The Islander Newspaper E-Edition: Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2020

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#aMItogether

VOLUME 28, NO. 48

SEPT. 23, 2020 fRee

the Best news on anna maria island Since 1992 astheworldterns looks for voters. 6 county credits masks for fewer virus cases. 2 airbnb suspends ‘party houses.’ 3 BB to bury gulf drive utilities. 4

Meetings. 4 Roadwatch. 4 new HB cellphones track texts. 5

Opinions. 6 10-20 YEARS AGO

Looking back. 7

islander.org

New beach towers, new lightning tech a new lifeguard tower stands watch Sept. 18 over beachgoers on the sands of coquina Beach in Bradenton Beach. manatee county built the tower and 10 others on the island’s public beaches earlier this year and equipped each with a lightning suppressor to improve beach safety. the county also is installing a Pa system on the towers so the beach patrol supervisor can announce alerts for beachgoers. islander Photo: ryan Paice

renourishment slows for Sally. 8 Sewage spill estimate slips to 11m gallons. 8 fiSH takes stand against megabridge. 9

Happenings announcements. 10

AmE NEWS

Lunch on the table. 11

Streetlife.

chase ends in auto theft arrest. 12

Election news: 13-16

get in the game. 17

Gathering. 18

Obituaries. 18 moose herds trash. 19

NESTING NOTES. 20

raising cash for conservation. 21 rain persists, as do anglers. 23 CLASSIFIEDS. 24

ISL BIZ:

26

NYT puzzle.

County invests in beachgoer safety, lifeguard towers

BB restaurant 4 HB candidates manager nabbed for offer ideas for stealing purse, $20K growth in paradise

By ryan Paice islander reporter

By ryan Paice islander reporter

Manatee County has spent several months improving safety for lifeguards and beachgoers at the public beaches on Anna Maria Island. Beach Patrol Chief Joe Westerman said work began in January with construction of 11 lifeguard towers on county-run beaches, including Coquina and Cortez beaches in Bradenton Beach and Manatee Public Beach in Holmes Beach. The former beach towers were worn and noncompliant with Florida wind codes and the county replaced them with new structures expected to last at least 30 years. The county also installed “lightning suppressors” atop each tower. Unlike lighting rods, which attract lightning, the weather-resistant gear prevents lightning strikes within a 100-meter radius by deionizing the air around the device. In other words, the suppressors prevent lightning by balancing the surrounding electromagnetic field and providing a safe outlet for any leakage current to the ground. “I’m not a scientist, so I can’t really get into the brass tacks, but they’ve been shown to prevent lightning within a small area,” Westerman said. “This stops strikes from even happening…. And we’ve had no strikes so far.” Westerman said the county’s lifeguards turn to safeTy, Page 2

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It’s the case of a flip-flopping story about a missing purse and a big wad of cash. Bradenton Beach police arrested Tabatha Dondanville, 27, of Sarasota, Sept. 8 on felony grand theft for allegedly stealing $20,000 from a customer’s purse while at work at the Daiquiri Deck, 107 Bridge St. The customer told officers she forgot her purse containing the money at her table Sept. 7 after a long dinner at the restaurant with her partner. The woman, visiting from Arcadia, called the Daiquiri Deck that night to ask about the purse but was told by employees that the bag wasn’t found. She visited the restaurant the next morning and spoke to manager Samantha Mitchell, who said no purse was found. However, when Mitchell noticed the customer was calling the Bradenton Beach Police Department, she produced the purse from a back room. She handed the purse to the customer with a note that read, “Found in bathroom,” but the purse did not contain $20,000. BBPD Detective Sgt. Lenard Diaz and Lt. John Cosby arrived on scene and viewed security camera footage from the restaurant’s interior that showed Dondanville, the Daiquiri Deck night manager, taking the purse to the manager’s office. turn to ThefT, Page 2

Vote

2020

By chrisann allen islander reporter

Holmes Beach voters will choose on the Nov. 3 ballot from four names to fill two seats on the city commission. The candidates are incumbent Commissioners Pat Morton and Kim Rash, former commissioner Rick Hurst and Jayne Christenson. J u d y Ti t s w o r t h , a former commissioner who was first elected mayor in 2018, was uncontested in the election and will serve another two-year term. titsworth Commissioners also serve two-year terms, starting with a $7,690 annual salary, with $130 added each subsequent year. The race is nonpartisan. In November 2019, 856 people voted in the municipal election. There are presently 2,784 registered city voters. The final day to register to vote before the election is Oct. 5. Holmes Beach voters can cast in-person ballots 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3, at St. Bernard Catholic Church, 248 S. Harbor Drive, or choose early voting at several mainland locations or vote by mail. turn to hB CaNDIDaTes, Page 14


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