On Thursday, May 21, Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth announced in a resignation letter that she will not seek reelection in the upcoming election cycle. After six years as a commissioner and eight years as mayor, Titsworth’s time in office will come to an end after the November elections.
After Titsworth shared her resignation letter, current City Commissioner Dan Diggins announced he will run for the mayor’s seat to be vacated by Titsworth. Diggins was first elected in 2022 and reelected in 2024.
Holmes Beach Commissioner Dan Diggins will run for mayor. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
The upcoming Holmes Beach election cycle will determine who fills the seats currently held by Mayor Titsworth, Commissioner Diggins and Commissioner Carol Whitmore, who was also elected in 2024.
On Thursday, Ward 3 Bradenton Beach Commissioner Ralph Cole announced he will not seek reelection and his time in office will come to an end after the November elections.
Bradenton Beach Commissioner Ralph Cole will not seek reelection. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
The Ward 2 seat currently held by Commissioner Scott Bear will also be filled as a result of the upcoming election cycle. Bear has not yet addressed his reelection plans.
In Anna Maria, the seats currently held by Mayor Mark Short and commissioners Chris Arendt and Gary McMullen will be filled by the upcoming election cycle. Short, Arendt and McMullen have not yet addressed their reelection plans.
In Bradenton Beach and Holmes Beach, the one-week candidate qualifying periods open at noon on Monday, June 8, and close at noon on Friday, June 12.
In Anna Maria, the two-week qualifying period opens at noon on Monday, June 1, and closes at noon on Friday, June 12.
For more information about becoming a candidate, visit the Manatee County Supervisor of Elections website.
HOLMES BEACH – The city marked its 75th anniversary with a large, well-attended outdoor celebration at City Field on Dec. 5.
The event was held on the recently resodded City Field grounds that one year ago served as the city’s hurricane debris staging site.
Co-sponsored by the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau and Waste Pro, the Friday evening celebration included live music by Trevor Bystrom’s Rooster X-ing and Jah Movement.
Trevor Bystrom’s Rooster X-ing performed at the anniversary celebration. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
City Field was surrounded by food and drink vendors and vending tents, trailers and vehicles occupied by local businesses, service providers and non-profit organizations. The family-friendly celebration included bounce houses and inflatable slides, a heartfelt speech by Mayor Judy Titsworth and the announcement of this year’s Citizen of the Year award winner.
Youngsters enjoyed the bounce houses and slides. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Shortly after 6 p.m., Titsworth stood on stage and said, “What an incredible night. It’s time our community had some fun. This year we celebrate an incredible milestone: 75 years as the city of Holmes Beach. It’s an honor to reflect on how far we’ve come and how this community grew into the vibrant, beloved coastal city we know today.
“As a lifelong resident, I can tell you there’s truly no better place to live, raise a family or visit. People travel from all over the world for our stunning beaches, small town charm and the unique character preserved by our height and density limits,” Titsworth said.
“Holmes Beach was founded 75 years ago by my grandfather, John E. Holmes Sr., along with partners who dreamed of creating a modest tropical community where families and retirees could enjoy Island living. In 1950, we had 65 residents and a property value under $500,000. Today, our value is more than $3.2 billion. That’s a testament to generations of thoughtful planning and community pride,” she said.
“Growing up here meant roaming freely, exploring our rich marine life and supporting local shopkeepers who made the Island feel complete. That sense of place – its biodiversity, simplicity and warmth – is what we have worked so hard to protect. Balancing the needs of residents, visitors and the environment hasn’t been easy, but it’s essential,” Titsworth said.
“Our emergency management team guided us through two catastrophic hurricanes (in 2024), removing 127,000 cubic yards of sand and debris. Everyone remembers ‘Mount Titsworth?’ We’re standing there,” she said of the debris removal efforts that subjected her and the city to criticism from some community members.
“I am deeply grateful to every person who played a role in our recovery,” she added.
She also mentioned the new sea turtle-themed city flags and hats, the city’s improved relations with county officials, the city’s decreased crime rates, Holmes Beach’s economic prosperity and the significant tourist development tax revenues generated by the Holmes Beach resorts and vacation rentals.
“Here’s to 75 years of tradition, resilience and community; and to the bright future ahead for the city of Holmes Beach,” she said.
Titsworth then surprised Hurricane Hanks restaurant owner Brian Mathae when she announced him as this year’s Citizen of the Year award winner.
Hurricane Hanks owner Brian Mathae learned from Mayor Judy Titsworth that he was this year’s Citizen of the Year. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
After Mathae joined her on the stage, Titsworth said, “We’re honoring his unwavering commitment to helping others in the wake of the hurricanes, for going above and beyond in service and providing vital resources.”
She noted Mathae fed first responders and city staff during hurricane recovery efforts and before that housed animals displaced by a fire at the Holmes Beach Business Center. She also praised his support for the Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring organization.
“Your impact is immeasurable and you’re a true asset to the community,” Titsworth said.
“Paw Patrol” character Marshal and WMFR Fire Marshal Rodney Kwiatkowski greeted young festival attendees. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
While standing near the West Manatee Fire and Rescue tent with “Paw Patrol” TV show character Marshal (a fire dog), Fire Marshal Rodney Kwiatkowski said, “It’s a beautiful night and a great crowd.”
At the Anna Maria Island Historical Society tent, Holmes Beach resident Carolyn Orshak said, “We recovered. It’s party time.”
City Field was once again the scene of community celebration. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Rob Self was born and raised in Holmes Beach and after listening to the mayor’s speech he said, “It’s great to see everybody out here again.”
Holmes Beach resident Tom McFarland said he too was happy to see events happening at City Field again.
HOLMES BEACH – A lightning strike started a fire on Aug. 22 that damaged two local businesses – West Coast Air Conditioning and Heating and Fun and More Rentals.
A press release from West Manatee Fire Rescue Fire Marshal Rodney Kwiatkowski states that the fire began at 10:18 a.m. at the Holmes Beach Business Center, 5347 Gulf Drive.
Resident Tom Curtin captured the scene as the fire burned through two units at the Holmes Beach Business Center. – Submitted | Tom Curtin
The lightning caused a two-alarm fire, bringing crews from WMFR, Bradenton Fire Rescue, Cedar Hammock Fire Rescue and Southern Manatee Fire Rescue to the Anna Maria Island city. Kwiatkowski said the fire was extinguished quickly and no injuries were reported.
Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth, whose family owns the business center, said all of the units were evacuated quickly, including the Island Animal Clinic and The Paw Spa, whose four-legged clients were safely moved to 5350 The Pourhouse across the street in the S&S Plaza.
None of the other units in the business center were damaged by the fire.
HOLMES BEACH – City elected officials are discussing with Manatee County tourism officials whether to add a Gulf Island Ferry stop in Holmes Beach.
Currently, Manatee County’s contracted ferry service stops in downtown Bradenton, the Anna Maria City Pier and the Bradenton Beach Pier, with an additional stop in Palmetto being planned.
On June 10, the Manatee County Tourist Development Council (TDC) recommended county commission approval of the city of Holmes Beach’s $500,000 request to help fund the installation of multi-use paths along portions of Marina Drive and 65th Street. At the recommendation of Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau Executive Director Elliott Falcione, the TDC members included in their recommendation a stipulation that to receive those funds, the city must also negotiate in good faith with the county regarding a Holmes Beach ferry stop.
Tying funding for improvements to public safety with adding a ferry stop in Holmes Beach “is disheartening,” Mayor Judy Titsworth said, noting that a pedestrian-vehicular accident on Marina Drive recently took the life of a pedestrian. “That alone warrants approval (of the funding request).”
At the request of Titsworth, Commissioner Dan Diggins attended the TDC meeting in place of Commissioner Greg Kerchner, who serves as the city commission’s TDC liaison.
When called upon by TDC member Gene Brown, Diggins expressed his support for a ferry stop in Holmes Beach.
Falcione and Diggins agree that the privately-owned bayside docking area at the Waterline Resort is the ideal spot for a ferry stop, but that would require the property owners’ support.
“We should have a landing in Holmes Beach. I think it’s absurd we don’t,” Diggins told the TDC members. “It’s common sense. We live on an Island. Why should we not have a ferry landing there?”
The Waterline resort’s bayside seawall might be considered as a Holmes Beach ferry stop location. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
On June 17, Diggins and Falcione were present for a trial ferry docking session along the Waterline Resort’s bayside seawall. Diggins told The Sun the trial docking session went well.
On June 25, the Holmes Beach commission discussed a possible ferry stop and Diggins currently remains the only commission member fully supportive of that endeavor.
Diggins letter
The Sun’s reporting of the June 25 meeting mistakenly attributed to Diggins ferry-related safety concerns that were expressed by Commissioner Greg Kerchner, which prompted Diggins to send a letter to the editor that appeared in the July 10 issue.
In his letter, Diggins said, “I have never spoken to Elliott Falcione about my ‘concerns regarding the safety of the pontoon boats currently used for service.’ I want to make it clear that I support the county’s initiative to establish a robust water taxi service to the Island, including a Holmes Beach landing.
“The county has a long way to go to make that a functioning reality, but we have to start. And the current fleet of two pontoon boats gives us that start. It’s up to the county to shepherd through a viable plan that will provide another public transportation method for travel to/ from our city. We, as city leaders, have to be willing partners with the county on any water taxi initiative. I am committed to the water taxi initiative because I believe the future for travel to the island has to include a water option,” Diggins’s letter said, in part.
Mayor’s email
On July 11, Titsworth sent a ferry stop-related email to Diggins, Kerchner and Falcione.
Titsworth’s email first addressed Diggins’ letter to The Sun.
“I read your letter to the editor in the newspaper this week and I find it necessary to respond as I feel there could be some confusion as to your liaison role. Greg Kerchner is the acting liaison for the TDC. He had asked someone to cover for him at a meeting as he was going to be out of town and could not attend. This in no way means that you were to assume the liaison role for the TDC.
“Liaisons are merely to attend meetings and to inform the mayor and city commission of any pertinent information gained while attending these meetings. This attendance does not give liaisons the authority to speak on behalf of the mayor or city commission,” Titsworth stated in her email.
Titsworth’s email also included a statement addressed to Falcione. “Please feel free to reach out to our director of development services for assistance and in scheduling your pre-site plan application with the property owner and our city staff once you have established a proposed docking location. If there is anything I can do to help, don’t hesitate to ask.”
Additional comments
When commenting on Titsworth’s email, Diggins said, “My number one goal is to improve relations with the county. We really do need each other and it just seems we are a few agreements away from having a better relationship. A water taxi stop may be the first step. It means a lot to the county.”
On July 14, Titsworth emailed some additional comments to The Sun.
“For years, I have been accused by the city of Bradenton and the county that I am against a ferry stop in the city. This isn’t at all true. I have told Elliott (Falcione) for years to bring us a plan. We do not have a pier in our city; therefore, it won’t be as easy as adding stops in the other cities,” she wrote.
“I told them (the county) that if they find a property then the procedure is to have the owner make a site plan application to the city with the planning department and that I would make certain that it got to the commission for consideration. They have never brought a plan forward. Being that this site plan application may be coming before them, commissioners are to stay neutral on this application until staff has had a chance to report on the application and a public hearing is had.”
For information on Learn more about Gulf Island Ferry tickets, schedules and more, please visit the ferry service website.
TALLAHASSEE – Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed proposed state legislation that would have significantly hindered city and county governments’ ability to regulate short-term vacation rentals locally.
The Florida Legislature proposed the vetoed legislation earlier as Senate Bill 280 and House Bill 1537. Legislators sought to preempt short-term vacation rental regulation and vacation rental advertising to the state, with the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation serving as the statewide administrative and enforcement entity.
Sen. Nick DiCeglie (R-St. Petersburg) sponsored SB 280 and State Rep. Philip Griffitts Jr. (R-Panama City Beach) sponsored House Bill 1537. Sen. Jim Boyd (R-Bradenton) and State Rep. Will Robinson Jr. (R-Bradenton) supported the vacation rental preemptions sought in the matching bills.
The proposed legislation also included a controversial carve-out that would have allowed Flagler County to continue enforcing its existing vacation rental regulations.
Veto letter
At approximately 6:30 p.m. on June 27, DeSantis sent Secretary of State Cord Byrd a letter informing him of the veto.
