ANNA MARIA ISLAND – Hurricane Idalia’s storm surge eroded the Island’s renourished beaches, but the full extent of the damage and when it will be repaired is not yet known.
“It could be months before any decision on what efforts will be undertaken is made,” Manatee County spokesman Bill Logan said in a Sept. 8 email to The Sun.
The first step of the process – evaluation by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) – has been completed.
“Jacksonville District completed preliminary damage assessments of all federal shore protection projects Sept. 1-3,” according to David Ruderman of the USACE Jacksonville Corporate Communications Office.
“Non-federal sponsors of federally authorized and constructed coastal storm risk management projects which sustained damages resulting from Hurricane Idalia have until Oct. 1 to apply for rehabilitation assistance under Public Law 84-99,” Ruderman said in an email to The Sun.
As of Sept. 15, Ruderman said requests have been received from Manatee and Pinellas counties.
During the Aug. 29 hurricane, storm surge reached 3-4 feet in coastal areas in Manatee County.
“This is the beginning of what I am told is a long process whereby the beaches are hand-measured, staked-out and surveyed for damage estimates from the storm and what measures may be needed to renourish any impacted areas,” Logan said in the Sept. 8 email.
Sarasota Bay Estuary Program (SBEP) Director Dr. Dave Tomasko evaluated the impact from Hurricane Idalia on the SBEP website.
“With Idalia, even though it was about 100 miles offshore, we were on its strong side, and thus we got the storm surge, even though we mostly experienced just tropical storm level winds,” he wrote. “This storm surge came a few hours before the peak of the full moon high tides.”
Water levels were retreating as the tide was coming up, Tomasko wrote.
“So, the dreaded ‘high tide on top of a storm surge’ did not happen,” Tomasko wrote. “That is lucky, because that could have added another foot or two. Still, water levels were about 3’ higher than they would have been otherwise.”
The last major beach renourishment locally was the 2021 Coquina Beach Storm Damage Restoration project, which placed approximately 74,805 cubic yards of sand at Coquina Beach.
“Beach renourishment projects not only provide recreational beach width for the benefit of residents and visitors, but during storm events, the sand also provides critical protection for structures and infrastructure landward of the beach. In addition, the beach provides critical habitat and nesting areas for protected species such as sea turtles and shorebirds,” according to Manatee County’s website.
Since 1992, Manatee County has participated in eight beach nourishment projects.
Approximately 6.9 million cubic yards of sand from offshore borrow areas have been placed as a result of the county’s and USACE’s beach preservation efforts.
It seems a little unfair that short-sighted decisions made by politicians in 2023 can have such a profound effect on the future of those who still have no voice in those choices. That’s why it’s important to give them a voice, and why Reel Time is donating space this week to 15-year-old Brice Claypoole.
I am 15 years old and live in Manatee County. More than anything, I enjoy exploring our local environment, our land and waters. I love to watch ospreys dive for fish and spoonbills squabble in mangrove swamps.
Sometimes, when I talk with long-time residents of our area, they tell me that I should have seen Manatee County 50 years ago. Back then, there were bountiful fish, few toxic algal blooms, expansive wetlands and an overall healthier landscape. Reckless and greedy developers have since torn out many of our wildlands, resulting in loss of biodiversity, increased storm damage and polluted waters. Our seagrass has declined hugely, our mangroves have all but disappeared, and red tide tortures our communities for unprecedented lengths of time.
To perpetuate this sad situation where corporate profits are valued over community well-being, developers spend hundreds of thousands of dollars slandering smart-growth politicians and promoting their own candidates. Every one of Manatee’s current county commissioners has strong ties to the development industry. Determined to refill their campaign coffers before the next election, the Board of County Commissioners (BCC) has opened the floodgates to uncontrolled development and environmental destruction. They have approved countless ruinous developments, weakened our comprehensive plan and overridden the decisions of local governments. But their latest scheme promises to be one of the most disastrous yet. It’s a systemic change that threatens to allow the unregulated destruction of Manatee’s remaining natural lands.
