Salute to vets. 14
About wild turkeys. 27 Chamber congrats. 17 NOV. 20, 2019 FREE
VOLUME 28, NO. 4 Astheworldterns wish for 20/20 hindsight. 6 Builders take on pier ‘pitch’ problem. 2 AM discusses alcohol regs for city pier. 3 BB allocates $73K to fix floating dock. 4
The Best News on Anna Maria Island Since 1992
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Newly elected, sworn commissioners
Meetings: on the government calendar. 4 MPo accepts final BItS study. 5
Opinions. 6 10-20 YEARS AGO
from the archives. 7
AM commission supports eRA ratification. 8
Happenings Announcements.
Save the date. ‘Coffee with a Cop.’ 15
PropertyWatch. 18
Holmes Beach city clerk Stacey Johnston, left, poses Nov. 18 with the top votegetters in the Nov. 5 election, Commissioners Jim Kihm, Carol Soustek and terry Schaefer, following their swearing-in ceremony at city hall. Islander Photo: ChrisAnn Allen
County trots out ban on horseback surfing
TideWatch. 18 Streetlife. get in the game.
Take 5:00: 2 Honors for educator. 25
Champs crowned in youth soccer. 28 Cooler temps help increase hookups. 29
ISL BIZ Island businesses expand. 30 CLASSIFIEDS.
NYT puzzle.
Judge rules for city on treehouse ECL By Kathy Prucnell Islander Reporter
Gathering. Obituaries.
HB parks committee considers improvements. 26
A privately owned treehouse built in 2011 stands in an Australian pine tree in the city setback on the gulf of Mexico beachfront at 103 29th St., Holmes Beach. Islander Photo: Kathy Prucnell
A tour on horseback takes riders through the waters on the north side of the Palma Sola Causeway. Islander file Photo: Kathy Prucnell By Kathy Prucnell Islander Reporter
“We don’t have a problem with regulation, but, of course, we don’t want the horses banned.” Carmen Hanson, who owns Cponies, a horseback-riding business that operates tours in Palma Sola Bay on the north side of Manatee Avenue, said blaming the bay’s environmental problems on horses is misguided. Manatee County commissioners voted unanimously Nov. 7 to direct their attorney
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and staff to research and report about options to regulate horseback riding in sensitive waters. In supporting the directive, commissioners pointed to seagrass loss and recent noswim advisories in the bay. In business for eight years, Hanson disputes that horses are responsible for fecal matter in the water or that their presence leads to the advisories. She said the horses aren’t treading on the seagrass beds, where it’s “soft and mucky.” PLeASe See HORSES, PAge 3
The judge again ruled for the city. One of four counts in the ongoing 2013 treehouse case has been decided for the city of Holmes Beach. The decision on count three of the complaint from Twelfth Circuit Judge Edward Nicholas applies to the city ordinance that established a 50-foot setback from the state erosion control line on the beach, dismissing the owners’ claim that the city’s setback amounts to a taking without compensation. Lynn Tran and Richard Hazen built the two-story structure in 2011 attached to an Australian pine tree within the setback on the beach, fronting their property at 103 29th St., Holmes Beach, where they reside and operate four short-term rental units. The treehouse was built without city or state permits — launching years of litigation between the city and the owners that began in 2013. The city rule prohibits structures within 50 feet of the erosion control line, the sepPLeASe See TREEHOUSE, PAge 8