“Beyond creating new bureaucratic red tape that locals must comply with, CS/SB 280 prevents local governments from enforcing existing ordinances or passing any new local measure that would exclusively apply to vacation rentals. Under the bill, any such measure must apply to all residential properties. The effect of this provision will prevent virtually all local regulation of vacation rentals even though the vacation rental markets are far from uniform across the various regions of the state,” DeSantis stated in his letter.
Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed CS/SB 280. – www.FlGov.com
“Going forward, I encourage the Florida Legislature and all key stakeholders to work together with the understanding that vacation rentals should not be approached as a one-size-fits-all issue. For these reasons, I withhold my approval of CS/SB 280 and do hereby veto the same,” DeSantis wrote.
Anna Maria discussion
Around the same time DeSantis vetoed the legislation, Mayor Dan Murphy told Anna Maria City Commissioners the city’s lobbyist, Matthew Blair, remained optimistic the governor would veto the bill.
Murphy said seven opposition campaigns recently initiated through the city-owned HomeRuleFl.com website resulted in approximately 3,000 letters, emails and phone calls being directed to DeSantis and his staff.
Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy actively opposed the proposed vacation rental legislation. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
“The raw nerve was the Flagler County carve-out. There’s no logical explanation for the carve-out of Flagler County other than it’s the home of the speaker of the house (Paul Renner) and home to a relatively powerful senator (Travis Hutson),” Murphy said.
He also addressed the “pork chop” legislation references contained in the emails sent to DeSantis. He noted the Tampa Tribune newspaper coined the phrase “pork chop politics” many years ago while covering the patronizing and self-serving actions of Florida politicians who made laws that excluded certain people while impacting most others.
“It’s a lousy way to do politics,” Murphy said.
Island reaction
Later that evening, after learning of DeSantis’ veto, Murphy sent an email to city commissioners and others that said, “Congratulations commissioners and staff. Our governor vetoed the vacation rental bill tonight. I so much appreciate all of your support with our campaigns and efforts to stop this poorly thought-out piece of ‘pork chop’ legislation.”
Friday morning, Home Rule Florida distributed an email thanking subscribers for their efforts.
“Thanks to you and your thousands of letters and phone calls made to the governor, he saw that this was ‘pork chop’ legislation and simply bad policy. It’s amazing what we can do when we all pull together. The ‘pork chop’ has been chopped,” the email said.
When contacted Friday morning, Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth said, “I was out of town when I received the news. I am eternally grateful to the governor for allowing us to continue to self-govern and retain our ability to regulate our vacation rental industry accordingly.
Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth appreciates Gov. Ron DeSantis’ veto. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
“The ability to regulate with daily fines allows us to bring all into compliance. The bill that was passed would have circumvented all regulations we have been able to use to restore the balance in our residential districts,” she said.
“Regulating this commercial industry in our neighborhoods is crucial in maintaining quality of life for our residents and to maintain our full-time population. This is crucial for our churches, our commercial and professional economy and our schools. The ability to enforce occupancy and length of stay would have been the biggest concern of this bill. It pretty much took all the tools out of our toolbox,” she said.
“I thank all those who wrote letters and participated in the Save Home Rule campaign. We are gaining residents in our city and it has everything to do with our ability to self-govern on quality-of-life issues. There is a lot to be said about being on the right side of history. I wish more leaders would figure that out,” Titsworth said.
The city of Holmes Beach can continue inspecting and regulating short-term vacation rentals. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Holmes Beach Police Chief Bill Tokajer said, “The mayor and I are ecstatic that the governor vetoed this bill and left it to the local governments. We, as a city, are doing a tremendous job at monitoring our vacation rentals for safety for our visitors and residents alike. We also want to thank all the citizens from Holmes Beach and Anna Maria Island that reached out to the governor asking for the veto of this bill. A village came together on this and it is much appreciated.”
When contacted late Friday morning, Murphy said, “I was elated that we were able to once again stop this legislation from going forward. It shows that when we all work together, we can accomplish great things. This is an illustration of the power of the people and getting the message up to the governor. I’m extremely grateful to the governor for having vetoed it and for listening to the people who would have been impacted by this legislation. This was a statewide effort and HomeRuleFl.com played a large part in getting that message out.”
Regarding the proposed legislation, Murphy said, “The heaviest impact would have been pulling away the occupancy limits. For us, that would be an overnight increase of approximately 30% in terms of occupancy in our city. We don’t have the infrastructure for it. We don’t have the parking, the police, the sewer, or the water to cover a 30% increase. You could absorb it over time, but to pull the plug on us overnight is wrong. That was poorly thought out by Sen. DiCeglie,” Murphy said.
The proposed legislation would have allowed local governments to still conduct an initial inspection of a vacation rental property but would not have allowed annual follow-up inspections.
“That shows you how little the author of this bill knows about the vacation rental business. It doesn’t make sense,” Murphy said. “These homes experience constant turnover week after week. Things wear out. Things get broken. People will cram as many people as they can into a home. We find rooms with no egress, with smoke detectors underneath fans, with pool alarms and pool fences missing and those types of things. That’s not safe. This is not one-size-fits-all. Anna Maria, Orlando, St. Augustine and the panhandle attract different types of visitors.”
Despite this year’s success, Murphy expects the legislative battle to continue.
“It’s going to be back next year and the year after that,” he said. “They’re not going to go away, but fortunately the governor and his staff have enough wisdom to see this is not in the best interest of the State of Florida. It’s not in the best interest of the visitors and it’s not in the best interest of the voters. It’s in the best interest of out-of-state corporations like Airbnb and VRBO.”
Murphy will not seek reelection this fall and this was his final vacation rental battle with state legislators. During his 10 years as mayor, he repeatedly led Anna Maria’s annual efforts to defeat the Florida Legislature’s failed preemption attempts. He will soon turn those duties over to Anna Maria’s next mayor, Mark Short or Brian Seymour.
“I feel good that we have two candidates for mayor that are qualified to carry this fight on. We’ve got a good staff that’s trained and knows how to use these tools and we’ve got a good lobbyist. That’s what it’s going to take,” he said.
HOLMES BEACH – A new contender is putting her hat in the ring for one of two city commission seats up for grabs in November.
Carol Whitmore is a well-known face in the community and in local politics. Previously, she served as a city commissioner in Holmes Beach followed by tenure as the city’s mayor and several years on the Manatee County board of commissioners as an at-large commissioner. Whitmore left local politics in late 2022 to pursue the role of development administrator for Help to Home Inc. Now she said her contract with that nonprofit organization is up and she’s ready to step back into the local political spotlight with the goal of helping her community.
