Key West Weekly 21-0204

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We recommended Reddit two weeks ago, then forgot to print it.

February 4, 2021

FOUNDATION SINGS THE PRAISES

OF KEYS’ UNSUNG HEROES | P. 5

SAVING A STORIED SCHOONER THE FULL STORY OF THE HISTORIC WESTERN UNION | P. 12

ORIGINAL ART GOING ONCE, GOING TWICE… ANNE MCKEE ART AUCTION GOES VIRTUAL | P. 6

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

WINNER TRIPADVISOR 2020 TRAVELERS’ CHOICE AWARD We are honored to be ranked among the TOP 10% OF RESTAURANTS WORLDWIDE. A special thank you to our suppliers, our staff and most of all, each and every one of our valued customers. Thank you — Maura & Danny Hughes

OLD KEY WEST WITH A TWIST OF SOMETHING NEW 512 FRONT STREET | WWW.TWOFRIENDS.COM

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

FOR THOSE LOOKING FOR IDEAL SURROUNDINGS

This Petronia Street home is genuinely a Key West treasure, located in the heart of the prestigious quiet neighborhood known as The Meadows. This residence was newly renovated inside and out, providing the utmost living space. The most discerning buyer will not be disappointed. This property boasts a large lush private corner lot with off-street parking, a beautiful saltwater pool, and a guest cottage. Complete with three bedrooms and two and one-half bathrooms, this is a dream Key West home with too many accouterments to list!

KEY WEST | $1,600,000 | Listing ID 593441

305.294.1117 | oceansir.com

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

NUMBER OF THE WEEK

5450 MacDonald Ave. No.5 Key West, FL 33040 Office: 305.453.6928 www.keysweekly.com

50

Publisher

Jason Koler jason@keysweekly.com

Editor

Mandy Miles mandy@keysweekly.com

Account Executives

Artist Scott Gruppe’s ‘Sway at Home’ depicts two lovers dancing during the COVID quarantine.

The painting is part of the online Anne McKee Art Auction.

SCOTT GRUPPE/Contributed

MANDY MILES

Britt Myers britt@keysweekly.com

Publishing Partner

According to Monroe County officials, 23,000 residents of the county are 65 years or older. They are being vaccinated at a rate of 500 per week through Publix distribution. At this rate it would take 50 weeks to vaccinate them all, including an extra four weeks for everyone to receive the second dose.

ON THE COVER

mandy@keysweekly.com

CHICKENS, CHATS AND HOUSING KEY WEST OFFICIALS OUTLAW CHICKEN FEEDING; WORK ON WATERFRONT HOUSING

Stephanie Mitchell stephanie@keysweekly.com

Staff Writers

Sara Matthis sara@keysweekly.com Jim McCarthy jim@keysweekly.com Tiffany Duong tiffany@keysweekly.com

Copy Editor

Mike Howie mike@keysweekly.com

Production Manager

Anneke Patterson anneke@keysweekly.com

Circulation Manager

Charlotte Hruska char@keysweekly.com

Design / Web Master

Travis Cready travis@keysweekly.com

Design / Pre-Press

Irene de Bruijn irene@keysweekly.com Javier Reyes javier@keysweekly.com

Classifieds

Anneke Patterson anneke@keysweekly.com 305.743.0844

Se habla español

THE KEY WEST WEEKLY (ISSN 1944-0812) IS PUBLISHED WEEKLY FOR $125 PER YEAR

BY WEEKLY NEWSPAPERS, INC., 9709 OVERSEAS HIGHWAY, MARATHON FL 33050. APPLICATION TO MAIL AT PERIODICALS POSTAGE RATES IS PENDING AT FORT LAUDERDALE FL AND ADDITIONAL MAILING OFFICES. All stories, photos, and graphics are copyrighted materials.

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News Deadline

Tuesday Noon

Advertising Deadline Tuesday 2 p.m.

I

t’s official — cock-a-doodle-don’t feed the chickens.

Key West officials on Feb. 2 made it illegal to feed the island’s wild chicken population. Whether the handout is from a 50-pound bag of feed or a leftover French fry, it’s illegal.

The outlaw ordinance passed unanimously and with little discussion at the City Commission meeting. The new law received endorsement from the Florida Keys SPCA, and it makes exceptions for those who own and keep chickens safely cooped on private property.

Officials on Feb. 2 officially made it illegal to feed Key West’s wild chicken population. CONTRIBUTED

“Unattended food used to feed poultry can attract insects, pests and rodents; and poultry within the city can create a nuisance disturbance, carry and spread diseases, destroy property and cause copious amounts of fecal deposits on public property,” the new ordinance states. “The city has received complaints from its residents regarding the feeding of poultry by persons and the nuisances it creates.”

The new law will be enforced by code officers who must be called when someone witnesses a violation. The ban becomes effective as soon as the mayor signs the law this week.

Phone chat Also at Tuesday’s meeting, commissioners decided they needn’t be told, in writing, to refrain from using their cellphones during commission meetings. Commissioner Sam Kaufman initially proposed, then withdrew, a resolution that would have prohibited commissioners from using their phones during meetings.

Kaufman said he wanted to discuss the matter, but was willing to withdraw the proposal when it failed to draw support except from Mayor Teri Johnston, who emphasized that the question was an ethical one.

Commissioners recently participated in an annual ethics course, which, Johnston said, specifically suggested that it is unethical for a commissioner to receive and read text messages or other communications during a public meeting, as the information may not be sent or available to all commissioners or the public.

“It was clearly stated in the ethics course that we are not to take communication that’s not available to everyone while in a meeting,” Johnston said. “I get text after text from staff and constituents during meetings. We even have the chat feature on Zoom meetings. But the ethics course states we’re not to receive communications that aren’t available to everyone.”

Johnston added that her concerns are a matter of transparency and public trust.

Commissioner Clayton Lopez pointed out that phones are now a common replacement for laptops or tablets and are regularly consulted for calendar planning, factual information relevant to a discussion and other uses.

“I think this might be unnecessary overreach,” Lopez said. “Checking our own notes on a phone is no different than having a laptop or tablet in front of us. We know that anything we put on the phone is subject to public record requests.”

Commissioner Greg Davila agreed, saying, “Eliminating cell phones is eliminating a tool and hindering our decision-making abilities,” he said. “No one is texting me during a meeting telling me which way to vote. Plus, at one point, my mother was sick. And I have kids, so my phone will be on silent, but I’m not going to turn it off.”

“Madame Mayor, you called me out during a meeting a few weeks ago for looking at my phone,” Lopez said, “when in reality, I was consulting my calendar as we made plans for a follow-up meeting.”

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

SINGING PRAISES OF

Key West officials are creating a new zoning district to turn 3.2 remaining acres at Truman Waterfront into affordable housing and neighborhood-friendly commercial activities. CITY OF KEY WEST/Contributed

Community Foundation hosts virtual celebration

T

On the site plan for Truman Waterfront, the 3.2 acres that have long been designated to benefit Bahama Village, are seen on the left side of the diagram in the space identified as ‘Development Area.”

Commissioners also pointed out that they are well aware the contents of their phones are public record, and anyone can request whatever contents a commissioner consulted during a public meeting.

Kaufman said he appreciated the discussion, then willingly withdrew the resolution. Commissioners encouraged the mayor to continue to start each meeting with a reminder to silence phones and remain focused on city business.

WATERFRONT HOUSING Lawmakers, city managers and planning experts are focused and working quickly to build consensus and assemble a plan — once again — to put housing, retail space and other community development activities at Truman Waterfront.

The 3.2 undeveloped acres there have long been designated for the benefit of the adjacent Bahama Village neighborhood. City officials on Feb. 2 approved a zoning category for that space — Historic Neighborhood Commercial.

Transient lodging will be prohibited on those 3.2 acres and the density — or number of units allowed per acre — has been increased to 40

units per acre to enable affordable housing.

City Manager Greg Veliz told the commissioners on Tuesday that he met with Scott Pridgen of AH Monroe and asked Pridgen’s team, which has created more than 100 units of affordable housing in the city, to design a preliminary plan for the waterfront parcel.

Tha plan will be presented to the Bahama Village Advisory Board, which was initially formed nearly 20 years ago in part to review early plans and identify priorities for that waterfront parcel, and then to the City Commission with plenty of public meetings offering opportunity for input.

“But there’s got to be a moment in time when we make a decision,” Johnston said, reminding the commissioners that these meetings and discussions have been occurring for nearly two decades with no action.

Veliz, who was not city manager during the previous discussions, assured the commissioners, “We’re trying to move this project forward and not let it drift around for years,” he said.

he Community Foundation of the Florida Keys (CFFK) will honor the efforts of volunteers from 83 local nonprofits at its Unsung Heroes virtual celebration at noon on Friday, Feb. 5.

Everyone can join in this year’s party, which will be a free virtual celebration livestreamed on Facebook and at cffk.org.

No reservations are necessary.

In addition to the honorees, the virtual event will feature special guests, including national philanthropy expert Sara Konrath from the Indiana University School of Philanthropy.

She will share surprising reasons giving can actually improve people’s health.

The Unsung Heroes celebration is sponsored by the Lower Keys Medical Center and promotes civic engagement throughout the Keys.

"The not-for-profit organizations and their volunteers are so vital to the health and well-being of our communities,” said David Clay, CEO of Lower Keys Medical Center, which is sponsoring the celebration. “The Unsung Heroes event is our chance to celebrate the giving nature of the Keys and the people who work tirelessly to help their neighbors.”

Nearly 1,400 volunteers have been recognized since the event was started 21 years ago. Keys volunteers donate their time and services to our community, including cleaning up beaches, supplying food to children and families in need, fostering animals, mentoring students, assisting at homeless shelters, and much more.

More information is available at cffk.org.

For 25 years, the ComSee the 2021 commemorative Unsung Heroes program, promunity Foundation of the duced by Keys Weekly, inside Florida Keys has been conthis very newspaper. necting people, resources and needs through philanthropy. The foundation helps individuals and families leave a legacy in the Keys by inspiring giving and by investing in people and solutions to benefit every resident from Key Largo to Key West. Over $30 million in grants have supported scholarships, arts and culture, beautification and preservation of the Keys, health and human services, hurricane relief, and youth programs. More information is at 305-292-1502 or cffk.org.

— Contributed

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021 MANDY MILES

mandy@keysweekly.com

ANNE McKEE ART AUCTION KEEPS KEY WEST CREATIVE ART SALE IS AS VALUABLE AS ITS NAMESAKE

Will Fernandez

O

riginal. Elegant. Valuable. Lasting.

Irreplaceable.

The same words that describe the original creations in the upcoming Anne McKee Art Auction also accurately characterize the auction’s namesake.

McKee, who will turn 98 in July, created the Anne McKee Artists’ Fund in the mid1990s to help cultivate — and support — Key West’s creative spirit. McKee knew artists were constantly asked to donate original creations that would be auctioned or sold to help various charities. But the Newfoundland native with a background in banking also knew that plenty of the island’s artists could scarcely afford paints and canvases.

They certainly weren’t always in a position to donate their livelihood. And yet many of them always did.

McKee created the fund to provide grants that enable Key West artists — painters, sculptors, writers and performers — to complete specific projects. The fund’s biggest annual fundraiser is a fine art auction of original Key West works. Since its inception, the Anne McKee Artists’ Fund has distributed more than $300,000 in grants to local artists.

But no one is asked to donate paintings, sculptures or photographs.

The sale proceeds of each piece are divided evenly between the artist and the fund, which uses the money raised to distribute more grants in a beautiful and beautifying sort of circle.

Martha Depoo

As COVID changed everything, organizers were forced to alter this year’s auction, usually a one-night live gala, into an online event.

“We’re actually hopeful that this makes the auction and its artwork available to everyone, anywhere in the world, rather than those who happen to be in Key West the night of the live auction,” said co-organizer Roberta DePiero. “If this works as well as we’re hoping, we may consider doing a hybrid event next year. But we’ll see. Who knows what next year may bring?”

This year’s online auction will take place Feb. 4-17 with online viewing and bidding available at mckeefund.org.

Up for bid are original paintings, sculpture, photography, fiber arts, ceramics, mixed media, jewelry and more. Collectors can choose from the works of celebrated and renowned local masters to fresh new talents.

“Think of all the galleries, exhibition openings and artist talks that make our community so culturally rich. That only happens if together we support our art makers,” said McKee Fund board president Kalo Clarke.

For those who do happen to be in Key West and would like to see the artwork in person, The Studios of Key West, 533 Eaton St., is showing the work from noon to 4 p.m.

Tuesday through Saturday.

For viewing art, auction link and other information, visit mckeefund.org.

Jason Fort

Poochie Myers

Dawn Wilkins

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

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FACTS FROM THE TAX COLLECTOR Sam Steele

monroetaxcollector.com 305.295.5000

FEBRUARY • As of January 31st, the current tax roll is 83% collected, or $259,960,737.70

• Reminder that mobile home registrations expired on December 31st and are required to be renewed

• Taxes paid in February will receive a 1% discount

• Report illegal vacation rentals anonymously by calling 1-855-422-4540

• 2020 real estate and personal property tax reminder bills, as well as the 4th installment bills, are being mailed out • Delinquent local business tax reminder bills are being mailed out

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

College of the Florida Keys student nurse Teresa Rodriquez gives fellow student nurse William Thompson a COVID-19 vaccine at the Florida Department of Health in Monroe County. Both are among the CFK nursing students and staff assisting with vaccinations in the Keys. CONTRIBUTED

W

hile anticipation grows for a sufficient, steady flow of COVID-19 vaccines to the Keys, the College of the Florida Keys (CFK) is collaborating with multiple organizations in Monroe County to prepare for a widespread rollout.

College President Jonathan Gueverra has been working to position the college as a fighting force against the pandemic in the Keys. With an army of more than 200 students enrolled in the associate degree and bachelor’s degree nursing programs — the largest enrollment in CFK history — the college is poised to help in the vaccination effort.

The Florida Department of Health in Monroe County (DOH-Monroe), the Medical Center at Ocean Reef, the Ocean Reef Community Foundation, Monroe County Emergency Management, Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, the City of Key West, Monroe County School District, Lower Keys Medical Center, Curative, and Community Health of South Florida (CHI) are among the stakeholders working with the college.

In recent weeks, DOH-Monroe and the Medical Center at Ocean Reef have quickly depleted their state-allotted vaccine supply to protect frontline healthcare workers and people 65 and older. Student nurses from the college, under the direction of Dean Mark Roby and Dr. Carla Fry, director of nursing and health sciences, are providing the shot in the arm necessary to staff both efforts.

Gueverra initially arranged for the college to receive vaccine doses from Baptist Health, but that plan ended when the state’s distribution model changed. Gueverra connected with the Medical Center at Ocean Reef during the December holiday break while Fry connected with DOH-Monroe to arrange for student nurses to administer the first doses of vaccine.

“CFK nursing students were so eager to help with this historic vaccine endeavor, many of them returned on a moment’s notice to assist before their winter break ended,” Fry said. Alongside Fry and Roby,

COLLEGE READY FOR LARGE-SCALE VACCINE ROLLOUT STUDENT NURSES HAVE HELPED WITH 85% OF SHOTS

nurses from the health department and the staff at the Ocean Reef Medical Center, CFK nursing students have administered over 4,000 vaccines, about 85% of the total administered in the county.

Eager to build on the success of these first rounds, elected and organizational leaders have aligned resources, expertise and services to ready the Keys for larger-scale vaccination endeavors. Plans include transporting and storing the vaccine, scheduling and staffing vaccination sites, as well as administering doses to the public.

The college recently entered into an agreement with the DOH-Monroe to become an official vaccination site. When doses become available, CFK will provide ultracold storage and areas on the Key West campus with sufficient space will be designated for the public to complete paperwork, receive the vaccine and wait 15 minutes following their vaccination. Nursing students, under the supervision of Fry and Roby, will administer the vaccines.

CFK signed up on Florida Shots to receive its own allotment of vaccine to distribute to the community.

“Through participation with Ocean Reef and DOH-Monroe, we have honed the vaccine process to keep operations running smoothly,” said Fry of the college’s involvement in vaccinations thus far, particularly at the Ocean Reef Medical Center, which was set up to administer 100 shots an hour. “The college is now capable of operating on our own and/or continuing to help our community partners. We stand ready to respond however future vaccine distribution should flow.”

Additional partners have committed support. The City of Key West will contribute volunteers, trained first responders, an ambulance for emergencies, as well as law enforcement support at CFK’s Key West campus. Across the street, Lower Keys Medical Center will provide needle disposal service, supplies and volunteers.

In the Middle and Upper Keys, Monroe County School District is making space in two schools for vaccination sites. Sheriff

Rick Ramsay has committed to law enforcement support for traffic and crowd control at those locations.

“I am thankful to see how supportive each and every one of our partners have been and continue to be in the face of this crisis,” said Bob Eadie, administrator and health officer for the Florida Department of Health in Monroe County. “The number of healthcare providers who have committed to supporting this endeavor continues to grow.

We could not beat this virus without their continued assistance.”

In the county’s northernmost community, the Medical Center at Ocean Reef continues to host CFK, DOH, Community Health of South Florida, and Curative to demonstrate their vaccination protocols and to help them adapt their processes for larger vaccination events.

Additionally, the Ocean Reef Community Foundation’s (ORCF) COVID-19 Relief Fund, which has contributed almost $800,000 to local nonprofit organizations assisting Monroe County residents, is now focusing on increasing access to the COVID-19 vaccine. ORCF has committed to funding supplies, staff, logistical and other needs.

“It is amazing public-private partnerships such as this that make Monroe County an incredibly resilient community,” said Monroe County emergency management director Shannon Weiner. “In this county, we consistently accomplish great things by leveraging resources and partnering together.”

As soon as the vaccine becomes available in the Keys, eligible Florida residents will be able to sign up for an appointment through an online scheduling system. At the Florida Health Department’s myvaccine. fl.gov, individuals can pre-register for vaccine appointments and be notified when appointments are available in their area. Vaccine supplies remain limited and appointments may not be available for several weeks. Information about vaccination locations, times, and scheduling will be shared broadly across multiple media platforms.

— Contributed

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

CLEAN OUT YOUR CLOSETS MARC SEEKS USED SNEAKERS FOR SPECIAL PROJECT

STATE LAUNCHES PREREGISTRATION SITE FOR COVID VACCINE APPOINTMENTS JIM McCARTHY

jim@keysweekly.com

W

hile delayed for a few weeks, a pre-registration system launched last week for those 65 and older and frontline workers who are looking to reserve an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccine.

By visiting the Florida Health Department’s myvaccine.fl.gov, individuals can pre-register for vaccine appointments and be notified when appointments are available in their area. Vaccine supplies remain limited, however, and appointments may not be available for several weeks. Gov. Ron DeSantis said Florida would be getting 307,000 vaccines from the federal government, which is an increase from the roughly 260,000 a week the state received. It’s unknown if that’ll mean more for Publix stores in Islamorada and Key West, which are getting 250 each a week. The Florida Health Department in Monroe County is receiving about 100 doses a week.

The Florida Health Department says the website will allow individuals who are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine to be contacted when vaccine appointments are available at state-supported vaccination sites. On the website, residents can select their county and submit their contact information. Once appointments are available, individuals will be contacted by phone, text or email and will be assisted in scheduling an appointment.

Additionally, as part of the statewide registration system, each county has a designated phone number that individuals can call and pre-register if they do not have internet access. Whether a resident calls by phone or visits myvaccine.fl.gov, their place in line will be reserved reliably using Sharecare software.

