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Holmes Beach: Year in Review

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

TREEHOUSE COMES DOWN

Holmes Beach: Year in ReviewAfter more than a decade in court, Holmes Beach treehouse owners Lynn Tran and Richard Hazen waived the white flag in July, removing their beloved treehouse from the beach side of Angelinos Sea Lodge. The treehouse was built in 2011 without permits and became the subject of several court cases, ultimately leading to a judicial order to remove the structure. Fans said goodbye to the treehouse over the July 4 holiday. Demolition was completed on Aug. 30.

ELECTION PRODUCES TIGHT RACE

Holmes Beach: Year in Review
Titsworth
Holmes Beach: Year in Review
Roth

Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth has two more years in office, winning by a thin margin over political newcomer Mike Roth. Titsworth took home the win by 41 votes. Joining Titsworth on the Holmes Beach dais are re-elected Commissioner Dan Diggins and returning Commissioner Carol Whitmore.

RESIDENTS FIGHT CONSOLIDATION, PARKING GARAGE

Plans by former Manatee County commissioners to build a three-story parking garage at Manatee Beach and consolidate the three Anna Maria Island cities were thwarted by voters. Residents, business owners and visitors all came together to fight against both measures, holding a rally in Holmes Beach in May and a Hands Across the Sand event in April.Holmes Beach: Year in Review

PARKING GARAGE PLANS STRUCK DOWN

While Manatee County officials still have permission in the form of a bill approved by the Florida Legislature to build a three-story parking garage at Manatee Beach, those plans are currently on an indefinite hiatus. Voters fought against the parking garage, a project of former county commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge, at the polls on Nov. 4. Van Ostenbridge was ousted as the District 3 commissioner and new Commissioner Tal Siddique has pledged to abandon the project.

OPPAGA STUDY RESULTS PENDING

The Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability study by the state concluded in 2024, but the results have not yet been released. Ordered in 2023 by members of the Manatee County state legislative delegation, the study looked at possible alternatives to having three city governments on Anna Maria Island, including consolidation of the three cities into one and annexation into unincorporated Manatee County or the city of Bradenton. The study was met with much criticism by the public. Holmes Beach Commissioner Terry Schaefer says he plans to review the results of the study with Rep. Will Robinson Jr. in the new year.

MILLAGE RATE LOWERED, TAXES UP

Holmes Beach commissioners voted to lower the millage rate from 2.05 to 1.99 mills, a 2.5% reduction for taxpayers. Despite the lowered millage rate, property taxes still went up by 7.63% for owners due to an increase in property values as assessed by the Manatee County Property Appraiser’s Office.

HURRICANE DEBRIS REMOVAL QUESTIONED

Holmes Beach: Year in ReviewAfter hurricanes blew through the area in September and October, many residents questioned how well the city was handling debris removal along city streets. Hurricane Helene flooded the Island, leaving mountains of sand behind and Hurricane Milton downed trees and fences and caused widespread wind damage, leaving hundreds of tons of debris in its wake. Debris removal has been completed on the Island.

HURRICANE HELENE FLOODS ISLAND

Hurricane Helene swept past Anna Maria Island in the Gulf of Mexico on Sept. 26, but that doesn’t mean the Island was spared from the storm’s wrath. Police Chief Bill Tokajer said that at one point during the storm, his officers measured 2 feet of water standing in the center of Gulf Drive near city hall. The storm caused major flooding and displaced tons of sand from Island beaches.

HURRICANE MILTON CAUSES WIDESPREAD DAMAGE

Anna Maria Island was evacuated for a second time in 2024 when Hurricane Milton approached, making landfall near Siesta Key overnight on Oct. 9. While Hurricane Helene brought the water, Milton brought the wind, downing trees and power lines and causing widespread damage. Milton hit just two weeks after Helene impacted the area. While debris removal has been completed, recovery efforts are still ongoing.

CITY ENACTS VACATION RENTAL MORATORIUM

After a second major hurricane swept through the area in as many weeks, Holmes Beach city leaders voted to enact a vacation rental moratorium in an effort to keep tourists away while recovery efforts were in their early days. Rental agents and owners opposed the moratorium, which initially banned vacation rentals in the city for 45 days. Commissioners revisited the moratorium in 30 days and opted to end it two weeks early.

LIGHTNING STRIKES TWO HOLMES BEACH BUSINESSES

Holmes Beach: Year in ReviewA thunderstorm on Aug. 22 resulted in a two-alarm fire when lightning struck the Holmes Beach Business Center, damaging two local businesses. The lightning strike hit the roof of the west side of the complex, damaging West Coast Air Conditioning and Heating and Fun and More Rentals. Firefighters from West Manatee Fire Rescue and three other local districts quickly extinguished the fire. No one was injured but the building sustained major damage.

WATER TAXI STOP DISCUSSED

Manatee County and Holmes Beach leaders argued over the potential for a water taxi stop in the Island’s biggest city over the summer. In July and August, county officials made it clear that they want a stop for the Gulf Islands Ferry service in Holmes Beach, preferably somewhere near city center. Holmes Beach city leaders were divided on the idea with some favoring a stop at Kingfish Boat Ramp. Discussions were derailed by the arrival of hurricanes Helene and Milton.

