July Fourth is this week, so fire up the grill and hang up the flags, but go easy on the fireworks. You may not need real fireworks after reading the May sales statistics for Manatee County and the general housing imbalance around the country, but you need to hear about it.
According to Redfin, the U.S. housing market had nearly a half million more sellers than buyers in April. This is the biggest gap on record going back to 2013, comprised primarily of sellers who need to sell for lifestyle reasons or who may be investors who want to pull their money out before prices readjust downward.
Buyers finally have the upper hand in many markets that are turning into buyers’ markets. Concessions are being made and prices are being cut, but not enough to get buyers flooding back into the market. Nevertheless, home prices are still up more than 50% in the past five years and mortgage rates are not moving off an average of 6.5%. Add this to the general economic uncertainty and you’ve got buyers who are scared silly to make a decision. A friend forwarded to me some mortgage information from a SmartAsset study analyzing mortgage rates in Florida. Manatee County’s typical rate was 6.48%, Sarasota’ was 6.91% and Palm Beach 7% to name a few.
Much of the real estate markets are governed by local activity, however, one of the biggest buyers’ markets is the Southeast, where the inventory of homes for sale is above pre-pandemic levels. For Florida, the only positive news is that the Northeast and Midwest have more buyers than sellers, where historically so many of Florida’s buyers relocate from.
Like it or not, here are the May sales statistics published by the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee.
Single family homes closed 1.9% fewer properties in May of this year compared to last year. The median sale price was $478,195, down 8.9%, and the average selling price was $638,855, down 9.9%. The median time to contract was 52 days compared to 45 last year and the new listings were down 6.6%. The available month’s supply of properties was 5.2 months compared to 4.1 months last year.
Condos closed 0.4% more properties this May compared to last year. The median sale price was $313,000, down 13.4%, and the average sale price was $345,549, down 16.2%. The median time to contract was 60 days compared to 56 days last year and new listings were up 12.9%. The month’s supply of available properties was 7.9 months compared to 6.3 months last year. A six-month supply of available properties is considered normal, therefore, 7.9 months is pretty far out of range.
I’m not sure what to say about this month’s report. Perhaps the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee’s press release says it best: “Sarasota and Manatee County shows continued signs of a market in transition. Inventory remains significantly higher that this time last year, the pace of growth has begun to slow compared to previous months. Finally, buyers are gaining negotiating power, while sellers must adjust to a landscape that favors realistic pricing and patience.”
Enjoy the holiday however you choose to celebrate. Most of all be safe during this crazy holiday whether you’re in a car, at the beach or in a boat. Stay positive about the status of the world and our own little piece of it. Eventually, the real estate markets will level off to a more normal one and the world will hopefully settle down.
During bird nesting season, February to September, please follow these tips:
Never touch a shorebird chick, even if it’s wandering outside a staked nesting area.
Teach kids not to chase birds – if they’re disturbed, bird parents may abandon nests.
Don’t feed birds – our food is not good for their health, and it encourages them to fly at people aggressively.
If birds are screeching and flying at you, you’re too close.
Avoid posted bird nesting areas and use designated walkways to the beach.
Keep pets away from bird nesting areas; dogs are not allowed on the beach by law.
Keep the beach clean; food scraps attract bird predators such as raccoons and crows to the beach, and litter can entangle birds and other wildlife.
If you see people disturbing nesting birds, call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Wildlife Alert hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922).
During sea turtle season, May 1 – Oct. 31, follow these tips to help turtles:
Turn off lights visible from the beach and close blinds from sundown to sunrise; lights confuse nesting sea turtles and may cause them to go back to sea and drop their eggs in the water, where they won’t hatch. Light can also attract hatchlings away from the water.
Don’t use flashlights, lanterns or camera flashes on the beach at night.
Remove all beach chairs and other objects from the sand from sundown to sunrise; they can deter sea turtles from nesting and disorient hatchlings.
Fill in the holes you dig in the sand before leaving the beach; they can trap nesting and hatching sea turtles, which cannot live long out of the water. To report large holes or other turtle obstacles:
City of Anna Maria code enforcement — 941-708-6130, ext. 111.
City of Bradenton Beach code enforcement — 941-778-1005, ext. 280.
City of Holmes Beach code enforcement — 941-778-0331, ext. 260.
Level sandcastles before leaving the beach; they can block hatchlings from the water.
Don’t use balloons, wish lanterns or fireworks; they litter the beach and Gulf, and turtles can ingest the debris.
Do not trim trees and plants that shield the beach from lights.
Never touch a sea turtle; it’s the law. If you see people disturbing turtles, call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Wildlife Alert hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922).
Source: Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring
BRADENTON BEACH – Manatee County and Bradenton Beach officials discussed lengthening the eastbound merge lane on Cortez Road to improve traffic flow at the intersection of Cortez Road and Gulf Drive at a June 18 joint meeting.
“The state owns the property and from informal discussions we’ve had with FDOT (Florida Department of Transportation), they don’t have the money for it, but if the city, county, private people could work together to at least acquire the land or easements, the state could allow the city or county to work on improvements in that right of way or accept it for maintenance later,” Manatee County Deputy Director of Public Works Clarke Davis said.
“If the city were receptive to trying to make that right turn lane longer, leading up to that point, it would need a little bit of frontage of all the properties leading up to it on Gulf Drive,” he said. “If all the pieces fell the right way, there should be a way to lengthen that turn lane by at least a couple hundred feet which might provide some relief for traffic at that intersection.”
Davis said such a project would require the city’s support.
“I would like to comment on the intersection of Cortez and Gulf and the idea of possible eminent domain or condemnation,” Mayor John Chappie said. “The city commission discussed this at our last meeting and we’re not commenting with regard to that until the Complete Streets Project is complete and also the Anna Maria Island Barrier Island Study to see what they come up with and we’ll decide our position.”
Chappie added, “I will tell you over the decades I’ve been around, the city commission has always been in opposition to eminent domain on anybody’s property.”