“I love my city,” Whitmore said of the Anna Maria Island community that has been her home for 55 years.
She said that she has no agenda going into the November election other than to try and shine a positive light on Holmes Beach. She added that she hopes to use her relationships with local and state leaders as well as with candidates running in elections throughout Manatee County to help rebuild and reinforce positive working relationships between officials.
“I want to move our city forward and hopefully help rebuild relationships,” she said.
Despite having previously served in the role, Whitmore said she has no interest in running for the mayoral seat in Holmes Beach that’s also up for election this year.
Also in the race for the two commission seats are incumbent Commissioner Dan Diggins and resident Steven Oelfke. Incumbent Commissioner Greg Kerchner has not yet qualified to run for re-election.
Incumbent Mayor Judy Titsworth thus far has one challenger for her seat, Tampa businessman Mike Roth.
Candidate qualifying for the Holmes Beach commission and mayoral seats continues at the Manatee County Supervisor of Elections Office through Friday, June 14 at noon. For more information on how to file to be a candidate, visit www.votemanatee.com.
Manatee County commissioners are on a roll when it comes to disappointing their constituents.
Despite overwhelming protests from the community, commissioners have approved $2.9 million for three pre-design criteria packages for three parking garages, one at Manatee Beach in Holmes Beach.
Even Commissioner George Kruse, whom Island residents were starting to rally around, voted in favor of the budget amendment.
Commissioners’ intent with these packages is to seek a public-private partnership agreement for a private developer and builder to come in with a bid package to build and run these parking facilities. The reason a private company or investor would do such a thing, as was said on the county commission dais on May 14, is so they can profit from the paid parking facility.
There goes Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge’s supposed reason for going around Holmes Beach officials to build the parking garage at the beach, which was to give more people access to the beach. Instead, by this plan, only those willing to pay for the privilege of parking on Anna Maria Island will have access to the beach.
Van Ostenbridge already stated that he has no intention of seeking a reduced or free rate for Manatee County residents. Now he and the other five members of the county commission are actively spending tax dollars to build a revenue stream for the developers – and possible campaign contributors – they select at the expense of taxpayers and Manatee County residents.
Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth is the only Anna Maria Island mayor who has taken a stand against paid parking and doesn’t allow it in her city. Holmes Beach has the only free and truly accessible beach access left on Anna Maria Island and county commissioners have gone all the way to the state Legislature and Gov. Ron DeSantis to make sure that it’s closed to only those willing to pay a premium to access the sand.
With the current slate of county commissioners, this is your tax dollars at work, something voters should remember at the ballot box in the Aug. 20 Republican primary, where many of our local elections are decided, and in the Nov. 5 general election.
ANNA MARIA – Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy and Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth are not on the same page when it comes to the potential consolidation of law enforcement services, with each mayor preferring their city’s law enforcement agency take over policing in both cities.
As is the case in most cities, law enforcement on Anna Maria Island is the most expensive public service provided to residents, visitors and businesses. With the looming threat of state-imposed consolidation facing the three Island cities, the three Island mayors continue to look for cost-cutting measures that would save taxpayers’ dollars and potentially appease state legislators who requested the consolidation study being conducted by the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability (OPPAGA).
Holmes Beach and Bradenton Beach have their own police depart ments and police chiefs. Anna Maria does not, and instead contracts law enforcement services from the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO). Led by Sgt. Brett Getman, with additional supervision provided by Lt. John Belt, the MCSO Anna Maria Unit is headquartered in the former city annex building on Pine Avenue.
On April 23, Titsworth met with State Rep. Will Robinson Jr. to discuss consolidation and the concerns associated with that state-imposed scenario. Titsworth then told The Sun that she and Police Chief Bill Tokajer were in preliminary talks with Murphy about the Holmes Beach Police Department taking over law enforcement in Anna Maria.
Titsworth told The Sun the two cities would research the financial numbers associated with the potential consolidation of law enforcement services, and also the potential drafting of an interlocal agreement between the two cities.
Mayor Dan Murphy supports the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office providing primary law enforcement services to all three Island cities. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Murphy addressed then these matters during the May 9 Anna Maria City Commission meeting.
“The article said Mayor Titsworth and I were working together on looking at having Holmes Beach provide police services for the city of Anna Maria and that we were preparing an interlocal agreement to do just that. That’s not the case,” Murphy said.
“Mayor Titsworth and I had a phone conversation shortly after she met with Representative Robinson. I said the elephant in the room is public safety. We’re operating with three separate police forces,” Murphy said.
Murphy noted Anna Maria is paying $1.3 million for contracted MCSO law enforcement services for the current 2023-24 fiscal year, the lowest of the three Island cities.
For the current fiscal year, Holmes Beach budgeted $4.63 million for its police department and Bradenton Beach budgeted $1.77 million. Combined, the three cities budgeted $7.7 million for law enforcement.
“If you really wanted to save the taxpayers’ money, which has always been the caveat in consolidating, that’s what should be looked at,” Murphy said.
Murphy said Titsworth did tell him that she would look into Holmes Beach providing police services to Anna Maria, but he favors a different approach – eliminating the Holmes Beach and Bradenton Beach police departments and contracting the sheriff’s office to provide Island-wide law enforcement services.
“I’m very pleased with the services the sheriff is providing us. We have far more scope of services with the sheriff’s department than we could ever have with an Island-wide police force,” Murphy said, noting the sheriff’s office has a helicopter, K-9 officers, detectives, marine patrol officers and more.
“The array of services are almost endless from a public safety standpoint and they’re economical. To me, that would be significant savings,” Murphy said.
When contacted by The Sun the following day, Titsworth confirmed that she and Murphy discussed the two cities sharing a police force.
She then noted Holmes Beach has mutual aid agreements with the sheriff’s office and other law enforcement agencies in Manatee County regarding the sharing of technology, equipment and services. She also said the sheriff’s office provides Holmes Beach with additional assistance during high-volume holiday weekends.
HOLMES BEACH – The Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability study being conducted on the three Anna Maria Island cities is starting to rattle local city leaders.
During a March 26 commission meeting, Mayor Judy Titsworth said she had participated in a conference call with OPPAGA representatives, who recently visited the Island to observe the city’s public works department.
