LONGBOAT
Observer Longboat Key’s weekly newspaper since 1978
WHO’S WHO IN THE CASE OF THE COLONY?
YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD. FREE
VOLUME 37, NO. 39
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THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2015
We break down the key players.
COURT
SEE PAGE 3A
CALL
YOUR TOWN TWO LITTLE MERMAIDS SURFACE
Friends of Tennis President David Gutridge says it’s time the town stops looking at the Tennis Center’s bottom line. Now, the commission is on the same team.
PAGE 5A
Kurt Schultheis
ARTS+CULTURE
Pension flames
Who are these two little mermaids? They’re the granddaughters of Key residents Joe and Karen Iannello, of Bayview Drive. Ariana Carolina Iannello, right, born Feb. 10, is the newest addition to the family. She recently joined her older cousin, Ayla Blair Balfour, 1, for a photo-op on Longboat’s beach.
CLAIRE ARBOUR DROPS THE PUCK
HIRING PROBLEM KURT SCHULTHEIS SENIOR EDITOR
TAKE ME OUT TO THE ORCHESTRA The Sarasota Orchestra salutes American idols as it takes the field at Ed Smith Stadium.
BLACK
TIE
‘THE CRYSTAL PALACE’
Princesses and storybook characters make dreams come true at Fairytale Ball.
INSIDE
Longboat Key Fire Recue Chief Paul Dezzi recently issued an informal hiring notice for new firefighter/paramedics. He interviewed 24 candidates and narrowed the list down to 12. But of a dozen potential hires, just one was interested in becoming a Longboat Key firefighter/paraSEE FIREFIGHTERS PAGE 2A
Six firefighters must retire in 2016. Fire Chief Paul Dezzi worries lagging salaries and high pension costs for employees will make it difficult to fill the void when they leave.
Former NHL New York Islanders coach Al Arbour was honored in the team’s final regular-season game April 11. Arbour was unable to attend, so his wife, Claire, dropped the puck at the game in his honor. The couple’s four children were also in attendance. Arbour, a Longboat Key resident, served as the team’s coach from 1973 to 1986, one year after it formed in 1972. He coached the team to four consecutive Stanley Cups from 1980 to 1983. He led the team to a winning season every year from 1974 to 1986 and set the NHL record for 19 consecutive playoff series wins. He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1996. “He built that franchise, and that’s why they honored him,” Claire Arbour said.