Chappie said growth on the mainland is contributing to traffic congestion on Anna Maria Island.
“I think we need to pay more attention not just what’s happening on the Island, but on the mainland, in particular with what we’re going to be facing pretty quick at the corner of 75th and Cortez Road and the 8,000 units, there’s a lot going in there and a lot of people are going to want to be coming down Cortez Road to go to the beach,” he said. “I’m hopeful that someone will come up with some ideas to reduce some of the traffic and the ability for those people that live there to be able to come out to the Island.”
Bradenton Beach Commissioner Ralph Cole suggested adding slow-speed vehicle lanes to Cortez Road and Manatee Avenue to accommodate those on golf carts and electric bikes.
“Cortez Road is wide enough that you could have a slow-speed vehicle lane going all the way up to 75th Street so that people could come from in town in their low speed vehicles and make it all the way down to the Island,” Cole said. “You could also incorporate pull-over spots if we really thought about it, if you’re driving down Gulf and holding traffic up and the bike lane is perfectly clear you could slide over and let traffic pass you.”
“Everybody is always trying to come up with a traffic solution for the island,” he said. “It’s probably one of the best ones and you could do it on Manatee Avenue too. Electric vehicles are evolving and we need to adapt. We’ve got the opportunity right now. You’re building a bridge and you’re widening the road. Now’s the time.”
HOLMES BEACH – The West Manatee Fire Rescue District (WMFR) has prevailed in a lawsuit disputing its ability to assess commercial fees on vacation rentals.
Filed last year by Holmes Beach-based C&D Properties of AMI LLC against WMFR, the suit lists local realtor Lawrence (Larry) Chatt as its manager and owner. Twelfth Judicial Circuit Court Judge Edward Nicholas presided over the case.
The 2024 lawsuit complaint filed on Chatt’s behalf by attorney Keith Brady states that C&D Properties owns condo units 3 and 4 at 101 67th St.
According to the complaint, on May 16, 2023, the fire district passed Resolution 2023-01, a resolution that allows the district to assess vacation rentals at the commercial rate rather than the lower residential rate. The complaint says that on or about Oct. 9, 2023, the Manatee County Tax Appraiser assessed the two C&D properties on behalf of the fire district at the commercial rate.
According to the Manatee County Property Appraiser’s Office, the 2024 property tax-related TRIM notice for unit 3 included a $1,098 WMFR commercial rate assessment. The 2023 commercial rate assessment was $1,022. The 2023 and 2024 assessments were the same for unit 4. Levied at the residential rate, the 2022 WMFR assessments for units 3 and 4 were $462 each.
The complaint alleges that the fire district violated Florida Statute 509.032 by regulating vacation rentals.
“This assessment regulates vacation rentals by singling out vacation rentals as the only residential properties taxed at the commercial rate. No exemptions or exclusions excuse the F.D.’s (fire district’s) unlawful regulation of vacation rentals,” according to the lawsuit complaint that sought a declaratory judgment and injunctive relief from the WMFR assessments.
“C&D will be deprived of its right to be taxed in a lawful manner as guaranteed by the Florida Statutes if relief is not granted. C&D will suffer irreparable harm if the requested injunctive relief is not granted because its right to not be taxed in an unlawful manner will be violated,” according to the complaint.
“C&D Properties demands judgment against defendant granting relief as follows: A declaration that the West Manatee Fire and Rescue District cannot tax vacation rentals at the commercial rate because doing so violates the state preemption of the regulation of vacation rentals and therefore is invalid,” the complaint says.
The complaint sought permanent injunctive relief that would prohibit the fire district from taxing C&D Properties at the commercial rate. The complaint also sought a court order requiring the fire district to “effectuate the refund of wrongfully collected taxes from assessments to vacation rental owners.” C&D Properties also sought the reimbursement of attorney fees.
Judge’s ruling
In his May 22 written summary judgment, Judge Nicholas noted that the Florida Legislature enacted Chapter 2016-255 in 2016, which allowed assessment rates to be assessed in accordance with Florida Statute 191.009.
“In 2023, the fire district elected to take advantage of this legislative change by levying a commercial rate assessment on properties rented on such a frequent basis as to qualify as ‘transient public lodging establishments’ as defined under Florida law, even if they were zoned ‘residential’ by the local zoning jurisdiction. As a result of the change, property owner has been assessed the commercial rate for both of his condominium units as short-term vacation rentals,” Nicholas wrote.
Citing case law, he wrote, “Consequently, the district may now set rates based on the actual use of the property, in addition to the land use designation, when imposing assessments.”
Fire Marshal Rodney Kwiatkowski, Fire Inspector Josh Adkins and Lt. Fire Inspector Keith Miller inspected former Ohio firefighter Michael Wilcox’s multi-unit vacation rental in Holmes Beach on Aug. 21, 2023, making it the first short-term vacation rental inspected by WMFR. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
According to Nicholas’ summary judgment, “Fire District Resolution 2023-01 gives as cause for this change the ‘continual rise in the vacation rental industry’ as homeowners with properties within the district’s jurisdiction increasingly used their single-family zoned residential properties as vacation rentals; and the qualification of such rentals as ‘transient public lodging establishments,’ makes them subject to ‘increased life safety inspection, enforcement and response requirements’ under state law that are ‘not otherwise applicable to single-family zoned residential structures that are not used for short-term vacation rentals.’
“These regulations demand that the fire district devote greater resources to inspect, enforce and respond to calls for service at transient public lodging establishments, exacting a greater cost in time, personnel and expenditures; and as a result, the district resolved that the dedicated resources were ‘comparable to inspection, enforcement and response requirements for commercially zoned properties.’ ”
Nicholas noted the commercial assessment rate is also now applied to other residentially-zoned properties, including daycare centers and assisted living facilities.
