she had just taken. After being confronted by the employee, the suspect took off running in an unknown direction with the money and the food items. After searching the area, the subject could not be located. No further investigation could be conducted.

5/15/18 Theft 1000 Block Turtle Beach Rd. A woman called to report the theft of her dive float and flag. She advised that she had parked at the far end of the parking lot, near the boat ramp, and was loading her equipment back into her vehicle. When she returned for a second trip, the items she had placed next to her vehicle were gone.

There were no witnesses and no suspects.

The items were valued at $300.

29

By Bob Stein of the insects has been described as almost reminiscent of snow fall except that, unlike snow, the flies also rise into the air.

[Poetry in motion?] Adult females live only three to four days, while males live a little longer. [That certainly would explain why they make the most of their time together.]

A word of advice: if you happen to find yourself in their midst, unless you are wearing some kind of protective mouth covering, it’s best not to smile and keep your mouth closed… remember, they are drawn to light colors.

We laugh affectionately whenever residents survive their first year here in the sunshine state absolutely and positively convinced that Florida only has two seasons: hot and hotter.

Being a transplant myself, hailing from the state where folks are proud to call themselves “Cheeseheads” and where Lambeau’s “Frozen Tundra” is arguably considered the football capital of the world, I’d like to set the record straight.

Here on the Gulf Coast we actually do have four seasons; it’s just not called spring, summer, fall, and winter down here. Instead, Siesta Key residents refer to our seasons as Lovebug Season, Hurricane Season, Snowbird/Tourist Season and Spring break Season.

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

June 1st starts the next season for Siesta Key, Hurricane Season, which runs through November 1st. Peak season is around the first week in September.

According to the Colorado State University’s Tropical Meterology Project, the 2018 hurricane season will be above average; however not as severe as the 2017 season.

On September 10, 2017, Hurricane Irma passed 35 miles to the east of Sarasota. Although the damage included large downed trees and no power for some Siesta Key residents, the island was spared a direct hit. This was our first exposure to any kind of hurricane. We made peace with what was to come and counted ourselves among the lucky ones when we returned finding no damage to our property and working electricity.

According to HurricaneCity.com, Sarasota was affected by 16 hurricanes dating back

to 1888, the worst of which took place on September 18, 1926 with winds of 120mph, but it does not differentiate between a direct hit or hurricane-force winds.

Now I’d be remiss if I didn’t bring up the “Urban Legend” of a mysterious protection from hurricanes credited to an Indian princess or blessing. After our brush with Irma, I’d like to believe there is something to this legend.

Snowbird / Tourist Season Tourist Season begins November 2nd and runs through May 1st. It picks up again in June when school lets out and the locals head to the beaches. It’s also the time Europeans will frequent our area.

Tamiami Trail starts to fill with drivers unfamiliar with the rules of the road. In Sarasota, although you are allowed to make a U-turn at most intersections, it is still illegal to make a right turn from the far left lane.

Spring break Season Most know that this season coincides with the colleges having their spring break. Island businesses love this time of year - island residents, not so much. During this period of time you want to make sure your off-island trips are timed between bridge openings.

What normally would be a 5 minute drive to get off the island, could take 45 minutes longer.

Oh the perils of living where other people vacation. I truly love living on Siesta Key. I accept the four seasons of Siesta Key - all of them…well, if Lovebug Season is as bad as this one, I may have to rethink my allinclusive embrace.

St. Boniface Children’s Ministry The Church of St. Boniface, Siesta Key, continues its focus on children’s Christian education and wellbeing, offering professional nursery care each Sunday from 8:45 to 11:45 and the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Sunday School at 10 a.m. Sundays.

New this June and July will be week-day summer camp programs for Pre-Schoolers ages 1-5 from 9 a.m. to noon, offered by the St. Boniface Pre-School.

Extended hours are available. Developmentally appropriate activities and fun combine to build social and emotional skills. Call 941-349-5616 ext. 330 for information and an application.

The St. Boniface Pre-School is the only Pre-School on Siesta Key. For 36 years it has been providing young children 12 months to 5 years of age with cognitively stimulating and physically challenging opportunities for growth and development through books, dramatic play, science, art, and math, building social and emotional skills and fostering lifelong learning. Enrichment programs throughout the week include chapel, music, karate, Spanish and gymnastics. The school year program is from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.with 2-, 3- and 5-day schedules.

After-care (12:00 - 5:00 p.m.) options are available.

Susan O’Carroll is the Preschool Director, 941-3495616 ext. 330. Registration is now open for the 2018-19 school year.

Beginning this fall, a new children’s ministry of St. Boniface Church will be the establishment of a Siesta Youth Chorale, which will welcome children in preschool through those entering the 5th grade for the coming school year. We aim to develop a love of music in children and enrich their musical growth.

The Siesta Youth Chorale is an affiliate member of the Royal School of Church Music (www.rscmamerica. org) in America. The director is Dr. James W. Guyer, organist/choirmaster of St. Boniface, who has over 10 years of experience working with children’s choirs, both within and out of the church. For audition and registration information contact Dr. Guyer at 941-349-5616 ext. 356. Details can be found at http://images.acswebnetworks.com/1/1367/ SYCbrochure20182019.pdf.

In addition, the Friends of Music, through the Boniface Music Series, has this year initiated the Boniface Young Artist Showcase, which spotlights and awards generous scholarships to local talented young musicians.

Places of Worship Island Churches: • Siesta Key Presbyterian Chapel 4615 Gleason Ave, Siesta Key, 941-349-1166 www.siestakeychapel.org

(In the Gulf Gate area, near Beneva and Gulf Gate Drive) 6908 Beneva Road, Sarasota, 941.922.7595 www.uccstandrew.org

• St. Michael’s Catholic Church 5394 Midnight Pass Rd, Siesta Key, 941-349-4174 www.stmichaelssiesta.com

• The Superior Word Rev. Charlie Garrett Service starts Sunday mornings at 10am.

Bring a friend and share in God’s word.

6512 Superior Avenue, Sarasota, FL 34231 • First Christian Church 7601 Clark Road, Sarasota, FL 34241. 941-922-4434 www.fccsarasota.com

• St. Boniface Episcopal Church 5615 Midnight Pass Rd, Siesta Key, 941-349-5616 www.bonifacechurch.org Off- Island: •Temple Sinai, a Reform Congregation (The closest Jewish congregation to the Key for visitors) 4631 S. Lockwood Ridge Rd, Sarasota, 941-924-1802 www.templesinai-sarasota.org • St. Andrew United Church of Christ (Protestant)

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30

Siesta Sand

JUNE 2018

941.349.0194

History: The Dangers of Dredging During 1895, as settlements expanded and populations increased, business entrepreneurs and local citizens requested federal support and persuaded Congress to appropriate $5,000 for USACE to dredge a five-foot deep by 100-foot wide channel from Tampa Bay to Sarasota Bay. This was an immediately successful project, leading to significant commercial benefits without apparent harm. Despite the emergence of better railway transport, extension of the ICW to Venice occurred in 1907, cutting through and destroying the ecologically important area known as “The Mangroves,” and disrupting shellfish.

Initial blow to closing Midnight Pass Although it must have been obvious that the ICW lacked commercial value after World War II, Congress appropriated funds in 1945 for an ambitious nine-foot deep re-dredging operation along the entire 54 miles. In retrospect, its purpose seems unclear because recreational boating had not yet become popular. Whatever the rationale, the USACE dredgers arrived at Sarasota Bay in 1962 with much heavier equipment. By 1964, they were dredging around the south tidal inlet to Little Sarasota Bay at Bird Islands near the channel known as Midnight Pass.

The USACE engineers also dumped 225,000 cubic yards of dredged sediment around the Bird Islands and thereby altered the tidal flow through Midnight Pass— likely initiating its relentless migration northward and eventual closure. Harmful effects on the ecology, fishing, and shell fishing were soon evident also.

Siesta Key canals…

Dredging on Siesta Key per se began in 1907 as the Siesta Land Company dug out a 35- foot wide canal that eventually segregated Bay Island and was named Hansen Bayou for the

family of Ocean Deep Hansen Roberts.

Ten years later, when the first north bridge was built, it was accompanied by more dredging to establish bayous and canals named for the Roberts’ children.

Private dredging more radically altered Siesta Key in 1925 with the heart-shaped Archibald’s Canal that created Palm Island. This real estate development effort, however, was thwarted by the 1926 Miami Hurricane and Great Depression. Later in the 1950s, four extensions of the Grand Canal led to successful neighborhoods such as Siesta Isles.

On the other hand, studies by New College Professor John Morrill published in 1974 revealed the poorly designed and even frivolous nature of these dredging projects. The Grand Canal’s long intricate system winding like a maze has many dead end finger canals with sluggish circulation and many sources of pollution that adversely affect the ecology and water quality. In addition, its seawalls may be inadequate as water levels rise with global warming.

Manmade…

The largest dredge-and-fill project of the south Gulf Coast, undertaken during 1923-25 by Owen Burns, continues to raise questions about its long term sustainability. Burns’ crew used huge dredging machines to move millions of cubic yards of sediment and accomplish the real estate development dreams of John Ringling. The extraordinary nature of this massive project is evident from a 1883 U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey that shows the spits of sand Burns aggregated to create Bird Key, Lido Key, and St. Armands Circle. Heavy rains, storm surges, and rising sea levels threaten to flood these manmade isles.

Moreover, every attempt to prevent Mother Nature’s impact with coastal engineering projects on Lido Key has

Island Chatter During the five-week period before Easter, Shay said, the fourway stop area that encompasses the gazebo, the Beach Club, the Lobster Pot and the Hub Baja Grill proved to be the busiest in terms of refuse.

“Those pails were full every single day. If they weren’t emptied, they were overflowing.”

After the first week of encountering

www.siestasand.net

Continued from cover story

failed, including groins of various kinds, tire barriers that washed up on Siesta/Crescent Beach, and a series of nourishment efforts that have provided only short-term benefits. The current proposal to dredge up 1.3 million cubic yards of sediment from Big Pass by USACE is likely to suffer a similar fate and only serve as another temporary measure. Yet no beach nourishment project of such design and magnitude has ever been attempted so the degree of damage is unpredictable.

The greatest danger is to “America’s Best Beach” on Siesta Key. The lessons learned from other experiences with tidal inlet disruptions make it clear that the result of a massive Lido/ USACE dredging could transform it to an eroding beach like Turtle Beach.

And, history also shows that once erosion begins on a barrier island, it is relentless.

Massive dredging projects always endanger wildlife. Maiming and killing manatees occurs regularly on the ICW. Destruction of habitat is the potential problem for fish. According to Grant Gilmore Jr., president of the Vero Beach consulting firm Coastal and Ocean Science Inc., one species that would be affected by dredging Big Pass is the smalltooth sawfish, which is listed as “critically endangered.”

Big Pass also is essential habitat for “hard-bottom species” such as grouper and snapper. Lastly, as the July 2015 USACE Engineer Manual on “Dredging and Dredged Material Management” points out, “the sea turtle is one of the animals most vulnerable to the effects of beach nourishment on the South Atlantic and Gulf Coasts.”

You can read more about these dangers and coastal geologists’ opinions in An Illustrated History of Siesta Key: The Story of America’s Best Beach, which is sold at both Davidson Drugs stores on Siesta Key, Captain Curt’s gift shop, and Crescent Beach Grocery.