BEACH PARKING BY THE NUMBERS

Public parking for beach access was a hot topic of conversation early in 2024 with Manatee County commissioners vowing to build a three-story paid parking garage at Manatee Beach to create more spaces. City leaders contended that there are more than enough parking spaces available in Holmes Beach for the number of people who can comfortably be accommodated on the beach.

County halts beach parking garage plans

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Featured, Holmes Beach.

MANATEE COUNTY – Commissioner George Kruse received unanimous support from his fellow commissioners on Aug. 27 to cease spending funding on pursuing three parking garages, including one planned for Manatee Beach in Holmes Beach.

Previously, the county initiative, led by Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge, sought the approval of state legislators on a bill to allow a three-story parking garage to be constructed on the site despite the city’s regulations against multi-level parking structures and the Holmes Beach land development code’s prohibition of multi-story parking garages.

County commissioners had dedicated more than $1 million for design services for the Manatee Beach garage earlier in the year. After the Aug. 20 primary election, which saw Van Ostenbridge, the largest supporter of the garage, being defeated by Kruse for an at-large seat on the dais, Kruse said he thought it was time to revisit the issue and placed it on the Aug. 27 commission agenda, saying that his motivation was to save taxpayer money.

Van Ostenbridge made the motion to indefinitely table the parking garage conversation with no further money to be spent at this time on garage plans in Holmes Beach, Bradenton and Palmetto. The motion received full support from the board of commissioners.

Beach parking garage gets design funding

Beach parking garage gets design funding

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Featured, Manatee County.

MANATEE COUNTY – Whether residents want it or not, the wheels are in motion for county taxpayers to foot the bill for a three-story parking garage at Manatee Beach in Holmes Beach.

County commissioners voted unanimously on May 14 to approve $1.125 million for a preliminary design criteria package for the parking structure.

The item was listed as a budget amendment under the consent agenda before Commissioner George Kruse pulled it for discussion; consent agenda items are voted on without discussion. The funds for a pre-design criteria package of the parking structure, along with $625,000 for a similar design package for a parking garage at the Bradenton Area Convention Center and $1,175,000 for a garage at the Premiere Sports complex, total $2,925,000. The budget amendment states that those funds are being transferred from the 2023 Revenue Improvement Bonds Capital Projects fund.

Kruse said he pulled the item from the consent agenda because he felt that the commission needed to have more discussion before committing taxpayer funds to come up with a plan for the garages during an RFP process for designing and building the structures. He noted that while other infrastructure projects have been delayed for two years or more due to a lack of funding, commissioners are willing to push the parking garage projects forward. He said he felt the commission should have gotten more information before spending money.

“We say we’re fiscally conservative up here,” Kruse said, noting that he has a lot of questions about why his fellow commissioners are willing to spend taxpayer funds without more information.

Speaking on behalf of county staff, Manatee County Director of Property Management Cary Knight said, “My understanding of the process that was put into place is that we’re bringing on an architecture firm to do a pre-design criteria package. That pre-design criteria package then gets included with RFQ for a three-P partner (public-private partnership) to come and make proposals for how they would build the building, how they would finance it, how they would make money off of it, whether or not it would be a paid parking situation or maybe the county is a lease situation where the three-P becomes basically the bank for the county. That’s kind of the process that’s in place right now.”

“It seems like this is almost a cart before a horse,” Kruse said. He added that he feels the county staff could determine if paid parking is a viable option. He suggested looking at established paid parking in Bradenton Beach to see utilization, hourly rates and what the backlash from visitors and residents is. He said he feels he’d rather spend the money elsewhere.

Despite Kruse’s misgivings on the topic, he voted in favor of allocating the funds to design services for the three parking garages.

County Administrator Charlie Bishop said the county isn’t “an expert on building parking garages” and is relying on Elliott Falcione, executive director of the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, to determine that public-private partnerships are viable at the three proposed parking garage locations.

The downtown Bradenton parking garage, which has been deemed structurally poor and needs to be replaced as soon as possible, was not on the list of proposed garages discussed at the May 14 meeting.

The beach parking garage is a pet project for Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge, who represents the residents of Anna Maria Island and west Bradenton, many of whom have spoken out publicly against a parking garage at the county-owned beach in Holmes Beach. Van Ostenbridge has disregarded protests from residents and visitors, along with other county commissioners, stating that the parking garage would allow for more inclusive beach access for county residents, despite the fact that he plans for the garage to have paid parking instead of the free parking currently allowed in Holmes Beach.

While Holmes Beach city leaders have staunchly defended their city against the encroachment of paid parking, which has sprung up to the north and south in Anna Maria and Bradenton Beach, Mayor Judy Titsworth has stated that if county commissioners build the garage with paid parking, the city may have to rethink its stance on paid parking.

SIDESTEPPING HOLMES BEACH

Currently both multi-level parking garages and paid parking are against the city’s land development code and ordinances. County commissioners opted to circumvent the city by going to the Manatee County state legislative delegation. The five-member delegation pushed a bill through the state Legislature in 2023 allowing the county to build the parking garage at Manatee Beach without approval or permits from the city.

