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Lots of island memories from the Bell family

■ BY MARCY SHORTUSE Lowell Bell sat on a park bench, staring down Park Avenue one morning, amazed at what he was seeing. While the 82-year-old had visited Boca Grande a few years ago, it was only a short visit, and he hadn’t had a chance to soak the island in. Once he did, he […]

World-class art meets world-class fishing at invitational festival

■ STAFF REPORT The 2017 Boca Grande Tarpon Festival is almost here, and excitement is brewing as the island prepares for this annual event. This Tarpon Festival will be held on Friday and Saturday, May 26 – 27 in beautiful downtown Boca Grande. The Memorial weekend event centers around the World’s Richest Tarpon Tournament, held […]

‘Tis spring, and the male manatee’s thoughts turn to … love

■ BY SUE ERWIN The temperature is getting balmier and the water is getting warmer, and the manatees know what they should be doing this time of year. Mating season has started, and many manatees have recently been spotted around the Seventh Street boathouse and along the shallow waters in the bay. This is a […]

Profile: Roselle Agles

■  BY SUE ERWIN You might see her cruising around town in her pink golf cart or walking the beach with her giant white “polar bear,” a Samoyed canine name Sage. Roselle Agles makes her way around the island daily. When she isn’t busy working as a Realtor for Gulf Coast International Properties, you can find her […]

BGFD firefighters create life-saving grid system

■ BY MARCY SHORTUSE Gasparilla Island and its surrounding waters have thousands upon thousands of visitors every year who come for the fishing, the boating and the beaches. Out of those thousands of people we are blessed every year that our accident and drowning numbers remain very low, particularly considering the Boca Grande Fire Department […]

GIWA declares water shortage due to drought

■ SUBMITTED BY THE GASPARILLA ISLAND WATER ASSOCIATION The Gasparilla Island Water Association measured 2.47 inches of rain Tuesday morning at the wastewater treatment plant after a long-awaited drenching rain Monday night, but that doesn’t mean we are out of the woods yet when it comes to a severe drought. While this week’s rain was […]

Stump Pass dredging project to continue through May 15

■ BY SUE ERWIN The dredging of Stump Pass continues to draw questions, but Charlotte County leaders are calling the project priceless. The dredging will connect Lemon Bay to the Gulf of Mexico. The dredge contractor, Great Lakes Dredge and Dock, has completed over 125,000 cubic yards out of 150,000 cubic yards on the Updrift […]