The area between Longboat Key and Big Sarasota Pass as depicted in the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey of 1883

Owen Burns huge dredger used in the 1920s for massive dredge-and-fill projects

Continued from page 19

that situation, he added, he had to make other arrangements to keep the garbage cans emptied daily.

Yet another issue Shay has dealt with, he noted, has involved signage that conflicts with the regulations in the Siesta Key Overlay District zoning code.

For example, he said, he had removed signs for massages that

representatives of a business had put up on the county right of way.

People from another business had “affixed stickers to our hardscapes,” such as the newspaper “condo” in front of SunTrust on Ocean Boulevard, he continued. (The “condo” is the structure that holds a variety of newspapers and other printed materials.)

“It turned into a game,” Shay said.

“I’d take them off; representatives of the business would put them back; I’d take them off.”

An unusual sight On another topic during the May Siesta Chamber meeting, Michael Shay noted the county’s relocation of the motorcycle parking spaces in Siesta Village several months ago.

One night the previous week, he said, “Somebody literally pulled one of the motorcycle parking signs out of the ground. Just pulled it out; left it on the sidewalk.”

No one had reported the incident to the Sheriff’s Office, he added.

The next morning, Shay said, he picked up the sign.

And Shay carried it through Siesta Village, Mark Smith, past chair of the Chamber, noted laughingly.

“I did it at 5 o’clock in the morning, when I do my walk,” Shay replied. “So I was curious to see if anybody phoned anything in to the Sheriff’s Office … that some bozo was carrying a pole with a sign on it through Siesta Village in the wee hours of the morning .”

No one had, he added.

He stored the sign in the dumpster enclosure in the Municipal Parking Lot, he reported.

A sex tape?

Peter van Roekens, chair of Save Our Siesta Sand 2 (SOSS2), presented a report during the May Siesta Chamber meeting regarding the Florida administrative law judge’s decision recommending that the Florida Department of

Environmental Protection (FDEP) issue a modified permit to allow the dredging of 1.3 million cubic yards of sand from Big Sarasota Pass.

The material would be used to renourish a 1.6-mile stretch of South Lido Key Beach.

SOSS2 and the SKA both presented expert witnesses during the Division of Administrative Hearings (DOAH) proceeding in December 2017 as they continued their fight to keep Big Pass one of the few waterways in the state that never has been dredged. Their concern is that the dredging would damage the waterway and its wildlife and that it would increase the likelihood of serious damage to Siesta Key during a major storm.

The only one of their witnesses whose testimony swayed Judge Bram D.E. Canter, van Roekens noted, was R. Grant Gilmore Jr., president of the Vero Beach consulting firm Coastal and Ocean Science Inc. Gilmore explained that he had discovered spotted sea trout were spawning in the pass and that such spawning sites are not common, they are used repeatedly and “are important to the conservation of the species.”

The trout spawn from April through September, Canter noted in his recommended order for FDEP. Therefore, unless FDEP were willing to modify the permit for the Lido Renourishment Project to prevent the removal of sand from specific areas of the pass during the spawning season, Canter wrote, the permit should not be issued.

Continued on page 42

www.siestasand.net

941.349.0194

Water World

Captain Jim Klopfer’s Fishing Report Adventure Charters 941-371-1390

June will produce some nice speckled trout for Siesta Key anglers!

June will find Sarasota beaches lined with anglers in search of the ultimate gamefish, tarpon, especially early in the month.

Catching these giants is really not complicated. Rig a 25 lb spinning outfit with 36” of 80lb flourocarbon leader and a 5/0 hook, then position the boat 100 yards off the beach and cast a live crab, pinfish, sardine, lure, or fly at any pod that presents itself.

One benefit of the popularity of tarpon fishing is that pressure in the bay will be light. With many anglers “out on the beach” the bays are relatively un-pressured. Bait will be plentiful, those proficient in cast-netting will have no problem filling their live-wells with frisky pilchards. Once the well is filled, you can choose to anchor up on a likely spot or drift across a large flat. Live shrimp is also deadly on most species, but as we move into summer the pinfish become more of a problem. Anglers casting artificial baits will do well with jigs, Rapala X-Raps, and spoons.

The flats around both passes will be productive for speckled trout, Spanish mackerel, pompano, bluefish, and ladyfish. Shrimp under a popping cork, live pilchards, and artificial lures are all productive baits. 4” Bass Assassin Sea Shad baits in Red/Gold Shiner and Glow/Chartreuse on a ¼ oz jig head will account for plenty of fish.

Redfish will begin to school up on the shallow flats this month. A

low, incoming tide is preferred, the fish will move up onto the flats with the rising tide. Scented soft plastics, weedless spoons, and topwater plugs work well for those who prefer to cast artificial lures.

Live bait can be extremely effective, anchoring up and fishing potholes is a proven technique.

You can count on one thing in June in Sarasota, it is going to be hot! One way to beat the heat is to fish in the evening and at night.

Snook are nocturnal by nature and feed heavily in the dark. Working lighted docks and bridges is the most popular night fishing method.

Anchor a cast away up-current of the light, then toss a live or artificial shrimp, baitfish, small jig, plug, or fly into the shadow line of the light.

You may also catch mangrove snapper, speckled trout, ladyfish, jacks, and maybe even a tarpon fishing the bridges at night.

Beach fishing for snook was decent last season, and it should be good again this summer, especially with the mild winter that we had.

Walk the beach in the morning, looking for snook in the surf line.

Cast out a small spoon, plug, or jig in front of any snook that you spot. This is a great time to break out the fly rod, white baitfish patterns are best. Flounder, trout, ladyfish, mackerel, jacks, pompano, and other species will hit live and frozen shrimp and jigs off the Siesta Key beaches in June.

JUNE 2018

31

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

Notes from the Island Fishmonger THE SUPERFOOD OF THE SEA For those of you who are health conscious yet picky about your veggies and want to eat healthy yet still insist on only food that tastes good, I have good news for you. Kale is out and Seaweed is in!

Seaweed is quickly becoming the new superfood because of the environmental benefits, its nutritional value, and it tastes great.

Every year I attend the International Seafood Show in Boston, Massachusetts. I don’t go for the weather as the show is in March but I do go for inspiration. Every year I take something new home with me from the convention and/or from the food industry within the city of Boston. Over the years I have had a culinary adventure of eating many treats of the sea that I never thought I would experience.

I’m no Andrew Zimmern as you will never catch me eating fermented fish or fish eyeballs. Those aren’t my cup of tea, but if you ask, I would be happy to tell you about the sea urchins, sea cucumbers, raw live scallops, octopus, fish roe and raw shellfish that have entertained my taste buds year after year.

The 2018 show was no different. Octopus seemed to be the highlight of the Boston restaurant tour but something that stood out for me this year was seaweed. Most of us are only familiar with seaweed when eating sushi. For other parts of the world, seaweed is part of a healthy diet and is also used in herbal medicines in many cultures. Seaweed is delicious and belongs to plant-like organisms that grow in the sea. The most commonly consumed types of seaweed include green algae, blue-green algae, and brown algae which is commonly known as kelp and wakame. Another common one is the Red algae which is the seaweed sushi wrap known as Nori.

Beyond the delicious taste, have you ever wondered if the health benefits of seaweed are as good for you as many of the other creatures of the sea? I can tell you…the answer is yes!

Seaweed packs a serious nutritional punch as it’s incredibly rich in antioxidants, fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Like fish and shellfish, seaweed contains Omega-3 fatty acids which can help with stress and studies have shown it also helps prevent chronic diseases such as cancer and digestive problems.

In addition to the nutritional value, seaweed also has a strong environmental significance. Just like a rain forest is full of wildlife, so is the ocean and a seaweed forest is much the same only underwater.

A kelp forest can be seen as an extensive underwater solar city where the kelp provides food and the building structure for many of its inhabitants. Because seaweed is a primary producer and makes its food from the sun, many organisms feed on the kelp and in turn feed other animals. For example, sea urchins eat the kelp and sea otters eat the urchins and so on and so on. While kelp is

Wakame seaweed salad and kelp salsa, both available at the Big Water Fish Market

food, it also provides shelter for many forms of sea life as it absorbs carbon from water which buffers the impact of ocean acidification. Most importantly kelp helps to keep a balanced ecosystem. Kelp can grow anywhere from 3” up to 2’ in a day so harvesting it for nourishment doesn’t hurt the benefits it gives our ecosystem.

Seaweed is a fantastic source of Omega-3 and is delicious in Asian style salads, Miso soup, seaweed chips, and as a side dish to compliment a seared Tuna entrée. That being said, it is my opinion that for seaweed to become truly popular in the U.S. we need to market it differently. For starters I would change the name from seaweed to “Sea greens” or “Sea vegetables”. Weed is not a very attractive word in the U.S. unless you’re using it as medicine for your glaucoma. Many restauranteurs are still unfamiliar with the delicious taste and health benefits of seaweed but all of us at Big Water Fish Market have already been educated on it. Our chef, Aaron Mobley, serves wakame seaweed salad with his seared Tuna plate and Tuna Poke appetizer.

In June he will be featuring a Cobia Fish w/Kelp Salsa Taco as a lunch special on Wednesdays. This Kelp Salsa is a sustainable product of the pristine waters of Alaska and adds flavor and richness to any fish dish. You gotta try this one!

Eat Kelp & Feel Good!

Scott Dolan Big Water Fish Market 6641 Midnight Pass Rd, Siesta Key - 941-554-8101 www.BigWaterFishMarket.com

