Every dance has specific dance steps. Even though some dancers may look like they’re just winging it, they’re at least the ones that you keep looking at. Living in a condo requires learning a multiple of dance steps, so if you’re not good at condo dancing, you may need to rethink your purchase.
Condo living is great. It frees you of all the day to day maintenance issues that a house requires – exterior painting and pool cleaning are done, the lawn is mowed and roof repairs are a thing of the past. But all of these services come with a price in both money and control.
The first dance steps you need to learn are those in the condo maintenance fees or homeowner association fees dance. These fees are established in order to pay for all of the services and expenses the condo association is responsible for. Owners pay either a monthly or quarterly fee that goes into the association’s funds and is allocated to specific reserves.
As soon as you are in contract for a condo property, the condo fees are disclosed to you. You, in turn, need to disclose these fees to your lender if you are applying for a mortgage. Condo fees are calculated by lenders right along with principal, interest, taxes and insurance in order to qualify for financing.
Condos with high fees can kill a deal if the potential buyer does not qualify for a mortgage because of the fees. This can be a tricky calculation for condos that are new construction since it’s not uncommon for the developer to lowball common charges in order to sell units, which means that marginal buyers may not get their financing if the fees are adjusted upward prior to closing.
The second dance that has very complicated steps is the giving up control to the condo boards and management company dance. If you’re one of those people who needs to dot every “I” and question every rule, you may have a hard time learning this dance.
There’s a fair amount of freedom you give up to live in a condo. For instance, if you liked skinny dipping in your single-family home pool you better start buying a bunch of bathing suits or, if your neighbors on the other side of your common wall have their grandchildren over every Sunday to watch football, either you join the party or go out for the day. Condo living is nothing if not a compromise.
There is, however, a way to gain some control and that’s by volunteering to join the condo board. Based on how the condo documents are drawn up, condo board members have a lot of power. They can change rules, choose contractors to do jobs and move money around. There certainly are decisions the boards cannot make without a vote of the residents, so learning what decisions condo boards can and cannot make is important before going forward.
If you don’t join the board yourself, make sure you vote for board members that you feel are qualified and ethical. In addition, condo boards that have good management companies to advise and guide them are better run.
Successful condo living is a “live and let live” concept. Minor infractions of rules should be overlooked and flexibility will make your living experience rewarding. If you want a carefree lifestyle and the ability to lock your door and leave, like so many people in Florida do, condo living is a perfect fit. But first you need to learn the condo dance and how to dance like a pro.
BRADENTON – Manatee County 12th Circuit Judge Edward Nicholas ruled Friday that former Planning and Zoning Board members Reed Mapes, John Metz, Patty Shay and Bill Vincent, and former Scenic WAVES Committee members Tjet Martin and Rose Vincent violated the Florida Sunshine Law.
The Sunshine Law violations occurred at Concerned Neighbors of Bradenton Beach (CNOBB) meetings in June, July and August of 2017.
The potential Sunshine Law violations were first reported by The Sun on Aug. 2, 2017.
The city of Bradenton Beach and co-plaintiff Jack Clarke filed the civil lawsuit on Aug. 11, 2017. The lawsuit sought a judge’s determination as to whether the advisory board members violated the Sunshine Law by discussing advisory board business at CNOBB meetings.
The non-jury trial took place at the Manatee County Judicial Center in downtown Bradenton and began on Monday, July 15. When the testimony and legal arguments concluded on Thursday, July 18, Nicholas said he’d issue his ruling Friday morning.
The defendants and defense attorneys awaited the judge’s ruling Friday morning. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Attorney Robert Watrous represented the city and Clarke in the case, assisted by paralegal Michael Barfield and City Attorney Ricinda Perry.
Attorneys Thomas Shults and Jodi Ruberg represented Metz – and to a lesser degree the five pro se defendants who previously discontinued the services of their shared attorney.
“I am hoping to some extent the conclusion of this trial may help close the wound that has been so open and so raw out in Bradenton Beach for so long,” Nicholas said before issuing his ruling.
Judge’s ruling
When issuing his detailed ruling, Nicholas first cited the Florida Constitution and the Sunshine Law contained within it.
“We begin with Article 1, Section 24 of the Florida Constitution that reads: ‘All meetings of any collegial body of the executive branch of the state government, or of any collegial body of any county, municipality, school district or special district at which official acts are to be taken, or at which public business of such body is to be transacted or discussed shall be open and noticed to the public,’” Nicholas said.
Judge Edward Nicholas ruled all six former advisory board members violated the Florida Sunshine Law. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Nicholas noted the defendants were all duly sworn advisory board members who acknowledged participating in Sunshine Law training.
During the trial, Watrous established that each defendant took an oath of office as an advisory board member and swore to protect the United States Constitution and the Florida Constitution. Watrous said those oaths followed the advisory board members wherever they went, including CNOBB meetings.
“The Sunshine Law prohibits discussions of public business. Public business was discussed at every CNOBB meeting.” – Edward Nicholas, Manatee County 12th Circuit Court Judge
In their testimony and/or pre-trial depositions, Metz, Mapes, Shay and Bill Vincent expressed their beliefs that CNOBB’s parking garage discussions did not violate the Sunshine Law because the city’s comprehensive plan prohibited parking garages and it was not reasonably foreseeable that one could ever be built.
Nicholas noted City Planner Alan Garrett testified the comp plan only prohibited parking garages in two of the city’s 11 zone district designations in 2017.
“A parking garage could theoretically be built in nine designated areas within the city,” Nicholas said of the comp plan as it existed in 2017.
Compliance concerns
Nicholas noted Perry sent an email to the Planning and Zoning board members on July 25, 2017, notifying them of the potential Sunshine Law implications of their CNOBB meetings and email exchanges.
Nicholas noted Perry also emailed then-Mayor Bill Shearon two days later, and Shearon forwarded that email to the planning board members. That email also expressed concerns about advisory board members attending CNOBB meetings in violation of the Sunshine Law.
City Attorney Ricinda Perry, paralegal Michael Barfield and attorney Robert Watrous successfully presented the city’s case.
The trial included extensive discussion about the 2017 correspondence Bill Vincent had with the Florida Commission on Ethics and the Florida Office of the Attorney General regarding advisory board members participating in CNOBB meetings.
The Commission on Ethics response advised Vincent to review the Sunshine Law manual at the Attorney General’s website and possibly consult with private counsel. The Attorney General Office’s response advised Vincent to consult with the city attorney.
“The defendants never got answers to those questions. The defendants continued to meet despite their concerns, despite not getting answers to these very important questions. Had they contacted Ricinda Perry, she would have answered: ‘Yes, the Sunshine Law applies.’ Had they contacted any attorney in the state of Florida they would have said, ‘Yes, the Sunshine Law applies,’ ” Nicholas said.
