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361-949-7700 editor@islandmoon.com The Island Newspaper since 1996 Facebook : The Island Moon Newspaper
October 24, 2013
The only Island in Texas where we name our cold fronts
Around The Island
By Dale Rankin editor@islandmoon.com
Next Publication Date: 10/31/2013
Facebook: The Island Moon Newspaper
Year 16, Issue 497
Schlitterbahn From the Air
We had our third and fourth Cold Fronts of the season drive through last Saturday and again Monday night. We’ll name these Clyde because he blasted in Saturday with all the subtlety of a bank robber, and Duerme because she crept in while we were asleep. It takes a while for the cool weather to really set in with we Islanders. We can’t help but think that when we wake up it’s going to be 100 degrees again.
Water got my house You might want to keep an eye out in the Laguna for floating trailer houses. By the time you read this the storm that dropped ten inches of rain in the Nueces River watershed last week will have pushed a 40-foot crest of water into Mathis Lake (or Lake Corpus Christi for you newcomers) and sooner or later all that water is going to end up in the Laguna and head out through our two local passes. It’s panning out to be one of the highest crests on record – third so far – and it looks like the arroyo that was once Lake Mathis will be Lake Mathis once again. There may even be a few alligators in there so watch out! It looks like our days of water rationing may be over for a while.
Real Estate Boogie Some numbers are in for real estate sales in Port Aransas and they are eye-popping but not really all that surprising given the sales tax numbers for the fiscal year just past are up by 11%. Through the end of September a total of $111.5 million in real estate transactions have closed on 382 properties. Of those, the numbers we have, say at least six homes have sold for $1 million or more in that time. Viva la Eagle Ford! Drill Baby Drill!
Perfect venue for running events
The footprint of the Schlitterbahn Beach Country Resort and the canals surrounding it has begun to take shape. Here is a recent aerial.
The other leg which can be seen running out of the photo to the left will connect to the existing Island canal system.
In the center of this photo you can see the canal that will run from a point near the country club headquarters southward before making a Y with one leg running eastward toward SPID where it will run under the roadway and into Lake Padre.
The circle you see in the center of this photo is the wave pool for the park. Just to the left of that is the beginning of a building which will mark the southern end of the park’s footprint.
Vote! Vote! Vote!
Island Vote Could Swing Destination Bayfront Election
By Dale Rankin Totals from the first two days of early voting show that almost half the votes cast were at either the Nueces County Courthouse or the Corpus Christi Area Council for the Deaf. Out of a two-day total of 1963 early votes, 1111 of them were at one of those two polling places. We had a jailbreak on the beach last Saturday. The JAILBREAK obstacle run on the beach brought out a plethora of runners – Superman and Batman were both present so Gotham was naked for a while there. We got a big laugh out of the 350-pound guy sitting on the seawall making fun of how tired the runners looked. He almost passed out when he bent over to pick up his Big Gulp. It was a great event that went off without a hitch. There were no complaints so here’s one: we don’t have nearly enough events like this one on our beaches. Since the digging of the Packery and the re-nourishment and widening of our beach along the seawall there was plenty of room for the run and for all the other things that usually go on there. The surfers, kiteboarders, fisherpersons, walkers, campers, hole diggers, and daytrippers were all out in force and there was plenty of room for everybody. There is another similar run scheduled there for the third Saturday of next month. Maybe our Island has finally entered the Main Canal of the running world. Here’s hoping so. If last weekend was an indicator it is a perfect venue for running events.
Make me lose twenty pounds! We got a press release here at the Word Factory this week announcing an ad campaign for a new television remote control that you can talk to. This will come in handy if you are just too tired to reach over and push the button to change the channel. Oh man. Is this a great country or what? Having to pick up that remote was such a drag! Maybe you can tell it, “make me lose twenty pounds’ because if you’re too lazy to punch the button on the remote you probably need it. Remember the Stone Age when we had to get up and walk over to the television to change the channel? Oh the humanity! Thank goodness for innovation. No more saying, “they can put a man on the Moon why can’t they make a remote I can talk to instead of having to push the button.”