In closing, Nicholas wrote, “The court finds that the fire district’s rate increase of its assessment imposed on residential properties used as transient public lodging establishments, which includes vacation rentals, is not a regulation that is preempted to the state. As there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact, the fire district is entitled to final summary judgment in its favor.”
The order also says, “For the reasons set forth above, West Manatee Fire and Rescue District’s motion for final summary judgment, as to both counts, is granted. C&D Properties of AMI LLC’s cross-motion for summary judgment is denied.”
On May 29, Nicholas issued a one-page final judgment that states, in part, “This is a final judgment on the merits as to all claims. Plaintiff shall recover nothing from defendant in this action.”
According to the Manatee County Clerk of the Circuit Court website, the non-prevailing party has 30 days to file an appeal to a higher court.
ANNA MARIA – City officials’ desire to rebuild the hurricane-damaged City Pier walkway and Manatee County officials’ desire to install a ferry landing at the pier are financially and philosophically intertwined.
The city needs county funds to help replace the pier walkway weakened by Hurricane Helene and mostly destroyed by Hurricane Milton. The pier wasn’t insured and the city doesn’t have enough money to self-fund the project.
The county needs the City Pier to serve as the Anna Maria stop for the larger ferry boat that will join the Gulf Islands Ferry fleet later this year. The county’s long-term goal is to use the larger ferry boat to transport passengers between the City Pier and downtown Bradenton and use the two pontoon boats as “Island hoppers’ that travel between Anna Maria, Bradenton Beach and the South Coquina boat ramp – and potentially Holmes Beach. The county also plans to include a ferry stop at the Cortez Marina in Cortez when the county-owned marina is built.
The Gulf Islands Ferry service currently runs between the Riverwalk Day Dock in downtown Bradenton and the Bradenton Beach Pier in Bradenton Beach.
Manatee County wants to install a ferry landing alongside the City Pier walkway when the missing walkway is replaced. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
On June 16, Anna Maria Mayor Mark Short appeared before the Manatee County Tourist Development Council (TDC), which recommends county commission approval for the city to use up to $2 million of tourist development tax revenues for the City Pier project.
City/county meeting
On June 18, Short, city commissioners Charlie Salem, Chris Arendt and Kathy Morgan-Johnson and City Clerk Amber LaRowe met with County Commission Chair George Kruse, County Administrator Charlie Bishop and other county staff members. County commissioners Tal Siddique and Carol Ann Felts participated by phone. The city and county officials discussed several topics but first and foremost were the related pier and ferry landing projects.
Mayor Mark Short presented the city’s pier-related funding needs to county commissioners and county staff. – Manatee County/YouTube | Submitted
For cost saving purposes, the current pier walkway that opened in 2020 was built atop hollow concrete pilings and a wooden support structure. The new pier walkway will be built atop solid concrete pilings and a concrete support structure similar to the T-end of the pier that survived the 2024 hurricanes.
Short estimates the pier walkway replacement will cost between $7 million and $9 million and hopefully be completed by October 2026. He said the city’s pier walkway replacement project and the county’s ferry landing installation must remain separate projects because the emergency permit received from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers requires the new walkway to be built in exactly the same footprint.
The city will know by July 1 whether Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoes the city’s pier-related $1.25 million state appropriation request. Those state funds would be available on Oct. 1 if not vetoed. The city anticipates receiving around $4 million in pier-related FEMA reimbursements but those federal funds aren’t guaranteed and Short doesn’t know if or when the city will receive them.
Short said the city already spent $223,000 on the pier project. He estimates the city will spend another $1.1 million between now and September, including $239,500 for the demolition of the remaining pier walkway and $800,000 to repair and remediate the T-end pier buildings that sustained flood damage but remain structurally sound. Short estimates the city will need $3.1 million in 2025 and another $4.1 million in 2026 for the pier project.
Kruse asked Short who is responsible for restoring the T-end pier buildings occupied by Mote Marine and the City Pier Grill. Short said the city will repair and remediate the city-owned pier buildings and the pier tenants are responsible for replacing their damaged equipment and contents.
Kruse asked Short if he expects Mote Marine to return to the pier.
“If that goes away, it’s not the same,” Kruse said.
Short said Mote personnel recently visited the pier by boat and are assessing Mote’s future plans.
Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau Executive Director Elliott Falcione said the Mote space could be used as a ferry passenger waiting area if Mote doesn’t return. Kruse said he’d like to see that space used for something more than a waiting area.
Falcione said Natural Resources Director Charlie Hunsicker estimates the City Pier ferry landing will cost the county an additional $1 million to $1.5 million. Falcione also said Manatee County Area Transit (MCAT) will assume oversight of the county-contracted ferry service on Oct. 1 and the visitors bureau will continue marketing and promoting the ferry service it currently oversees.
Kruse insights
Kruse expects county commissioners to vote on the $2 million TDC recommendation on July 29.
He noted the $4 million in potential FEMA funds equates to about half the estimated pier replacement costs.
“It could be 18 months before you know if you’re even going to get it and another three years before you actually get it,” Kruse said of the FEMA funds.
County Commission Chair George Kruse supports using county funds to help cover the pier walkway replacement costs. – Manatee County/YouTube | Submitted
Speaking for himself, and not the county commission, Kruse said the county may need to front the city the additional money needed to complete the project, with the city later reimbursing the county using FEMA funds or other funding sources.
“This has to be rebuilt,” Kruse said. “I don’t think there’s any alternative. It’s critical to our tourism, it’s critical to our residents and we’ve got great amenities out there. We need the landing space. We want people to go to Mote. We want people to go to the grill. We want people to use that pier.”
He also mentioned the economic impact of ferry passengers visiting the restaurants and businesses within walking distance of the pier, and beyond.
Manatee County wants to install a new ferry landing alongside the Anna Maria City Pier. – Manatee County | Submitted
Kruse suggested Mote Marine and City Pier Grill representatives meet with city and county officials for an all-inclusive discussion. He also said city and county staff need to create a funding proposal.
