Tourist BOOM

Traffic may be creeping along, but business is brisk at the peak of the 2011 tourist season.

In fact, local retailers and tourism officials say this is one of the busiest tourist seasons they have ever seen on the Island. More...

City: No permit, no light poles at Kingfish

HOLMES BEACH – Mayor Rich Bohnenberger said if the county proceeds with a plan to install 11 lights at Kingfish Boat Ramp without a city permit, he plans to act.

"If they show up, I'll have the police and the public works supervisor issue a stop work order," Bohnenberger said. "If they ignore that, we'll get an injunction. More...

Affaire offers outstanding auction packages

ANNA MARIA – Come bid on a host of wonderful prize packages in the live auction at the Affaire to Remember, "A Magic Moment with Lee Greenwood," on Saturday, April 2, at the Island Community Center, 407 Magnolia Ave., Anna Maria.

Some of the auction items include:

• "Dolphin Vision," by world famous marine artist Robert Wyland, a signed 35-inch x 45-inch framed serigraph and #154 in a 1993 limited edition of 950. More...

All Island cities losing people, says census

Anna Maria Island's three cities lost 1,752 residents in the first decade of this century, according to new statistics released by the U.S. Census Bureau.

The 2010 census distributed its surveys a year ago this week. Results show that between 2000 and 2010, Holmes Beach lost the most people on the Island - 1,130 – with a population count of 3,836, a 22.7 percent decrease. More...

Tree removal stalls after nests found

BRADENTON BEACH – The city has delayed cutting down a distressed and dying tree on the grounds of Annie Silver Community Center because it might be harboring nests of critters inside.

And while they wait for nature to take its course, Mayor Bob Bartelt is going to seek a second opinion.

The city commission voted March 17 to pay C&S Lawn, Inc., of Bradenton, $990 to remove and dispose of the tree, which although has a crown of new growth, has several large holes in its trunk from past limb removals. More...

Commisioner objects to pension appointments

HOLMES BEACH – Tempers flared during a discussion of reappointments to the police pension board when Commissioner Al Robinson objected to the reappointment of Sean Murphy.

Each month, Murphy, owner of the Beach Bistro and Eat Here, gives restaurant gift certificates to the city to be distributed to employees whose names are drawn out of a hat. Others such as Mote Marine, Commissioners Sandy Haas-Martens and John Monetti and Regions Bank have donated gift certificates to the drawing. More...

DOT presents pier boardwalk plan

ANNA MARIA – Officials from the Florida Department of Transportation and Woodruff and Sons presented the final plan for the pier boardwalk and parking lot improvements at last week's city commission meeting.

Commissioner Jo Ann Mattick, who spearheaded the project for the city, gave a short history, which dates back to 2005, when the city received a $300,000 FDOT grant to enhance the business district. More...

Pass the salt

All of the nuns in our school had nicknames. The nicknames were a closely guarded secret. If the good sisters ever found out it would have meant an excruciating death and eternal damnation.

Sister Florence Fearsome looked her nickname. She was reputed to have played fullback at St Francis Xavier University. She had a massive ring like football players wore. More...

The secret to fishing

One of the best pieces of advice I've ever gotten about fishing came from Captain Scott Moore. When he first told me, "Fish move around," the statement seemed self evident, but over time the implications became more nuanced. Another piece of fishing wisdom was gleaned from Captain Rick Grassett in his statement, "You don't know until you go." If there is a secret to fishing I think these two seasoned guides summed it up. More...

Sandpiper offers location and history

The Sandpiper Mobil Resort is one of those Island places that's easy to miss if it's not on your radar, but this unique piece of property combines a beautiful location with quite a bit of history.

John Ringling certainly knew what he was doing in 1934 when he built the Sandpiper Mobile Park as a winter residence for his circus performers and staff. The almost 10 acres in Bradenton Beach that comprise the park are located between Gulf Drive and Anna Maria Sound at 26th Street and have one of the better waterfront locations on the island. More...

Dealing with natural disasters as an investor

In light of the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan almost two weeks ago, I thought some perspective on how investors should react to natural disasters might be appropriate. Obviously, the financial markets will have already reacted by the time you are reading this, but the lessons from the earthquake and tsunami in Japan are at least a bit similar to the lesson of Hurricane Katrina and other past natural disasters and may be beneficial to consider for future events.

Obviously, our thoughts are with the Japanese people as they struggle through this difficult time, but as an investor, it is important to separate the human disaster from the economic impact and the resulting impact on asset values in your portfolio. More...

Ross Built Vikings are Super Bowl Champs

The Sun sports Game of the Week was the Division II (10-12-year-old) NFL Flag Football Super Bowl Championship game and represented the largest age group for the children's divisions. The AFC champion Holy Cow Colts played the NFC champion Ross Built Construction Vikings. Bringing the end to the Community Center's largest program ever. The entire season ended Saturday with Super Bowl games in every age group. More...

Eat healthy and live longer

What to eat to remain healthy to enjoy life can cause as much acrimony as keeping Fox News and CNN on side-by-side. But if I'm to inspire you with ideas that can save you from devastating diseases that ravage so many families, you'll have to indulge me once in awhile. I also wanted to follow up on my recent column about The Cancer Project classes I used to teach and where I've gone since then. More...