The Anna Maria Island Sun Newspaper


Vol. 16 No. 11 - January 13, 2016

headlines

County: Renourishment money at risk

Carol Whitmore

tom vaught | SUN

Elvis left the beach and entered the water on New Year’s Day
for the Eighth Annual Clancy’s Shamrock Shiver, a fund-raiser
for local charities, which included a costume competition,
won by Bill Capobianco (Elvis).

HOLMES BEACH – City officials received a stern warning from Manatee County regarding implementing any parking restrictions that could jeopardize beach renourishment funding.

At press time, the City Commission is slated to vote on an ordinance that would establish a parking program in a test area where parking on the rights of way would be banned, except for residents with permits. At the last discussion on the ordinance in December, Mayor Bob Johnson vowed to veto it if it is approved.

In a unanimous vote, Manatee County Commissioners asked County Administrator Ed Hunzeker to write a letter to city officials. In the Jan. 7 letter to Johnson, Hunzeker said, “While such actions are clearly authorized by your local ordinances, please be aware that any such actions which have the effect of reducing public access to federal and state funded renourished Gulffront beaches within the city limits may have direct and immediate consequences upon state and federal cost shares provided to Manatee County for the 2014 renourishment project and any future renourishment projects.”

Agreements spell out rules

According to a funding assistance agreement between the county, as the local sponsor, and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, public parking provisions must be maintained throughout the 10-year duration of the Dec. 14, 2014, agreement.

Hunzeker cited a 2001 interlocal agreement between the city and county in which the city “will use its best efforts to assure the continued conditions of public access, public parking availability and the use of the shore for which state funding participation is obtained during the life of the project.”

Hunzeker also cited a June 2014 draft beach access study that pointed out that although there is currently a surplus of parking spaces, a reduction of parking spaces could negatively impact the county’s funding status.

The study said that because there is greater competition for beach renourishment funding, the county should maintain as strong a position as possible and that any changes to parking should be presented to the FDEP to insure that they do not jeopardize that funding.

Seek written confirmation

Hunzeker said if the city plans to amend its parking or public access provisions during that 10-year agreement, “the county strongly suggests the city seek written confirmation from the FDEP that the adopted public access changes will have no adverse effect on the maintenance of the 100 percent grant eligibility as determined by the FDEP agreement …”

He said if any change would result in a reduction of state and federal grant eligibility, the city would be responsible to repay all grant funds “attributed to the percent reduction in grant eligibility for previous projects and all future renourishment costs deemed ineligible for grant support attributed to the loss of eligibility.”

Regarding the letter, Johnson said, “This is a formal reminder of the agreements that are in place.”

Manatees headed off endangered list

Manatees are one step closer to being reclassified from endangered to threatened status, an indication the species is no longer in danger of extinction, according to federal wildlife officials.

Protected as endangered since 1967 under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the West Indian manatee, including its subspecies, the Florida manatee, “no longer meets the Act's definition of endangered and should be reclassified as threatened,” according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).

The ESA defines an endangered species as being “in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range,” while a threatened species is “likely to become an endangered species within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range.”

An increased population count and the success of efforts to conserve the marine mammal, also known as the sea cow, were cited at a press conference last week as the primary reasons for the reclassification.

Florida manatee population surveys that are “statistically sound” showed 1,267 animals in 1991 and more than 6,000 in 2015, said Michael Oetker, deputy regional director for the USFWS Atlanta office. Oetker added that other factors include the retrofitting of dangerous warm-water outflow structures where manatees congregate in winter, the addition of slow speed zones and increased rescue efforts.

The reclassification proposal was prompted by a five-year study completed in 2007 by the USFWS that recommended the manatee’s downlisting.

In 2012, the Pacific Legal Foundation, on behalf of Save Crystal River Inc., a recreational boating group based near a watershed where manatees migrate in large numbers each winter for protection from cold, petitioned USFWS to act on the study. Two years later the USFWS published a finding that the petition presented “substantial information indicating that reclassifying the manatee may be warranted.” The group previously petitioned unsuccessfully to remove protection for manatees in Kings Bay, arguing that slow speed and no wake zones hurt fishing and tourism businesses.