Kruse mentioned the hurricane-related line of credit the county secured, the county’s reserve funds and the county’s tourist development tax revenues as potential funding sources.
“I don’t think this is a question of should we do it,” Kruse said. “I think it’s a question of where’s the money coming from in the short term and where’s the money coming from in the long term? It’s still taxpayer money.”
“We understand and we appreciate that,” Short said.
BRADENTON BEACH – The future Cortez Marina at the site of the former Seafood Shack restaurant is expected to become an integral part of Manatee County’s Gulf Islands Ferry system.
County commissioners and Bradenton Beach officials discussed the expansion at a June 18 joint meeting.
“Something that we’re considering is the potential addition of a water taxi at what we’re tentatively calling the Cortez Marina,” County Commissioner Tal Siddique said. “We are currently in the process of building a dimensional plan for that and potentially coming out to the community to see what partners might be interested in abiding to that concept with us. You take what’s today an hour ride that would be shortened by half with the new boat and with a 10-minute stopover at the new property.”
Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau Executive Director Elliott Falcione said the county hopes to make the marina a ferry stop and eventually keep ferries overnight there.
Bradenton Beach commissioner Ralph Cole asked if the marina would have a parking facility for people who drive to the marina and take the ferry.
“We’re still in early design stage, we’re talking about parking, we’re talking about other opportunities in that greater area,” County Commission Chair George Kruse said. “One of the concepts has been to have the ferry come across because that alleviates traffic and keeps cars off your Island. But to do that, we’re going to need sufficient parking because we’re going to need parking for the boat launches for the trailers and other utilization. If we’re going to use this ferry, we’ll have to contemplate how we can maximize parking as part of the design.”
“We all know what’s happening in Cortez with the intensity of the corridor,” Siddique said. “The ferry is one part of it. That’s something I’m factoring in so we can have a sustainable action plan inclusive of the Island in the future.”
Currently, two 49-passenger pontoon ferry boats run on a two-stop system between downtown Bradenton and Bridge Street in Bradenton Beach, a reduced route since the 2024 hurricanes.
“After Hurricane Milton, Anna Maria lost the City Pier and that was one of our landing spots, Falcione said. “The city of Anna Maria is hoping to have that pier rebuilt by late 2026, concurrent with (Manatee County Director of Natural Resources) Charlie Hunsicker’s department to start designing and permitting for a vaulted perpendicular dock to accommodate not just one water ferry, but two; and you’ll have a transfer there. You’ll bring people out of Bradenton, stop, and then the pontoon (boats) will take them to historic Bridge Street.”
Bradenton Beach currently has the only ferry stop on Anna Maria Island. – Sun file photo
Falcione said a larger third water ferry with an enclosed component should be on the water for late summer sea trials and be operational in the fall.
“It will be about 100,000 pounds compared to the two 30,000-pound pontoon catamarans we have now,” he said.
He thanked City Attorney Ricinda Perry for working with Duncan Seawall to make the modifications to the Bradenton Beach Pier to accommodate the third ferry.
“We know that the retailers on Bridge Street are real happy when that ferry pulls in,” Falcione said. “More importantly we have to get down to Coquina Beach. It looks like the south boat ramp is probably the spot. And what that does is it entices more residents to ride the ferry because that’s one of the beaches of choice. If we have about 70% visitors and 30% residents, then we’re doing good,” Falcione said, adding the hope is to begin Coquina Beach service no later than the fall.
Falcione said the ferry service passenger count for 2024 was nearly 28,000 riders.
“That’s about 13,000 cars off the road,” he said.
The MCAT Manatee My Stop app can show visitors having lunch at Anna Maria Oyster Bar on Bridge Street where the ferry is, Falcione said.
The Manatee Belle is expected to make the Manatee River run between downtown Bradenton and Anna Maria Island. – Manatee County | Submitted
Ricinda Perry introduced herself as the Bradenton Beach city attorney and CRA director/project manager/public information officer recently named by Police Chief John Cosby to be his number two for emergency operations.
“In wearing that hat, I get to play a lot of different roles in the city that meld together and I think my most favorite is what I do here with the TDC (Manatee County Tourist Development Council),” Perry said. “The TDC in its projects hits a lot of points and pulls a lot of things together that city attorneys don’t get to do when we’re sitting and writing laws. You have the components where you come up with a creative project, and you look at ways that project can benefit the community, protect our residents with a strategic idea of targeting the individuals that we host.”
She spoke about where the city of Bradenton Beach started, its present and its future.
“The water ferry is certainly a big piece of it,” she said. “Bradenton Beach has the vehicle gateway to the city but what was underutilized was the waterfront gateway into the city.”
“When I started 21 years ago, I remember seeing this mess, and when I say a mess, I’m talking about derelict vessels, irresponsible boaters who were dragging their anchors across the seagrasses, they were dumping things overboard into the waterway,” she said. “What we talked about, mainly – chief and I – was what are we going do about this, because it resulted in unsavory individuals who were utilizing that and those individuals would then get off their vessels and they would come down the streets and that impacted tourism. People wanted to stay away from the commercial corridor.”
She said the city obtained jurisdiction over additional boundaries to allow policing in the mooring field and more than 80 derelict vessels were removed.
“The plan is to eventually work with the TDC and make it a tourist hub and (the ferry) an alternate means of getting onto the Island without using a vehicle,” she said.
She said the pier was beyond its age and needed repair and replacement.
“It was a challenge with DEP (Florida Department of Environmental Protection) permits, FWC (Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission), ACoE (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers) and submerged land leases. The city worked on getting a permit to put in a floating dock system. The city realized they needed a strong anchor tenant on the pier. AMOB (Anna Maria Oyster Bar) is a huge draw. When the ferry does its drop off, how do you get people moving when they don’t have a car? And they have their towels and their beach toys, and they want to get down to Coquina. How do you connect that last mile?” Perry said.
She described three segments of a plan to move visitors around the city.
