ANNA MARIA – From the dazzling decorations to the delightful gourmet food, this year’s Silver Affaire to Remember was one to remember.

Fun was the order of the evening as Islanders came out in their finery to socialize with friends and dance the night away to the tunes of MPiRE. People got in the spirit of bidding on the silent auction items by cell phone until the Wi-Fi went down, but no one seemed to mind doing it the old fashioned way with pencil and paper.

While guests were enjoying dinner, Directors Cindy Thompson and Kristin Lessig recognized some special people including Sandee Pruett, who is retiring this year after 16 years; and Trudy Moon, who’s hard work for over 20 years made the Affaire the Island’s premier social event.

Chuck and Joey Lester were given the Lifetime Achievement Award for Humanitarian Service, “for their dedication and commitment to the education of children.” The plaque contained a quote from Dr. Seuss, “Unless someone like you cares a whole lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.”

After dinner, auctioneer Blake Kennedy began to work the room, coaxing higher and higher bids from guests vying for special packages. The highest winning bid of the evening, which left guests gasping and clapping, was for a trip to Mainsail’s Scrub Island Resort for $30,000 by Bradley and Heather Twait.

Others included Tampa Bay Lightning playoff game, $2,100; marketing package, $3,500; Caribbean trip, $3,000; Mar Vista dinner for eight, $2,100; Colorado trip, $2,500; Beach Bistro dinner for eight, $2,400; Montana fly fishing trip, $5,500; and San Francisco trip, $4,600, for a total of $55,700.

A cash call after the auction brought in nearly $13,000. Islanders won the two raffle prizes – P.J. Smargasso won the Harley Davidson motorcycle and Carol Whitmore won the gold, amethyst and diamond ring.

The Manatee County Tourist Development Council voted Monday to recommend that county commissioners approve $750,000 annually for beach renourishment and maintenance, and $60,000 for a structural study of the Anna Maria city pier from county resort tax funds.

To increase funding for future beach renourishment projects, Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) Director Elliott Falcione and Manatee County Parks and Natural Resources Director Charlie Hunsicker proposed shifting $575,000 in resort tax funds currently allocated for beach maintenance in the “beach penny” to another part of the resort tax budget.

The resort tax is collected from owners of accommodations rented for six months or less who charge the tax to their renters, primarily tourists.

The majority of the county’s 5 percent resort tax proceeds are allocated to CVB tourism marketing efforts; one of the five pennies is allocated to beach renourishment and maintenance.

Moving the maintenance funds from the beach penny to a different penny will result in the full beach penny being dedicated to beach renourishment, Falcione said.

The move is necessary because renourishment is getting more costly, and state and federal renourishment grants are increasingly harder to obtain, he said, explaining that resort taxes cannot increase by law, but can be reallocated.

The budget shifting move also will allow lifeguards to staff the beaches until 7 p.m. instead of 4 p.m. at three locations on Anna Maria Island, Falcione said, adding that while resort tax proceeds cannot legally directly fund lifeguards, they can fund beach maintenance, which will free county maintenance funds to pay for more lifeguard staffing.

The TDC voted unanimously to recommend the proposal to the county commission.

TDC member Ed Chiles called the effort a better utilization of tax dollars, saying, “The beaches protect our structures and are what our tourism economy is based on.”

Another $175,000 was unanimously approved for the commission’s consideration for maintenance of beach park facilities at Coquina Beach, Manatee Public Beach and Bayfront Park on the Island, especially during the three summer holiday weekends.

The funds are needed to keep the beaches clean because of the increase in tourism and visitors to the beaches, Falcione said.

The board also approved a recommendation for $60,000 for a structural study of the Anna Maria Pier, $30,000 of which would be reimbursed by the city of Anna Maria; the study is needed to assess the structural condition of the pier, whether repairs or maintenance is required, costs and the time required to complete the repairs, according to the CVB.

Tourism “incredible”

March occupancy in Manatee County reached an “incredible” 95.6 percent, while average occupancy for the first quarter of 2015 averaged 87 percent, Walter Klages, of Tampa-based Research Data Services, the county’s tourism consultant, told the TDC.