If approved, the reclassification would likely become effective by 2017.

The reclassification would not reduce protections for manatees, such as slow-speed zones, according to the USFWS.

“All protections will remain in place in Florida,” said Jim Valade, Florida manatee recovery coordinator for USFWS in Jacksonville.

Watercraft-related mortality remains the single largest threat in Florida to the manatee, the proposal states, adding, “full removal of this single threat would reduce the risk of extinction to near negligible levels. Over the past five years, more than 80 manatees have died from watercraft-related incidents each year. The highest year on record was 2009, when 97 manatees were killed in collisions with boats.”

Last year, 87 manatees died from watercraft collisions, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC).

The Manatee Individual Photo-identification System identifies more than 3,000 catalogued Florida manatees by scar patterns caused by boats, with most having multiple patterns indicating multiple boat strikes, the proposal states.

Down with downlisting

Local environmental group ManaSota-88 opposes the reclassification, and will be filing comments on the Federal Register website at http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=FWS-R4-ES-2015-0178-0001, chairman Glenn Compton said.

The public comment period is open until midnight on April 7, after which the agency will make its final decision.

All comments filed as of press time were opposed to the reclassification.

Downlisting the manatee’s federal status will have a direct impact on the manatee’s status in Florida, Compton said.

“I expect the state will be reviewing the fed’s actions and follow suit,” he said.

The FWC’s state imperiled species list mirrors the USFWS’s federal imperiled species list for several species, including manatees.

The state will recognize the manatee’s federal listing reclassification in state rules if the federal agency approves it, FWC spokeswoman Susan Smith said.

FWC commissioners voted to downlist manatees to threatened status on the state level in 2006, but suspended the plan in 2007 at the request of Gov. Charlie Crist, who cited “the need for a better method to estimate the population of the Florida manatee.”

That’s another concern, Compton said.

One manatee, two manatee

The federal agency is using state synoptic survey results as the basis for its population count, despite the FWC describing the surveys as snapshots of manatee locations on the day of the survey, not reliable population statistics.

The 2015 survey showed a record high 6,063 manatees in Florida waters over three days, according to the FWC website, which shows that all previous surveys since 1991 were conducted over one or two days.

“The methodology they use from year to year should be consistent,” said Compton, a high school science teacher. “Using different days on different counts is like comparing apples to oranges.”

“We’re not saying they’re accurate as population numbers, but they do give us a sense of population abundance,” USFWS spokesman Chuck Underwood said. “Technology refinements in aerial surveys give us a better count than in 1991. We can’t use them as statistics. The confidence in what the numbers mean is not very high, but we have to look at those numbers.”

“Non-empirical observations” by longtime Floridians also indicate more manatee sightings today, he said.

The proposal states the population numbers “in and of themselves are not considered to be reliable indicators of population trends, given concerns about detection probabilities. However, it is likely that a significant amount of the increase does reflect an actual increase in population size when this count is considered in the context of other positive demographic indicators.”

Those indicators, based on a calculation of 5,077 manatees in 2010, less 2,822 manatee deaths from 2010-2014, compared to 6,063 counted in 2015, show resiliency in manatee population growth and survival rates, the proposal states.

The proposal cites growth rates through the 2008-2009 winter season which “do not capture recent severe cold events of 2009-2010 and 2010-2011, the 2012-present Indian River Lagoon die-off event; or the 2013 red tide event.”

Red tide killed 277 of the record-high 830 manatees that died in 2013, prompting a temporary hold on the downlisting plan, while cold caused 279 of the 766 deaths in 2010, according to the FWC.

Population accuracy aside, “The biggest factor is loss of habitat due to development and increased boating with the state’s increasing population,” Compton said. “Whatever gains are purported to occur, I would expect to see that go the other way in the future.”

Dr. Katie Tripp, of the Save the Manatee Club, wrote a 27-page letter to the USFWS on the reclassification.

