Longboat Observer 8.17.23

Checkout changes arrive at Publix

If you’ve been to the grocery store recently, chances are you noticed the construction just inside the entrance of Publix at Bay Isles Parkway.

But now the construction tape has disappeared, and a new addition has taken its place, which should help customers get in and out of the store in faster fashion.

The Longboat grocery store now boasts modern self-checkout stations available for its customers.

Four self-checkout machines are now open for business in between the customer service desk and the standard checkout lanes.

The standard checkout lanes are still open for customers who still want to have a more personal shopping experience with a friendly store clerk handling the scanning and bagging duties.

Free lunch for first responders

Some say there’s no such thing as a free lunch, but the Longboat Island Chapel turned the old saying on its head — at least for a day and for a group of the town’s hardest workers.

The chapel hosted a free lunch for the Longboat Key Police Department staff on Aug. 3.

Five employees from the Police Department came to the chapel at 11:30 a.m.

The chapel provided a lunch from Firehouse Subs. Chapel members also brought homemade desserts.

Chapel members and police employees mingled and enjoyed each other’s company during the lunch.

Recently, it has been a priority of chapel members to honor first responders. On Aug. 1, a group of them spent time at the Longboat Key Fire Department.

The chapel plans to continue to do anything it can to show appreciation for all the hard work that the first responders do for the island of Longboat Key.

Carter Weinhofer

Jackson McLeod, a high school volunteer for Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium, helps a camper with her goggles.

Get to know Longboat’s new officers

CARTER WEINHOFER STAFF WRITER

Two police officers, Adam Swinford and Mike Rizzo, started their Longboat Key Police Department careers this month. On Aug. 14, the two were officially sworn in.

OFFICER ADAM SWINFORD

Originally from Indiana, Officer Adam Swinford, 33, comes to Longboat Key with seven years of law enforcement experience and three years in corrections.

Swinford graduated from Indiana State University in 2012 with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. Following graduation, he was hired by the Indiana Department of Corrections to work at Indiana’s largest state prison. After two years there, he worked at another prison for a year before starting as an officer in Peru, Indiana.

Swinford then spent four years in that department and another three years in a department near Kokomo, Indiana. During those years, he served as a field training officer, training new recruits and showing them the ropes.

“You teach them basically how to walk as a police officer,” Swinford said.

He’s wanted to come south for a couple years, and now, he is ready to

become a part of the Longboat Key community. He was drawn to the size of the department and community, and the community policing aspect.

“I can focus more on helping the community, being a part of the community that really appreciates you,” Swinford said. “And I’ve definitely gotten that vibe so far.”

Aside from the job, Swinford is looking forward to living in an area where there’s so much to do outside.

He’s excited to enjoy the weather and the beaches, and said he didn’t know if he wanted to do any more winters in Indiana.

Swinford is also a competitive softball player, playing for a police softball circuit. He said he meets officers from all over as he travels the country. It’s also helped him relieve some stress from the job.

“Being a police officer does get stressful at times,” Swinford said.

“So it’s a good way to divert your attention and focus on sports and hanging out with all the guys.”

So far, Swinford said he has liked the morale throughout the Longboat Key Police Department and thinks this will be a good fit for him to continue his law enforcement career.

OFFICER MIKE RIZZO

Ten years ago, Officer Mike Rizzo was slinging pizzas in Highland, New York. Then came nine years working for the Ulster County Sheriff’s Office

in New York. After that, Rizzo made the decision to move to Florida and start with the Longboat Key Police Department.  Rizzo, 32, said he was always interested in law enforcement and helping people.

“I like the fact that people can rely on me,” Rizzo said. “When there’s an incident or something like that and you’re able to fulfill those needs, it’s very rewarding.”

Back in New York, Rizzo worked alongside Sgt. Adam Montfort in the Ulster County Sheriff’s Office before Montfort came to work for Longboat Key. Montfort told Rizzo to look into the Longboat Key Police Department, and Rizzo was impressed.

“The location was beautiful, the people are great and there’s respect for law enforcement,” Rizzo said.

In New York, Rizzo was also a part of the marine patrol unit. He’s not on the waters of Longboat Key yet,

though he’s interested in it.

After about two weeks on the job, Rizzo said he had already met great co-workers and members of the community. But he said Longboat Key has been a culture shock for him, in a good way.

“I’m not dealing with the gangs that I was back at home,” Rizzo said.

“This first week has been an eyeopener to see how other agencies operate, other than just being in the county I was in for nine years.”

In the future, Rizzo hopes to work up the chain of command in the department. He is looking forward to helping out members of the community and getting to know them on a personal level.

“I want them to be able to know my name just by seeing me,” Rizzo said. “I want to show my face enough where they know me as a result.”

Rizzo also hopes to soak in the sun and enjoy some Florida fishing.

“I can focus more on helping the community, being a part of the community that really appreciates you. And I’ve definitely gotten that vibe so far.”

— Adam Swinford

“I like the fact that people can rely on me. When there’s an incident or something like that and you’re able to fulfill those needs, it’s very rewarding.”

— Mike Rizzo

The officers arrived from Indiana and New York and were drawn to the Key’s culture.

Courtesy Photo

New Longboat Key Police Officers Adam Swinford, middle, and Mike Rizzo, right, recite the oath led by Chief of Police George Turner, left.

DAWN PATROL

Public Works staff battle overflowing garbage cans, discarded furniture and litterers to keep Longboat beach access points tidy.

CARTER WEINHOFER STAFF WRITER

Matt Ballew doesn’t mind starting his trash run at 6 a.m.

The sun isn’t up yet, so he’ll beat the heat.

He pulls up to the Longboat Key Public Works building a few minutes before 6 a.m. No time is wasted as he walks from his car to the back gate to get the white Ford F-150 pickup truck. Behind the truck is a towable, green dumpster.

The first stop is the boat ramp near the north end of the island. Ballew dons a headlamp as he opens each of the trash cans. He examines the contents of each, lifting the lighter cans and emptying the contents into the more filled ones. Like dominoes falling, he goes down the line like this so he only has to lift one or two cans above his head and into the towable dumpster.

Just like that, the first stop is done in about two minutes. He hops back into his truck and heads to the next stop — the Broadway Street Public Beach Access.

Ballew has been with the town of Longboat Key for about six months. Aside from trash duty, which he has to do on a rotation, he manages Bayfront Park, helps with the mowing route and responds to roadkill cleanup.

The entire trash route usually takes him about two hours, he says, three on holidays.

“We’ll fill up one of these pretty quickly,” he says, pointing to the dumpster.

During the busy holiday weekends,

Ballew says the inconvenient part is having to haul a full dumpster back to Public Works mid-route.

At the second stop of the morning, Ballew finds the first of two pop-up tents that day. Items like that and lightly used beach chairs are commonly found by the public beach access trash cans. It’s mostly people that fly in to visit, he guesses.

He spot cleans every site he stops at, checking the surrounding area for any trash that was left in the parking lot or around the cans. At one, he finds a used diaper, something he says is also pretty common.

Around 6:30 a.m., the sun peeks over the horizon, giving Ballew enough light to eventually turn off his headlamp. He works his way to the last stop, at Overlook Park.

With every trash can he empties, he turns his face away.

You don’t want anything splattering on you, he said.

The route is finished at 7:15 a.m., just over an hour after he started.

“Good day for me,” Ballew says.

Not having to unload the dumpster halfway through the route saved him about 30 minutes.

SIMPLE STRATEGIES

Mark Richardson starts every morning around 6:30 a.m., as the streets, facilities, parks and recreation manager for Longboat Key. He’s a morning person, and likes that his eighthour days are over around 2 or 3 p.m.

He’s been with the town for 17 years, and in his current position for 15. He started as just recreation manager, and then the titles kept accumulating as staff left or retired, and he took on more responsibilities.

“I basically do everything except for wastewater and water,” Richardson said.

Prior to working for Longboat Key, Richardson worked for Clearwater for four years, and Manatee County for 14 years prior to that. He’s been in the public works field since he was 18 years old.

The trash collection system of his Public Works team is simple: every Monday and Friday, his team hits the public beach access points to empty the trash cans and spot clean areas. The team adds Sunday collection days during busy times of the year, and on weekend holidays. For Richardson, it seems like the seasons have worsened.

“Ever since COVID, the beaches have gotten busier,” Richardson said, adding that the business hasn’t seemed to let up.

Every week, one of Richardson’s Public Works employees is on the rotation for trash duty. That worker has to do the collection Monday, Friday and Sunday if necessary. Some of the newer guys pick up the shifts to acquire more comp time, Richardson said.

At most, the entire run takes around three hours, according to Richardson.

Waste Management handles residential trash collection on Mondays and Thursdays, and also collects beach access trash on Mondays. Richardson and the Public Works team still collect on Mondays because their trucks are able to get back to certain access points that the Waste Management trucks aren’t able to, like the one on Broadway Street.

On days when there’s no overlap with Waste Management, the Public Works employee doing the trash run makes 14 stops. If Waste Management is also on duty, there’s only five stops that Public Works has to make.

OVERCOMING OBSTACLES

Currently, Richardson’s Public Works team comprises six workers, still two short of where he wants to be. Last March, he only had four workers.

One of the reasons for the shortage that he suggested is that newer generations don’t want to do manual labor. But what the department pays is “pretty darn good,” for a job only requiring a high school diploma, he said.

Since hiring new staff, he’s revamped his ways. Richardson said he was used to having veteran employees until about a year ago, when he had to train new workers. This included adding maps of the trash and mowing routes in the trucks and creating a small library of “what to do.”

Richardson has also had to revamp the physical aspects of collecting trash.

In 2021, he had to purchase an additional towable dumpster, and he just purchased another, he said. The team also has three larger, portable dumpsters that it places at busier beach access points during holidays.

“I’m just running my brain trying to figure out how to get people to put trash in the cans,” Richardson said.

Some additional cans have been added to beach access points, but Richardson said there’s a fine balance between too little and too many cans.  One of the issues Richardson and Ballew frequently see is when trash gets jammed in the swing lid of the cans, then people will assume the trash can is full. The same goes for cans without lids, if a large bag clogs up the top opening.

About a month ago, Richardson began experimenting with removing the swing lids from some trash cans. This eliminates the need for people to push the barrier inwards and throw the trash in. The newer ones can be harder to press inward, and some people just don’t like touching

the swing lids with their hands, leading to trash on or around the garbage cans.

So far, Richardson thinks the experiment has been working.

Another problem is when people try to stuff large objects in the trash cans, like foldable chairs, then others will usually avoid using that can.