Constitutional rights
During the trial, Shults, Metz, Mapes and Vincent expressed their opinions that state law allowed the advisory board members to discuss city issues that pertained to the possible pursuit of citizens’ initiatives.
Attorney Thomas Shults, left, was unsuccessful in his defense of John Metz and the five pro se defendants. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
“The defendants attempt to characterize these violative meetings as ballot initiative meetings pursuant to Section 166.031 (Florida Statute) is simply not persuasive. This ballot initiative defense strikes this court as an after-the-fact attempt to justify or otherwise rationalize what were otherwise clear and unequivocal violations of the Sunshine Law. It is a clever explanation for such violations, but it is not a compelling or persuasive one,” Nicholas said.
“The efforts to characterize their violative meetings as the right to assemble and speak freely as guaranteed by the First Amendment also is not persuasive. Every citizen has the right to assemble and has the right to free speech. However, when an individual joins a government advisory board the Sunshine Law still applies. If that were not the case, every county commission, every city council, every advisory board could hold secret meetings and simply say I have a First Amendment right to do so. That would largely make the Sunshine Law meaningless and void,” Nicholas said.
Meeting recordings
During the trial, Nicholas heard audio recordings of entire CNOBB meetings and audio excerpts from CNOBB meetings.
“It’s certainly unusual that we have tapes of at least some of the meetings that took place outside of the Sunshine,” Nicholas said.
He then recited some of the statements made at CNOBB meetings:
“I have concerns about how the CRA (Community Redevelopment Agency) is functioning;”
“We need to prohibit the construction of a parking garage in the city of Bradenton Beach;”
“It is on the CRA list;”
“Parking garage could easily come before Planning and Zoning;”
“That whole strip over there would be a parking garage;”
“We need to specify a municipal parking garage;”
“It would be a huge building;”
“We need to prohibit construction of a parking garage in Bradenton Beach, it doesn’t matter if it’s by a municipality or a huge corporation;”
“Horrendous traffic problems with a parking garage.”
Nicholas then said, “Those were all quotes. That is the very definition of a discussion about public business. And it wasn’t just parking garage discussions: CNOBB discussed ropes and bollards, sidewalks, parking issues, the Bridge Tender (Inn) land swap, Bridge Street planters – all issues that had come before Planning and Zoning or Scenic WAVES.”
The judge ruled that former Planning and Zoning Board members Reed Mapes and Bill Vincent violated the Sunshine Law. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
“The Sunshine Law prohibits discussions of public business. Public business was discussed at every CNOBB meeting. Public business was discussed every time CNOBB met. That was largely the point of the organization,” Nicholas said.
“Also, there were at least four CNOBB meetings that were not recorded early on as the group was becoming organized. What was discussed at those meetings? Who attended those meetings? These questions point to the obvious need for Sunshine Law compliance,” Nicholas said.
Nicholas said the defendants’ passionate and firmly held beliefs regarding city issues caused them to abdicate their obligation to follow the law.
“My finding that all the defendants clearly and unequivocally violated the Sunshine Law does not in any way suggest that they are bad people. I do not agree with the suggestion that the defendants attempted to form a secret government or a shadow government, or that their meetings were surreptitious or clandestine in any way,” Nicholas said.
The judge ruled that former advisory board members Rose Vincent, Patty Shay and Tjet Martin violated the Sunshine Law. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
“Do these individuals have a right to assemble? Absolutely. Do these individuals have a right to free speech? Absolutely. Do these individuals have a right to be concerned about their beloved city? Of course. But once you choose to become part of the government by becoming a member of a government advisory board you are no longer just a spectator. Rules apply, laws apply. The defendants simply did not follow those rules. The defendants simply did not follow those laws. This is not a close call,” Nicholas said.
“Judgment is in favor of the city. The court finds that all the defendants, as members of Planning and Zoning and members of the Scenic WAVES Partnership Committee were subject to Article 1, Section 24 of the Florida Constitution and Section 286.011 of Florida Statute,” Nicholas ruled.
Additional comments
Nicholas said a post-trial hearing will be scheduled to address potential sanctions. These include the city’s request to be reimbursed for a portion of its legal fees that now exceed $250,000.
“We agree with everything the judge said,” Watrous said after he left the courtroom.
“The Sunshine Law has been vindicated,” Barfield said.
“We agree with the judgment and look forward to the city moving forward and healing. The city does not wish to sue any of its board members, and it’s unfortunate this wasn’t settled earlier, but the Sunshine Law is important. It provides the city and its citizens with an open government,” Perry said,
“Obviously, I’m pleased with the verdict,” Clarke said.
“Government in the sunshine is why we are here. It’s as simple as that, it’s as important as that. It’s the foundation of what good government is built on; openness, transparency and accountability. Anything less is just not acceptable and now’s the time to heal,” Mayor John Chappie said.
“I’m very pleased with the judge’s ruling and I would like to thank everyone involved for presenting a clear case to the court. This was an unfortunate circumstance the city commission was put in to uphold our oaths to protect the laws of the state and to protect the city from litigation. I wish this would’ve been resolved through our previous settlement offers for a less expensive and earlier conclusion,” Vice Mayor Jake Spooner said.
Co-plaintiff Jack Clarke, Vice Mayor Jake Spooner (second row), Mayor John Chappie, City Attorney Ricinda Perry, paralegal Michael Barfield and attorney Robert Watrous await the judge’s arrival Friday morning. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
In March, all six defendants rejected a settlement offer from the city that proposed a collective admission that mistakes were made regarding Sunshine Law compliance and a $500 payment from each defendant. The defendants rejected the settlement offer that required them to acknowledge non-compliance with the Sunshine Law.
In May, Metz and the other defendants submitted counter proposals that sought significant financial reimbursement from the city. Metz’s offer also expressed a willingness to subject the city to a future appeals process.
For several years, I wrote about how the millennials were moving into the cities. They didn’t want anything to do with the suburbs and their parents’ lifestyle. Well, in the space of two weeks I discovered that everything old is new again.
In the 1950’s families, including mine, were moving from the city to the suburbs, buying up new homes in what were once potato fields and family farms. This migration from the cities to the suburbs happened because of the demand for housing after World War II when the veterans could finally settle down and start their families.
When the grandchildren of those families grew up, they said, “No way,” and vowed not to return to the mundane lifestyle of backyard barbeques and Little League. But don’t ever say never since the millennials, many of whom are in their late 30s, are coming back with families in tow, only this time instead of moving to the suburbs outside of major Northern cities, they’re coming south. This reversal has a lot to do with the mobility of jobs and the growth of the South, which is benefitting from the real estate slow down and taxes of the Northeast.