“There was no room in the inn,” he said, adding that demand is clearly outpacing supply, and cautioning that the increase in tourism is not sustainable due to the limited supply of accommodations.

“You need to focus on that because that will be an issue,” he told the TDC.

TDC member and Holmes Beach Commissioner Jean Peelen said that more hotels are needed to lessen the pressure that prompts developers to build eight-bedroom rentals on the Island.

Bradenton Beach hotelier and TDC member David Teitelbaum said many of the multi-bedroom rentals are “inappropriate, and cities allowing that is a big problem. A couple developers are doing that … and they’re busting up the neighborhoods and it needs to be solved.”

Klages said that travel from Europe is up 23.6 percent, surprising given that the dollar’s value is making it more expensive for Europeans to travel here. But Europeans who once vacationed in Turkey, Algeria and Egypt are choosing other destinations because “disquieting things are occurring that are so frightening,” he said.

Travel from the Southeast U.S. is up 15.3 percent, the Midwest is up 12.4 percent, the Northeast is up 9.6 percent, Canada is up 9.2 percent and Florida is up 5.4 percent, he said.

Domestic visitors are coming from the following feeder markets in this order: New York, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Boston, Indianapolis, Grand Rapids, Washington D.C., Buffalo and Orlando.

The Baltimore Orioles training in Sarasota is drawing some Washington D.C. visitors, Falcione said.

The average length of time visitors stay is 7.6 days, with the average party size 2.7 people, Klages said.

HOLMES BEACH – Proponents of banning parking in the city’s rights of way, claimed success last week when city commissioners agreed to two test areas for the plan.

“We don’t want to exclude people from going to the beach, we just want to direct them to the right spots where there’s public parking,” Congestion Committee Chair Jayne Christenson said. “On those streets that don’t have parking signs yet, let’s put them up so people know where they can park.”

Island Congestion Committee member Richard Brown said the committee is recommending a phased approach for the plan. Phase I would be White Avenue to 79th Street from Gulf Drive west and 52nd to Manatee Avenue from Gulf Drive west.

“By using a phased in approach we will learn fromm any issues that arise in a timely manner with minimal impact to the community and city staff,” he said.

Chair Judy Titsworth said the mayor and police chief did a survey of streets in the Phase I areas, and Christenson said that’s why the committee picked those areas. (See survey results on this page.)

Mayor Bob Johnson said he also has data for every block and street west of Palm Drive, but it is not formatted.

“I’m really pleased at the new direction the committee has taken, the phasing,” Commissioner Jean Peelen said.

“We may never go beyond Phase I, but we can learn a lot along the way.”

Christenson said she received a letter from the president of the Island Village Condominium Association asking to be included in the plan.

Who can get a decal?

Peelen asked who could get a decal to park in the Phase I areas, and Christenson said any qualified city resident that meets the following criteria:

• Has a current vehicle registration to a Holmes Beach address;
• Presents proof of property ownership by an individual, not an LLC or trust, plus a vehicle registration;
• Presents a lease agreement of longer than 30 days plus a vehicle registration.

Titsworth suggested making no parking hours from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and said, “It make it more balanced for people who want visitors.”

Brown noted that most people who go to the beach leave by 5 p.m.

Peelen asked if neighborhoods could opt out, and Petruff said she could put language in the ordinance to address that, but pointed out, “We want it to be enforceable and not complicated.”

Commissioners instructed Petruff to draft an ordinance, and Petruff said she would add the condo area into Phase I.

HOLMES BEACH – Commissioner Jean Peelen last week asked commissioners to vote to no longer contribute to the Island Community Center.

“My take on what is happening there is that we don’t get answers when we ask,” she said. “We don’t get discussion; we get lectured. There’s no dialogue, and they’re arrogant and don’t seem to care that we withhold our $22,500.”

The city donated $22,500 this year, while the city of Anna Maria donated $16,000 and the city of Bradenton Beach donated $250.

However, Mayor Bob Johnson said he planned to meet with Center Executive Director Cindy Thompson and asked commissioners to take no action until he reports on that meeting.

Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy met with Center officials last week and said he was disappointed that they did not provide many of the documents he had asked for in a previous letter.