“That takes up a whole 32-gallon trash can because someone put a chair in there,” Richardson said.  Richardson also purchased another type of garbage can lid that is lifted off the can, that he thinks people will be more open to using. But he’s been thinking that maybe the best solution is removing the lid altogether on weekends.

No matter what improvements the team tries to implement, Richardson said there will always be outliers.

“You’re always going to have trash on the ground because some people just don’t care,” Richardson said.

TRASH ON THE BEACH

Past the beach access points and on the sand, volunteers with the Longboat Key Turtle Watch carry trash bags on morning walks and collect trash wherever they can.

“You’d be surprised at what we find,” said Steve Howard, a volunteer for five years.

One of the most surprising things, Howard said, was a beer funnel that was wrapped around a turtle nest site.

Trash seems to be worse on the beach access points like Broadway and North Shore, where there is the most public parking available. When they find things like gently used kids’ toys, Howard said they try to recycle or donate them.

Howard said the pickup spots are good as they are, but thinks more education could be necessary in encouraging people to always take their trash with them off the beach.

TRASH FINDS

Matt Ballew: Diapers, beach chairs

Mark Richardson: Pop-up tents; inflatables, charcoal grills

Steve Howard, LBK Turtle Watch Volunteer: Full alcohol containers, undergarments, shoes, beer funnels, kids toys

Photos by Carter Weinhofer

Matt Ballew prefers getting the trash run done before the sun rises and other cars at the access points get in the way.

Matt Ballew’s headlamp helps him see during his morning trash run.

Spending deadline

ANDREW WARFIELD STAFF WRITER

During the past two decades, St. Armands Circle has experienced an enhanced level of service that has contributed to maintaining its status as one of the city’s top destinations for visitors and residents alike.

With the failure to renew the St. Armands Business Improvement District by a vote of the commercial property owners there, just how well maintained the landscape and how well funded special events and marketing of the circle will be is uncertain. What is certain, though, is that it likely won’t be anywhere near the level merchants, visitors and residents have enjoyed since 2003.

Just two days after the City Commission received the report of the impending sunset of the St. Armands BID on Sept. 30, 2023, the  board of directors held its last meeting to discuss final spending plans, and what may happen with any surplus funds remaining in the BID’s accounts once it is dissolved.

That money, nearly $700,000 in total and which includes approximately $479,000 for capital improvements, will not be used elsewhere in the city because it belongs to the BID via special tax district overlay district. Those paying into the fund for the past 20 years, though, will have

no say over how it is spent there. That will be up to City Commission going forward.

After Sept. 30, property owners will have to directly lobby staff and commissioners for any benefits above and beyond standard city services and capital spending.

“That’s what we’re going to have to do now. We’re gonna have to get together as property owners and go to the city and push for these things,” said BID Board of Directors Chairman Tom Leonard. “They will probably look at us and say, ‘Well, why did you dissolve yourself if you wanted this so bad, and why didn’t you want to contribute to it?’

“We need to figure out a way so we can show the city that we can generate revenue outside of the BID to help support these enhanced services and our streetscape. I think that we all work together with the great business minds that we all have here. I think we can continue to hopefully have input with the commission. It’s not always easy, but it can happen.”

During Wednesday’s meeting in which the three remaining board members occasionally showed some frustration with the impending dissolution, BID Business Manager Julie Ryan said any spending decisions made must not only be invoiced and paid for by Sept. 30, but all goods and services must be delivered by that date. Any ongoing services — such as marketing — may continue past

BID FUNDING

that date providing they had been approved and initiated before the deadline.

Board member Casey Gonzmart appeared particularly frustrated at the outcome of the BID renewal vote and the limits placed on all that must be concluded by Sept. 30. He rejected any seasonal flower plantings and other landscape plans — particularly since enhanced irrigation paid for by the BID will revert to the city’s less

TO

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All approved purchases of goods and services must be delivered by the business improvement district’s Sept. 30 sunset.

Andrew Warfield

St. Armands Circle has enjoyed an enhanced level of service via revenues raised from the special tax district.

frequent schedule.

Gonzmart wanted every dollar possible to go into the capital improvement fund to help pay for a future complete streets or streetscape project. Ryan advised that funds for operations and capital improvements cannot be commingled.

“We have to focus on streetscape. That’s something we’ve all discussed. It’s something that we all desire, and nobody in this room doesn’t like it,” said Gonzmart, who owns the Columbia and Cha Cha Coconuts restaurants and the buildings they occupy. “We have to find a way to fund it. We have to find a way to make it a quality project. It’s going to take years, but I’m here for the long term. John Ringling came here in ’29. I came here in ’59 and my son is 40 years old, so we will fight and we will do what we can to work in tandem with the city to protect the oldest district in the city of Sarasota.”

The board approved a handful of print, digital and video marketing programs that will continue for three to four months beyond dissolution, along with one last sidewalk cleaning beyond the city’s twice-annual standard, and an alley cleaning, which the city does not provide.

After several approved landscaping, cleaning and marketing projects are completed, the BID will turn over to the city an estimated $44,000 to be held in escrow. That money can be spent only within the BID footprint,

but at the City Commission’s discretion.

With the dissolution of the BID, its annual $50,000 contribution to operate the Bay Runner free trolley service also ends, and the city will have to find another source to supplement funding.

A funding source for this year’s installation of the holiday tree in Circle Park, which was purchased by the BID and the St. Armands Circle Association last year thanks to a $286,000 city grant, will also have to be found. That’s priced at $37,840.55, which cannot be funded by the BID because it would not be erected and decorated by Sept. 30, and because it did not receive a formal application from the Circle Association, which owns the tree and is responsible for its storage.

A nearly half-century-old Sarasota tradition, the cost to install the tree and hold the annual Holiday Night of Lights tree lighting ceremony will be another matter for the city to consider.

“If we want to see something like Parks and Rec do something, we should lobby them after our board dissolves to come up with a design, then we lobby the commission, and that’s what we’re going to have to do now,” Leonard said. “We’re going to have to join together as property owners and merchants and say to the city, ‘There’s money in a piggy bank. We’d like to see this money spent this way.’”

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Longboat Key Police officer charged with armed trespassing

The officer’s employment was terminated following an incident involving his wife while he was armed and in uniform.

CARTER WEINHOFER STAFF WRITER

ALongboat Key Police officer, Rafael Martinez Jr., 27, of Bradenton, has been charged with armed trespassing of a structure or conveyance in conjunction with events that occurred on the night of Aug. 5.

On Aug. 5, according to the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office arrest warrant affidavit, Martinez called 911 and stated that he believed his wife had been kidnapped. Martinez further advised dispatch that he had tracked his wife’s vehicle to a residence and that he believed she was inside and needed a Sarasota County Sheriff’s deputy, according to the affidavit.

Martinez stated that he tried to ring the doorbell of the residence but got no response, so he entered the residence through the unlocked garage door, according to the affidavit. He further stated he pulled out his “taser” to use the flashlight to look around dark areas of the house.

The wife stated, in an interview with a responding officer after the incident, that she was at the residence with the homeowner. She and the owner of the residence heard someone enter the house, and she believed the man to be her husband, according to the affidavit.

A yelling exchange followed Martinez’s entry, with Martinez identifying himself as “police,” after which Martinez stated he “began to panic and went outside and called 911,”

according to the police report.

Not long afterward, the owner of the residence called 911 and advised that a man had entered the residence without permission and that the man was a police officer, the affidavit continues.

At the time, Martinez was on duty in full uniform and armed with “pistol, ammunition and a taser,” according to the affidavit.

“At no time during the interview” with responding law enforcement officers after the incident, “did (Martinez) provide any lawful reason or exigent circumstances that would allow him to enter the residence.”

According to the affidavit, Martinez stated that prior to the incident at the residence, he was on patrol for Longboat Key Police Department when his 4-year-old son called him and said he and his 2-year-old sister were home alone and unaware as to where their mother was. Martinez further stated that he pulled over somewhere in Manatee County and called his wife multiple times, to which she did not reply.

The affidavit states the Longboat Key Police Department provided dash camera footage from Martinez’s vehicle, which showed Martinez in full uniform and armed outside the residence, stopping his wife.

Following his arrest, Martinez was released after posting a $1,500 bail bond. Martinez is scheduled to appear in court for arraignment Oct. 6. If convicted, armed trespassing of a structure or conveyance is classified as a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.

Longboat Key Chief of Police George Turner said Martinez’s employment with the department was terminated on Aug. 7.

Community center still pending

CARTER WEINHOFER STAFF WRITER

Progress on the Longboat Key Community Center in Whitney Beach Plaza is moving in a positive direction, but Town Manager Howard Tipton said it may take some time, and it requires getting stakeholders talking.

On July 25, the Manatee County commissioners approved a motion allowing staff to work on an interlocal agreement with the Manatee County School District regarding the Longboat Key Community Center.

Following that meeting, Tipton met with members of the school district on Aug. 4 for some clarification and to get conversations started. Tipton met with the new Manatee County School District Superintendent Jason Wysong, District Deputy Superintendent of Operations Joe Ranaldi and District Executive Director of Adult Career and Technical Education Paul Gansemer.

At the meeting, Tipton said Wysong was engaged with the idea and the meeting was productive overall. In an email update Tipton sent, he said that as of Aug. 5 the county had not communicated with the school board regarding the interlocal agreement.

But from the conversation, Tipton said the school board seemed to be interested in pursuing the space with adult learning in mind. Students in the district could help with technology teaching and could also attend lectures or learn from Longboat Key citizens.

“There was interest in working to find ways for students to get to meet some of our extraordinary citizens who’ve had successful careers who

could share their experiences with students at the center,” Tipton said in the email update.

One issue Tipton sees is funding, though he said this can be easily overcome. The issue is that property tax generally goes to K-12 education rather than community centers for adult learning. That is typically funded through other fees, something that Tipton believes the county had not taken into consideration.

Tipton also said the school board is “very cognizant” of not wanting to create a space that would be unsuccessful.

The next steps are more conversations, getting the necessary people talking to further the interlocal agreement and eventually finalizing the lease agreement.

“Everybody has a lot on their plate,” Tipton said. “It’s an important project to the town, but we certainly understand if this takes a few weeks.”

Changes in county leadership with Charlie Bishop recently named acting county administrator and school starting up for the year have meant both organizations have been otherwise occupied.

“Progress will track the critical path of commercial lease and interlocal agreement negotiations,” Tipton said in the email. “If we can ignite those, we have a chance of seeing this come together.”

The next steps in the community center project rely on conversations between Manatee County and the school district.