15-year-old Brice Claypoole wants your attention. – Submitted
Manatee County’s Land Development Code (LDC) and Comprehensive Plan are responsible for laying out regulations and procedures for land use. The goal of the LDC and comp plan is to plan land use and protect communities and resources. The county commission will soon vote on changes to the LDC and comp plan that were requested by the Manatee-Sarasota Building Industry Association (BIA).
Emails reveal that BIA president Jon Mast, multiple county employees, Commissioner Amanda Ballard’s husband and then-county administrator Scott Hopes met in January to discuss changes the BIA wanted to the LDC and comp plan. The meeting and changes were kept secret. The proposed changes, targeted mainly at gutting environmental protections, were written by local land use attorney Scott Rudacille. Rudacille is connected to local builders, including political power broker Carlos Beruff, who has contributed thousands of dollars to the campaigns of county commissioners. Before the redlined (proposed) LDC was leaked, the county intended to present changes as if their staff – not the industry which would benefit – had initiated them.
The content of the redlined documents is disturbing – protections for wetlands, our most valuable natural resources, have been removed. Along with deleting the comp plan’s policy 3.3.1.1., which prohibits the destruction of wetlands, county staff slashed much of policy 3.3.1.3. This means developers would be allowed to destroy wetlands without taking any action to mitigate the devastation.
Staff also removed the county’s requirements for wetland buffers of up to 50 feet, stripping protections down to the state’s bare minimum of a 25-foot average. Larger, more functional wetland buffers would no longer be required between developments and outstanding Florida waters or aquatic preserves. Studies show this would lead to increased water pollution and degrade Manatee residents’ quality of life. The buffers currently required by the LDC are already inadequate to safeguard natural resources and avert declining water quality. Buffers must be at least 100 feet to be fully functional. The state’s minimum 25-foot average does nothing to safeguard resources.
Denying this unjustified gutting of our LDC and comp plan should be an easy decision. However, the BCC has a massive conflict of interest in this matter, one that appears strong enough to make this Faustian board disregard their constituents’ wellbeing. Commissioner Mike Rahn is the former president of the BIA. BIA Treasurer Raymond Turner was just appointed to fill a vacant seat on the board. Commissioner Ballard’s husband worked for BIA. Floridians United for a Sustainable Economy PAC, which is funded by the BIA, has donated to the campaigns of all the commissioners. The BIA’s members include developers Patrick Neal and Carlos Beruff, who have poured thousands of dollars into the campaigns of our BCC. Convincing the commissioners to do the right thing won’t be easy.
As red tide and gumbo algae make life miserable for local communities, as starving manatees and poisoned sea turtles wash up on our beaches, we are experiencing the effects of bad governance. Now developers are demanding we turn bad governance into no governance and allow them to trade our future for profit.
In 10 years, what will life be like in Manatee County? How much worse will our lives be as seagrass dies, fisheries collapse, our tourism industry fades away, manatee and dolphin populations go extinct, and severe red tides become a year-round phenomenon?
It sounds like Rachel Carson’s dystopian essay, “A Fable for Tomorrow,” in which she imagined the demise of both nature and humanity at the hands of pesticide corporations. That threat has so far been averted, in no small part due to Carson herself, but the threat of overdevelopment now takes its place. The only thing that made a difference, the only thing that stopped the slow poisoning of the Earth by DDT, was a public outcry.
Public outcry. That is how we make a difference in this world.
I asked former 22-year Manatee County Commissioner Joe McClash what could convince the BCC not to cater to the BIA’s demands. McClash, a smart-growth proponent who lost his seat on the commission after a large-scale, developer-funded smear campaign, answered without hesitation. “The public needs to get out and tell the commission that this isn’t supported by science, that it isn’t supported by the community,” he said.
Our nature, our waters, and our communities cannot withstand this abuse. Without the LDC and comp plan regulations, our natural resources will collapse.
Will you tolerate our quality of life being sold to developers? Contact the commissioners (https://www.mymanatee.org/government/board_of_county_commissioners) and tell them that you won’t put up with this destruction.
Sign Suncoast Waterkeeper’s petition against BIA’s demands.
Attend the first commission hearing on the LDC and comp plan changes on Thursday, Aug. 10 at 9 a.m.