JUNE 2018 TIDE CHART Florida, St. Petersburg, Sarasota, Sarasota Bay

June 2018

N 27° 20' / W 82° 33' Date

Day

Sunrise

Sunset

Moonrise

Moonset

1

Fr

4:28a

High Tide 1.3

1:42p

High Tide 2.4

7:50a

Low Tide 1.2

10:30p

Low Tide -0.2

6:35a

8:22p

11:02p

9:03a

2

Sa

5:15a

1.3

2:20p

2.3

8:27a

1.2

11:12p

-0.2

6:35a

8:23p

11:47p

3

Su

6:02a

1.3

3:04p

2.1

9:20a

1.2

11:56p

-0.1

6:35a

8:23p

4

Mo

6:48a

1.4

3:56p

2.0

10:34a

1.3

6:34a

8:23p

12:28a

11:37a

5

Tu

7:29a

1.5

4:59p

1.8

12:43a

0.0

12:07p

1.3

6:34a

8:24p

1:07a

12:29p

6

We

8:05a

1.6

6:18p

1.6

1:32a

0.2

1:45p

1.2

6:34a

8:24p

1:44a

1:23p

7

Th

8:38a

1.6

7:49p

1.6

2:21a

0.3

3:09p

0.9

6:34a

8:25p

2:19a

2:17p

8

Fr

9:09a

1.7

9:19p

1.5

3:08a

0.5

4:17p

0.7

6:34a

8:25p

2:54a

3:12p

9

Sa

9:39a

1.9

10:38p

1.5

3:51a

0.6

5:14p

0.5

6:34a

8:26p

3:30a

4:10p

10

Su

10:10a

2.1

11:50p

1.4

4:31a

0.7

6:05p

0.2

6:34a

8:26p

4:08a

5:11p

11

Mo

10:41a

2.3

5:07a

0.9

6:54p

-0.1

6:34a

8:26p

4:50a

6:14p

12

Tu

12:57a

1.4

11:16a

2.4

5:40a

1.0

7:43p

-0.3

6:34a

8:27p

5:36a

7:20p

13

We

2:02a

1.4

11:53a

2.5

6:11a

1.1

8:32p

-0.5

6:34a

8:27p

6:28a

8:26p

14

Th

3:06a

1.4

12:35p

2.6

6:42a

1.2

9:21p

-0.6

6:34a

8:27p

7:26a

9:31p

15

Fr

4:09a

1.3

1:20p

2.6

7:17a

1.2

10:12p

-0.6

6:34a

8:28p

8:29a

10:32p

16

Sa

5:10a

1.3

2:09p

2.5

8:02a

1.2

11:04p

-0.5

6:34a

8:28p

9:35a

11:27p

17

Su

6:03a

1.4

3:05p

2.4

9:06a

1.3

11:55p

-0.3

6:35a

8:28p

10:41a

18

Mo

6:46a

1.4

4:09p

2.2

10:35a

1.3

6:35a

8:29p

11:46a

12:16a

19

Tu

7:24a

1.5

5:27p

1.8

12:46a

0.0

12:20p

1.2

6:35a

8:29p

12:48p

12:59a

20

We

8:00a

1.6

7:02p

1.6

1:36a

0.2

2:06p

1.0

6:35a

8:29p

1:47p

1:39a

21

Th

8:36a

1.7

8:44p

1.5

2:23a

0.5

3:36p

0.7

6:35a

8:29p

2:45p

2:17a

22

Fr

9:12a

1.9

10:16p

1.4

3:08a

0.6

4:48p

0.5

6:36a

8:30p

3:42p

2:53a

Kathleen D Sailing Catamarans

23

Sa

9:46a

2.1

11:35p

1.4

3:49a

0.8

5:46p

0.3

6:36a

8:30p

4:37p

3:29a

24

Su

10:19a

2.2

4:26a

1.0

6:34p

0.1

6:36a

8:30p

5:32p

4:07a

Let’s go sailing, KATHLEEN D Sailing Catamarans, serving Siesta Key from 3 locations: Downtown Sarasota, Longboat Key, and Anna Maria Island. If you would like to experience being on the water viewing Dolphin Watches, Sunset Sails, Snorkeling and Shelling call us at 941-870-4349 or go to our web site for detailed information www.kathleend.net USCG Certified for 20 passengers.

25

Mo

12:42a

1.3

10:50a

2.3

4:59a

1.1

7:17p

-0.1

6:36a

8:30p

6:26p

4:46a

26

Tu

1:39a

1.3

11:20a

2.3

5:30a

1.2

7:54p

-0.1

6:37a

8:30p

7:19p

5:27a

27

We

2:27a

1.3

11:50a

2.4

5:58a

1.2

8:29p

-0.2

6:37a

8:30p

8:10p

6:12a

28

Th

3:08a

1.3

12:21p

2.4

6:28a

1.2

9:02p

-0.2

6:37a

8:30p

8:59p

6:59a

29

Fr

3:39a

1.3

12:54p

2.4

7:03a

1.2

9:35p

-0.2

6:38a

8:30p

9:45p

7:48a

30

Sa

4:05a

1.4

1:31p

2.4

7:44a

1.2

10:08p

-0.1

6:38a

8:30p

10:27p

8:39a

©2018 FreeTideTables.com - For comparison only - Times are local - Tides in feet from MLLW

Phase

9:53a 10:44a

3rd

New

1st

Full

32

Siesta Sand

JUNE 2018

941.349.0194

Arts on the Horizon

Music is busting out all over Musical compositions are gems so June is dazzling, thanks to the Sarasota Music Festival, as old favorites and lesser known pieces are played by the Sarasota Orchestra, and by up and coming students of the invited faculty. Do you like Andre Previn’s dreamy, lush, sparkling mood pieces illuminating the poetry of Toni Morrison when sung, and played on piano and cello? It is on the first festival concert, June 7th.

The definition of a non-musical bagatelle is “something of no importance” while in musical terms it is “an unpretentious piece.”

Six of them (as written by György Ligeti) make a tasty sandwich in between a Mozart Piano Quartet and a Shostakovich Piano Trio on June 14th. A different program has Robert Levin and Jeffrey Kahane performing two Schubert piano duets in between a dreamy Sonatine for Flute and Piano by Gieseking and a Piano Trio by Beethoven. Good stuff.

In honor of summer, that particular movement from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons will be played (admittedly two weeks early) along with his Concerto for Two Cellos.

Yes, with two Bach pieces on the same program. But, since it is still technically spring, Copland’s Appalachian Spring will be performed the following Friday along

By Rodger Skidmore

with Darius Milhaud’s Creation of the World.

On YouTube, Dohnànyi’s Serenade for String Trio has been played in 11 minutes 42 seconds and in 21 minutes and 44 seconds.

The longer version was quite pleasing; it will be interesting to hear how the version on June 22nd plays out - along with the longer and much longer Mozart and Brahms pieces that accompany it.

There is only one Debussy piece on any festival program but the one that appears is Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun. There’s no denying the power of the piano and flute, in the duet version, as they weave their notes together, but the lushness of the original orchestra version is truly magical.

The Sarasota Orchestra’s rendition on June 9th should glisten - along with their playing of the Bruch Violin Concerto and Mozart’s Symphony No. 39. Three piano concertos and three serenades appear during the festival and there is one of each on June 16th - by Saint-Saëns and Tchaikovsky. Both follow an Overture on Hebrew Themes by Prokofiev all with full orchestra. Now, a trick question: How many times have you heard Robert Sirota’s Luminous Bodies? The answer is, unless you’ve been inside his brain, zero. This can be rectified on the last symphonic night (June 28th) when it is bracketed by Mozart and Schumann. Go to SarasotaOrchestra.org to check dates, performance details, master classes and Rising Star concerts.

That trail of breadcrumbs leading into the woods And what to do with the kids and grandkids this summer? That’s always a question - at least until the girls are 23 and the boys are ??. But let’s focus first on the young ones and what you can do together. The number one choice is Jungle Book at the Asolo Rep. This is a world premiere of the Rudyard Kipling tale by the same folks that brought 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea to Sarasota last year. It will be a mixture of live action, film, anime and fun - sort of like Jumanji, but you

What’s Happening WEEKLY BEACH CLASSES: • FREE T’AI CHI CHIH - Siesta Beach, Access #5 - Every Monday, 15 minutes before sunset. Open to all, no experience necessary.

Contact Diana Daffner 941-3461024 for information. (Access #5 is in Siesta Village, where Beach Rd. meets Ocean Blvd.)

• FREE YOGA - Mon.-Wed.-Fri.Sat. 8 a.m. Classes held between blue and green lifeguard station.

Call 941-320-6693 to register or go to website for more info. www.yogaonsiestabeach.com/ about • NIA - Tues. & Thurs., 9 a.m., Siesta Public Beach (yellow lifeguard chair).

Contact Kathy Oravec at 941724-9719 for more info or check website: www.nianow.com/kathyoravec • SIESTA KEY BEACH HOOP JAMS – Every Tuesday one hour before Sunset on Siesta Key beach we gather for a community Hoop Jam. (Between the red lifeguard stand and the pavilion; around where the Sunday drum circle happens.) Register at: www.outwardspiral.net

www.siestasand.net

WEEKLY DRUM CIRCLE: • Every Sunday about an hour before sunset. South of the main pavilion. You can participate or watch this weekly gathering and dance, hoop, play the drum or other musical instrument, and enjoy the spectacular Siesta sunset.

On The Beach…

• JUNE –AUG (M-F) 8AM – NOON / PRNR SUMMER CAMPS: For a complete list of summer camp activities for the kids or event guide, please go to Sarasota County’s website: www.scgov.net/government/ parks-recreation-and-naturalresources. For complete list of camp classes available for June, please see website.

• JUNE – AUG (TUES) 5:30-7:30 PM / KIDS SUMMER BEACH RUNS: This is a one-mile fun run for kids of all ages. Weekly registration held at 5:30 pm with race time at 6:30 pm. Registration is on-site. All participants receive a ribbon and a popsicle. Free T-shirts are earned after 4 runs are completed. There is a one-time, $1 registration fee. Contact County for additonal info: 941-861-5000.

®

To advertise in print or online contact: Bob or Emy Stein at 941.349.0194 Send editorial and/or photos via email to: islandvp@verizon.net

and your kids are in it - Asolorep.org.

If your youngsters, aged 6-13, are restless perhaps a week at Sarasota Contemporary Dance’s “Intro To Dance” program in July will help them let off steam - as if we need more steam this summer SarasotaContemporaryDance.org.

Kids older and a bit more focused? Then the Young Performers Company for ages 1217 at Florida Studio Theatre will give them the tools needed if they have an eye to being in / involved with all aspects of theater. If the theater is an attraction no matter the age, then their Little Theatre (4-6), Children’s Performing Arts Camp (7-12), and Intro To Theatre-All The World’s A Stage (7-12) will help them to act out their dreams - google FST Summer Camp. The nearby Players Studio runs two, 4 week long summer camps with students learning both performing and technical elements of theatre with a full show staged at camp’s end. Multiple one week mini-camps are also offered - Mermaids, Star Wars, Zombies and Dr. Seuss are just some of their themes - Theplayers.org/studio.

Want to keep them in the arts but not perform? The Ringling College of Art and Design Summer Studios combine learning technique and building skills.

Sessions are available for teens and tweens (and even adults) for half or full days.

Sessions include Experimental Animation, Storyboarding for Animation, Character Design, Concept Sketching and more ringling.edu/continuingstudies. One of the more comprehensive summer programs are the ones at The Out-Of-Door Academy.

They offer a multitude of camps in the arts, STEM, and sports - Marine Biology, Narrative Illustration (create your own graphic novel), Tennis, Future Fashion Designers, Build and Fire Rockets and over two dozen others plus traditional Day Camps with sports, games and adventures. See ODA.edu/summer.

The Avengers Movie: Again???

Yes, movie theaters are air conditioned, but eating all that movie theater popcorn is

not going to keep you healthy, and seeing that movie more than ten times will probably do something to your neurological system.

So, what is another way to keep cool June - September (or October - tell me again when summer ends in Sarasota). One place with plenty of activities is The Ringling Museum. Some say that the circus is for children of all ages. The Ringling response is Summer Circus Spectacular 2018. There are two performances per day from June 12 - July 28 in the Historic Asolo theatre.

Admission is reasonably priced and you can use your ticket stub to get a $5 entry into The Ringling’s Circus Museum. Plus, as with all Ringling activities, you get to stroll around under the shade of the exotic trees between the visitors center and the Ca’d’Zan. On the west side of Ca’d’Zan is Sarasota Bay which you can view from multiple vantage points.

While the circus is a treat, you can come back another day to see all the glorious art that is on permanent exhibition in the museum’s main galleries. And, until June 10th there is Branded/Unbranded which shows the subtle and not so subtle psychological affects of advertising. A Kaleidoscope of Color: Costume Designs runs till August 5th and shows sketches and watercolors paired with actual wardrobe pieces and historic photos of how some were used.