She said that afterwards, she hoped the state representatives were considering public works as a possible department to consolidate across all three Island cities to save money. In talking with Public Works Supervisor Sage Kamiya after the visit, Titsworth said she learned that wasn’t the case. Instead, she said OPPAGA representatives were looking at public works as the only department that would need to remain on the Island if all three cities were eliminated and daily government operations were moved to the city of Bradenton or Manatee County.
“So that’s unfortunate,” she said. “I’m still hopeful because that is such an overreach. That is going to affect people so much. Their everyday lives are going to change so drastically if we don’t have their cities out here and they have to go to the county for everything. Your tax bill, you’re not assured that any of that is coming out here. I think you’re going to get more resistance from the residents and our visitors who love this Island with that type of an option. Unfortunately, I’m almost certain that’s the only one they’re looking at right now.”
Titsworth said that she’s still trying to get dialogue reopened between the city and state Rep. Will Robinson Jr. but hasn’t yet been successful.
Robinson is one of the five state legislative delegation members from Manatee County who ordered the OPPAGA study without the input of the three Island municipal governments.
While the three Island mayors said previously that they would support the OPPAGA study with the goal of looking at ways to save taxpayer money across the three cities, they all said they do not support consolidation or elimination of the cities.
The four possibilities being studied by OPPAGA representatives include consolidation of the three cities into one new city, elimination of the city governments and annexation of Anna Maria Island into the city of Bradenton or Manatee County or leaving the Island governments intact.
Titsworth said she believes that the OPPAGA study is focusing on elimination of the cities and annexation into Manatee County to get development rights for the Island. Currently, development on Anna Maria Island is controlled by city regulations. Those regulations would vanish if the city governments are eliminated.
Once the study is complete, City Attorney Erica Augello said that consolidation or elimination of the cities could be forced at the state level as a special act of the Legislature. The OPPAGA study would be submitted with a bill by the beginning of September and then would go through three committees in the House, voted on in the House floor and, if it passes, be put on the con-sent agenda for the Senate unless someone in the Senate pulls the bill for discussion. If the bill passes those hurdles, it would go to Gov. Ron DeSantis for approval or veto.
Commissioner Carol Soustek said it’s not just the current residents who are being affected by the ongoing study. She said she’s also spoken with potential residents who are holding off on purchasing property on the Island because of the uncertainty of the outcome of the OPPAGA study.
Titsworth said that staff members in all three cities also are working with a cloud of uncertainty hanging over their heads about the future of their jobs. She said the only thing they can do is persevere.
Commissioner Terry Schaefer said he was told that Sen. Jim Boyd, one of the members of the Manatee County state delegation, would meet with him and Titsworth at the end of the legislative session, which ended two weeks ago. Schaefer said he’s losing patience and is drafting a letter to Boyd to try again to set up a meeting to discuss consolidation.
TOWN HALL MEETING POSTPONED
Holmes Beach leaders planned to host a town hall workshop on Tuesday, April 9, but the workshop has been postponed indefinitely and may or may not take place at a future date.
BRADENTON BEACH
Bradenton Beach Mayor John Chappie confirmed that OPAGGA representatives recently visited the city’s Department of Public Works, headed by Tom Woodard, which is responsible for the maintenance and repair of city-owned streets, sidewalks and traffic signs, street striping, stormwater drains and systems, maintenance of city facilities and parks and street sweeping.
When asked about his thoughts on the OPAGGA study, Chappie said, “We’re going through the process.”
ANNA MARIA
OPPAGA representatives were unable to meet recently with Anna Maria Public Works Manager Roosevelt Jones, who was on bereavement leave, according to Mayor Dan Murphy, who said that Jones is expected to participate in a phone meeting with OPPAGA representatives this week.
Leslie Lake and Joe Hendricks contributed to this report.
ANNA MARIA – While celebrating Anna Maria Island’s historic past, the Anna Maria Island Historical Society’s annual Heritage Day celebration raised more than $3,000.
Taking place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on March 26 at the Anna Maria Island Historical Museum and Historical Park, Heritage Day featured free tours of the museum and the historic Belle Haven cottage, a yarn maker, a basket weaver, other crafters and vendors, face painting and other kid’s activities, live music by the Anna Maria String Band, strawberry shortcake sales by historical society members, food sales by Poppo’s Taquerias and the Anna Maria Island Privateers’ capture, confinement and ransom-inspired release of Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy and Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth.
Basket and hat weaver David Rhone traveled from Salt Lake City, Utah to participate in his second Heritage Day event. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
The Anna Maria String Band provided the live music. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
At noon, the Privateers captured Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy and Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth and held them hostage in “The Old City Jail” until more than $1,000 was raised in ransom to secure their release. The ransom donations included $350 from Titsworth’s husband, Steve, and donations Murphy secured using his cell phone while held captive.
AMI Privateers Jane “Sleeping Beauty” Hyatt and Terry “Colonel” Kilpatrick held Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth and Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy captive until they raised enough ransom to secure their release. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
After being released, Murphy said, “It was a lot of fun and it’s always a good cause to help the Anna Maria Island Historical Society. I’m pleased that we were able to do so much in terms of raising money.”
Titsworth said, “That was a lot of fun and the weather was absolutely gorgeous. I love the historical society. We’ve got so much history here and I just love the fact that’s there’s so many citizens who are willing to contribute to the success of the historical society.”
Sold and served by historical society members Barbara Murphy and Karen Gardner, the strawberry shortcake sales featured fresh Plant City strawberries provided by Ed Chiles and shortcake provided by Hometown Desserts.
Barbara Murphy and Karen Gardner sold fresh strawberry shortcake.- Joe Hendricks | Sun
After displaying her old-fashioned methods to young Hattie Neaton, traditional yarn maker Donna Stansbury said, “It’s fun to show the kids and that little girl learned quick.”
Illinois resident Axel Darby got her face painted by Winter Kelly. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Historical Society president and museum docent Liz Hager said, “We’ve been doing Heritage Day now for a long time at the museum and Heritage Day is better today than it’s ever been. We have unbelievable vendors selling beautiful things, people enjoying strawberry shortcake, a face painter, live music and so much more.”