On Jan. 21, State Surgeon General Dr. Scott Rivkees issued a public health advisory prioritizing vaccines in Florida for Florida residents. Individuals must show proof of residency through a driver’s license or identification.

Those possessing neither must present two forms proving residency through a utility bill, deed or mail from a financial institution, to name a few.

While supplies are limited, Eadie said they’ve received enough doses for people needing their second vaccination.

“The good thing so far, the second dose doesn’t appear to have any fluctuation at all,” he said.

Around 1.7 million COVID-19 people have been administered the vaccine in Florida. Just over 1.3 million received their first dose, while 372,200 obtained their second shot. Just over 1 million individuals ages 65 and older received their first dose.

Around 6,800 residents in Monroe County have been vaccinated, per the health department’s data on Feb. 2. Of the total number, around 6,100 received their first dose and just over 670 were administered the second dose.

The Monroe Association for Remarkable Citizens is collecting used or new sneakers for a special project that will keep the shoes out of landfills. CONTRIBUTED

D

id you know that your gently worn sneakers could help MARC? The Monroe Association for Remarkable Citizens (MARC) team is participating in a fundraiser that involves no money, and nothing to buy or sell.

All MARC needs is support and gently worn, used or new sneakers.

Start in your closets and gather sneakers you no longer want. Maybe you’ve outgrown them, they’re out of style, or out of season. If you and your household have 20 pairs, great! If not, don’t worry.

You can ask your neigh-

bors, friends, co-workers, and anyone in your social networks to help. Every pair counts.

The sneakers will help raise money to support MARC and will help our environment by keeping sneakers out of landfills.

Sneakers can be dropped off at MARC, 1401 Seminary St., Key West or 90001 Overseas Highway, Tavernier.

Email becki.balcer@ gmail.com to become a collection location and representatives will drop off a collection bag.

— Contributed

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

JIM McCARTHY

jim@keysweekly.com

BUDGETING IN BILLIONS SPENDING PLAN INCLUDES RESILIENCY FUNDS, CRITICAL KEYS DOLLARS

A

budget proposal unveiled by Gov. Ron DeSantis last week showed $4.3 billion more in spending, with $2.6 billion accounting for costs of the state’s COVID-19 pandemic response and hits to the economy and families.

Allocations for key environmental projects were included with the governor’s spending plan, as well as $1 billion to deal with sea level rise and funds for teacher salary raises.

Standing inside the Florida State Capitol, DeSantis said his “Florida Leads” budget places $6.6 billion in total reserves, which is more than 6% of the total budget. He said that leaves ample resources for unforeseen expenditures related to the COVID-19 pandemic and the hurricane season that begins June 1.

DeSantis said a proposed budget increase comes following several actions taken last year, which included the vetoing of roughly $1 billion in the state’s $93.2 billion budget last year to prepare for unknowns related to the pandemic. In addition, he said the state maximized $4.5 billion in federal funding for the pandemic.

State agencies were also asked to set aside 6% of their budgets to give financial flexibility, and that amounted to $800 million to deal with pandemic expenses.

“In December, we saw revenues exceed the estimate by over $300 million. We expect in January to see at least $100 million more than what was forecast.”

— Gov. Ron DeSantis

DeSantis’ remarks also honed in on actions to keep Florida open, which he said resulted in a $2.1 billion increase in revenue since a worst-case revenue scenario was released in August.

“We didn’t need to dip into the budget stabilization fund or reserve funds to stay afloat,” he said. “In December, revenues exceeded the estimate by over $300 million.

We expect in January to see at least $100 million more than what was forecast.”

DeSantis said his budget remains committed to providing the best education experience while building on pay raises for teachers. Around $550 million is included to continue raising the minimum K-12 teacher salary to $47,500, as well as salaries of other instructional personnel.

A total of $110 million aims to address student mental health through the pandemic. Other investments include $10 million in the Work Florida Student Success Incentive Fund, as well as $10 million for the Pathways to Career Opportunities grant program and nearly $510 million in funding to support workforce education programs.

As for the environment, $473 million is proposed for Everglades restoration, $145 million for water quality improvements and $25 million to combat harmful algal blooms and red tide.

“This is a priority. It’s something that we have to continue momentum and it’s something our budget shows commitment to doing,” he said.

DeSantis’ budget also addresses sea level rise through the establishment of a $1 billion, four-year Resilient Florida program.

State and local governments would receive grants to fund projects to address impacts of intensified storms and localized flooding.

“We believe this makes a lot of economic sense when you look at how an insurance market would view property insurance and to see how Florida is leading in trying to get ahead of these impacts. We think it’s a smart thing to do,” he said.

The budget proposal also includes more than $31 million for adults and children who suffer from mental illness and emotional disturbances; $50 million for Visit Florida’s marketing programs; and $9.47 billion for the State Transportation Work Program for new highway construction, bridge repairs, and seaport, aviation and transit program improvements.

New state Rep. Jim Mooney acknowledged that sticking to DeSantis’ budget would be “wonderful.” However, Mooney said some budget items and appropriations won’t see forward movement this year.

“At the end of the day, you can follow whatever kind of budget you want, but the reality is it still has to come out balanced,” he said. “There’s going to be things that are not funded 100%. It’s just going to be a tough budget session.”

Several appropriation bills sponsored by Mooney are seeing movement in committee, including House Bill 2147 that requests $200,000 for Monroe County’s Baker Act public receiving facility that provides psychiatric care 24/7. According to the bill, which sits in the Health Care Appropriations Subcommittee, the facility requires modernized security upgrades to safely care for the increasing severity of illness/violence among a higher number of clients.

“There’s going to be things that are not funded 100%. It’s just going to be a tough budget session.”

— State Rep. Jim Mooney

Three other appropriation bills by Mooney await consideration in the Infrastructure and Tourism Appropriations Subcommittee. Requests include $750,000 for construction of 20 affordable housing units on two sites in the Upper Keys by Habitat for Humanity; $250,000 for repairs at the Truman Little White House; and just over $994,000 to harden the Florida Keys Aqueduct Authority’s standby power system to ensure potable and sanitary water is sent to residents and visitors of the island chain during emergencies.

Monroe County commissioners and Mayor Michelle Coldiron expressed their appreciation for a budget proposal that includes funding for the Florida Keys Stewardship Act, which was slashed last year as part of the governor’s vetoes. Funds from the stewardship act go to water quality projects.

“We look forward to working with the governor’s office and the Florida legislature to see these significant funds in the governor’s budget are included in the state’s final budget,” Coldiron said.

Committees are well underway in lead up to legislative session that begins March 2.

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

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FLAGSHIP FALTERS

MANDY MILES mandy@keysweekly.com

T

he once stately schooner Western Union, flagship of Key West and the state of Florida, is an unrecognizable shell of her former self, nearly indistinguishable from the other propped-up vessels “on the hard” at Robbie’s Marina on Stock Island.

The 1939 schooner once serviced the underwater telegraph cables that enabled communication between Key West, Cuba and the Caribbean. In all, she laid 30,000 miles of underwater telegraph cable before being converted to a passenger vessel in 1974. The 130-foot schooner participated in the nation’s bicentennial celebration in New York City in 1976 and later played the role of the ship Amistad in the movie of the same name. She served as a sailing school for troubled kids and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

Schooner Western Union returned to Key West in 1997 and for 10 years was operated by Historic Tours of America, offering sunset sails and private charters from the foot of William Street, next to Schooner Wharf Bar. For 10 years, HTA lost $100,000 a year to the vessel, and eventually donated it to the nonprofit Schooner Western Union Preservation Society, which had been formed by Key West businessmen to save the flagship.

But time had taken a grave toll on the old wooden boat. A partial restoration got the ship sailing again in 2011, but Western Union failed a 2014 Coast Guard inspection.

Starting in 2016, she spent three years at a boatyard in Tarpon Springs, Florida, where shipwrights and preservationists worked to restore the ship using funds raised by the preservation society as well as Tourist Development Council grants and $1.24 million in state funding secured in 2019 by then-Florida Keys State Rep. Holly Raschein.

But funding ran out and storage bills accrued in Tarpon Springs. Western Union was towed back to Key West in December 2019 with-

out sails, masts or rails around the deck.

One person close to the project and familiar with the industry described the schooner’s struggles as three-fold: First, the project lost three of its restoration leaders in short course — Bill Barry, Capt. Frank Holden and Richard Manley of Manley deBoer. In addition, the captain who was hired to oversee the restoration in Tarpon Springs was entirely unfamiliar with wooden boats and was ill-equipped for the responsibility, he said. Finally, COVID hit and challenged all nonprofits to raise any funding.

“We had three deaths of the restoration leaders, an inexperienced person overseeing the work and then the pandemic,” our source explained. “We now have the expertise of master shipwright Harold Burnham, who led the $12 million restoration of the historic wooden ship Ernestine.”

Preservation Society treasurer John DolanHeitlinger provided an update last month to the Key West Bight Board, saying the schooner remains on the hard at Robbie’s Marina on Stock Island. “The schooner is towards the back of Robbie’s Marina with its stern facing the water supported by heavy timbers and boat stands,” Dolan-Heitlinger reported in January. “Robbie’s management will allow her to remain at Robbie’s and be worked on for no charge. We are trying several combinations of equipment to keep the schooner regularly washed down with seawater to preserve the wood of the vessel. We are developing plans for this next stage of the restoration and meeting with potential shipwrights,” the report states. “We are researching opportunities for grants and other support. We have discussed additional preservation and funding efforts … including protectively wrapping the boat hull.

The Massachusetts shipwright Harold Burnham is working on dividing the restoration plan he developed for us into four sections that can be used to pitch requests for support to different potential funding supporters,” Dolan-Heitlinger’s report states.

GROUP STRUGGLES TO SAVE SCHOONER WESTERN UNION

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1 and 2. A shell of its former self, schooner Western Union is currently ‘on the hard’ at Robbie’s Marina on Stock Island, where preservation plans are still being considered and funding is still being sought. CONTRIBUTED 3. Schooner Western Union, flagship of Key West and the state of Florida, sails off Key West in better days. KEYS WEEKLY FILE PHOTO

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

MARATHON HOSTS KEY WEST IN HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL Conchs mount comeback to defeat Dolphins 1

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3

M

arathon hosted Key West in a basketball matchup on Jan. 29.

The 5-8 Key West High School Conchs were held to just 4 points in the first quarter but opened up in the second half, winning the game 46-28. “We wanted to keep the score low and we did that,” said Marathon coach Kevin Freeman. “They turned up the pressure and forced some turnovers, but overall I was happy with our performance and effort.”

Both teams have away games Feb. 5, with Marathon traveling to play Coral Shores and Key West traveling to Ransom Everglades.

— Weekly staff report

BARRY GAUKEL/Keys Weekly For more game photos visit www.

ShadyPalmPhotography.com

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1. Key West’s Ethan Levering prepares to swat a layup by Fins guard Jordan Rodriguez.

2. Key West and Marathon battle for a loose ball.

3. Key West’s Ethan Levering (14) works against Marathon’s Fisher Coleman (10).

4. Conch senior Kervens Nelson — 6’3” — goes for the dunk.

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5. Marathon’s cheerleaders perform at halftime during the Jan. 29 game.

6. Marathon’s Michael Tate (23) drives through the Key West defense.

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

MAKING HOUSING HABITABLE 1

2

MANDY MILES

mandy@keysweekly.com

COAST GUARD VOLUNTEERS RENOVATE APARTMENTS FOR HOMELESS

A

re you upgrading your washer or dryer? Did you just score a cool, new lamp online? Are you replacing the motionactivated outdoor lighting in your yard?

Wondering who can use your kids’ old twin beds?

Florida Keys Outreach Coalition for the Homeless can use all of it and more. The nonprofit organization that helps men, women and families transition from homelessness to permanent housing is repairing its apartments at Poinciana Housing complex, where termites and water damage have rendered several units unlivable.

Jeanette McLernon took over as FKOC executive director in mid-January, and is working with the organization’s new maintenance director, Dave Crooks, to make the community a place where clients are proud to live and help maintain.

“This playground has been closed for two years, because the equipment was broken and the weeds were as tall as me,” said Crooks, who recently cleared out the play area himself and then enlisted 20 or so skilled volunteers from the U.S. Coast Guard’s Maintenance Augmentation Team, or MAT, to paint and repair the playground equipment and spread mulch beneath it. “These guys are amazing.

Over three days, Feb. 2, 3 and 4, they (will have) completely gutted a few

MANDY MILES/Keys Weekly

3 units that haven’t been livable for years. They’re putting in new flooring, fixing walls, paint, windows, you name it,” said Crooks, who’s seeking donations of gently used appliances, furniture, power tools, construction materials, patio furniture, pea rock and mulch for landscaping, lamps, outdoor security lighting, twin beds and box springs.

“Our units are a sober-living community, and our clients are drug and alcohol tested and are transitioning back into jobs and self-sufficiency,” said McLernon, who has a master’s degree in social work and has worked with Key West’s homeless residents for the past decade.

She and Crooks will host a thankyou barbecue for the Coasties on Thursday, Feb. 4, and have set up a donation drop-off tent. “Unfortunately, due to COVID, I can’t pick up the donations, but we’re making it as easy as possible here at 1620 Truesdale Court.

We’re so appreciative of this community’s generosity. We can put these gently used items to great use.”

Call, text or email Crooks at 727642-4138 or dcrooks@fkoc.org.

4

1. FKOC’a new maintenance director Dave Crooks has rounded up volunteers and donations, including several tons of pea rock from Charley Toppino & Sons, to renovate several of the organization’s apartments at Poinciana Housing complex.

2. Jeanette McLernon took the helm as executive director at Florida Keys Outreach Coalition for the Homeless in mid-January.

The nonprofit organization manages 130 beds of transitional and permanent housing for homeless men, women and families.

3, 4, 5. Community volunteers from the U.S. Coast Guard’s Maintenance Augmentation Team (MAT) gut, paint, repair, drywall and refloor apartments run by FKOC at Poinciana Housing complex on Duck Avenue.

5

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

THE STORY OF ISRAEL LAFAYETTE JONES ENTERPRISING AFRICAN-AMERICAN MAKES HIS MARK ON SOUTH FLORIDA

I

BRAD BERTELLI ... is the curator for Islamorada’s Keys History & Discovery Center.

A published author of six books, his favorite subjects are Indian Key and skunk apes.

n the years before the Civil War, Arter Jones worked as a North Carolina farm laborer. He married at least twice and, while no records document his first wife, she bore him two sons, Israel and Samuel. Though their early family history is a bit murky, Israel Lafayette Jones was born in Raleigh, North Carolina, in 1858, to parents who may or may not have been slaves. His younger brother Samuel was born in 1861. Both boys grew up working on a farm.

In 1892, Israel left the farm for bluer pastures.

He moved to the port city of Wilmington, where he worked on the docks, loading and offloading cargo.

Somewhere around 1893, Israel boarded a ship bound for Florida. His first job was working in the orange groves around Orlando. When a freeze devastated the citrus fields, Israel left for Tampa. From Tampa, he sailed to Key West because just about every 19th century Florida Keys story at some point involves the Southernmost City.

Israel ventured north, exploring opportunities in the burgeoning community of Coconut Grove. He found work as a handyman at the Peacock Inn. Originally called the Bayview House when it opened circa 1883, it is considered mainland South Florida’s first hotel. Mozelle Albury, one of the inn’s housemaids, caught his eye. She and Israel married in 1895, by which time Israel had made an impression on some early South Florida and Florida Keys landowners.

The Jones family on the porch of their Porgy Key home.

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE/Contributed

It started with Walter S. Davis II, who owned 500 acres of Key Biscayne. After being hired as his property’s caretaker, Jones worked to improve it. He cleared land for crops and built a two-story home for the Davis family. His hard work paid off. Two other local property owners, Ralph Munroe, founder and first commodore of the Biscayne Bay Yacht Club, and Dr. John Clayton Gifford also hired Jones to manage their properties. They would not be the last. Frank T. Budge, the owner of Miami’s first hardware store and its first brick building, also hired Jones. In addition to the brick store, Budge owned Totten Key, where he operated a 250-acre pineapple farm.

Israel and Mozelle’s first child was born in 1897 and named King Arthur Lafayette Jones. 1897 was also the year Israel Jones purchased his first island, the 63-acre Porgy Key, for $300. The following year, while stuck aboard a 22-foot boat smack in the middle of Biscayne Bay, Mozelle gave birth to their second child, Sir Lancelot Garfield Jones. The same year, Jones purchased the neighboring Old Rhodes Key. With his brother Samuel, Israel worked on Porgy Key and built a pier extending out over the shallows and into deeper, more navigable waters. They also cleared enough land to begin commercially farming pineapples and Key limes. Though the limes took longer to bear fruit, the pineapples began producing cash crops within two years. Circa 1902, Israel moved his family into a pre-existing two-story home on Porgy Key. And then, in 1906, a Category 3 hurricane struck the Florida Keys, with devastating results for the pineapple industry. It also caused the end of more than 200 lives, many of whom were men working to build Henry Flagler’s Over-Sea Railroad.

The hurricane destroyed the Joneses’ house on Porgy Key. Frank Budge’s Totten Key pineapple plantation also suffered tremendous damage. Rather than deal with his failed farm, in 1911, Budge sold Totten Key to Jones for $1 an acre. Jones deeded much of the island to his sons Arthur and Lancelot but sold 212 acres of Totten Key for $250,000. In 2021 terms, that $250,000 would be worth in the neighborhood of $6.8 million.

Jones, too, was a religious man. He was known in his community as Parson Jones and supported Miami’s Mt. Zion Baptist Church. He also helped create Jacksonville’s Negro Industrial School. The school, originally called the Florida Baptist Academy, was founded in 1892. It moved to St. Augustine in 1918 where the school underwent several transitions before moving to Dade County in 1965 and opening as Florida Memorial College in 1968. In 2004, the school became Florida Memorial University. Israel Lafayette Jones died in 1932 at the age of 74.

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

Open 7 Days a Week 5 pm-10 pm Tapas | Cocktails | Live Music 15% Locals Discount Dinner also available at our new waterfront eatery, Chicken Walk www.TavernNTown.com | 305.296.8100 Located at the Key West Marriott Beachside Hotel 3841 N Roosevelt Blvd | Key West

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

THE STUDIOS PRESENTS VIRTUAL PRODUCTION OF ‘SMITHTOWN’ NEW PLAY STREAMS ONLINE FEB. 13-27

Michael Urie in ‘Smithtown.’ CONTRIBUTED

T

he Studios of Key West will present a virtual production of the powerful and timely new play “Smithtown,” written by Drew Larimore and directed

by Stephen Kitsakos, Studios of Key West artistic associate. “Smithtown” is a series of four interconnected but distinct monologues featuring an ensemble of top Broadway and television actors: Michael Urie (Broadway revival of Torch Song, “Ugly Betty”), Ann Harada (“Avenue Q” and Cinderella on Broadway), Colby Lewis (Chicago’s “Hamilton,” “Chicago Med”), and Constance Shulman (“Orange is the New Black” on Netflix, “The Rose Tattoo” on Broadway). The play will be available for a two-week online engagement from Feb. 13-27. Tickets are available at tskw.org/smithtown-2.

Incisively dark and funny, “Smithtown” shines a spotlight on the ways we communicate, and miscommunicate, in a rapidly evolving digital era, when the rules of conduct change by the minute, and loneliness and isolation seem to be the order of the day. “I wrote ‘Smithtown’ a few years ago and felt compelled to revisit it in light of the pandemic,” said Larimore, “Technology is at the core of the play, so producing it now in this online format couldn’t be more appropriate.”

