st. Paddy’s celebration. 14
indoor, outdoor tour. 25
MARCH 20, 2019 FREE
VOLUME 27, NO. 21
Par-a-dice awaits Astheworldterns. 6
‘fins to the right.’ 35
BB seeks to clarify court order on KORN ballot questions. 3 HB commission OKs comp plan RFP. 4 Dock assembly begins for Bridge Street pier. 5
Op-Ed
The Islander editorial, reader letters. 6
10-20 Years ago
From the archives. 7
Charter review continues in Holmes Beach. 8 AM charter review results in few changes. 8
Happenings
Community announcements, activities. 10-11 Make plans, save a date. 12-13
Meetings
On the government calendar. 15 HB agrees on limit for phased construction. 16 Researcher: Recent red tide bloom not natural occurrence. 18 AM proposes Pine Ave. improvements. 19
Gathering. 22 Obituaries. 23, 25 24 AM reviews signs. 26
Streetlife. 28 Habitat restoration continues at FISH Preserve. 29 ‘Sing’ out for songbirds. 31 Sports roundup, plus hole-in-one at KRC. 32 Inshore, offshore fishing heats up as March winds down. 33
isl BiZ In island business. 34 CLASSIFIEDS. 36 NYT Crossword. 39
Celebrating the Best News on Anna Maria Island Since 1992
www.islander.org
island mayors downshift paid beach parking
By Lisa Neff Islander Editor Before they see the beach, many Manatee Public Beach visitors see brake lights and turn signals as they circle the parking lot seeking a parking space. Might they also someday see parking meters at Manatee County beaches, as well as at boat ramps? The concept of paid-beach parking resurfaced in late February during a preliminary budget discussion among county commissioners. At the meeting, Manatee County Commissioner Stephen Jonsson, whose district includes west Manatee, Anna Maria Island and north Longboat Key, observed Pinellas County beaches have paid-parking and that user fees can help pay for amenities. “I am just supporting research to determine what the feasibility may be and what consequences might also develop,” Jonsson said in a statement March 14 to The Islander. Island mayors, assembled March 11 at Anna Maria City Hall for an Island Transportation Planning Organization meeting, said they have an idea the consequences would be negative. The ITPO consists of the island mayors and generally assembles before a meeting of the Sarasota/Manatee Metropolitan Planning Organization, which includes an island
Beachgoers walk to the Manatee Public Beach as motorists arrive to seek parking March 14 near the county-operated beach at 4000 Gulf Drive, Holmes Beach. Islander Photos: Lisa Neff body,” said Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy. In Anna Maria, the county maintains Bayfront Park on the bayside, but the city owns the property. In Holmes Beach, the county owns and maintains the Manatee Public Beach on the Gulf of Mexico and also operates the cityowned Kingfish Boat Ramp on Manatee Avenue. In Bradenton Beach, the county owns remained, with a March 18 deadline for the and maintains the Cortez and Coquina defendants to respond. The Islander went to beaches, as well as the Leffis Key preserve and boat ramps on the bayside of the press March 18. PLEASE SEE PArKiNG, PAGE 2 Commissioner Randy White, who attended the meeting by phone, voted “nay.” The city settlement would require the defenPerry dants — Reed Mapes, Tjet Martin, John Metz, Patty Shay and Bill and Rose Vincent — to each pay fines of $500 and admit they violated Florida’s Government-in-the-Sunshine Law during meetings of the grass-roots group John van Zandt, 70, of Holmes Beach, Concerned Neighbors of Bradenton Beach, of which the defendants were members while died at home March 9 with his daughters and wife Christine by his side. also serving on volunteer city boards. Nicknamed “Juan” by his adoring grandThe defendants responded March 8 with children Will and Sophia, who couldn’t proan “offer to compromise” to make a $10,000 donation to the Annie Silver Community nounce “John,” he quickly became known as Center and exclude any admission of guilt “Juan” to his family. He was a gentleman, quick-witted and PLEASE SEE SUNSHiNe, PAGE 4 kind, with a love for nature and love of life. Two of six defendants in the Sunshine law- He was an avid reader, always with a tower suit, Reed Mapes and John Metz, attend of books by his bedside. People often had to a city meeting in June 2018. Defendants, listen closely for a quip, twisted word or a however, were not notified of the March pun. He remained incredibly good-natured 12 discussion on their settlement offer and determined with his great sense of humor and were not represented at the meetthroughout the past year as he fought “The ing. Islander File Photo: Chrisann Silver Beast” — Glioblastoma brain cancer. Esformes Please, see full obituary, page 25. mayor. The next MPO meeting will be at 9:30 a.m. Monday, March 25, at the Holiday Inn Sarasota Bradenton International Airport, 8009 15th St. E., Sarasota. At the ITPO meeting, Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth expressed concern that the county commission may consider instituting paid parking at its beaches. “I think that’s going to impact every-
BB rejects sunshine lawsuit ‘compromise’
ChrisAnn Silver Esformes Islander Reporter Bradenton Beach commissioners aren’t budging. At a March 12 commission work meeting, the mayor and commissioners voted 4-1 to direct city attorney Ricinda Perry to decline a compromise offered March 8 by the defendants to settle the lawsuit alleging they violated Florida’s GovernChappie ment-in-the-Sunshine Law when board members. The lawsuit was initiated by ex-Mayor Jack Clarke and joined by the city against six former board members. The motion stated the city’s settlement
Cancer takes beloved islander