Journal featured a full-page article about Anna Maria’s 34216 zip code being the second most expensive in Florida. It ranked second only to the ultra-exclusive Fisher Island in Miami, which is home to residents like Oprah Winfrey, Andre Agassi, Robert Herjavec and other high-net-worth individuals and celebrities. The City of Anna Maria had a current median list price of $3.6 million, a median $1,695 price per square foot, an average of 75 days on the market before a home is sold and 42 active listings, which was up 133.33% year-over-year. Tourism is known to drive home sales on Anna Maria Island.
SPRING BREAK BOOSTS NUMBERS
In March, thousands of students, many with their families, flocked to AMI to escape the still-freezing temperatures farther north, trading quizzes and tests for beach volleyball and fun in the sun. Due to different regions of the country having spring break on different weeks, spring break season on the Island runs from the first week of March through the middle of April, more than a month long. According to the Holmes Beach Police Department, which has license plate readers that count how many cars enter the city each day, the first week of March saw 214,740 cars for an average of 30,677 per day. The numbers continued to grow as the month went on.
COQUINA BEACH TRAIL IMPROVED
At the April 24 meeting of the Manatee County Tourist Development Council (TDC), Chad Butzow, public works director for Manatee County, presented a proposal to the TDC requesting the approval of $1.5 million for improvements to the Coquina Beach Trail, a paved path popular with visitors and locals about the width of a city sidewalk that begins at the Longboat Pass parking lot and runs 1 1/2 miles along the beach north to Fifth Street South. The trail is estimated to cost $1.5 million, including the removal of 96 Australian pine trees whose roots are damaging the pavement, to be replaced by native tree species. The money was later approved by Manatee County commissioners and work began in September. The project is currently delayed due to supply chain issues, but is scheduled to resume in January 2024.
BEACH CLOSING TIMES CHANGE
Manatee County had the full support of the Bradenton Beach Police Department and Mayor John Chappie when officials changed the closing time of beaches and beach parking from midnight to 10 p.m. Anna Maria and Holmes Beach had the 10 p.m. closing time for many years, with Bradenton Beach being the only city remaining with the midnight closing time. The county said the reasons for the earlier closing time were reports of numerous after-hours issues with drugs, homeless persons, vandalism and the safety of workers who clean common areas, bathrooms and other duties that can’t be completed until beach visitors have left the area.
MEMORIAL DAY BUSIEST EVER
In the days following Memorial Day, Island officials said this year may have been the busiest Memorial Day weekend ever. Traffic was backed up all weekend long, and parking was chaos in many areas. Bradenton Beach Police Lieutenant Lenard Diaz said while he had nothing official to back up his claims, it felt to him like it was the busiest weekend he had ever seen, a sentiment echoed by Holmes Beach Police Chief Bill Tokajer, who said his department wrote more than 400 tickets for illegal parking over the weekend. Visitors reported wait times of more than two hours to get onto the Island on both Cortez Road and Manatee Avenue.
HURRICANE IDALIA IMPACTS TOURISM
As news of approaching Hurricane Idalia dominated the days leading up to Aug. 29, tourism came to a screeching halt on Anna Maria Island. Rooms were canceled and eventually, a forced evacuation was mandated for AMI as, at the time, forecasters said the Island could sustain a direct hit from the category 3 storm. Fortunately, the Island was spared the worst of the surge, suffering flooding but not much structural damage. However, hundreds of thousands of tourism dollars were lost and many local businesses took some time to recover from water damage.
AIRBNB USES AI
In November, Airbnb announced they had been using artificial intelligence (AI) to crack down on people renting houses and condos for the sole purpose of having parties. Airbnb launched the AI-driven anti-party system ahead of the Halloween holiday weekend in both the U.S. and Canada. The purpose of the technology is to help owners of houses rented through Airbnb to avoid the hassle of dealing with renters whose sole purpose of renting is to have a disruptive party. On Anna Maria Island, this is especially problematic, as noise ordinances are in place in Anna Maria, Holmes Beach and Bradenton Beach. Police in all three cities respond to multiple potential noise violations every week. Airbnb’s AI can learn patterns of renters that may be potential party risks and block them from renting.
