bserver O LONGBOAT
You. Your neighbors. Your neighborhood.
Thursday, March 7, 2013
neWs
diVersions
Downtowns are seeing new life in building activity. PAGE 3A
Loevner pours her heart into Florida Winefest. INSIDE
OUR TOWN + Spring forward for Daylight Saving Time Tick tock, tick tock … It’s time to change those clocks. daylight saving Time begins at 2 a.m. sunday, March 10. Move clocks ahead by one hour. We’ll lose an hour of sleep but make up for it with an extra hour of sunshine each evening.
+ It’s ‘up, up and away’ for readers The observer is teaming up with the Florida Winefest & auction to give lucky readers a chance to win weekly prizes. To enter, search the pages of this week’s observer to find the red hotair balloon, then enter the page number you found it on at yourobserver.com/Balloon. There are four weeks of prizes, so make sure to read the papers each week for more chances to win. The Florida Winefest & auction takes place april 4 through april 7, in Lakewood ranch. For more information about the festival, visit www. floridawinefest.org
+ Longboat knows how to vote early only on Longboat Key can you vote and be offered a variety of free beverages and snacks. Mayor Jim brown made a point to applaud the Town clerk’s office and town staff at Monday night’s Town commission meeting, noting that every day for early voting this week, staff is putting out a noteworthy spread of food and beverages for those who cast a ballot. cupcakes, muffins, coffee, tea, root beer floats — the town has it all, and the variety changes daily. “staff is doing it to make the experience better, and I’ve never seen anything like it at a voting location before,” Brown said. “It’s exceptional and very much appreciated.”
ChAriTY
Go for the Cure hits the mark for fundraising. PAGE 1B
signs of settlement by Kurt schultheis | Managing Editor
Colony parties talk without lawyers The Colony Beach & Tennis Resort parties will try to settle their differences in an attempt to speed up a settlement and revive the currently shuttered property. The Colony Beach & Tennis Resort Association and longtime Colony owner Dr. Murray “Murf” Klauber are in settlement talks again. But here’s what’s different about the latest round: For the first time in seven years, attorneys aren’t actively involved.
The Association and unit owners wrapped up three days of closed meetings Wednesday, Feb. 27, at Temple Beth Israel. An Association press release called “the most significant result to emerge from the meetings” last week the “direct dialogue between leaders of the Association and the Klauber family to resolve
all of the legal disputes that have been ongoing since 2006.” Association Board President Jay Yablon announced that Klauber and his daughter, longtime Colony Beach & Tennis Resort General Manager Katie Klauber Moulton, participated in the meetings and agreed to work actively to reach a settlement be-
so happy TogEThEr
fore the meetings began. Klauber attended all three days of meetings, reviewed proposals from developers and acknowledged reasonable progress in a prepared statement. “The Association’s meeting was promising, and I was happy
SEE COLONY / PAGE 2A
by robin hartill | city Editor
‘A storybook ending’ Some swans can be happy alone. But some swans just aren’t meant to glide solo. Bay Isles swans Vicki and Henry had been living apart for the past month-and-a-half, after Vicki became sick and longtime swankeeper David Novak took her to Save Our Seabirds, which he thought would be her permanent home. Their separation was short-lived. They’re back together, but they have a new home: the lakeside home of Lakeland veterinarian and swan-care expert Dr. Geoff Gardner. Novak thought Henry might be able to live without his mate when he took Vicki to SOS. She wasn’t swimming normally because of an intestinal disorder. Some swans can live alone and be content. They generally mate for life but can still find love again. Henry could possibly have mated with a female that flew in from another area. But Henry left his home turf and flew into another territory occupied by two females and a male that he tried to fight. Perhaps, in Henry’s mind, Vicki was missing. Novak said Henry wasn’t there when he removed Vicki from the golf course, so perhaps Henry was searching for his mate when he went into the other territory. Placing Henry in a rescue facility alongside Vicki was unlikely because he’s an ablebodied bird who doesn’t need care. Novak, who has worked with the Lakeland-based Regal Swan Foundation to care for Longboat Key’s swans, learned Gardner would be willing to take the swans under his wing. On Saturday, Novak captured Henry and took him to SOS, where he reunited with Vicki. He was disoriented but recognized
SEE SWANS / PAGE 2A
Longboat lovebirds Vicki and Henry are together again at their new home — in Lakeland.
photos courtesy of david Novak
david novak holds onto henry before henry boards a van en route to his new home in Lakeland; inset: Vicki and henry reunite at save our seabirds before making the journey to their new home.
INDEX see our ToWn / 21A
Briefs ........................4A Classifieds ..............17B
Cops Corner .............10A Crossword................17B
Neighborhood ............1B Opinion .....................8A
Real Estate ..............10B Weather...................116
Vol. 35, no. 33 | Three sections
YourObserver.com