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LONGBOAT

About time they give back

Sarasota County officials say they’ll use county money to build a public library on Longboat. They also should fund a community center.

Cynics that we are, let’s try looking on the bright side for a change.

It was surprising to a degree last week to read that the Sarasota County Commission is committing $1 million to fund the design of a new county-owned library on Longboat Key and that Manatee County School officials are entertaining the idea of funding an adult education center in one of the Whitney Plaza buildings.

It was surprising and surprisingly pleasant to read because rare is the occasion when commissioners and top administrators in Sarasota and Manatee counties throw a financial bread crumb to Longboat Key.

We often think they would be much more gracious and grateful considering the millions and millions and millions of dollars Longboat Key taxpayers send across the bay each year — with little tangible results in return.

As the table shows, in the next fiscal year, given the valuation of Longboat Key property,

HOW MUCH COUNTIES GET FROM LBK

Based on the 2023-24 proposed millage rates, Longboat Key taxpayers will send $31,650,380 to Sarasota and Manatee counties in the next fiscal year.

Longboaters will send $17 million and $14 million, respectively, to Sarasota and Manatee counties — $31,650,380 altogether.

While that is A LOT of money, it actually pales in comparison to the $46,295,303 Longboaters pay in property taxes for the Sarasota and Manatee school districts. Of that, the Sarasota County portion of Longboat contributes $31,501,980 in school taxes; the Manatee portion of Longboat contributes $14,793,523.

Being the generous people they are, Longboaters on the whole haven’t demanded or squawked much to county elected officials about all the money they contribute to the counties and what little they see in return.

But it’s about time.

As much as the town’s privately operated library has served

Longboat well for 66 years (proving that a library can operate without taxpayer support), and as much as that library building has a quaint, small-town look from a simpler time, an upgrade would be welcome. That property has been underutilized too long. Indeed, it’s the perfect site for a combined library and community center-type building.

Longboaters have talked for nearly 30 years about building a community center — a gathering place for town events and communitywide meetings. The pews at Temple Beth Israel should not be that place, as they have before. And most long-time Longboat residents know the old cottage at Bayfront Park is completely inadequate and has outlived its useful life by 30 years and then some.

So Longboaters, no doubt, gladly will welcome Sarasota County using what can be considered Longboat Key property owners’ tax dollars to build a new public library on the Key.

Well and good — except for one thing.

From last week’s Longboat Observer: “Sarasota County will be financially responsible for the new library. But the town is exploring the possibility of adding additional community space to the design. This part of the project would need to be paid for by the town, (Longboat Key Town Manager Howard) Tipton said.” (Italics added)

What? No way.

If the city of Sarasota and the Bay Park Conservancy can secure what likely will be more than $100 million in tax-increment financing from Sarasota County to fund the development of the Bay Park, given the millions Sarasota and Manatee counties receive from Longboat Key, surely there is a path to financing a measly library-community center without tapping Longboat Key taxpayers for even more than they’re already paying.

Maybe it’s time Longboat Key commissioners pull back some from being so generous to the two counties and let the county commissioners (and school boards) know there needs to be a much better return on Longboaters’ investments in the counties.

AG Moody tries to snuff weed

Florida’s attorney general is trying to prevent voters from deciding whether the state should legalize recreational marijuana for adults.

marijuana licensees would dramatically expand their market by gaining the ability to sell marijuana products to all adults regardless of medical need.

PROPOSED AMENDMENT

The following is a summary of a proposed amendment to the Florida Constitution that is going through the initiative approval process.

ADULT PERSONAL USE OF MARIJUANA

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody and others are trying to persuade the Florida Supreme Court to strike down a ballot initiative that would amend the state constitution to allow personal possession of marijuana for adults aged 21 and up. Florida has a medical marijuana program, and this new initiative would grant existing medical marijuana companies the exclusive right to sell marijuana products, unless the Legislature decides to offer new licenses in the future.

Despite this, Florida’s political class has remained consistently hostile to marijuana legalization. They have inhibited implementation of the medical marijuana law that voters approved in 2016. Following adoption of that initiative, Florida lawmakers first declined to consider implementing the statutes that the initiative required them to adopt until thenGov. Rick Scott called them into a special session to complete their constitutional responsibilities.

After that, they then adopted a statute that banned smokable products — a move that state courts later ruled violated the intent of the initiative. The DeSantis administration later fell years behind in awarding licenses to operate marijuana businesses, drawing further admonishment in state courts.

Most recently, the DeSantis administration raised the fee for these licenses more than 20 times the initial cost, going from $60,000 to $1.33 million.

SUMMARY: Allows adults 21 years or older to possess, purchase or use marijuana products and marijuana accessories for non-medical personal consumption by smoking, ingestion or otherwise; allows Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers and other statelicensed entities to acquire, cultivate, process, manufacture, sell and distribute such products and accessories. Applies to Florida law; does not change or immunize violations of federal law. Establishes possession limits for personal use. Allows consistent legislation. Defines terms. Provides effective date.

marijuana by initiatives containing similar language.

“If we are to build a better world, we must remember that the guiding principle is this — a policy of freedom for the individual is the only truly progressive policy.”

Friedrich Hayek “Road to Serfdom,” 1944

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adult-use licenses in the future.

Lawrence

If the measure survives Moody’s challenges, the question facing voters will be whether they would be willing to confer market power to a handful of companies to allow consumers greater access to marijuana.

The largest of Florida’s medical marijuana companies, Trulieve Cannabis, has contributed all of the $39.05 million that Smart & Safe Florida, the political action committee formed to sponsor the initiative, has received.

The committee has used this money to meet the threshold of signature collection needed to qualify the initiative for the ballot by turning in 1,013,325 verified signatures from eligible Florida voters. That number easily is more than the 891,589 required. If the initiative is successful, Trulieve and other medical

Into this background steps Attorney General Moody, a DeSantis ally, with a legal challenge seeking to prevent Trulieve’s initiative from going to the voters.

Part of Florida’s process to qualify an initiative for the ballot is for the state Supreme Court to certify the initiative’s validity, which gives interested parties the chance to submit briefs in opposition. Moody has done so, along with the Florida Chamber of Commerce and the Drug Free America Foundation.

Moody makes several spurious arguments in her brief.

First, she (along with the Drug Free America Foundation) claims that the summary is misleading because it states adults 21 years or older could legally purchase, possess or use marijuana, but she notes those actions would remain illegal under federal law.

In truth, the initiative is a proposed amendment to Florida’s constitution and has no direct relation to federal law. More than a dozen states have legalized

Further, the plain text of the initiative’s summary statement that would appear on the ballot undermines Moody’s argument. It expressly states the initiative “does not change or immunize violations of federal law.”

Second, Moody argues the initiative would permit unregulated sales because it doesn’t specifically grant the state health department regulatory authority over recreational marijuana sales. The truth is the initiative states that only existing Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers (MMTCs) would be able to sell marijuana, along with other entities to whom the department may grant licenses in the future. The health department regulates all medical marijuana treatment centers, so no one would be able to sell marijuana without health department oversight.

Third, Moody argues the initiative might mislead voters into believing there will be more competition in Florida’s marijuana market. The initiative is clear that it restricts any commercial marijuana activity to current medical marijuana treatment centers, although it theoretically allows the Legislature to authorize additional

Trulieve controls 125 of the 571 medical marijuana dispensaries operating in Florida. Its initiative would restrict any new entrants from coming into the marijuana market unless the Legislature passes a law allowing for the award of new commercial licenses.

Based on experience to date, Florida lawmakers appear unlikely to do this in the foreseeable future.

It’s possible voters will mistakenly believe the initiative would lead to increased competition, but this speaks more to the obstinance of Florida’s political class than to the language of the initiative itself.

Moody’s legal arguments are mostly red herrings.

Trulieve’s attempt to control the Florida market, however, is a real issue upon which the initiative should be debated.

The question is: Are Floridians willing to accept a small cartel of legal suppliers for adults to gain the personal freedom to make their own choices regarding marijuana consumption?

Madison Carlino is a research intern, Geoffrey Lawrence is research director, and Adrian Moore is vice president at the Reason Foundation.

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1970 Main St. Sarasota, FL 34236 941-366-3468

ADRIAN MOORE, GEOFFREY LAWRENCE AND MADISON CARLINO

Geoffrey

FRIDAY, AUG. 4

SAFETY HAZARD

4:20 p.m., Jewfish Key

Boating Citation: On marine patrol, an officer noticed a boat traveling with an excessive wake in a “Slow Speed, Minimum Wake” zone. The marine patrol officer stopped the boat and informed the driver of the violation in the zone. The operator of the boat was also asked to show proof of required safety equipment and was missing a fire extinguisher and proper throwable flotation device. A citation was issued.

SATURDAY, AUG. 5

WASTING WATER

9:27 a.m., 500 block of Sutton Place

Citizen Assist: An officer was dispatched to respond to a water sprinkler that was running all night. On the scene, the responding officer was able to locate the sprinkler and called the property management company. The representative of the company said maintenance would resolve the issue.

GESTURE-AND-RUN

11:30 a.m., 4000 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Suspicious Person: Longboat Key Police Department was asked to respond to a caller who stated a woman and two males made obscene hand gestures toward her. Upon arrival, the complainant and suspicious persons were nowhere to be found.

SUNDAY, AUG. 6

POTTY PROBLEMS

5:54 p.m., 4000 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Citizen Assist: An officer responded to help someone locked inside the bathroom at Bayfront Park. On arrival, the officer was able to open the door and free the complainant.

WEDNESDAY, AUG. 9

URBAN VANDALISM

11:45 a.m., 100 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Criminal Mischief: An officer was dispatched to New Pass Bridge to investigate graffiti on a road sign. The officer noted that the graffiti did not impact the sign’s structural integrity, and the case was sent to Public Works to clean the sign.

SUNDAY, AUG. 6

TEST DRIVE

8:02 p.m., 500 block of Lyons

Lane

Suspicious Vehicle: A sports car speeding up and down the block prompted a police response. On the scene, the officer made contact with the vehicle and owner, and addressed the problem. The owner was advised not to speed down

New builds increase in number and value

According to new residential construction permit data, the residential units being built on Longboat Key have been getting more expensive.

CARTER WEINHOFER STAFF WRITER

Demand for luxury living on Longboat Key has been on an upward trend the last six years, according to new construction permit data.  “We have a lot of new houses, so there’s definitely an upswing in that because we’re reviewing the plans,” Longboat Key Building Official Patti Fige said.