I am a fan of simple. I think we overanalyze many things. However, there are some things that call for higher-level thinking. The dilemma of transporting more people to AMI beaches is one of them.
The current knee-jerk parking garage solution from state and county leaders is decades old, tired and simple. It is “Boy howdy, let’s just pour us some more concrete.” It is wrong on so many levels.
There is a lesson here for the electorate. There are going to be other ongoing complex issues that call for creative and innovative thinking. The solutions to these issues will impact us all. We would be wise to elect future leaders who understand the whole picture, are forward-thinking and comprehend multiplex relationships. After all, they do have our fate in their hands.
BRADENTON – Concerned citizens symbolically held up books, such as Sun Tzu’s “The Art of War,” in protest of a controversial proposal by Manatee County Commissioner Amanda Ballard at the April 18 commission work session.
The county currently has a library advisory board that consists of five citizens who advise commissioners on a variety of subjects regarding libraries and their policies, but for Ballard, this isn’t enough.
“There’s been some confusion, maybe some deliberate fearmongering. My colleagues and I have been referred to as mullahs, fascists, Hitler book-banners and other incendiary terms,” Ballard said. “Public libraries have the responsibility to present all points of view, even if I, as an elected official, any other elected official or an advisory board finds those points of view personally abhorrent.”
According to Ballard, the current five-person advisory board was designed in the 1970s and its only requirement for members is to reside within prescribed geographic boundaries within the county.
“I’d like to see a larger collection development board with members that serve certain roles in the county,” Ballard said.
The new board would not have the ability to remove existing material from any county library, but if it did not agree with the purchase of new library items due to content or any other reason, the hope would be that librarians would consider the board’s opinion. In the end, the decision would rest with librarians, not the board.
Ballard closed her proposal by asking for the requirement of a parental consent form in order for anyone under 16 to check out materials related to sex education, reproduction and other books involving human sexuality, including LGBTQ+ materials, even if they are strictly educational. She also asked for general labels on children’s books involving human sexuality, coming-of-age, LGBTQ+ and other similar materials.
Commissioner George Kruse challenged the need for a second board, asking Ballard why a 15-person board was needed in addition to the current board, which would be essentially doing the same thing. Adding in third-party consultants, he said, amounts to the government being much bigger and more intrusive than it needs to be.
“I like smaller government,” Kruse said, “I also think that government is terrible at overseeing my life. To be finding a way to expand government with an additional advisory board in order to tell me more about what to do with my life seems to be counterintuitive to everything I campaigned on.”
The room had more citizens than seen at many meetings and, at one point, bailiffs were brought down to remove at least one person after multiple interruptions were made while commissioners discussed the issue. All were reminded that everyone who wished to speak would be allotted their three minutes.
“I’m a Manatee County resident and I was appalled watching the Feb. 21 meeting in which the board came off as inflammatory,” Anna Maria Island resident Cory Wright said while addressing the board as a concerned citizen. “It was clear in the last meeting that you think some of the libraries’ collections are too gay, too racially diverse and too liberal for your sensitivities.”
Wright’s comments were echoed by numerous citizens who said they think the proposal is taking things way too far and crossing First Amendment lines. Very few in attendance were on board with the expansion for the advisory board.
“We are unsure of the motivation leading to this. If the BCC would like to gain understanding of the library and provide more oversight, the mechanism is already in place,” Julie Perry, of Friends of the Island Library, said in an email to The Sun. “The appointment of a secondary citizen board is a provocative move. The county commissioners, citizens and library users would be better served if staff were allowed to continue their work and the BCC were to engage with the existing library advisory board. We need to remind the commissioners that our librarians are highly trained professionals, that includes book selection processes.”
After the public comments concluded, Ballard revised her initial motion to ask for the admission of additional members to the current advisory board rather than creating an additional board. The motion to expand the advisory board from five to nine citizens was unanimously approved by commissioners. Once the new board plan is drafted by the county attorney’s office, it will return to the board for formal adoption.
BRADENTON – Four hoteliers have been reappointed to the Manatee County Tourist Development Council (TDC).