The outside of Ringling’s Ca’d’Zan is merely spectacular but the inside rooms are a fantasy land of the 1920s high life. While on tour within the home of John and Mable Ringling your favorite room will be......the one you’ve just been in. Bath tubs carved out of solid blocks of marble - really! So many paintings that they cover the ceilings with them. On additional days take in the Circus Museum which incorporates the Tibbals Learning Center, home to the 3,800 Sq. Ft. model of a 1920-30s circus with 44,000 (maybe more) individual pieces. Truly spectacular and worth seeing over and over again (especially when youngsters come to visit). See more at Ringling.org.

We make every effort to ensure the accuracy of this information.

However, please be sure to always call ahead to confirm dates, times, location, and other information.

• JUNE 2 (SAT) 9:30-10:30 AM / BEACH UNIVERSITY: The free environmental education program, returns to Siesta Beach to teach the community how to best care for the ecology. All classes are held in the main pavilion at Siesta Beach, 948 Beach Road on Siesta Key. All are welcome to attend the hourlong outdoor sessions, featuring exceptional instructors and handson curriculum that relate to the coastal environment and how to best care for the ecology. This year’s classes cover turtles, sharks, manatees, problems with plastics, resilient estuaries, clean water and much more. No registration is required, but seating is limited.

Bringing your own chair is acceptable. For more information, call the Sarasota County Contact Center at 941-861-5000.

• JUNE 16 (SAT) 7-11 AM / GREAT FATHER’S RACE: The Great Father’s Day Race is a 5K run/walk that the whole family can do together to create a unique, and lasting, family memory.

The event is family-friendly and focuses on health and wellness, plus competition. The focus is to have families and friends get off

the couch, get moving, and create exciting memories of fun and adventure. For more info go to: www.greatfathersdayrace.com/ sarasota • JUNE 24 (SUN) 7:30 AM NOON / RUN941 TRIATHLON: Honoring Sharon Butler. Bike 11 miles, Run 3.1, Swim ¼ mile.

Register online: www.runsignup. com/Race/FL/Sarasota/ SiestakeySirenswomentriathlon, or email for a mail in form at rouillard64@msn.com Early Packet Pickup: TBA. Race awards. Event participants will enjoy post-race food and beverages, Entry Fee: $75.

Around the island…

• WEEKLY FARMER’S MARKET IN THE VILLAGE: Every Sunday from 8am – 2pm in Davidson’s Plaza in the Village.

5124 Ocean Blvd. Produce, Plants & Flowers, Music, Art, Organic Skincare, Italian Olive Oil, and Freshly Prepared Foods. Listen to live music while you shop.

• KIDS RHYTHM JAM!™ – 11:30AM: Drumming Fun For Everyone!™.

Every Saturday and Tuesday. Everyone gets

permission to play and make noise to create rhythm and song! Come & enjoy group drumming with your family and friends. $15/family Positive RePercussions 5049 Ocean Blvd., Siesta Key Village - (941) 677-3786. Please check out our wide variety of other programs at: www.positiverepercussions.com/ calendar And Beyond…

• PALM AVENUE FIRST FRIDAY GALLERY WALK / 6-9PM: Every month local galleries open their doors to the public for the evening, offering a chance to meet with artists and admire their work. See website for location map. www.palmavenue.org • TOWLES COURT THIRD FRIDAY ARTWALKS / 5-9PM: Gallery and studio openings on a moonlit evening of fun and beautyboth natural and handcrafted beauty. Free music, events, refreshments. Meet the artists, shop and dine in authentic “ Old Florida” in downtown Sarasota.

1938 Adams Lane Sarasota, Florida 34236. www.towlescourt.com

Published by Island Visitor Publishing, LLC Contributing Writers and Photographers will be noted with bylines.

Guest commentary not necessarily the opinion of island Visitor Publishing, LLC Reproduction without written permission prohibited. We reserve the right to refuse any advertisement.

All business bios are extensions of the display advertisements.

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC is not responsible for claims made by advertisers.

All ads are subject to the approval of the publisher. It is the responsibility of the party placing any ad for publication in Siesta Sand to meet all applicable legal requirements in connection with the ad such as compliance with town, county and state codes in first obtaining an occupational license for business, permitted home occupation, or residential rental property.

DISCLAIMER: Please be aware that when you hire an unlicensed/uninsured person to do work at your home, you accept the liability. Island Visitor Publishing is not responsible for claims made by advertisers.

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JUNE 2018

“Living life in the ‘Light’” and peace all reside at a higher vibration which is what brings us to that Higher perspective. At that level, when dealing with others for example, rather than ego to ego, it becomes more of a soul to soul encounter. So the path to resolution is smoother and often a win/win for all involved. I truly believe it’s an understatement when I say that life becomes more peaceful when we operate from a Higher vibration. It really enables us to stay in a heightened state of grateful and loving energy. You should also find that your manifestations will most often than not, match this Higher energy.

To elaborate just a little bit further, the sooner you consider raising your vibration, the sooner you can also experience decreased suffering caused by karma carried over from your lineage; As the karmic cycle is no longer something we have to go through. Now we can choose the fork in the road. Meaning, we can choose to step on the path towards reaping the rewards from surviving all that karmic debt we paid due to our actions and/or those in our lineage. Raising our vibration includes forgiveness which is one the main keys to releasing the karma. Forgiveness helps to: Clear our path of the negative imprints we’ve been carrying, decrease or eliminate suffering, increase our inner peace, maintain that Higher perspective we discussed earlier; And stay on “Higher” ground where access to unobstructed Higher resolutions to any challenges are always available.

Consider making it a priority to raise your vibration higher and higher. The last perk I’ll mention is the higher we go, the stronger our connection becomes to the “Highest” vibration that exists- that being the Universal Intelligence, Love, God, Source, or whatever you call your loving Higher Power. For me, the latter is my favorite reason to raise my vibration.

To access the list on “How to Raise Your Vibration”, visit the link below and start the second half of the year from Higher ground! If you can’t access the list, please email me, and I’ll be happy to send it to you. Enjoy the view! ~♥ http://siestasand.net/donnarose-higherliving-01-18/

WORD SEARCH MarinerWord Search MarinerWord Search

Answers on page 41

WORD LIST WORD LIST Animal Babies Animal Babies Baseball Baseball Bass Fishing Bass Fishing Beach Walking Beach Walking Best Fishing Best Fishing Bird Watching Bird Watching Blooming Blooming Boat Race Boat Race Buy Boat Buy AA Boat Cocktails Cocktails Egg Hunt Egg Hunt Falling Leaves Falling Leaves Festivals Festivals Getaway Getaway Kayaking Kayaking Liveaboard Liveaboard New Plants New Plants Regatta Pointe Regatta Pointe Sailfish Tournament Sailfish Tournament Sailing Sailing Sandcastles Sandcastles Shelling Shelling Snook Tournament Snook Tournament Spring Break Spring Break Sunrise Sunset Sunrise Sunset Visit Nursery Visit Nursery Warm Weather Warm Weather

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Springtime in Springtime inFlorida Florida

33

Wake & Shake

~

Welcome to the beginning of the second half of 2018. How have things turned out regarding the intentions you set back in January?

For some of us, it may be a good time to reassess what happened in the first half of the year, and if needed, perhaps make a few adjustments for smoother sailing before year end.

As my regular readers may recall for my first Higher Living column in January, instead of resolutions, there was a suggestion to write a “How to Raise Your Vibration“ list. This was to help promote Higher Living, a.k.a.

“Living Life in the ‘Light’”. Since it’s the beginning of the second half of the year, what better time than now to revisit one of the key practices of Higher Living, which is raising your vibration? This can greatly help with those adjustments we mentioned above.

One may ask, well, how would raising my vibration help make my life run smoother? One thing to consider is this - When our energy is residing at a lower vibration, it’s like being in the basement where the tiny windows are closer to the ceiling, the light switch needs repair and the room is very dim. Chances are, there’s a high probability we may trip or bump into something. Using that analogy, when facing a problem, if we stay in the dimly lit room or at a lower vibration, the choices we make may lead us onto an even bumpier path.

Meaning, when we’re operating in the dark so to say, our perspective is blurred where we lack the clarity needed to effectively deal with daily issues and challenges. Hence, our anxiety and frustration levels increase and the vicious cycle continues.

Additionally, it’s often when we’re living in the dark at a lower vibration that we make choices that negatively affect others, which causes us to create unnecessary karma.

Still with the basement analogy, when we consider raising our vibration, we get ourselves up to the “higher floors” so to say, where the lighting is brighter, the air is clearer, and our clarity is greatly enhanced. Hence, we take a Higher perspective on any challenges, and find ourselves resolving them from this Higher ground more consistently.

And yes, as a result, our lives run more smoothly.

The reason is that love, harmony, compassion

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

www.TheMariner.com www.TheMariner.com

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Siesta Key REAL ESTATE & HOME SECTION ACCOMMODATIONS PAGE 43 HOUSE HUNTING PAGE 39 SIESTA KEY MARKET STATS PAGE 37 SAND CASTLES PAGE 38

The Highs and Lows of Properties Sold on Siesta Key

Provided by Key Solutions Real Estate / www.keysolutionsrealestate.com

Following are properties sold on Siesta Key in the last 60 days, providing a snapshot of home values on the Key for both single family homes and condominiums.

HIGHEST PRICED SINGLE FAMILY PROPERTY: 875 SIESTA KEY CIR., SOLD FOR: $2,050,000 On ideal boating water only 800 ft. to the ICW, in a protected deep water basin, is an exceptional home for those who seek a luxurious waterfront lifestyle. Sweeping past lushly landscaped beds the circular paver brick drive leads to a wrought iron gate at the entrance of this stately home with its Mediterranean styling – barrel tile roof, artful arches and balconies trimmed in iron. From the Spanish tiled foyer take the elevator or the stairs to the second level main living area (3402 sf). The great room has rich wood flooring, vaulted ceiling, long water views and wide glass doors onto the large tiled balcony overlooking the pool built in 2009. A gracious dining room by the gourmet kitchen will make entertaining a breeze. The oversized master bedroom, with views of the pool & water, has a dressing area, two large walk-in closets and luxurious master bath with Jacuzzi tub, walk-in shower and granite counters and dual sinks. Just off the living room, is a full-sized office with built-ins and elegant French doors. Downstairs, a 2021 SF bonus area, leads to the patio and the zero entry pool with spa and water feature. Beyond the pool is a fire pit, floating jet-ski dock, composite boat dock & davits along the seawall. Perfect waterfront location on Siesta Key is the ultimate place to truly enjoy all the benefits of living in an island paradise. The sale of this property came to $378.02 a square foot. Courtesy of ReMax/Key Solutions Real Estate.

LOWEST PRICED SINGLE-FAMILY PROPERTY: 4522 BANAN PL., SOLD FOR: $420,000 Siesta Key’s lowest priced single-family home! This charming Florida home is ready for your own designer updates. Situated on a quiet dead-end street directly across from Lake Nancy provides an island-like setting for peace and tranquility. Set on an oversized lot with an expansive fenced back yard with plenty of space for a pool. Surrounded by more expensive homes within immediate vicinity to Out-of-Door Academy makes this 2 bedroom/2 bath home the ultimate investors dream.

Update with your own vision and latest designer finishes while still being one the best values on the island. Close proximity to Siesta Key Village and our #1 beaches makes the location of this home fantastic. The sale of this property came out to $325.08 a square foot. .