Local artist Corine Finnie painted a sea turtle on a small, oval-shaped canvas. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Invited last-minute when another vendor cancelled, Love’s Parden boutique owner Adrienne Lerfald displayed her jewelry, crystals, sage sticks and other mystical offerings. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
In addition to being an important annual fundraiser, Hager said Heritage Day is also a great way to attract new visitors and passersby to the museum and museum grounds as they wander in to see what’s going on.
AMI Historical Society President Liz Hager said Heritage Day is an important annual fundraiser for the museum and the historical society. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Museum docent Eileen Jellison shared the history of the Belle Haven cottage. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
“People are walking through Belle Haven and walking through the museum. We hope it teaches them about our Island’s history. The museum is free and completely volunteer-run Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in season, and 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. outside of season,” she said.
See additional photos below:
Representing the UF/IFAS Extension’s Florida Master Gardener Program, Kathy Oliver shared info about the historic use of native vegetation. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Participating for the first time, Jill Allen sold seagrass art and more at her Tide’s Porch tent. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Anna Maria resident Doug Copeland provided incumbent at-large Manatee County Commission candidate George Kruse with one of the 2,800 petition signatures he needs to get on this year’s ballot. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
HOLMES BEACH – Mayor Judy Holmes Titsworth has consistently defended the city against Manatee County officials and Florida legislators who propose to chip away at home rule, particularly on the parking garage and consolidation issues that have made headlines over the past several months.
For her determination and hard work, the Anna Maria Island Sun names Titsworth as one of its two 2023 Persons of the Year.
“Naming Mayor Judy your Person of the Year is a no-brainer,” Holmes Beach Commissioner Greg Kerchner said. “Especially in this tough political environment, she does so much for this city, takes so much grief and gets so little credit that I’m thrilled to see her receive this award. No one deserves it more. Her family’s history with Holmes Beach may be obvious but her dedication to improving our waters, wetlands and environment is just as important. It’s going to be really tough finding another mayor, let alone a city manager who will be as dedicated, accomplish as much or work as hard for so little compensation.”
“As police chief for the city of Holmes Beach with 45 years’ experience, I can say that Judy Titsworth is an amazing mayor to work with,” Chief Bill Tokajer said. “She lets me do my job. She allows us to have all the equipment that we need. All of our board members are on the same team, everybody’s going in the same direction and the direction that the city needs to go. She is in love with this city and has the city at heart and she takes it really hard when people attack her and the city. Not her personally, but the city itself. As to the work that we’re doing and how much we’ve accomplished, it’s just phenomenal. For us to be attacked and for her to be attacked is just unconscionable. She deserves this award. We appreciate her and I hope she knows it.”
“Judy has been like my little sister,” Commissioner Pat Morton said. “I was the one who got her involved in the commission. I worked on her for five years to get her in here and it has never been a regret. She’s been the best mayor we’ve had since I’ve been on the Island. I’ve been here over 30 years. She just grew so much since she became mayor. It’s beyond anything we could have out here. She stands up for the citizens, like all of them should do, and she respects our city employees and everyone else. And she’s earned their total respect in return. I will back her any way I can.”
Titsworth is part of the Holmes family that founded the city of Holmes Beach and was a city commissioner for many years before becoming mayor. She is currently serving her third term as mayor after running unopposed in 2022. In addition to being the city’s mayor, a job that’s she’s committed to full-time, she’s also working to oppose Manatee County commissioners’ plans to install a parking garage at Manatee Beach in violation of the city’s ordinances and land development code as well as working with the mayors of Anna Maria and Bradenton Beach to fight against a push from the state to consolidate the three Anna Maria Island cities.
In the past year, she’s also worked with city staff and other leaders to develop the Islanders 4 Clean Water campaign to help bring public awareness to issues affecting local water quality and the environment.
HOLMES BEACH – Holmes Beach city commissioners discussed the Florida Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability (OPPAGA)’s consolidation study on Nov. 14, which lists the city of Bradenton as a possible annexation destination for Holmes Beach, Anna Maria and Bradenton Beach.
Reading aloud a statement, Commissioner Greg Kerchner said, “When I offered up my last soliloquy, I poured out my concerns over the influence of local developers, about state and county politicians not having our best interests at heart and about the threat of a consolidation being forced down our throats.
Commissioner Greg Kerchner stressed the importance of providing OPPAGA with all the pertinent facts. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
“But maybe we can turn this threat into an opportunity. Our job now must be to help the evaluators follow their own guidelines. We must ensure that they learn the unblemished truth about what has already transpired and must guarantee that they have all the facts they need to reach fair and just conclusions so that their recommendations are in the best interests of everyone involved, islanders and off-islanders alike,” Kerchner said.
“We need to wipe away any taint of political wrangling by clearly and fairly highlighting the relevant facts while insisting that all pertinent issues are considered. Unfortunately, this includes all the issues around visitor parking in Holmes Beach, which, for whatever reason, continues to play an outsized role in all our interactions with legislators and other governments,” Kerchner said.
Commission Chair Terry Schaefer said the consolidation of the Island cites would be “the granddaddy of destruction and overriding home rule in our community.”
Commissioners also discussed statements that Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth and State Rep. Will Robinson Jr. (R-Bradenton) made the previous week regarding the study.
Titsworth said she hadn’t planned on addressing the OPPAGA study again until she read Robinson’s comments in the newspaper.
“Just because they’re saying something doesn’t mean it’s true. Just because they keep repeating the same thing doesn’t make it any more true. I don’t know how to respond to this continued narrative – and it’s always directed at me, it’s always directed at our city. We are upholding our charter, our comprehensive plan, our land development code. We care about quality of life. We are showing up to work every day,” she said.
“They keep pointing at the mayor that’s ‘putting up roadblocks,’ the mayor’s ‘that’s not doing what she says.’ I have done every single thing that’s been asked of me except putting unlimited parking in our residential districts. Name me one coastal community that has unlimited parking. There are none. We’ve proven that we have excess parking on any given day. Everybody who wants to can come right now; they just don’t want to because there’s too much congestion and traffic,” Titsworth said.
She noted the city recently created additional public parking spaces along Holmes Boulevard. She also noted she previously took Manatee County commissioners George Kruse and Jason Bearden on tours of the city’s available parking spaces.