In a meeting on July 27, county commissioners voted to retain the four TDC members for another four-year term.
The four members are Ed Chiles, Juten Patel, Eric Cairns and Rahul Patel. Commissioners voted for each seat individually, meaning they could choose to keep the current member or replace them with an applicant who meets the criteria for membership and garners enough Board votes to take the seat.
The TDC is made up of nine volunteer members who make recommendations to the County Commission concerning the operation of projects set forth in the Tourist Development Plan. They also make recommendations on Tourist Development Tax revenue is spent. Members are appointed by the commission in the following categories:
Three elected officials;
Four owner/operators of hotels, motels or other short-term rental accommodations in Manatee County that are subject to the 5% resort tax;
Two citizens who are involved in the tourist industry and who have demonstrated an interest in tourism but are not subject to the 5% resort tax in Manatee County.
MANATEE COUNTY – The winner of the District 6, at-large County Commission race between incumbent Carol Whitmore and challenger Candace Luther will help represent Anna Maria Island and Cortez at the county level.
Whitmore
How should County Commission-controlled Tourist Development Council funds be used on Anna Maria Island in terms of projects versus promotion?
Luther: I would focus on projects. Make things better for visitors and residents by making improvements that didn’t have funding previously. Give Visit Florida something to promote.
Whitmore: It’s very strict on how those funds can be spent. We’re still trying to open it up for law enforcement, lifeguards and other things that make life better for Island residents. We need to push for the state not to interfere with our city and county home rule.
What has/can the County Commission do to benefit Island and Cortez residents and businesses?
Luther: Impose a moratorium on phosphate mining, the use of fertilizers containing phosphate for non-farming uses and the use of Roundup and similar glyphosate weed killers. Stop overdeveloping and adding to the traffic and sewage problems we already have. Get the bike trails built so people have alternative transportation.
Whitmore: The red tide cleanup. I worked with Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy and pushed for $750,000 in state funding and up to $1.5 million in county funding for the pier replacement. I worked with all three Island mayors to acquire $1 million in surplus beach concession funds and worked with The Center on its $100,000 request for concession funds. We have not raised the millage rate since 2009.
Luther
What has/can the county do to assist the Island’s city governments?
Luther Create an Environmental Science Department to assess all things environmental – whether it be building, infrastructure, runoff drainage and sewers, roadways, chemical use, disposal methods, business operations and the transport of products.
Whitmore: Listen and stay involved. I routinely copy the Island cities’ elected officials on upcoming agenda items and anything related to the Island, so they’re informed of issues that affect them.
What percentage of your campaign contributions have come from the development and real estate communities?
Luther: Zero, not a single dollar. I have done most of this by myself without funding. That proves my dedication and that I am doing this because I truly care about my county and want to make it better.
Whitmore: My supporters are mainly the farming community, medical community and family businesses. Last year I had one fundraiser by the so-called developers that represent thousands of jobs and I have not had one since. I don’t accept contributions from Carlos Beruff or Mosaic, as they are so controversial.
What has the County Commission done to protect the county’s environment and natural resources and what more needs to be done in the next four years?
Luther: Stop phosphate mining in the watersheds of Lake Manatee, the Myakka River and the Peace River. Lake Manatee tested positive for cyanobacteria over a year ago, yet they continue to pollute with weed killer all around the county and residents were never notified of this bacteria in the water supply to my knowledge.
Whitmore: With the help of Swiftmud and other state agencies, the county has been restoring properties along the bays, lakes, rivers and natural shorelines. Manatee County was awarded as the first platinum green government in Florida last month. Manatee County has had a ban on fertilizer for five to seven years now, seagrasses are their healthiest since the 1950s, and we require developers to treat their run-off and hold 150 percent before it hits the bays.
Why should Anna Maria Island and Cortez voters vote for you instead of your opponent?
Luther: I have been out assessing the red tide situation and collecting samples trying to get something done to clean up this mess. Once I get the test results, I can identify the sources and start working on solutions. As an elected official, I should be able to finally get something done. A lot of citizens feel they have been ignored and have not had a voice. That is why I am running for the at-large seat, so I can help anyone in the county. It is time our government starts working for the people again.