During a 2023 county commission work session, Van Ostenbridge presented his ideas to his fellow board members. He said the garage would have three stories with a fourth parking level on the roof and span the entirety of the buildable space at the public beach park. The current historic concession stand, retail space, bar, restroom and shower facilities would be demolished with new facilities built into the parking garage. At the time, he estimated the parking garage could be built for about $45 million.

Van Ostenbridge said the garage would have around 900 parking spaces, about 450 more than what currently exists on the Manatee Beach property, and paid parking of at least $2 per hour would be necessary to pay for the construction of the garage and the estimated $200,000 annual maintenance costs.

During demolition and construction, the current parking spaces and facilities would be unavailable to beachgoers, meaning that the only beach on Anna Maria Island with restroom, shower and changing facilities would be Coquina Beach on the southern tip of the Island.

Island residents, visitors and elected officials alike all protested strongly prior to the bill being filed during the legislative session and continue to do so.

The latest protest action against the parking garage occurred earlier this month at a rally hosted by residents’ group Save Florida Home Rule, where several people spoke out against the building of a parking garage at Manatee Beach. None of the county commissioners attended, though a contender for Van Ostenbridge’s seat on the county commission, Diana Shoemaker, did speak and said she was committed to hearing the voices of the residents in District 3, not dismissing them as she said some others have done and continue to do.

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Commissioners reach out for community support

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

HOLMES BEACH – City commissioners are fighting to maintain home rule and they’re seeking community support to make that happen.

During a Jan. 23 meeting, Commissioner Terry Schaefer said that he hopes members of the community will reach out to their state legislators by writing letters expressing their opinions on the proposed parking garage at Manatee Beach, approved by the Legislature in 2023. He also requested public input on the ongoing Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability (OPPAGA) state study looking at the consolidation of the three Anna Maria Island cities and on HB 1537/SB 280, which would assign control of vacation rentals to the state instead of allowing local municipalities to regulate that industry in their locations.

Schaefer added that while city leaders are sending letters to Tallahassee, he said the city’s lobbyist advised him to not send every bit of correspondence to Sen. Jim Boyd and Rep. Will Robinson Jr. While those two men represent Manatee County at the state level, Schaefer said the lobbyist is trying to repair the relationship between the city and the two state legislators and too much correspondence could “put salt in the wound.”

“They know where we stand and we know where they stand,” Schaefer said.

During comments, Commissioner Greg Kerchner said he’s concerned that the OPPAGA study will state that there is a cost savings in consolidating the three Island cities and that it will come down to a public relations move by the state to try and convince residents that consolidation or elimination of the three cities is good for them. He encouraged his fellow city leaders to direct staff to create a financial analysis to get ahead of what he feels is an inevitable discussion between the city and state.

Commissioners reach out for community support
Mayor Judy Titsworth visits with Congressman Vern Buchanan on Jan. 23. – Submitted | COHB

Mayor Judy Titsworth said she met earlier that day with Congressman Vern Buchanan to discuss issues facing the city, potential appropriations requests and what city leaders and staff are doing to improve the area for residents and visitors.

“He’s a great friend to the city and our community,” Titsworth said of Buchanan.

Year in Review: Holmes Beach

Year in Review: Holmes Beach

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach, Special Sections, Year in Review.

HOLMES BEACH – The bang that kicked off 2023 in Anna Maria Island’s largest city wasn’t the fireworks. The year that was had a lot of ups and downs for both city leaders and residents along with a few surprise loops along the rollercoaster of a year.

TREE HOUSE OWNERS MARK DECADE OF LEGAL WRANGLING

In January, the year started the same way that it ended, with the city and tree house owners Lynn Tran and Richard Hazen facing off in court over the beachfront tree house structure at Angelinos Sea Lodge. As the legal fight passed the decade mark in Manatee County courtrooms, the tree house owners received another blow as cases against the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the city were found in favor of the government entities. Despite the setbacks, the fight for the owners to keep the two-story tree house aloft and for the city to have the unpermitted structure removed continues.

Year in Review: Holmes Beach
Plans for the state-approved parking garage at Manatee Beach in Holmes Beach would see the current parking and connected facilities demolished to make way for a new three-story structure. Construction on the garage is estimated to take at least two years to complete. – Submitted | Manatee County

PARKING GARAGE PURSUED

One of the twists that took city leaders for a loop in 2023 started in January with Manatee County Legislative Delegation members deciding to push a bill forward to allow Manatee County commissioners to construct a three-story parking garage at Manatee Beach. The fight over the parking garage began more than a year earlier with Manatee County commissioners, spearheaded by Commission Chair Kevin Van Ostenbridge, arguing with city leaders over some street-side parking in residential neighborhoods being designated as resident-only until 5 p.m. daily. Though the plan to change the parking in some residential neighborhoods was almost 10 years in the making, Van Ostenbridge claimed that city leaders took advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic to close side of street parking in residential neighborhoods in a bid to keep visitors away from the beach. Holmes Beach Police Chief Bill Tokajer provided county leaders with personally collected numbers demonstrating the abundance of open beach parking in the city, even during high-volume holidays such as Easter and spring break. Despite the data provided to county commissioners, they pushed for state legislators to introduce a parking garage bill in violation of the city’s land development code and comprehensive plan. The bill passed and at the end of the year city leaders are considering their legal options to continue the parking garage fight.

