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THE SUN ISLAND NEWS

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IN BRIEF

July 4 traffic numbers

Holmes Beach Police Chief Bill Tokajer reported a total of 109,723 vehicles entering the city over the holiday weekend, Thursday, July 2 through Sunday, July 5. That number is a slight increase over the 107,971 vehicles entering Holmes Beach over the same four days last year. Friday saw the highest number of vehicles with 29,534 counted coming into Holmes Beach. Saturday saw 28,024 vehicles crossing the bridge and Sunday was the slowest day of the weekend with 25,000 vehicles entering the city. Tokajer said no major issues were reported to police over the holiday weekend.

Scam targets Holmes Beach residents

Holmes Beach police officers are warning of a new scam targeting the city’s residents. A card stating that it’s from the Holmes Beach Emergency Appeal National Police Association is asking for resident signatures and contributions. The problem is, HBPD officers aren’t endorsing the plea nor do they receive any assistance from the entity asking for money. Chief Bill Tokajer advises that any resident receiving the postcard not respond and those who wish to assist the HBPD reach out directly to the department via email at chief@ holmesbeach.org.

The Island Library’s doors are open

The staff at the Island Branch Library is ready to welcome back visitors. The library is open to the public at 40% capacity. Masks or facial coverings are required and social distancing will be observed. The staff asks that patrons limit their computer usage to 30 minutes per person per day. Patrons also are encouraged to limit their visits to 30 minutes to accommodate more people during library hours. More information on the library’s opening procedures is available online at https://mymanatee.org/departments/manatee_county_public_library_system/library_reopening_f_a_q_s.

The library is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday and from noon to 7 p.m. on Wednesday. It’s closed on Sundays and Mondays. The Island Branch Library is located at 5701 Marina Drive in Holmes Beach.

Dredging to begin in August

Dredging at the 63rd Street boat ramp and basin and along the 64th Street canal to Marina Drive is scheduled to begin in Holmes Beach on or around Aug. 17. Work is expected to last until Sept. 4. Director of Development Services Eran Wasserman said that all permits are in place for the project and the work is budgeted to take place within the 2019-20 fiscal year, which ends on Sept. 30.

Corrrection

The mayor and city commission amended and extended the city’s emergency mask order last week.

JOE HENDRICKS | SUN

Anna Maria extends mandatory mask order

Mayor and commission strongly recommend wearing masks or face coverings in outdoor waiting areas.

BY JOE HENDRICKS

SUN CORRESPONDENT | jhendricks@amisun.com

ANNA MARIA – Mayor Dan Murphy and the Anna Maria City Commission have extended the city’s mandatory mask order for another seven days.

The emergency mask order originally enacted on June 25 as City Order #33 was amended during a special commission meeting Thursday morning. The amended order, City Order #36, is now posted at the city website, www.cityofannamaria. com. The mask order can be accessed by hitting the “read more” link in the COVID-19 informational column along the left side of the city’s home page.

Similar to the original mask order, the amended and extended order only applies to certain indoor places. But City Order #36 also includes new recommendations regarding outdoor waiting areas and vacation rentals.

“Every person working, living, visiting or doing business in the city of Anna Maria shall wear a face covering in any indoor location, other than their home or residence, when not maintaining social distancing from other persons, excluding family members or companions,” the amended order says.

The order lists the following exceptions:

• Children under the age of two years; • People for whom a face covering would cause impairment due to an existing health condition; • People working in a business or profession who do not have interactions with other people; • People working in an office when all interactions with others are done with social distancing as recommended by the CDC; • People eating and/or drinking at a restaurant; provided, however, that face coverings must otherwise be worn in restaurants.

City Order #36 includes new language that says, “Businesses are requested to strongly encourage face coverings and social distancing for customers and persons waiting in line outdoors for service. Also, vacation rental owners and management companies are requested to give out informational material, such as a copy of this order, to each of their vacation rental customers upon check-in.”

A violation of the mask order is punishable by a code enforcement citation that carries a $50 fine per violation. During Thursday’s meeting, Murphy said no citations had been issued for mask violations to date and the city had not received any complaints about noncompliance.

When Thursday’s discussion began, Murphy addressed expanding the order to include outdoor public spaces.

“It’s very difficult for me to tell you that you have to stay 6 feet away from your husband or your wife or your child while you’re on vacation outdoors in the state of Florida. I think it would be nice if everybody wore face masks, but I don’t think we can infringe upon people’s personal rights that much. And I know we can’t enforce it. I think it’s going too far,” Murphy said.