The play follows four residents of Smithtown, a fictional Midwestern university town, who unwittingly and arguably become “victims” of technology gone awry. A college professor ignites a local tragedy by texting questionable photographs to his ex-girlfriend. A sleep-deprived “text angel” sends a well-

meaning text at the exact wrong moment. A struggling artist plays fast and loose with morality to get ahead. A grieving mother turns to social media to fill the emptiness left by a lost child.

Well-known for its creative partnerships within and beyond Key West, The Studios has expanded its reach and capacity over the previous year to produce quality streaming content. For this project, The Studios has drawn upon its impressive roster of artist in residence (AiR) alumni, pairing former AiR and playwright Larimore (“The New Peggy”) with former AiR and videographer/writer Harry Aspinwall (Netflix’s “The Sleepover”) to create this special theatrical event.

Director Stephen Kitsakos recognizes the inherent challenge in bringing Larimore’s script to life for online audiences. “‘Smithtown’ is most definitely a play, and not a film, and so of course, the focus is on the text,” he said, “but theatre endures and adapts. We assembled some of the most talented actors working today, each one a consummate storyteller, to create a hybrid form of presentation that works perfectly with this project. And of course we added a hint of cinematic flair where we could,” he adds.

“Smithtown” will run as an online streaming event Feb. 13-27.

Running time is 65 minutes. Tickets are $15 for Studio members and $20 for non-members.

The play was underwritten by Betty Rubenstein, Paula & John Tishok, Jim Salini, Janet Hinkle and Jim & Ray Luther-Pfeil and Zabar’s.

— Contributed

BRIEFLY WEEKLEY SEEKS INPUT ON CAROLINE STREET CORRIDOR Key West Commissioner Jimmy Weekley is encouraging the community to chime in on the future of the Caroline Street Corridor. He is convening a hybrid District 1 community meeting on Monday, Feb. 8 at 2:30 p.m. at City Hall.

Under consideration is the creation of one-way features on Greene and Elizabeth streets. Weekley wants to hear from the local businesses and residents.

He is also open to discussing other topics. The meeting will also be streamed on the city’s website at cityofkeywest-fl. gov, Comcast Channel 77 and AT&T Channel 99 and Zoom.

Meeting ID is 968 1751 2470 and passcode is 939567.

KEY WEST LIBRARY HOSTS LILY KING & JUDY BLUME The Friends of the Key West Library’s speaker series will present novelist Lily King in conversation with Judy Blume via webinar on Feb. 15. All lectures in the 2021 season will be presented online due to the pandemic.

As in past years the lectures are free and open to all, but you must register to receive the presentation link. Visit .friendsofthekeywestlibrary. org/registration to register.

King will be in conversation with Key West’s own Judy Blume, discussing King’s latest book, “Writers & Lovers,” one of the New York Times 100 notable books of 2020.

KEY WEST ARTISAN MARKET RETURNS FEB. 14 The first Key West Artisan Market of the season will take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 14 at Higgs Beach, Key West. The show has relocated to the parking lot at Sonny McCoy Indigenous Park, 1801 White St., across near the Southernmost Bocce Key West courts.

This is city-owned property and officials have allowed the market to operate based on strict adherence to COVID policies and mandates. The market has teamed up with the Key West Wildlife Center, which will be open for free (donation) tours.

Guests will enjoy bloody Marys, mimosas and a full bar from Great Events Catering, Islamorada Coffee Roasters, smoothies, natural juices and cut fruit, plus multiple food stalls offering eat-here or take-away. Guests will shop a curated outdoor market offering crafts, art and jewelry from talented Florida Keys makers; and stock a pantry or fridge with fresh produce, artisan cheeses from The Cheese Lovers, local seafood from Mundy The Pirate Seafood, honey, pickles, pastries, cigars, soaps and much more.

Local musicians will be presented by The X Key West, catch The X News Hour radio show live. Guests also may support featured charities and meet celebrity authors from the Key West Writers Guild.

The pet-friendly market is close to the Higgs Beach Dog Park, free Key West Club at West Martello Tower and the Atlantic Ocean. Bring your own bags and wear your own mask.

19

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

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20

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

WHAT THE STARS HAVE IN STORE

REDA WIGLE Six planets will reign this month in the sign of Aquarius, provenance of humanity, rebellion, technology and radical change.

Among them is Mercury, slipping through its first retrograde of the year. The incessant speed of modern life makes retrogrades seem negative or dangerous. In fact, they are a necessary stalling that asks us to question the pace and purpose of our lives. The focus this go-round, or turn-back, is our relationship to work. Do you labor for, or out of, love? Does work bring you joy or simply security?

Are you operating in a way that benefits your fellow man? If your answers trouble you, I suggest a restructuring of energy and attachment. Make time for contemplation and space for doubt.

Breathe slowly, plot thoughtfully and be the midwife of your own human revolution.

is a middle child and Taurus Fire Tiger named after a stigmatic saint.

She divides her time and affections between New Orleans and Key West.

AQUARIUS Jan. 20 to Feb. 18 Venus, planet of love, enters your sign and your first house of persona and individuation. This current planetary placement asks you to uncover what kind of partner you are to yourself and how that primary relationship can and will shape your reality. Heed the wise words of Kimbo Slice: “Your mind, your heart, and your balls gotta be in one accord.” Three cheers for alignment.

Notable Aquarius: Maya Harris / Jan. 30, 1967 PISCES Feb. 19 to March 20 Love planet Venus is moving through your 12th house of the unconscious. This passage will bring past emotional pains into the clarifying light of the present.

It will help, even if it hurts. You are actively learning to trust yourself, to be attuned to warning signs

and dubious patterns and to discern animal instinct from psychic intuition. Shakespeare said, “Our remedies oft in ourselves do lie.”

Here’s to your healing.

Notable Pisces: Grimes / March 17, 1988 ARIES March 21 to April 19 Poet Seamus Heaney writes, “So if, my dear, there sometimes seem to be/Old bridges breaking between you and me/Never fear./We may let the scaffolds fall/Confident that we have built our wall.” May these lines illuminate any discord in your closest relationships. Scaffolds, like strife, give shape to, but cannot shake, a fortified foundation.

Notable Aries: Charles Baudelaire / April 9, 1821 TAURUS April 20 to May 20 Poet Skye Jackson writes, “sometimes/your hands/remind me/ that/my body/is/made/of stars.”

As you move through a season of change, challenge and doubt, keep company with, and only with, those who remind you of your own ancient beginnings and infinite possibility.

Notable Taurus: Jane Jacobs / May 4, 1916 GEMINI May 21 to June 20 When diplomat, writer and fellow Gemini Romain Gary learned in the 1960s that his wife was having an affair with Clint Eastwood, Gary challenged Eastwood to a duel. Eastwood declined and was ultimately out-cowboyed by Gary.

Address any injury or insult directly, fearlessly and with flourish.

Notable Gemini: Jamaica Kincaid / May 25, 1949 CANCER June 21 to July 22 After a decade of young marriage, subverter of gender norms, smoker and author George Sand left her husband for a series of

male and female lovers. Sand called it her “romantic rebellion.”

Indulge in a romantic rebellion of your own. I’m not endorsing infidelity, rather a reassessment of what makes you feel most loved and alive.

Notable Cancer: Marie-Thérèse Walter / July 13, 1909 LEO July 23 to Aug. 22 Your animal nature and preference for immediate expression can make you impulsive, especially when it comes to communication and romantic relationships.

The danger is acting on what feels right, right now, as opposed to what makes sense in the long term. Bite your tongue and hold your horses, mon petit lions. Put mind to meditation and pen to paper. Conceive your future with grand imagination and work toward it with strategic temperance.

Notable Leo: P.L. Travers / Aug. 9, 1899 VIRGO Aug. 23 to Sept. 22 Fellow Virgo and repentant aristocrat Leo Tolstoy wrote, “The truth is obtained like gold, not by letting it grow bigger, but by washing off from it everything that isn’t gold.”

This sentiment will resonate deeply. As the resident excavator of the zodiac, you are charged not just with identifying what is true but what is of true importance.

Here’s to finding what shines.

Notable Virgo: Corky Lee / Sept. 5, 1947 LIBRA Sept. 23 to Oct. 22 I recently met a goateed Libra who claimed to be a simple man interested in a simple relationship. He went on to reveal that his current girlfriend stabbed him with a kitchen knife on Christmas Day and his ex-wife is an escort in Reno. Practice being whatever it is you hope to attract.

Notable Libra: Ta-Nehisi Coates / Sept. 30, 1975

SCORPIO Oct. 23 to Nov. 21 One of painter Georgia O’ Keefe’s favorite subjects was Cerro Pedernal, a mesa visible from the front door of her home. “I painted it often enough thinking that, if I did so, God would give it to me.”

After her death, her ashes were scattered at the top of it. O’Keefe gave herself to the very thing she wanted to be given. Whatever you love, whomever you want, don’t ask for it, give yourself to it.

Notable Scorpio: Future / Nov. 20, 1983 SAGITTARIUS Nov. 22 to Dec. 21 Actress and fellow Sagittarius Cicely Tyson’s recent obituary in the New York Times included the appraisal, “She seemed delicate. But only ‘seemed.’ She was delicate the way a ribbon of steel holds up its part of a bridge.” This sentiment applies to you and your own metaphorical bridges, archer. If you hold tight to the ribbon of optimism that runs through the steel of you, you will carry every burden beautifully.

Notable Sagittarius: Frank Zappa / Dec. 21, 1940 CAPRICORN Dec. 22 to Jan. 19 In 1966 American enigma and fellow Capricorn Howard Hughes moved to the top floor of the Sands Inn. When management sought to evict him, presumably to make room for high-rolling gamblers, Hughes retaliated by buying the hotel outright. He went on to purchase most of the Strip and within a year was the largest landowner and private employer in the state of Nevada.

As you face challenges and opposition in the coming weeks, let spite spur you to suffuse your empire.

Notable Capricorn: Marlene Dietrich / Dec. 27, 1901

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

Mainstreaming

A look at what they're doing on the mainland

NOW TRENDING Here are a new take on wall decor, a serious look at a complex issue and a second season of a drama taking place on a train.

WATCH | SNOWPIERCER Seven years after the world has become a frozen wasteland, the remnants of humanity inhabit a perpetually-moving train that circles the globe, where class warfare, social injustice and the politics of survival play out. Season one was released in May 2020. Out of the second season, which premiered on Jan. 25, emerge new power struggles, causing a dangerous rift as people are divided between their loyalty to Layton and to Mr. Wilford, who has a new train, new technology and a game plan that keeps everyone guessing.

On TNT. BUY | Wall decals These used to be kind of tacky — the options were limited to “Live, Love, Laugh” word art or a garish tropical beach. Now, the sky’s the limit when it comes to wall decals that are easy to apply to drywall and remove without damaging the surface. Shoppers can hone in on a category of art — abstracts, wildlife, landscapes, Disney and sports. Decals are available from all the major home stores including wayfair.com and The Home Depot; prices vary.

(They are far superior to stencils.

See page 28.)

You have to be living under a rock not to know two things: Amazon’s Jeff Bezos is retiring from his job as CEO and founder of Amazon, and the Keys always need more help.

We offer you …

TOP TEN FLORIDA KEYS JOB OPPORTUNITIES FOR JEFF BEZOS 10. Associate broker, Chapman & Cardwell Capital Management 9. Sandwich artist, Subway 8. Chief technology officer, Dion’s Quik Chik Chicken

READ | It Ends with Us At first blush, this is a romance.

Until it isn’t. The main character’s love interest turns abusive suddenly. This is a complex issue that the author, Colleen Hoover, treats as a serious subject. She delves into the nuance of abusive relationships as they pertain to the victim, children and extended family without falling back on the overly simplified “just leave him” argument so many naively espouse. Available for free on Libby app, supported by Monroe County libraries.

7. Grand marshal, Fantasy Fest parade 6. Buyer’s agent, Kirby’s Closet

5. Village manager, Islamorada 4. Rick Scott stunt double 3. Spokesman, Addison’s Barber Parlor 2. Director of leisure activities, Monroe County Sheriff’s Office 1. Executive assistant, Edwin O. Swift

22

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021 MANDY MILES

mandy@keysweekly.com

WHAT ARE CABLE HUTS & WHY DO THEY MATTER?

KEY WEST SPENDS $300K TO RESTORE HISTORIC TELEGRAPH STRUCTURES

Prior to the January 2021 restoration efforts, the historic cable huts at Mallory Square, seen in July 2019, were rapidly deteriorating. KEYS WEEKLY FILE PHOTO

ENVIABLE INTERNSHIPS

REEF RELIEF WELCOMES 3 NEW FACES

Reef Relief, the nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting Key West’s coral reef and marine environment, welcomes three interns this spring — Julie Kavjian, Taylor Tsacoumis and Caroline Birch. CONTRIBUTED

R

eef Relief recently announced the arrival of its 2021 spring interns. They will assist with virtual programs, annual spring break coral camp, storm water awareness, Key West Merina Park maintenance, and other educational campaigns.

The historic cable huts at Mallory Square receive a restoration that City Manager Greg Veliz calls ‘long overdue.’ LANCE HILL/Keys Weekly

T

he city of Key West finally is restoring the crumbling and graffiticovered cable huts at Mallory Square, a project City Manager Greg Veliz called “long overdue.”

Officials in November 2020 approved a $317,000 contract with DL Porter Constructors to stabilize and restore the hexagonal structures that date back to the 1920s and ’30s.

They were used to store giant spools of telegraph cable that was laid underwater — then maintained by the schooner Western Union — to enable communication between Key West, Cuba and the Caribbean.

A similar cable hut near the Southernmost Point monument — from which a 125-mile telegraph line to Cuba origi-

nated — is identified and explained by a historic plaque at the site. The same could not be said for the cable huts at Mallory Square, which hosts the island’s nightly Sunset Celebration, but not much else.

The waterfront square, however, is again on the list for revitalization.

The city’s new consultants, KCI Technologies, selected to revitalize Duval Street, soon will begin holding public meetings to build consensus on how the street should look, KCI representative Bruce Reed told the city commission on Feb. 2.

As Duval Street discussions begin, talk also has turned to Mallory Square, and to finding additional uses for the prime, publicly owned property near the foot of Duval Street.

JULIE KAVJIAN WATER QUALITY INTERN Originally from Fairfax, Virginia, Julie Kavjian has always been an ocean enthusiast. Her passion led her to Coastal Carolina University, where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in marine science.

She has participated in sea turtle conservation efforts in Costa Rica and conducted her own research project on microplastics in Myrtle Beach. She is excited to be involved in Reef Relief’s conservation efforts throughout the Florida Keys as the 2021 spring water quality intern.

TAYLOR TSACOUMIS EDUCATION INTERN Taylor is our 2021 spring education Intern; she will help educate students about the reefs and marine life in the Florida Keys.

Originally from Ashburn, Virginia, she recently graduated from the University of South Carolina with a bachelor’s degree in marine sci-

ence. She spent two months living in South Africa where she worked as a shark conservation and marine conservation intern in the iSimangaliso Wetland Park. There, she researched the migratory patterns of ragged-tooth sharks to produce evidence that the species is overexploited, and the reefs are currently poorly managed and need to be protected. She hopes to continue increasing awareness by working with policymakers to protect and conserve coral reefs and marine life.

CAROLINE BIRCH COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT INTERN Caroline Birch is from Alexandria, Virginia and is the spring 2021 community engagement intern for Reef Relief. Caroline is a marketing and marine biology student at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. She wishes to pursue a career in coral reef restoration. She hopes her internship with Reef Relief helps enhance her knowledge of the ocean ecosystems and gives her experience in the field.

— Contributed

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021 REDA WIGLE

www.keysweekly.com

SAVE ROOM FOR THESE DESSERTS

S Better Than Sex is located at the corner of Simonton and Truman. LANCE HILL/Keys Weekly

Dani and Len Johnson of Better Than Sex BETTER THAN SEX/Contributed

Better Than Sex’s Lickin’ Love, a glass of pinot noir served in a Belgian chocolaterimmed wine glass.

Better Than Sex’s Cookie Nookie Pie.

cientists agree that early man developed a taste for sugar as a means of survival.

The “sweet tooth” is an evolutionary adaptation that ensured our ancestors consumed sugar-rich, calorically dense foods that fueled them to travel vast distances, outrun predators and make love.

Key West‘s pastry power couple, Dani and Len Johnson of Better Than Sex dessert restaurant, have been honoring and elevating that survivalist sweet tooth for nearly 13 years. What began as a pocket-sized drinksand-dessert experience on Key West’s Petronia Street has expanded to a larger, but equally intimate, local space, plus locations in Savannah, Orlando and Dallas.

A Los Angeles outpost is slated to open when that city emerges from lockdown.

But success wasn’t instant for Better Than Sex. “We were open for about a year before we really had any business. We were dead,” said Len. “It’s the people here who got us to where we are now. We’re here; we’re blessed to be here. We never want to forget that.”

A spirit of adaptation and evolution has carried the couple through its slow start, Hurricane Irma and a global pandemic. With 60 reservations on the books the night of the initial shutdown in the spring of 2020, Better Than Sex immediately pivoted to take-out, something the couple previously had resisted. “I was apprehensive because I couldn’t stand the thought of our pretty desserts getting smushed into a box,” Dani said. “You don’t get to sit in our dining room and have the whole experience, with the exceptional service, the lighting, the décor. But COVID made it OK. Everybody is just happy to have this indulgence at home.”

Although the restaurant has returned to its usual hours and dine-in service, Better Than Sex still offers individual desserts to go, as well as 6-inch celebration cakes, miniature versions of its most popular desserts, which are available for nearly immediate pick-up.

To further enhance the takeout experience, the couple also designed Spark Cards, a series of questions meant to inspire intimate conversation while sharing an enchanting dessert at home.

(Personal favorite: If you were to be described as an ice cream flavor, what would it be?)

Better Than Sex radio, a Sirius station played at all BTS locations, is now available to home diners, and the restaurant’s almond and aphrodisiacscented Romance candle, handmade by former

employee Emily Shipman of Bella Laine candles, is available in the expanding retail space.

Clearly, the Better Than Sex crew — and clientele — celebrate change. Eight years ago, when the restaurant was moving to its current Simonton Street location, the couple relived the legend of Sloppy Joe’s by asking guests and staff to raise a glass and a chair. “We have pictures of guests and employees walking with chairs on their backs down Duval Street, wheeling refrigerators,” Len said, laughing at the memory.

The couple had initially envisioned a fondue restaurant. That plan was quickly extinguished when, as Dani remembered, “We had a fondue party at our house and almost caught the place on fire.”

Retiring, reviving and revising are all part of a typical life cycle for the restaurant’s dessert menu. “The Better Than Sex, a triple chocolate bread pudding, has been on the menu since day one. I’ve revised it four or five times because I love it,” Dani said. Her perennial favorite remains Man Flowers, a dark chocolate layer cake made with double chocolate stout and served with house-made Irish cream ice cream.

She and her pastry team’s newest experiment is a totally vegan dessert — vanilla bean cake layered between passion fruit mousse with strawberry coulis and freeze-dried raspberries.

The restaurant also now offers the gluten-free Caress My Carrot cake.

“Sick of sugar? Never. Sometimes I get burned out being in a kitchen, but our people keep it alive for me,” said Dani, the self-taught pastry chef. “From the beginning, we’ve tried to treat everybody as a person and the job they do for us as a gift.”

Last spring, COVID restrictions forced the couple to cut back to a skeleton crew. When the restaurant could reopen for dine-in service, “We were like, ‘Oh my God, we’ve got to get our people back.’ Nobody had left. Everybody waited.”

