Vol. 14 No. 35 - June 25, 2014

news

Anna Maria Island Sun News StoryClerk ousted in city shakeup

BRADENTON BEACH – Former Bradenton Beach City Clerk Jamie Anderson’s Island homecoming proved bittersweet.

Last week, Commissioners Jack Clarke, Ed Straight and Jan Vosburgh voted to dismiss the city clerk hired in January.

They rejected Mayor Bill Shearon’s recommendation that Anderson be retained and granted the career service status that would have provided full rights and benefits at the completion of her six-month probationary period in July. More...

Anna Maria Island Sun News StoryIsland officials cautioned about restricting parking

BRADENTON BEACH – Officials shared ideas on resolving the parking problem that has plagued the Island’s three cities in recent years at last week’s meeting of the Coalition of Barrier Island Elected Officials.

Anna Maria Mayor SueLynn said her commission has asked the city attorney to draft an ordinance to establish paid parking in residential areas of the city, and Bradenton Beach Mayor Bill Shearon said his commission is in the discussion process. More...

City notified on seven properties

ANNA MARIA – Not all of the property owners agree with the city’s new Living Area Ratio (LAR) restrictions. The owners of seven properties have given notice they will file legal action if arrangements are not made to exclude them from the restrictions or pay them for the loss of use they had anticipated.

The properties include one at 114 Tern Drive, owned by Katherine and Mark McLean; 101 Willow Avenue, owned by KPI 48th Street Development, LLC; 881 North Shore Drive, owned by Gulf View Retreat, LLC; and at 104 Magnolia Avenue, 607 North Bay Boulevard, 857 North Shore Drive and 508 Spring Avenue, owned by Erik Abrahamson. More...

Anna Maria Island Sun News StoryChief highlights issues at Coquina Beach

BRADENTON BEACH –Police Chief Sam Speciale showed a video of crowds at Coquina Beach during the Memorial Day weekend so Island officials could understand the problems that confront police.

“The county came in and wanted to make the beach look a little more friendly,” Speciale explained at the Coalition of Barrier Island Elected Officials’ meeting last week. More...

Four cases come to code board

HOLMES BEACH – True to his word, Code Enforcement Officer Dave Forbes began his crack down on offenders by bringing four cases to the code board last week.

The first case involved the failure of Coastline Consulting, 6915 Holmes Blvd. to obtain a business tax receipt (BTR). Forbes said after a series of letters and phone calls to President Jeffrey Hostetler to obtain the BTR, he issued a notice of violation giving Hostetler14 days to comply and set a hearing date.

Forbes said the cost of the action includes taxes, fees and penalties totals $450.81. Board member Renee Ferguson asked if the attorney’s fees are included, and Forbes said he wasn’t sure they applied. More...

Anna Maria Island Sun News StoryCommunity Center goes digital

ANNA MARIA – The Island Community Center was abuzz with activity Thursday as Jennifer Cascardo and Kenny Heidt, of Sugar Beach Digital, filmed students, parents, program participants, employees and business representatives supporting the cause.

“We’re bringing the Community Center into the digital age by creating their YouTube, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest social media applications and enhancing their already formatted Facebook page” Cascardo explained. More...

Island nonprofits donate to Center

The 4th Annual Food and Wine on Pine (FWP) was cancelled this year due to weather, but thanks to the generous support of the sponsors, the event was still able to match the 2013 contributions to a number of Island charitable institutions.

A total of $12,500 in proceeds was distributed to seven non-profits, one of which was the Island Community Center. But the story gets better because in true Island style, the generous Island spirit has shown through.

Jeanie Pickwick, executive director of Anna Maria Island Concert Chorus and Orchestra (AMICCO), approached FWP chair Caryn Hodge with the idea of asking the recipients to consider donating their proceeds to the one with an immediate need to remain operating – the Community Center. More...

Chamber gets new board member

The 4th Annual Food and Wine on Pine (FWP) was cancelled this year due to weather, but thanks to the generous support of the sponsors, the event was still able to match the 2013 contributions to a number of Island charitable institutions.

A total of $12,500 in proceeds was distributed to seven non-profits, one of which was the Island Community Center. But the story gets better because in true Island style, the generous Island spirit has shown through. More...



features

Anna Maria Island Sun News StoryWhere does your food come from?

The sustainable food movement, sometimes called Localvore, is the most important shift in the food industry that I have seen in my 35 year restaurant career. It is underpinned by the growing number of folks, like myself, who want to know where their food comes from and how it is raised or produced. Ideally, we also want to know who raised it.

Some of the most important issues and challenges facing our country today are food related. If we want to address the complex issue of rising health care cost in this country the most significant thing we can do is to eat right. Go back to the pre-WWII days when we ate real food, much of which was grown locally. More...



OUTDOORS

Exploring Pine Island

Fishing trips can be great adventures as most anglers know, but it’s important to enjoy the experience because the fish do not always cooperate. The mark of a good guide in my book is one that can show you a great day on the water, even if the fish don’t bite. Recently, I had just a trip in one of my favorite areas with Captain Joe Harley of Matlacha and Pine Island.

Pine Island and the estuarine environment that surrounds it is one of Florida’s richest ecosystems. Within miles of any point on the island you can get lost in a mangrove forest and visualize yourself a century in the past. The area has a huge variety of habitat ranging from oyster bar strewn flats, lush mangrove forests to remote bays and creeks. And while the island doesn’t feature any Gulf beaches, it’s only a short boat ride to the pristine clear water beaches of Cayo Costa and Captiva Islands. More...



real estate

Smart phone, smart home

Remember the Jetsons? George, Jane and their kids lived in the world of the future, where the house was self cleaning and robots took care of just about everything. In 1962, when the Jetsons first showed up on our TV screens, the thought of gadgets giving us a plethora of leisure time seemed unattainable, but believe it or not we’re almost there.

If you’re tired of performing mundane tasks round the house, there are robotics companies around the world creating objects with artificial intelligence that would make the Jetsons envious. Technological advancement is impacting every aspect of our lives and the “smart home” may very well be the most advanced of the advanced technologies. More...



business

Anna Maria Island Sun News Story

Stock market may move higher

Investment Corner

In the 1960s there was a TV show called “Lost in Space.” The robot became famous for a phrase still used today by those of us who grew up watching the show. “Danger Will Robinson” was heard on just about every episode when the robot warned the young boy on the show to get ready to run.

In the last few months we seem to be having warnings of “Danger Investors” from many of the talking heads on financial television and website based advice shows. Stocks here in the U.S. are certainly not inexpensive after a five year run, which has seen major indexes move up by over 150 percent. The only correction greater than 10 percent during that run came in the summer of 2011 with the decline bordering on bear market territory – a 19 percent decline for the S&P 500 Index. More...



SPORTS

Anna Maria Island Sun News Story Sensational soccer

The adult co-ed spring soccer season comes to a climatic conclusion this week at the Anna Maria Island Community Center.

The soccer buzz is all over the world right now due to the FIFA World Cup in soccer. The most popular sport on planet earth has fans reeling and soccer fans on the Island are no different. What a perfect time for the conclusion of the Center’s adult soccer season.

Upsets were prevalent in last week’s first round of the playoffs. Three out of the four tournament playoff games were won by the underdog seeded team. Again this shows the parity of the Center’s drafting system in the sports leagues and how any team can win on any given night. More...


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