Written by Guest Columnist on . Posted in News.
The Annie-T was the serendipitous collaboration between Sarasota’s legendary modernist architect Edward J. “Tim” Seibert FAIA , an original member of the Sarasota School of Architects, and Florida’s most celebrated wooden boat builder, George Luzier. Also collaborating was Seibert’s father, Capt. E.C. Seibert, USN, Ret., a naval architect and marine engineer who had been designing sailboats since the 1920s.
Written by Boca Beacon Reader on . Posted in Letters to the Editor.
To the Editor:Two Questions:1. Did you know?2. Does Boca care about their neighbors?At 6:37 a.m. on January 16, 2022 an EF1 (110 mph) tornado ripped through Gasparilla Marina and Estates. Most Boca residents, including myself, assumed it occurred some distance away. Yet it happened less than a mile outside the entrance to Boca Grande. At […]
Written by T Michele Walker on . Posted in Profiles.
To put the timeline into perspective, by the time Betsy’s father built their home in 1940, their family had been on the island for 32 years.
“When the train moved to Boca Grande, my grandfather, Jerome, Sr., was offered a job and eventually opened up his own business, Fugate’s Drug Store,” she said.
Fugate’s opened in 1916, in the same building where it operates today. A few years earlier, Jerome married Betsy’s grandmother in 1911 and in 1912, Betsy’s father was born on Banyan Street.
“My grandfather Jerome passed away in 1955, when I was pretty young, but he was a big fisherman. He was involved with the very beginning days with the tarpon fishing,” Betsy said. When he passed away, Betsy’s uncle took over the family business.
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
Those of us who spend a lot of time on Gasparilla Island are used to the term “invasive species” when it comes to certain anoles, lizards, fish and, of course, iguanas. But on Wednesday, March 16 that term took on a whole new meaning. That afternoon a Florida Park Service employee at Gasparilla Island State Park called Florida Fish and Wildlife to report that a UF grad student named Sean McKnight had been scoping a gopher tortoise burrow on their property and he found something unexpected – a Burmese python.
Written by Guest Columnist on . Posted in News.
BY SHEILA EVANS Shown above, Capt. Rhett Morris, Eve Samples, executive director of Friends of the Everglades and Gil Smart, executive director of VoteWater and policy director of Friends of the Everglades. Photos by Dusty There was no sugar coating the situation when […]
Written by Guest Columnist on . Posted in News.
The GICIA contracted with Sea & Shoreline, a Florida-based aquatic restoration firm that has two decades of experience restoring fresh and saltwater habitats and whose nursery grows seagrass for restoration projects all across the southern U.S. Last March Sea & Shoreline planted 3,400 units of seagrass within the cove area. A team of biologists spent a week in dive gear carefully hand-planting each grass unit. Over the last year, the biologists have had monthly visits to the site to monitor and maintain the seagrass. This week the final monitoring report was delivered, and the results are so positive that the GICIA has contracted with Sea & Shoreline to complete a second phase of seagrass planting within the flushing channel of the cove. The second phase will use observations documented during the 12 months of monitoring and establish a plan that will complement and build upon the success of the first planting phase.
Written by T Michele Walker on . Posted in Profiles.
“That lifestyle was my norm and is a family tradition,” she said. “My granddaddy was a lobsterman. He lived down in the Keys, and he would catch crab and lobster, so we had a full supply of that, as well as fresh fish and fresh shrimp from the shrimp boat. I don’t think I’ve ever had a piece of store-bought seafood.”
Written by Boca Beacon Reader on . Posted in Letters to the Editor.
On Saturday, March 19 the Gasparilla Island Maritime Museum opened their doors to the entire community for a Maritime Expo honoring the legacy of Isabelle and Barbara (The Whidden Sisters).
These women were two of the originators of the Gasparilla Island Maritime Museum, as it was their father’s dream, property and business that they were trying to keep alive. It is the board’s intention to continue their great legacy, preserving and maintaining our maritime history.
Written by Boca Beacon Reader on . Posted in Letters to the Editor.
In my view Placida would not be well-served with additional high-impact/traffic multiplying commercial development. Hypothetically, Eldred’s Marina could very well one day become a resort. Placida would be nothing but a bottleneck. I am urging all local residents and County Commissioners to join me in calling for the preservation of the peaceful legacy of our community by low-impact/environmentally-friendly uses of these last remaining undeveloped acres of Placida.
Written by Boca Beacon Reader on . Posted in News.
Buy some furniture! The United Methodist Women’s furniture sale will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. this Saturday, March 19, at the home of Jan Myers, 421 Gulf Blvd. Jan’s garage, which serves as a storage area for Strawberry Festival bargain and boutique items most of the year, has been turned into a […]