N.Y. Times features AMI

HOLMES BEACH – A New York Times article last Sunday on the restaurants of Anna Maria Island had the Island Chamber feasting on requests for information Monday morning.

"A Florida Island, end to end, table by table," by Cindy Price, highlights the Sandbar restaurant, the Sign of the Mermaid, and the Rod & Reel in Anna Maria; Beach Bistro, Duffy’s Tavern and Skinny’s Place, in Holmes Beach; and Star Fish Company, in Cortez. She also wrote about Ginny’s and Jane E’s at the Old IGA, "a café and bakery that doubles as an unspeakably cute boutique." More...

Cafe patrons want county to back off

HOLMES BEACH — More than a thousand patrons of Cafe on the Beach have added their names to a petition asking county commissioners to renew the lease with the current concessionaires at Manatee County Public Beach.

"I don’t see why they want to change things, when this place is so well run," said Sam Bauer, who was visiting the beach on Sunday. "They do a good job. The food’s good. The prices are good, the staff’s friendly and it’s always clean here." More...

Shoreline anglers to pay more this Sat.

Fishing from the beach – as well as from many bridges, piers or docks – will require a saltwater shoreline fishing license beginning Aug. 1.

The $9 annual license – plus a handling charge at some outlets – will be required for saltwater anglers fishing from land or structures attached to land, or fishing in water accessed by land. The fine for fishing without a license is $50 plus the cost of a license and county fees.

Anglers with a $17 resident recreational saltwater fishing license are covered for shoreline fishing in addition to fishing from boats. More...

Structural inspection ok’d for city pier

ANNA MARIA — It’s going to cost $5,200, but city commissioners voted unanimously to shell out the funds for a structural inspection of the city pier.

M.T. Causley will do the inspection.

The underwater pilings of the pier are inspected quarterly, according to Public Works Director George McKay. "We have to replace one or two pilings, but for the most part, the underwater portion of the pier is in good shape." More...

Longboat disputes environmental report

LONGBOAT KEY – A key environmental assessment of Port Dolphin’s proposed natural gas port and pipeline contains "serious errors" about the project’s impact on submerged beach renourishment sand resources, according to Longboat Key officials.

The town disputes the U.S. Coast Guard’s Final Environmental Impact Statement on Port Dolphin’s proposed pipeline route, which would make sand off limits that could otherwise be used for beach renourishment on Longboat Key and Anna Maria Island. More...

Don’t pass the trolley

If you pass the trolley when it’s stopped or when it’s in motion in Bradenton Beach and get caught, it’s going to cost you $166.

Mayor Michael Pierce said he’s worried that people whisking around the trolleys are going to cause somebody to get hurt.

"I’ve seen some awful, awful close calls myself," Pierce said at the Island Transportation Planning Organization meeting last week. "Someone’s going to get killed." More...

Bradenton Beach keeps same millage rate

BRADENTON BEACH – Property owners in this city will get to pocket all of the money they saved through lower tax valuations – at least from the city’s portion of their bills.

That’s the message the city commissioners gave when they accepted the city clerk’s recommendation to take money from reserves instead of raising the rate of taxation to pay for a drop of $207,000 in income from the current budget year. The proposed budget would be $2,795,096, down from the $3,152,125 of this current budget. More...

Emergency officials promote hurricane preparedness

ANNA MARIA –The small turnout didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of the presenters at the Community Center’s first hurricane forum Saturday.

Paul Morrison, of the American Red Cross of Manatee County, and Steve Simpson, of Manatee County Emergency Management, were thorough and informative in discussing evacuation and re-entry, shelters, where to get information and storm experiences. More...

Home not necessarily your castle

You know the saying,"Your home is your castle?"

If you live in a condominium, forget about it, advise father and son attorney authors in their book,‘New Neighborhoods, The Consumer’s Guide to Condominium,Co-Op and HOA Living.’ More...

Local singer adds to her fan base

BRADENTON BEACH – The hot sun beat down on the crowd that gathered at the Bridge Street Market on July 4, but they stayed to listen to the dynamic, passionate voice of a local rising star.

Danielle Hollobaugh, 21, of Bradenton, has made several appearances on Anna Maria Island since she teamed up with the band named HWY 41, but her first appearance was several years ago at Anna Maria City Hall. More...

The Second Annual Sarasota Bay Great Scallop Search

The mid-day sun was high overhead as Jay Leverone and I slipped into the waters of a local flat. After adjusting our snorkels and masks, we began to survey the sandy bottom with its mix of turtle and manatee grass. The water was rising and uncharacteristically clear for August, giving us a great view of the flora and fauna that inhabited this underwater world. We had been in the water less than 10 minutes when Leverone called my attention to a scallop he had just found on the seagrass bed. Soon after I found another scallop and within 20 minutes we had located several other specimens. More...

Baby boomers reverse their mortgages

What happens when the high flying baby boomers start to retire and their savings, pensions, 401k and home values are not exactly what they anticipated just a few years ago? Some of the 70 million baby boomers are going to start thinking outside of the retirement box, and many of them will inevitably look towards reverse mortgages to fulfill their retirement dreams. More...

Recession, depression, what’s the difference?

During a recent client meeting, I was asked what the difference was between a recession, a deep recession, and a depression. I was familiar with the definition of a recession, but not so sure of when a recession becomes a depression. More...

Season’s first turtle nests hatch

Last Thursday, someone went to the shore in Juno Beach on Florida’s east coast. Among the things they did that day was to dig a deep hole in the sand. In all probability, that person or persons had no intention of killing a loggerhead sea turtle, a member of a threatened species.

But a loggerhead sea turtle is dead, nonetheless.

Volunteers for the turtle program there came upon the turtle, which was covered with sand. More...