Recently, a very extensive piece in the Wall Street Journal studied the reversal from city to suburban life. It reported that the growth rates of the suburbs are far outpacing metropolitan areas and the South is winning the race. This supports what I wrote about last week regarding investors buying up first-time buyer properties, hurting millennials who suddenly want to buy houses and raise families.
Some of the hot Sun Belt areas with good job opportunities that are benefitting from this influx of young families are Frisco, Texas, Nolensville, Tennessee, Scottsdale, Georgia and our very own Lakewood Ranch.
As fate will have it, the same day I read the story about the city to suburban reversal there was a report in the Bradenton Herald about 3,000 new homes that will be built in Lakewood Ranch. After a little research, I discovered a couple of interesting things about Lakewood Ranch that we who live surrounded by water probably haven’t paid attention to.
First of all, 74 percent of Lakewood Ranch residents are either between the ages of 25 – 44 or over 65. I also read that Massachusetts General Hospital is opening a Brain Health Initiative that will be based in Lakewood Ranch, kind of an achievement for the Bradenton area. Also, the median age in Lakewood Ranch is 49.4 compared to Anna Maria Island’s 64.3. There are not too many millennials with families moving here. Finally, Lakewood Ranch is 31,000 acres and 29 square miles with a population of over 11,000.
The reason I’m telling you this is two-fold. First of all, to keep everyone aware of changes in real estate trends both locally and nationally and second to help us sun and sand worshippers appreciate what’s going on east of our shoreline. We’re all part of the same region, so what happens in Lakewood Ranch can have a serious impact on us – traffic, parking, success of restaurants and shops just to name a few. The millennials may prefer to live in Lakewood Ranch, but for them visiting Anna Maria Island is one of the reasons they came here.
Well, once again, millennials are picking up where baby boomers left off. Now it’s their turn to influence all aspects of life in the country. Everything old is new again.
BRADENTON BEACH – The long-delayed floating dock is now in the initial stages of being installed alongside the Bridge Street Pier.
A four-man crew from the Gibsonton-based Hecker Construction Company drove the first fiberglass composite dock pilings on Wednesday, July 10. The crew is using a pile-driving mechanism connected to a mobile crane that sits atop the floating work barge.
The new dock will replace the storm-damaged dock that was removed in 2016.
Co-funded by the Bradenton Beach Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) and Manatee County, the new floating dock will provide short-term dockage on a first-come, first-serve basis for recreational boaters visiting the pier and the Bridge Street business district.
The floating dock will also provide limited, short-term dockage for tour boats, water taxis and other commercial vessels for loading and unloading passengers.
“They’re out there working on it,” CRA chair Ralph Cole said at the July 10 meeting. “I’m excited.”
Without providing a specific completion date, Cole said Hecker’s Operations Manager, Eric Shaffer, told him the company’s goal is to get the dock installed as soon as possible.
The Hecker bid proposal, approved by the CRA members in early May and finalized in June, includes agreement language drafted by City Attorney Ricinda Perry that gave Hecker six weeks to complete the project once the dock pilings were delivered. The agreement includes a $500 per day penalty if the project is not completed on time.
The pilings arrived at the county barge dock near the Coquina South Boat Ramp during the last week of June.
“I’m really happy to see this project coming to completion. We had some unfortunate circumstances and delays, but we overcame that through the efforts of our city staff and our city officials. I can’t wait to use it,” CRA member and Vice Mayor Jake Spooner said later in the week.
These construction crew members helped guide the pilings into place. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
The Anna Maria Oyster Bar leases the city-owned restaurant space and two smaller city-owned spaces at the foot of the Historic Bridge Street Pier.
“A gorgeous view for sure,” Oyster Bar president John Horne said of the work underway. “I can’t wait to see boats rafted off that dock with visitors and patrons of Bridge Street and the Anna Maria Oyster Bar.”
Sherman Baldwin is the general manager of Paradise Boat Tours. The company’s on land terminal is located in space subleased from the Oyster Bar. Baldwin also serves as the vice president of the Bridge Street Merchants Association.
“The long wait is over. Thanks to the persistence of the CRA for making this project happen after facing every challenge imaginable. This will be an economic boost for all of Bridge Street,” Baldwin said.
Project timeline
In early 2017, the CRA entered into a $119,980 contract with the North Palm Beach-based Technomarine Group to provide the materials and install a new floating dock alongside the pier.
In the CRA’s 2016-17 fiscal year budget, CRA members budgeted up to $250,000 for the dock project. And Manatee County commissioners agreed to reimburse the CRA for up to $125,000 of the project costs.
In August 2018, Spain-based Ronautica Marinas shipped the premanufactured floating dock decking sections to Port Everglades. After some additional delays, Technomarine later delivered the dock sections to Hecker’s construction yard in Gibsonton, so the floats could be attached to the decking.
In early 2019, the CRA ended its contractual relationship with Technomarine due to the ongoing delays and began dealing directly with Shaffer and Hecker Construction. According to City Treasurer Shayne Thompson, the CRA had paid Technomarine $83,682 of the $119,980 contracted amount at that time – and to date, the county has reimbursed the CRA $26,995 of the $83,682 paid to Technomarine.
In May, the CRA members approved Hecker’s $52,400 revised bid proposal to attach the floats to the decking dock sections and install the dock.
The CRA members also decided the CRA would purchase the pilings directly to receive the sale tax exemption given to governmental agencies. According to Perry’s May 15 project update, the pilings cost $45,704 when ordered.
The Hecker contract, the piling purchases and other additional expenses bring the anticipated final cost of the dock project to approximately $184,000.
During past CRA meetings, Cole has expressed his belief that despite these additional costs the final product will be superior to the dock originally envisioned.
BRADENTON – The Sunshine Law lawsuit involving the city of Bradenton Beach and six former city advisory board members is underway.
The civil trial began today. The suit was filed in 2017 on behalf of the city and co-plaintiff Jack Clarke. It alleges that former Planning and Zoning Board members Reed Mapes, John Metz, Patty Shay and Bill Vincent violated the Florida Sunshine Law by discussing past, present and potential board business at Concerned Neighbors of Bradenton Beach (CNOBB) meetings in July and August of 2017. The lawsuit alleges similar Sunshine Law violations were committed by Scenic WAVES Committee members Tjet Martin and Rose Vincent.
The trial is expected to last all week and possibly conclude on Friday.
Attorney Robert Watrous is representing the city and Clarke in this case, assisted by City Attorney Ricinda Perry and paralegal Michael Barfield. Attorney Thomas Shults is representing Metz, assisted by attorney Jodi Ruberg. The other five defendants are representing themselves.