If built according to plan, the garage would cost Manatee County taxpayers more than an estimated $45 million to construct and $200,000 annually to maintain, remove the existing beach facilities including a historic building housing concessions, a bar and retail store, eliminate the existing more than 450 parking spots and facilities for more than two years during construction, and provide around 900 total parking spaces. Van Ostenbridge said the parking spaces in the garage would need to be paid for hourly by drivers in order to fund the garage’s maintenance. Though paid parking is not currently an allowable use in Holmes Beach, and neither are multi-story parking facilities, Mayor Judy Titsworth said that if county commissioners decide to go ahead with building the garage and charging for parking, the city will be forced to reconsider its stance on free beach parking for the public.

CONSOLIDATION STUDY BEGUN

After giving leaders in the three Anna Maria Island cities a few months to discuss how they could consolidate services to save taxpayers money, members of the state legislative delegation opted to go forward with an Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability study to look at consolidation of the three Anna Maria Island cities or annexation into Bradenton or unincorporated Manatee County. Rep. Will Robinson Jr. (R-Bradenton) and Sen. Jim Boyd (R-Bradenton) sent the mayors of all three cities a notice in the fall that the OPPAGA study would be going forward with the intent of investigating if the three Island cities should be consolidated, annexed or left as three independent municipalities. While the mayors said they support the study in an effort to look at ways to save taxpayers money, they are all opposed to consolidation or elimination of the Island municipalities.

Year in Review: Holmes Beach
Local first responders take the plunge in Anna Maria Sound in support of the Holmes Beach Islanders 4 Clean Water campaign. – Kristin Swain | Sun

ISLANDERS 4 CLEAN WATER LAUNCHED

In the spring, Holmes Beach city leaders celebrated the launch of the Islanders 4 Clean Water campaign aimed at raising awareness of water quality issues in and around Anna Maria Island and how residents and visitors can reduce their negative impact on the environment. Dozens of people took the plunge in support of the campaign and city leaders are continuing to raise awareness for the campaign and environment into 2024.

NO ELECTION NEEDED

The sitting city commissioners escaped the need for an election in November as candidate qualifying ended in July with incumbent Commissioners Pat Morton, Terry Schaefer and Carol Soustek all running unopposed. Because only one person qualified to run for the charter review commission, which was set to convene in January 2024, City Attorney Erica Augello said that no additional members could be appointed to the charter review commission outside of the election process, meaning that this will be the first time since the city’s incorporation that the charter review commission will not meet as scheduled.

LIGHT IMPACTS FROM HURRICANE IDALIA

Anna Maria Island once again slipped through hurricane season virtually unscathed. The closest brush the Island had with a named storm was when Hurricane Idalia moved past about 100 miles in the Gulf of Mexico off Holmes Beach’s shoreline. While the Island missed taking a direct hit, the storm brought a day of rain and windy weather to the city, flooding and some minor damage to structures.

WATER MAIN REPAIR DELAYED ON BRIDGE

Due to delays in receiving materials, work to repair and relocate a water main along the Anna Maria Island Bridge on Manatee Avenue was postponed. Crews are completing the last phase of the water main pipe repair, installing additional hangers to support the pipe on the east side of the bridge.

Commissioner Kruse hosts Island talk

Commissioner Kruse hosts Island talk

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Anna Maria Island, Community News, Featured.

HOLMES BEACH – Only 18 people came out to the Island Branch Library on a stormy Wednesday night to hear what Manatee County Commissioner-at-large George Kruse had to say, but the conversation continued for nearly two hours.

Kruse held his monthly town hall meeting in Holmes Beach and invited anyone who attended to ask him questions. One of the hot topics of the night was the anticipated parking garage at Manatee Beach.

Parking garage

While Kruse said he wasn’t particularly for or against the parking garage, he doesn’t believe that it’s worth the cost to taxpayers or the best use of an estimated $30-50 million.

“We have much more important things to do in this county,” he said. “We do not have the money to do all the important CIP (Capital Improvement Plan) work we need to do. We don’t collect enough in impact fees; we don’t collect enough in FIF (Facility Investment Fees). We need to be focusing on our bridges, we need to be focusing on our major roads, we need to be focusing on Ft. Hamer, so for anyone to tell me this parking garage is even in the top 50 most important things is asinine,” Kruse said, referring to a recent county commission work session where several of his fellow commissioners stated that the Manatee Beach parking garage was a top priority project for the county.

Due to legislation signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis and supported by members of the Manatee County legislative delegation, Manatee County commissioners can go against Holmes Beach city ordinances and the city’s land development code to build a three-story parking garage at the county-owned Manatee Beach, located in the Island city. If it’s built, the parking garage is planned to have 900 parking spaces along with restroom, concession and retail facilities. The project would require the removal of the restaurant, restroom, bar and retail store at the beach, along with the existing 400+ parking spaces.

Manatee County Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge, who is leading the charge to build the garage, said he estimates the garage will take at least two years to build. During that time, no parking, facilities or public access would be available at the popular beach.

