E A ST COUNTY
Observer Lakewood Ranch’s weekly newspaper since 1998
YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
School board looks to Parrish for new high school. PAGE 6A
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FREE THURSDAY, JANUARY 28, 2016
VOLUME 18, NO. 10
Could wasps save citrus?
LEMUR
LEAP
Lemurs may be Madagascar natives, but many call Myakka City home thanks to 20 years of conservation efforts. PAGE 4A
With an invasive insect infecting crops with greening disease, local growers enlist an unlikely ally. PAGE 3A
YOUR TOWN
Amanda Sebastiano
Rosena Hill has performed in productions such as “Come Fly Away” and “The Color Purple.”
Standing O Aidan Dowdy wasn’t prepared for the wake-up call he was about to receive Jan. 20 in The Out-of-Door Academy’s Thunderdome. Within seconds of concert soloist Rosena Hill smiling at Dowdy, a senior at ODA, Hill had him up off the bleachers and dancing with her in the middle of the gym in front of the entire high school student body. “It definitely woke me up,” Dowdy said, laughing. “It was fun, but I’m not a great dancer.” Hill, a former student of ODA’s lower school on Siesta Key, visited ODA to perform a few songs from Broadway shows and other productions of which she has been a part throughout her career. Hill sang pieces from “Come Fly Away,”and other productions.
Jessica Salmond
A ring-tailed lemur considers a jump from a tree limb to investigate a visitor.
Clubs swing offerings to grow Struggling industry hopes to get healthy by catering to health-conscious baby boomers.
Jay Heater
Kevin Conway, the clubhouse manager at Rosedale Golf and Country Club, stands in front of new patio furniture needed to create a casual environment for the members.
JAY HEATER MANAGING EDITOR
W
ayne Piazza, the general manager of Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club, was on a roll, talking about theme nights, Broadway shows, pickleball, bar activities and his wine room. He hadn’t even mentioned his club’s three 18-hole golf courses. Welcome to today’s country club world. “We are just short of a cruise ship on land,” Piazza said. “It’s all changed, even in the last 10 years. The expectations of what people are looking for changes what you provide. Golf still is king, but the fitness component is big.” Golf might be king, but the country clubs associated with SEE PAGE 8A
BLACK
TIE
Opera spends ‘An Evening on the Nile.’ INSIDE