Courtesy of Key Solutions Real Estate.

HIGHEST PRICED CONDO: 612 BEACH RD., #302: SOLD FOR: $3,400,000 Built in 2014, this boutique building of only 6 residences is within walking distance to Siesta Village – and that means fresh local seafood, live music and good times are always in the cards. As you’re welcomed to this four suite condo, you’ll be blown away by the spacious feel, coastal luxe styling, and of course the phenomenal views across Siesta Beach. Laid out to sleep 12, imagine the family memories you’ll make right on the shores of the best beach in the country, with your own private beach access and 650 sq. ft. terrace to soak in the sea breezes and sunsets. The heated beachfront swimming pool– few and far between on the Key– makes it easy to cool off on balmy island afternoons.

Features a private two-car garage and main level storage cabana for beach gear. When something is rare - it is coveted by those who could have it all. This is your time to live it up on the beach. The sale on this unit came out to $1,362.73 a square foot. Courtesy of Michael Saunders.

LOWEST PRICED CONDO: 114 PASS KEY RD., #114: SOLD FOR: $255,000 Updated 1bedroom/1bath unit on beautiful Siesta Key, located in Sandy Cove complex.

Updates include Gourmet Ikea Kitchen with Stainless Steel Appliances, Modern Bath, Laminate Hardwood Flooring in Master bedroom and refinished ceilings thru-out have truly made this unit a one of a kind for a great seasonal getaway or for year-round enjoyment.

This unit is a short walk to the Village. The sale came out to $388.72 a square foot.

Courtesy of Bright Realty.

www.siestasand.net

941.349.0194

JUNE 2018

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Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

Sewer pipeline work to continue through late fall in areas near the Village By Rachel Brown Hackney

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LE SA DING N PE

195 Vista Hermosa Circle, #9-A Sarasota, FL

Just a short walk to Siesta Beach. 2 BR, 2 BA villa. Ideal rental opportunity. Custom wood cabinets in the kitchen with granite counters & upgraded appliances. Bathrooms boast tumbled marble & granite. Custom lighting. New A/C in 2017 and recently installed water heater. Roof replaced in 2016. Sold turnkey furnished (with some exclusions).

322 Island Circle

Sarasota, FL

Beaches, Boating & Bistros!! Live the island lifestyle in this spacious 4 BR, 4 BA house located on desirable Palm Island, grossing approx. $60k in rental income.

Recently renovated with new kitchen, new master BR and master BA. New boat lift on the Grand Canal. Lounge in the heated pool and spa or enjoy your favorite libation at your own private Waterfront Tiki Bar. Huge bonus area on lower level.

757 Beach Rd Unit #412 Sarasota, FL

FULL GULF VIEW...PRICED TO SELL...EXCELLENT INCOME WITH GROWTH POTENTIAL...WEEKLY RENTALS!!..Fall in love with this 2 BR, 2 BA 4th Floor CORNER UNIT!! Turnkey furnished. Crescent Royale offers onsite rental program/management, heated pool, lounge, pool table and recently upgraded exercise facility. Conveniently located across from Public Beach. Just a short walk to dining & nightlife of Siesta Village. Stuffing Gulf view. Check this one out, you will be impressed.

925,000

$

450,000

$

665,000

$

!

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797 Beach Road, #305 Sarasota, FL Full Gulf view of #1 Beach in the USA. Completely remodeled, priced to sell! High end tile floors in main living area, quality custom kitchen cabinets, deisgner kitchen. Crescent Royale offers an onsite rental program, heated pool and much more!

529,000

$

418 Island Circle, Sarasota, FL

Boating, Beaches & Bistros!!! 3 BR/2 BA Key West Style Grand Canal home on Siesta Key built in 2005 to current Hurricane standards. Sip a glass of wine by your outdoor Tiki Bar in the pool/spa area. Step out your back door, onto your boat (boat lift) and enjoy a leisurely cruise up the Grand Canal...just minutes away from your favorite waterfront dining, watersports and world class fishing. Perhaps you’re in the mood for a stroll or bike ride into Siesta Village...while others scramble for beach parking, walk or bike down the street to your own beach access (#10). All this and you haven’t even stepped inside this beautiful Key West style home on a lushly landscaped tropical lot with a brick paver walkway to your dock. This Island Style home was lovingly built in 2005 with huge lower level bonus area, pool shower and a 4-car garage for all your toys. Open floor plan, gourmet kitchen, large rooms, elevator, wood-burning fireplace, vaulted ceilings; walk-in closets; beautiful master suite, plenty of storage and custom touches throughout. This is a must-see home on Palm Island.

1,279,000

$

Tropical Sands Dan D. Miller 941-376-7442 Licensed Real Estate Professional

ddm1@comcast.net

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•Oyster Cove Basin — reconstruction of memo reported.

•Canal Road Basin — reconstruction of about 7,200 linear feet of 10-inch-diameter about 4,000 linear feet of 8-inch-diameter vitrified clay pipe at a cost of $293,782.65. pipe at a cost of approximately $139,981.91. •Avenida del Norte — reconstruction On April 24, the commissioners approved of approximately 2,700 linear feet of pipe two more projects, which are scheduled to that has a 10-inch diameter at a cost of Canal Road CIP# 55957 start in the early fall and last through late $114,096.15. fall, the memos note:

T EN

Memos the Public Utilities Department staff provided to the County Commission in April specified areas where “the existing vitrified sanitary sewer system” would be rehabilitated under a contract with the firm Insituform Technologies LLC. That is the same company that has handled similar work on the island in past months.

In each case, the staff memos said the residents would be notified by postcard of the construction “at least two weeks prior to the start of work.”

Upon completion of the projects, the staff memos explained, the longevity of the pipes is expected to have been extended by more than 50 years.

On April 10, the commissioners unanimously approved the following contracts as part of their votes on their Consent Agenda of routine business items: •Avenida del Norte Basin — trenchless reconstruction of about 10,100 feet of 8-inch-diameter vitrified clay pipe at a cost of $340,219.95. This part of the project is scheduled to be completed in early fall.

•Oyster Cove Basin — reconstruction of approximately 4,400 linear feet of 8-inchdiameter pipe at a cost of $154,820.51. That work is to be finished in late summer, a staff

S PA HT NIG MID

Quite a bit of sanitary sewer system rehab work is coming up on the Key this summer, thanks to two sets of votes the County Commission took in April.

One project — along Canal Road — was expected to get underway this week, the county Public Utilities Department staff told the Siesta Sand.

Some residents who received the mailer sent out on April 21 apparently thought Canal Road would be closed as the work proceeded — and that work is expected to take 150 days, the mailer noted. The time frame means completion “by the end of September 2018,” as the mailer put it.

In response to Siesta Sand questions, Utilities staff reported in a May 4 email, “We do not usually close roads, but sometimes thru traffic is accommodated with flaggers depending on the set up.”

The card sent to residents notes that “brief, intermittent lane closures with flaggers on duty” will occur while the work is in progress. As usual with this type of situation, the cards urge pedestrians and motorists “to use caution while traveling through the area.”

The notice to proceed for construction was issued for Monday, May 7, the mailer added.

Service.

Integrity.

Results.

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Call for elimination of two potential dredging areas in Big Pass Continued from cover story

WE HAVE MOVED! COME SEE US AT OUR NEW LOCATION ON SEISTA KEY 6629 MIDNIGHT PASS ROAD

NEW LOCATION NEXT TO MIGUEL’S RESTAURANT IN CRESCENT PLAZA JUST SOUTH OF STICKNEY POINT ROAD

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941-346-7454

Regarding Cut B, Safriet and Collins pointed out in their brief, “Limiting the dredging of a critical spawning area only to a time period when the spotted sea trout are not spawning does not protect and preserve the critical area for spawning in the future.”

Second, citing further findings of fact that Canter included in his order, they wrote that “the seagrasses present in the easternmost 1,200 feet of Cut C provide critical refuge and habitat for post-larval sea trout. The finding of fact, however, ignores that the dredging of that area will permanently destroy the seagrass.

Thus, the damage here is not what time of the year the seagrasses are dredged and permanently destroyed but the fact that they will be permanently destroyed and never again be habitat or refuge for post-larval sea trout.”

Therefore, they continued, the easternmost 1,200 feet of Cut C also should be eliminated from the dredging plans.

Additionally, in his decision, Judge Canter referenced the December 2017 testimony of Robert Young, a Western Carolina University professor and director of the Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines. Canter recommended that no more than 1.3 million cubic yards of sand be removed from Big Pass, as Young had told the court that the FDEP permit actually would allow the dredging of up to 1.7 million cubic yards of sand.

In their brief, Safriet and Collins pointed out that the amount of sand in Borrow Area B is 299,000

D C

B

cubic yards, based on evidence submitted during the DOAH hearing. Further they wrote, the easternmost 1,200 feet of Cut C contains only 20,000 cubic yards of sand. Altogether, then, the two borrow areas have 319,000 cubic yards of sand. Thus, the city and the USACE still would have the

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1.3 million cubic yards of sand Canter called for in his order.

The final decision on the issuance of the permit will rest with FDEP Secretary Noah Valenstein, City Attorney Robert Fournier has explained. First, though, the opposing parties in the case — including the city, the USACE and the Lido Key Residents Association — would have 10 days to file any objections to the exceptions, Fournier added in an email to the city commissioners.

“After this has happened, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection can be expected to enter a Final Order.

That Final Order will be subject to appeal within thirty (30) days to the District Court of Appeal,” Fournier wrote.

After Canter issued his ruling, Peter van Roekens, chair of SOSS 2 said, “We’re grateful that the judge did acknowledge that there is a detrimental impact

to the pass” if the dredging is undertaken during the sea trout spawning season.

Van Roekens added that if FDEP proceeds with plans to issue a modified permit, “we’ll go to federal court.”

He reiterated that remark during a May 16 update to members of the Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce.

In a separate telephone interview, Catherine Luckner, vice president of the SKA, said that nonprofit’s board remained firm on a point it has made in the past: The USACE should be required to undertake an in-depth Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to prove that the Lido project would not cause any harm to the pass or Siesta Key. Although the Sarasota County Commission voted 5-0 in July 2016 — at the SKA’s request — to ask that the USACE undertake an EIS, the USACE declined to do so.

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Phillippi Shores Village apartments

Phillippi Shores Village apartments has a new owner, the 45 year old, 28 unit apartment complex recently sold for $2,050,000. The property was acquired by Berkshire Property Holdings LLC, an Orlando company.

This 15,808 square foot multi-family home sits on a 1.61 acre lot, built in 1977. The Landings gated community abuts the property to the west with the Phillippi Creek Village Restaurant & Oyster Bar across the street to the east.

Phillippi Shores Village apartments are advertised as one bedroom units with swimming pool and laundry facility onsite.

Big Pass legal expenses Continued from page 2

•$46,685.59 to Gray Robinson and $62,411.70 to Lewis, Longman & Walker.

“The City and the LKRA submitted a Joint Recommended Order, with LKRA counsel assuming a lead role in its preparation,” he noted, adding that the sums for that work “are included in the total amount(s) provided above and are not additional charges.”

In addition to the $609,854.61 from the City Attorney’s litigation budget, the sum of $76,098.55 has been paid out of the project account, he wrote, referring to the beach renourishment money the city receives out of Sarasota County’s Tourist Development Tax revenue for such projects.