“A downlisting to threatened is premature and would substantially interfere with, if not outright prevent, the recovery of the species,” she wrote. “If all of the risks and threats to the manatees are taken into account, the only possible conclusion under the law is to maintain the West Indian Manatee’s status as ‘endangered.’ ”

Parking tickets getting automated

Anna Maria Island Sun News Story

SUBMITTED

Handheld Casio ticket writers like this will soon be
issuing parking citations in Anna Maria.

ANNA MARIA – The issuance of parking citations and the collection of fines associated with those citations will soon become a much more automated process.

Last month, the City Commission authorized Mayor Dan Murphy to enter into a contract with the New York-based Complus Data Innovations to use the company’s FastTrack ticket processing, collection and data processing services.

Complus will provide the city with two Casio IT 9000 ticket writers, two software licenses, one receipt printer and a cash register drawer. The company also will process online payments by those who receive parking tickets in Anna Maria.

In exchange for these services, Complus will receive 12 percent of the revenue generated by traffic tickets issued and collected using their products. Complus will also charge a $3.50 per citation fee for those who elect to pay their fines online.

Murphy told the commission the handheld units take a photo of the offending vehicle and the vehicle’s license plate. It then prints out a parking ticket and sends that information to an associated data base. The Complus Website says the photo-based ticketing system helps eliminate inaccuracies associated with handwritten tickets that are ineligible or contain erroneous information.

The ticket writers will be replaced every three years at no cost to the city, but if a ticket writer is lost or damaged the city would have to pay $4,500 for a replacement.

The city will still be responsible for processing any handwritten parking tickets issued and collecting the fines associated with those citations.

When discussing the Complus contract with city commissioners last month, Murphy said the FastTrack system was producing a 94 percent collection rate for the municipalities that use it. He estimated the city’s current collection rate to be around 52 percent.

Murphy said the Complus system would also replace the labor-intensive manual process now in place and for the most part take the city out of the parking ticket fine collection process.

“My concern is there were too many loopholes in the collection of all this cash,” Murphy told the commissioners before they unanimously approved his request.

Commission Chair Doug Copeland shared Murphy’s view that the FastTrack system’s anticipated rate of return would more than offset the revenue sharing percentage surrendered.

“This is much more sound,” Murphy said of the automated system.

FWC to attend shark fishing discussion

Pat copeland | sun

Peggy Meyers and Jack Jackson bid goodbye to the
Holmes Beach Post Office, but not to the friends they made there.

ANNA MARIA – While Mayor Dan Murphy is on vacation, Commission Chair Doug Copeland is taking the lead on resolving tensions between a commercial stone crabber and the recreational shark fishing community.

The Thursday, Jan. 14, City Commission meeting will feature commission discussion and public input on shark fishing and proposed ordinance language that could lead to seasonal restrictions on launching kayaks and other non-motorized watercraft between sunset and sunrise.

The proposed ordinance language requested by Murphy and drafted by City Attorney Becky Vose was designed to prevent shark fishers from using kayaks to bring baited hooks into deeper water where commercial crab traps are located.

The ordinance language was inspired by concerns voiced last month by commercial stone crabber Anthony Manali, who along with wife Joann operates Captain Anthony’s Stone Crab Store on Spring Lane, not far from where is off shore traps are located.

Last week, Copeland contacted Florida Wildlife and Conservation Commission (FWC) Regional Director Thomas Graef in his efforts to broker a more peaceful relationship between crabbers and shark fishers.

“This is not going to be a first reading of the ordinance,” Copeland said of the conversation that will take place at Anna Maria City Hall, 10005 Gulf Drive, during the commission meeting that will begin at 6 p.m.

“This is going to be a discussion of the problem, and there will be a representative from Fish and Wildlife at the meeting,” Copeland said.

He encourages anyone interested in this issue to attend the meeting and share their insights with the commission.

After speaking with Copeland last Thursday, FWC spokesperson Gary Morse said via e-mail, “The city contacted us today about their meeting and the proposed ordinance. We will attend the meeting and are working with the city on finding a solution to the stone crab trap molestation issue.”

State law prohibits the molestation of commercial traps and fishing equipment, and FWC is the primary enforcement authority.