1:04 p.m., Longboat Pass

Boat-Miscellaneous: On marine patrol, an emergency assistance frequency urged the response of a Longboat Key marine patrol officer. Upon arrival, the officer found the 50-foot yacht that was signaling the emergency. The boat with four people on board had run aground and were waiting for commercial assistance. While the officer was waiting for the Coast Guard and the commercial tow, he heard another emergency assistance frequency stating the vessel was taking on water. Longboat Key marine patrol met the Coast Guard and commercial assistance on scene. The agencies were able to use a dewatering pump and get control of the water intrusion.

PROTECT (THE TURTLES) AND

SERVE (THE CRABS)

9:20 p.m., 3800 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Suspicious Person: Police received reports of someone with white lights on the beach. An officer was able to locate a group of people in the water with nets, one of whom had a bright headlamp on. The individual said he was unaware of the turtle protection laws, and was harvesting crabs on the beach. A citation was issued.

NEW CONSTRUCTION PERMITS (RESIDENTIAL)

The average square footage is now around 6,000 to 7,000, though this year Fige said there are some that have far exceeded that.

In 2017, the Planning, Zoning & Building Department issued five new residential construction permits. A couple years later in 2022, that number jumped to 32. To date in 2023, there have been 17 new construction permits issued.  The median value of new residential construction has also steadily increased, from $475,000 in 2017 to $1,679,420 in 2023 to date.

According to Fige, houses the department has reviewed seem to be growing larger in recent years.

“We’ve permitted two, if not more, that are 22,000 square feet or more,” Fige said. “And I don’t know that I’ve had that before.”

Fige also said she’s seen quite a few alterations to existing structures in which many residents are completely renovating condos. Other, more minor, alterations such as wind pressure and impact resistant windows and doors have also trended upwards, according to Fige.

AVERAGE CONSTRUCTION VALUE

We are pleased to welcome Justin Shinn, MD, Head and Neck Cancer and Microvascular Surgeon to the First Physicians Group network. Dr. Shinn is a board-certified head and neck surgeon who treats patients with both benign and malignant tumors of the head and neck involving the oral cavity, nose, pharynx, larynx, salivary glands, thyroid, and skin. He also specializes in airway reconstruction, partial laryngectomy/voice preservation, micro-vascular reconstruction and transoral robotic surgery (TORS).

Specialty : Head and Neck Cancers including mouth, tongue, throat, gland and skin cancers as well as microvascular reconstruction

Board Certification : American Board of OtolaryngologyHead and Neck Surgery

Medical School : University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA

Residency: Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN

Fellowship: University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA

Purposeful plants

Nine volunteers spent their weekend gardening for the latest Garden Club beautification project.

PETRA RIVERA STAFF WRITER

Members of the Longboat Key Garden Club spent the mornings of Aug. 4-6 at the Town Center pavilion and stage planting to enhance the landscape.

According to the 2023 Garden Club Yearbook, one of its long-standing missions has been to “preserve the natural beauty of Longboat Key and surrounding areas and to further enhance its beautification.”

The pavilion project and others like it are funded through grants that the Garden Club raises funds for, based on its mission. The club allocated a $10,000 grant for this project but did not use all of it.

Susan Phillips, head of special projects for the Garden Club, organized the weekend of gardening and gathered nine volunteers to help.

Around the entrance of the Town Center, they planted 65 ixoras to build a hedge that will guide people to the stage. They also planted two palm trees on both sides of the stage. To hide the trash container, they planted 18 pitch apple plants.

“The first day, they didn’t have the sod picked up, which created the bed we’re planting,” said Phillips. “But the plants were there and the mulch was there. So while waiting for the guy who would pick up the sod, we spaced out the sod bags and just put them along the walkway. Then we took the plants and we measured three feet apart for each plant, and we placed them just over the sidewalk. It’s just staging, really, so that when we were ready to start digging, as soon as he’d picked sod, we could just go behind him and start planting.”

After doing what they could Friday morning before the temperature rose, the group organized so a few of them could come Saturday and Sunday to finish planting.

Phillips said the club wants to use the rest of the grant to continue gardening around the town pavilion and to put toward other beautification projects.

The club also set aside grants at its annual meeting for beautification at the north and south fire stations and for the Town Center Tree Lighting.

She said the club is also hoping to help with the landscape redesign of the Longboat Key Public Tennis Center.

Courtesy photo

Garden Club members Randy Davis, Steve Branham, Cyndi Davis, Susan Phillips and Melanie Dale

Petra Rivera

Longboat Key Garden Club members planted 65 ixoras at the entrance of the Town Center pavilion.

Garden Club helps Longboat bloom

GOALS SINCE THE FOUNDING

1. To stimulate the knowledge and love of gardening and to teach the special art of gardening on Longboat Key.

PETRA RIVERA STAFF WRITER

“It’s more than just a nonprofit organization,” said Linda Ulrich, grants chair and 10-year member of the Longboat Key Garden Club. “When you retire and you move to a different location, you don’t have a lot of chances to meet new people. So the Garden Club is the perfect way to meet people and to do something for the community.”

Patricia Kroh founded the Longboat Key Garden Club in 1969. The main goal of the club was to provide help to the town to preserve and encourage further beautification of Longboat. Now, it provides the island with an outlet for service, education, and long-lasting community.

“The impact of beautification that continued from day one, that obviously has our fingerprints all over it,” said Susan Phillips. “It’s all about building community through getting people involved in our mission, but in a way that they want to.”

Phillips is the immediate past president of the Garden Club and was president for eight years. Now she is the head of special projects.

The first Garden Club project started in 1970 with a contract with the Arvida Corp. to create Bicentennial Park, according to the 2023 Garden Club yearbook. To raise funds for this project, the Garden Club put on its first ever fundraiser, the Home Tour, which has been a time-honored tradition on Longboat.

Throughout the ’70s, the Garden Club slowly turned the donated land from Arvida into Bicentennial Park by adding plants, park benches, and sprinklers. In 1979, the club started its mission to encourage education in the local schools about environmental concerns. The club started using the money generated by fundraisers to provide scholarships to local students, grants to summer camps and to purchase library books.

In January of 1983, Garden Club President Isodene McCall started a project called the “The Blooming Key.” The goal was to create an avenue of flowering trees down both sides of Gulf of Mexico Drive. Property owners could buy trees from Arvida for $10-$25 and then Garden Club members would come and plant them in the owners’ yards.

The “Blooming Key” project got a great response from the town. By May of that year, the club received more than 100 orders. The Colony Beach and Tennis Resort bought 17 flowering trees through the project. The response inspired the club to push for more beautification that year. Club members worked with the town to replace Australian pine trees

with more native trees along Gulf of Mexico Drive and in the Harbourside and Islandside golf courses. The project continued through the ’80s. While organizing “The Blooming Key,” McCall also continued maintenance and beautification of Bicentennial Park. The club also started a grant program benefiting other nonprofits such as Mote Marine Labora-

WORSHIP directory

2 To preserve the natural beauty of Longboat Key and surrounding areas and to further enhance its beautification.

3. To encourage the preservation of our wildlife, birds, beaches, and purity of waterways.

4 To look at wider environmental concerns, and to stimulate this learning in youth.

5. To encourage a wider awareness of their many philanthropic activities, social events, and actively involve more members.

munity for Longboat Key.

“It’s made me feel more a part of the community,” said Barbara Gurchiek, former vice president. “I feel like I’m helping the community and having a good time doing it.”

Every year the Garden Club hosts several social and fundraising events. The main events include Taste of the Keys and Fashion Show, Home Tours, and Dinner and A Movie. The club has monthly educational program meetings and field trips to maintain community and connections. Each Arbor Day, members plant one tree somewhere on Longboat Key as a symbol of their mission of beautification. They also host their annual meeting on the same day and invite the club’s scholarship and grant recipients to the celebration.

“(Phillips) really has been instrumental in growing the Garden Club,” said Ulrich. “Garden Club has grown exponentially in the last five years. And we did that even through COVID, which was hard because we couldn’t really have all of our events.”

Recently, Chamber of Commerce President Gail Loefgren picked the Garden Club to be the first organization to serve collectively as grand marshal at the July 4 Freedom Fest.

tory and Aquarium.  Phillips said that these events were the foundation for everything that the Garden Club does today.

The club’s main priorities are beautification projects, providing educational opportunities to learn about environmental concerns, supporting other local nonprofits and building a welcoming social com -

“I really value getting together with a bunch of people with the vision of improving the community and the environment,” said Kathleen Garcia, former Arbor Day Chair. “The club fulfills that purpose for me. It’s the perfect place to be with like-minded people who want to give back to the community and have some fun while doing it.”

The club’s history is intertwined with efforts to beautify the island and build community.

Courtesy photos

The Garden Club at the 1980 celebration of Longboat’s 20th anniversary

Garden Club members Kit Fernald, Tom Jones and Don Bills working on Bicentennial Park in 1976.

Longboat Key Garden Club officers Susan Loprete, Sharon Meir, Susan Mason, Melanie Dale, Lyn Haycock and Susan Phillips at the club’s Arbor Day Picnic & Annual Meeting, which was held on April 28 at the Longboat Island Chapel.

A+E INSIDE:

< PERFECT PITCH: Hip-hop meets high school in soccer team song. 14

CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REMIXED!: Show follows the life of John Fogerty. 15 >

ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT

Art that makes amends

The Ringling’s ‘Reclaiming Home’ bears witness to the trials and triumphs of the Seminole tribe.

MONICA ROMAN GAGNIER ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

Back in the 1970s, at the height of the American Indian Movement, it wasn’t unusual in places near reservations to see bumper stickers and T-shirts emblazoned with the words “You Are On Indian Land.”

While it could be argued that the slogan applied to the entire United States, it is certainly true in this part of Florida, where the Seminole tribe was forcibly removed from its land during three wars with the U.S. government. Today, many descendants of those Florida natives live in Oklahoma.

With the 2016-17 protest against the Dakota Access Pipeline on the Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota, the movement for indigenous rights picked up steam again. Members of 200 Indian tribes gathered together for the first time in 150 years, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.

The next year the John and Mable Ringling Museum hired Ola Wlusek as curator for modern and contemporary art. A former public art coordinator for the city of Calgary and curator at the Ottawa Art Gallery, Wlusek was the driving force behind the Ringling’s exhibition, “Reclaiming Home: Contemporary Seminole Art,” which runs through Sept. 4.  Can you draw a straight line from the Standing Rock protest to the “Reclaiming Home” exhibition? Not exactly, but they both signify a growing awareness of Native issues.