Infrastructure and utilities

Another topic of conversation was water.

Kruse said that the county is facing a number of infrastructure issues, including a water shortage and water quality.

“We’re running into a water capacity issue,” Kruse said. “Not tomorrow, but I have to look into the future. You can’t build something in a day.”

He said that the long-term growth going on in the county will eventually create a strain on water utilities. As to the issue of water quality, he said he’s looking for any ideas to help increase water quality in the county in order to help increase water capacity for the county.

He also addressed the issue of the water main serving the north end of the Island that is still being repaired.

“That happened because we’re not maintaining it,” he said of the pipe that fell off the bridge this summer and has since been replaced with a temporary pipe taking up the south side of the sidewalk. “We don’t have the money to maintain it because fees and rates have been kept too low for too long. No previous board wanted to be on the hook to increase something even a nickel because then they’re going to have some negative campaign ad against them saying they raised taxes, so we kept the rates artificially low. It covered the water, but it didn’t cover the maintenance.”

Kruse added that the fees paid by developers that are supposed to help increase capacity and expand infrastructure are also too low. He estimated that those fees are about 20-30% of where they need to be.

Regarding infrastructure, he said that the county was keeping up with maintaining and creating new infrastructure, including roads, until 2008, when the housing market crashed. After that, he said it took the county years to begin collecting impact fees from builders again and by that time it was too late to catch up with all of the work that needed to be done.

“We’ve never caught up from then,” Kruse said, adding that some of his fellow commissioners have delayed a vote on increasing impact fees. Currently, he said the county is charging based on a 2015 impact study that used 2013 data. A new impact fee study has been done, though he said bringing impact fees to a vote has been delayed multiple times. Though it’s now currently slated for discussion by the commission in November, Kruse noted that if the vote is delayed again until December, an argument could be made that the study is now stale and would need to be redone, delaying the vote another six to eight months.

Bridges

On the topic of bridges, Holmes Beach Commissioner Terry Schaefer said that the Cortez Bridge is currently scheduled to be replaced in 2026, pending litigation, with the Anna Maria Island Bridge on Manatee Avenue tentatively scheduled for 2029. On both bridges, he said, the Florida Department of Transportation is looking at adding a third lane that would be designated for transit and emergency personnel.

Kruse said the county is considering adding another trolley for the Island trolley’s free transit system. He also said he’s pushing for the county to open libraries at least part of the day on Sundays and run Manatee County Area Transit buses on Sundays, when he said people are off work and can take advantage of the free amenities.

See more of what Kruse had to say on The Sun’s YouTube channel.

Letter to the Editor: Garage would ruin appeal of Manatee Beach

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Letter to the Editor, Opinion.

This is in response to the Aug. 23 edition of the Anna Maria Island Sun, “Beach parking garage fight continues.”

I just want to add my voice in support of the comments made by Holmes Beach Police Chief Bill Tokajer. My family has been coming to Holmes Beach since the early 1980s when my in-laws lived across the street from Manatee Beach. Our three children have such great memories of being on the beach and “jumping in the waves.” We celebrated my mother-in-law’s 80th birthday at the Beach Café, where my wife’s parents danced together to the background music that always seemed to be playing at the Beach Café every night. Sunday mornings we’d take the kids over to have breakfast with The Pancake Kings. When we were back in Chicago, and then in Minnesota, I’d often see the AMI sticker on cars while out driving, and it’d make me wish I were there. Thousands upon thousands of people all over the country can probably tell you of the great times they’ve had at Manatee Beach and the Café.

It’s part of what Anna Maria Island is all about. It’s the City Pier, where the people responsible resisted putting up railings along it when it was recently rebuilt because railings weren’t in the original design. It’s going to the restaurants that seem to have been there forever, like Hurricane Hanks, Skinny’s and the Sandbar, and coming back to them year after year. But what attracted me right away to Anna Maria Island, and especially Holmes Beach, was that Holmes Beach has somehow managed to hold on to having the look and feel of being a town. It’s not what most of the other islands along the Sun Coast have become. That’s what draws people to come here and to want to live here. Manatee Beach, the Beach Café, the Pancake Kings, they’ve all been an integral part of the Island for as far back as most people can remember.

Take that away by putting in a three-story concrete structure right where people have been parking for years, well, it’s paving paradise to put up a parking lot. Once you lose paradise, you can’t get it back.

 

Jeff Forsythe

Bradenton

County moves forward with beach garage design

County moves forward with beach garage design

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

MANATEE COUNTY – Parking garage plans for Manatee Beach in Holmes Beach are moving forward despite pushback from Anna Maria Island residents and one commissioner.

During an Aug. 14 work session, county commissioners discussed four potential parking garages, one of which is the proposed parking garage at the county-owned Manatee Beach that was approved by Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier this year. When initially discussed, Manatee County Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge proposed a three-story 1,500 parking space garage costing an estimated $45 million. The garage proposal presented to county commissioners during the work session is expected to cost $30-35 million to build and have about 900 parking spaces. While the actual look of the garage is not yet decided upon, the garage is planned to cover the entirety of the existing beach parking area, including the concession, retail and restroom areas. The new parking garage would include concession, retail, restroom and other facilities.