Defendants Reed Mapes, Bill Vincent, Rose Vincent (obscured), Patty Shay, Tjet Martin, attorney Jodi Ruberg (obscured), attorney Thomas Shults and defendant John Metz sat side by side as the trial began. – Media Pool Photo | Submitted
Twelfth Judicial Circuit Court Judge Edward Nicholas is presiding over the bench trial and he alone will determine the innocence or guilt of the six defendants. The trial is taking place at the Manatee County Judicial Center in downtown Bradenton.
The trial began with Watrous and Shults seeking rulings on pretrial motions and other legal housekeeping matters.
When seeking a motion regarding the alleged spoliation of evidence, Watrous accused the defendants of intentionally withholding information during the pre-trial discovery process – included a recording of the July 14 CNOBB meeting that Shults did not provide Watrous until the day after Metz’s July 2 deposition. During that CNOBB meeting, Mapes initiated discussion on a quasi-judicial land use issue that was currently before the Planning and Zoning Board regarding the Bridge Tender Inn’s Dockside Bar seating capacity.
Nicholas denied the preliminary motions and said he would take them under advisement individually as the trial moves along.
Opening statements
During his opening statements, Watrous said the city’s legal team has compiled a large amount of information that he believes supports the allegations. The evidence includes email exchanges, audio recordings of CNOBB meetings, city meeting minutes, newspaper articles and more.
City resident Jack Clarke, Mayor John Chappie, City 0Attorney Ricinda Perry, paralegal Michael Barfield and Attorney Robert Watrous sat together at the plaintiffs’ table. – Media Pool Photo | Submitted
Watrous said the evidence would show that CNOBB consisted of extremely zealous individuals that formed their own shadow government because they did not feel their voices were being heard by the city commission.
Watrous said the defendants have claimed they are the victims in this case, portraying themselves as innocent retirees who volunteered their time to serve on city advisory boards.
Watrous said that all six defendants received Sunshine Law training while serving as city advisory board members but chose to “turn a blind eye” when moving forward with their CNOBB activities.
He also noted the defendants never sought the advice of the Manatee County attorney’s office or outside counsel regarding whether their participation in CNOBB meeting discussions were Sunshine Law-compliant.
“This an intentional act on their parts. I’m not saying they’re bad people, but they exercised bad judgment,” Watrous said.
During his opening statements, Shults said this case is really the story of six citizens who volunteered to serve on city boards without compensation. He also said this is the story of six citizens and their constitutional rights to petition their city government for changes to the city charter.
Shults said the defendants should be commended for their service to the city and halting their July 25, 2017 discussion about prohibiting parking garages after only six minutes of discussion.
Shults said no Sunshine Law violations occurred, but if they had they would have been cured by the resignations of all six defendants before or after the lawsuit was filed in August 2017.
“That should have been the end of this matter,” Shults said. “They should have been saluted instead of being sued. Here we are two years later.”
After the lunch break, Watrous and Barfield read aloud excerpts from the printed transcript of Bill Vincent’s December 2018 deposition. Barfield read Vincent’s responses to questions Watrous posed late last year about his city-mandated Sunshine Law training, the April 2017 Planning and Zoning Board discussions he participated in regarding parking garages and his role in creating and chairing CNOBB.
BRADENTON – Former Planning and Zoning Board member and Sunshine Law lawsuit defendant John Metz has been deposed, but his computer may be subjected to a forensic examination.
Representing the city of Bradenton Beach and co-plaintiff Jack Clarke in the lawsuit filed in August 2017, attorney Robert Watrous deposed Metz under oath on Tuesday, July 2. Paralegal Michael Barfield assisted Watrous.
The lawsuit alleges Metz and former Planning and Zoning Board members Reed Mapes, Patty Shay and Bill Vincent, and former Scenic WAVES Committee members Tjet Martin and Rose Vincent violated the Florida Sunshine Law.
The allegations pertain to discussions and email exchanges the city advisory board members had while also serving as members of the Concerned Neighbors of Bradenton Beach (CNOBB) group. Some of those discussions and email exchanges pertained to parking garages, Community Redevelopment Agency projects and other city business that had or could foreseeably come before the advisory board members in their official capacities.
Last month, Judge Edward Nicholas ruled that a parking garage would absolutely come before the Planning and Zoning Board. The one-week trial begins Monday, July 15.
Document production
Watrous produced a copy of the oath of office Metz signed in 2014 when appointed to the planning board. When signing that document, Metz swore to uphold the United States Constitution and the Florida Constitution.
Watrous also produced copies of documents Metz signed in 2014 and 2017 acknowledging his participation in mandatory Sunshine Law training and his promise to comply with city resolution 09-757.
The resolution serves as the city’s written and electronic communication policy. It references the Florida Public Records Law and states all correspondence pertaining to official city business is public record and shall be produced upon request.
Watrous referenced an email Mapes sent Metz after the lawsuit was filed. That email provided Metz with time sequences for a recording of the July 25, 2017 CNOBB discussion about a charter initiative that could have prohibited parking garages citywide.
Metz said he used the time sequences to refresh his memory of what he said that day.
“Why did you not provide that email through discovery request? We did not receive it,” Watrous said.
Metz said he didn’t remember the records request or when Mapes sent that email.
Watrous asked Metz if he attended an informal meeting shortly after the lawsuit was filed at which the defendants discussed their response strategies to case-related records requests.
“I don’t recall any discussion about withholding, destroying or not turning over any documents,” Metz said.
On Aug. 8, 2017, Martin sent an email to Metz, Mapes, Shay and Bill Vincent that included the header “Barfield.”
“I was advised not to give him anything, not a single thing,” Martin wrote.
Earlier that day, Barfield sent Martin his initial records request.
CNOBB webmaster Michael Harrington’s January deposition revealed Mapes asked Harrington to delete emails that referenced a parking garage. Harrington produced those emails, Mapes did not.
“I would request that nothing be deleted from that computer because we may seek an emergency motion to do a forensic (investigation) on that computer,” Watrous said of Metz’s computer.
On Monday, Barfield said Watrous would seek a court order to inspect Metz’s computer.
CNOBB discussions
Watrous referenced a June 12, 2017 email Mapes sent to Bill Vincent about Metz joining CNOBB.
“I spoke to John. He is concerned about Sunshine issues,” Mapes wrote.
“I was pointing out that we have to be aware of the Sunshine Law; I wasn’t saying I was concerned about it,” Metz told Watrous.
Metz said he did not recall attending a CNOBB meeting that included discussion about Bill Vincent’s July 19, 2017 inquiry to the Florida Commission on Ethics regarding city advisory board members participating in CNOBB meetings.