If you haven’t seen the Ringling’s ambitious, wide-ranging show in the cavernous Ulla R. and Arthur F. Searing Wing, make time to do so. The colorful, multimedia art works are profound and arresting. Like the circuses that generated the wealth that built the museum on Sarasota Bay, “Reclaiming Home” has something for everyone. It’s family-friendly to be sure.

IF YOU GO

When: Through Sept. 4

Where: John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art, 5401 Bayshore

Road

Tickets: $25

Info: Visit Ringling.org

Descriptions like “ground-breaking” and “awe-inspiring” are not hyperbole for an exhibition that was five years in the making.

Hundreds if not thousands of hours of discussion and consultation paved the way for “Reclaiming Home.” Some of Wlusek’s travel and research was underwritten by a curatorial research fellowship she received from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts.

“Reclaiming Home” was made possible by loans from leading Native American cultural institutions including the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art in Indianapolis, the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture and the IAIA Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, both in Santa Fe, N.M. Last but

Noah Billie’s untitled painting of a Native American soldier and his warrior ancestor.

Courtesy photos

Seminole artist Wilson Bowers used a digital design on board to create his 2020 work, “MMIW,” which draws attention to missing and murdered indigenous women.

not least, art and advice was lent to the Ringling by the Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum on the Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation.

The exhibition is accompanied by a handsome catalog with thoughtprovoking articles by its artists.

GHOSTS OF THE PAST

Museums have come under fire in recent years for acquiring or accepting donations of looted relics. They have been forced to return antiquities to their original owners, including governments and tribal nations. Since nearly all of the artwork in “Reclaiming Home” is loaned, that isn’t a concern here. But the Ringling show takes place at a time when museums and other cultural institutions are being questioned about their practices and even their existence.

The pressing issue here is whether the Ringling can live up to its lofty goal of allowing the Seminoles to reclaim, if not their home, their identity. Of course, the Sarasota museum cannot erase the history of colonialism and the ramifications of the policy of Manifest Destiny that pushed the American frontier across the country to the Pacific Ocean.

It cannot restore to their original owners the native lands now occupied by condos, shopping centers and highways. It is ridiculous to think that art can right these kinds of wrongs.

What the Ringling has achieved with “Reclaiming Home” is to provide for the first time within its halls a forum for the telling of Seminole stories through authentic Native art.

One can’t help leaving the museum with thoughts and images of ghosts that lurk among the 100 pieces of art by 12 artists of Seminole, Miccosukee and mixed heritage.

One of the first ghosts a visitor sees upon entering the Searing Wing is a painting with a native American warrior in full regalia holding a rifle. He’s hovering in the clouds above a young soldier fighting in a jungle, presumably Vietnam.

Noah Billie, the artist who painted the acrylic work “Untitled,” in 1998, was traumatized by his wartime experience, Wlusek said in a recent gallery talk. Upon returning from Southeast Asia, Billie isolated

himself and didn’t speak. Creating art helped heal his psychic wounds, she said. Considered to be one of the most influential Seminole artists in Florida, Billie died in 2000.

Phantoms are also invoked by a big, graffiti-inspired installation in red and black in the exhibition. Wilson Bowers pays tribute to Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women with the stark piece, which ends with the words, “They are someone.”

According to the University of San Diego, there are at least 23,000 people missing from tribal lands in the U.S., mostly women, but most experts feel this number is much higher.

In 2021, President Joe Biden declared May 5 “Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Day” to shine light on the matter, which is also a widespread problem in Canada.

A thrilling sense of martial speed is evoked by Bowers’ brightly painted skateboards on the walls of the Ringling. It took strength for Pedro Zepeda, who is Seminole and Mexican, to carve the canoe on display in “Reclaiming Home” from a cypress log using the same tools and methods that have been employed by the Seminoles for at least 200 years.

According to a video narrated by Zepeda that is streaming in one of the gallery’s nooks, the Seminoles adopted metal tools after they were introduced by Europeans.

Feminine energy is also in evidence in “Reclaiming Home.” Ruffles, tiers and rick-rack embellish the dresses worn by Seminole women depicted in paintings as well as costumes on display.

One elaborate outfit, “Night at the Ringling,” was made specifically for the “Reclaiming Home” exhibit, says Wlusek, by artist Jessica Osceola, who imagined what she would wear to the opening of the show.

Artist Elisa Harkins uses images and sound to capture the Native songs that the exiled Seminoles sang to lift their spirits as they traveled the “Trail of Tears” from Florida to Oklahoma. Harkins, who is of Cherokee/Muscogee/Creek descent, also preserves Native culture by creating costumes and taking photographs.

If there is one piece of art that can lay claim to being the set piece of

“Reclaiming Home,” it is “The Last Supper,” C. Maxx Stevens’ multimedia installation of a table laden with replicas of sugar-filled goodies. This cornucopia of cakes, cookies and the like is a monument to those who have perished from diabetes.

Strewn underneath the table are shoes, canes and crutches, reflecting the loss of mobility and amputations suffered by many diabetes victims before their ultimate death.

“The Last Supper” is a moving reminder that unhealthy food has taken its toll on Native Americans, including the Seminoles.

In the face of the devastation suffered by Florida’s natives, is it possible to leave “Reclaiming Home” with any hope? It is.

Just look at the work and life of Jessica Osceola. (There’s more than one Osceola in the show.) The Seminole/

Irish artist grew up in her greatgrandmother’s Seminole village in Florida and today owns a microfarm and studio in Naples.

A 2008 graduate of Florida Gulf Coast University, Osceola holds a master’s degree in fine art sculpture from Academy of Art University in San Francisco. Osceola has compiled her life story and art into a book, “We Will Always Be Here: Native Peoples on Living and Thriving in the South.”

Her 2017 work, “Portrait One, Portrait Two, and Portrait Three,” recently became the first work by a Seminole artist to be added to the Ringling’s permanent collection.

It’s been 167 years since the Seminoles were forced to move to Oklahoma, but the art of Florida’s original residents is getting the attention it deserves in their homeland.

seem like a big deal to many of us. But, to a homebound senior, it could signal the arrival of the only person they might see all day or all week long. It brings hope. It brings health. It brings

door

Courtesy photo

Jessica Osceola’s 2022 textile artwork “Night at The Ringling” is on display at the John and Mable Ringling Art Museum through Sept. 4.

HIP-HOP MEETS HIGH SCHOOL

MONICA ROMAN GAGNIER ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

Yo! Happy Birthday, hiphop!

August marks the 50th anniversary of hip-hop music and culture in the U.S. Celebrations have been going on all over the country, including Sarasota, where Ryan “Ryanito” Larrañaga recently released his “Paraiso/ Paradise” project.

For those wondering about the birth of hip-hop, music historians have decided it all began in a rec room in the Bronx, where DJ Kool Herc and his sister, Cindy Campbell, had a party and started doing funny things with vinyl. The rest, as they say, is history.

Here in Florida, Ryanito is trying to make a little history of his own.

When he set out to create a theme song for Sarasota’s new USL League soccer team, the Paradise, he decided to experiment and make different versions of the song.

There are renditions of “Paraiso/ Paradise” in Spanish and English as well as a house style version (hip-hop fans will understand) and a recording featuring an orchestra. There’s even one with a high school marching band, none other than the Riverview High Kiltie Band.

In an interview, Ryanito says he has been watching soccer all his life but it was his business partner, Marcel Bauduin, also known as DJ Cellus, who called his attention to the new game in the town that Ryanito has called home since 2009.

The Sarasota Paradise, a “preprofessional” soccer team, kicked off its first season in June, against FC Miami City at Sarasota High School’s stadium.

Yes, the team plays at Sarasota High, but chose Ryanito and Bauduin chose Riverview High for their collaboration. However, there are no hard feelings, according to Ryanito.

Part of the reason the Kilties got the job is its band director. Not one for understatement, Ryanito and Bauduin said in a statement, “Ryanito reached out to band director Tamara Lewis and collaborated with the Riverview High School Kiltie Band, exemplifying the artist’s commitment to engaging the local community and youth in the creative process. This collaboration underscores the powerful connection between music, sports, and the community.”

A native of the Baltimore area, Ryanito understands the impact that the arts can have on children.

He grew up singing in youth choirs at school and studied poetry. Like other kids of his generation, he listened to rappers such as KRS-One and Nas.

Ryanito is no stranger to mixing things up with unexpected collaborators and guest artists. Back in 2018, he performed music from his first LP with Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe artist Michael Mendez and The Pops Orchestra of Bradenton and Sarasota. Besides working with local artists,

the rapper reaches across international boundaries. The original studio versions of “Paraiso/Paradise” were created by Mateo Merola from Uruguay, while Karl Roque from the Philippines produced the house music version. A second-generation American, Ryanito is connected to Uruguay through his father, who grew up there and traces his ancestry to Spain’s Basque region.

The “Paraiso/Paradise” album

features artists from Mexico, Italy, Spain, Argentina and Venezuela. Like soccer, music is international. “With the internet and the ability to create your own lane, you can share your music worldwide,” Ryanito says.

Ryanito has fans not just in Sarasota, but in Europe and Latin America. Featuring local artists is a way to appeal to local audiences in these regions.

Asked what he’s aiming for in the fragmented streaming world that dominates music today, Ryanito says he wants to: “Be a pioneer. Establish the roots. Bridge the gaps.”

Later this month, Ryanito will release his children’s book, “The Cosmic Kid.” Available on Amazon, it tells the story of a boy named Rayo who dreams of becoming a successful rapper.

Like others in Sarasota, Ryanito has been inspired to give back to his community. In recent years he has visited Sarasota County schools, where he has inspired students to learn and to embrace positivity through his Art, Rhymes & Kids program.

If the Art and Rhymes part sounds familiar, it’s because Ryanito and Bauduin have done an adult version of the show called Art, Rhymes & Beer at local taverns.

As the artist likes to point out, rap is a style of music, but hip-hop is a lifestyle. And Ryanito is determined to live it to its fullest, but on a positive note.

Rapper Ryanito teamed up with the Riverview High Kiltie Band to record a theme song for the Sarasota Paradise soccer team.

Rapper Ryanito teamed up with Riverview High for the Sarasota Paradise’s anthem.

Photos by Marcel Bauduin

Rapper Ryanito poses with the Riverview Kilties, who were featured in his recording of the theme song for the Sarasota Paradise soccer team.

With the internet and the ability to create your own lane, you can share your music worldwide.”

Rapper Ryanito

THIS WEEK

THURSDAY

DIVAS THREE

7:30 p.m. at FST’s Court Cabaret, 1265 First St.

$18 and up

Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.

Three female vocalists present four decades of songs made famous by Aretha Franklin, Celine Dion, Whitney Houston and other women who have won the coveted title of “Diva.” Runs through Sept. 17.