Commissioner George Kruse said he’s concerned about the cost of the four proposed parking facilities. He said that three of the garages are “niceties,” but the proposed downtown Bradenton replacement garage is the only one that is actually needed. The current garage has structural issues and must be replaced for safety reasons. Out of the four proposed garages, the downtown garage is estimated to cost the most at around $100 million.

Kruse said that rather than serving the public interest, he feels the Manatee Beach parking garage is being considered strictly to support a narrative constructed around a lack of beach parking. Having toured the city’s available parking, he said he feels that the 600 additional spaces the garage would provide over and above the current 300 in the parking lot are unnecessary and that the construction of the garage, planned to take anywhere from 18-24 months, could cause significantly more damage to the area than it helps, reducing facilities and beach access over two high tourism seasons. He also noted that the garage is currently an unfunded expense for the county.

Kruse’s comments received a round of applause from members of the public in the commission chambers. However, Van Ostenbridge said he feels that the rest of the board doesn’t share Kruse’s concerns.

Commissioner James Satcher said that if he could just choose one parking garage on the list of proposals, he’d pick the Manatee Beach parking garage. “People are clamoring to get to the beach. This is the right thing to do,” he said. “This should definitely be number one on our list.”

PUBLIC OPINION

During public comment, several people spoke against the parking garage, including Holmes Beach Police Chief Bill Tokajer, former Holmes Beach mayor and former county commissioner Carol Whitmore, city attorney Erica Augello and Titsworth.

“We do have adequate parking and I want to show you so bad,” Titsworth said to the county commission. “Please, before you act, take me up on my offer. Come take the tour and see our available parking.” She did note that Bearden agreed to come visit the city in the next week.

Some of the issues with parking in residential neighborhoods that Titsworth noted include lack of bathrooms, resulting in people defecating in sea oats, and lack of lifeguards down the entire length of the beach.

Resident Bruce Meyer also spoke and said he feels that he’s being “punished” and is not represented by the county commission. He said that 600 spaces wouldn’t make a difference with the amount of people who want to come the county beaches.

Augello noted that the proposed revenue stream for parking garage, paid parking, is not an allowable use in Holmes Beach and would not be allowed. If pursued, she said it could potentially end in litigation.

Owner of the Bamboo Beach Apartments, Alice Sutton, invited the county commissioners to come for a free weekend stay on a day of their choice and help her pick up used diapers, condoms and other debris from the sea oats and beach, help direct parking and explain to naked people why they can’t change in the complex’s laundry room.

Holmes Beach Commissioner Carol Soustek said that the issue isn’t availability of parking, it’s not addressing the issues with traffic and not addressing multi-modal transportation. She noted that the city commission is responding to the concerns raised by the residents they’re elected to represent to reduce on-street beach parking in residential neighborhoods. She said the city is not limiting access to the beach.

“We want to accommodate everyone we can,” she said. “We just can’t accommodate all of the cars.” Soustek encouraged county commissioners to look at some of the studies that have been done concerning traffic and congestion for additional solutions to issues with beach access, such as multi-modal transportation.

Holmes Beach Commissioner Greg Kerchner addressed Bearden’s comments about planning for the future of the county with the potential for residential growth of 100,000 people over the coming years. He said that if the county wants to plan for the future, leaders need to look at more sustainable options than 600 beach parking spaces.

Closing out the meeting, both Kruse and Bearden spoke again with Kruse reiterating his earlier concerns that there are more pressing infrastructure issues in the county, such as the $60 million Fort Hamer Bridge project and the downtown Bradenton parking garage, that need to be addressed before a mere 600 parking spaces at Manatee Beach that will tie up facilities and parking for years is considered. Bearden said that he believes the 600 spaces will make a huge difference to people who live on the east side of the county who are waiting in traffic to get to the beach.

Letter to the Editor: Add beaches, not garages

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Letter to the Editor, Opinion.

My wife and I have been homeowners in Manatee County for 30 years and permanent residents for about half that time. We now reside full-time on Anna Maria Island, where we built a new home in 2014. It is reasonable in size and it has only one elevated floor, elevated to meet the latest codes. We love this area and settled here by choice after living in three different countries and spending time in 20 others.

I wish to express my feelings about this parking garage which is causing so much frustration and dissatisfaction. Mostly, I would like to present a totally different approach.

Building a multi-floor garage is not the ideal solution. First of all, it will only contain the additional number of cars generated by all the new construction surrounding the Bradenton area for at best a year. What will we do in another year – build a second garage, and then a third, as hundreds of new homes are popping up like mushrooms all around our area?

The land area of Anna Maria is approximately 0.73 square miles or less than 2 square kilometers. During the winter season, there are approximately 6,500 residents on this Island, making it a population density of 8,900 people per square mile. The average population density in the U.S. is 37 people per square kilometer or 96 per square mile. We are therefore already 93 times more populated than the national average.

The problem is that this situation cannot be alleviated by adding more parking capacity. What we need is to create one or more new beaches outside of this small spit of land called Anna Maria Island.

Manatee County, according to Google search and the “Welcome to Manatee County” literature, has nearly 150 miles of “pristine coastline.” However, it seems that practically all the road signs indicating the direction to beaches in Manatee County point only toward Anna Maria Island.