Dani and Len remain as devoted to the island community as to their staff, and Key West remains the spiritual home of the brand. “Better Than Sex was born here,” said Dani. “This was the right place to start because creativity is allowed and welcomed. Key West lets you be you.”

Skip dinner entirely, or save plenty of space for the sweet and satisfying combination of desserts, drinks and double entendres.

Better Than Sex, 926 Simonton St., and open for dine-in and take-out Wednesday through Sunday evenings. Find them online at betterthansexdesserts.com or on Facebook @betterthansexkw.

25

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

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26

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021 SARA MATTHIS

sara@keysweekly.com

What’s your secret talent? Singing. I used to sing in the A.M.E. choir. My favorite hymn is “Yes, God is real.”

How long have you lived in Marathon? We moved here in 1953.

Back then you could play ball on the highway. There was a car that came by every now and then and we had to move to the side.

DOROTHY GOES THE DISTANCE

MARATHON WOMAN A PILLAR OF THE COMMUNITY

I

f there’s a thread running through Dorothy Hawkins’ life it’s food. For almost three decades she cooked at Fishermen’s Community Hospital and then moved over to become a bus driver for the Monroe County School District. At 71, she’s a stalwart of Marathon, mothering the upcoming generations with the support she once received from the matriarchs of the Marathon community.

She’s retired now, and stays home most days because of the pandemic, but that doesn’t mean she’s idle.

She goes to the store and home and, when it gets too boring for words, she’ll hop in her car and drive down to the 7 Mile Bridge and back.

Do you have siblings? I’m the oldest of six. My mom died when I was 12 so I helped to raise my little brothers and sisters.

Do you have children and grandchildren? My sons Stacy and Josh live near Ocala. My daughter Ann lives in Marathon and works with Dr. Woltz. I have six grandchildren.

Is being a grandmother as great as they say? Oh sure, my kids bring ’em over and then when I’m ready I can send ’em off!

What was your favorite job? Definitely cooking at the hospital. I got close to the patients and I would go visit with them. I wasn’t supposed to, but I did anyway because everyone needs comfort.

What do you like to cook? Oh, anything — collard greens, okra, peas, beans, cabbage, mac and cheese, oxtail soup, pork chops ...

(At this point, her daughter Ann interjects: “She can make a meal out of anything, and not just any meal, something delicious. I don’t know how she does it.”)

What’s your favorite book? The Bible, of course.

What are some of your favorite memories of Marathon? Taking my kids fishing across the street.

I’d bring my chair and would tell the kids not to let each other fall in. One time Ann got wrapped in the fishing line.

What’s something you don’t like? Snakes! If I find one, I go in the opposite direction and don’t come back until someone else deals with it. I have a recipe with Snake-A-Way and mothballs that I sprinkle around the yard.

What’s your “at home” look?

Scrubs.

Who was one of your mentors?

After my mom died, it was the late Cora Picton. I would get in big trouble with her if she caught me shooting marbles with the boys. I was always looking over my shoulder to see if she was coming.

What’s your favorite thing? My birthday!

27

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

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28

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

I HATE STENCILS W

e at Keys Weekly want to honor the men and women serving in our local military installations. With help and advice from our community members in the armed forces, we’re proud to present our Military Spotlight.

JACOB ANDREW LAWSON U.S. COAST GUARD, BOATSWAIN’S MATE 3RD CLASS Why did you join the military? I wanted to serve my country and have the opportunity to save lives. I also joined to continue my father’s and grandfather’s Coast Guard legacies.

How many years have you been in the military? Roughly 2 ½ years. July 2021 will be my three-year mark.

Had you ever been to Florida Keys or Key West before your current assignment? No, I had never traveled farther south than Miami before getting stationed here.

Did you choose Key West or were you just assigned here?

Key West was in my top five out of school. Assignments aren’t always what the member asks for due to the needs of the service, so I consider myself lucky.

What were your first thoughts upon hearing you were coming to the Keys?

One of my first thoughts was, “I better buy a boat.” Then I thought, “At least I won’t have to bring any winter jackets with me.”

Hobbies? Sailing, hunting, fishing are the hobbies I grew up doing. I lived on a farm, so I enjoy anything that’s outdoors.

Favorite things to do here in the Keys? Go out on a sailboat for an afternoon, and explore the waters I haven’t yet visited.

What do you like most about the Keys? Being surrounded by crystal clear waters and the accessibility to be able to put a boat in any afternoon.

What do you like most about your assignment? Being able to travel around the Caribbean.

I get to see people and places I wouldn’t even have considered visiting before.

What would you change about living here in Key West if you had the power to do so? I would want it to go back to how it was before tourists started coming. I enjoyed the island during the COVID shutdown, when it was much quieter with fewer people.

Any advice for other military personnel seeking assignment here? Get a boat before coming down here. It’s the best way to really enjoy the Keys.

SARA MATTHIS

ANOTHER MISGUIDED ATTEMPT AT ARTISTRY

I have a redhot hatred for thinks commustencils. I know nity journalism that’s an inflamis important, but not serious; likes matory statement, weird and wonbut hear me out. derful children Stencils are, (she has two). or should be damOccasionally she mit, the last port tortures herself with sprint-disof safety for mistance triathlons, guided “artists” but only if she has like myself. When a good chance of beating her sister. you’re reduced to stencils you’ve already admitted a couple of things like “I can’t draw,” or “I can’t paint,” and “God help me; this shouldn’t be so hard,” and “I don’t think they make erasers big enough for this current disaster.”

So it makes me especially bitter that when I am finally reduced to the genre of art tailored to meet the needs of paste eaters, well then, I think I have earned the right to nail it.

Yet, I still can’t do it. I don’t put enough paint on, or I put too much paint on, or the stencil slips.

There’s a separate section of hell for stencilers like me, though, the ones who think they can “fix” the ruined stencil attempt. I’ll just add a little more paint over here, I think, and then just straighten up this geometry a teensy bit, a little dot over here. … Pretty soon my mandala looks like it took a hit of LSD on its way to a Dumpster fire. Yes, that’s my professional stencil skill level.

It’s infuriating.

Even more so because I “practiced” stencils. You see, I’m not the overly arrogant type of I’ve-got-this artist. I move in carefully. I choose my tools. I get the lighting down. Okay, none of those things is true. In reality, I throw the stencil down on top of a dusty paver and hit it with the dregs of a mostly used can of

spray paint. When that doesn’t work out — shocker! — I think I can improve the outcome by going FASTER, hurrying down a path of stepping stones in quick succession with an increasingly mangled stencil tool and the glue-like remains of paint in the bottom of the can. (Spoiler alert: that 100% doesn’t work. Also, it lasts a long time; those pavers mock me every day.)

I’ve also tried to slow down the process by taking out a big piece of practice paper, pouring a glass of wine, choosing a round foam-tipped brush, taking a sip, dipping the brush in the paint and gently dabbing the excess paint off on a paper towel, sipping, and then carefully blotting the paint on top of the stencil. That doesn’t work either, but the wine makes it less painful in the short term.

You know those DIY videos?

Those cheery little four-minute Facebook episodes of someone turning a basement bargain dresser into a beautifully stenciled masterpiece? Oh, I still watch those but I’m squinting bitterly and making disparaging sounds in my throat. I try to spot the editing — surely there’s a rough cut in there somewhere that represents a three-hour time lapse where the artist is doing magic things off-screen to make the stencil come out properly.

Honestly, this pretense that I have even one artistic speck in my body has to stop. Which brings me to wall decals. It’s a new low for me, personally.

The nice ones cost about 50 bucks and the only skill involved is peeling the designs off the backing and sticking them to the wall. After my latest stencil fiasco, I am cautiously ambivalent about the wall decals. No doubt they require some sorcery as well.

29

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

MINDING EVERYONE’S BUSINESS

KEY WEST BUSINESS GUILD HEARS MAYOR’S STATE OF THE COMMUNITY REPORT 1

2

MANDY MILES/Keys Weekly

M

ayor Teri Johnston told the Key West Business Guild’s lunchtime audience that she took a different approach with this year’s State of the City address.

“Instead of talking for 45 minutes about each city department — which is still covered in this year’s Annual Report — I thought I instead needed to do a State of the Community presentation,” Johnston said. “Because if ever there was a year for this island to come together to put us on the road to recovery, 2020 was it.”

She then showed the guild audience a 30-minute video that highlights the people behind the nonprofits that kept people fed, housed, clothed and sheltered during business shutdowns, layoffs and an unusable state unemployment website.

“In this, my third and most tumultuous year in office, we’ve endured, sometimes more gracefully than others, but we’ve never wavered in our commitment to the locals of this community,” Johnston said before answering a few vaccine-related questions from the audience.

— Weekly staff report

4

3

1. With a masked staff, socially distant seating and seated meal service rather than a buffet, the Marriott Beachside Hotel masters the luncheon in times of COVID. 2. Roberta DePiero and Pete Arnow take a break from planning the Anne McKee Art Auction to announce the online event at the Key West Business Guild luncheon.

3. Key West Business Guild president Chuck Licis-Masson welcomes members to the organization’s February luncheon at the Marriott Beachside Hotel.

4. Key West Mayor Teri Johnston introduces the ‘State of the Community’ video during the Key West Business Guild’s Feb. 3 luncheon.

5. Mayor Teri Johnston this year replaces her State of the City address with a State of the Community video highlighting the work of Key West businesses, nonprofits and people who have led the island’s COVID recovery.

5

6. ‘We’ve had to learn to smile with our eyes,” masked business guild board member Misha McRae says at the February luncheon.

6

7

7. Bartender, fundraiser and chick about town, Laure Thibaud drops her mask for a quick pose.

30

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

CHARLOTTE TWINE www.keysweekly.com

ALL I MEAD NEW LOCATION, NEW MURAL BOOSTS BUSINESS FOR MEADERY

L

ast week, Keys’ Meads co-owner Jeff Kesling and head distiller Jeff Wingate, known as “The Jeffs,” sat at a table and swirled amber-colored fluid in small snifters. They were preparing to sample their inventory. The three glasses on the table had taped labels indicating which barrel they had come from: 107, 102 and 006.

“The 006 was aged in a sour beer barrel.

Very good, but not in my taste palate,” said Wingate, thoughtfully. He sipped the 107 mead.

He tilted his head back. “Amazing. Tastes like heaven. Liquid sunshine.”

“Not gonna lie, it’s my favorite,” said Kesling, pointing at 102.

“It’s like biting into a crisp Gala apple. In used beer barrels, the meads are picking up the flavors of beer,” Wingate said, explaining that Keys’ Meads buys used oak barrels from other breweries to age their meads in, lending each a different flavor.

“We’re lucky if we have eight gallons of that one,” said Kesling. “Four for you, four for me.”

The men break into laughter.

Thus goes a typical mead tasting at Keys’ Meads, educational and fun at the same time.

“The Jeffs’’ enjoy a breezy back-and-forth banter. Kesling said that one of the names they’re batting around for their new distillery is “Throuple Jeff,” because, believe it or not, the other co-owner, Kesling’s father, is named Jeff Kesling Sr. But the full-time bartender’s name is Devon Mederos. “We’re gonna give him the name tag ‘Not Jeff,’” joked Kesling.

The operational staff of Keys’ Meads: from left, head distiller and beekeeper Jeff Wingate, co-owner and distiller Jeff Kesling, and bartender Devon Mederos. Kesling said business got a huge boost from the mural by Ginger Hill. CHARLOTTE TWINE/Keys Weekly

However, Wingate and Kesling take meadmaking very seriously. “Mead is more versatile than wine, honestly, in terms of what you can do with flavors,” said Wingate.

“You can quote both of us as saying that,” said Kesling.

Kesling has lived in the Keys on and off since he was 6 years old, and he has made a living for the most part as an engineer. In 2014, he was inspired to start home-brewing mead because he’s not a huge fan of beer and wine.

If, when you think of mead, you imagine Vikings sitting around a massive wood table, yelling “Argh!” and clinking metal cups in all those Netflix dramas, you can be excused.

But according to Delish.com, “While mead has gotten a medieval reputation thanks to movies and TV shows, its history stretches back much further. With its simple fermented honey plus water recipe, mead was one of the very first alcoholic beverages ever made, predating beer and wine — as far back as 3,000 B.C.” Starting his own meadery business was a natural decision for Kesling. “I’m an entrepreneur. I’m one of those people, ‘If I can, I will.’ I built the walls in this place. The floor. The walls.

Very literally,” he said.

The first Keys’ Meads business opened in 2017 on the second floor of an office building at MM 99.3 in Key Largo. But they just moved into a new, more accessible storefront, which is next to Mattress & Beyond at MM 99.4.

“We lucked into this location,” Kesling said.

“I came in to buy a mattress. I joked, ‘If you ever decide to close up, I’ll take your location.’ And

he said, ‘Well, I’m trying to downsize.’ It wasn’t until I was here that I realized how much I was choking while at the last location.”

Kesling uses honey from Wingate’s Pirate Hat Apiary business. The duo met at a local home-brewing competition in 2014, and the rest is history.

“It was a friendship that began as a vendor supplier and now it’s blossomed into a partnership,” explained Wingate. “We may bring honey production in house.”

“Ah, my evil plan is coming to fruition,” replied Kesling.

In addition to selling bottles of meads and tastings, Keys’ Meads also sells a selection of Pirate Hat Apiary products that are made by Wingate and his wife. The items include candles, soaps, body scrubs, and the honey itself.

Kesling said business got a boost in September shortly after Keys’ Meads moved to the current location and artist Ginger Hill put the highly visible mural on the side of the building.

Passengers in cars can easily see the colorful painting while sitting at the nearby light.

“The outside mural brought people here.

It’s a landmark now,” Kesling said.

Keys’ Meads is located at 99411 Overseas Highway, Key Largo. Hours are Monday to Saturday, noon to 7 p.m. and Sunday, noon to 6 p.m.

For the full story on Keys’ Meads, visit keysweekly.com.

2. Co-owner Jeff Kesling shows off the selection of honeys available at Keys’ Meads. 3. Keys’ Meads bartender Devon Mederos.

4. Beekeeper and distiller Jeff Wingate prepares to render beeswax, a process to melt and purify wax from honeycombs in order to make candles, etc.

32

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021 A Reddish Egret, hunting in its dance-like manner on Sugarloaf Key. MARK HEDDEN/Keys Weekly

REDDISH EGRET: DANCE IS LIFE

MARK HEDDEN ... is a photographer, writer, and semi-professional birdwatcher. He has lived in Key West for more than 25 years and may no longer be employable in the real world. He is also executive director of the Florida Keys Audubon Society.

I

was reading a species account of the reddish egret the other day, when the authors described the bird as a “charismatic species,” which kind of stopped me in my tracks. Charismatic?

A species account is basically the scientific lowdown on a bird – what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, its sexual proclivities – all that good stuff.

This one was in “Birds of the World,” produced by the heavy hitters at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Not the kind of people who throw around admiring superlatives willy-nilly.

Was there a technical usage of charismatic that differed from how you would use it to describe, say, George Clooney?

The term was in the introduction, just after a long section quoting John James Audubon’s description of the first time he saw reddish egrets, which was here in the Florida Keys.

The birds were in the distance, but Audubon’s hired guide told him, “You may soon see them close enough, as you and I will shoot a few by way of amusement.” And then they shot more than a dozen and got closer looks. (In his defense, Audubon did need to study them to paint them, and there were no binoculars at the time.)

Anyone who’s read a lot of contemporary writing about animals has heard the term “charismatic megafauna.” The concept gets thrown around in environmental and conservation biology circles to describe large critters that garner a lot of public interest, sympathy and oftentimes, donations. Think pandas, elephants, tigers, whales … animals that are often used as the standardbearers of the (usually threatened) ecosystems in which they live.

Animals that also usually make good cartoon characters.

A bit of research (fine, Googling) took me down a rabbit hole that led to the conclusion that a charismatic species is not an empirical term. In my travels I did, though, run across an excellent paper in which the authors tried to make science by nailing down a more precise definition of the term.

They also created a ranking of the top 20 charismatic animals in the world, based on surveys of the general public as well as assessments of how they were portrayed in zoo advertisements and posters for Disney and Pixar movies. The charisma scores were based on how rare, endangered, beautiful, cute, impressive and/or dangerous they were. Tigers just beat out lions to come in at the top (I doubt we’d know the names Carole Baskin and Joe Exotic if they raised iguanas). Whales came in at number 20. It was an interesting exercise, but I call bullshit because the list did not include any birds. Any list of the most charismatic species that doesn’t at least include penguins is obviously cripplingly flawed in its methodology.

Now that we know “charismatic species” is a subjective descriptive, the next question is why the reddish egret is considered so compellingly charming. To anyone who has seen them in action, the answer is glaringly obvious: It’s their dance moves.

A lot of birds have dance moves. Male and female sandhill cranes perform these high-speed, call-and-response ballets. Western grebes run side-by-side across the surface of the water, wings back, in matching anime ninja postures. (See: Naruto. Or just see western grebes.)

Male bearded manakins – actually, the males of a lot of manakin species – lounge about all day at rainforest leks, which kind of function like dance halls, and wait for female manakins to stop by, so they can compete to impress them with their leaps and wing snaps. The victor goes off into the bushes with the female for a couple seconds to exchange genetic material. That’s pretty much all male bearded manakins do with their lives.

But all these birds are dancing for – let’s call it romance. Reddish egrets – which are sometimes reddish and sometimes white – do perform courtship dances that involve leaping over each other, circling around each other, handing each other twigs and emitting what Audubon described as “hollow rough sounds.”

But they only do that a couple times a year. They perform a daily dance for a different audience: fish.

In the Keys you mostly see reddish egrets in shallow saltwater ponds or out on the tidal flats. Their dance floors tend to be mud covered by two to six inches of water.

Usually it starts with a run. Then maybe a change of directions.

Then a wing fake, or a head fake, or double wing fake. Then maybe a leap into the air and a look-at-me landing. Sometimes they’ll run with their head canted 45 degrees to the side. Sometimes they’ll fluff out the feathers on their neck to make themselves look bigger.

It’s a full-body commitment, all arhythmic, improvised, high energy, maybe a touch over-dramatic.

Imagine viewing something choreographed by Martha Graham or Alvin Ailey with the sound off. Throw in a tablespoon of the landlord’s interpretive dance quintet from the “Big Lebowski.”

It is, in fact, damn charming to watch.

The point, of course, is not to entertain the fish, but to scare them, confound them, confuse them. To keep them from knowing when a bill might stab into the water and grab them up.

Dance is life for some. Though, maybe not if you’re a fish.

33

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

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34

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021 TIFFANY DUONG tiffany@keysweekly.com

GETTING THE WATER RIGHT EVERGLADES RESTORATION WILL FIX MYRIAD OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

I

t’s all about getting the water right.

That was the message that Steve Davis, senior ecologist and vice president of communications and engagement for The Everglades Foundation, gave at the most recent virtual talk hosted by the Keys History and Discovery Museum.

“I’ve spent much of my career studying Florida Bay and the connection between the Everglades and the Bay,” Davis explained. “And really, it’s a connection through fresh water — fresh water running off the landscape and flowing off into this shallow bay ecosystem.”

Davis explained how polluted water from Lake Okeechobee is currently sent east and west, causing harm. Very little flows south to the Everglades and Florida Bay, where it is desperately needed.

“Restoration means meeting the needs of those ecosystems by delivering water down the coast to the Everglades and the Florida Keys,” Davis said.