“This includes $65,298.55 to Thomas Campbell a professional engineer for consulting and $10,800.00 to Angel Eyes for preparation of aerial photographic exhibits,” Fournier added.

JUNE 2018

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

Blooming this month Society Garlic (Tulbaghia violacea) Society Garlic (Tulbaghia violacea) is lovely to look at and has a slight garlic scent. Spherical clusters of star-shaped lavender blooms appear nearly all year round or 2’ tall stems; above the mounds of slender, grassy or onion like leaves. This plant attracts butterflies, bees, and other pollinating insects.

A welcome addition during the warmer summer months; as once they are established they are drought resistant. It is also a nice plant for borders or in edging, and also nice in mixed plant containers. And, an added bonus is the leaves and flowers are both edible and a nice addition to freshly made salads.

Kay Weber, Sarasota Garden Club, www.sarasotagardenclub.org

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38

Siesta Sand

JUNE 2018

Sand Castles

A retirement community on the Gulf By Roger Drouin Whispering Sands is located on the Gulf of Mexico and steps from the Village.

The community includes a total of 267 units, with 144 condo units situated in two towers directly on the beach. The grounds have a large natural lagoon, two swimming pools, clubhouse, and tiki hut. Whispering Sands is only one of two 55-and-up communities on Siesta, with Siesta Harbor, located mid-Key, being the second.

The rest of the Whispering Sands community is comprised of three mid-rise buildings overlooking the lagoon, and multiple villas with attached garages and washer/dryers. Amenities include a clubhouse, two pools (one overlooking the Gulf), fitness room, kayak racks, paver-lined shuffleboard area, and other amenities.

For Debi Burnett, who has owned a villa unit since August, 2013, it was Whispering Sands’ excellent location that drew her to the community.

“If I had to pick the Number 1 selling feature it is the proximity to the Gulf and to the Village,” Burnett told Siesta Sand. “We have our own little private gate that leads right into the village. When my friends visit, they are amazed you can walk everywhere. We go back and forth [to the Village] — go out for shopping and then go back for drinks and dinner. It’s just great.”

Recent sale prices, and listing prices, have been steadily on the rise over the past two years in Whispering Sands. Back in June, 2016, for example, a sale on the high end came in at $615 a square foot for a renovated two-bedroom tower unit; while a year later, a sale of a comparable two-bedroom, renovated unit sold for $661 a square foot. In January, 2018, a two-bedroom penthouse tower unit sold for $945,000, or $761 a square foot.

“It is a highly desirable community for seasonal and annual residents with close proximity to the village and its own private beach,” says Realtor Bob Ruiz, who has a two-bedroom, renovated tower unit listed for sale.

“On-site management does a great job of ensuring the property is always at its best,” Ruiz added.

The community has a two-month minimum rental requirement. As a result, it is not at the top of the list for rental investment properties, Ruiz says; however, it does rent very well for those who wish to rent out units as seasonal rentals.

With the two-month minimum rental policy, the community doesn’t have the busy, transient feel of a resort condo, Burnett adds. “Our community is really, really quiet,” says Burnett. “There is a strong sense of camaraderie.” For instance, Burnett says, there is water aquatics and the same women attend; as well as a monthly women’s social.

Whispering Sands has a private beach with amenities such as beach chairs.

“I take my paddle board right off the beach,” says Burnett.

The owner from Delaware says the villas have a house-like feel. A plus is how the villas include an

attached garage for ample storage and a washer and dryer setup in the garage. In addition, most of the villas also have a lanai and porch where owners can grill.

The high-rise towers, meanwhile, stand out for the western-facing Gulf views. “I have friends who live in the towers, and I go over for drinks or to visit,” Burnett says. “When sitting on the balcony of that high rise the views are spectacular.”

Residents of the towers enjoy water views of New Pass and the Gulf of Mexico by day; “sunset views, for which Siesta Key is so famous,” by evening; and the lights of downtown Sarasota and Lido Key by night, says Ruiz, of Key Solutions Real Estate. The mid-rise units have water views of the lagoon, and though the villas are not true view units, owners can take advantage of the water views — both Gulf and lagoon — on the property, Ruiz adds.

Recent Sales & Listings Six units in Whispering Sands have sold over the past year, and six units are currently listed for sale.

According to MLS, four of the units on the market are two-bedroom tower units — listed between asking prices of $799,000 to $925,000. A fifth tower unit is listed for $1.7 million. That four-bedroom unit is comprised of a pair of two-bedroom units that were combined on the first floor. One mid-rise unit is also listed for $405,000.

Recent sold units in the towers sold for $562,500 to $945,000. And a mid-rise unit sold for $412,000 in May, 2018.

The recent sales and listings include: • The two-bedroom, sixth-floor tower home currently listed by Ruiz for $925,000. At 1,282 square feet, the listing comes out to $722 a square foot. “The renovation was completed by the current owners and is exquisite,” Ruiz told Siesta Sand. “The unit is exceptional in that it is open, light, and bright.” The best feature, however, is the Gulf views. The open kitchen features white wood cabinets, granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, a closet pantry, and a corner desk. Both contemporary bathrooms feature wood vanities, with stone countertops. Expansive new hurricane shutters and windows allow for an abundance of light and, combined with the open floor plan, present views from virtually everywhere in the unit.

• A mid-rise two-bedroom home is listed for $405,000, and features lanai access through both bedrooms the living room. At 1,271 square feet, the listing comes out to $319 a square foot. According to the MLS listing, “the condo is offered turn-key furnished, and last years’ seasonal tenant would love to come back next Jan-March.”

• In January, 2018, a two-bedroom tower unit sold for $945,000, or $761 a square foot. This 12th-floor penthouse unit was recently renovated to include tile flooring, white plank ceilings, and crown molding throughout. It has western facing Gulf views.

941.349.0194

www.siestasand.net

www.siestasand.net

941.349.0194

JUNE 2018

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

39

House Hunting Siesta Key to Longboat Key • SHORT WALK TO SIESTA BEACH: $450,000 195 Vista Hermosa Circle, #9-A, Siesta Key, FL. MLS# A4189942 Wonderfully remodeled 2 BR, 2 BA villa. Designer tile & carpet throughout. This villa is being sold turnkey furnished (with some exclusions). Dan Miller, Re/ Max Tropical Sands. 941-376-7442 • FULL GULF VIEW OF #1 BEACH: $529,000 797 Beach Rd, #305, Siesta Key, FL. MLS# A4188853 Completely remodeled unit with high end tile floors in main living area, quality custom kitchen cabinets with granite counters. All the lighting has been upgraded throughout this TURNKEY FURNISHED (some artwork excluded) unit. Dan Miller, Re/ Max Tropical Sands. 941-376-7442 • PALM ISLAND HOME ON THE GRAND CANAL: $925,000 322 Island Circle, Siesta Key, FL. MLS# A4199085 Recently renovated with new kitchen, new master BR and master BA. This house boasts a new boat lift on the Grand Canal.

Privacy abounds with a lovely tropical view across the canal.

Huge bonus area on lower level.

Dan Miller, Re/Max Tropical Sands. 941-376-7442 • 1568 LANDINGS TER SINGLE FAMILY HOME $849,000: MLS A4210259 4BD/3BA. Spacious home with high ceilings and plenty of light.

Judy Greene/Tara Lamb, Michael Saunders & Company Licensed Real Estate Broker, 941-350-0451 (Judy) or 941-266-4873 (Tara) • 1718 STARLING DR, LANDINGS COACH HOUSE $299,000: MLS A4213381 2BD/2BA. Ground floor end unit condo - new kitchen, new lanai sliders. Judy Greene / Tara Lamb, Michael Saunders & Company Licensed Real Estate Broker, 941-350-0451 (Judy) or 941-266-4873 (Tara) • 1450 LANDINGS CIR, LANDINGS TREEHOUSE $485,000: MLS A4212388 3BD/2.5BA. Free standing, expanded floor plan and completely updated.

Judy

Greene/Tara Lamb, Michael Saunders & Company Licensed Real Estate Broker, 941-350-0451 (Judy) or 941-266-4873 (Tara) • 5430 EAGLES PT CIR #203, EAGLES POINT CONDO $695,000: MLS A4202341 3 BD with Den, 2943 sq. ft.

Spacious condo with private garage and additional car spot.

Judy Greene/Tara Lamb, Michael Saunders & Company Licensed Real Estate Broker, 941-350-0451 (Judy) or 941-266-4873 (Tara) • 1757 PINE HARRIER CIR SINGLE FAMILY HOME $450,000: MLS A4202741 3BD/2.5BA. Great opportunity at this price. Judy Greene/Tara Lamb, Michael Saunders & Company Licensed Real Estate Broker, 941-350-0451 (Judy) or 941-266-4873 (Tara) • 1403 CEDAR BAY LANE SINGLE FAMILY HOME $1,195,000: MLS A4211936 5BD/3.2BA in the exclusive CLOISTERS of The Landings. Two story custom home. Judy Greene/ Tara Lamb, Michael Saunders & Company Licensed Real Estate Broker, 941-350-0451 (Judy) or 941-266-4873 (Tara) • DOLPHIN BAY The ultimate 2/2 in over 1900 square feet of living space.

Exceptional property with split floor plan, each bedroom with private bath. Large kitchen with sit-in area and expansive living/ dining space. Spacious lanai with great views of the ICW. Garage.

Pool, clubhouse, tennis, and day dock. Short walk to Siesta Beach.

MLS #A4178449, $720,000. Key Solutions Real Estate Group, Sheri & Bob Ruiz. Bob: 941-544-3299 or Sheri: 941-400-4186.

screened lanai, RV parking!. If you enjoy entertaining, this is the one! MLS #A4211194, $1,225,000.

Key Solutions Real Estate Group, Sheri & Bob Ruiz. Bob: 941-5443299 or Sheri: 941-400-4186.

• SOMERSET COVE Fabulous single family home in gated community of just 11 residences. Large 2,758 square feet, 3 bedroom, 3 1/2 bath with 2 car garage plus bonus space.

Boat dock with water and electric only minutes to ICW and Gulf.

Walk to beach and Village. MLS # A4201541, $849,000. Key Solutions Real Estate Group, Sheri & Bob Ruiz. Bob: 941-544-3299 or Sheri: 941-400-4186.

• THE POINTE Penthouse!

1/1 at the southernmost end of Siesta Key. Incredible 270 degree views of the Gulf and Bay. Large lanai.

Plentiful storage in the unit and on the first floor. Convenient underbuilding parking. Gated community with boat docks, kayak racks and dock, tennis, pool, spa, sauna, beautiful clubhouse, island gazebo with grilling, and more. MLS# A4401699, $349,999.

Key Solutions Real Estate Group, Sheri & Bob Ruiz. Bob: 941-5443299 or Sheri: 941-400-4186.

• HARBOUR TOWNE YACHT CLUB Walking distance to Siesta Beach and quick free shuttle to Siesta and mid-Key Villages.

Deeded dock only minutes to the Gulf. Water views! Fabulous 2/2 end unit. Attached garage. Gated community with pool, tennis, Clubhouse. MLS# A4207562, $459,000. Key Solutions Real Estate Group, Sheri & Bob Ruiz.

Bob: 941-544-3299 or Sheri: 941400-4186.