I have heard that the cost of this garage may be as high as $45 million. Even if it should turn out to be half that much, I believe that a lot of vacant land could be acquired in that price range to establish a completely new “beach” area with plenty of parking spaces. This would tremendously reduce the usual gridlock which happens regularly when all the beachgoers guided by all the existing road signs arrive on this already crowded residential island.

Thank you for your consideration in this matter.

 

Raymond J. Mathieu

Holmes Beach

City leaders continue to fight parking garage

City leaders continue to fight parking garage

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

HOLMES BEACH – Gov. Ron DeSantis may have signed off on a beachfront parking garage, but that doesn’t mean that city leaders are giving up the fight to stop the garage from being built just yet.

“We’re committed to fighting this thing. We’re not going to stop until there are shovels in the ground,” Commissioner Terry Schaefer said, with his fellow commissioners echoing the statement.

The garage that commissioners are vowing to fight is planned as a three-story parking structure with 1,500 or more spaces at Manatee Beach. While parking garages are not an allowable land use in any of the three Anna Maria Island cities, they are allowed in Holmes Beach by special exception. Feeling that city officials would never approve the garage, Manatee County Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge said he opted to circumvent the special exception process in Holmes Beach by encouraging state Rep. Will Robinson to introduce HB 947, a bill to allow for the garage to be built without requiring any input or approvals from the city. Despite public outcry against the bill, it received unanimous support from the local state delegation, the Florida House and Senate, and, ultimately, from the governor.

The garage is estimated to cost $45 million to build, $400,000 a year to maintain and take at least two years to build, during which facilities and parking at Manatee Beach would be unavailable. The existing concession building with a retail store, restrooms and the Anna Maria Island Beach Café would be torn down to make way for the parking garage. Once built, the garage is expected to house new restroom and concession facilities.

City Attorney Erica Augello said that the legal battle is now underway to try and stop the garage from being built. While she said she’s just beginning to work on the city’s legal defense against the parking structure, she said she’s aware that at least two groups of residents and other interested parties have sprung up locally to fight against the garage. Augello said that if either or both groups decide to retain an attorney to pursue legal action she would like the attorneys to contact her to coordinate legal efforts.

Letter to the Editor: DeSantis should veto HB 947

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Letter to the Editor, Opinion.

There is a smarter, less costly approach to increase parking capacity in Holmes Beach.

Anna Maria Island (AMI) is a treasure. We must protect it from the current misguided construction plan of a four-story, $45M garage at Holmes Beach. This project will create a bottleneck at the T intersection of Manatee Avenue and Gulf Drive, creating traffic delays of two hours or more at peak times. Queueing models prove that congestion on the island will become explosively worse than it already is.

More visitors are welcome on AMI, as they bring additional business to the restaurants and shopping outlets. But there are smarter, more cost-effective alternatives than building a massive garage at a choke point.

An alternative is to distribute the traffic load across multiple points. For example, Manatee County can contract with numerous parking lots off-island, including east on Manatee Avenue, to use their idle spaces. And shuttles can carry beachgoers to and from Holmes Beach. This is a smarter approach that is less costly, reduces current traffic congestion on the island, and mitigates the problems that will be otherwise imposed by the original misguided design. It also better serves the economic interests of the area.

 

Allan Levy

Perico Island

Easter Sunrise Service

Parking garage threatens religious service’s future

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

HOLMES BEACH – A much-loved, historic Easter service may be in jeopardy if a multi-story parking garage is erected at Manatee Beach.

Thousands of people gather on the sand every year for the non-denominational Easter Sunrise Service hosted by the Anna Maria Island Kiwanis Club. Residents and visitors from all over the world gather for the service before the sun comes up, celebrating together as the sun rises in the east over the top of the single-story concession stand.

Manatee County commissioners have a plan to replace that building with a three-story parking garage with additional parking on the roof. The bill awaits a decision by Gov. Ron DeSantis. If approved, the county could build the garage despite prohibitions in city ordinances and the land development code. County commission Chair Kevin Van Ostenbridge estimates the 1,500-plus parking space garage will cost $45 million to build over at least two years.

The garage would change the venue where the sunrise service has been held for 58 years, rising at least 36 feet over the beach, casting a shadow on the sand in the morning, and blocking the view of the sunrise during the religious service.

Sandy Haas-Martens, secretary of the Kiwanis club, said that the group is on its summer meeting schedule and have not discussed the future of the service if DeSantis signs off on the parking garage, but she anticipates it will be a topic at a future meeting.

Speaking on behalf of St. Bernard Catholic Church, one of the Island churches that participates in the annual service, Haas-Martens said the Easter sunrise service is something that brings the Island community together, both locals and visitors, and is something each church’s leaders enjoy participating in. The 2023 service was the first time the event was live streamed for online viewers.

Holmes Beach Police Chief Bill Tokajer, who handles security and traffic for the service, said he hopes the service will be able to continue.

“I’m still hoping the county commission comes to their senses and realizes the garage is a bad idea,” he said, noting that the city still had plenty of available parking spaces even over the busy Memorial Day holiday weekend.

