Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
■ STAFF REPORT Larry Hannah, chair of the Gasparilla Island Light fundraising effort, reported that donations have reached $725,000 in cash and pledges. That’s still well short of the project budget of $1.783 million but within reach of the minimum $1.2 million deemed necessary to begin significant phases of restoration during the summer […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
■ STAFF REPORT Construction status updates, vibration analysis reports and a special request were on the agenda for The Gasparilla Island Bridge Authority Engineering Committee meeting held on Wednesday, April 13 in the Bridge Authority conference room. A request from Wagner Trucking to drive a metal track vehicle over the causeway was discussed as well, […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
■ STAFF REPORT The Boca Grande Health Clinic had an exciting two days last week, as their annual fundraising festivities began with a quarterly meeting on Thursday, April 7 (see page 20 for that story) and ended with the Hank Wright Golf Tournament on Friday, April 8. A new and exciting event was […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
■ BY SUE ERWIN A common word that often comes to mind when many people think about bacteria is “gross.” Mote Marine postdoctoral research fellow Dr. Andrea Tarnecki tried to break that bad reputation on Tuesday, April 12 at a ‘Science Café’ event held at the Johann Fust Community Library. The free educational […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
■ BY SUE ERWIN Committee Chair Bayne Stevenson of the Gasparilla Island Conservation and Improvement Association unveiled a large reproduction illustrating the envisioned GICIA Preserve at a public meeting held on Wednesday, April 13 at the property, located at Gasparilla Road and the Boca Grande Causeway. He thanked the crowd for the support […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Editorial, Letters to the Editor, News.
Letter to the Editor; Like the tides on the beaches of Boca Grande, seasonal vehicles come and go with both predictability and occasional extraordinary highs. Each new seasonal tide provides us with good customers and a continually refreshed community. The statistics these last six months* confirm that Boca Grande has experienced new record highs, like […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News, Profiles.
■ BY MARCY SHORTUSE & JIM BENSON Jim Benson may be a young man, but his passion for life and his work ethic run deep. That’s not to say he’s a guy who can’t have a good time – he definitely can – but he has proven to be one of the most up-and-coming real […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
■ BY SUE ERWIN At an educational summit held on Tuesday, April 5 at the Boca Grande Community Center, some of the nation’s top educators gathered with islanders to talk about new trends and successful techniques in educating our primary and secondary school-age children. The invitation-only event, orchestrated by Cavendish Global, packed the […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
■ SUBMITTED BY THE GICIA The Gasparilla Island Conservation and Improvement Association has an insert in this week’s Beacon to acknowledge and thank the many, many donors who have supported our bold initiative to purchase and protect the 30-acre Mercabo property, now known as the .” Our board and staff are tremendously grateful for your […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
■ BY MARCY SHORTUSE Iguana hunting taxes are going up by 0.102 percent, but iguana numbers are definitely going down. At an annual meeting of the MTSBU advisory committee for Gasparilla Island’s street lighting and iguana control Friday, April 1, Lee County MSTBU Coordinator Melissa Geissler told the Board they had to raise […]