The audio recording of the Aug. 3, 2017 CNOBB meeting confirms Metz was present when Martin read aloud the Ethics Commission response that stated it does not have jurisdiction over Sunshine Law compliance. That response recommended Vincent visit the Attorney General’s website or consult with private counsel.
Metz said he was not aware of anyone from CNOBB contacting private counsel regarding the Ethics Commission response.
Constitutional challenge
In 2017, Metz’s attorney, Thomas Shults, filed an affirmative defense questioning the constitutionality of the Sunshine Law.
“Do you believe the Florida Sunshine Law is unconstitutional?” Watrous asked Metz.
“Yes,” Metz replied. “I think it’s extremely vague. I believe it chills free speech and association and the right to assemble and petition.”
Metz expressed his belief that his “direct democracy” rights regarding petition initiatives allowed him to participate in the CNOBB discussions about potential petition initiatives. Metz also expressed his belief that petition initiatives pursued according to state law do not require Planning and Zoning Board review.
Metz, a former attorney, agreed with Watrous’ statement that one’s constitutional rights can be voluntarily waived by signing a document – such as a sworn oath of office.
Past disputes
Watrous reviewed Metz’s past disputes with the city and its residents. These include a still-pending 2016 lawsuit Metz filed against the city challenging a permitting decision made by the building official; the unsuccessful 2015 lawsuit Metz filed against mayoral candidate Jack Clarke; Metz’s unsuccessful efforts in 2016 to prevent Commissioner Ralph Cole from operating the Coastal Watersports beach rental business he opened with city commission approval in 2001; and the successful 2018 lawsuit the Keep Our Residential Neighborhoods political action committee filed against the city regarding ballot initiatives.
Watrous asked Metz if these disputes have decreased his quality of life in Bradenton Beach.
“This litigation certainly has decreased my enjoyment – financially, reputation-wise, etc. – more than any of these other disputes,” Metz said.
Metz said he anticipates living in Bradenton Beach for the rest of his life.
BRADENTON BEACH – Manatee County has provided the city with a landscape plan that shows where 103 new trees will be planted at Coquina Beach. The new trees will replace 103 Australian pines to be removed from the south end of the Coquina Beach parking lot.
Bradenton Beach Building Official Steve Gilbert met with county staff on Wednesday, June 26 and he now has the county’s 60 percent draft version of the county’s landscape plan.
According to the draft plan prepared by Kimley Horn and Associates, the city-required tree replacements will include 83 green buttonwoods, 10 gumbo limbos and 10 shady lady black olive trees.
“They weren’t quite finished with the plan yet. There may be some revisions still to come. The main goal was to all be on the same page and talking to each other throughout the process,” Gilbert said on Friday.
Gilbert said the receipt of the landscape plan alleviates the threat of a city-issued stop work order that could have temporarily halted the project and the tree removals.
The city’s Land Development Code (LDC) prohibits planting or replanting Australian pines and other non-native nuisance species. If existing Australian pines are removed as part of a development plan, each tree removed must be replaced with an allowed species on a one-to-one basis. City code requires the replacement trees to be at least five feet tall.
The county’s landscape plan does not include a cost estimate for the tree replacements. Gilbert said an irrigation plan is expected this week.
“The requirements of the Land Development Code are being met. Planting will be toward the end of the project after all concrete work is done and the irrigation system is installed and working,” Gilbert said.
The city commission and Gilbert discussed a potential temporary stop-work order on June 20. The commission supported the potential issuance of a stop work order if the county did not submit a landscaping plan in accordance with the LDC. That discussion took place in response to the Manatee County Commission’s 4-2 decision on June 18 to remove 97 Australian pines in addition to the six previously removed.
The approved phase one tree removals are part of the county’s two-phase Coquina Beach stormwater and drainage improvement project. The $3.1 million phase one project includes paving all unpaved access roads and parking areas in the south parking lots with pervious concrete that will allow rainwater to drain down through it.
County Commissioners Vanessa Baugh, Steve Jonsson, Misty Servia and Priscilla Trace approved the removal of the additional 97 trees. Betsy Benac and Carol Whitmore opposed the decision and Commissioner Reggie Bellamy was not present during that discussion.
County commissioners have not yet approved the plans for a second and similar phase of the project that calls for the removal of approximately 130 Australian pines from the center and northern Coquina Beach parking lots. County staff said the phase two plans could be revised to eliminate the removal of 80-90 percent of the phase two trees currently slated for removal.
According to county staff, there were 991 Australian pines on the county-owned Coquina Beach property before the tree removals began and at least 75% of those pines will remain standing after the drainage project is completed.
BRADENTON BEACH – Bradenton Beach commissioners have rejected three proposed Sunshine Law lawsuit settlement offers.
Earlier that day, Friday, June 28, lawsuit defendants Bill Vincent, Rose Vincent and Patty Shay agreed to the proposed settlement terms brokered on the city’s behalf by attorney Robert Watrous and paralegal Michael Barfield.
Shay and Bill Vincent served as Planning and Zoning Board members when the alleged Sunshine Law violations occurred in 2017. Rose Vincent served on the city’s Scenic WAVES Committee.
Lawsuit defendants Bill and Rose Vincent (second and third from left) proposed settlements city commissioners later rejected. Also shown at this recent court hearing are ex-mayor Bill Shearon and co-defendants Tjet Martin and Reed Mapes. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Mayor John Chappie and Commissioners Ralph Cole, Marilyn Maro and Jake Spooner discussed and unanimously rejected all three proposed settlements during a shade meeting that occurred late Friday afternoon. Commissioner Randy White did not attend the shade meeting.
The attorney-client shade meeting allowed the commission to privately discuss the proposed settlements and the city’s legal strategies with Watrous and City Attorney Ricinda Perry.
The shade meeting took place in the downstairs conference room at the Bradenton Beach police station. The meeting opened in a public manner before the media and Barfield were asked to leave. After approximately 90 minutes of private discussion, the meeting was reconvened in public and the commission’s decisionmaking occurred.
Spooner made a motion to deny all three settlement offers. The motion passed by a 4-0 vote with no additional discussion.
Spooner and Chappie then crafted a second motion directing Watrous to draft a cover letter to send to the defendants. The letter will state the denials of the settlement offers and that the commission will not entertain any settlement offers that do not include all six defendants acknowledging they violated the Sunshine Law.
The letter will also state that the commission and the city’s taxpayers want reasonable and significant payment from the defendants for the attorney fees the city has incurred.
“I would like that cover letter to reiterate our strengths in the case,” Chappie added.
The commission unanimously adopted the second motion and adjourned the meeting.
