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Remember our bravest
YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
FREE • THURSDAY, MAY 22, 2014
NEWS
DIVERSIONS
KEYS CLEANUP
Longboat Key’s swan family grows this summer. PAGE 3A
Kevin Dean lives on as a pillar of Sarasota’s arts community. INSIDE
Volunteers keep Sister Keys free and clear of trash and debris.
OUR TOWN + Last call for graduates The Longboat Observer is seeking all 2014 high school and college graduates who live on Longboat, Lido, St. Armands and Bird keys for its annual graduation special. If you or someone you know will soon be sporting a cap and gown, contact Kelsey Grau at kgrau@yourobserver. com by Thursday, May 22.
sudden departure
PAGE 3A
by John Morton | Staff Writer
Town attorney calls it quits Despite a long history between her firm and Longboat Key, Maggie Mooney-Portale resigns without warning. Just like that, nearly a quarter century of history between a law firm and Longboat Key is likely gone. On Monday, Town Attorney Maggie Mooney-
Portale wrapped up a Town Commission regular workshop by handing commissioners a letter of resignation after only 11 months in her role. It came on be-
half of the law firm of Persson & Cohen, whose David Persson served as town attorney for the previous 23 years. “We’re just not the
right fit for one another,” Mooney-Portale said of her decision to step down. She declined further comment but will remain in her position for another 90 days, per a contract agreement. Her eyes revealed tears as
SEE ATTORNEY / 2A Mooney-Portale
Courtesy photo
+ Side yard becomes private oasis Spanish Main Yacht Club residents Jim and Phyllis McGuire decided to put their green thumbs to use this past winter by creating a small oasis in their side yard. With the help of their new neighbors, Mike and Cathy Landis, the foursome transformed the space between their two houses into a little park, bench and all. A shell pathway, dotted with potted plants and flowerbeds, curves around a giant palm tree and leads from the McGuires’ front sidewalk and the Landis’ back porch area. After hours of planning and planting, the garden has become a place to sit back, relax and, sometimes, interact with local wildlife. “It’s a beautiful area with lots of wildlife visiting us,” said Phyllis McGuire of her new garden and the mangrove behind it. “I even saw an otter the other day besides the usual egrets, herons and ducks.”
SEE OT / PAGE 14A
TURTLE TRACKS Week of May 11 through May 17
Nests....................................8 False crawls..........................4 2014 2013 Nests 65 187 False crawls 37 128
SUMMER OF SAND Kelsey Grau
Work to restore a beach began in earnest Tuesday afternoon when sand began funneling out of a pipe just north of North Shore Road. The $850,000 beach project, expected to finish in July, involves placing sand from North Shore Road to just south of the Broadway beach access.
ARE WE LOOKING GOOD?
by John Morton | Staff Writer
Power poles trump $21 million upgrade
Gulf of Mexico Drive power poles may be unattractive, but the town balks at the millions of dollars it will cost to place the power lines underground. Many believe Longboat Key’s utility poles are an eyesore, but are they $21 million worth of ugly? With Florida Power & Light Co. (FPL) planning in August to replace at its own cost the town’s poles with sturdier ones — known as the “hardening” of its four power feeders — it brought a question Monday to the Longboat Key Town Commission regular workshop, asking if commissioners would like the idea of burying all of the Key’s cables underground, once and for all.
Town Manager Dave Bullock said the time is right to consider it now that the ground is going to be torn up anyway. The topic became a debate between aesthetics and dollars, and whether the planned project should be delayed to spend $189,000 of nonrefundable taxpayer dollars for a feasibility study to bury the power lines. After more than an hour of debate, the commission reached a 4-2 consensus to stick with the power company’s commit-
ment to replace the current poles with ones that are wider in diameter and deeper in the ground. The poles will remain at the same height above ground and be able to withstand winds as high as 140 mph. FPL spokesman Don Sayre guessed that the current poles are at risk with winds in the range of 90 mph to 100 mph. John Morton “The power lines don’t look good,” said Commissioner Pat Burying Gulf of Mexico Drive power poles proves SEE POWER POLES / 2A too costly.
INDEX Briefs....................3A Classifieds......... 29A
Cops Corner..........9A Crossword.......... 28A
Neighborhood.... 15A Opinion.................8A
Real Estate........ 26A Weather............. 28A
Vol. 36, No. 42 | Two sections YourObserver.com