In a letter following the meeting, Murphy said, “As you will recall, I provided you with a list of information we would like to review so as to assure us that your status as a 501(c) (3) is not in jeopardy.”

The list included documents regarding non-profit status, 2014 and 2015 budgets, expense and revenue for the fitness center and information regarding the vacation rental membership program.

“Although you were able to provide us with a portion of this information, there are still many items we have not received, as you informed us your plans for the fitness center are not yet completed,” Murphy continued. “As your plans are being finalize, please provide the city with the remaining items on the list … ”

Island Community Center officials have named Neville Clarke as the Volunteer of the Year, and said that Clarke is “not only generous with his time,” but “his outstanding attitude and embodies the spirit of volunteerism.”

“I like to go the extra mile because it’s never crowded,” Clarke said when told of the honor.

“The Center is especially grateful to Clarke, an outstanding individual who has worked for more than 15 years, promoting and encouraging people of all ages through our various tennis programs.

“While he has consistently promoted and recruited additional volunteers, he has also increased membership. The Center fondly refers to him as ‘The Commissioner’

“He is always positive, thoughtful and resolute about his involvement with the Center. He is an inspiration to both visitors and staff. His dedication is only surpassed by his kindness and willingness to help in any way he can.”

 

Pat Copeland | Sun

Neville Clarke samples a Fig Newton at the AMI Historical Society’s 25th anniversary luncheon.

BRADENTON BEACH – When Mayor Bill Shearon was informed he would be subject to a special recall election, he said he would not challenge the process.

This has not stopped others from questioning the legal technicalities of the May 19 special election and the abbreviated qualifying period that took place last week.

These last-minute inquiries required additional review by the Manatee County Supervisor of Elections Office, City Attorney Ricinda Perry and acting City Clerk Terri Sanclemente, which also resulted in a contentious city commission discussion on Thursday that led to the repeal of an outdated city election ordinance from 1952.

On Friday, chief deputy of the elections office Sharon Stief confirmed that Shearon and Vice Mayor Jack Clarke were the only two candidates to qualify for the recall election.

What’s old is new

Thursday’s agenda contained three items related to the election: the $2,500 contract for services provided by the elections office, the official proclamation of the election and a discussion on the repeal of Ordinance 19.

The first two items were approved unanimously with no debate. The third item was a different story.

“I was contacted because Tjet Martin had gone into the supervisor of elections office and advised that there was an ordinance in the city records that required certain advertising requirements for the qualifying period. The supervisor of elections began its research on this and contacted me and Terri to try to identify what this document was,” City Attorney Ricinda Perry said.

From her seat in the audience, Martin said, “Absolutely not,” in response to the suggestion that she raised questions about Ordinance 19.

Perry continued, saying, “We then produced Ordinance 19. When the supervisor looked at it he had grave concerns. The ordinance said you had to be 21 years old to vote…the ordinance more or less has a poll tax provision where it required you to be a land owner…There were a number of concerns and he said you have to find out if this is on the books. If it is, it needs to be repealed.”

Two days before the commission meeting, Bennett sent a letter to Mayor Shearon that said, “This ordinance appears to be archaic…This ordinance has not been adhered to in past elections…It would be highly advisable for the city to take immediate action to repeal Ordinance 19.”

A primary item of concern was the provision that required the town clerk to publish a two-week newspaper notice as to when the period to submit qualifying petition signatures would end. Because Judge Andrew Owens issued an order on April 9 for the qualifying period to end on April 17, this condition was impossible to meet.

When addressing the commission, Martin said, “I want this election done right. I don’t want any questions. If he (Shearon) wins, I don’t want anybody coming back and saying that Mr. Clarke didn’t know how to do it properly. I talked to Scott Farrington. I asked him three or four questions and nothing else, because something else was brought to my attention; and that (Ordinance 19) was not it.”

When contacted, Farrington acknowledged speaking with Martin and declined to reveal the specific nature of their conversation.

To repeal or not?

When debating the repeal of Ordinance 19, Shearon and Commissioner Janie Robertson argued there was no need to repeal it with a new ordinance. They felt administrative and commission actions taken in 1998 and 2005 already accomplished this. Shearon also questioned why this ordinance was being repealed while others were not.