“Segment one: Cortez to Bradenton Beach Pier. If you’re putting your marina in and potentially having people parking and enjoying your amenities over on the mainland side, it would be great to connect a walkway from where the bridge stops, have it multi-modal to host golf carts, bicycles and pedestrians so they can walk if they want across the Cortez Bridge and make their way down through the existing marina that’s there,” she said. “I’ve had discussions with that owner (Shawn Kaleta). People can then make their way down to your other stop on the Bradenton Beach Pier. It makes that stop more usable.”
“Segment two would then tie in from the Bradenton Beach Pier a usable crossing area over to the beach that would take you to the county’s segment and the idea is to create a multi-modal trail that continues along.”
“Segment three: That final section that needs to be put together for the multi-modal trail could be from Fifth Street South to Coquina Beach,” Perry said.
BRADENTON BEACH – Hundreds of onlookers gathered at Coquina Beach on Monday morning for a scheduled loggerhead sea turtle release.
The turtle, Winnie, did not disappoint as she made her way to the water. She stopped several times and lifted her head to look at the crowd of delighted spectators gathering around her.
Winnie laid her nest early Monday morning on Coquina Beach and was outfitted with a satellite tag.
Loggerhead sea turtle Winnie, outfitted with a satellite monitor, waited in an enclosure before making her way to the water. – Leslie Lake | Sun
She was released from an enclosure by Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring volunteers and slowly made her way toward the water. She hesitated before reaching the water, requiring a gentle nudge to keep going. Once she touched water, she was off and swimming.
Nesting loggerhead sea turtle Winnie made her way to the water at a scheduled sea turtle release at Coquina Beach on Monday. – Leslie Lake – Sun
Winnie will participate in the Sea Turtle Conservancy-sponsored Tour de Turtles race, which begins on Aug. 1 and measures how far and where participating turtles swim during the event.
Winnie required a bit of coaxing to enter the water from Hurricane Hanks owner Brian Mathae at a scheduled sea turtle release at Coquina Beach on Monday. – Leslie Lake | Sun
Her participation is sponsored by Turtle Watch and Holmes Beach restaurant Hurricane Hank’s. She was named Winnie in honor of the Canadian hometown of Hank’s owner, Brian Mathae, which is Winnipeg.
ANNA MARIA – While visiting Anna Maria Island, the One10Youth group from the Mandarin United Methodist Church in Jacksonville spent several hours helping the owners of the White Egret home décor and gift store in Anna Maria.
The Center of Anna Maria Island helped connect White Egret owners Barb and John Jaeger and the One10Youth group, which was on a mission trip and looking to do some volunteer work in the area.
On June 12, the youth group helped the White Egret owners and staff transfer the retail inventory stored at the Jaeger’s home to the second floor storage area above the White Egret store at 10006 Gulf Drive. The storage area was recently remodeled after a hurricane-related roof replacement project was completed.
The youth group received a thank you letter from the Jaegers and the White Egret team that said, “Heartfelt blessings and kindness arrived on Anna Maria Island last week from Jacksonville. With the assistance of The Center of Anna Maria Island, we were gifted a large blessing. Our hearts are overflowing as we give a huge ‘thank you’ to the One10Youth group. They had a mission to come to the Island and help as many people as their short time here allowed continue to recover from the devastation of Hurricanes Helene and Milton. They did just that and so much more.”
After noting the youth group’s volunteer efforts took place on a hot, humid day, the letter says, “They formed an assembly line up the stairs and within eight hours they had amazingly, successfully transported five pods’ worth of merchandise upstairs without complaint or hesitation, getting our inventory transported back to the store so we could have our home back.”
In closing, the Jaegers’ letter says, “They were so respectful and happy to help, which will forever have an impact on our hearts. These are our youth who have chosen to give up their summer to help others in need. We cannot express how thankful we are to have the opportunity to be part of their journey, as they will forever be a part of ours. These are our future stars of America.”
The ethic of catch and release isn’t a new concept. Even in the early part of the 20th century, far-sighted anglers could see the potential for depleted fisheries. Over the last couple of decades, I thought it should be apparent to today’s anglers that there isn’t an inexhaustible well of fish in our waters. We’ve worked to make redfish a gamefish and fought battles to limit netting while making a commitment to be better stewards by agreeing to reasonable restrictions on size and bag limits. We’ve been better educated in the press and at the docks about limiting our catch and being less concerned about catching our limit.
After all the time and energy that concerned anglers spent in the 90s and early 2000s fighting to protect our fisheries, it seemed we had “rounded a corner.” Now it’s apparent that the job is never done as an influx of anglers, loss of habitat, climate change and water quality issues continue to pressure Florida’s fisheries. This makes it even more important to educate everyone on the importance of protecting the marine environment, and anglers in particular on catch and release tools.
For anglers who worked hard in the past to protect fisheries, the job is never done. It’s important that we make sure the “release ethic” continues by inspiring new generations of anglers. It’s also important to continue to educate anglers on proper release techniques so they can release fish that are out of season, unwanted or undersized. Effective tools and procedures exist to assure that when properly handled, the majority of fish we release will survive to reproduce and fight again.
A fish’s chances of survival will be greatest if they are played to the boat and released quickly without removing them from the water. One of the easiest ways to assure this is to flatten the barbs on hooks. If constant pressure is applied during a fight, the hook will not back out. Once the fish is at boat side, it can be easily released without ever touching it using a “dehooker.”
Use proper tackle, de-barb hooks and be prepared to release fish quickly. Fishing is a great experience and deserves to be passed along to future generations. Catch and release is a good investment in a prosperous fishing future, but it’s an ethic that needs to be passed along to new generations of anglers.
Sometimes it’s just time for a change, and that change can take a lot of different forms – breaking off toxic relationships, getting a new vehicle that isn’t a BMW or Mercedes, or downsizing your living space. We as Americans like space, but enough is enough; we all don’t need to live in 4,000 square feet and most of us can’t afford it, but there are alternatives.