If the garage is built, he said trying to get traffic in and out of the planned three-story space would be extremely difficult, especially if a large number of people try to leave at once, which often happens at the beach during a rainstorm, and at the end of the service.

“How are you going to get out when everyone is in line for the exit?” he said.

Representatives from other participating churches, Roser Memorial Community Church, Harvey Memorial Church, The Episcopal Church of the Annunciation and Gloria Dei Lutheran Church could not be reached for comment by press time for The Sun.

Manatee Beach parking garage

Parking garage bill arrives on governor’s desk

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

HOLMES BEACH – City leaders and residents are making last-minute attempts to get the attention of Gov. Ron DeSantis before he makes a decision on the future of a bill allowing a multi-level parking garage to be built at Manatee Beach contrary to city regulations.

After passing both the Florida House and Senate with unanimous votes of the members in attendance, the bill stalled for over a month before being presented to the governor for consideration. As of press time for The Sun, DeSantis had not signed or vetoed the bill.

The bill, HB 947, was presented to state legislators by Rep. Will Robinson Jr. during the Florida legislative session that ended in May. The bill came at the request of Manatee County commissioners, primarily commission Chair Kevin Van Ostenbridge, to build a three-story parking garage with parking on the roof at Manatee Beach. If built, Van Ostenbridge said the garage is planned to span the entirety of the county’s buildable land at the public beach and be able to house 1,500-1,700 vehicles with paid parking estimated at $2 per hour. To accommodate the garage, all of the existing facilities at the beach, including the concession stand, restrooms and retail, would be removed, along with trees at the property. The concession, restroom and retail facilities would be rebuilt as a part of the new garage. Construction on the project is estimated to cost $45 million and take at least two years to complete during which parking and facilities at the beach would be unavailable to the public.

Currently, there are more than 400 free parking spaces available to the public at Manatee Beach with hundreds more available in auxiliary on-street parking and at beach access points throughout the city.

Now that the bill has been officially presented to DeSantis, the governor has three options – sign it, veto it or ignore it. If he signs the bill, it becomes law upon gaining his signature. If he ignores it, the bill becomes law automatically on July 1. If he vetoes it, the bill goes back to the House and Senate for reconsideration during the next regular legislative session. If the bill passes both chambers with a three-quarters majority vote, it overrides the governor’s veto and the bill becomes law.

With the bill now up for consideration, concerned local residents, stakeholders and city leaders are appealing to DeSantis to veto the parking garage.

An effort among residents, called Paradise Lost, has sprung up to help bring awareness and mathematically-based reason to the parking garage discussion, led by Allan Levy of Perico Island. Levy, a professional analyst, studied the proposed project and says the construction of the garage would be catastrophic for traffic, causing backups to leave the beach of two hours or more during peak times. He also said that during these backups, traffic in and out of the garage would create a solid wall of vehicles that would be difficult to impossible for first responders, including fire trucks and ambulances to navigate through.

For more information on the effort, visit the group’s website.

There are also two petitions in circulation speaking out against the garage. One on Change.org had garnered over 6,300 signatures at press time for The Sun. Another petition on Manatee Citizens Taking Action has gained more than 2,800 signatures.

Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth also continues to speak out against the garage, taking to social media on June 15 to post a video directed to DeSantis asking him to veto the garage.

“This is an attack on home rule and a huge governmental overreach,” she said, adding that it would also potentially be the largest garage in the region. Titsworth also noted that the increase in traffic caused by the parking garage would be “a nightmare for first responders.”

During a June 13 meeting, she said that she walked the beach over the Memorial Day weekend, noting the crowds already gathered on the sand without adding another 1,000 parking spaces.

“It’s already umbrella-to-umbrella and shoulder-to-shoulder out there,” she said, adding that she’s not sure where on the sand the additional people would go to enjoy the beach.

Levy argues that congestion and beach capacity studies need to be done before a garage could be built. If the governor approves the bill, he said that he and others would be watching county leaders very closely to make sure that all required studies are completed before any permits are issued.

Parking garage bill remains stalled

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

TALLAHASSEE – Florida House Bill 947, sponsored by Manatee County Rep. Will Robinson Jr. to build a parking garage at Manatee Beach, still hasn’t hit Gov. Ron DeSantis’ desk.

The bill would allow Manatee County commissioners to approve and issue permits for the planned three-story, 1,500-plus parking space structure at the county-owned beach against local regulations in Holmes Beach, where the beach is located.

The bill passed both the state House and Senate, but as of press time for The Sun, it had not yet been presented to the governor.

Once the bill goes to the governor’s desk, he can choose to veto, sign or ignore it. If DeSantis signs the bill, it becomes law upon gaining his signature. If he chooses to ignore it, it automatically becomes law on July 1. If he vetoes it, the bill dies, and so do Manatee County commissioners’ immediate plans for the parking garage.

A veto from the governor would send the bill back to the House where it would be up for reconsideration in the next regular legislative session. It would require a two-thirds vote of both the House and Senate to overturn a veto from DeSantis.

The bill must be presented to DeSantis for consideration, otherwise, it dies despite earning approvals from state legislators. Once presented with the bill, the governor has 15 days to take action, according to the Florida constitution.