On June 20, 12th Judicial Circuit Court Judge Edward Nicholas ruled in favor of the city’s preliminary argument that it was reasonably foreseeable that a parking garage is an issue that would come before the Planning and Zoning Board if proposed.
“I can say with 100 percent certainty – not reasonably foreseeability, but absolute certainty – that this is a very issue that should and would come before a planning and zoning board,” Nicholas said that day.
The bench trial is scheduled to begin on Monday, July 15 and is expected to take at least five days to complete.
Proposed settlements
The Vincents expressed interest in their proposed settlement agreements on Friday morning after Rose Vincent’s scheduled deposition was canceled. Bradenton Beach Marina president Mike Bazzy’s deposition was also canceled, but he will testify at the trial regarding his conversations with city officials about a parking facility.
Former Planning and Zoning Board member Bill Vincent was willing to admit that errors were made regarding Sunshine Law compliance. – Media Pool | Submitted
The deposition cancellations occurred after the parties had already arrived at the court reporters’ office in Bradenton. Shay’s proposed settlement terms were finalized later that day after being discussed with her earlier in the week.
Shay and Bill Vincent served as Planning and Zoning Board members when the alleged Sunshine Law violations occurred in 2017. Their proposed settlement agreements acknowledged errors were made regarding Sunshine Law compliance. Those errors occurred during Concerned Neighbors of Bradenton Beach (CNOBB) meeting discussions and/or email exchanges in 2017.
Shay and Bill Vincent’s proposed settlement terms were essentially the same terms the city proposed and all six defendants rejected in March.
Former Planning and Zoning Board member Patty Shay was willing to acknowledge that errors occurred regarding Sunshine Law compliance. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
“All defendants shall acknowledge they had concerns about the application of the Sunshine Law as it relates to the meetings at issue in this case and further acknowledge that errors were made as it relates to the Sunshine Law,” the March settlement offer said.
Friday marked the first time any of the defendants agreed to settlement terms that included an admission of Sunshine Law violations. It was also the first time the commission considered settlement offers that did not pertain to all six defendants.
Rose Vincent’s proposed settlement differed slightly and acknowledged only that Sunshine Law errors may have occurred. This resembled a settlement counteroffer the defendants made in March, which the commission rejected.
Shay and the Vincents also offered to pay the city $500 each.
Co-defendants and former planning and zoning board members Reed Mapes and John Metz did not propose new settlement offers, nor did co-defendant and former Scenic WAVES Committee member Tjet Martin.
All six defendants served on city advisory boards when the alleged Sunshine violations occurred in May, June and July of 2017. The lawsuit alleges the advisory board members violated the Sunshine Law by discussing parking garage prohibitions and Community Redevelopment Agency projects that had and could again come before them in their official capacities as city board members.
At CNOBB’s July 25, 2017, steering committee meeting, Mapes twice initiated a discussion about CNOBB potentially pursuing a citizen-initiated charter amendment that would have prohibited parking garages citywide. Metz and Bill Vincent then expressed their opposition to parking garages and Shay and Martin provided additional comments. That meeting was recorded and posted at the CNOBB website.
Updated June 26, 2019 – BRADENTON BEACH – Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has signed off on more than $3 million in state funds for the city.
The Florida Legislature supported the funding requests earlier this year and DeSantis gave them his blessing on Friday, June 21.
DeSantis vetoed Bradenton Beach’s third request for $2 million to assist with increasing the city’s multi-modal and alternative transportation capacities.
The city will receive $2.6 million for stormwater projects and improvements and an additional $500,000 for seagrass mitigation. City officials hope to use the seagrass mitigation money to move forward with a long-desired plan to dredge the shallow navigation channel that runs along the Bradenton Beach shoreline between the Bridge Street Pier and the North Coquina Boat Ramp. In order for that long-dormant dredging project to take place, the city must mitigate any seagrass impacted by the dredging.
City Attorney Ricinda Perry, City Engineer Lynn Burnett and the city’s contracted lobbyist, Dave Ramba, spearheaded the city’s funding request efforts.
Two or three years ago, Vice Mayor Jake Spooner suggested using Ramba and his team to pursue state funds in addition to utilizing the lobbying firm to help combat vacation rental deregulation and other attacks on the city’s home rule rights.
“I’d like to thank everyone involved. Our City Attorney Ricinda Perry, our City Engineer Lynn Burnett, State Rep. Will Robinson Jr. and Florida Senate President Bill Galvano for getting this past the finish line. This is going to make a huge difference to the timeframe of our stormwater improvements and will save our taxpayers a great amount of money,” Spooner said on Friday.
“I’m also very pleased to hear the governor signed our seagrass mitigation bill, which had been holding up the opening of the channel south of Bridge Street to the North Coquina Boat Ramp. Boating is very important to Floridians for both enjoyment and the economy, and navigation channels are crucial for access,” Spooner said.
“We’re blessed,” Mayor John Chappie recently said.
Chappie also praised the efforts of Ramba, Perry and Burnett and expressed gratitude for the support provided by Galvano, Robinson, DeSantis and the Florida Legislature.
Perry recently praised Galvano and Robinson for their assistance and support.
LONGBOAT KEY – When officials met for the Coalition of Barrier Island Elected Officials meeting June 18, the topic of discussion turned toward traffic related to holidays and special events.
The previous weekend saw three of the four days of The World’s Strongest Man Competition held on Anna Maria Island with one day at Coquina Beach in Bradenton Beach and two days, including the finals, at Manatee Beach in Holmes Beach.
During the day of competition at Coquina Beach, Bradenton Beach Mayor John Chappie said things went smoothly, both with traffic and crowd control, though he said there was some traffic congestion due to the competition. He said that the Bradenton Beach Police Department provided two officers in addition to the security hired by the event coordinators. In the future, he said it would be appreciated if more advance warning was given to the Island city leaders before large events such as the strong man competition were held.
Commissioner Carol Soustek, representing Holmes Beach, agreed. She said the competition was way more popular with fans than city leaders had anticipated and that parking was a major issue during the two days the competition was held in Holmes Beach. She said more planning would be needed for the next time something like that was held on the Island.
Holmes Beach Police Chief Bill Tokajer said he felt the event was very successful.
“It actually went pretty good,” he said of the event, adding that there was one minor fight that officers broke up and just over 100 parking tickets written over the two-day period.
On Saturday, June 15, he said there were 16 law enforcement officials on-hand, including nine from HBPD, three from Manatee County Sheriff’s Office, and four mounted sheriff’s officers. On Sunday he said there were 15 law enforcement officials present for the finals of the competition. Over the two-day period, he said there were around 34,000 cars counted coming onto the Island at Manatee Avenue.