Perry noted that commissioners are still collecting 10 petition signatures when qualifying, as required by Ordinance 19. She acknowledged the ordinance may have been previously repealed, but advised the commission to err on the side of caution.

Clarke agreed with Perry and Commissioner Jan Vosburgh said the mayor was overreacting.

Shearon asked Perry, who actually provided a copy of the old ordinance to the elections office.

Perry said Sanclemente discovered it when conducting research requested by the elections office, but she suggested this was not the first time the elections office was made aware of it.

“I was told that Ms. Martin advised them that there was an old ordinance on the city books… therefore the election would be illegal and improper. In fact, Scott Farrington conducted significant research on whether or not the election would be thrown out based on that alone and decided it could not be. Somebody gave him that information and it is taken literally out of Ordinance 19,” Perry said.

The commission eventually repealed Ordinance 19 by a 4-1 measure, with Robertson casting the lone opposition vote.

After the meeting, Martin again denied any prior knowledge of Ordinance 19, and Police Chief Sam Speciale asked her to refrain from discussing the matter further with Perry as Perry tried to leave the building.

Resignation clarified

Prior to qualifying, another inquiry was made to the circuit court and it was incorrectly suggested that Clarke might have to resign from his commission seat effective immediately in order to run in the recall election. The inquiring party was informed that this was not the case and Clarke’s resignation from his Ward 1 commission seat, win or lose, would not take effect until after the election.

BRADENTON – The West Manatee Fire Rescue Board of Directors got good news last week from its auditor, Randy Dellingham.

After performing the annual audit of the fire department’s finances and procedures, he gave them a clean bill of health and commended their financial stability.

“It is the district’s responsibility to set procedure,” he said. “Despite new procedures for the retirement fund, there were no surprises, no problems.”

He said the department has $4.2 million in total assets; the amount of money was reduced by $691,000, which went for a new fire truck and a fire station remodeling.

He also said they profited from a stronger economy.

“You got more income than you budgeted and you spend less than you budgeted,” he said. “Your finances are good; there are no issues.”

The rebuild of Station 4 in Bradenton was discussed with Commissioner Al Robinson chiding the board for its business practices.

Ron Allen, of National Development Corp. (NDC), the company hired for the design-build project gave an update to the commission and answered questions, many of them from Robinson, who was skeptical of the way government does business.

When Allen said the bill for the design would be $259,000, Robinson asked how much the construction would cost. He said he had heard between $2 million and $3 million.

“If it costs $2 million, the design cost would equal 10 percent of the construction,” Robinson said. “If you were to build a house, would you spend 10 percent for an architect?”

“It blows my mind,” he added. “It’s a government building so we say, “Let’s do it!’”

Deputy Fire Chief Tom Sousa explained that there are procedures they have to follow, but that did not satisfy Robinson.

“When you do it this way, you just jump on the treadmill with the others,” Robinson said, “and the government keeps printing money.”

“It isn’t done this way by only the government,” Sousa said. “It is done this way by industry.”

Commission Chair David Bishop asked Allen when the design would be completed and Allen said by July.

Robinson lamented the fact that the general public does not attend board meetings, and when he found out there was a budget of 4 to 6 percent of the construction cost for a construction manager, he again argued about spending so much money. Commissioner Larry Jennis tried to calm Robinson.

“I’m in construction management and that’s the going rate,” Jennis said.

On another note, this meeting was to be Fire Chief Andy Price’s last one before he retires, but he was unable to attend.

BRADENTON BEACH – The outcome of the May 19 recall election is of great interest to city employees who feel their livelihoods are at stake. Several city staffers have indicated they may seek employment elsewhere if Bradenton Beach Mayor Bill Shearon remains in office.

On Friday, acting City Clerk Terri Sanclemente addressed an incident that occurred during Thursday’s emotionally-charged city commission discussion about the repeal of an outdated election ordinance and her role in researching the matter and amending the meeting agenda.

“The mayor disrespected me during a public meeting. He has also belittled other employees,” she said.

During Thursday’s meeting, Shearon said, “I had no advance notice, in fact the agenda amendment was placed on the damn door, that’s when I found out about it. I didn’t even get a chance to review it. That’s when I asked the city clerk to check that because I thought that was an oversight on her part, and it was. There again she’s new…she’s not a clerk.”