“During that peak season tour, there were empty parking spaces in our city right of ways. I showed him (Kruse) the church parking available for overflow. He was amazed. Same thing with Bearden. Spring break, height of season, there were empty parking places everywhere. How can you continue to say we’re preventing families from coming out here? It’s wrong and I’m over the false narrative,” Titsworth said.
Titsworth said the consolidation study is “a power grab from the top down” being driven by state legislators and not by the Island residents and property owners who will have no input on the consolidation study requested by Robinson, Sen. Jim Boyd and the other members of the Manatee County Legislative Delegation.
Titsworth said all three Island cities are thriving.
“Why wouldn’t somebody want the city of Holmes Beach?” she asked. “We have zero debt. We have $12 million in reserves. At a height limit of 36 feet, we have a $3 billion taxable value in our little city of Holmes Beach. The city of Anna Maria is $2 billion. The city of Bradenton Beach is $1 billion. Our three tremendous little cities equal the taxable value of the city of Bradenton and all their high rises and everything else.”
According to the Manatee County Property Appraiser’s Office, the total taxable value of all Bradenton properties in 2023 is $5.91 billion. The total taxable value of all Anna Maria Island properties is $6.15 billion.
The current millage rates in Anna Maria and Holmes Beach are 2.05 mills. The current millage rate in Bradenton Beach is 2.3329. Bradenton is 5.8351 mills and Manatee County is 6.2326 mills.
“Consolidate us into the city of Bradenton, they just doubled their taxable value. This is not about parking. It has never been about parking. It’s about doing what they want to do,” Titsworth said. “I don’t want to play these games. I want them to leave us alone. I promised OPPAGA we are going to work with you and give you every single thing you want from our city. We are a good city. We have so much to be proud of and we have every right to continue to be a city that serves the people who want to be here.”
Titsworth refuted Robinson’s statement that the Holmes Beach population has declined.
“That is not true. Our population is increasing, and it’s because of the hard work of our commission and our boards; and because it’s paradise out here,” she said.
In his recent statement, Robinson said he would support maintaining the height limits currently established in each of the three cities’ charters.
Earlier this year, Robinson co-sponsored state legislation that allows Manatee County to build a three-story parking garage at Manatee Beach in Holmes Beach.
“Representative Robinson said he’d respect the limits we have right now, but he told me if he could have had six stories, he could have gotten 1,500 to 1,700 parking spaces,” Titsworth said.
Commission Chair Terry Schaefer believes the consolidation study is motivated by financial interests. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
In support of Titsworth’s comments, Commission Chair Terry Schaefer said, “The commission stands squarely behind you. It seems like some legislators have forgotten where they came from.”
Schaefer expressed confidence that the information provided by each of the three Island cities would support their continued operation as independent cities.
“I was encouraged to hear elected officials will be interviewed. I was discouraged to hear the plan is not to hear from the public,” he said.
Shaefer said he’s been researching the city of Bradenton and Manatee County regarding their debt obligations and financial reserves.
“It’s an eye-opener, folks. Strong positive reserves in all three Island cities. Not so much the case in the alternative. I don’t have any doubt that the whole motivation is financial. I think the garage was a smokescreen. I think it was an issue that they took up to try to taint and create ill will to divide people from off-Island and those of us who live and serve here. I think it backfired,” Schaefer said.
“If anyone is wondering why, the why is the money and the dissolution of charters. Height restrictions go away. If you don’t think there are aggressive developers out there who wouldn’t like to have an opportunity to build something higher than 36 feet in our city and on our beaches, pay more attention to what’s happening where communities don’t have control,” he said.
On Nov. 16, the city of Holmes Beach received a request for information letter from OPPAGA. That letter can be read here.
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.
BRADENTON – More than 50 concerned citizens and city officials gathered on Friday to protest Manatee County’s plans to build a 1,500-space, three-story parking garage at Manatee Beach in Holmes Beach.
The protesters made their voices heard along Manatee Avenue in front of the county administration building in downtown Bradenton.
The scheduled protest coincidentally occurred a few hours after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed House Bill 947. Introduced by State Rep. Will Robinson (R-Bradenton), supported by Sen. Jim Boyd (R-Bradenton) and unanimously approved by the Florida House and the Florida Senate, HB 947 allows Manatee County to build a parking garage on the county-owned Manatee Beach property in Holmes Beach despite the city’s prohibitions on the construction of a parking garage.
Manatee Beach in 1955. – Manatee County Historical Records Library | Submitted
The parking garage must still comply with the height restrictions contained in Holmes Beach’s city charter, which will limit it to three stories with parking on the roof. To make room for the garage, which is expected to fill the entire existing parking lot, the vintage concession stand and other buildings at the beach will be demolished.
The estimated $45 million construction process is expected to take two years.
Protesters speak
Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth and city commissioners Dan Diggins and Carol Soustek participated in Friday’s protest.
“I’m glad the bill was either signed or vetoed because I didn’t want it to just go unnoticed,” Titsworth said. “Now people know what DeSantis believes in – the loss of home rule and big government overreach. That completely circumvents our ability to govern and people don’t have a voice anymore. It’s wrong.
“The parking garage is unfunded, so the county’s going to have to find the money. I hope they don’t dip into reserves because we need those reserves, especially with the increased magnitude of the hurricanes coming our way. And there’s a lot of infrastructure in the county that needs funding. We’re dealing with a county water pipe issue right now. I hope they put the emphasis on things like that instead.”
Holmes Beach Commissioner Dan Diggins, left, and Mayor Judy Titsworth were among the many protestors. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Titsworth said the fight is not over.
“We have legal recourse and a couple other things we’re working on that I think could make an impact,” she said. “The citizens have to take their stand and tell the people they elected how disappointed they are.”
Titsworth said the city will have no input or oversight of the construction of the parking garage.
“They made sure we didn’t have a seat at the table. I’ve never seen such hostile local bill,” she said.
Diggins said, “I think it’s heavy-handed government at its worst. This bill was passed to solve an undefined problem. They never brought us a plan to say this is what we’d like to do with the studies about drainage, traffic and beach carrying capacity. If those things were done, we’d be open to consider it. This whole thing was done bass-ackwards.
“It was basically done because some county commissioner got their feelings hurt,” Diggins said. “We passed an ordinance that banned a parking garage. It had nothing to do with the county’s plans and that set this whole thing in motion. Once (Manatee County Commissioner) Kevin Van Ostenbridge saw that, he threatened us with retribution; and apparently, this is part of that retribution.”