State law also prohibits the harassment of anyone fishing or hunting in a legal manner. Shark fishing is legal, although there are restrictions on the number and types of sharks that can be caught and kept. Many who shark fish utilize catch and release practices.

Thursday’s meeting will be the commission’s first opportunity to discuss the proposed vessel launching restrictions. In December, Manali told the commission that shark fishermen were cutting his trap lines or relocating his traps in order to provide themselves with an area to fish that does not result in their hooked sharks becoming entangled in his submerged crab trap lines.

Manali said he does not patrol his half-mile string of traps at night when most shark fishing takes place, nor has he caught anyone in the act of molesting his traps, but some of his traps have disappeared and others have been recovered onshore by Sheriff’s Office deputies and others.

Manali plans to participate in Thursday’s discussion, as do shark fishing enthusiasts Briana Gagnier and Phil Gerardi.

Anyone who witnesses crab trap molestation taking place is asked to call the FWC Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-3922.

Fire district presents annual awards

Pat copeland | sun

From left, Battalion Chief Rich Losek and Fire Chief Tom Sousa
show the plaque that will bear the names of Officers of the
Year as Deputy Chief Brett Pollock, this year's Officer of the Year,
and Fire Commission Chair Randy Cooper look on.

BRADENTON – Fire Chief Tom Sosa welcomed everyone to the West Manatee Fire &Rescue District annual awards ceremony on Wednesday, Jan. 6 “to recognize those who serve our organization.

“Our job is about helping others. Whenever the public calls, we’re there to help people in need of help. Our job is risky and dangerous, and we have to be prepared.

“We are committed and dedicated, and we get the job done. These awards are very important to the men and their families.”

Awards included:

• Meritorious service to Ben Dillon for “working behind the scenes to help the district improve and save money.”

• Meritorious Service award to Fire Marshal Jim Davis for “being the rock behind the cadet program giving the cadets a great foundation.”

• Rookie of the Year award to Jerrod Apple for “never missing a training opportunity, always making sure he was ready every step of the way and always looking at what needed to be done.”

• Firefighter of the Year award to Jay Johnson as coordinator of the bike team, a member of the rescue swim team, a member of the USAR team and a CPR instructor and being “heavily involved in the selection, orientation and training of reserves and cadets.”

• Officer of the Year award to retiring Deputy Chief Brett Pollock for 36 years of dedicated service to the district.

• Career Service awards to Lt. John Stump, who handles the CPR program, 20 years; Battalion Chief Richard Jasinski, who has headed up hydrants, air packs and vehicles, 25 years; retiring Administrative Assistant Mary Stephens, who has been the “glue behind the scenes,” 30 years; and Pollock, who former Fire Chief Andy Price declared “the best deputy chief in Manatee County,” 36 years.

• Special award to David Bishop, last year’s chair of the fire commission.

Sousa presented length of service awards – one year to Gregory Baez, Richard Davis, Ashton Jasinski, David Miller and Jacob Taylor; five years to Adam Baggett and Corry Hill; 10 years to Ben Rigney and 15 years to Davis.

He presented special operations ribbons to the USAR (Urban Search and Rescue) team members Zack Benshoff, Corry Hill, Jan Johnson, Andrew Lauricella and Tyler MacDonald.

Retirement ceremony for deputy chief

The West Manatee Fire & Rescue District will hold a retirement ceremony for Deputy Chief Brett Pollock on Tuesday, Jan. 19, at 11 a.m. at the administration building, 6417 3rd Ave. W., Bradenton. The public is invited.

Emergency injunction requested

joe hendricks | sun

Last week, A Room with a Hue and Tide & Moon 2 co-owner
AnnMarie Nicholas was busy painting tropical accessories to sell
in her newly opened business.

 

BRADENTON BEACH – Bradenton Beach Marina owners Allan and Michael Bazzy have requested an emergency injunction as part of their legal challenge to the Historic Bridge Street Pier sublease agreements.

