News and comment during a lazy, inflationary September
Occasionally, it is helpful to address a number of issues as we see them. A few thoughts for a mid-September, in A.D. 2026:
1. The diesel goes upward: It is not news that gas and diesel prices (now $5.99 a gallon at Barracuda Bill’s) are on a frightening march worldwide. Many of our readers are seemingly insulated by the effect, but it will change lives if it continues. A small two-pound tiny turkey breast, precooked, is now $18.18 at the Englewood Walmart. Oddly, it appeared as a product that is priced on the product, not on the case. Right now, and perhaps forevermore, Walmart has a system where printed price tags on shelves are no longer fixed. This process started in 2024, and was planned to be rolled out by 2026. They are called DSLs, and they are said to “increase productivity.” What they also do is allow retail companies to price dynamically, like airlines and Uber, and end the idea of the same fixed prices for all. Some of the old money in Boca Grande comes from an earlier era of retailing, where families made a fortune on fixed prices. That retail system is now gone, and capitalism now feels like a Turkish market.
2. LPR and Flock at the Bridge: This week, we have a story on the Lee County-run license plate readers at the Causeway. The toll plaza has always been a place where they collect all information about you. That is the business of the toll plaza. They are not Flock cameras, first of all, and there is evidence they helped solve at least one theft from a car on island. However, it should also be remembered that the toll plaza already has to keep all information on cars going through, so it is a fair question to ask why the second tracking is needed. This editor can recall that in 2007, Virginia Beach put in cameras along its boardwalk, as it was tired of riots and robberies. The issues on the beach are still there. The only solution has been bike patrols. While the situation is different, crime cannot always be deterred by a police state.
3. Retail sales: It is startlingly quiet on the island this September, and in August. Dead in fact. We fear what the numbers from August and September will be. There are only a small number of retailers on the island, and they were shown no grace by the Boca Grande Parking Committee, when the shopkeepers asked them (or begged) for some sort of carrot to help ease the fear of what happens when the Gasparilla Inn closes each July. The reality is that island retailers have built businesses over generations with a certain customer mix, and that mix was changed in the harshest way when the parking ordinance passed last year. The five commissioners in Lee County who voted for it will bear the ultimate responsibility for what we learn after this season’s numbers.
6. Questions on The Homestead Amendment: Our Anna Ridilla reports this week on Amendment 3, which would expand the Homestead Exemption to $250,000. While some criticize it (and there are legit fears that shapeshifting local officials will have to devise other ways to tack on fees if and when it passes), the fact is that local spending and taxing has basically doubled in the last decade, and something needs to be done. It should be remembered that it was Franklin Roosevelt, and Social Security, that saved Florida after developers overbuilt in the 1920s, and wrecked the state’s economy far beyond the damage done by the speculation of the Depression itself. The 12-month presence of the average American in Florida makes for the ease with which the rich enjoy their time in the state.
5. 5th Street: It is good news that Lee County is bidding out a new ADA ramp at 5th Street. Extremely. Thank you. Praise needed. But it is disappointing it will take so long, and perhaps the design for the end of the main axis street needs to be something inspiring. Is there a space for something noble at the end, that reflects the beauty of the Inn and other old structures lost to hurricanes? Is there space for a tiny gazebo or small pavilion or pergola, enough to seat a few who do not wish to go to the beach but wish to sit? The reality of behavior on the beachside is that visitors will rise to the occasion of what they see.
We appreciate the two times the county has tried interim efforts at a ramp, including at the urging of one commissioner who could not understand why it was so difficult to build steps to the beach. The second effort was by staff, who literally dumped sand at the bottom of the steps. Of course, storms came in and ruined the efforts. The main business of Florida is getting people to the beach, and not just island day visitors, but everyone, so this is an important effort and we commend it.
Garland Pollard is editor of the Boca Beacon. Email your thoughts to editor@bocabeacon.com.
