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Charlotte County tourism eagerly awaits opening of Sunseeker

Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in News.

As fall visitors arrive and winter visitors begin to make plans, local tourism officials are looking for good news as vacation rentals come back on line.
“I think we are seeing some pent-up demand,” said Sean Doherty, the tourism director for Charlotte County tourism, which is branded the Punta Gorda and Englewood Beach Convention and Visitor Bureau.

Looking at Charlotte County’s tourism development tax revenues, in August the county saw its first actual increase in revenue since Hurricane Ian, with an upward blip of 0.7 percent. TDC revenue is derived from the lodging tax, which is assessed on any rental of less than six months and one day. These bed tax funds support both the Charlotte County and Lee County visitor bureaus.

Rental properties coming back on the market on Don Pedro and Little Gasparilla are also helping Charlotte tourism figures, as many were off market after Ian, Doherty said.

OBITUARY: Karen Hugger

Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Obituaries.

Funeral services for Karen Hugger, 78, longtime Boca Grande resident and real estate broker, will be held at 10 a.m. at the Lighthouse United Methodist Church in Boca Grande on Saturday, Nov. 11. A reception will follow in the church’s Fellowship Hall. All are welcome. Karen passed away in October following a stroke in March. […]

THIS DATE IN THE BOCA BEACON

Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Community History.

FIVE YEARS AGO The Barrier Island Parks Society announced they would be relighting the restored Gasparilla Island Lighthouse (the Range Light) following the installation of a replica of the original fourth-order Fresnel lens needed. TEN YEARS AGO At the Whidden’s Back Bay Tournament a lot of fish were caught. The first-place team included anglers Capt. […]

Parking discussion continues

Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Community, Police & Fire.

NOTE: This story contains new information that cannot be found in the hard copy or e-edition story. Just after press time we received information requested earlier in the week that is pertinent to the facts of the story and is included here.

We went from no towers to lots of towers

Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Community.

BY SHEILA EVANS AND MARCY SHORTUSE Not only do we have a new cell phone tower in the middle of town, baby cell phone towers have popped up as well … and more are being planned. Right now we have two new “Q-tip” towers at the north end – one at Gulf Shores Drive and […]

A lack of south end dunes has led to a lot of flooding … so what can be done?

Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in News.

Back in July of 1967, the headline in the News-Press of Fort Myers was, “What to Do About Eroded Tip of Boca Grande.”

Then, as now, islanders were looking to beach nourishment to help prevent erosion on the southern tip of Gasparilla Island. At that time, the Boca Grande Conservation Council, headed by Homer Addison of The Temptation, was in favor of establishing a park at the tip of the island, as the Lighthouse was for sale from the Coast Guard through the General Services Administration. It seemed an ideal solution; the only challenge being the “erosion problem.”

Six decades later, the issue of erosion, while not fixed, is regularly addressed through a mix of federal, local and tourist tax monies. Gasparilla, and indeed all of the Gulf of Mexico islands in Florida, are under regular schedules for replenishment. But what is also a challenge is the flooding at the tip of the island, which hit the south end’s streets and historic buildings during hurricanes Irma, Ian and Idalia.

GICIA Bike Path mulching will finalize summer planting project

Written by Guest Columnist on . Posted in Community.

SUBMITTED BY THE GICIA The Gasparilla Island Conservation and Improvement Association (GICIA) is entering the final phase of the Bike Path landscaping plan, which began in August. Hurricane Ian destroyed nearly 300 trees and countless shrubs and grasses. The focus of this project was to return the GICIA’s Bike Path property to pre-hurricane condition.   […]

Disappearance of unknowns helps clear up real estate season

Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Community.

As insurance issues and condominium assessments have cleared up, buyers and sellers have been getting a better picture of property values and what the upcoming property season will entail, both on island and off.

“There were so many unknowns,” said Olivia Jones of Parsley Baldwin Real Estate. “There was ‘unknown’ from insurance, from condos.”

She feels that we are now at the stage where “some of the unknowns are now known.”

Repair work begins on Port Boca Grande Lighthouse and Amory Chapel

Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Community.

Restoration work began this week at the Amory Chapel and the Port Boca Grande Lighthouse, both damaged during Hurricane Ian. At the site, workers were visible both working on the interior of the Amory Chapel, and on the porch of the lighthouse, and repair trucks were in the yard. The Port Boca Grande Lighthouse, at […]

LETTER TO THE EDITOR: More information about upcoming parking discussions

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

To the Editor:
The structured parking plan that now seems to be a source of controversy is not about Gilchrist Ave. The plan is for the Lee County portion of Gasparilla Island. It is intended to protect our entire community from becoming a massive beach parking lot, which it soon will be because of the exploding population growth around us. Aside from the tens of thousands of platted lots on the Cape Haze Peninsula, there are thousands of new homes being built from Winchester Boulevard all the way out South River Road to I-75. Have you noticed the new subdivisions and apartments under construction on SR 776 on the way to Murdock? Where do you think all of these people will be going to the beach?