Diggins and Titsworth were asked if the county ever considered buying the nearby vacant Bank of America property and building a parking garage there instead.
“I brought that up in front of Kevin and he said, ‘Why would I do that when we already own the county beach?’ He didn’t want to do it,” Titsworth said.
“I talked to Kevin before I was a commissioner and I brought up that suggestion. He said why would we do that? We already own the county beach,” Diggins echoed.
Soustek said, “There’s a lot of people here that are very concerned. We appreciate everyone who takes a stand against big government trying to take away home rule rights from the cities. It’s not the solution. It’s just another problem. There are other solutions. There are studies that were done in the past and they recommend off-Island mass transportation to the Island. That would help with the traffic. I think they should have taken a lot more time to look into the matter before they pushed it through.”
Holmes Beach resident and Island business owner Morgan Bryant helped organize the protest.
Carla Ballew, Talha Siddique and Morgan Bryant participated in Friday’s protest. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
“I want to preserve Anna Maria Island. We don’t need a 1,500-space parking garage. It’s sad that the first thing people are going to see when they drive over the bridge is a giant parking garage,” she said.
“The biggest thing here is big government overreach and circumventing our home rule and our city’s ability to preserve itself. I was upset driving over here when I heard the news. I don’t know that this protest will change anything, but at least our voices will be heard. I hope the city and the county can find a better solution. People need to be made aware of the parking spaces we have throughout Holmes Beach and the Island. I grew up in east Bradenton. I understand why people get upset when they can’t find parking spaces, but there are parking spaces,” Bryant said.
Manatee County has the green light to make the parking lot east of Manatee Beach into a three-story parking garage from end to end. – Troy Morgan/PhotosFromTheAir.com | Submitted
“Some of us are also concerned that this will open up the door to a higher structure and before you know it, we’ll have a whole bunch of high-rises on the Island,” former Island resident Carla Ballew said. “We’re trying to keep the jewel that it was, which it’s not anymore, but we’re still trying to preserve some of that quaintness that used to be Anna Maria Island.”
“The county has completely mishandled this entire situation from start to finish. This is an absolute misuse and waste of our tax dollars,” Speak Out Manatee founder Talha Siddique said. “The county has closed off far more beach parking than the city of Holmes Beach has and that’s almost $50 million that could go to schools, teachers, our police and firefighters and our crumbling infrastructure. Our elected officials want to put our money towards something we don’t want. At its core this is a local issue. Our county commission didn’t want to work out a deal with the city. That’s why we need to speak out and we need to vote in 2024. If these county commissioners aren’t going to vote in accordance with what we want them to do, we have an opportunity to take anybody out of office who doesn’t want to listen to us.”
Longtime Island resident Tom Aposporos said, “The governor signed the bill and it surprises me because I understood he was a believer in home rule. This is the antithesis of home rule. Can you imagine a parking garage staring you right in the face as you’re driving onto that bucolic Island? And making traffic worse, not better. How can anyone who has an ounce of decency think that’s a good idea?”
Regarding Robinson and Boyd’s legislative efforts, Aposporos said, “I’m surprised. I’ve never had a reason to disrespect either one of them. I do not understand this at all. I think there has been political intrigue between the local governments and those gentlemen as state officials, but somehow I think that can be worked out. It doesn’t have to become this draconian decision to build a multi-story parking garage in the middle of a beautiful place. It will not accomplish what they’re saying it will accomplish and I hope that all comes out in the courts.”
Charlene Smock, left, and Brandi Brady question State Rep. Will Robinson Jr.’s legislative efforts. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Charlene Smock and Brandi Brady were among those holding blue and red signs that said, “Danger Will Robinson.” Smock lives in Palma Sola and Brady’s family has owned and operated the West Coast Surf Shop next to Manatee Beach for more than five decades.
Regarding DeSantis signing the bill, Brady said, “We just found out and we’re devastated. You’re going to fill that big concrete building on the beach with a lot more people coming to the Island and leaving the Island. All the tourists that come into our shop love the Island the way it is and everybody we’ve talked to is against the garage. That might be great for our business, but no. We have enough business. Everybody has enough business. The traffic’s going to be even worse,” Brady said.
Smock said, “Think about emptying that parking garage with 1,500 cars all trying to come out at once during bad weather.”
Smock suggested the county finish its Coquina Beach parking improvements so those temporarily unavailable parking spaces are available again.
We applaud our Holmes Beach mayor and commissioners and their fellow civic leaders in Anna Maria and Bradenton Beach for defending longstanding, reasonable local “home rule,” certainly a tradition one would not expect to have attacked by Republican legislators like Rep. Robinson and Sen. Boyd.
But then who would expect that elected officials across the bridge in Bradenton would have such evident disregard and disrespect for the special “old Florida” vibe of Anna Maria Island? An expensive, intrusive parking garage? Really? On an island that, except for the high-rise condos on 53rd Street, has a unique character compared to Longboat Key and other beachfront communities?
Extensive, appealing, public beach access (with ample parking) is regularly underused at picturesque Coquina Beach. As several residents have wisely observed and our police chief’s recent survey of ample available parking spaces proved, we have “a traffic problem, not a parking problem.”
Yet the facts are unimportant. It’s all about political muscle and optics! As the mayor’s recent reasonable compromise proposal suggests, this is a political battle we are in danger of losing. One hopes that this very workable compromise did not come too late.
Holmes Beach has perhaps appeared to be insufficiently attentive to concerns raised about parking for daytime visitors. And to be fair, the tightening of parking regulations and removal of formerly available spaces pose an inconvenience for long-time homeowners like us – part-time or full-time residents for almost 25 years. Two wide, beach-block streets (67th and 77th streets) now suddenly forbid parking on both sides, though vehicles and pedestrians would still have ample, safe passage. The latter change is especially regrettable for those of us aged and/or requiring shelter from the sun, as 77th has a welcome beachfront shelter but few parking spaces remaining (even though golf carts have additional protected spaces).
Let’s hope that our state’s legislative representatives engage in genuine dialogue with local leaders, so we have a plan that responds appropriately to the need for parking for non-residents. But essential is a plan that recognizes and respects the primary responsibility of the Island’s elected officials to protect the quality of life for homeowners as well as visitors and the special character of Anna Maria Island.
