Vol. 9 No. 29 - April 8, 2009

news

Anna Maria Island Sun News Story Rescued!

CORTEZ – He can joke about it now, but floating near his capsized boat surrounded by chum off Egmont Key last Sunday morning, Kevin Derlon wasn’t laughing.

Derlon’s 18-foot Gulf Craft fishing boat, "Shark Bait," was capsized by the third wave that hit it after his two fishing lines became entangled in a crab trap. More...

Anna Maria Island Sun News StoryPolice to be out in force on Easter

BRADENTON BEACH – Easter has occasionally been a dangerous holiday for some beachgoers on Anna Maria Island, especially at Coquina Beach. But steps taken over the past two years and a show of police force this Easter are expected to make it safe once again.

A group of law enforcement officials in Manatee County met on Monday, March 30 to make plans for this Easter on the beaches and it will look a lot like last year, which produced more families and fewer troublemakers than in 2007, when gangs cruising the parking lot at Coquina Beach led to a shooting. More...

Island stimulus funding progresses

The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) has given its approval to the proposed federal stimulus road projects for the Island cities after making some changes, and Bradenton Beach is the big winner while a lot of Holmes Beach projects were rejected.

Bradenton Beach got more than it requested for its lone project, Anna Maria got slightly less than its request and Holmes Beach got much less. The FDOT figures now go to the state legislature for its approval. More...

Corona pleads not guilty

HOLMES BEACH – Robert Corona pled not guilty last week to grand theft of a motor vehicle, no valid driver license and resisting, obstructing or opposing an officer.

Corona, 38, was arrested last November for stealing the car of missing Haley’s Motel

co-owner Sabine Musil-Buehler, two days after her boyfriend, William Cumber, reported last seeing her, according to Manatee County Sheriff’s Office reports. More...

Anna Maria Island Sun News Story AMITW gets lighting education grant

Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch has been awarded a grant to educate beachfront property owners on safe lighting options.

The grant was one of 27 awarded around the state from 56 applications.

"It’s in Your Hands: A Lighting Tool Kit for Beachfront Property Owners" is the name of Turtle Watch’s project, and the amount awarded from state sea turtle license funds is for $4,170, the total amount applied for. More...

Anna Maria Island Sun News Story Island Playhouse to receive plaque

The Anna Maria Island Historical Society (AMIHS) will present the fourth historic marker to The Island Playhouse in Anna Maria at 7 p.m. on April 13.

The building was barged to the Island from Parrish in 1912 and used as a tourist center and community hall before becoming a playhouse for the Island Players in 1949. This year is the 60th anniversary of the Players. More...

Anna Maria Island Sun News Story Dolphin Ginger doing well in wild

SARASOTA BAY – There it is again, every time Ginger surfaces to take a breath of air.

"Beep, beep." Maybe a third "beep" if she grabs a particularly long breath.

Then silence.

Aaron Barleycorn holds up an antennae that looks like it was salvaged from a 1960s rooftop. He aims it lengthwise toward the beeping and points out the direction to Katie McHugh, who steers the Mote Sarasota Dolphin Research Program vessel toward the sound. More...

Floating pier to get fix

BRADENTON BEACH – The floating day dock has been troublesome since it was installed next to the Bridge Street Pier in 2007 during the pier’s renovation. At one point, the city found out that the contractor that assembled it used bolts that were too small, and it caused a portion of the dock to come apart. There was also a problem when a boat ran into it.

At a meeting of the city’s pier team, Public Works Director Tom Woodard said he got an opinion from a Sanford, Florida professional. More...



feature

Anna Maria Island Sun News StoryCommunity comes together for Affaire

It was a starfish-studded event at the Island Community Center Saturday as people joined to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the annual dinner auction, An Affaire Under the Starfish Sky.

According to preliminary figures, the event brought in $125,000 for the Center’s adult and children’s programs. More...



reel time

Anna Maria Island Sun News StorySaltwater fly tackle evolves through the years

Less than 50 years ago, the fishing tackle available to anglers was vastly different than what we have today. For example, there were virtually no pre-made rods available, and anglers had wrapping machines to build their own rods from blanks made by US Fiberglass.

Florida fly fishing legends Lefty Kreh and Flip Pallot remember how they would take a blank, wrap the guides, glue the individual cork rings, turn and sand them on lathes and head to the street to try them out. It was a common practice to make a few casts, find the rod too whippy or a guide that trapped line and immediately break them apart and rebuild them. More...



real estate

You can stop being scared of real estate now

Eleanor Roosevelt once said, "Do something everyday that scares you." Well I’ve been scared every day for about two years now, but I’m starting to de-scare my brain, and you should too.

In spite of the fact that Washington still hasn’t completely unfrozen the mortgage money iceberg, there are very positive signs that buyers are starting to believe the market has bottomed out. The news during March, both locally and nationally, is creating the beginning of activity from buyers who either have cash or the ability to get financing and who don’t want to miss out on a good thing. More...



business

Anna Maria Island Sun News StoryStore a great catch for fishermen

How would you like to have a job that requires you to not only know how to fish but to also talk about it all day? Well if that job is at Island Discount Tackle in Holmes Beach, your job description clearly states, "It’s your job to help people catch fish;" and for 21 years Island Discount Tackle has been doing just that. More...

Anna Maria Island Sun News Story

Stocks stage rally – worst may be over

Investment Corner

After a terrible 2008, major stock indexes continued their declines for the first two months of 2009, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average went below 7000. Then, abruptly, just as most were predicting a decline for the Dow to below 5000 a four week rally has ensued taking the Dow back to the 8000 level.

What does this mean for investors and for the economy? With the admission that my crystal ball isn’t any clearer than anyone else’s with regard to short-term news and market action, I think we may look back and say that Mr. Stock Market once again tricked the masses a little and may be showing us that the world as we know it is not about to end. More...



SPORTS

Flag Football teams improving in week 2

The second week of flag football proved to be even more exciting and action packed than the first, as teams showed off some trick plays and played higher quality football on both sides of the ball. The signs of first-game jitters are starting to disappear and teams have learned from their early mistakes; including what types of offensive plays are most effective and how to read a defense’s positioning. More...



HORSESHOES

Horseshoe season winding down

Wednesday, March 25, and the madness continues, with nine teams waiting for availability of the five pits. Three teams qualified for the playoffs. Justin Zirwes (Herb Puryear's grandson) and Dave Long won the bye. In the first match, Sam Samuels and Adin Shank defeated Art Kingstad and John Johnson 22 to 15. In the final match, Samuels and Shank destroyed Zirwes and Long 21 to 4. Grand pop is not happy. More...


 

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