bserver O
EAST COUNTY Thursday, APRIL 21, 2011
You. Your neighbors. Your neighborhood.
NEWS
HAPPY HUNT
black tie
LECOM students Hundreds of kids flock partner with Center to Lakewood’s Easter Montessori School. Eggstravaganza. PAGE 3A.
OUR TOWN
Celebration of Hope honors Dick Vitale. PAGES 12-13A.
PAGE 1B.
delay
beauty and the feet
By Pam Eubanks | News Editor
Ranch IDA postpones director interviews Ranch supervisors said they were not satisfied with the candidate pool presented by Colin Baenziger last week.
+ Don’t forget your Easter photos! The East County Observer and Lakewood Ranch Community Activities thanks everyone who stopped to have their photos taken with the Easter Bunny at the Easter Eggstravaganza April 16 at Greenbrook Adventure Park. The Observer turned those photos into commemorative trading cards. Families who did not pick up their cards may do so at the Community Activities headquarters, Summerfield Information Center, 6310 Lakewood Ranch Blvd.
+ Linger Lodge seeks gumbo chefs Linger Lodge hopes to spice up the East County with its first Gator Creek Bluegrass Festival and Gumbo Cook Off May 7 at the restaurant, 7205 85th St. Court E. Anyone with a tasty gumbo recipe is encouraged to participate. The festival also will feature five bluegrass bands. Cost for the festival is $7; gumbo tasting is $2. For more information or to sign up for the cook off, call 755-2757.
+ Here she is! Lakewood Ranch High School crowned junior Kiana Broadbridge as Miss Lakewood Ranch 2011-12 at its annual pageant April 6.
SEE OUR TOWN / PAGE 2A
resident Stuart Siegel said in a letter to the district. “This is an issue that needs to be addressed with a sense of urgency. Another season of summer rain resulting in increased river flow, and volume can only ac-
LAKEWOOD RANCH — The hunt for a new executive director of Lakewood Ranch Town Hall is heading back to the drawing board. After two meetings to review candidates brought forward by the executive search firm Colin Baenziger & Associates, supervisors agreed they were not satisfied with the candidate pool presented and are directing the company’s owner to bring forward candidates that better meet their criteria and expectations. “We just don’t think we’ve seen the right candidate yet,” IDA Chairman Tom Green said. “We’re OK with a couple of them — not enthusiastic. We need a few other candidates (to look at). If we’re not comfortable, then we should hold off.” Candidate interviews slated for May 2 have been postponed. During a meeting with Baenziger owner Colin Baenziger on April 15, supervisors tentatively selected three candidates from a pool of eight — Laurence Arnold, of Parrish, Stephen Cottrell, of Windsor, Vt., and James “Jim” Gleason, of Ocoee. At that time, however, board members said they did not feel the candidates presented, in total, met their criteria. Furthermore, many of them were overqualified, they said, and may not be able to accept the position, for which the salary will ranch from $120,000 to $160,000. That night, Baenziger sent
SEE EROSION / PAGE 8A
SEE IDA / PAGE 2A
Pam Eubanks
Summerfield Bluffs resident Tammy Kovar is worried about the erosion behind her home. She and other residents are trying to determine what can be done to correct the problem.
WEAR AND TEAR
By Pam Eubanks | News Editor
Losing Land Summerfield Bluffs resident Tammy Kovar said the Braden River is at least 12 feet closer to her home than when she moved there in 1999. LAKEWOOD RANCH — As Summerfield Bluffs resident Tammy Kovar looks out her office window, she sees a view few other Lakewood Ranch residents enjoy: a serene glimpse of the Braden River. But that view is changing. Since moving into her home in 1999, Kovar has lost one to two feet of land to erosion each year. Now, the drop-off to the river that once was several yards away is only a few feet from her property line and home. “The more rain, the more the river moves and things happen,” Kovar said. “I’m in an unpredictable (place).” Kovar worries the river’s edge is creeping dangerously close to
her home and eventually could undermine the structural integrity of her house — or one day cause it to fall into the river altogether. Fellow residents of Summerfield Bluffs, who say the erosion is causing their yards to slope as well as causing sink holes along the river, asked for the issue to be placed on the agenda for Lakewood Ranch Community Development District 1’s monthly meeting in March and now are waiting for an answer from the board. “This is a situation that has gone from bad to worse over the past several years that now places our homes, families and property values in jeopardy,”
un-developable The deed of conservation easement was given Nov. 15 by Lakewood Ranch Community Development District 1 and by SchroederManatee Ranch to the Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission.
INDEX Black Tie............ 12A Classifieds ........ 11B
Cops Corner..........5A Crossword.......... 10B
Opinion.................6A Real Estate.......... 8B
Sports................ 15A Weather............. 10B
Vol. 12, No. 16 | Two sections
www.YourObserver.com