OUTDOOR WAITING AREAS

The new language regarding outdoor waiting areas arose from concerns raised by commissioners Jon Crane and Mark Short, based on what they’ve seen outside some restaurants and other food establishments, including ice cream shops.

Crane suggested expanding the mask order to include outdoor waiting areas, but the commission did not go that far.

Commissioner Joe Muscatello asked if the city was going to encourage that masks be worn on the City Pier. The commission did not address the pier in its amended mask order, but Murphy said free masks are available at the pier entryway when the pier is open.

Commissioner Amy Tripp agreed with Crane and Short, but said enforcement of the outdoor waiting areas would be challenging. She recommended calling on business owners and patrons to use common sense instead.

Muscatello shared feedback he received from business owners.

“They don’t want to see a shutdown and they would go along with any

Holmes Beach lost out on $2 million in stormwater improvement funds when Gov. Ron DeSantis cut the state budget June 29.

BY KRISTIN SWAIN

SUN STAFF WRITER | kswain@amisun.com

HOLMES BEACH – City leaders are rethinking their plans now that the city has lost out on $2 million in state appropriations funds for flood prevention improvements.

When Gov. Ron DeSantis cut the state budget approved by the state legislature two days before the new fiscal year began on July 1, the money requested by the city for infrastructure restoration and stormwater drainage projects ended up on the chopping block.

Also cut was money for many state and local projects including a Manatee County Schools STEM career pathway pilot program, a replacement for the fishing pier at the Green Bridge, Cedar Hammock Fire District’s new training tower and a project to improve local water quality by seeding native oysters and clams in Manatee County waters.

In total, DeSantis removed $1,000,337,940 before signing the state’s $92.2 billion dollar budget for the 2020-21 fiscal year.

The cuts were made because of the state’s expected loss in revenue due to shutdowns and slowdowns in spending from COVID-19.

Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth said while she believes it’s “tragic” the funds ultimately didn’t get approved, she wasn’t completely surprised by the move given the impact of the novel coronavirus on the economy. She said the city will pursue funding from the state again next year.

The city will not be putting on hold any normal stormwater improvements, such as building up roads with asphalt overlays, creating new sidewalks where needed and continuing to build the city’s stormwater infiltration system. However, the lack of funding will delay the start of any new projects in the city.

Titsworth said that due to the state of the city’s failing infrastructure, they can’t afford to roll back on the projects to repair and replace damaged elements, including drainage pipes.

“Our job is to make sure public safety is number one,” she said. She added that some of the city’s unassigned reserves will have to be used to make up for the lack of funds coming into the city from the fifth-cent tax and other taxes, funding projects already in the city’s approved budget. For the coming 2020-21 Holmes Beach fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1, Titsworth said ad valorem revenues - property taxes - will have to be raised to help fund the ongoing projects and build the city’s unassigned reserves back up to 25% of annual operating costs. At the end of the year, the city’s leaders estimate the reserve funds will be about $800,000 lower than where they should be.

Holmes Beach commissioners are holding a budget workshop via teleconference at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, July 7.

MASK: order extended in Anna Maria

FROM PAGE 4 thing we came up with that was helpful,” he said.

Muscatello also provided personal perspective as a city resident.

“We seem to be so focused on the tourists. I think our first priority ought to be the residents. I pay a hell of a lot of property taxes to live here and I’m afraid to go to my own beach. We are here to serve the 1,500 people who live here and not the 40,000 people who come here to visit. I feel like a prisoner in my own home,” he said.

Commission Chair Carol Carter suggested the nonbinding language regarding outdoor waiting areas. She said face coverings in waiting areas not only protect patrons, but they protect the employees too.

“When we heard about places that closed, it’s been because an employee has shown signs of being infected with COVID,” Short added.

Regarding outdoor waiting areas, Murphy said, “The message should be we don’t want to legislate something – and that we will if we have to. The onus is at the point of contact at the restaurant itself to make sure this is done, not city hall.”

Under the local state of emergency, Murphy has the authority to extend the mask order every seven days without calling a special commission meeting to do so.

Murphy said the updated mask order would be emailed to business owners and vacation rental owners and agents.

To assist businesses, the city is offering free signs that reference the mask order. To request those signs, email depclerk@cityofannamaria.com.