VOLUME
APRIL 7, 2021 Free
NO. 24
The Best News on Anna Maria island Since 1992 astheworldterns. 6
Good news, Anna Maria Island!
Safety at forefront of holiday planning. 3
Q&A 040721
islander.org
3
Meetings. 4 HB honors volunteer. 5 BB Sunshine case awaits ruling. 5
Opinions. 6 10-20 YEARS AGO
looking back. 7
Cortez Bridge design group meets. 9
Save a date. 10
Happenings Activities. 10-11 lot splits on hold, safety questions aired. 13
Gathering. 14
Obituaries. 14 BB gears up for dredge project. 16 AME hops, hops. 17
Cops&Courts 18-19 Streetlife. 18
WMfr HQ in final stretch. 20
The Kiwanis Club of Anna Maria island welcomes sunrise and hundreds of worshippers April 4 to the Manatee public Beach for its 56th annual Easter Sunrise Service. The rev. Stephen King of Harvey Memorial Community Church delivered the benediction and his yearly message of “good news. Christ is risen.” More, page 15.
Moose Lodge carries on Easter tradition Caden Norris, 2, and sister Kinley, 6, pose with the Easter bunny following a wild scramble on the beach April 3 for Easter eggs at the Anna Maria island Moose lodge. More, page 20. islander photo: Kelsey Mako
Dredge errs, wrong island
prepping for nesting. 22
Spring into action for manatees. 23 KrC woman takes 7th title. 24 Kings highlight week. 25
AMI TOURISM: 26
ISL BIZ: 27 CLASSIFIEDS. 28
NYT puzzle.
Motorists cruise for a parking spot March 30 at the Manatee public Beach in Holmes Beach — as city-county officials snipe over parking limits. More, page 2. islander photo: ryan paice
Wastewater flows into bay from Piney Point By lisa Neff islander Editor
feds take new look at fish farm plan. 21
PropertyWatch. 30
Parking clash: Not what you think!
Contractor Weeks Marine arrived April 1 at the wrong location and prepared to dredge sand from passage Key inlet when officials were alerted to the error, but not before a storm and high winds disrupted the work, sending three 100-foot pipes April 2 to within 10 feet of shore at Bayfront park. for more, see page 4. islander photo: Bob patten
The island affords a beautiful view of Mother Nature’s best. When people stand gazing at the aqua waters of Tampa Bay at Anna Maria Island’s north end, they don’t tend to think of bankrupt phosphate plants, gypsum stacks, states of emergency and leaking wastewater. But Bean Point is where the Gulf of Mexico meets Tampa Bay, and Tampa Bay is where polluted water was being discharged following the discovery of leaks at the site of the defunct Piney Point phosphate plant. For the past week, there were daily stateauthorized controlled releases of the water — said to be a mix of saltwater, rainwater and non-radioactive wastewater — near the Manatee border with Hillsborough County, part of an effort to avoid an environmental catastrophe. “What we’re looking at now is trying to prevent and respond to, if need be, a real cat-
TurN TO WasteWater, pAgE 4