The sublease agreements the father and son tandem object to were entered into late last year when AMOB restaurant owner and primary pier tenant John Horne agreed to sublease the two small commercial spaces located next to the city-owned restaurant space to Sherman Baldwin, Laura Shely and AnnMarie Nicholas.

Filed with the 12th Judicial Circuit Court on Monday, Jan. 4, the emergency motion for a temporary injunction prepared by attorney Nelon Kirkland says, “Plaintiffs pray for this court to enter a temporary injunction prohibiting the commission and city staff from proceeding with any subleases for property two and three, and prohibiting any entity that has subleased property two and three from operating or conducting business on said properties until the code is complied with for public hearings and meetings and requests for proposals are put out for bid to the public.”

The motion does not ask for the restaurant operations to be suspended.

Mayor Bill Shearon announced the injunction filing at the Thursday, Jan. 7 City Commission meeting, but did not go into detail. As of Sunday, no injunction hearing date had been granted or scheduled.

On Saturday, Baldwin said, “We don’t think it has merit, and we’re moving ahead. We have taken possession of the property and will be building out the structure next week. We are going to let the city know that we expect them to make that point that we have taken possession of the property,” Baldwin said.

He plans to open the Paradise Boat Tours Activity Center that will serve as the new headquarters for his tour boat operations that utilizes the city’s day dock as a point of arrival and departure for passengers. He also plans to sell live bait as soon as a new bait well is installed.

At the advice of his attorney, Baldwin has not responded to the original lawsuit the Bazzys initiated in November. Although Kirkland has claimed this places Baldwin in an automatic state of default, Baldwin’s attorney advised him to allow the city of Bradenton Beach and Horne, as the primary defendants, to wage this legal battle.

On Saturday, Horne said he was not aware an injunction motion had been filed.

Shely and Nicholas continue to be referred to in the court documents filed by Kirkland as “unknown tenants” despite the fact that their shared business operation, A Room with a Hue and Tide & Moon 2, opened in late December.

The original complaint Kirkland filed for the Bazzys in November claims former Mayor Jack Clarke and City Attorney Ricinda Perry committed Sunshine violations when discussing the lease terms with Horne outside of an advertised public meeting. The complaint also claims the chosen sublease operations do not serve the best interests of the local boating community.

In July, the Bazzys were among those who responded to a request for proposal (RFP) issued by the city. Their proposal to lease all three city-owned spaces was not given final consideration by the city commission because their undefined plans for the restaurant space called for other Bridge Street restaurants to help provide the food service as part of a cooperative effort.

Attorney Fred Moore is representing the city in this matter. In December, he sent an e-mail to Shearon expressing his legal opinion that the sublease agreements were valid and permissible according to the original RFP.

County prevails in Long Bar suit

Media pool photo

County attorneys Chris DeCarlo and Anne Morris formed
two-thirds of the legal team that successfully argued the county’s position.

BRADENTON – Circuit Court Judge John Lakin issued a ruling last week that continues to deny Long Bar Pointe developer Carlos Beruff the ability to build a marina or dredge a navigation channel through coastal mangroves and into Sarasota Bay.

Lakin heard the case in early December and provided his final summary judgement ruling on Tuesday, Jan. 5.

“Needless to say, we are immensely pleased with the court’s decision,” said Manatee County Attorney Mitchell Palmer.

Lakin’s ruling supported the county’s argument that the four-year window to challenge the comp plan adopted in 1989 expired in 1993.

“This ruling serves to vindicate the county commission’s decision not to amend its comprehensive plan back in August of 2013 when we had that major hearing at the convention center. It makes it clear that any developer who plans to mount a facial attack on the comprehensive plan is going to be untimely.

“Secondly, it sends a very clear message that the coastal element of the county’s comprehensive plan is sound and we have at least one circuit court judge that has announced that those restrictions are a proper and lawful exercise of the county’s police power,” Palmer said.

Citing case law, Lakin wrote, “Contrary to the plaintiffs’ assertions, Florida property law does not confer about riparian property owners a private property right to dredge channels or basins, but merely confers constitutionally projected rights to access adjacent waters. Nor does Florida law recognize dredging uses as rights associated with ownership of submerged lands.”