According to The Everglades Foundation, clean water and intact peat soils are essential ingredients to effective restoration.

Clean water is free of phosphorus contamination and the presence of other chemicals. Everglades habitats are very sensitive to phosphorus pollution, which is present in common fertilizers, untreated sewage and animal waste. When phosphorus gets into the waterways and the Everglades, it transforms the natural ecosystem full of wading birds, frogs, turles, fish and more into an algae-dominated barren.

Davis pointed to a massive seagrass dieoff in 2016. Polluted waters flushed into Florida Bay, killing off the seagrass and leading to turbid water and algal blooms.

“Anglers throughout the Florida Keys saw this and know its impact on fisheries health Bay-wide,” Davis said.

To avoid and remedy this, Everglades restoration projects plan to use a new “Everglades Agricultural Area” to filter polluted water from Lake Okeechobee, avoiding polluted discharge to the east and west coasts. This “engineered wetland” will treat polluted waters through the marshes and could reduce Lake Okeechobee discharges by 55%, Davis said. Critically, it could also restore 120 billion gallons of clean water flow to the south annually.

The more water that can flow through the marsh, the more it will reduce the stress on Florida Bay, Davis said.

Peat soils are the dead plant matter that accumulates in wetlands over time. In the Everglades, these soils build up over the limestone and act like a “massive blanket” 10 to 15 feet deep that helps usher water south to the Everglades and Florida Bay.

“These peat soils took thousands of years to develop,” Davis said, “and as we drained peat soil, it began to break down.”

This resulted in a drop in elevation and drying out of peat soils. Unfortunately, this also released critical stores of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Davis estimated that 760 million metric tons of stored carbon have been lost from the ecosystem due to changes in water flow.

1 2

“Thinking of climate change, restoring flow of water could be very important as climate mitigation,” Davis said.

As the water has dried up and the peat disintegrated, the Everglades’ landscapes have also changed. This has been devastating in particular for shore birds that depend on seasonal water level changes to find food.

At the height of the wet season, small fish and crayfish swim across the landscape. Then, as the dry season starts, water recedes and the fish, crayfish and other wading bird food concentrates in water pools, where birds can more easily eat their fill.

“That concentration effect is one of the emergent properties of the Everglades. It is really one of the targets of restoration of flow,” Davis said. “Recreating this food concentration will give rise to massive wading bird populations that the Everglades were once known for.”

Restoration will also help rebalance inequities in water management and build up much needed resilience to sea level rise and saltwater intrusion in South Florida. It does this by decreasing vulnerabilities in the system and keeping things in balance.

Davis added, “This interaction of landscapes and balance took centuries to develop and get the water right.”

So, where do we stand with Everglades restoration projects?

Projects are a 50/50 partnership between the South Florida Water Management District and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, with equal cost sharing — in theory.

20 years after their start, the state of Florida has outspent the federal government 3-to-1 in this “supposed 50/50 partnership,” Davis said. Turns out that the plans are there, but the money is less certain. Federal appropriations at much higher levels than are currently available are needed to even up spending. The historic and current funding deficit has delayed this much-needed restoration.

Still, Davis remains hopeful.

“If the Army Corps gets funding, projects remain on track. But the fact is we’ve never been on track,” he said. “If we get restoration construction back on track, we will generate jobs and realize the benefits of these projects sooner. Our economy depends on that.”

1. Alligators are some of the most infamous inhabitants of the Everglades ecosystem.

TIFFANY DUONG/Keys Weekly 2. In the Everglades, cypress domes often enclose pools of water naturally made by alligators thrashing their tails about.

35

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

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36

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

Loving the gorgeous sunsets on the ocean side. DEBRA LONDON/Contributed

Neighborly love shows with an impromptu concert by Sunset Hammock residents “Jay by the Bay.” BARBARA OVERTON/Contributed

Hen with babies on South Street.

MAXINE DALE MAS/Contributed

Love on the rocks and by the mangroves: roseate spoonbill and tri-color heron hanging out and fishing together in Buttonwood Bay. LYNN DILS/Contributed

Love is adventure! Rhys is learning to sail aboard Danger Charters with dad Robbie Hogan and Captain Bronza Fox. JAMIE OLWELL/Contributed

Love is everywhere in the Keys, you just have to be looking in all the right places. JO-ANNA MARY/Contributed

It’s not every day you end up engaged to your high school sweetheart and enjoying paradise together! SAMANTHA DELLILO/Contributed

TIFFANY DUONG

tiffany@keysweekly.com

O

ur theme for FEBRUARY is LOVE ON THE ROCK. We want to know about what love is like in our islands (the good, the bad and the funny), so send us pictures of you self-quarantining on a Saturday night, your favorite selfie with your honey/kids/pets, the last time you went dancing at Hog Heaven, or “girls night out” in Key West. Love hurts and love heals — let’s celebrate together!

Photos, captions and photo credit can be emailed to tiffany@keysweekly.com.

Rules, schmules: All photos must be original work and feature something in the Keys.

Photos can be images that have been published before.

No third party may own or control any materials the photo contains, and the photo must not infringe upon the trademark,

copyright, moral rights, intellectual rights, or rights of privacy of any entity or person.

Any person agrees, by submitting photos, that photos submitted can be used by the Keys Weekly for any and all purposes, including but not limited to advertising, charity work, sales, future editorial, print in the newspapers or online or on social media posts on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and any other social media platforms as may come about.

37

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

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39

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

• CLASSIFIEDS, PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES •

305.743.0844

LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

FICTITIOUS NAME NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the undersigned, desiring to engage in business under the fictitious name of Florida and The Keys Homes R.E. located at 516 NW Serene Meadow Way, Pt. St. Lucie, FL 34986, intends to register said name with the Florida Department of State, Tallahassee, Florida.

By: Monica Quinn, P.A. Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

02/27/2021, 10:00 am at 101500 Overseas Highway, Key Largo, FL 33037, pursuant to subsection 713.78 of the Florida Statutes.

Wheatons Towing reserves the right to accept or reject any and/all bids.

3D7MX49C16G219061 2006 Dodge Publish: January 28 & February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

between the hours of 8:30 A.M.---5:00 P.M., no later than five (5) calendar days prior to the scheduled meeting; if you are hearing or voice-impaired, call “711”.

Pursuant to Section 286.0105, Florida Statutes, notice is given that if a person decides to appeal any decision made by the Board of County Commissioners with respect to any matter considered at such meetings or hearings, that person will need a record of the proceedings, and that, for such purpose, that person may need to ensure that a verbatim record is made of the proceedings, which record includes the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is to be based.

Dated this 29th day of January, 2021.

Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

may need to ensure that a verbatim record is made of the proceedings, which record includes the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is to be based.

Dated this 29th day of January, 2021.

Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 6:00 p.m. via Communications Media Technology using a Zoom webinar platform.

Pursuant to Executive Order No. 20-69, Monroe County Emergency Directive 20-06, and the Center for Disease Control (“CDC”) social-distancing guidelines established to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the February 23, 2021 regular meeting of the District II Advisory Committee will be conducted via CMT, using a Zoom Webinar platform. If the Governor issues a subsequent order changing directives for Local Government Public Meetings, the Monroe County Tourist Development Council will provide updates on the County Website at MonroeCounty-FL.Gov. The access points to view the meeting or for members of the public to provide public comment will be: By joining the Zoom Meeting via weblink: https://us02web.zoom. us/j/87590508009 Meeting ID: 875 9050 8009 • By joining the Zoom Meeting via one tap mobile: One tap mobile +13017158592,, 87590508009# US (Washington D.C.) +13126266799,, 87590508009# US (Chicago) Dial by your location +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington D.C.) +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 929 205 6099 US (New York) +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma) +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose) Meeting ID: 875 9050 8009 Please contact Maxine Pacini or Ammie Machan to submit written information or for additional information by writing MCTDC, 1201 White Street, Suite 102, Key West, FL 33040, by email at PaciniMaxine@monroecounty-fl.gov, or by calling (305)296-1552 between the hours of 9:00 a.m.

– 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Documents must be received no later than Friday 5:00 P.M. on February 19, 2021.

All District Advisory Committee Meetings of the Tourist Development Council Meetings are open to the public and one or more TDC Member or County Commissioners may be in attendance.

ADA ASSISTANCE: If you are a person with a disability who needs special accommodations in order to participate in this proceeding, please contact the County Administrator's Office, by phoning (305) 292-4441, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., no later than five (5) calendar days prior to the scheduled meeting; if you are hearing or voice impaired, call "711".

Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

Public Meetings, the Monroe County Tourist Development Council will provide updates on the County Website at MonroeCounty-FL.Gov. The access points to view the meeting or for members of the public to provide public comment will be: By joining the Zoom Meeting via weblink: https://us02web.zoom. us/j/89671296375 Meeting ID: 896 7129 6375 • By joining the Zoom Meeting via one tap mobile: One tap mobile +13017158592,, 89671296375# US (Washington D.C.) +13126266799,, 89671296375# US (Chicago) Dial by your location +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington D.C.) +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 929 205 6099 US (New York) +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma) +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose) Meeting ID: 896 7129 6375 Please contact Maxine Pacini or Ammie Machan to submit written information or for additional information by writing MCTDC, 1201 White Street, Suite 102, Key West, FL 33040, by email at PaciniMaxine@monroecounty-fl.gov, or by calling (305)296-1552 between the hours of 9:00 a.m.

– 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Documents must be received no later than Friday 5:00 P.M. on February 19, 2021.

All District Advisory Committee Meetings of the Tourist Development Council Meetings are open to the public and one or more TDC Member or County Commissioners may be in attendance.

ADA ASSISTANCE: If you are a person with a disability who needs special accommodations in order to participate in this proceeding, please contact the County Administrator's Office, by phoning (305) 292-4441, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., no later than five (5) calendar days prior to the scheduled meeting; if you are hearing or voice impaired, call "711" Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

+19292056099,, 83212485707# US (New York) Dial by your location +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 929 205 6099 US (New York) +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington D.C.) +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose) +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma) Meeting ID: 832 1248 5707 Please contact Maxine Pacini or Ammie Machan to submit written information or for additional information by writing MCTDC, 1201 White Street, Suite 102, Key West, FL 33040, by email at PaciniMaxine@monroecounty-fl.gov, or by calling (305)296-1552 between the hours of 9:00 a.m.

– 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Documents must be received no later than Friday 5:00 P.M. on February 19, 2021.

All District Advisory Committee Meetings of the Tourist Development Council Meetings are open to the public and one or more TDC Member or County Commissioners may be in attendance.

ADA ASSISTANCE: If you are a person with a disability who needs special accommodations in order to participate in this proceeding, please contact the County Administrator's Office, by phoning (305) 292-4441, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., no later than five (5) calendar days prior to the scheduled meeting; if you are hearing or voice impaired, call "711".

Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF PUBLIC SALE Wheatons Towing gives Notice of Foreclosure of Lien and intent to sell these vehicles on 02/13/2021, 10:00 am at 101500 Overseas Highway, Key Largo, FL 33037, pursuant to subsection 713.78 of the Florida Statutes.

Wheatons Towing reserves the right to accept or reject any and/all bids.

3VWJM71KX9M141926 2009 Volkswagen WBAPH5C53BF094299 2011 BMW Publish: January 28 & February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers NOTICE OF PUBLIC SALE Wheatons Towing gives Notice of Foreclosure of Lien and intent to sell these vehicles on 02/14/2021, 10:00 am at 101500 Overseas Highway, Key Largo, FL 33037, pursuant to subsection 713.78 of the Florida Statutes.

Wheatons Towing reserves the right to accept or reject any and/all bids.

3N1BC13E77L378622 2007 Nissan Publish: January 28 & February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers NOTICE OF PUBLIC SALE Wheatons Towing gives Notice of Foreclosure of Lien and intent to sell these vehicles on 02/22/2021, 10:00 am at 101500 Overseas Highway, Key Largo, FL 33037, pursuant to subsection 713.78 of the Florida Statutes.

Wheatons Towing reserves the right to accept or reject any and/all bids.

3GCPKSE75DG259854 2013 Chevrolet Publish: January 28 & February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers NOTICE OF PUBLIC SALE Wheatons Towing gives Notice of Foreclosure of Lien and intent to sell these vehicles on 02/25/2021, 10:00 am at 101500 Overseas Highway, Key Largo, FL 33037, pursuant to subsection 713.78 of the Florida Statutes.

Wheatons Towing reserves the right to accept or reject any and/all bids.

1B3CC5FB2AN234995 2010 Dodge Publish: January 28 & February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers NOTICE OF PUBLIC SALE Wheatons Towing gives Notice of Foreclosure of Lien and intent to sell these vehicles on 02/26/2021, 10:00 am at 101500 Overseas Highway, Key Largo, FL 33037, pursuant to subsection 713.78 of the Florida Statutes.

Wheatons Towing reserves the right to accept or reject any and/all bids.

2C4GM48L95R522082 2005 Chrysler Publish: January 28 & February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers NOTICE OF PUBLIC SALE Wheatons Towing gives Notice of Foreclosure of Lien and intent to sell these vehicles on

NOTICE OF PUBLIC SALE U-HAUL COMPANY OF MIAMI Notice is here by given that on February 22nd, 2021, Leonard Richford Jr. Storage Auctioneer, Executive Administrator for U-Haul Company of Miami, Will be offering for sale under the Judicial Lien Process, By Public Auction, the following storage units. The Terms of the sale will be cash only. U-Haul Company does reserve the right to refuse any bids. The sales will Begin at 8:00 a.m. and continue day by day until all units are sold. The names of whose units will be sold are as follows: 103530 Overseas Highway, Key Largo, FL. 33037. Names And Last Known Addresses are as Follows: William Parent Unit 1425 $2,124.23 William Parent Unit 1165 $962.30 Francis Baggott Unit 1207 $593.31 Publish: February 4 & 11, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN that on WEDNESDAY, February 10, 2021 beginning at 2:00 P.M., a PUBLIC MEETING will be held at the Key West International Airport Administrative Conference Room, 3491 South Roosevelt Blvd., Key West, Florida 33040 and via Communication Media Technology (CMT) using a Zoom Webinar platform. A meeting will be held by the SELECTION COMMITTEE for the REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS FOR Professional Architectural and Engineering Key West International Airport Concourse A and Terminal Improvements Program The selection committee will evaluate the proposals received in response to the Request for Proposals issued for the abovenamed project. The evaluation and recommendation of the selection committee are to be submitted to the Board of County Commissioners.

Persons interested in this issue are invited to attend.

For more information, please contact Beth Leto, Deputy Director, Airport Finance and Admin. via email to: leto-beth@ monroecounty-fl.gov Join Zoom webinar Please click the link below to join the webinar: https://mcbocc.zoom. us/j/92379615049 Or iPhone one-tap : US: +16465189805,, 92379615049# or +16699006833,, 92379615049# Or Telephone: Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location): US: +1 646 518 9805 or +1 669 900 6833 Webinar ID: 923 7961 5049 International numbers available: https://mcbocc.zoom. us/u/acrthex6S5 ADA ASSISTANCE: If you are a person with a disability who needs special accommodations in order to participate in this proceeding, please contact the County Administrator’s Office, by phoning (305) 292-4441,

NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN that on WEDNESDAY, February 10, 2021 beginning at 10:00 A.M., a PUBLIC MEETING will be held at the Key West International Airport Administrative Conference Room, 3491 South Roosevelt Blvd., Key West, Florida 33040 and via Communication Media Technology (CMT) using a Zoom Webinar platform. A meeting will be held by the SELECTION COMMITTEE for PROPOSALS FOR Construction Manager at Risk Services For Monroe County Key West International Airport Concourse A and Terminal Improvements Program The selection committee will evaluate the proposals received in response to the Request for Proposals issued for the abovenamed project. The evaluation and recommendation of the selection committee are to be submitted to the Board of County Commissioners.

Persons interested in this issue are invited to attend.

For more information, please contact Beth Leto, Deputy Director, Airport Finance and Admin. via email to: leto-beth@ monroecounty-fl.gov Join Zoom webinar Please click the link below to join the webinar: https://mcbocc.zoom. us/j/99760802351 Or iPhone one-tap : US: +16465189805,, 99760802351# or +16699006833,, 99760802351# Or Telephone: Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location): US: +1 646 518 9805 or +1 669 900 6833 Webinar ID: 997 6080 2351 International numbers available: https://mcbocc.zoom. us/u/ac8J9qHRI ADA ASSISTANCE: If you are a person with a disability who needs special accommodations in order to participate in this proceeding, please contact the County Administrator’s Office, by phoning (305) 292-4441, between the hours of 8:30 A.M.---5:00 P.M., no later than five (5) calendar days prior to the scheduled meeting; if you are hearing or voice-impaired, call “711”.

Pursuant to Section 286.0105, Florida Statutes, notice is given that if a person decides to appeal any decision made by the Board of County Commissioners with respect to any matter considered at such meetings or hearings, that person will need a record of the proceedings, and that, for such purpose, that person

NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING The District I Advisory Committee (DAC I) of the Monroe County Tourist Development Council will hold a regular scheduled meeting on Wednesday, February 24, 2021 at 3:00 p.m. via Communications Media Technology using a Zoom webinar platform.

Pursuant to Executive Order No. 20-69, Monroe County Emergency Directive 20-06, and the Center for Disease Control (“CDC”) social-distancing guidelines established to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the February 24, 2021 regular meeting of the District I Advisory Committee will be conducted via CMT, using a Zoom Webinar platform. If the Governor issues a subsequent order changing directives for Local Government Public Meetings, the Monroe County Tourist Development Council will provide updates on the County Website at MonroeCounty-FL.Gov. The access points to view the meeting or for members of the public to provide public comment will be: By joining the Zoom Meeting via weblink: https://us02web.zoom. us/j/87924496957 Meeting ID: 879 2449 6957 • By joining the Zoom Meeting via one tap mobile: One tap mobile +19292056099,, 87924496957# US (New York) +13017158592,, 87924496957# US (Washington, D.C.) Dial by your location +1 929 205 6099 US (New York) +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington, D.C.) +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose) +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma) +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) Meeting ID: 879 2449 6957 Please contact Maxine Pacini or Ammie Machan to submit written information or for additional information by writing MCTDC, 1201 White Street, Suite 102, Key West, FL 33040, by email at PaciniMaxine@monroecounty-fl.gov, or by calling (305)296-1552 between the hours of 9:00 a.m.

– 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Documents must be received no later than Friday 5:00 P.M. on February 19, 2021.

All District Advisory Committee Meetings of the Tourist Development Council Meetings are open to the public and one or more TDC Member or County Commissioners may be in attendance.

ADA ASSISTANCE: If you are a person with a disability who needs special accommodations in order to participate in this proceeding, please contact the County Administrator's Office, by phoning (305) 292-4441, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., no later than five (5) calendar days prior to the scheduled meeting; if you are hearing or voice impaired, call "711".

Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING The District II Advisory Committee (DAC II) of the Monroe County Tourist Development Council will hold a regular scheduled meeting on

NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING The District III Advisory Committee (DAC III) of the Monroe County Tourist Development Council will hold a regular scheduled meeting on Wednesday, February 24, 2021 at 9:30 a.m. via Communications Media Technology using a Zoom webinar platform.

Pursuant to Executive Order No. 20-69, Monroe County Emergency Directive 20-06, and the Center for Disease Control (“CDC”) social-distancing guidelines established to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the February 24, 2021 regular meeting of the District III Advisory Committee will be conducted via CMT, using a Zoom Webinar platform. If the Governor issues a subsequent order changing directives for Local Government

NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING The District IV Advisory Committee (DAC IV) of the Monroe County Tourist Development Council will hold a regular scheduled meeting on Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 2:00 p.m. via Communications Media Technology using a Zoom webinar platform.

