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Environmental and manmade problems plaguing local seagrass leave manatees and other aquatic wildlife in dire straits

Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Sports & Outdoors.

After a massive hurricane and a year of drought, the status of seagrass in Charlotte Harbor could perhaps be characterized by experts as “not better, in fact marginally worse.” 
“We have lost massive amounts of seagrass,” said Dr. Richard Whitman, who heads up the nonprofit environmental charity Heal our Harbor. The group looks regularly at the water quality in Charlotte Harbor and its tributaries, enlisting volunteers in monitoring and educating about the importance of our water.
Observations are often anecdotal and micro-observations, and not all seagrass is the same. Whitman likens the question to how the stock market is doing. Are you asking about how it is doing this week, this year or over decades?

Coastal Living ‘discovers’ a secret island called Gasparilla. Who knew?

Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Community, News.

The magazine Coastal Living has “discovered” a new secret island, Gasparilla.

The new fall edition of the magazine put Gasparilla on its front cover with the caption “Florida’s Secret Island. The Old-School Charm of Gasparilla.” Boca Grande, however, did not make the actual cover photo; that honor was reserved for the Reethi Rah resort in the Maldives. 

Writer Tracey Minkin cited the “affinity for blue-blood Northeasterners” as an island that grew with a “sporting forward generation” that discovered “wily, hard-fighting tarpon.” Dressing is described as where “Salt Life criss-crosses with dressing for dinner.”

Feds help island with north end iguanas

Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in News.

If you’ve been seeing a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) truck out on the Boca Grande Causeway lately, it’s because it’s prime season for iguana hunting.

While the Lee County portion of the island uses trapper George Cera, who has been on the job for about 16 years, the Municipal Service Benefit Unit (MSBU) takes care of the iguana issue in the Charlotte County part of the island. They hired the USDA about 10 years ago.

July real estate stats slightly lag behind state, but cash deals dominate

Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Community.

As cash deals continue, the Lee and Charlotte County regions slightly lag the rest of the state in July real estate statistics, according to information released this week from the Florida Board of Realtors and local boards.
Statewide, existing single-family houses sales were down 6.4 percent year-over-year, to 22,198, while existing condo-townhouse sales were down 9.4 percent, to 8,463.
For Lee County and the Cape Coral Fort Myers area, closed sales were down 5.3 percent to 1,106, comparing July to July. Closed sales in the county so far for all of 2023 were down 14.6 percent, to 8,431. The median sales price in that metro area was $434,980, down just 1.1 percent for the year so far.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Sarasota Opera Food & Wine Festival welcomes new partners and returning favorites

Written by Boca Beacon Reader on . Posted in Letters to the Editor.

To the Editor: Sarasota Opera’s annual Food & Wine Festival returns on September 23 from 1 to 4 p.m. and will take place at Sarasota Opera House. Local restaurants will gather to serve tasty bites, wine and other treats as a benefit for Sarasota Youth Opera. This year’s festival will feature many returning classics, such […]

LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Gulf Coast Community Foundation awards $30,000 to Conservation Foundation

Written by Boca Beacon Reader on . Posted in Editorial.

To the Editor:  The Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast recently received two $15,000 grants from Gulf Coast Community Foundation. These grants were made possible through the Katherine Naismith Witten Fund at Gulf Coast Community Foundation. Both grants support Conservation Foundation’s land management and restoration programs on their protected lands, with a specific focus on […]