It’s here baby! We made a call to the $6 Million Man last week. We reversed the charges. And remember Art is just beauty caught in thin air. Say hello if you see us Around The Island.
Last Hatchlings Released and Other Green Sea Turtle News By Donna J. Shaver, Ph.D. Chief, Division of Sea Turtle Science and Recovery National Park Service Padre Island National Seashore e-mail: Donna_Shaver@nps.gov Earlier this month, Padre Island National Seashore Biologist Cynthia Rubio and I released the last sea turtle hatchlings that emerged from Texas nests
On The Island, as of the close of the polls on Tuesday evening, 208 votes had been cast - 93 on Monday and 115 on Tuesday - which accounts for just over 10% of the two-day turnout citywide. In Floor Bluff 164 votes have been cast. The turnout across the city is slightly heavier than normal for an off-year election in which Constitutional Amendments rather than political races top the ballot, however, the future of the Destination Bayfront bond issue is bringing more Corpus Christi voters to the polls. While the number of voters turning out usually is expected to drop as the two weeks of early maps corpus christi - Google Maps voting continues, if the trends of the first two days were to hold, by the end of Early Voting on November 1 just under 12,000 votes would be Vote continued on A8
Seashore Middle Academy Hosting Community ‘Monster Ball’ By Brent Rourk Get ready for a huge community ‘Monster Ball’ party on Friday, October 25th at the Seashore Middle Academy gym from 7:00PM until 900PM. This fun community event is open to all ages, so bring the family and friends. Proceeds from this party will support enrichment activities such as math and science competitions, 6th grade Outdoor School, and the 8th grade end of year trip. Staff member Michele Ortega announced, “We have something planned for everybody, so hopefully the entire community will be able to Monster Mash with us.” There will be a costume contest for all ages, so bring your exceptionally scary or funny costume. Talented DJ Ken Yarborough will play your favorite Halloween and popular music for those who wish to dance in costume. In addition, there will be many games and contests. Enjoy the cupcake walk, a pumpkin decorating area, a photo booth area for parents to take photos of their children, and a ‘spooky’ good time for all. Monster Ball continued on A5
this year. The 187 green turtles were hatched in our incubation facility at the National Seashore and released on the beach here. Now that all sea turtle eggs found on the Texas coast this year have hatched and we have been able to verify species by examining the hatchlings, we can report the final nest counts for each species found. During 2013, 153 Kemp’s ridley, 13 loggerhead, and 15 green turtle nests were documented on the Texas coast. Of these, 90 Kemp’s ridley, 12 loggerhead, and 13 green turtle clutches were located on North Padre Island. All but four of these nests were found at Padre Island National Seashore; only one loggerhead and three Kemp’s ridley nests were found on North Padre north of the park.
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=maps+ Turtles continued on A5
Plan to Sell 3680 Acres to PINS Put on Hold Address Corpus Christi, TX
Future use of land in Kleberg County in doubt By Dale Rankin The plan, first disclosed by the Island Moon in February, to add 3,680 acres of land in Kleberg County to Padre Island National Seashore have been put on hold. Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson last Friday put a halt to negotiations between the Texas General Land Office, which owns the land and the Texas Nature Conservancy which planned to buy the land, which includes 4.7 miles of beach, and donate it to the National Park Service. “I have heard the concerns that people have and have decided to put these negotiations on hold until the National Park Service officials can specifically address public concerns about future access, including the use of bollards and driving on the beach,” Patterson said. “No one was talking about closing the beach to anyone, but it’s clear that people want to see specifics before we go forward,” Patterson said. (See a complete text of Patterson’s statement in this issue.) The move comes in the wake of concerns voiced by members of the Island Strategic Action Committee, the PINS continued on A6
Proposed Site for PINS Park Entrance 3680 acres currently belongs to GLO
Co r Cit pus y L Ch im ris its ti
Access Road 6 (1.2 miles from Bob ••• Hall Pier) ••• ••
Proposed site for bollards blocking entrance to PINS
7 Miles between access roads Kleberg County
4.7 Miles of beach ••••••••
Current bollards marking beginning of PINS
North Beach Road (1 mile from Bollards)