The Anna Maria Island Sun Newspaper

Vol. 12 No. 49 - September 19, 2012

FEATURE

Four Island winners in Keep Manatee Beautiful contest

Anna Maria Island Sun News Story

County Commissioner John Chappie
accepts the award for the
Women of the Moose,

Four Island entities were given awards last week for their efforts to keep Manatee County clean and beautiful.

The plaques were given out by Keep Manatee Beautiful at its annual awards celebration at Pirate City and the four locations are diverse.

The Women of the Moose Lodge Chapter 1601 were honored for cleaning Gulf Drive in Bradenton Beach from Fourth Street South to Fourth Street North periodically. Manatee County Commissioner John Chappie accepted the plaque for the group.

Anna Maria Elementary School was honored as a green school, as were Sugg Middle School and Palmetto High School. AME second-grade teacher Karen Newhall accepted the plaque. Anna Maria has a litter control program plus butterfly, demonstration and food gardens. It collects rainwater in barrels and hosts other active environmental programs at the school, including tours of the shoreline to study sea creatures. Newhall has been active in obtaining grants for many of the projects students undertake on campus.

The next award went to the city of Anna Maria for the boardwalk project at the city pier, a project begun by City Commissioner JoAnne Mattick. Anna Maria Environmental Education and Enhancement Committee Chair Billy Malfese accepted the award.

Finally, the Anna Maria Historic Green Village won a plaque for building a LEED Platinum Certified building where the Village Café is located. That project involves capturing rainwater for irrigation plus the use of solar for hot water and other environmentally positive details. Brian Seymour accepted the award.

The keynote speakers at the ceremony were Jeff Castor, a landscape architect for the Florida Department of Transportation who talked about “The Business of Beautification” and J. Bryan Unruh, PhD, professor and associate center director at the University of Florida West Florida Research and Education Center who spoke on “Education Versus Regulation: My Perspective.”


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