Pursuant to Executive Order No. 20-69, Monroe County Emergency Directive 20-06, and the Center for Disease Control (“CDC”) social-distancing guidelines established to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the February 23, 2021 regular meeting of the District IV Advisory Committee will be conducted via CMT, using a Zoom Webinar platform. If the Governor issues a subsequent order changing directives for Local Government Public Meetings, the Monroe County Tourist Development Council will provide updates on the County Website at MonroeCounty-FL.Gov. The access points to view the meeting or for members of the public to provide public comment will be: By joining the Zoom Meeting via weblink: https://us02web.zoom. us/j/83212485707 Meeting ID: 832 1248 5707 • By joining the Zoom Meeting via one tap mobile: One tap mobile +13126266799,, 83212485707# US (Chicago)

NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING The District V Advisory Committee (DAC V) of the Monroe County Tourist Development Council will hold a regular scheduled meeting on Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. via Communications Media Technology using a Zoom webinar platform.

Pursuant to Executive Order No. 20-69, Monroe County Emergency Directive 20-06, and the Center for Disease Control (“CDC”) social-distancing guidelines established to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the February 23, 2021 regular meeting of the District V Advisory Committee will be conducted via CMT, using a Zoom Webinar platform. If the Governor issues a subsequent order changing directives for Local Government Public Meetings, the Monroe County Tourist Development Council will provide updates on the County Website at MonroeCounty-FL.Gov. The access points to view the meeting or for members of the public to provide public comment will be: By joining the Zoom Meeting via weblink: https://us02web.zoom. us/j/87528164498 Meeting ID: 875 2816 4498 • By joining the Zoom Meeting via one tap mobile: One tap mobile +13126266799,, 87528164498# US (Chicago) +19292056099,, 87528164498# US (New York) Dial by your location +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 929 205 6099 US (New York) +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington D.C.) +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose) +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma) Meeting ID: 875 2816 4498 Please contact Maxine Pacini or Ammie Machan to submit written information or for additional information by writing MCTDC, 1201 White Street, Suite 102, Key West, FL 33040, by email at PaciniMaxine@monroecounty-fl.gov,

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

• CLASSIFIEDS, PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES • LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

or by calling (305)296-1552 between the hours of 9:00 a.m.

– 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Documents must be received no later than Friday 5:00 P.M. on February 19, 2021.

All District Advisory Committee Meetings of the Tourist Development Council Meetings are open to the public and one or more TDC Member or County Commissioners may be in attendance.

ADA ASSISTANCE: If you are a person with a disability who needs special accommodations in order to participate in this proceeding, please contact the County Administrator's Office, by phoning (305) 292-4441, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., no later than five (5) calendar days prior to the scheduled meeting; if you are hearing or voice impaired, call "711".

Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

Control and Prevention (CDC) and Florida Department of Health (FDOH) guidelines pertaining to COVID-19 will be followed and observed.

This meeting will be available virtually via Zoom Meetings.

Members of the public who wish to view virtually may email cityclerk@keycolonybeach.net or call 305-289-1212 option 2 for further instructions on attending via Zoom Meetings.

Applicant requests a Variance to Land Development Regulations Chapter 101, Section 14 (8) for a 4’0” height variance for a new one dwelling unit residences.

Current building height is 30’0”.

Interested parties may appear at the Hearing and be heard with respect to the requested variance. If any person decides to appeal any decision made by the Commission with respect to any matter considered at the Variance Hearing, that person will need a record of the proceedings and for such purpose may need to ensure that a verbatim record of the proceedings is made, which record includes the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is to be based.

If you are unable to attend the Hearing on Wednesday, February 17, 2021 but wish to comment, please direct correspondence to: City Commission, P.O. Box 510141, Key Colony Beach, FL 33051, or cityclerk@keycolonybeach. net and your comments will be entered into the record.

Rebecca Todd, City Clerk CITY OF KEY COLONY BEACH Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

CITY OF KEY COLONY BEACH NOTICE OF VARIANCE HEARING NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Planning & Zoning Board of the City of Key Colony Beach, Florida, will hold a Public Hearing on Wednesday February 17, 2021 at 9:30 A.M., Key Colony Beach City Hall commission room, to hear a Variance Request from Parker Family Trust 07/15/2008, owner of 330 13th St. Social distancing, the wearing of a facial covering and other Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Florida Department of Health (FDOH) guidelines pertaining to COVID-19 will be followed and observed.

This meeting will be available virtually via Zoom Meetings.

Members of the public who wish to view virtually may email cityclerk@keycolonybeach.net or call 305-289-1212 option 2 for further instructions on attending via Zoom Meetings.

Applicant requests a Variance to Land Development Regulations Chapter 101, Section 14 (8) for a 4’3” height variance for a new one dwelling unit residences.

Current building height is 30’0”.

Interested parties may appear at the Hearing and be heard with respect to the requested variance. If any person decides to appeal any decision made by the Commission with respect to any matter considered at the Variance Hearing, that person will need a record of the proceedings and for such purpose may need to ensure that a verbatim record of the proceedings is made, which record includes the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is to be based.

If you are unable to attend the Hearing on Wednesday, February 17, 2021 but wish to comment, please direct correspondence to: City Commission, P.O. Box 510141, Key Colony Beach, FL 33051, or cityclerk@keycolonybeach. net and your comments will be entered into the record.

Rebecca Todd, City Clerk CITY OF KEY COLONY BEACH Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers CITY OF KEY COLONY BEACH NOTICE OF VARIANCE HEARING NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Planning & Zoning Board of the City of Key Colony Beach, Florida, will hold a Public Hearing on Wednesday February 17, 2021 at 9:30 A.M., Key Colony Beach City Hall commission room, to hear a Variance Request from Dingle Deborah M Rev Trust 5/22/2008, owner of 721 8th St. Social distancing, the wearing of a facial covering and other Centers for Disease

CITY OF KEY COLONY BEACH NOTICE OF VARIANCE HEARING NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Planning & Zoning Board of the City of Key Colony Beach, Florida, will hold a Public Hearing on Wednesday February 17, 2021 at 9:30 A.M., Key Colony Beach City Hall commission room, to hear a Variance Request from Dingle Deborah M Rev Trust 5/22/2008, owner of 731 8th St. Social distancing, the wearing of a facial covering and other Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Florida Department of Health (FDOH) guidelines pertaining to COVID-19 will be followed and observed.

This meeting will be available virtually via Zoom Meetings.

Members of the public who wish to view virtually may email cityclerk@keycolonybeach.net or call 305-289-1212 option 2 for further instructions on attending via Zoom Meetings.

Applicant requests a Variance to Land Development Regulations Chapter 101, Section 14 (8) for a 4’0” height variance for a new one dwelling unit residences.

Current building height is 30’0”.

Interested parties may appear at the Hearing and be heard with respect to the requested variance. If any person decides to appeal any decision made by the Commission with respect to any matter considered at the Variance Hearing, that person will need a record of the proceedings and for such purpose may need to ensure that a verbatim record of the proceedings is made, which record includes the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is to be based.

If you are unable to attend the Hearing on Wednesday, February 17, 2021 but wish to comment, please direct correspondence to: City Commission, P.O. Box 510141, Key Colony Beach, FL 33051, or cityclerk@keycolonybeach. net and your comments will be entered into the record.

Rebecca Todd, City Clerk

LEGAL NOTICES CITY OF KEY COLONY BEACH Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers CITY OF KEY COLONY BEACH NOTICE OF VARIANCE HEARING NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the City Commission of the City of Key Colony Beach, Florida, will hold a Public Hearing on Thursday February 25, 2021 at 9:30 A.M., Key Colony Beach City Hall commission room, to hear a Variance Request from Crawl Key Development, owner of Lot 11 15th Circle. Social distancing, the wearing of a facial covering and other Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Florida Department of Health (FDOH) guidelines pertaining to COVID-19 will be followed and observed.

This meeting will be available virtually via Zoom Meetings.

Members of the public who wish to view virtually may email cityclerk@keycolonybeach.net or call 305-289-1212 option 2 for further instructions on attending via Zoom Meetings.

Applicant requests a Variance to Land Development Regulations Chapter 101, Section 10 (5) for a 30 feet rear setback variance for a porch. Current setback is restricted to 50 feet.

Interested parties may appear at the Hearing and be heard with respect to the requested variance. If any person decides to appeal any decision made by the Commission with respect to any matter considered at the Variance Hearing, that person will need a record of the proceedings and for such purpose may need to ensure that a verbatim record of the proceedings is made, which record includes the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is to be based.

If you are unable to attend the Hearing on Thursday, February 25, 2021 but wish to comment, please direct correspondence to: City Commission, P.O. Box 510141, Key Colony Beach, FL 33051, or cityclerk@ keycolonybeach.net and your comments will be entered into the record.

Rebecca Todd, City Clerk CITY OF KEY COLONY BEACH Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers CITY OF KEY COLONY BEACH NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING To: Property Owners within 300 feet of 421 8th Street From: Key Colony Beach City Commission Subject: Variance Request NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the City Commission of the City of Key Colony Beach, Florida, will hold a Public Hearing on Thursday February 25, 2021 at 9:30 A.M., Key Colony Beach City Hall commission room, to hear a Variance Request from Yuna Leary, owner of 421 8th Street.

This meeting will be available virtually via Zoom Meetings.

Members of the public who wish to view virtually may email cityclerk@keycolonybeach.net or call 305-289-1212 option 2 for further instructions on attending via Zoom Meetings.

Applicant requests a Variance to Land Development Regulations Chapter 101, Section 26 (11a) for a 5 feet side set back variance for a pool. Current setback is restricted to 10 feet.

Interested parties may attend the Hearing and be heard with respect to the requested variance.

If any person decides to appeal any decision made by the Commission with respect to any matter considered at the Variance Hearing, that person will need a record of the proceedings and for such

LEGAL NOTICES purpose may need to ensure that a verbatim record of the proceedings is made, which record includes the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is to be based.

If you are unable to attend the Hearing on Thursday, February 25, 2021 but wish to comment, please direct correspondence to: City Commission, P.O. Box 510141, Key Colony Beach, FL 33051, or cityclerk@ keycolonybeach.net and your comments will be entered into the record.

Rebecca Todd, City Clerk CITY OF KEY COLONY BEACH Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers NOTICE OF INTENTION TO CONSIDER ADOPTION OF COUNTY ORDINANCE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN that on February 17, 2021; March 17, 2021; April 21, 2021; May 19, 2021; and, June 16, 2021 at 1:30 P.M., or as soon thereafter as the matter may be heard, the Board of County Commissioners of Monroe County, Florida, intends to consider possible amendments to the following County ordinance, the County’s mask ordinance: ORDINANCE NO. 032-2020 AN UNCODIFIED ORDINANCE

BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA, AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 014-2020, AS AMENDED BY ORDINANCE 022-2020 AS AMENDED BY ORDINANCE 024-2020 AS AMENDED BY ORDINANCE 026-2020, TO MANDATE THAT INDIVIDUALS WEAR A FACE COVERING IN PUBLIC IN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES; ESTABLISHING A MINIMUM COUNTY-WIDE REQUIREMENT, EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT OF A MUNICIPAL ORDINANCE IN CONFLICT; PROVIDING FOR DISPOSITION OF FINES BY THE CLERK; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; PROVIDING FOR REPEAL OF ALL ORDINANCES INCONSISTENT HEREWITH; PROVIDING FOR TRANSMITTAL TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE AND SUNSET DATE. Please note that public participation in these meetings may be conducted via Communications Media Technology (“CMT”). The connection information for members of the public who wish to attend or participate in the Public Hearing(s) via a Zoom virtual platform will be posted on the Monroe County website at @ http://monroecountyfl. iqm2.com/Citizens/Default.aspx.

Pursuant to Section 286.0105, Florida Statutes, notice is given that if a person decides to appeal any decision made by the Board with respect to any matter considered at such hearings or meetings, he will need a record of the proceedings, and that, for such purpose, he may need to ensure that a verbatim record of the proceedings is made, which record includes the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is to be based.

ADA ASSISTANCE: If you are a person with a disability who needs special accommodations in order to participate in these proceedings, please contact the County Administrator’s Office, by phoning (305) 2924441, between the hours of 8:30a.m.—5:00p.m., prior to the scheduled meetings; if you are hearing or voice-impaired, call “711”. Live Closed-Captioning is available via our web portal @ http://monroecountyfl.iqm2. com/Citizens/Default.aspx for meetings of the Monroe County Board of County Commissioners.

Dated at Key West, Florida, this

305.743.0844

LEGAL NOTICES 25th day of January, 2021.

KEVIN MADOK, Clerk of the Circuit Court and ex officio Clerk of the Board of County Commissioners of Monroe County, Florida Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers NOTICE OF INTENTION TO CONSIDER ADOPTION OF COUNTY ORDINANCE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN that on February 17, 2021, at 1:30 P.M., or as soon thereafter as the matter may be heard, at the Harvey Government Center, 1200 Truman Avenue, Key West, Florida, the Board of County Commissioners of Monroe County, Florida, intends to adopt the following County ordinance: ORDINANCE NO. ________-2021 AN ORDINANCE OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA, RELATING TO THE IMPOSITION OF SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS FOR A SEA LEVEL RISE FLOOD MITIGATION PROGRAM; CREATING AND ESTABLISHING A MONROE COUNTY ROADWAY IMPROVEMENT AND SEA LEVEL RISE AND FLOOD MITIGATION PROGRAM MUNICIPAL SERVICE BENEFIT UNIT (“MSBU”) TO FINANCE THE IMPROVEMENTS; AUTHORIZING THE IMPOSITION AND COLLECTION OF ASSESSMENTS AGAINST PROPERTY WITHIN THE UNINCORPORATED AREA OF MONROE COUNTY AND SUBJECT TO THE CONSENT

BY ORDINANCE OF THE GOVERNING BOARD OF ANY AFFECTED MUNICIPALITY THE MSBU MAY INCLUDE THE BOUNDARIES OF A MUNICIPALITY; ESTABLISHING THE PROCEDURES FOR IMPOSING ASSESSMENTS; ESTABLISHING PROCEDURES FOR NOTICE AND ADOPTION OF ASSESSMENT ROLLS; PROVIDING THAT ASSESSMENTS CONSTITUTE A LIEN ON ASSESSED PROPERTY UPON ADOPTION OF THE ASSESSMENT ROLL; PROVIDING THAT THE LIEN FOR AN ASSESSMENT COLLECTED PURSUANT TO SECTIONS 197.3632 AND 197.3635, FLORIDA STATUTES, UPON PERFECTION, SHALL ATTACH TO THE PROPERTY ON THE PRIOR JANUARY 1, THE LIEN DATE FOR AD VALOREM TAXES; PROVIDING THAT A PERFECTED LIEN SHALL BE EQUAL IN RANK AND DIGNITY WITH THE LIENS OF ALL STATE, COUNTY, DISTRICT, OR MUNICIPAL TAXES AND ASSESSMENTS AND SUPERIOR IN DIGNITY TO ALL OTHER PRIOR LIENS, MORTGAGES, TITLES, AND CLAIMS; AUTHORIZING EXEMPTIONS AND HARDSHIP ASSISTANCE; PROVIDING PROCEDURES FOR COLLECTION OF ASSESSMENTS; AUTHORIZING THE ISSUANCE OF OBLIGATIONS SECURED BY ASSESSMENTS AND PROVIDING FOR THE TERMS THEREOF; PROVIDING THAT THE COUNTY’S TAXING POWER SHALL NOT BE PLEDGED; PROVIDING REMEDIES; DEEMING THAT PLEDGED REVENUES SHALL BE CONSIDERED TRUST FUNDS; PROVIDING FOR THE REFUNDING OF OBLIGATIONS; PROVIDING THAT THIS ORDINANCE IS AN ALTERNATIVE MEANS OF IMPLEMENTATION AND FOR SEVERABILITY; PROVIDING FOR THIS ORDINANCE TO BE LIBERALLY CONSTRUED; PROVIDING FOR CONFLICTS AND CODIFICATION; PROVIDING FOR INCLUSION IN THE MONROE COUNTY CODE; PROVIDNG FOR SEVERABILITY; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. The public can participate in the February 17, 2021,

LEGAL NOTICES meeting of the Board of County Commissioners of Monroe County, FL via Communication Media Technology (“CMT”) using a Zoom Webinar platform by following the detailed instructions below. The public is strongly encouraged to watch the meeting on Monroe County’s MCTV on Comcast Channel 76, AT&T U-verse Channel 99 or on the County’s web portal @ http:// monroecountyfl.iqm2.com/ Citizens/Default.aspx. Simply select the “Watch Live” banner to view the live meeting with live closed-captioning on an integrated page that includes the Agenda and Agenda Backup.

If a citizen has a Roku device, they can search for and add “MCTV” to their personal lineup.

Monroe County’s “MCTV” is also provided via the Monroe County mobile apps for iOS and Android and through our streaming web portal @ https://monroe-fl.vod.castus.tv/ vod/?live=ch1&nav=live.

Citizens can listen to audio-only from their phones by dialing (646) 518-9805 or (669) 9006833 and, when prompted, enter the Webinar ID 995 7249 8241 followed by the # key.

The public can comment during the live Public Hearing either by phoning in or by connecting to the live Zoom webinar link using the following instructions: a) To comment on an item by phone: Dial (646) 518-9805 or (669) 900-6833 and, when prompted, enter the Webinar ID 995 7249 8241 followed by the # key, then *9 to “Raise your Hand” to be recognized by the Zoom webinar host. b) To comment on an item using the live Zoom webinar link: Open this live Zoom webinar link at https://mcbocc.zoom. us/j/99572498241 (that also appears in both the published Agenda and Agenda Packet).

When prompted, enter your email address and name to join the webinar. When the Mayor calls for speakers on the item(s) on which you wish to comment, or when the Board is nearing your item(s) as the meeting progresses, select the “Raised Hand” feature that appears at the bottom of the Zoom webinar screen to be recognized by the Zoom webinar host.

The Zoom webinar host will request the item # on which you wish to speak and enable your participation when the Mayor calls for public speakers on your item. To report problems with the broadcast or participation in the Zoom webinar, please call (305) 872-8831.

Pursuant to Section 286.0105, Florida Statutes, notice is given that if a person decides to appeal any decision made by the Board with respect to any matter considered at such hearings or meetings, he will need a record of the proceedings, and that, for such purpose, he may need to ensure that a verbatim record of the proceedings is made, which record includes the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is to be based.

ADA ASSISTANCE: If you are a person with a disability who needs special accommodations in order to participate in this proceeding, please contact the County Administrator’s Office, by phoning (305) 2924441, between the hours of 8:30a.m.—5:00p.m., prior to the scheduled meeting; if you are hearing or voice-impaired, call “711”. Live Closed-Captioning is available via our web portal @ http://monroecountyfl.iqm2. com/Citizens/Default.aspx for meetings of the Monroe County Board of County Commissioners.

Dated at Key West, Florida, this 22 day of January, 2021.

KEVIN MADOK, Clerk of the

LEGAL NOTICES Circuit Court and ex officio Clerk of the Board of County Commissioners of Monroe County, Florida Publish: February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers NOTICE OF REQUEST FOR COMPETITIVE SOLICITATIONS NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that on Tuesday, March 2, 2021, at 3:00 P.M., the Monroe County Purchasing Office will receive and open sealed responses for the following: MONROE COUNTY HISTORIC JAIL DOOR AND WINDOW REPLACEMENT MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA Pursuant to F.S. § 50.0211(3) (a), all published competitive solicitation notices can be viewed at: www. floridapublicnotices.com, a searchable Statewide repository for all published legal notices.

