E A ST COUNTY
Observer Lakewood Ranch’s weekly newspaper since 1998
Fly guys (and gals) sought for new airport neighborhood. PAGE 3A
YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
VOLUME 17, NO. 20
FREE
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WEDNESDAY, APRIL 1, 2015
Overpass solution?
PAY YOUR WAY Officials say outsiders should pay for the proposed overpass across Interstate 75.
PAM EUBANKS SENIOR EDITOR
— As it works on plans to design and build an overpass over Interstate 75, developer Schroeder-Manatee Ranch has an idea on how to fund it that will relieve Lakewood Ranch taxpayers: Make the out-of-towners pay. The idea, according to SMR President and CEO Rex Jensen, is to use a toll-by-plate system for the road that will allow Ranch residents to use the overpass for free while charging other motorists $5 per trip. (A discounted rate will be offered for regular users.) Jensen said the concept mirrors many fees that make the user pay for the service provided. “To me, that’s the fair system,” Jensen said.
EAST COUNTY
CRANKY WINS ACTING AWARD
SEE OVERPASS PAGE 4A
YOUR TOWN MEMORIAL PAYS TRIBUTE TO HAPPY DAYS
Courtesy rendering
SMR plans Hog Wild boutique Forget orange. Alligator green and boar’s head white are the new black. PAM EUBANKS SENIOR EDITOR
— Lakewood Ranch is going “hog wild.” In light of problems in Lakewood Ranch with wild boars over the last year, as well as residents calling trappers to remove alligators from Lakewood Ranch lakes, the community’s developer has decided to launch a new division that will oversee the trapping and relocation of wild boars, alligators and other wild game. Schroeder-Manatee Ranch plans to relocate the animals to an agricultural parcel near the Sarasota Polo Club. There, it will raise the animals to an optimal weight, then harvest them for various uses. Ensuring nothing goes to waste, meat will be sold from the animals, and they will be used to make high-end fashions such as alligator-skin purses, wallets, boots and shoes and boar-tusk necklaces, all of which are trendy in spring.
LAKEWOOD RANCH
The approval of a permit that allows community development districts more gator-trapping discretion has Town Hall Executive Director Eva Ray in both a celebratory and somber mood. Ray will ask CDD boards for $1,500 each to create a memorial behind Town Hall, along the banks of Lake Uihlein, to commemorate the life of Happy, Town Hall’s favorite alligator. Named for his pleasant demeanor, Happy lived in the lake before he was killed by a trapper after a resident complained to the FWC about his presence. YOUR TOWN PAGE 4A
Lakewood Ranch developer Schroeder-Manatee Ranch has yet another reason to flap its tailfeathers. The National Mascot Lovers Association recognized its mascot, Cranky, for his talents as “Best Actor” at its April 1 annual awards ceremony. But was Cranky, a sandhill crane, just acting? Witnesses saw Cranky partying late into the night on the Lakewood Ranch bar scene, downing Grey Goose and Wild Turkey. At the end of the night, he tried to bust a move for a group of females with his mating dance. Let’s just say, he went home to an empty nest. The next day, Cranky showed up to the awards ceremony late with his feathers disheveled. Sitting in the corner, wings crossed, he refused to perform or interact with other mascots. “That bird’s gonna win an Oscar,” one judge said. “For a second, I really thought he was Cranky. He could be the next Big Bird or Donald Duck.” Another judge praised his acting skills but wondered what having a cranky mascot says about the Ranch. “Does that mean the community of Lakewood Ranch is cranky, too?” the judge wrote.
File photo
Wild hogs and alligators, which have become a nuisance to residents, will soon be harvested to be used for high-end boutique offerings.
The fashions will be available at the new SMR Hog Wild boutique at the University Town Center Mall. The idea will generate revenue for SMR while also addressing residents’ complaints against the animals. SMR officials said the program could expand to include other wild game, including pigeons, quail and other animals. SMR’s farms division, which
runs SMR’s sod farming, citrus and other agricultural-related operations, will oversee the program, at least initially. SMR officials said they are working to hire appropriate personnel for the operation and expect to have the site ready for business within a month, with the first harvesting of animals likely occurring in the summer. SEE HOG WILD PAGE 4A
FLOATING HOUSES 2A Real estate ideas are afloat on the Ranch.