‘A COMEDY OF TENORS’

8 p.m. at FST’s Gompertz Theatre, 1265 First St.

$25 and up

Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.

Set in 1930s Paris, “A Comedy of Tenors” follows a producer trying to keep a concert of opera superstars from descending into mayhem. Runs through Aug. 27.

‘THE GRADUATE’

7:30 p.m. at The Players Centre, 3501 S. Tamiami Trail

$30

Visit ThePlayers.org.

Directed by Elliott Raines, “The Graduate” explores the unlikely liaison between a recent college grad who is adrift in life and a friend of his parents who knows exactly what she wants. Runs through Aug. 27.

SATURDAY

SARASOTA YOUTH OPERA FAMILY DAY

Noon at Sarasota Opera House, 61 N. Pineapple Ave. Free

Visit SarasotaOpera.org

Hear the Youth Opera sing, attend a singing session, join in acting games and stand on the stage when you take a tour of the opera house. The whole family is invited to come see what Sarasota Youth Opera is about.

OUR PICK

THE BOLDS BROTHERS

Brothers Jordan and Joel Bolds perform their mesmerizing blend of soul, gospel and jazz. Jordan Bolds is a 22-year-old saxophonist who discovered the sax in the fourth grade and has appeared at the Tampa Bay Black Heritage Festival. Joel Bolds, 20, is a professional drummer who also taught himself how to play piano. Special guest artists include Charlie “CJ” Melton and Marc Dortch. Continues through Aug. 20.

IF YOU GO

When: Saturday, 7:30 p.m.

Where:West Coast Black Theatre

Troupe’s Donelly Theatre, 1012 N. Orange Ave.

Tickets: $25-$100

Info: WestCoastBlackTheatre.org

MONDAY

MONDAY NIGHT JAZZ AT THE CABARET

7:30 p.m. at John C. Court Cabaret, 1265 First St.

$34-$39

Visit JazzClubSarasota.org.

Monday Night Jazz features Rebecca Richardson and the Dan Heck Trio, both popular in Venice.

TUESDAY

‘CREEDENCE CLEARWATER

REMIXED!’

7:30 p.m. at FST’s Goldstein Cabaret, 1239 N. Palm Ave. $18 and up Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.

“The Jersey Tenors” veteran Vaden Thurgood has created his own musical revue based on Creedence Clearwater Revival and the band’s hits such as “Proud Mary” and “Bad Moon Rising.” Runs through Oct. 15.

WEDNESDAY

JAZZ HAPPY HOUR

6 p.m. at Selby Library, 1331 First St. Free Visit SarasotaMusicArchive.org.

Sarasota Music Archive wraps its summer Jazz Happy Hour series with the Robbie Rose Retro Quartet. Reservations are required.

Courtesy photo

YOUR NEIGHBORS

Point f sail

JAMES PETER MANAGING EDITOR

“Any sailor who says he hasn’t run aground at least once either isn’t a sailor — or is full of crap!”

“Murphy’s Law was invented on a sailboat!”

We’ve hardly left the dock for this intro to sailing lesson and already Sara-Bay Sailing School captains Bill Brooker, 76, and Charlie Schmitz, 77, are trading lighthearted pronouncements as we motor out into Sarasota Bay to find the breeze.

The boat is a Nightwind 35. National Sailing Hall of Fame member Bruce Kirby designed it. That probably means something to boat people. For the rest of us?

There’s a roomy cockpit for the current crew of two, plus captains. A mast with a furled sail towers some 45 feet above us. Below deck, the cabin is spacious enough to come complete with a head, or bathroom. That one’s easy enough to remember.

But then there’s halyard, tack, lift, luff and bearing. Ropes are lines and lines are sheets. And sheets all have names.

“Learning to sail is like learning a foreign language,” says Schmitz. “But there are no verbs to conjugate.”

Originally from New Jersey, he delivers lines, the comedic kind, with a veteran entertainer’s sense of timing.

Brooker laughs. “Driving a car is more complicated.”

CLASS IS IN SESSION

Before we climbed aboard on this particular morning, we spent a few minutes in the school’s office in the Harbour Square building, which is styled like a Mediterranean villa — terracotta shingles and a sunfilled atrium lined with commercial offices. Schmitz showed us the American Sailing Association 101 course textbook. For someone who’s lived a life in landlocked states, the text is dense as calculus.

“You don’t have to memorize the book (before class),” said Schmitz. “What you need to know, I’m going

to show you.”

This is a hands-on learning process, the captains explained. And the sooner it starts on the water, the better for students. Brooker knows from experience. He founded the Sara-Bay Sailing School and Charter in 2001, and since then, his school has trained more than 5,000 sailors. Some have flown into Sarasota just to take the school’s courses, he said.

During COVID, business exploded, and the school saw three times as many students as it normally does. “We couldn’t even keep up with it,” said Brooker.

Over two full days, Sara-Bay Sailing can teach students everything they need to know to pass the ASA 101 course. Passing the 100-question test earns graduates a certification that effectively states they are able to sail in familiar waters and moderate winds. The class is also the first in a series of courses for U.S. sailors who would like to earn an International Proficiency Certificate. An IPC is a requirement to charter a sailboat in most European and Mediterranean waters.

Schmitz has been an instructor at Sara-Bay for seven years and has taught sailing for 15. He has only failed one student in that time. But she was reluctant from the getgo, only there at the behest of a significant other, Schmitz explained.

The clientele varies, but is mostly husband-and-wife teams, sailors needing those certifications and first-timers. Sara-Bay focuses on adult learners but has sometimes taught families with children. The age of students has ranged from 8 to 87. Which seems fitting for a school that’s open “24/7/365.25,” as Brooker put it.

The majority of Sara-Bay’s students start from “zero,” said Brooker. Even boat owners.

“You’d be surprised by how many people buy the boat before learning how to sail,” Brooker said.

Brooker has seen most challenges sailing can present, especially in Sarasota’s shallow waters. He started sailing when he was 14 years old. He began sailing around Sarasota in 1975

and became an instructor in 1995.

But even for a student of psychology, teaching sailing can present a unique challenge. Namely, husbands and wives who try to commandeer the lessons.

“It goes both ways,” said Brooker. “But there can be only one instructor on the boat.”

“You can’t teach your wife or kids how to sail,” said Schmitz. “When it’s somebody close, you take it personal.” But aside from occasional family friction, “We seldom get grumpy people,” he added.

“Do you know what the most dangerous part of learning to sail is?” Brooker asked. “It’s the drive to the school.”

TELLTALES & BEARINGS

We’re far enough from shore to shut off the motor. The Key’s big houses, some vast as palaces, no longer interrupt the wind. We raise the mainsail (Brooker does most of the work).

SHIP’S LOG

Date: July 23, 2023

Lat/Long (depart): 27.39005, -82.64007

Temperature: 92ºF

Winds: Variable

Port: Sara-Bay Sailing School Crew: Captains (2), Landlubbers (2)

SARA-BAY SAILING SCHOOL & CHARTER

Where: 4134 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Suite 208A, Longboat Key; SaraBaySailing.com

Class offerings: ASA 101-114

Instructors: Bill Brooker, Charlie Schmitz, Sara Allen, Tracey Dell Contact: 941-914-5132 or Capt.Bill@SaraBaySailing.com.

“The three most important things to keep in mind while sailing?” the captains ask.

“What?” the two students reply.

“The wind, the wind, the wind.”

The sail hangs slack, a few ripples of wind snake through it. We’re drifting rather than sailing. At the helm, we get another brief lesson on the points of sail, angles. You can’t sail directly into the wind. You need to be at least 45 degrees off the wind’s direction to go anywhere. We learn to look at the inside of the sail, from which telltales hang in lines of three, thin brightly colored ribbons whose fluttering or streaming signals to us amateurs how we’re doing with our steering (poorly, so far).

With the sail slack, the boat feels sluggish and unwilling at the helm.

But then the sail fills with air. It looks like a white airplane wing. We take turns at the helm. It’s still like driving a bus but inputs lead to faster results. Hold the course, say the captains.

“Hold” makes it sound simple. But every moment requires constant adjustment and delicate inputs on the wheel to keep the boat headed true as it skims through an everchanging bay. Boat wakes, waves, changes in the breeze.

Lift, the principle that keeps pilots aloft, is the key, explains Brooker.

At 7 to 8 knots (8-9 mph), we’re going no faster than a cyclist. But it’s hard to pay attention now. Behind the helm, you look up and study cloth and canvas, as ancient Egyptians and Greeks did before you. Five thousand years — the theory has evolved, but the essence remains the same, along with its simple soundtrack: wind, rigging, water.

“It is aerobic. It is a sport. But the big essence we try to instill in people is that this is fun. (Our goal is) make it fun for people,” says Brooker.

Sara-Bay has taught people starting from zero. Two of them sailed to Australia. It took them

years, but not for lack of skill.

“You tell people you’re sailing, they ask where you’re going,” says Brooker. “Sailing? You’re already there.”

HARD TO FORGET

The trip ends before we reach the dock. Schmitz turns on the engines to navigate through the buoys that lead back to Sara-Bay Sailing School. It’s easier to steer now, with the motors rumbling beneath us. But we’re no longer “there.” We’re going somewhere and in utilitarian fashion.

Pilots, doctors, lawyers, execs — Brooker mentions this segment of his clientele because they all have something in common. They find something on sailboats that they can’t find on land. Peace.

At least until it’s time to return home. Docking can be anxietyproducing, even for people who know what they’re doing, Brooker says. But the two captains are confident, even with an amateur helmsman at the wheel. Through the corridor of buoys, Brooker and Schmitz give a few simple directions — to mind this channel marker or that one.

“If you’re not bored to death docking, then you’re going too fast,” the captains say.

The two captains laugh, trading short stories of various sailors’ marina mishaps. Brooker and Schmitz take over on the final approach, backing the boat gently into position alongside the school’s dock.

I didn’t dock the boat then. I haven’t docked one before or since. It’s been weeks since I sailed with Sara-Bay, but I haven’t forgotten the advice, delivered with a punchline. It could be weeks, months or even years before I dock a sailboat, but I’ll remember to make sure I’m bored doing it.

The instructors of Sara-Bay Sailing School have loads of experience and plenty of punchlines.