Requirements for submission and the selection criteria may be requested from DemandStar by Onvia at www.demandstar.com OR www.monroecountybids. com. The Public Record is available upon request.

In response to Covid-19, the Monroe County Purchasing Department has implemented a new electronic process for reviewing and opening sealed bids. Monroe County is committed to continuing to receive and process competitive solicitations while maintaining the health and safety of our employees and those who attend bid openings. Please do not mail or attempt to deliver in person any sealed bids. Mailed/ physically delivered bids/ proposal/responses WILL NOT be accepted.

The Monroe County Purchasing Department hereby directs that bids be submitted via email to: OMB-BIDS@monroecounty-fl. gov, no later than 3:00 P.M. on March 2, 2021. Please submit your confidential financial information in a SEPARATE EMAIL from your bid and required documents. Your subject line on both emails must read as follows: Monroe County Historic Jail Door & Window Replacement 03/02/2021 Files that do not contain this subject line WILL BE REJECTED. Please note that the maximum file size that will be accepted by email is 25MB. Please plan accordingly to ensure that your bid is not rejected due to the file size. Should your bid documents exceed 25MB or otherwise be rejected or undeliverable to OMB-BIDS@monroecounty-fl. gov, in advance of the bid opening, please email: ombpurchasing@monroecounty-fl. gov so accommodations for delivery of your bid can be made prior to the bid opening.

Please be advised that it is the bidder’s sole responsibility to ensure delivery of their bid and waiting until the bid opening to address or confirm your bid submission delivery will result in your bid being rejected.

The bid opening for this solicitation will be held virtually, via the internet, at 3:00 P.M., on March 2, 2021. You may call in by phone or internet using the following: Join Zoom Meeting https://mcbocc.zoom. us/j/4509326156 Meeting ID: 4509326156 One tap mobile: +16465189805,, 4509326156# US (New York) +16699006833,, 4509326156# US (San Jose) Dial by your location: +1 646 518 9805 US (New York) +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose) Publish:

41

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

• CLASSIFIEDS, PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES • LEGAL NOTICES February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA PROBATE DIVISION FILE NO.: 2020-CP-084-M IN RE: ESTATE OF DAVID E. ANDERSON, Deceased.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS The administration of the estate of David E. Anderson, deceased, whose date of death was June 18, 2020, and whose social security number is xxx-xx-4291, is pending in the Circuit Court for Monroe County, Florida, Probate Division, the address of which is 3117 Overseas Highway, Marathon, Florida 33050. The estate is testate and the date of the decedent’s Will and any codicils are December 11, 2008. The names and addresses of the personal representative and the personal representative’s attorney are set forth below.

All creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent’s estate on whom a copy of this notice is required to be served must file their claims with this court WITHIN THE LATER OF 3 MONTHS AFTER THE TIME OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE OR 30 DAYS AFTER THE DATE OF SERVICE OF A COPY OF THIS NOTICE ON THEM. All other creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent’s estate must file their claims with this court WITHIN 3 MONTHS AFTER THE DATE OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE. ALL CLAIMS NOT FILED WITHIN THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH IN SECTION 733.702 OF THE FLORIDA PROBATE CODE WILL BE FOREVER BARRED. NOTWITHSTANDING THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH ABOVE, ANY CLAIM FILED TWO (2) YEARS OR MORE AFTER THE DECEDENT’S DATE OF DEATH IS BARRED. The date of first publication of this Notice is: January 28, 2021.

Personal Representative: Sheila A. Anderson 255 Guava Avenue Marathon, FL 33050 Attorney for Personal Representative: James J. Dorl, Esq. Florida Bar No. 618403 JAMES J. DORL, P.A. Suite 12 First Professional Centre 5701 Overseas Highway Marathon, FL 33050 Telephone: (305) 743-6565 Facsimile: (305) 743-4143 e-mail: jjdorl@yahoo.com Publish: January 28 & February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA PROBATE DIVISION FILE NO.: 20-CP-96-M DIVISION: MIDDLE KEYS IN RE: ESTATE OF NORMA J. BRIGHT Deceased.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS The administration of the estate of Norma J. Bright, deceased, whose date of death was November 24, 2020, is pending in the Circuit Court for MONROE County, Florida, Probate Division, the address of which is 3117 Overseas Highway, Marathon, Florida 33050. The names and addresses of the personal representative and the personal representative’s attorney are set forth below.

All creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent’s estate on whom a copy of this notice is required to be served must file their claims with this

LEGAL NOTICES court ON OR BEFORE THE LATER OF 3 MONTHS AFTER THE TIME OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE OR 30 DAYS AFTER THE DATE OF SERVICE OF A COPY OF THIS NOTICE ON THEM. All other creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent’s estate must file their claims with this court WITHIN 3 MONTHS AFTER THE DATE OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE. ALL CLAIMS NOT FILED WITHIN THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH IN FLORIDA STATUTES SECTION 733.702 WILL BE FOREVER BARRED. NOTWITHSTANDING THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH ABOVE, ANY CLAIM FILED TWO (2) YEARS OR MORE AFTER THE DECEDENT’S DATE OF DEATH IS BARRED. The date of first publication of this notice is: January 28, 2021.

Personal Representative: Margitta A. DiGennaro 390 13th Street Key Colony Beach, Florida 33051 Attorney for Personal Representative: RICHARD E. WARNER Attorney Florida Bar Number: 283134 RICHARD E. WARNER, P.A. 12221 Overseas Highway MARATHON, FL 33050 Telephone: (305) 743-6022 Fax: (305) 743-6216 E-mail: richard@rewarnerlaw. com Secondary E-Mail: pamela2@ rewarnerlaw.com Publish: January 28 & February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA PROBATE DIVISION FILE NO.: 21-CP-07-K DIVISION: LOWER KEYS IN RE: ESTATE OF NELLIE MATLOSZ Deceased.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS The administration of the estate of Nellie Matlosz, deceased, whose date of death was August 31, 2020, is pending in the Circuit Court for MONROE County, Florida, Probate Division, the address of which is 500 Whitehead Street, Key West, Florida 33040. The names and addresses of the personal representative and the personal representative’s attorney are set forth below.

All creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent’s estate on whom a copy of this notice is required to be served must file their claims with this court ON OR BEFORE THE LATER OF 3 MONTHS AFTER THE TIME OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE OR 30 DAYS AFTER THE DATE OF SERVICE OF A COPY OF THIS NOTICE ON THEM. All other creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent’s estate must file their claims with this court WITHIN 3 MONTHS AFTER THE DATE OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE. ALL CLAIMS NOT FILED WITHIN THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH IN FLORIDA STATUTES SECTION 733.702 WILL BE FOREVER BARRED. NOTWITHSTANDING THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH ABOVE, ANY CLAIM FILED TWO (2) YEARS OR MORE AFTER THE DECEDENT’S DATE OF DEATH IS BARRED. The date of first publication of this notice is: February 4, 2021.

Personal Representative: Michael M. Matlosz 1061 Caribbean Drive E Summerland Key, Florida 33042 Attorney for Personal Representative: RICHARD E. WARNER Florida Bar Number: 283134

LEGAL NOTICES RICHARD E WARNER, P.A. 12221 Overseas Highway MARATHON, FL 33050 Telephone: (305) 743-6022 Fax: (305) 743-6216 E-mail: richard@rewarnerlaw. com Secondary E-Mail: pamela2@ rewarnerlaw.com Publish: February 4 & 11, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA PROBATE DIVISION FILE NO.: 21-CP-000003-P IN RE: ESTATE OF GEORGE WIELANDER, JR., Deceased.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS The administration of the estate of GEORGE WIELANDER, JR., deceased, whose date of death was October 13, 2020, is pending in the Circuit Court for Monroe County, Florida, Probate Division, File Number 21-CP000003-P, the address of which is 50 High Point Road, Plantation Key, Florida 33070. The name and address of the personal representative and the personal representative’s attorney are set forth below.

All creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent’s estate on whom a copy of this notice is required to be served must file their claims with this court WITHIN THE LATER OF 3 MONTHS AFTER THE TIME OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE OR 30 DAYS AFTER THE DATE OF SERVICE OF A COPY OF THIS NOTICE ON THEM. All other creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against the decedent’s estate must file their claims with this court WITHIN 3 MONTHS AFTER THE DATE OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE. ALL CLAIMS NOT FILED WITHIN THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH IN SECTION 733.702 OF THE FLORIDA PROBATE CODE WILL BE FOREVER BARRED. NOTWITHSTANDING THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH ABOVE, ANY CLAIM FILED TWO (2) YEARS OR MORE AFTER THE DECEDENT’S DATE OF DEATH IS BARRED. The date of the first publication of this notice is February 4, 2021.

Personal Representative: NICHOLAS WIELANDER Petitioner Attorney for Personal Representative: BART H. CHEPENIK, ESQ. Florida Bar No. 0038962 Primary E-mail: bchepenik@ ctllp.com Secondary E-mail: service@ ctllp.com JESSICA S. POMERANIEC, ESQ. Florida Bar No. 0070631 Primary E-mail: jpomeraniec@ ctllp.com Secondary E-mail: service@ ctllp.com Chepenik Trushin LLP Attorneys for Petitioner 12550 Biscayne Boulevard, Suite 805 Miami, Florida 33181 Telephone: (305) 981-8889 Facsimile: (305) 405-7979 Publish: February 4 & 11, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA PROBATE DIVISION FILE NO.: 20-CP-000295-K IN RE: ESTATE OF CYLIA ANN DANIELS, Deceased.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS The administration of the estate of Cylia Ann Daniels, deceased, whose date of death was

305.743.0844

LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

October 9, 2020, is pending in the Circuit Court for Monroe County, Florida, Probate Division, the address of which is 500 Whitehead Street, Key West, FL 33040. The names and addresses of the personal representative and the personal representative’s attorney are set forth below.

All creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent’s estate on whom a copy of this notice is required to be served must file their claims with this court ON OR BEFORE THE LATER OF 3 MONTHS AFTER THE TIME OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE OR 30 DAYS AFTER THE DATE OF SERVICE OF A COPY OF THIS NOTICE ON THEM. All other creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent’s estate must file their claims with this court WITHIN 3 MONTHS AFTER THE DATE OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE. ALL CLAIMS NOT FILED WITHIN THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH IN FLORIDA STATUTES SECTION 733.702 WILL BE FOREVER BARRED. NOTWITHSTANDING THE TIME PERIOD SET FORTH ABOVE, ANY CLAIM FILED TWO (2) YEARS OR MORE AFTER THE DECEDENT’S DATE OF DEATH IS BARRED. The date of first publication of this notice is: February 4, 2021.

Personal Representative: Tommy Lee Daniels 20952 6th Avenue West Summerland Key, FL 33042 Attorney for Personal Representative: Justin Stivers E-mail Addresses: info@probatefirm.com paralegal@probatefirm.com Florida Bar No. 109585 The Probate Law Firm 1395 Brickell Ave. Suite 800 Miami, FL 33131 Telephone: 305-456-3255 Publish: February 4 & 11, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

ANY CLAIM FILED TWO (2) YEARS OR MORE AFTER THE DECEDENT’S DATE OF DEATH IS BARRED. The date of first publication of this notice is: February 4, 2021.

Personal Representative: Claire Griswold 180 Venetian Way Islamorada, Florida 33036 Attorney for Personal Representative: RICHARD E. WARNER Florida Bar Number: 283134 RICHARD E. WARNER, P.A. 12221 Overseas Highway MARATHON, FL 33050 Telephone: (305) 743-6022 Fax: (305) 743-6216 E-mail: richard@rewarnerlaw. com Secondary E-Mail: pamela2@ rewarnerlaw.com Publish: February 4 & 11, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA PROBATE DIVISION FILE NO.: 21-CP-08-P DIVISION: UPPER KEYS IN RE: ESTATE OF CHARLES W. GRISWOLD Deceased.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS The administration of the estate of Charles W. Griswold, deceased, whose date of death was December 20, 2020, is pending in the Circuit Court for MONROE County, Florida, Probate Division, the address of which is 88820 Overseas Highway, Tavernier, Florida 33070. The names and addresses of the personal representative and the personal representative’s attorney are set forth below.

All creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent’s estate on whom a copy of this notice is required to be served must file their claims with this court ON OR BEFORE THE LATER OF 3 MONTHS AFTER THE TIME OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE OR 30 DAYS AFTER THE DATE OF SERVICE OF A COPY OF THIS NOTICE ON THEM. All other creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent’s estate must file their claims with this court WITHIN 3 MONTHS AFTER THE DATE OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE. ALL CLAIMS NOT FILED WITHIN THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH IN FLORIDA STATUTES SECTION 733.702 WILL BE FOREVER BARRED. NOTWITHSTANDING THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH ABOVE,

NICOLE “NIKKI” FRIED COMMISSIONER

LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA PROBATE DIVISION FILE NO.: 21-CP-000005-M IN RE: ESTATE OF JAMES MARTIN Deceased.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS The administration of the estate of JAMES MARTIN, deceased, whose date of death was August 14, 2020, is pending in the Circuit Court for Monroe County, Florida, Probate Division, the address of which is 3117 Overseas Highway, Marathon, FL 33050. The names and addresses of the personal representative and the personal representative’s attorney are set forth below.

All creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims

or demands against decedent’s estate on whom a copy of this notice is required to be served must file their claims with this court ON OR BEFORE THE LATER OF 3 MONTHS AFTER THE TIME OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE OR 30 DAYS AFTER THE DATE OF SERVICE OF A COPY OF THIS NOTICE ON THEM. All other creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent’s estate must file their claims with this court WITHIN 3 MONTHS AFTER THE DATE OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE. ALL CLAIMS NOT FILED WITHIN THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH IN FLORIDA STATUTES SECTION 733.702 WILL BE FOREVER BARRED. NOTWITHSTANDING THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH ABOVE, ANY CLAIM FILED TWO (2)

Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Division of Aquaculture

BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE INTERNAL IMPROVEMENT TRUST FUND Section 253.69, Florida Statutes – Rule 18-21.021, F.A.C.

NOTICE OF AQUACULTURE LEASE APPLICATION Proposed Live Rock Lease Area in Monroe County

NOTICE is hereby given pursuant to Section 253.70, Florida Statutes, that the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund has received an application (44-AQ-2017) from: David A. Curls, of 119 West Plaza Del Sol, Islamorada, Florida. The applicant is requesting approval of a sovereignty submerged land aquaculture lease preempting 1.0 acre, more or less of sovereignty submerged land, in the Atlantic Ocean in Monroe County, Florida to conduct live rock aquaculture. The proposed lease is not located in an aquatic preserve, but is located within the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. A map identifying the location of the proposed activity accompanies this notice.

Anyone having any questions or comments regarding the proposed project should file them in writing with the Division of Aquaculture, 600 South Calhoun Street, Suite 217, Tallahassee, Florida 32399, on or before 5:00 pm on the 6th day of March 2021.

Publish: February 4, 11 & 18, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

42

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

• CLASSIFIEDS, PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES •

305.743.0844

LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

AUTOS WANTED

BOATS FOR SALE

EMPLOYMENT

EMPLOYMENT

HOBBIES/COLLECT.

YEARS OR MORE AFTER THE DECEDENT’S DATE OF DEATH IS BARRED. The date of first publication of this notice is: February 4, 2021.

Personal Representative: Walter Donitzen 6115 Kirk Rd. Canfield, OH 44406 Attorney for Personal Representative: Douglas J. Neuman Email Address: neumandouglas@gmail.com Florida Bar No. 268283 761 N. Cedar Ave., STE 1 Niles, OH 44446 Telephone: 330-652-1749 Publish: February 4 & 11, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

immediately thereafter. If you fail to do so, a default may be entered against you for the relief demanded in the petition.

The action is asking the court to decide how the following real or personal property should be divided: NONE Copies of all court documents in this case, including orders, are available at the Clerk of the Circuit Court’s office. You may review these documents upon request.

You must keep the Clerk of the Circuit Court’s office notified of your current address.

(You may file Designation of Current Mailing and E-Mail Address, Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Form 12.915.) Future papers in this lawsuit will be mailed or e-mailed to the address(es) on record at the clerk’s office.

WARNING: Rule 12.285, Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure, requires certain automatic disclosure of documents and information. Failure to comply can result in sanctions, including dismissal or striking of pleadings.

Dated: 1/5/2021 Kevin Madok, CPA Clerk of the Circuit Court Monroe County, Florida By: Riza Tabag Deputy Clerk Publish: January 14, 21 & 28 and February 4, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

ALL YEARS! Junk or Used.

Cars - Vans - TrucksRunning or Not. $CASH$ 305-332-0483

1999 World Cat 27' with twin 175 Suzuki motors.

Runs good. Dual stations.

Located on Duck Key. $40,000 OBO 305-481-1316

Keys Fisheries looking to hire Process Foods Manager, pie makers, process food workers, lobster processors and forklift driver to expand the production of the products that we are now selling to various large supermarkets.

These positions will be full time and be eligible for a benefits package. Apply within at 3390 Gulfview Avenue, Marathon

Come Join Our Family and Have Fun At Work! Hiring: Host, Hostess & Servers Full &/or part-time. AM & PM Shifts. Apply in person at Castaway Restaurant, end of 15th Street, Oceanside, Marathon or email: lobstercrawl@gmail.com.

PRIVATE COLLECTOR WANTS Rolex, Dive Watches and Pilot Watches.

Old Model Military Clocks & Watches.

Call 305-743-4578

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE SIXTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA Case No.: 2021-CA-28-K CHARLES A. CHARTRAND, individually Plaintiff, v.

JONATHAN SIDNEY POWELL, f/k/a JOHN D. CHARTRAND, individually Defendant.

AMENDED NOTICE OF ACTION TO: JONATHAN SIDNEY POWELL f/k/a JOHN D. CHARTRAND 29238 Chickasaw Street Big Pine Key, FL 33043 YOU ARE NOTIFIED that an action in Partition on the following property in Monroe County, Florida: Lot 19 & 20, Block 40, PINE CREST SUBDIVISION, according to the Plat thereof, recorded in Plat Book 1, page 131, of the Public Records of Monroe County, Florida.

More Commonly known as: 29238 Chickasaw St., Big Pine Key, Florida has been filed against you and you are required to serve a copy of your written defenses, if any, to it, on David Van Loon, Esquire whose address is Highsmith & Van Loon, P.A., 3158 Northside Drive, Key West, Florida 33040 on or before the 22nd day of February 2021 and to file the original with the clerk of this court either before service on plaintiff’s attorney or immediately thereafter; otherwise, a default will be entered against you for the relief demanded in the complaint.

DATED on 1/14/2021 Kevin Madok As Clerk of the Court By: Shonta McLeod Deputy Clerk Publish: January 21 & 28 and February 4 & 11, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE 16TH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA Case No.: 21-DR-2-K Division: Family JENNIFER LLAGOSTERA, Petitioner, and MARIO C. STEPHENS, II, Respondent.

NOTICE OF ACTION FOR DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE TO: Mario C. Stephens, II Last Known Address: Unknown YOU ARE NOTIFIED that an action for Dissolution of Marriage has been filed against you and that you are required to serve a copy of your written defenses, if any, to it on Jennifer Llagostera, whose address is 2307 Seidenberg Avenue, Key West, FL 33040, on or before February 15, 2021, and file the original with the clerk of this Court at 500 Whitehead Street, Key West, FL 33040, before service on Petitioner or

AUTOS FOR SALE 1988 Buick Park Avenue $2,500 Gray 271k miles.