• SARA SANDS 3/2 remodeled and furnished ranch home at the north end of Siesta Key. Easy bike to the Village and Beach. Outdoor living at its best. Located at the end of a canal with a great water view, dock with lift, tiki hut, beautiful pool, outdoor fireplace, huge

• WHISPERING SANDS Magnificent views of the Gulf, Bay, Lido Key, and downtown Sarasota! Gorgeous 2/2 end unit has been totally and impeccably renovated. It is being sold furnished in the cottage/beach style with a lovely blue/white palate. Beachfront and steps to Siesta Village. MLS# A4401698, $925,000. Key Solutions Real Estate Group, Sheri & Bob Ruiz.

Bob: 941-544-3299 or Sheri: 941400-4186 • MID CENTURY BEAUTY This 3BD/3BA home, is a former Ralph Twitchell show home with an amazing open floor plan and high ceilings located on a quiet canal front corner lot.

Has a 7K lbs. boat lift and is a short 5-minute commute to the bay. Has a new modern kitchen with gorgeous Brazilian granite counter tops. 505 Givens St, Siesta Key, $958,000 MLS #A4160488, Key Solutions Real Estate, 941894-1255 • AN ISLAND GEM This 4BD/3BA home is situated in a canopy neighborhood on a private cul-de-sac. A quick walk to “Point of Rocks” beach and Crescent Beach. Home has a solar PV system that provides over half of the electrical needs. This home sits on just under one-half acre and is considered one of the largest lots in the sought-after Mangroves subdivision! Even has a downstairs space that would make a perfect “mother-in-law” suite. 1237 Sea Plume Way, Siesta Key, $775,000 MLS #A4207945, Key Solutions Real Estate, 941894-1255 • OUTDOOR LIVING AT IT’S BEST This 3BD/2BA home is built on a large corner lot and includes an 800 sq. ft. covered and screened lanai with gas fire pit, 75” TV, and top of the line furnishings to seat 25+! This ideal island ranch home in Sara Sands community is minutes to the beach and Siesta Village. Home has abundant sliding glass doors & windows, white wood flooring throughout, and boasts a newer kitchen and an oversized 2 car garage. Must see!

654 Sandy Nook St, Siesta Key, $1,225,000 MLS #A4211194, Key Solutions Real Estate, 941-8941255.

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Siesta Sand

JUNE 2018

941.349.0194

www.siestasand.net

Classifieds / Here’s My Card ACCOMMODATIONS / VACATION RENTALS

CONTRACTORS

• Best Western Plus Siesta Key – AAA -3 Diamond Property, • Hawk’s Nest Construction Inc. is a certified Class A general Free shuttle service to and from Siesta Key 941-924-4900, 6600 S. contractor licensed in all phases of construction. Owner, Mark Tamiami Trl., Sarasota Hawkins Sr. personally oversees every aspect of your project from start to finish, using only the best and most reliable licensed artisan • Siesta 4 Rent - Vacation Rentals, from studios to 5 bedrooms. and craftsmen. His passion is delighting his clients by turning their Serving Siesta Key since 1997, 941-349-5500 home-improvement dreams into a beautiful reality.

Call 941-650-9499 or visit their website: BEACH & BABY EQUIPMENT RENTALS www.hawksnestconstruction.com.

SARASOTA’S BEST BABY RENTAL CENTER SELF SERVICE NOW AVAILABLE Order online or by phone Available 24/7 CLEAN • SAFE • RELIABLE

941-929-1850

MEDICAL

Dermatology Skin CanCer laSer, Botox anD Hair/nail DiSorDerS

• Nutter Custom Construction is your local Siesta Key builder.

J Morgan Amy Fenenga Lorie Masters We have a strong team with over 30 years of combined high end O’Donoghue, MD. PA-C PA-C 1952 Field Road residential construction experience in Sarasota and Lakewood Sarasota, Florida 34231 Ranch. We offer custom construction, remodeling services, www.dermatologyexperts.com management & consulting, concierge service, and we are committed to protecting our resources by using construction techniques that • Paradise Dermatology offers comprehensive dermatologic care are environmentally friendly. www.nuttercustomconstruction.com including full body skin checks, medical dermatology care, Mohs 3534 South Osprey Ave. 941-924-1868. skin cancer surgery, and cosmetic treatments. Sarasota office: 3355 Clark Road, Suite #101, 941-202-5524. www/paradisederm.com

941.926.7546

MISCELLANEOUS SERVICES

5700 Midnight Pass Road, Siesta Key www.abcbabyrental.com

BOATING RENTALS / FISHING CHARTERS

Having Fun Fishing in The Sun LANDINGS RESIDENT OWNED AND OPERATED

www.qualitycountscleaning.com

941-400-2452

Tony Fudoli Sr. CAPTAIN tntfreedomfishing@yahoo.com

Veteran Owned Business

• CB’s Saltwater Outfitters – CB’s Saltwater Outfitters is an ORVIS Endorsed Outfitter Fishing Charter Service serving Siesta Key as well as Longboat Key, Lido Key, Sarasota and Venice.

Our veteran guides offer exciting Fishing Adventures for anglers of all ages from novice to the expert. See our website: www.CBsOutfitters.com or stop in their store for additional info.

1240 Stickney Point Rd, Siesta Key. (941)349-4400.

941.756.1082 • Free Estimates • Satisfaction Guaranteed • Stain Specialists • Chamber of Commerce Members

Sailing From Marina Jack, Sarasota

• Wilson Windows is a State Certified General Contractor specializing in glass porch enclosures and window replacement.

They offer only top quality products installed by professionally trained technicians. All projects are engineered and permitted to meet the new state building codes related to impact, water infiltration and high velocity windload calculations. Their services include window repair, new custom screens, glass cut to size, and hard to find window parts inventory at both locations.

Fully insured and their work is guaranteed. 941-921-1113, www. wilson-window.com.

www.KathleenD.net

• Siesta Key Marina Located at 1265 Old Stickney Point Rd, Siesta Key, has been serving Sarasota boaters and fishermen since 1961. A staple in the Sarasota boating community, offering 243 dry storage racks, a full service ship store, onsite boat service, boat rentals, bait, fuel, fishing tackle and more. 941-349-1970 • Sip-N-Cycle Cruises. Ahoy Siesta Key, Sarasota & surrounding areas! We are the areas Ultimate Party Boat! Join us aboard our 16-passenger bike-boat-bar for scenic cruises along the intracoastal waterways. Bring aboard your favorite beverages, crank your tunes, cycle and sip away as we cruise the picturesque waterfront on a boat experience unlike anything else. Come sip, sip away with Sip-N-Cycle Cruises!

BAYFRONT EXCURSIONS 8865 MIDNIGHT PASS ROAD SIESTA KEY, 34242 CALL US at 1-833-747-2929 www.sipncyclecruises.com

CHURCH SERVICES

DRY CLEANERS

Owned and Operated by NRT, LLC

www.SheSellsSiestaKeySarasota.com

• Making things happen on Siesta Key with Real Estate agents Bob and Sheri Ruiz from Key Solutions Real Estate Group. If you are looking to buy or sell on the Key contact us. Bob Ruiz 941-544-3299 RobertRuizRR@aol.com, Sheri Ruiz 941-400-4186 SheriLasley@aol.com • Your Siesta Dunes and Landings Preferred Partners in Real Estate, Judy Greene 941-350-0451 and Tara Lamb 941-266-4873 with Michael Sanders & Company 5100 Ocean Blvd Siesta Key 34242 JudyGreene@MichaelSanders.com

Your Choice:

Environmentally Conscious Laundry and Dry Cleaning Service

Free Pick Up & Delivery Service Call

All entrees served with your choice of fries, baked beans or coleslaw.

from your home or business

941-275-4647

ExEcutivE Shirt SErvicE • houSEhold itEmS • SamE day SErvicE availablE

• Cheeseburger • 10 Boneless Wings • Grilled Chicken Salad • Buffalo Chicken Sandwich,

941.923.4666

HOUSE WATCH

6507 S Tamiami Trl, Sarasota

(available grilled)

• Wraps:

(turkey bacon, buffalo shrimp or buffalo chicken)

SPAS / HAIR & BEAUTY

Olde Fashion Barber Shop

Tapers • Flattops • Fades • Styling • Razor Cuts • Shaves

Green Magic Cleaning Service

Insured, Bonded and Licensed by The National Home Watch Association.

“Residential and Commercial”

We don’t cut corners, we dust them.

(941) 961-4309

www.SuncoastHomeConcierge.com

House Watch Sarasota Licensed and Insured

Affordable and Dependable Service Solutions For Your Home While You Are Away

GreenMagicCleaning@gmail.com Call for a FREE estimate today!

ther”

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941-312-6001

South Gate Barber Shop (Across from Southgate Mall)

2081 Siesta Drive, Sarasota, FL 34239

Walk-Ins Welcome

Monday-Friday 9 AM-6 PM; Saturday 9 AM-4PM

www.SouthgateBarbers.com • Massage Experience Siesta Key Open 7-day a week. 5138A Ocean Blvd, Siesta Key, 941-349-4833. (MA17596/MM6727).

(941) 780-4248

TO ADVERTISE CALL 941-349-0194

5145 Ocean Blvd.

Sarasota, FL 34242

5 for $9 Lunch Specials Mon. - Fri. 11 am - 2 pm

CLEANING SERVICES

• High quality services • Competitive rates • Great references • Always the same crew www.SarasotaHouseCleaningService.com

(941) 685-2274 Cell (941) 349-4411 Office (800) 237-9403 Toll Free (941) 349-8090 Fax HeleneHyland@comcast.net

RESTAURANTS

• WEDNESDAY CHURCH - Traditional worship every Wednesday at 6 PM. Committed to reaching 55+ Widows, Widowers, Veterans, Singles, and Adults.

7811 Kennedy Ln., Sarasota, FL 34240. Pastor Trebor Britt, 941320-4309. SJG5232@verizon.net

A family owned business with 16 years of experience.

REALTOR®

Locally Owned and Operated

• Quality Screening, Window & Door Inc. Windows • Doors • Glass • Repair, 4384 Independence Court, Sarasota, 34234 (941) 953-2670. CGC 1505896 / CBC 1250402

941-896-6400

HELENE M. HYLAND

Serving Manatee and Sarasota Counties

Dolphin Watch • SunSetS • half Day aDventure SailS

Kathleen D Sailing Catamaran

REAL ESTATE AGENTS

Carpet, Tile and Upholstery Cleaning

R. BRuce Whittinghill, llc (941) 955-1864

Call or e-mail sarasotabruce1@housewatchsrq.com for quotes and references Serving SaraSota and Surrounding areaS Since 1979

housewatchsrq.com

• Stylish Cuts Hair Salon offers inspired artistry and design that’s affordable. Please see our display ad for valuable coupons and call us for your next hair appointment. For your convenience, we are now open daily and located next to Peltz and Carrbbas near the Stickney Point Bridge. 1902 Stickney Point Road. 941-7064041.

www.siestasand.net

941.349.0194

JUNE 2018

Classifieds

At The Beach

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

41

Photos by Trebor Britt

SENIOR SERVICES • A Bridge for Independence provides in home companion services including companionship, transportation, light housekeeping, medication reminders and meal preparation and planning. Call us at 866-279-4390, FL License #230517 • Family First Homecare is there when someone you love needs a little extra TLC. Independently owned, we provide quality homecare services for your family’s needs. Give us a call and allow us to see how we can help. 941-444-2432. www.myfamilyfirsthc.com

SPORTS RENTALS / ACCESSORIES • Robin Hood Rentals – for all your Siesta Key rental needs with a wide variety segways, bikes, kayaks, scooters and more, free pickup and delivery anywhere on the key. 5255 Ocean Blvd Siesta Key Village. 941-554-4242 • Siesta Key Bike & Kayak – Located on Siesta Key in Capt Curts Village serving Siesta Key, Lido Beach and Sarasota. We offer bikes, kayak rentals, kayak eco tours, paddleboards and scooters.