Whitmore: My opponent does not know the Island’s politics, elected officials and what’s important to Island residents. My opponent does not know what it’s like to live in a tourism community and the toll it takes on residents. Many years ago, the county would not even visit the Island cites. That changed due to former commissioner John Chappie and myself.
BRADENTON – The Manatee County Veterans Council opposes a Confederate monument being relocated to Veterans Park, near the Bradenton Riverwalk.
The 16-1 opposition vote took place Thursday, Oct. 19, at American Legion Kirby Stewart Post 24 in Bradenton.
Before being removed in August, the displaced memorial monument stood for nearly a century in the courtyard square. That square is shared by the Manatee County Clerk of the Court’s office and the Manatee County Judicial Center in downtown Bradenton.
“We’re not in position to approve it or disapprove it, but we’re going to tell the commissioners what we want and don’t want,” Veterans Council Chair Carl Hunsinger said before the council members voted.
“If there’s a legal decision made and we don’t have a choice, then we’ll have to come up with another plan as to where we’re going to have our Veterans Park located – and maybe that statue will stand by itself.” – Carl Hunsinger, Veterans Council
The Manatee County Veterans Council represents more than 40,000 veterans in and around the county. Member organizations include local American Legion, VFW and AMVETS posts and other veteran-affiliated groups.
“There doesn’t need to be any more discussion. We talked about it last month,” Hunsinger said before calling for the vote.
The monument relocation was debated at the council’s previous meeting. An informal straw poll indicated 48 attendees opposed the Veterans Park location and four or five supported it. Council members were then asked to solicit official consensus from their respective groups prior to a formal vote on the 19th. Members were also asked to return with proposed alternative locations.
“The board of county commissioners could say you don’t have the authority to make that decision, but they’ve given us the opportunity to give them our recommendation,” Hunsinger told the voting members.
Peggy Van Gemert, from the Sarasota Manatee Chapter of the American Merchant Marine Veterans, suggested the 1850 Old Manatee Burying Grounds on 15th Street in Bradenton.
Representing the VFW Auxiliary in Ellenton, Theresa Cobb recommended the Gamble Plantation Historic State Park in Ellenton; a move that would require state approval.
After the votes were cast, Hunsinger said, “We do not accept the monument for our Veterans Park and that’s what we’re going to tell our Board of County Commissioners.”
Hunsinger said a letter would be drafted stating the council’s position and sent to the county commission.
A monumental decision
The United Daughters of the Confederacy erected the memorial monument in 1924 and it became the subject of local debate in August after a Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Va. resulted in one death and several violent conflicts.
The Confederate memorial stood in front of the Manatee County Historic Courthouse. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
On Aug. 21, a protest took place near the monument that had been shrouded in plywood for protective purposes.
On Aug. 22, Manatee County Commissioners voted to remove the monument due to public safety concerns; at that time, Veterans Park and Gamble Plantation were mentioned as possible alternate locations. No date was disclosed for the dismantling.
Overnight on Aug. 24, the work crew removing the granite monument dropped it and fractured it into two or three large pieces. The monument is now stored in an undisclosed location and the plan is to repair and reassemble it on site at its new location, wherever that may be.
Hunsinger’s take
When interviewed prior to the Oct. 19 meeting, Hunsinger said, “The concern is our Veterans Park has been set aside for veterans that raised their right hand in defense of these United States and its Constitution. It’s for veterans who served under the United States of America. The Confederacy was another country, or another government. All those soldiers fought for that country after they seceded,” Hunsinger said.
Veterans Council chair Carl Hunsinger addressed member voters before the monument vote took place. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Veterans Park honors those who served in World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, Desert Shield and Desert Storm, but no conflicts in the 1800s.
“We’re not going to protest. We’re not going to be distractive. If we say it doesn’t go in our park and the Board of County Commissioners says it should, then we’re going to use legal means to back our decision. If there’s a legal decision made and we don’t have a choice, then we’ll have to come up with another plan as to where we’re going to have our Veterans Park located – and maybe that statue will stand by itself,” Hunsinger said.