During the event, he said event coordinators were overwhelmed by the crowds that came out to see the athletes compete, saying that this was the largest crowd to attend one of their events.
Though there were no tickets handed out for the event, leaving officials with no real way to count the number of attendees, Tokajer said he estimates that 5,000 to 10,000 people attended the two days of competition in Holmes Beach.
For the future, he suggested that event coordinators designate off-site parking for attendees to cut down on the amount of traffic and confusion with finding parking spaces that he observed during the strong man competition. He also suggested having additional food vendors to help meet the needs of such a large crowd.
At the BIEO meeting, Chappie also brought up a need to discuss the ongoing traffic issues related to holiday weekends on the Island. Over the recent Memorial Day weekend, he said Bradenton Beach police officers experienced issues with crowd control at the beaches and with illegal parking. Soustek said Holmes Beach officers had similar experiences and suggested the Island cities try to work with Manatee County officials to find a balance between celebrating the holidays and special events on the Island with locals and visitors and experiencing overcrowding situations.
Chappie agreed as well as Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy. Chappie said a meeting had been scheduled with law enforcement leaders and Manatee County officials to discuss how traffic and crowds related to holidays and special events could be better handled in the future.
BRADENTON – West Manatee Fire Rescue’s soon-to-be Chief Ben Rigney’s employment contract is approved and ready to go into effect when current Chief Tom Sousa retires from the fire service in October.
WMFR’s board of commissioners voted unanimously June 18 to accept the terms of the contract negotiated by board Chair David Bishop. Once the vote was taken, Sousa and the five fire commissioners each took a turn congratulating Rigney on his promotion and the acceptance of the contract.
The contract is for five years and requires Rigney to reside in the district for the entirety of the term. The fire chief position is the only one with WMFR that carries a residency requirement. Until October, Rigney will continue in his current position as battalion chief.
Bishop said that during negotiations he also argued for the chief’s salary to be raised somewhat to come up to current standards and bring it more in line with other Florida fire districts. He said he tried to negotiate a raise for Sousa during his three years as chief, but that Sousa refused.
“When you have talent, you pay for talent, and you have high expectations for results,” Bishop said.
Rigney, a career WMFR firefighter, was selected by commissioners in March to succeed Sousa. He was the only candidate to emerge from a three-month internal selection process and received recommendations not only from commissioners but also from his fellow firefighters.
The candidate selection committee was headed by Commissioner Larry Jennis, who gave Rigney a positive recommendation during the March meeting.
In addition to taking on the mantle of fire chief, Rigney also will be undertaking a two-year training program to achieve the top certification for a fire service officer with the National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer program. Rigney said the program, previously a four-year endeavor, is undergoing some restructuring and that he hopes to start sometime in the next year. He was accepted in the program in mid-2018.
BRADENTON – Twelfth Judicial Circuit Court Judge Edward Nicholas has ruled in favor of the city of Bradenton Beach regarding the reasonable foreseeability of a parking garage being something that would come before the city’s Planning and Zoning Board.
Nicholas’s ruling came in response to a partial summary judgment requested by the city and presented on Thursday, June 20, at the Manatee County Judicial Center in Bradenton.
Reasonable foreseeability is a central argument in the civil lawsuit filed by the city and co-plaintiff Jack Clarke in 2017. The trial is scheduled to begin on Monday, July 15.
After hearing from both sides during last week’s hearing, Nicholas said denying the city’s request for partial summary judgment would be the safe and easy thing to do.
“However, there is no universe wherein the issue of whether a parking garage should be permitted or approved in a small community would not come before a planning and zoning board. If that’s the issue before the court today, that is not a close call,” Nicholas said.
The lawsuit alleges former Planning and Zoning Board members Reed Mapes, John Metz, Patty Shay and Bill Vincent violated the Florida Sunshine Law by discussing parking garage prohibitions and other potential board business at Concerned Neighbors of Bradenton Beach (CNOBB) meetings in 2017. Former Scenic WAVES Committee members Tjet Martin and Rose Vincent are also named as defendants.
Judgment sought
Attorney Robert Watrous represented the city at last week’s hearing, accompanied by City Attorney Ricinda Perry and paralegal Michael Barfield.
“We have provided the court with voluminous information that parking garages were discussed at CNOBB meetings and they sent correspondence that this was on their written agendas,” Watrous told the judge.
“This is a classic example of individuals who were appointed to a city board, chose to form an organization and chose to discuss the same topics in their CNOBB meetings as they had been discussing at their P&Z meetings,” Watrous said.
“The Florida Government in the Sunshine Law was enacted to protect the public from closed-door politics,” Watrous said, noting the law is “construed to frustrate all evasive devices.”
“Not only was it reasonably foreseeable, but if one looks just at the April 12th and 19th (2017) P&Z meetings an issue of parking and parking garages did occur and was subsequently discussed weeks later in CNOBB meetings,” Watrous said.
“There’s been an argument made that there was a cure of this situation by the resignation of the P&Z members. That is only a partial cure. Case law is very clear that the cure can’t un-ring the bell and the plaintiff is still entitled to a determination or a declaration of the fact that there was a wrongful act,” Watrous concluded.
Shults’s response
Metz’s attorney, Thomas Shults, questioned whether the request for summary judgment was facially insufficient. He noted the request did not pertain specifically to the July 25 CNOBB meeting that included discussion on a potential petition-initiated charter amendment that would have banned parking garages.
Shults argued the defendants, as private citizens, had the constitutional right to assemble and discuss potential amendments to the city charter.
Shults acknowledged that in 2018 the current planning board members reviewed comprehensive plan amendments that now prohibit parking garages citywide.
At one point, Bill Vincent stood up and told Nicholas it was not reasonably foreseeable that a parking garage would come before the planning board because it would have been inconsistent with the city’s comprehensive plan.
When those 2017 CNOBB meeting discussions took place, the comp plan still allowed parking garages in several zoning districts.
“I can say with 100 percent certainty – not reasonably foreseeability, but absolute certainty – that this is a very issue that should and would come before a planning and zoning board. I feel like I’m missing something, it’s so obvious to me,” Nicholas said.
“Whether or not there is a Sunshine violation here, that remains to be seen,” he added.
Nicholas said he didn’t know how his ruling would impact the trial. He said he would not limit any arguments made by the defendants but said there is no need to further litigate reasonable foreseeability.
Shults questioned Nicholas’s ruling and suggested he refrain from issuing a written order because there were more hearings scheduled. In response, Nicholas told Shults the court was in recess.
Afterward, Watrous said he agreed with the judge’s ruling and he appreciated it.