James Peter

Capt. Bill Brooker, who founded the Sara-Bay Sailing School in 2001, and Capt. Charlie Schmitz

#1 LONGBOAT KEY TEAM

Michael Saunders & Company Follow on Instagram @LongboatLife

QUEENS HARBOUR ELEGANCE

3605 FAIR OAKS PL | OFFERED AT $2,200,000

This 4 bed/3.5 bath private corner lot residence located behind the gates of the Longboat Key Club offers volume ceilings, a heated pool, 2 ensuite guest bedrooms, dedicated laundry room, 2 car garage, a new roof and membership to the Bay Isles Beach Club.

MLS# A4578278

SANCTUARY SHOWSTOPPER

545 SANCTUARY DR #B406 | OFFERED AT $2,475,000

Sweeping views of the city and golf course are enjoyed from this 3 bed/2.5 bath southeast corner residence. Expertly updated throughout with high end appliances, hardwood flooring, porcelain backsplash, quartz counters, custom built-ins including a clothes carousel in the primary walk-in closet. This is a must see!

MLS# A4576305

Mote taps high school helpers

Mote fall volunteer program gives high schoolers a taste of marine science.

PETRA RIVERA STAFF WRITER

After a successful first year, the fall volunteer program at Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium is ready to welcome back its favorite high school students.  Volunteer and Intern Coordinator Claire Messmer started the fall program last year after seeing how much the high schoolers loved volunteering during the summer.

“We had a summer high school volunteer program for several years where high schoolers come for eight weeks during the summer and volunteer one day a week,” said Messmer. “But year-round, we didn’t really have anything specific for high schoolers. Some of them would come and volunteer on the weekends. But we wanted to make a program specifically with a high schooler’s busy schedule in mind.”

Instead of committing one day a week like during the summer, the fall program only requires one day a month consisting of a four-hour shift on any weekend. The volunteers’ main role at Mote is hosting a station that provides information about a topic related to what people see in the aquarium.

“We have four stations throughout the aquarium,” said Messmer. “Two of them had already existed. Our adult volunteers had run those stations a few times. Then two of the stations, I created. Those are the shark science station and a coral conservation station. And then we have a cart about our strandings investigation program, and a cart about watershed animals.”

These stations give the high school volunteers a more hands-on experience than the adult volunteers who usually act as aquarium guides. Messmer said it allows them to learn

a lot about their topic and love it.

Messmer, originally from Colorado, was a teen volunteer herself. She contributed more than 1,000 volunteer hours during high school at the Denver Zoo. After graduating from Colorado State University with a master’s degree in zoo, aquarium and animal shelter management, she moved to Sarasota to take her position at Mote in 2022.

“My favorite part of working with them is seeing myself in them,” said Messmer. “Remembering back to when I was in high school, a lot of these students want to enter the field of marine science. So this program helps them understand more what goes into working in the field.

It shows that if you want to be a marine scientist, you can be more than just an aquarist. There’s educa-

tion opportunities, research opportunities, rehabilitation of animals. And then also just talking to them a little bit about how to become a better interpreter. I think the best form of conservation is education.”

Applications to become a high school volunteer at Mote this fall are still open. The program runs from September through December. Volunteers must be able to complete a minimum of 16 service hours per semester. There is a background training course and an orientation on Sept. 9. Messmer said there is currently no cap to how many people can apply.

“Our volunteers are super dedicated,” said Messmer. “We love and appreciate all of them.”

First Physicians Group Welcomes

Jerette Schultz, MD

Dr. Schultz is fellowship trained in microsurgery. She performs a wide variety of plastic and reconstructive surgical procedures. Dr. Schultz specializes in reconstructive microsurgery, autologous and implant-based breast reconstruction, skin cancer removal and reconstruction, extremity reconstruction and cosmetic surgery of the breast and body.

Board Eligible: American Board

WED.

AUG. 23RD

HEATHER MURRAY & JORDAN PAGE (FIREFLY)

Heather Murray is a researcher/blogger. She spent four years traveling the world with the military, forever changing her political views, thus starting Information Warfare News to counter fake news and propaganda. Jordan Page comes from Firefly, a blockchain-based education platform where students, teachers, and content creators are rewarded within a crypto economy.

“I enjoy the comradeship at the club. One can meet others and engage in not only a vast array of crypto topics but also delight in discussions about local cuisine, travel, current events, and even the arts. Looking forward to upcoming events to gain even more crypto knowledge.”

— Micheila: - Club Member

Orlando, FL

Internship and Residency: Rutgers-New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ

Fellowship: New York University Langone Health, New York, NY

Courtesy photos

Ella Rose Sherman teaches Mote visitors about the strandings investigation at Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium.

Rocco Mendoza operates the Shark Science Station at Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium.

“My favorite part of working with them is seeing myself in them. Remembering back to when I was in high school, a lot of these students want to enter the field of marine science.”

— Claire Messmer, Volunteer and intern coordinator

443F John Ringling Blvd | Sarasota, FL

5527 PALMER CIRCLE, UNIT 206 SELLER REPRESENTED | $465,000

1744 FORTUNA STREET BUYER REPRESENTED | $1,650,000

460 E. ROYAL FLAMINGO DRIVE BUYER REPRESENTED | $3,300,000

114 N. WARBLER LANE SELLER & BUYER REPRESENTED | $3,100,000

Key Realtor’s listing wins contest

Alisting from a Realtor at the Longboat Key office of Michael Saunders and Co. placed in the 2023 HGTV

Ultimate House Hunt competition and won a category.

Cindy Fischer works and lives on Longboat Key. She has been a Realtor for Michael Saunders and Co. since 2018. Her listing of 5131 Jungle Plum Road on north Siesta Key took first for the Waterside Homes category of the annual HGTV

Ultimate House Hunt.

“I’m super excited for the sellers and because it’s such a beautiful home, everything they did with their designers,” said Fischer. “It’s just a really neat property, so it means a lot to get that recognition.”

The competition is a monthlong online promotion among luxury homes across the U.S. Fischer’s property was one of 84 finalists. There were eight categories in the competition: Amazing Kitchens, Beachfront Homes, Countryside Retreats, Curb Appeal, Downtown Dwellings, Homes With a History, Outdoor Escapes and Waterside Homes. More than 1.2 million votes were cast to determine the winners.

“There were other homes from different parts of the country,” said Fischer. “I remember looking it up, and there were homes from California, Connecticut, Santa Barbara, Cape Cod — from all over.”

The Siesta Key house is listed for $9.98 million. It has six bedrooms, six-and-a-half bathrooms and 6,369 square feet of living area, as well as a pool that overlooks the bay. It is located in the Hidden Harbor neighborhood.

Sharon Gould, a branch manager at Michael Saunders and Co., said that Fischer put a lot of hard work into the listing, so she deserves all the recognition it is getting from the competition.

“The waterfront has been such a draw for people to come to the area,” said Fischer.

— PETRA RIVERA

Photos courtesy of Cindy Fischer

The home at 5131 Jungle Plum Road in Siesta Key won an online contest for its location.

Cindy Fischer

Reid MuRphy PResents

Luxury

LONGBOAT KEY MAGNIFICENT GULF FRONT ESTATE

$22,000,000

Completion September 2023. New 5BD/8BA w/100ft frontage on pristine walking beach. Expansive views from interior living space plus pocket sliders open to lanai/ pool and outdoor sitting area for indoor/outdoor living. Exquisite finishes include fireplace, chef’s kitchen, glass wine room and service bar. First level master w/ private lanai plus junior suite and 2 guest suites also have private terraces. Covered outdoor space has fireplace, outdoor kitchen & dining area. Dramatic infinity pool/ spa w/ sundeck overlooks beautiful Gulf waters. 3 car garage. Home elevator.

$9,850,000

Spacious 5BD/7BA 6,556sf custom home stunningly remodeled in 2022. Move-in ready. Large corner lot on bayou with stunning views down waterway to Sarasota Bay.10,000 lb. boat lift, saltwater pool. Remodel included all new custom finishes including painting, hardwood floors, lighting, hardware, countertops and designer upgrades. First floor master retreat has a sitting room and elaborate master bath. Pool lanai with fireplace, tv, outdoor kitchen and grill. Air conditioned 4 car garage. Behind security gates manned 24/7.

beach and Gulf of Mexico for enjoyment of beach walking and swimming.

Amenities include lobby concierge, 24hr guarded gate, olympic sized pool, 2 har-tru tennis courts, fitness center & more.

LONGBOAT KEY BAY ISLES HARBOR

Miri Hardy

speed limits for boats in the park helps protect manatees.

Florida manatees find food, shelter at Myakka

Also known as “sea cows,” Florida manatees are federally designated as threatened due to boat collisions and habitat loss.  As they feed and rest in shallow waters where they’re quite difficult to spot, they’re highly vulnerable to boat collisions. With development and pollution destroying seagrass beds and freshwater aquatic vegetation, they’ve also been losing their main food source in many areas.

These large marine mammals consume approximately 10% of their 1,200-pound-plus body weight in aquatic vegetation a day, preventing overgrowth that could obstruct our Florida waterways. And they provide ample fertilizer to enable water vegetation to thrive! Due to these key roles, manatees are considered a keystone species — without them, aquatic ecosystems would be dramatically different or cease to exist.

Unhealthy or abnormal manatee behavior tells us that something is wrong in the environment, mak-

ing these gentle giants an important indicator species. Their imperiled status is therefore greatly concerning.

The Wild and Scenic Myakka River meanders through Myakka River State Park all the way to Charlotte Bay to the south, where it flows into the Gulf of Mexico. As manatees thrive in both fresh or saltwater, during periods of high water levels, the river offers a gateway to Myakka for aquatic wildlife seeking safe refuge and food. Indeed, to the surprise and delight of park visitors, manatees are regularly observed in the Park.

But visits to Myakka are not without peril for manatees. In the past, during periods of low water levels, the historic weir (which was removed in 2022 to restore the natural flow of the river) and Downs’ dam (a private dam near the park’s south boundary), have unfortunately proven to be obstacles to manatees traversing the river. This is especially an issue when high waters naturally recede after manatees have made their way up into the park. And encountering boats illegally speeding on the river can injure or even kill manatees.

To protect manatees, please give them plenty of space, and never disturb them. And when boating anywhere in Florida, be sure to note and comply with posted speed limits.

Friends of Myakka River exists to support Myakka River State Park and the Wild and Scenic Myakka River. Together, we’re protecting and sharing Myakka’s Magic, to the benefit of future generations, and our own. Follow us @FriendsOfMyakkaRiver.

Celebrating 50 YEARS of Living and Working on Longboat Key

FRIDAY, AUG. 18

GUITAR BY AKIEM

ESDAILE

6-9 p.m. at Whitney’s 6990 Gulf of Mexico Drive

Enjoy a drink or a meal at Whitney’s while listening to the sounds of a new generation of jazz guitar.