Great 2nd family car.

New battery, vinyl top.

Marathon 305-923-0266 2007 LXR Cadillac, 14,000 miles, Silver, Located in Key West, $38,000. Call 419-467-0788 Place your Car For Sale ad here. Only $25.00/ week for up to five lines of copy. Call 305-743-0844 today and Sell Your Car! 2001 XK8 Jaguar Red Convertible. 74k miles.

Excellent condition.

Located in Upper Keys. $6,000 Call 305-766-6804 SOLD IN LESS THAN TWO WEEKS!!

BOATS FOR SALE Never pay rent again!

1985 44' Gulfstar Cabin Cruiser for sale. Handyman's dream.

Engines have been removed. Currently in Boot Key Harbor. $4,500.00 305-289-9884

1997 Grady White 209 Escape 21’ center console.

New custom T-top, new rub rails. Brand new electronics and switches. 2 stroke Mercury outboard. $15,000 OBO Located in Marathon.

Call 305-481-1463 Place your Boat For Sale ad here. Only $25.00/ week for up to five lines of copy. Call 305-743-0844 today and Sell Your Boat!

EMPLOYMENT Seeking Security Guard in Marathon -40 hrs a wk overnight position. $15/hr to start. Must have security l i c e n s e .

Call Ralons Security 7866 1 5 - 5 5 2 2 Part-time Office Assistant needed in Marathon. Duties will include answering calls, clerical, dispatching and scheduling.

Call 305-248-6149.

Dishwasher & Kitchen Helper needed.

Apply in person at King Seafood, 10925 Overseas Hwy, Marathon

Key West PD, LLC d/b/a Island Private Care, which is located at 1720 North Roosevelt Boulevard, Key West, Florida 33040, will close effective February 26, 2021. For a copy of patient records, please contact the Privacy Department at LHC Group, Inc., 901 Hugh Wallis Road South, Lafayette, Louisiana 70508, (337) 233-1307.

Publish: January 28, February 4, 11 & 18, 2021 The Weekly Newspapers

Carpenter, Laborer, Helper and Project Manager needed in Upper Keys.

Must pass background check, have valid driver's license and transportation.

Call 305-852-3002 City of Marathon - Job O p e n i n g : Street Maintenance.

EOE, FULL BENEFITS www.ci.marathon.fl.us Serve/Bartend on the ocean FT/PT Ocean front private swim club is seeking customer service oriented Server/Bartender.

Serve on pool deck, beach and/or bar lounge. Open year round, 10am-7pm daily. Full time/Part time.

Small friendly staff. Above average hourly wage plus tips. Apply in person at Cabana Club, 425 E. Ocean Dr. Key Colony Beach or call April (305) 393-0631.

Boat rental company in Marathon needs mechanic with knowledge of outboard motors Call 305-481-7006

Place your Employment ad here. Only $25.00/week for up to five lines of copy.

Call 305-743-0844 today and get the job filled!

The Marathon Yacht Club is looking to hire a Bartender/Server. Hourly pay and guaranteed 20% gratuity. Private club – friendly atmosphere.

Tues-Sat 4p-10p.

Call 305-743-6739 to schedule an interview.

HIRED IN LESS THAN ONE WEEK!!!

Bridge Operator position available in the Snake Creek Drawbridge, located in Islamorada.

Paid training will be provided.

Payrate: $10.50/hr. Email resume to jschultz@ fdi.team or call Jeff Schultz at 708-214-0311.

HIRED TWO NEW EMPLOYEES thanks to advertising in the Keys Weekly Newspapers!!

Digital Marketing Consultant needed. Great growth opportunities.

Will train right person.

Key West Office, more at TwoOceansDigital.com/ jobs HIRED IN LESS THAN ONE WEEK!!

HOUSING FOR RENT 2BR/2BA Large Apt. 10826 5th Avenue Gulf, Marathon. $1,850/month plus utilities.

F/L/S. Taking applications.

Call (305) 394-4545 Place your Home For Rent ad here. Only $25.00/ week for up to five lines of copy. Call 305-743-0844 today and rent your house!

HARRY HARRIS PARK, MM93, 3BR/2BA, Central Air, No Pets, Long Term Lease. $1,800/mo F/L/S Call 786-493-7829 RENTED IN LESS THAN TWO WEEKS!!!

Long-term, 2BR/2BA Condo in Key Colony Beach. Furnished, screened patio, includes water, sewer, basic cable and ocean accessibility. $2,000/ month Call 716-913-3576 RENTED IN LESS THAN TWO WEEKS!!!

MISC. FOR SALE

NOW HIRING MATE FOR SNORKELING BOAT

Captain Pip’s in need of a dedicated mate for our busy snorkeling boat. Great customer service is a must as part of our job is to enhance our client’s experience. We usually run three trips a day. Some days are long. This is a per trip pay schedule. Best salary paid in Marathon. 1099 status.

Send resume to captpips@aol.com or come into the office at 1480 Overseas Highway, Marathon between 10 am and 2 pm to fill out an application. No phone calls please, as we are a very busy office.

CAPTAIN PIP’S IS AN AWESOME PLACE TO WORK, WE TREAT OUR EMPLOYEES GREAT. COME JOIN OUR TEAM.

NOW HIRING ADMINISTRATION/OFFICE HELP Fast paced, busy resort in need of Office Help. Must be able to multi task, stay calm under pressure and have great communication skills. Most important be dependable. We are a small office and don't need any drama. Saturday or Sunday is a required day, so if you cannot work Saturdays or Sundays, no need to apply.

If you want to be part of a great team, please apply! 3 to 4 days a week.

Send resume to captpips@aol.com or come into the office at 1480 Overseas Highway, Marathon between 11 am and 2 pm to fill out an application. No phone calls please.

CAPTAIN PIP’S IS AN AWESOME PLACE TO WORK, WE TREAT OUR EMPLOYEES GREAT. COME JOIN OUR TEAM.

43

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

LIC# CCC1329991

LIC# CGC032862

THANK YOU KEY WEST!

VOTED BEST CONTRACTOR 5 YEARS IN A ROW!

Royal Furniture in Key West is looking for motivated, hardworking people to join our sales team COMPETITIVE PAY & BENEFITS AVAILABLE

Call Christopher: 305-481-1790

Second Annual

MIKE GARCIA • 305-304-4188 CONCHROOFING@GMAIL.COM WWW.CONCHCONSTRUCTIONANDROOFING.COM

www.RoyalFurnitureAndDesign.com

Household Hazardous Waste

Drop-off Day SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2021

Royal Furniture in Key West

Residential ONLY Paint, stains, preservatives, pesticides, fertilizers, roofing compounds, waste oil (five gallons maximum), resins and solvents, adhesives and caulks, corrosives and acids, cleaning products, and automotive fluids.

is looking for a

Sonny McCoy Indigenous Park • 1801 White St.

motivated, hardworking store manager COMPETITIVE PAY & BENEFITS AVAILABLE

Call Christopher: 305-481-1790

(305)

296-8297 www.RoyalFurnitureAndDesign.com

44

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

• CLASSIFIEDS, PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES 305.743.0844 • CLASSIFIEDS, PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES • •305.743.0844 MISC. FOR SALE

OFFICE SPACE

Place your Miscellaneous Items For Sale here. Only $25.00/week for up to five lines of copy.

Call 305-743-0844 today!

Beautiful Office Space available for rent now on US1 in Tavernier @MM92.

Call 305-394-0530

STORAGE SPACE 30" Maytag double-door refrigerator w/bottom drawer freezer $600.00.

30" Samsung Electric Range $300.00. Located in Marathon. 419-506-0246 SOLD IN LESS THAN ONE WEEK!!!

Storage space located on Peter Jay Street in Marathon. 1,800 sq. ft. (2) 12X14 roll up doors. Small office with A/C. $2,400/ month 305-393-0643

Now Hiring in Marathon Teller II We are seeking a motivated Teller II in Marathon.

This position requires at least one year of teller experience. You need to be detail oriented and a self-starter and must have great communication, organization and cash handling skills.

To apply, please go to www.my100bank.com, then click Careers.

For assistance contact HR@my100bank.com.

EEO/AA/M/F/Veteran/Disabled

NOW HIRING:

Front Desk Agent Housekeeping Associate Pool Attendant Licensed Massage Therapist (LMT) Kitchen Steward/Dishwasher Line Cook Apply online at: www.noblehousehotels.com/careers Apply in person at: Zero Duval St.

Great pay, amazing benefits, & an awesome team!

EOE

D’Asign Source is seeking the following professionals. Overtime and benefits are available. For full details & additional openings, please visit DAsignSource.com/careers

Warehouse & Delivery Crew

D’Asign Source is looking for a hardworking Warehouse & Delivery Crew member. Must have reliable transportation, be on time and organized. Must have a valid driver’s license. CDL a plus.

NOW HIRING

FULL TIME CONSTRUCTION WORKERS Superintendents, carpenters, painters and laborers

TOP DOLLAR FOR THE RIGHT INDIVIDUALS START TOMORROW Apply in person, Dooley Construction MM 88.5 Oceanside

Assistant Manager/Store Manager Dion’s C- Stores is currently accepting applications for Store Managers and Assistant Managers at all locations from Marathon through Key West. Qualified applicants will provide prompt, efficient, and courteous service to our customers. Applicants must be able to work nights and weekends. Retail sales and customer service experience is preferred. Starting salary is commensurate with experience. All interested candidates can call Nina Simpson at 305-296-2000 Ext. 107 or forward a resume to nsimpson@dionllc.com. EOE/Drug Free Workplace

RETAIL MANAGER

Position immediately available for an energetic store manager.

Retail experience required, supermarket experience a plus. Duties include managing inventory, hiring, training and scheduling of store associates, facility maintenance and other duties as assigned. Reports to the General Manager. Salary based on experience. Competitive salary and benefits. Applicants must complete company application form found on-line at www.faustos.com.

Applicants may also apply in person at Fausto’s Food Palace.

1105 White Street, Key West.

DOLPHIN RESEARCH CENTER 58901 O/S Hwy - Grassy Key, FL Teaching... Learning... Caring Do you love dolphins, being outdoors and taking photographs?

We have the job for you! Dolphin Research Center has full-time openings for Visual Communications Staff Members (Permanent & Seasonal opportunities available). Applicants should be familiar with digital photography/videography. Benefits include medical, life, disability insurance, 401(k), paid vacation, sick & holidays.

Job description available at www.dolphins.org. E-mail cover letter, DRC application and your resume to drc-hr@dolphins.org. EOE

Home Care Agency Founded in 2007

NOW HIRING! Experienced personnel from Key Largo to Key West!

RN/LPN P/T , O/T & Speech Therapists Social Workers Private Duty Aides

Please email your resume to: Vanessa@amerihealthhomecare.com

We look forward to hearing from you!

AHCA License #299992897

PART-TIME PREVENTION PROGRAM MANAGER POSITION FOR BUSY NON-PROFIT 20 hours per week. Must have excellent communication, organizational, and computer skills. Must be compassionate and professional. Bachelor’s degree and field experience a plus. Spanish speaker.

Drug free workplace, EOE. Please send resume and cover letter to sholt@fkoc.org. No phone calls.

MAINTENANCE SUPERVISOR POSITION WITH BUSY NON-PROFIT. FT with benefits. Long-term position w/room for growth. Valid DL required.

Must have maintenance or related experience, computer skills and relate well with people. Very physical position, heavy lifting, heat, etc. Drug-free workplace, EOE. Please send resume and cover letter to sholt@fkoc.org. No phone calls.

FLORIDA KEYS DIESEL - MARATHON

NOW HIRING: Diesel Technician position available.

Competitive compensation package. Experience in the marine field preferred but not necessary. Experience with Caterpillar and Cummins Marine Engines a plus.

Diesel Mechanic Assistant position available.

Looking for a motivated candidate willing to learn a new trade or expand current skills. Company willing to train.

Qualified applicants please call 305-289-2070 or email resume to neil@allkeysdiesel.com . Drug Free and valid Drivers License a must.

45

KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

• CLASSIFIEDS, PUBLIC && LEGAL NOTICES • • 305.743.0844 • CLASSIFIEDS, PUBLIC LEGAL NOTICES 305.743.0844 The Guidance/Care Center, Inc. a division of

“Uplifting the human spirit since 1973”

THE GUIDANCE/CARE CENTER, Inc.

NOW HIRING RESTAURANT HOST SERVERS BARTENDERS FOOD RUNNER PUBLIC AREA ATTENDANT LAUNDRY ATTENDANT ROOM ATTENDANTS BELLMEN LINE COOK SOUS CHEF BAKER APPLY AT:

IS HIRING! KEY LARGO

Case Manager (Children) Client Advocate

KEY WEST

Prevention Specialist Case Manager (Forensic, Adult) Substance Abuse Counselor Behavioral Health Counselor (Children) Engagement Specialist (Suicide Prevention) Behavioral Health Therapist (Adult) FL LCSW,LMHC, LMFT Crisis Counselor

MARATHON Behavioral Health Therapist (Children)

RNs and LPNs (3 shifts) (PT/FT & per diem) Drop In Technician (PT) *Assisted Living Direct Care Worker (PT/FT) *Behavioral Health Technicians (3 shifts) (PT/FT & per diem) *Night Monitor (FREE HOUSING!!!!)

Royal Furniture in Marathon and Key West is looking for motivated, hardworking people to join our sales team.

COMPETITIVE PAY & BENEFITS AVAILABLE Call Christopher: 305-481-1790

*No experience necessary. Will train.

A caring heart & helpful hands required.

Ability to work some evening or weekend shifts a plus.

If you’ve wanted to get into the medical field but don’t have the education, this is the job for you!

bungalowskeylargo.com/careers

Bungalows Key Largo is an EOE

Background and drug screen req.

GREAT BENEFITS! Check out all available positions at: www.westcare.com EEOC/DFWP

www.RoyalFurnitureAndDesign.com

MARATHON GARBAGE SERVICE We are now hiring for the following positions:

Diesel Mechanic Truck Helpers CDL Drivers Applicants must apply in person to be considered.

4290 Overseas Hwy, Marathon

SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS NEEDED! Monroe County School District

Salary $17.15 – $24.15/hour Key West, Sugarloaf, Marathon and Upper Keys (4 work locations) No Experience Required, Benefits, CDL Training Provided – work as a Bus Aide while training, Full Time or Flexible, Part Time Hours - 6 to 9 am or 1 or 2 to 5 pm Apply online: www.keysschools.com

NOW HIRING

Marathon, Big Pine Key & Stock Island Locations $15 per hour to start FT Employees are eligible to participate in our health, dental, vision, Life Insurance. PTO and Profit Sharing is available to every member of our team (conditions apply).

HOW TO APPLY: Go to mytomthumb.com or call Cleveland (786) 295-5307.

Royal Furniture in Marathon and Key West is looking for a motivated, hardworking store manager.

COMPETITIVE PAY & BENEFITS AVAILABLE Call Christopher: 305-481-1790

www.RoyalFurnitureAndDesign.com

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

LET’S DO BUSINESS - 305.453.6928 Licensed & Insured #SP33799

GENERAL CONTRACTORS & ENGINEERS

SPALLING

ALL KEYS GLASS

RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL Windows • Doors

305-743-7800

Authorized Dealer

Sales & Installation • Tub & Shower Enclosures Safety & Tempered Glass • Mirror & Mirror Walls Plexi-Glass & Lexan

EXPERTS

2728 North Roosevelt Blvd.

Overseas Market Key West

NOW HIRING!

Sewer Connections 305

872-1876

• New Construction • Remodeling • Irrigation

y’s www.KeysSlidingGlassDoorRepair.com d n A Sliding Glass Door Repair Roller Maintenance Track Maintenance Door Alignment Security Pins Safety Locks Handles

We Also Repair & Replace Patio Door Screens

305-998-8953

305

296-BLUE

• Heavy Equipment • Solar Lic## RF11067168

PC 606

Proud member of:

INTERNATIONAL

CONCRETE REPAIR INSTITUTE

Kitchen Cabinets Sales REAL Wood Cabinets at Particle Board Prices KitchenKorner/Fred's Beds 1333 O/S Hwy, MM 53.5 • 305-743-7277

Appliance and Air Conditioning

Sales - Service - Installation 1700 N. Roosevelt Blvd #2, Key West 305-294-0090 • www.kolhages.com

Insured • Professional • Reliable

Sportfishing Adventures

Dolphin-Tuna-Wahoo-Billfish-Snapper-Grouper-Shark Deep Sea –Off Shore-Reef-Wrecks-Gulf

info@johnnymaddoxcharters.com

305-481-3259

Keys Fisheries Market & Marina Mile Marker 48.5, Marathon End of 35th Street Bayside

Tewes Mortgage

Your local, residential lending expert!

Call 305.495.6000

SOLAR DONE RIGHT! CALL US FOR A FREE HOME ESTIMATE

We also service and sell: Marine A/C, Refrigeration, Watermakers, Batteries, Solar Systems, Anything Electrical!

for a FREE Consultation

Brian Tewes

• SINCE 1989 •

Customer service is my strength Brian@tewesmortgage.com

305-289-1150

NMLS# 375025 Tewes Mortgage NMLS# 1453791 NMLSConsumerAccess.org

www.TewesMortgage.com

Florida Solar Contractor CVC 56734

Serving Key Largo to Key West

Serving Monroe, Dade & Broward Including Airports & Ports.

SUV, Van & Limousine options available Call us for special events.

Only $50 Puts Your Business Card Here

305-743-7454

fkes2011@gmail.com floridakeysexpressshuttle.com

When It Rains It Pours!

Need 7” Gutters? We have 6” & 7” Seamless • Copper Specialists

Key West 305-292-2666

MARATHON

305-743-0506

KEY LARGO

305-852-5356

rainsavergutters@gmail.com

Cell: 305-363-8330 Office: 305-735-4626 will@cecflk.com www.CECFLK.com

www.saltenergy.net www.saltservice.net 2992 Overseas Highway Marathon, FL 33050

Will Campbell President

P.E. Lic. No: 79269 5800 Overseas Hwy. Unit 32 Marathon, FL. 33050

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

BREASTFEEDING INITIATIVE Give your baby a healthy start with just one drop!

BENEFITS FOR MOM: • Lowers the risk of: ovarian cancer, obesity, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and breast cancer.

• Gives the mother one on one time between herself and her baby.

• Can save on healthcare cost over time.

BENEFITS FOR THE BABY • • • • •

Provides key nutrients Easier to digest than formula Gives the baby of sense of security Lowers risk of SIDS Lower rates of contracting diabetes, leukemia, obesity, lymphoma, high cholesterol, type 1 diabetes, asthma & Hodgkin's disease.

FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH IN MONROE COUNTY WIC OFFICE

WIC is an equal opportunity provider

Offers breastfeeding and nutrition consultations to those who qualify

KEY WEST 305-676-3852 MARATHON/TAVERNIER 305-676-3933

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KEY WEST WEEKLY / FEBRUARY 4, 2021

305.433.2020

FREE

DELIVERY 15% LOCALS DISCOUNT (WITH LOCAL ID)

700 FRONT STREET AT THE HISTORIC KEY WEST SEAPORT

KEY WEST

WAHLBURGERS GOES 11 AM TO 11 PM

DINE IN | CURBSIDE PICKUP | 305.433.2020