As for the 522-acre property located along El Conquistador Parkway in west Bradenton, Lakin wrote, “The comprehensive plan allows ample opportunities for plaintiffs and property owners to put their property to reasonable use. The future land use policies allow for residential, commercial and industrial development, including water dependent uses on uplands adjacent to coastal wetlands and submerged lands.”

Although not mentioned during the December hearing, Palmer explained that a Bert Harris claim previously filed by the plaintiffs and later dropped would have provided Beruff the ability to seek $18 million in compensation had his attorney, William Moore, prevailed.

“We, of course, respectfully disagree with the court’s ruling,” Moore said of Lakin’s decision.

Palmer said: “I am immensely proud our legal team: Chris DeCarlo, Bill Clague and Anne Morris. They put in a ton of hours on this case, and that effort paid off with a very nice victory.”

Beruff has 30 days from the day Lakin issued his ruling to file a notice of appeal if he wishes to do so.

"The client has not yet given us final directions on the issue of an appeal,” Moore said on Monday morning.

When asked about the decision, County Commissioner Carol Whitmore said, “Manatee County Commissioners were sued because of the decisions that they made regarding the Long Bar Pointe project. The commissioners followed the comprehensive plan, and with the great legal counsel from our county attorney’s office, we proved that our decision was right and legal. I’m very proud of the outcome.”

Helping hands

The county was assisted by lawsuit intervenors Suncoast Waterkeeper and the Cortez-based Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage (FISH).

Attorney Ralf Brookes represented FISH at the December hearing.

“This was a very important ruling. I’m glad the court upheld these comprehensive plan policies to protect our seagrasses and our bay,” he said.

“It is also important to recognize that FISH and Suncoast Waterkeeper were there to help the county uphold these policies that protect our juvenile fisheries habitat that not only help the ecology, but also hold up our economy, especially for the historic fishing village of Cortez.”

In a statement posted at the FISH Website, Suncoast Waterkeeper attorney Justin Bloom, wrote, “Owners of shoreline and submerged lands have numerous protected rights, mainly access and use, but they are second to the rights of the public, which were protected here by the Manatee County comprehensive plan’s policies.

“While it is unlikely that this ruling will curb Carlos Beruff’s apparent desire to squeeze every penny out of every inch of land and water for personal gain, no matter its environmental value or protected status, it will definitely allow Manatee County to continue to rely on the comprehensive plan to continue to regulate coastal development.”

Cortez resident Joe Kane said, “We suspect Beruff won’t be stopped by a mere county judge. He will appeal and deal until he gets what he wants. Voters must keep the pressure on him to respect the environment.”

In August, Cargor Partners VIII/Long Bar Pointe LLLP filed a general development plan that replaces their discarded Long Bar Pointe plan. It calls for approximately 3,200 residential units and less intense commercial uses, with 61 acres set aside as a Community Development District that would help offset the developers’ initial infrastructure costs.

Runners take to streets

HOLMES BEACH ¬– Running shoes will be hitting the pavement on Saturday, Jan. 16, starting at the south parking lot of Anna Elementary School (AME) as the Dolphin Dash gets underway. The 5K race starts art 8 a.m., and there will be a one-mile fun run starting at 9 a.m.

Runners check in at 7 a.m. They can register online at runnergirl.com. T-shirts and goodie bags are guaranteed to those who pre-registered by Jan. 5. The cost for those who did not pre-register is $30 for adults, $15 for children under 18.

Students at AME have been training before school hours on Wednesdays. This event is popular with families, especially with AME students’ families.

After the race, there will be snacks and refreshments for the runners by Poppo’s Taqueria, of Anna Maria, according to race coordinator Jesse Brisson. Then the awards ceremony begins.

Awards go to the best overall female/male; masters (40+) female/male; grand masters (50+) female/male; senior grand masters (60+) female/male; veteran grand masters (70+) female/male; female/male age group awards through third place: 9 & under, 10-12, 13-15, 16-19, 20-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, 65-69, 70-74, 75-79, 80+.


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