www.longboatkeychamber.com
www.longboatkeychamber.com
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HISTORIC LONGBEACH VILLAGE
see the water and docks waiting at the other end. Circling around on Bay Drive, you can drive past the local kayaker or fisherman docking for the day — or bringing in his fresh catch. Across the street, the Gulf of Mexico laps onto Whitney Beach.
HISTORY
Fifty people were present at the first meeting of The Village Civic Association May 7, 1986. And those 50 people decided on their name, Longbeach Village Association, based on the old village of Longbeach’s
post office, which stood within the confines of their neighborhood. To date, there are about 175 registered members of The Village Association, and not all of these members actually live in The Village. Anyone who has an interest is invited to join. With regular potluck dinners and social, holiday-themed parties, this group both lives and socializes together. The residents also take advantage of each other’s talents and have formed conversational French groups, a play group for dogs and regular softball games. Still, keeping to oneself is not difficult, with places to retreat to such as the beach or the Longboat Key Center for the Arts, a Division of Ringling College of Art and Design.
COLORFUL MENAGERIE
The animals that are in abundance in this neighborhood can certainly not be forgotten: ibis, wild parrots, tortoises and egrets. And then, of course, there are the peacocks,
whose beginnings are a mystery. There is lore of the peacocks being gifts from a few town commissioners, yet there is also the version that they were freed from cages and made their way to The Village. Either way, over the years they have multiplied into a flock whose members love to flaunt their colorful plumage up and down the streets. And one thing is for certain — the peackcocks are never shy when it comes to photo opportunities.
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Something happens when you drive into this neighborhood. As soon as you turn onto Broadway off of Gulf of Mexico Drive, your foot automatically switches to the brake pedal to be in accordance with the feeling this area radiates. Although a slower, dream-like pace of life is evident, this is a dream sequence where anything can happen. On any given day, a peacock could stroll by or your neighbor could throw the bash-of-the-century that people are still talking about years later. Tucked away on the north end of Longboat Key lies historic Longbeach Village. Known in its earliest days as a transient fishing village, the neighborhood is now drawing more year-round residents. The draw seems to be not only its historical links to the Key and Florida but also its ability to be dynamic. Houses dating to the 1920s are intermingled with new, more contemporary constructions. Driving down Broadway, the main “strip” of the neighborhood, one can