Play ball?

HOLMES BEACH – Commissioners gave Human Resources Analyst Mary Buonagura approval to pursue grants to fund improvements to the city’s baseball field in order to host Little League tournaments.

“It’s a great opportunity to attract families,” Buonagura pointed out. “The mothers could shop, the dads and kids could play and the whole family would stay in our motels and eat in our restaurants.” More...

Community rallies for Team Austin

BRADENTON BEACH – The Island community raised approximately $12,000 during Saturday’s benefit for Austin Goncalves and his family.

Taking place at the Blue Marlin and the Drift In on Bridge Street in Bradenton Beach, the benefit was part of the efforts to raise $30,000 to help Karen Goncalves and her 15-year-old son Austin offset medical expenses incurred when they contracted ciguatera fish poisoning after eating toxic fish speared during a Bahamian vacation in July. More...

Spend an evening on the lanes

HOLMES BEACH – Your local community center needs you.

The plight of the Anna Maria Island Community Center is well documented and here’s a way to keep the money rolling in for kid’s sports programs.

Go on down to Duffy’s Tavern. 5808 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach, and register for the annual O’Connor Bowling Challenge, sponsored by the Anna Maria Island Sun, at AMF Lanes, 4208 Cortez Road W., on Saturday, Aug. 23, starting with check-in at 5 p.m. More...

Credit card theft hits AMI

BRADENTON BEACH – Thirty customers at an Island Circle K were victimized recently when their credit card numbers were stolen as they purchased gasoline, according to Bradenton Beach police.

The cards were hacked through the use of a device known as a skimmer, which had been connected to pump number four at the Circle K at 2513 Gulf Drive, said Police Detective Sgt. Lenard Diaz. The skimmer, which was removed after its discovery, can electronically access the card numbers and store them for retrieval at a later time, authorities said. More...

Beware of bridgework, power poles

Road crews and power company workers are busy this time of year, during the slower months. Here’s a look at places to be aware of or to avoid while driving.

Crews are working on the Cortez Bridge as part of a maintenance project and one area of work is the eastbound sidewalk and road surface. Crews will continue nighttime lane closures of the eastbound lanes from the Island toward Cortez from Sunday through Thursday nights from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. Additionally, the eastbound sidewalk will remain closed for several weeks, and pedestrians and bicyclists will use the westbound sidewalk. The project is expected to take until winter of this year into the beginning of next year. More...

Duck rescue goes swimmingly

When Susan Miller, of Mango Park, arrived at the West Manatee Fire Rescue Administration building in Bradenton early Wednesday morning to ask for assistance with the rescue of ducklings trapped in a storm drain, firefighters jumped into action.

The firefighters from Station 4 arrived in the 2000 block of 91st St. N.W. to find a mother duck walking frantically around a storm drain. Firefighters could hear the ducklings chirping in the drain. Manhole covers on both sides of the road were removed, and Lt. Jeff Lonzo located the two ducklings in a pipe between the road and a retention pond. More...

City clerk candidate interviewed

Pier contract finalized

BRADENTON BEACH – Mayor Bill Shearon signed the finalized city pier reconstruction contract on Wednesday, July 30.

During the informal Pier Team construction meeting that took place in the Tingley Library conference room earlier that day, Duncan Seawall General Manager Steve Porter confirmed that the work will begin on Monday, Aug. 11.

According to the contract, Duncan will have 161 days to complete the job, which equates to a completion date in early January. More...

Charlene takes a holiday

Charlene Doll, of Holmes Beach recently took a trip to the North Pole. She said she had always wanted to visit there, so she planned a trip, even though her husband did not go. She saw a Russian icebreaker, talked to her husband via satellite phone, enjoyed the wildlife and took a dip in the freezing water. She said she definitely enjoyed her trip and returning to the Island where her dips in the water last a lot longer. More...

Scallopalooza celebrates fourth year

It’s Scallopalooza time again and you are invited to come to Sarasota Bay Watch’s yearly fund-raiser held at the beautiful Sarasota Yacht Club. Monies raised from this event have paid for the introduction of millions of scallop larvae into Sarasota Bay from Bradenton to Sarasota with the hope of repopulating our bay waters with this once abundant species.

The Scallopalooza event has enjoyed the continued support of the community, proof that the businesses and inhabitants of Manatee and Sarasota Counties care about and are willing to tackle this long term restoration project. More...

What type of mortgage is right for you?

If shopping for a new home is one of the most fun things you’ll ever do, then shopping for a mortgage to finance that home is one of the least fun things. By the time you read about all of the mortgage products available and all of the warnings associated with each type of option, your head is ready to explode, but once you’re through the fine print it’s all worth it.

As I mentioned a few months ago, many of the very tight lending regulations and requirements are starting to ease up for burrowers with little cash to put down and lower credit scores. In addition, there are more mortgage options available, some going back to before the financial crisis, making shopping for a mortgage challenging for almost everyone. More...

Risk on - risk off

In the investment realm the term risk on – risk off usually refers to the short to intermediate term attitudes of investors. Are they taking money out of safer investment to move into stocks and other more aggressive opportunities indicating a high level of optimism? Or, are they pulling back from growth investments and moving into government bonds and cash, indicating a high level of cautiousness?

There is also a longer-term aspect to risk on – risk off behavior. There is a tendency for investors to build confidence as an economic expansion takes place, moving a larger percentage of their portfolio into riskier investments as the rising bull trend rolls on. This is not in keeping with the idea of buying low and selling high. More...

Sensational soccer

The adult co-ed spring soccer season comes to a climatic conclusion this week at the Anna Maria Island Community Center.

The soccer buzz is all over the world right now due to the FIFA World Cup in soccer. The most popular sport on planet earth has fans reeling and soccer fans on the Island are no different. What a perfect time for the conclusion of the Center’s adult soccer season.

Upsets were prevalent in last week’s first round of the playoffs. Three out of the four tournament playoff games were won by the underdog seeded team. Again this shows the parity of the Center’s drafting system in the sports leagues and how any team can win on any given night. More...