You may not believe it while driving around Anna Maria Island and seeing all the mega-homes being built, but in many regions of the country, including Florida, would-be homeowners are realigning their priorities. Because of high prices, high mortgage rates and a lack of supply, buyers are making concessions and the concession that makes the biggest dent in the cost of a home is size.
Builders are finding that smaller homes are attractive to buyers because they not only cost less to purchase but also reduce the cost to run a home. Heating, air conditioning and even the amount of furniture and accessories you need in a home is reduced.
Resales of single-family homes are also benefiting from the size of a property. Buyers are more willing to sacrifice size if it means finding a home that works within their budget. Even townhomes and semi-attached structures are having a comeback, offering less square footage, a two-car garage and frequently a small yard.
Bottom-line buyers – especially first-time buyers – are getting tired of waiting for interest rates to go down, impacting the amount of home they can afford, and have decided they can be just as happy living in 1,500 square feet as living in 2,000 square feet. The average size of a home has decreased year over year in each quarter since 2022 in the country.
Because of several disasters around the country where owners have lost their homes in the last several years, alternative methods of construction are stepping in. California, Hawaii, Florida and the Carolinas have experienced wildfires, flooding and hurricanes resulting in the loss of homes. Homeowners who have lost a home are finding out that their insurance coverage is not covering the cost to rebuild their home so they’re thinking outside the box and so are businesses.
Modular and prefabricated homes have been around for a long time but are starting to gain favor again. No longer do they have a “trailer” look; instead, they can closely have the same look and feel as the previous home. The homes are built in factories then assembled onsite, saving owners hundreds of thousands in construction costs and delivering the finished production in half the time.
A version of modular homes was offered by Sears Roebuck as kit homes between 1908 and 1942. The pre-cut kit was shipped to customers who either assembled the house themselves or hired a builder to do it. There were 75,000 kit homes sold during this period. I know of one on Pine Avenue but I’m sure there were others on the Island and I had a friend who lived in one on Long Island. Sears was way ahead of the curve when they created the kit house, and they were trailblazers when it came to online merchandising.
Finally, if you really want to have your mind blown, check out companies that use modular construction with 3-D printing. Giant 3-D printers squeeze layers of concrete into the framing for a future home and like magic, the frame of the house is done – no hammers and nails required.
If the future is smaller homes, I’m all for it. Who needs all those bathrooms to clean and guestrooms you may or may not use? But then, my priorities changed several years ago when I sold the BMW – best move I ever made.
ANNA MARIA – The city will soon have a “No Holes on Beach” ordinance in effect that prohibits using metal shovels and other gardening tools to dig holes in the beach sand.
On June 12, Anna Maria commissioners unanimously approved the first reading of Ordinance 25-945, a city ordinance that will support the hole digging regulations already contained in Manatee County Ordinance 23-121.
The city ordinance was drafted in response to a previous request made by Manatee County Natural Resources Director Charlie Hunsicker. Hunsicker recently asked the three Island cities to adopt city ordinances that would regulate beach hole digging activities on city-owned and city-managed beaches not regulated by the county. The county-owned beaches include Manatee Beach in Holmes Beach, Coquina Beach, Cortez Beach and Leffis Key in Bradenton Beach and Beer Can Island (Greer Island) in Longboat Key. The county also manages and maintains the city-owned Bayfront Park in Anna Maria. When requesting the city ordinances, Hunsicker said large, unfilled beach holes present injury risks to beachgoers and first responders and endanger sea turtles and other wildlife.
Using language similar to the county ordinance, the Anna Maria ordinance says, “No person shall possess on or about any beach a metal shovel or comparable gardening tool of the type customarily sold in a hardware store (not a children’s toy) unless part of a construction project permitted under the Florida Building Code or similar law.”
The proposed ordinance drafted by City Attorney Becky Vose originally stated no hole shall be dug deeper than 2 feet below the surrounding grade. Commissioner Charlie Salem suggested changing the hole depth restriction to 1 foot to be consistent with the county ordinance and the similar Holmes Beach ordinance adopted earlier that week.
The revised Anna Maria ordinance now says, “No person shall dig a hole in the beach deeper than 1 foot below the surrounding grade unless part of a construction project permitted under the Florida Building Code or similar law.”
The city of Bradenton Beach has a 2008 ordinance in place that addresses in general terms the use of tools to excavate on a beach and Bradenton Beach commissioners are not revising that ordinance.
The Anna Maria ordinance authorizes code enforcement officers and law enforcement officers to enforce the hole digging prohibitions and violators will be subjected to a fine to be established by a separate city resolution.
“Each incident or separate occurrence of an act that violates this section shall be deemed a separate offense,” according to the ordinance.
Public input
Anna Maria resident and Planning and Zoning Board member Jeff Rodencal has lived on the Bean Point beachfront for almost 25 years and he’s seen many large holes dug in the sand during that time. He supports the city ordinance but noted as originally written it might restrict city personnel’s ability to fill an abandoned hole.
“You need equipment to fill the holes back in. I’ve seen holes 7-8 feet wide, 2 or 3 feet deep,” he said. “This ordinance seems to prevent that from happening.”
Beachfront property owner Jeff Rodencal’s insights helped improve the proposed city ordinance. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
General Manager Dean Jones said the public works department usually uses a skid steer loader to fill in large beach holes and he suggested adding language to the ordinance that allows city personnel to do what’s necessary to return the sand to its natural state.
Participating by phone, Vose agreed with those suggestions.
Rodencal also said many beach areas used by the public are actually private property and those property owners shouldn’t be prohibited from planting trees and other landscaping on their beachfront property.
“A lot of the beach technically isn’t public and this document is aimed at public beaches,” Rodencal said. “The beach is really private land. It is my property. I would be hopeful that the city would also respect the homeowner’s rights to be able to garden in their backyard.”
He also mentioned the recent Build Back the Beach volunteer replanting project along the Bean Point shoreline, which Salem noted was a city-permitted endeavor.