Perry said the city must now prove at the trial that the CNOBB discussions and email exchanges occurred and that those actions violated the Sunshine Law. CNOBB meetings were recorded and posted at the CNOBB website. The recording of the July 25 parking garage discussion and several parking-related emails and documents will be presented as evidence.
MANATEE COUNTY – The 2019 Tachi Palace World’s Strongest Man Competition began in downtown Bradenton on Thursday, June 13, shifted to Coquina Beach in Bradenton Beach on Friday and concluded at Manatee Beach in Holmes Beach on Saturday and Sunday.
Martins “The Dragon” Licis competing for the World’s Strongest Man title in Holmes Beach. – Submitted
Twenty-eight-year-old Martins “The Dragon” Licis claimed the 2019 World’s Strongest Man title.
Licis is an American competitor who was born in the European country of Latvia.
Poland’s Mateusz Kieliszkowski finished second and defending champion and former “Game of Thrones” cast member Hafthor “Thor” Bjornsson, from Iceland, finished third.
Iceland’s Hafthor “Thor” Bjornsson finished in third place. – Submitted
Competitors and fans traveled from around the world and the United States for this year’s competition. Sponsored by the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino in California and organized by the International Management Group (IMG), this year’s competition took place in Manatee County for the first time since the international event was conceived in 1977.
– Sun correspondent Monica Simpson contributed to this story
Did you know there is an entire segment of psychology devoted to color?
Color can dramatically affect moods according to experts in color psychology, so what effect does color have on the color of our homes? Apparently quite a bit.
Zillow, an online real estate database, did a 2018 paint color analysis revealing that colors can have a significant impact on a home’s sale price. The major and somewhat shocking discovery that came out of this analysis is that homes with black or charcoal gray front doors sell for $6,271 more. Interesting, but don’t tell that to the Chinese who consider red a lucky color frequently used on front doors. The Chinese study of Feng Sui teaches that good chi comes into a home through the front door, making lucky red front doors popular.
Coastal Living, an online magazine, has their own opinion about the color of front doors on the coast and none of them are black, gray or red. Here is what Coastal Living recommends: seafoam, Dutch blue, raspberry, blue-green, yellow, Capri blue,
white, tangerine orange, blue-grey, salmon and aqua.
Zillow’s study also discovered that light blue bathrooms can bring in an additional $2,786 and that red kitchens can take $2,310 off a home’s sale price. In addition, Zillow’s analysis reported that houses painted yellow or any hue of yellow on the exterior sold for $3,408 less.
Do we believe any of this? Maybe some of it, but isn’t the best front door one that blends in with the rest of the property, is clean and doesn’t need painting? What we do believe is its time for another three-month report of properties selling over $1 million dollars on the Island and in Cortez. This time we’re looking at February, March and April with closed properties compiled from the Manatee County Property Appraisers Office and available properties from Realtor.com as of this writing.
There were two closed properties for these three months for $1 million or over in the village of Cortez. One closed for $1,200,000 and the other closed for $1,379,000. The previous three-month analysis had no closings in this price range.
The city of Anna Maria had 14 closings for $1 million or over. The largest closed sale was for $4,350,000 and the smallest was $1,050,000. The previous three-month analysis was also 14 closed properties. Aside from the $4 million dollar closing, all the other closings were under $2 million.
The combined cities of Bradenton Beach and Holmes Beach had a total of 19 closed properties over $1 million. The highest sale was for $2,450,000, the lowest was for $1 million and there were four $2 million or over sales. The previous three-month analysis had seven properties selling for $1 million or over.
Currently available as of this writing in Cortez there are five properties between $1,500,000, which is residential land, and $1,100,000. The last time there were six in this price range available.
The city of Anna Maria has 60 properties on the market over $1 million ranging from $5,500,000 to $1,049,000. There are four over $4 million, six over $3 million and 17 over $2 million. The last analysis for Anna Maria had 58 properties available.
Finally, Holmes Beach and Bradenton Beach have a total of 68 properties $1 million or over, ranging from $6,200,000 to $1,025,000. There is one property listed over $5 million, three properties listed over $3 million and two properties listed over $2 million. The previous three months had 85 available properties.
I guess we should keep the color psychologists in business since they’ve gone to the trouble of telling us exactly what our mood should be based on color. According to them black represents unhappiness and red is excitement, but what do they know.
BRADENTON BEACH – Bradenton Beach officials are concerned about the overcrowding and parking issues that occurred at and around Coquina Beach and Cortez Beach during Memorial Day weekend.
A 6:28 a.m. on Tuesday, May 28, Lt. John Cosby from the Bradenton Beach Police Department sent Mayor John Chappie an email regarding these concerns. Cosby also sent Chappie several pictures taken by one of his officers.
“We had over 27,000 people. A normal holiday is 15,000 to 19,000 people. We wrote approximately 200 parking tickets and estimate there were 700 vehicles parked illegally in the dunes – double-parked and on the state right of way. We broke up five fights and escorted 10 people out of the park. The park did not clear out until 11 p.m. (on Sunday) and traffic was backed up over the Longboat Key bridge until 11 p.m. also,” Cosby wrote.
When contacted, Cosby said “Sunday was the worst day. It was out of control. The ones that parked illegally all over the right of the way were given $50 tickets and they said they really didn’t care. A sheriff’s deputy said that at one point traffic was backed up all the way to 51st Street West on Cortez Road.”
When asked later why this year was so much busier, Cosby said, “I have no idea.”
The city has an interlocal agreement with the county that provides county funds to pay for city police patrols of the Coquina and Cortez beach areas. The city patrols are supplemented by Manatee County Sheriff’s deputies upon request during holiday weekends and special events when heavier crowds are expected, including Memorial Day weekend.
Chappie expresses concerns
Chappie briefly addressed these public safety concerns during the City Commission’s abbreviated commission workshop on Tuesday morning. He told the commission he planned to share these concerns with county commissioners later that day at their budget planning session.
“There’s some major issues that we have to work out before July Fourth weekend,” Chappie said.
When addressing county commissioners and County Administrator Cheri Coryea, Chappie said, “In your budgeting process, you need to please put some money down for security. With the number of people that are coming to our beaches, you just cannot imagine. We’re getting together some statistics and pictures and I’m sure through your departments you’re going to find out how crazy it was.
“We had one officer who was told ‘We’re glad they shoot cops now.’ It was just a matter of trying to manage the situation, it wasn’t trying to enforce rules because you had too many people out there. You couldn’t even see the sand because the umbrellas on the beach at Coquina Beach were packed so tight. Your lifeguards, God bless them, I don’t know how they could do anything. It’s not safe, and I appreciate Cheri jumping on it and working on it,” Chappie said.
Chappie also said he hopes to meet with county officials soon to formulate plans for the upcoming holiday weekends.