1224 Old Sickney Pt Rd. 941-346-0891 • Siesta Sports Rentals – Located on Siesta Key, bike, kayak, kayak tours, scooter, children strollers and car seats. Delivery and pickup available, 6551 Midnight Pass Rd, 941-346-1797

Friends, Samantha Lippincott (14) of Osprey and Bailey Budde (14) of Venice posing along the incredible Gulf of Mexico shoreline during a beach birthday party celebration

On break from her CNA duties at Sarasota memorial, Florida State graduate, Codi Auten of Sarasota enjoying a book under the sun on the beautiful sands of Siesta Beach

Future bride Rachel Kalberer (middle) cheek to cheek with future bridesmaids, Julia Wierman (L) of PA and Meg Griffith (R) of Mannheim, PA. They decided to come to Siesta Beach for their destination bachelorette party

TRANSPORTATION

Sarasota’s Premier “Chauffeur”

Airport Rides Starting At Only

Jaelynn Irizarry (11) of New York boogie boarding in the small waves of Siesta Beach

30 941.735.4732 $

All Ports In Florida

®

Stress Free • Smooth and Easy Ask for Eddie

Transportation for everyone on the Sun Coast Friendliest Ride In Town

941-928-9200

RIDE THE KEY FREE

15-20 MINUTE RESPONSE TIME (Based upon traffic)

SERVICING

Siesta Key Beach Siesta Village Turtle Beach

DRIVER TIPS ONLY

Restaurants and Accommodations Operating 10AM to 2AM Daily

www.JonnysOriginalFreeRide.com

• Jonny’s Original Free Ride – The Original Ride the Key Free service on Siesta to anywhere, everyday from 10 AM – 2 AM. Driver tips only. Call 941-928-9200.

• Dollar Limo – holds up to 10 people and is cheaper than a D.U.I or taxi. Call 941-735-4732

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4&20 Patsy Co.......................................................................................................................................5638 Swift Rd. A’s Sandwich...........................................................................................................................6300 S. Tamiami Trail Abel’s Ice Cream: Southbridge Plaza................................................................................... 1886 Stickney Pt. Rd. Alpine Steak House................................................................................................................4520 S. Tamiami Trail Best Western Plus....................................................................................................................6600 S. Tamiami Trail Casey Key Fish House............................................................................................... 801 Blackburn Point, Osprey Corkscrew Deli: Landings Shopping Plaza * ...................................................................4982 S. Tamiami Trail Culver’s.....................................................................................................................................7520 S. Tamiami Trail Dutch Valley Restaurant.......................................................................................................6721 S. Tamiami Trail Eager Beaver Carwash *.........................................................................................................6449 S. Tamiami Trail Economy Tackle *....................................................................................................................6018 S. Tamiami Trail Fresh Catch Market & Grill: Buccaneer Plaza...................................................................7119 S. Tamiami Trail Gecko’s Restaurant.................................................................................................................6606 S. Tamiami Trail Grasshopper Mexican Restaurant & Bar............................................................................7253 S. Tamiami Trail Ham Heaven & Devil Dogs/GG*...................................................................................................2647 Mall Drive Hibiscus Suites.................................................................................................................... 1735 Stickney Point Rd. Hooters.......................................................................................................................................6507 S Tamiami Trail Philadelphia Cheesesteaks....................................................................................................7523 S. Tamiami Trail Phillippi Creek Oyster Bar....................................................................................................5353 S. Tamiami Trail Plaza Mexico Restaurant: Southbridge Plaza................................................................ 1894 Stickney Point Rd. Pride of the South Restaurant/GG........................................................................................... 6616 Superior Ave. Rico’s Pizzeria & Pasta House............................................................................................................. 1902 Bay Rd. Sarasota Brewing /GG................................................................................................................6607 Gateway Ave. Solorzano’s Pizza /GG................................................................................................................ 6670 Superior Ave. Special Nutrition Store: Southbridge Plaza........................................................................ 1882 Stickney Pt. Rd. The Oaks BBQ.........................................................................................................................6112 S. Tamiami Trail The Shop SRQ/GG.....................................................................................................................6625 Gateway Ave. The Table Creekside...............................................................................................................5365 S. Tamiami Trail Tony’s Chicago Dogs/GG.......................................................................................................... 6569 Superior Ave. Word of Mouth/GG....................................................................................................................6604 Gateway Ave. Interested in Distributing our Publication? Call 941-349-0194 NOTE: * Denotes availability first week of each month only.

MarinerWord Answers to theSearch WORD SEARCHwww.TheMariner.com found on page 33 IMPORTANT NUMBERS Answers from

Page 15 Emergency (General).................................................911

Emergency Animal Clinic........................ 941-929-1818

Springtime in Florida

Fishing & Hunting Licenses.................... 941-362-9888 FPL – Florida Power & Light................... 941-917-0708

WELNESS HELP

FPL – Outage Report............................. 1-800-468-8243 Marriage License Bureau......................... 941-362-4066 Poison Info Center................................. 1-800-282-3171 Sarasota / Bradenton Intl. Airport......... 941-359-2770 Sarasota County Area Transit (SCAT)... 941-316-1234 Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce......... 941-349-3800 Sheriff / non-emergency......................... 941- 861-1601

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“For F

Looking for Siesta Sand off-island?

Pick up a copy at the following locations:

Waste Management.................................. 941-924-1254

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Siesta Key Chamber Events

The 19th Annual Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce Golf Tournament at TPC Prestancia

Siesta Key Chamber Announces New Membership Director The Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce proudly announces Ellen Lawlor as the new Director of Membership. She originally moved to Sarasota from Dayton, Ohio in 1981 and lived and worked on Siesta Key for 10 years as General Manager of Midnight Cove II. She has had a successful career in television, digital advertising and marketing helping countless businesses in Sarasota County market their brand and grow their business. She was a Senior Account Executive with Comcast for 18 years and a Local Sales Manager with Viamedia representing Verizon Fios for 6 years.

She has lived in Southbay since 1998 and has a son in his second year at United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, NY. Please join us as we extend Ellen a warm welcome!

Sincerely, Ann Frescura, Executive Director Siesta Key Chamber, 941-349-3800

The 1st place winners (L-R) Tom Kouvatsos, Corey Schaul, Jon Pierce, and Michael Kroll from Team Village Café

The 2nd place winners (L-R) Michael Lepore, Jr., MD, Mick Dowie, Stacey Garecht, and Ed Bankemper from Team Best Western Plus SK Gateway

Island Chatter

Continued from page 30

The period Gilmore cited overlaps much of the sea turtle nesting season. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service already had issued a Biological Order regarding the Lido permit application, limiting the project period to months outside the turtle nesting season, which runs from May 1 through Oct. 31.

Van Roekens described going out in the pass one night last summer with Gilmore. He said they were on the water about 10 p.m., “which is scary enough in itself,” but he had to stop the engine, so they were drifting. Gilmore put a hydrophone into the water to capture the sounds of the fish spawning, van Roekens added, imitating the noise.

During the DOAH hearing, Martha Collins of the Collins Law Group in Tampa — who is the SOSS2’s attorney — told Canter she would be happy to play the recording for the court. Canter politely declined the offer. However, the recording was made part of the official record, as the docket notes.

Michael Shay, manager of the Siesta Key Village Maintenance Corp., jokingly suggested to van Roekens, “Why don’t you get a 1-800 number and make money off of this?” People could call in and listen to the fish spawning, Shay added, after Mark Smith, past chair of the Chamber characterized the recording as a “sex tape.”

“That’d be great for a money-raiser,” Shay said.

Needless to say, Shay’s comments drew a round of laughter.

New Audubon steward at work on the beaches

The 3rd place winners (L-R) Tyler Hagan, Chase Harris, and Taylor Thompson from Team Day Hagan Asset Management Putting Contest Winner: Tonya Dottellis Longest Drive- Men: Robert Bulah Longest Drive- Ladies: Linda Stefanick Closest to Pin- Men: Jon Pierce Closest to Pin- Ladies: Peggy Heaton

Another announcement during the May 3 SKA meeting focused on a new Florida Audubon employee who is working to safeguard the nesting birds on the county’s barrier islands.

SKA Vice President Catherine Luckner said Kylie Wilson is a Sarasota native who is “very lively and friendly,” and Wilson is looking for volunteer “chick checkers.”

The birds — including the endangered snowy plovers — typically build their nests between April and August, Luckner noted. People may see string and

poles marking off areas on the beaches where nests have been located.

Wilson indicated that a big part of her job is education: trying to teach people not to disturb the birds.

In years past, when Luckner and her husband, Robert, were very active as chick checkers, they reminded the public that the snowy plovers that nest in the area hatch chicks that are so tiny, the birds can be likened to a Q-tip with a ball of cotton on top.

During her April 23 email update, Wilson reported that one plover nest that had been found the previous week on Siesta already was a lost cause. “Many crows have been seen in the area,” she added, but she had not been able to confirm whether the crows ate the eggs. “I am working on a predator surveillance project that will hopefully be able to tell us the whens, whats and hows,” she wrote. “With this data we will be able to get the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission involved and predator deterrence projects can be planned. I am hoping to do this ASAP so that we can make some headway and have a productive season.”

For the week of April 30, Wilson wrote, “Siesta continues to tease us.” A volunteer who walks the beach regularly found a snowy plover nest the previous Saturday evening, Wilson continued. “It had one egg,” she added. “Unfortunately the next morning the egg was gone. There is still a pair of plovers reliably in that area, so we will keep looking.”

Waterside Realty moves out of the Village Tom Ward and partner Brian Livesey, owners of Waterside Realty moved their office from Siesta Key Village, south to Crescent Plaza.

Waterside Realty resided in the Village at 5221 Ocean Blvd since 2002. Their new location is 6629 Midnight Pass Road next to Miguel’s Restaurant in Crescent Plaza. www.WaterSideRealty.net Office 941-346-7454.

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JUNE 2018

Accommodations Locator Map

Island Visitor Publishing, LLC

Snapshots of Island Visitors Photos by Jaye Clements - Sarasota Photography

Rue, Deanna, Kennedy, Drake from IL

F Siesta Key Inn F Siesta Palms by the Beach

© Island Visitor Publishing, LLC 2017

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At the Beach - Volleyball Edition

Ali Arango of Seminole and her teammate, Melissa Sensi of Columbus, NJ. They competed in the Women’s AAA Division

Ali Arango getting silly with her teammate, Melissa Sensi between matches at the Dig the Beach Volleyball Series Tournament

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By Trebor Britt

A collegiate player at Louisiana State University, Lilly Kessler of Atlanta, Georgia, sets up her partner in an early round Women’s Pro Division match