Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Featured News, Letters to the Editor, News.
To the Editor, and to the community of Boca Grande: When we were faced with the reality of distance learning with nine weeks left in the school year, The Island School’s teachers, staff, students, and families had to adapt quickly to a new way of teaching and learning. Although we adjusted to our online “classrooms” […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Featured News, Letters to the Editor, News.
To the Editor, to the citizens of Lee County and my family members at the Lee County Sheriff’s Office: I want to personally thank the residents of our great county who play a huge role helping keep the peace in our community. It saddens me to see the social unrest taking place across our nation […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Featured News, News, Profiles.
Life imitates art, but cartoonists draw what they see… BY OLIVIA CAMERON-Page five always comes with a splash of color, talking sharks, a peg-leg captain, tourist shenanigans or all of the above. Life imitates art in Tim Banfell’s comic strips. Cartoonist Tim may be known for his classic comics in our own newspaper, but some […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Police & Fire.
BY OLIVIA CAMERON- After a nice day in the sun, no one wants to get back to their car to see a little paper slip flapping under the wipers. It’s that feeling you get in the pit of your stomach that can be avoided. Gasparilla Island parking rangers and Lee County Sheriff’s deputies issued more […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
BY MARCY SHORTUSE- Governor Ron DeSantis announced today that Phase 2 of the “Safe. Smart. Step-by-Step” plan would begin to be implemented today, Friday, June 5. DeSantis said this means that all bars in all but three Florida counties – Dade, Broward and Palm Beach – could re-open with certain stipulations, which include operating at half […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Profiles.
BY OLIVIA CAMERON- Local realtor Melissa Csank has found the perfect blend between homes and history while listing local houses and serving on the board of the Boca Grande Historical Society. However, Melissa was not always a real estate agent with an interest in historic homes. Melissa grew up surrounded by the rolling “Sound of […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
SUBMITTED BY THE BARRIER ISLAND PARKS SOCIETY– For more than 30 years Barrier Island Parks Society, BIPS, has been on a mission to inspire the exploration and preservation of our natural and historic treasures in the local communities of Charlotte, Lee and Sarasota Counties. Many know BIPS as the 501c3 non-profit responsible for preserving, maintaining […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Featured News, News.
BY OLIVIA CAMERON- It’s that time of year again, when local residents cross their fingers and toes in hopes that tropical winds don’t break the pool screen or knock down the palm trees – or worse. Like many traditions, everyone will gather around windows and sliding glass doors to honor the annual durability check of hurricane […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Featured News, News.
STAFF REPORT – This is the last in a series of articles on results from the online survey filled out by Boca Grande residents, business owners and workers. 54 percent of respondents were full -time island residents, 42 percent were seasonal residents, and the remainder were not residents of the island. Forty percent of respondents […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
BY BONNIE PRINGLE, GIWA – With the past 12-month total rainfall for our area considered severely abnormal, the Governing Board of the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD) voted to declare a Phase I water shortage. Rainfall recorded by Gasparilla Island Water Association, Inc. on the Island in 2019 was approximately 12 inches below our […]