Sanclemente has served as the commission-appointed clerk pro tempore and performed all duties of the office since former clerk Gia Lancaster was fired in October. She is also engaged in ongoing training to become a certified city clerk, which is not a city requirement.

On May 31, Clerk’s assistant Emily Long recently presented Sanclemente with a written document pertaining to a March 27 incident involving Shearon, who is legally blind, requiring Long to spend one hour and 45 minutes assisting him with his e-mail.

When Sanclemente told her to stop, a heated conversation ensued between Sanclemente and Shearon.

After the exchange, which, according to Sanclemente included the mayor using profanity, Sanclemente instructed Long to return to assisting the mayor, in part because he referenced the American Disabilities Act.

“Even with him acting this way, we still went to him and said let’s finish your e-mail; and we worked until 4:05,” Long said.

Long’s document states:

• “The mayor continually monopolizes too much of my time reading and writing his e-mail. This does not afford sufficient time in the day for me to keep current with my regular job responsibilities.
• The mayor constantly invades my personal space
• The mayor addresses me in a manner that makes me feel disrespected and lacking the necessary training required to work for him.”

“My purpose in discussing this with my supervisor was to make her aware of the situation. I requested that no further action be taken at this time,” it concludes.

Long said working with the mayor causes her anxiety.

“I feel a lot of pressure just under the surface, and he takes it out on Terri,” she said.

Long now places a trash can on the floor between her and the mayor to ensure that her personal space is respected.

Long also confirmed that on March 13, during a global settlement meeting adjournment, she walked over to the Tingley Library to decompress before the meeting resumed.

“The thing that horrified me was that he followed me to the library. The entire time he had his arm around me and his hand on my back and he was feeding me platitudes. At the end, he said ‘Are you feeling better now?’ and ‘How about a hug?’ The whole thing made me feel uncomfortable. I felt he was invading my space and I had gone to the library to get away.”

When asked if she has contemplated quitting, Long said, “Yes, but I feel loyal to Terri.”

Code red

Code Enforcement Officer Gail Garneau said she finds herself in constant conflict with the mayor regarding his failure to follow code enforcement policies and procedures, which led to a 2014 lawsuit and recently resulted in two Bridge Street business owners contacting their attorneys.

“Is morale low? Absolutely; you have a mayor and his significant other suing the city and high tension and turnover in the clerk’s office. The mayor’s temper is hostile, with frequent outbursts directed toward city staff. He often screams, berates staff and uses profanity,” she said.

Garneau cited a 2014 closed-door meeting with Shearon and Police Chief Sam Speciale concerning a complaint the mayor filed about portable toilets placed near his residence during beach renourishment.

“The complaint was unfounded, but when I asked where he would like me to ask the county or feds to move them, he screamed, ‘I don’t care where they (f-bomb) get moved, but get them moved,’” she said.

Speciale later confirmed this statement to be true.

Unhappy works

In 2014, Shearon was the subject of a hostile work force complaint filed by Public Works Director Tom Woodard. Public works employee Christine Watson filed a similar complaint against Shearon’s significant other, Tjet Martin, and David Higgins, also from public works, filed a complaint against Commissioner Janie Robertson regarding inaccurate statements she made about the use of a departmental credit card.

A labor attorney hired by the city found some merit in each of the claims, but determined in each case that they did not rise to the level of creating a hostile work place according the Civil Rights Act, or defamation in Higgins’ case.

Friday afternoon, all three employees said they have considered quitting, but feel doing so would be a victory for the mayor. Woodard noted that Shearon, per the labor attorney’s order, is not allowed to provide him with direct verbal instructions without a third party present to witness the conversation.

“Every day I worry about what he’s going to do next. If he were to leave, it would relieve some of the stress and tension that takes away from our efficiency and enthusiasm,” Woodard said.

“As it’s been said before, he’s an equal opportunity bully. The stress he creates not only affects me, it also affects my wife, my family and my mother-in-law who has cancer,” Higgins added.

“The mayor wasn’t here today and morale was great,” said Watson.

Shearon is also the subject of an unresolved Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint filed by Lancaster last fall.