In response to Rodencal and Jones’ comments, Vose added to the following language to the ordinance: “It shall not be considered to be a violation of this section for a homeowner, when planting plants in the private beach behind the homeowner’s home, to use a metal shovel or gardening tool so long as any hole that is dug is appropriately filled by the later of eight hours after the digging of the hole or sunset, whichever is earlier. It shall also not be considered a violation for a governmental representative to use any appropriate means to return sand to a hole to restore the beach to its natural state.”
City resident and North Shore Café co-owner Colleen Geller asked if the ordinance would prohibit kids from using plastic shovels and pails to dig small holes in the sand.
“It does not prohibit beach toys,” Mayor Mark Short said. “Sand in a bucket is not considered a garden tool, but if we see people walking out there with garden shovels and stuff they’re going to be stopped; and if we see them on the beach, the intent of this ordinance is to remove them from the beach, irrespective of whether or not there’s a hole there. This will hopefully prevent that from happening.”
“The folks that are going to be enforcing this know the difference between kids digging a hole and making a sandcastle and somebody digging and leaving a hole that’s a danger to other people and wildlife,” Salem added.
“I have seen actual bunkers out there. I’m confident the new ordinance would help curtail a lot of that,” Jones said.
Short said the city will update its beach access signs to include the shovel and gardening tool prohibitions and public awareness and education will be part of the ongoing enforcement efforts.
The city ordinance will be presented for second reading and final adoption on June 26.
Holmes Beach ordinance finalized
The city of Holmes Beach has a new ordinance in effect that prohibits using metal shovels to dig holes in the sand at city-owned and city-regulated beaches.
Unanimously adopted by Holmes Beach city commissioners on second and final reading on June 10, Ordinance 25-09 says, “No person shall possess on or about the sandy Gulf beach a metal shovel of the type customarily sold in a hardware store (not a children’s toy) unless part of a construction project permitted under the Florida Building Code or similar law.”
The city ordinance also says, “No person shall dig a hole in the sandy Gulf beach deeper than 1 foot below surrounding grade unless part of a construction project permitted under the Florida Building Code or similar law.” The commission adopted the city ordinance at the request of Manatee County Natural Resources Director Charlie Hunsicker, who sought to expand the hole digging prohibitions already in effect on county-owned and county-regulated beaches.
ANNA MARIA – The Manatee County Tourist Development Council (TDC) recommends that the county commission provide the city of Anna Maria with up to $2 million in tourist development tax revenues to help fund the replacement of the hurricane-damaged City Pier walkway.
Mayor Mark Short presented the city’s funding request during the June 16 TDC meeting at The Center of Anna Maria Island. Short said he’d present similar and additional funding requests to county commissioners and county staff during their meeting with the mayor and city commissioners on Wednesday, June 18 at the county administration building in Bradenton.
Controlled by county commissioners, tourist development tax revenues are generated by the 6% tax the county collects on hotel, motel, resort, condo and other vacation rental accommodations of six months or less. Last year, the tourist development tax generated more than $30 million for the county. Serving as an advisory board, the TDC members review tourist tax-related funding requests and make non-binding recommendations to the county commission.
The TDC members recommended up to $2 million in financial support for the City Pier walkway replacement project. Joe Hendricks – Sun
Short said the estimated cost of the pier walkway replacement and repair project is $7 million to $9 million and he hopes to have the project completed by October 2026 if all goes well.
When addressing the TDC members, Short did not request a specific dollar amount, but the city presentation included in the meeting packet says the city plans to seek up to $3.1 million from the county for pier-related expenditures made in 2025 and up to an additional $4.9 million for pier-related expenditures in 2026.
Short said he’s trying to assemble a funding puzzle without yet having financial commitments in place from any outside funding sources. He said the city won’t know until July 1 whether Gov. Ron DeSantis approves or vetoes the city’s pier-related $1.25 million state appropriation request. He said the city hopes to receive approximately $4 million in pier-related FEMA reimbursements but he doesn’t know if, when or how much FEMA money the city will receive.
The Anna Maria City Pier is expected to remain closed until October 2026. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Short said the city has already spent $223,000 on the pier repair project and he estimates the city will incur an additional $1.1 million in pier-related expenses between now and September – including $239,500 for the demolition of the remaining pier walkway and around $800,000 to repair and remediate the T-end of the pier buildings that he said remain structurally sound. Short said these expenditures will impact the city’s cash flow and financial reserves.
Bradenton Mayor and TDC member Gene Brown asked Short how much the city plans to contribute.
“We know we’re going to have skin in the game,” Short said. “What exactly that number is, I can’t tell you at this point.”
Short said the city’s pier repair project and the county-funded installation of a Gulf Islands Ferry landing alongside the City Pier have to be treated as two separate stand-alone projects and for permitting reasons can’t be intermingled as a single project.
The TDC members sought assurances that the city will allow the county to install a ferry landing that can accommodate the larger boat being added to the ferry fleet later this year.
Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau Executive Director Elliott Falcione said a restrictive covenant that ensures the city’s approval of a ferry landing will be included in the funding agreement.
Falcione suggested the $2 million limit and the TDC members unanimously supported Brown’s motion to make that recommendation.
BRADENTON BEACH – Rained-soaked eviction notices taped to trailers and littering the ground at the Pines Trailer Park, along with screws driven into some front doors to prevent entry, have effectively turned what was left of the 86-unit park into a ghost town.
At age 92, Pines resident Helen Hynes expected to repair her 39 Laverne Drive home after Hurricanes Helene and Milton last year and live out the rest of her life there, but instead, she is one of many park residents who have been served eviction notices.
Hynes spoke to The Sun on June 14 at the Pines trailer home of her daughter, Suzanne Hynes, where the two currently reside.
“It’s been really difficult. Emotionally, it’s been horrifying. That was my permanent home,” Hynes said.