Clear your mind and enjoy the soothing sounds of Sarasota’s most refreshing jazz guitarist.

THURSDAY, AUG. 24

SUMMER NIGHT OUT AT WHITNEY PLAZA

From 4-6 p.m. starting at Driftwood Beach Home and Garden, 6838 Gulf of Mexico Drive. Enjoy a night of mingling at Whitney Plaza. Driftwood Beach Home and Garden will be have champagne for customers while they shop.

Then people can head next door to continue the party at Design 2000 Salon to eat food and desserts provided by other businesses at Whitney Plaza.

RECURRING

EVENTS

MONDAYS STRETCH AND STRENGTHEN

From 10-11 a.m. at The Paradise Center, 546 Bay Isles Road. This class is mostly seated and great for all fitness levels Focus is on strength training and flexibility for balance. Suzy

Brenner leads the class. Fee is $15. Walk-ins welcome. Call 383-6493.

MONDAYS, WEDNESDAYS AND SATURDAYS LORD’S WAREHOUSE THRIFT STORE

The thrift store will be open 9 a.m. to noon at 6140 Gulf of Mexico Drive. Donations are accepted during business hours. Call 383-4738.

TUESDAYS AND FRIDAYS LONGBOAT LIBRARY

From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Tuesdays and Fridays. 555 Bay Isles Road. Call 3832011.

TUESDAYS QI GONG

From 10-11 a.m. at The Paradise Center, 546 Bay Isles Road. Qi gong is a mind-body-spirit practice designed to improve mental and physical health. Class is outdoors, weather permitting. Cost is $15. Walk-ins welcome. Call 383-6493.

YOGA

From 11:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. at The Paradise Center, 546 Bay Isles Road. Debbie Debile of Feel Good Yoga & Massage leads a gentle yoga class that can be done on a mat or in a chair. Cost is $15; free for members. Call 383-6493.

The calming quiet of the water. The refreshing warmth of the Florida sun. This is your slice of paradise. Picture yourself here, ideally situated on Sarasota Bay at Plymouth Harbor.

With so much to explore and experience so close to Downtown Sarasota, St. Armands Circle and beyond, you’re never far from a new adventure.

Imagine a home where there is less reason to hurry or worry and more occasions to breathe, laugh, and drink it all in.

Learn more about Plymouth Harbor on Sarasota Bay by calling (941) 200-0254 or visiting plymouthharbor.org.

Almost all Florida manatees have propeller scars from past collisions with boats. Complying with “Idle Speed No Wake”

AMAZING OPPORTUNITY AT GRAND BAY I

“Love the ever-changing unobstructed panorama of the Bay from every room and our large terraces!” – John & Mary P.

“...the special recreational activities and the private beach are perfect for my husband and me and even our grandchildren!”

– Julie & Steve R.

“Our apartment in Grand Bay lives like a home & the elevator coming straight up from the garage gives us ultimate privacy and convenience.”

– Frank & Rebecca M.

“Love the extra security of Grand Bay’s 24/7 guard gates and proximity to the best Longboat Key has to offer... especially the short bike ride to Publix!”

– Melinda & Charles L.

Condo in L’Ambiance tops sales at $3.85M

ADAM HUGHES RESEARCH EDITOR

Acondominium in L’Ambiance at Longboat Key Club tops all transactions in this week’s real estate. Richard and Martha Barone, of Lyndhurst, Ohio, sold their Unit J603 condominium at 435 L’Ambiance Drive to David Rayner and Wendy O’Neill, of Longboat Key, for $3.85 million. Built in 1994, it has two bedrooms, two-and-two-half baths and 2,634 square feet of living area. It sold for $1.05 million in 1999.

BIRD KEY

ERF Sarasota LLC sold the home at 469 E. Royal Flamingo Drive to Jeff and Carol Edgar, of Sarasota, for $3.3 million. Built in 1977, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,279 square feet of living area. It sold for $1.4 million in 2015.

EMERALD HARBOR

Anthony and Margaret Pescatello sold their home at 690 Old Compass Road to MDB LBK LLC for $1.75 million. Built in 1970, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,458 square feet of living area. It sold for $156,000 in 1981.

ST. ARMANDS TOWERS NORTH

Joseph Kronick and Gail Margot Kronick, of Quebec, Canada, sold their Unit 92 condominium at 1 Benjamin Franklin Drive to Christopher Brent Ford and Cortney Ford, of Flower Mound, Texas, for $1,575,000. Built in 1968, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,389 square feet of living area. It sold for $205,000 in 1995.

PORTOBELLO

Virginia Long and William Gerard Burns and Allison Marie Long Burns, of Northville, Michigan, sold their Unit A-304 condominium at 3235 Gulf of Mexico Drive to Portobello A304 LLC for $1.15 million. Built in 1975, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,260 square feet of living area. It sold for $755,000 in 2004.

BEACHPLACE Michel and Karen Sage, trustees, sold the home at 1095 Gulf of Mexico Drive to Thomas Shapira, trustee, of Deerfield, Illinois, for $977,500. Built in 1981, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,503 square feet of living area. It sold for $629,000 in 2007.

WHITNEY BEACH Moon Beach 183 LLC sold the Unit 183 condominium at 6800 Gulf of Mexico Drive to Andrew Whitman and Victoria Whitman, trustees, of Westfield, New Jersey, for $732,000. Built in 1970, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,367 square feet of living area. It sold for $593,000 in 2022.

BANYAN BAY CLUB Valerie Pickar, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, sold her Unit 404 condominium at 5260 Gulf of Mexico Drive to Lisa Dowling-Surella, of Long Valley, New Jersey, for $690,000. Built in 1974, it has three

TOP BUILDING PERMITS

These are the largest building permits issued by the Longboat Key Planning and Zoning Department for the week of Aug. 4 - Aug. 10 in order of dollar amounts.

LONGBOAT KEY

bedrooms, two baths and 1,453 square feet of living area. It sold for $390,000 in 2009.

SEAPLACE Charles and Darlene White, of Trinity, sold their Unit M1-502-F

condominium at 2045 Gulf of Mexico Drive to Seaplace M1-502 LLC for $530,000. Built in 1974, it has two bedrooms, one bath and 928 square feet of living area. It sold for $155,000 in 1999.

Courtesy photos

A condominium at 435 L’Ambiance Drive with two bedrooms, two-and-two-half baths and 2,634 square feet of living space recently sold for $3.85 million.

JUDY KEPECZ-HAYS TEAM

$10,500,000

3 bed + office or 4 bed, 3.5 bath | 4,032 Sq Ft

Living in Aria is Instant enjoyment! Modern luxury living in this spectacular gulf-front corner residence that lives like a home on the beach. It offers a private gulf front 3400 sqft terrace with a private 49 ft. infinity edge lap pool and a summer kitchen for outdoor living. 4-5 car garage, social room, guest suite, fitness center, on-site management.

www.Aria204.com

$3,995,000

2 bed + den or 3 bed, 4 bath | 2,525 Sq Ft

This remodeled residence boasts views, quality, and casual elegance. 270 degrees of endless views of the city and truquoise waters of the Gulf looking South. The residence has newer windows and doors with walls of glass to bring the outside in. Custom Eurotech cabinets in kitchen and bathrooms. Offering concierge services, a resort-style pool & spa, three additional guest suites (bedrooms), 3 social rooms, on site management and a state-of-the-art fitness center. Pet welcome.

www.435LAmbianceH802.com

Ritz-Carlton Managed

$3,800,000

3 bed, 2.5 bath | 3,057 Sq Ft

Experience the beachfront living paired with The Ritz-Carlton's unparalleled services. The corner residence features an open floor plan with panoramic views of Sarasota & her islands, with sunrise and sunset. Wrap-around terrace, guest suites, social rooms, concierge, 2 pets welcome, 2 parking spaces. www.RitzCarlton907.com

2 bed, 2 parking, 2 pets welcome | 1,700 Sq Ft

Experience panoramic views from this 16th-floor boutique condo in downtown Sarasota. With each room offering stunning sights and an additional 300 sq ft west-facing balcony, it's the perfect spot for enjoying breathtaking sunsets. Located amidst downtown's buzz, this quiet, private oasis lets you relish the vibrant city life from a serene retreat.

www.50Central16D.com

3 bed + den or 4 bedrooms, 3 bath | 2,344 Sq Ft

Steps to St. Armands Circle! Residence with a private pool in a botanical setting with updates. The soaring ceilings create abundant space, complemented by tile floors, a wall of sliders, molding, wood accents, and recessed lighting.

OPEN HOUSE - FRI. 8/18 (4 - 7pm) & SUN. 8/20 (11 - 2pm)

www.408JacksonDr.com

2 bed, 2 bath | 1,312 Sq Ft

This residence has southeastern exposure with epic sunrises and Sarasota skyline views. Almost new two-bedroom, two-bath residence where a high-end interior designer selected impressive new finishes and features. Fitness center, pool & tennis. THIS RESIDENCE HAS DEEDED BEACH ACCESS www.1930HarboursideDr122.com

1300 Benjamin Franklin Dr #907

1930 Harbourside Dr #122 | Fairway Bay | $978,000

2251 Gulf of Mexico Drive 204 | Aria - LONGBOAT KEY

TOP COLDWELL BANKER SALES TEAM IN FLORIDA

408 Jackson Dr | St. Armands | $2,988,000

50 Central Ave #16D | Downtown Sarasota | $2,350,000

435 L’Ambiance Dr #H802 | LONGBOAT KEY

NATURE’S

FORECAST

FRIDAY, AUG. 18

High: 88

Low: 79

Chance of rain: 59%

SATURDAY, AUG. 19

High: 92 Low: 79

Chance of rain: 70%

SUNDAY, AUG. 20

High: 92

Low: 78 Chance of rain: 64%

By

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JOB DESCRIPTIONS by Pam Amick Klawitter, edited by Jeff Chen

Luis Campos

Cipher cryptograms are created from quotations by famous people, past and present. Each letter in the cipher stands for another.

Welcome to your exclusive downtown oasis, “The One” at 1350 Main, a Penthouse residence perched on the 17th floor, boasting breathtaking panoramic views of downtown, Sarasota Bay, and the Gulf of Mexico. Built in 2007, this meticulously remodeled residence offers the epitome of city living with an impressive three bedrooms, and a sprawling 3,208 SF of interior space. Step inside this modern masterpiece, and be instantly captivated by the open layout, accentuated by walls of floor-to-ceiling glass that bathe the home in natural light and frame the aweinspiring vistas.

www.TheOne1704.com