“I’m so disappointed. We had a beautiful community here. Everybody knew everybody. Everybody for the most part got along. There were little ruffles here and there, but it was family. If something happened, it got taken care of in the community. We had holidays here; we had birthdays here. We celebrated everything in the clubhouse. Anything you needed happened within this little community. And all that was destroyed,” she said. “It was taken away by the floods and the storms but also by the heartlessness, absolute heartlessness of Shawn (Kaleta, park manager). And there was no consideration whatsoever of this as a community and people in this community. Only for the land and what’s the value of the land and property. It’s very sad.”
Helen Hynes became a Pines Trailer Park resident in 2013. – Leslie Lake | Sun
Hynes moved to the Pines Trailer Park in 2013 from Marblehead, Massachusetts and described how she fell in love with the area.
“My son moved to Sarasota and we came to visit him there,” she said. “The next time we came, we rented a place on Gulf Drive and that was it for me. My daughter and I walked up here (to the Pines) and I said, ‘I could live here.’ It was such a beautiful little community.”
Hynes and her daughter are among the few who remain at the park.
“We don’t have anybody here. Quite a few people have turned over their deeds (to owners Pines Park Investors LLC),” Hynes said. “I don’t understand that at all.”
Legalities
More than 24 eviction notices for non-payment of lot rent from park owners Pines Park Investors LLC were filed in the 12th Judicial Circuit Court at the rate of several new notices each week since April. Hynes was served on May 13.
Legal notices are taped to the door and litter the ground around a trailer at the Pines Trailer Park as more than two dozen residents have been served eviction notices. – Leslie Lake | Sun
In her response to the notice, Hynes submitted a letter to the court which stated in part, “My name is Helen Hynes and at 92 years old, I am the oldest resident of Pines Trailer Park. My primary residence has been at 39 Laverne Drive for the past 13 years. I want to address my reason for withholding the rent for #39 of late.
“At 39 Laverne I depended heavily on the park facilities, the clubhouse, the laundry machines and the parking lot particularly. Some (attorneys) have told us to withhold rent due to the almost complete lack of care and upkeep of the park and some have advised us to pay the lot fee in spite of the abandonment of care.
“I think, if I knew I could afford to, I would keep our lot rent up to date and not risk losing my home and investment. I would, ideally, love to move back into my own home and stay there for the rest of my life, but given what’s happening, I’m not sure it’s wise to spend the balance of our money in a place where, not only would it be unreasonable to try to live, but where someone with much larger means is intent on trying to force us out.”
On June 5, the court denied setting a hearing time for Hynes stating, “No legal defense was raised. While the court is not unsympathetic to the hardships that may have led to the defendant falling behind in rent, since the defendant has not timely deposited rent, the plaintiff is entitled to an immediate default. Further, while the defendant lists a variety of non-compliance issues with the landlord, she attaches no documentation in support of any potential notice of withholding rent as required by Chapter 83, F.S. Any delay must be sought through the plaintiff.”
Some Pines residents have told The Sun they withheld lot rent payments for a number of reasons, including disrepair of the park and amenities following the hurricanes, unfulfilled assurances made by Kaleta in October and uncertainty about the park’s continued existence.
On Jan. 4, residents were informed that the park would be closing, with an anticipated closure date of July 31.
Feeling abandoned, betrayed
Hynes said after the hurricanes last fall, residents felt they had been left on their own.
“We did not see one person here (from the LLC) after the hurricane,” she said. “No laundry facilities, no clubhouse, nothing. Nobody was here. We knew we were abandoned.”
“I think Brien (former park manager Brien Quinn) called people to come move some stuff – refrigerators and stoves and mattresses – that were rotting in the street. He did what he could.”
Some of the trailer doors at Pines Trailer Park have been screwed shut. – Leslie Lake | Sun
Hynes said that park residents had two meetings with Kaleta and his representative, Sam Negrin, in October.
“We met a couple of times in October at Salt,” Hynes said. “Right after he (Kaleta) said people didn’t have to pay lot rent, that changed immediately. Two meetings at Salt, then quiet, then the parking was taken away. Nothing was the truth, nothing was ever said that you could rely on as factual.”
Ryan Pfahler, a Pines homeowner of three units, has also received eviction notices, and was at the October meetings.
“Shawn Kaleta said at that meeting, ‘Right now, I’m not collecting rent. If the park is usable, pay rent, if not then don’t,’ ” Pfahler told The Sun on June 12.
Pfahler said he felt the entire situation was intentional.
“That was a set-up,” he said. “First we were told don’t pay rent, then they closed the parking lot and made it public parking in December because they said they weren’t receiving rent and now we’re getting sued for not paying rent.”
Pfahler said Pines residents were waiting for confirmation that the park would remain open but said there was no communication until residents were told in January that the park was being closed at the end of July.
“There was no communication, nobody knows what to do,” Hynes said. “Suzanne pays our lot rent here, but we don’t know what’s going to happen next. You really feel at this age you should be settled into a peaceable life.”
Lawsuit pending
The Pines Homeowners Association filed a lawsuit in March against the LLC in part to stop the park closure and evictions. Pines Park Investors LLC filed a motion to have the lawsuit dismissed and a hearing on that motion is scheduled for July 28. At a recent Bradenton Beach city commission meeting, Negrin said the LLC consists of approximately 15 investors.
Hynes said she and her daughter will likely move somewhere off the Island.
“It won’t be on the Island. If we had those kind of resources we wouldn’t be living in a trailer park,” she said.
She said her personal belongings are still in her trailer.
“I understand that after the eviction notices, the places have been locked up,” adding that she thought her trailer was still accessible.
Plans for the park after July 31 have not been disclosed, but Pines resident Joe Klingler told The Sun on June 14, “There were a couple of guys walking around here with clipboards a couple of weeks ago. I asked them what they were doing, and they said they were here to prepare bids to either demolish or drag some trailers out.”
The Sun requested comment regarding any plans to remove structures at the park from a Pines Park Investors LLC representative, but did not receive a response.
