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Fixing the island’s low points: High water worries continue on north, south end

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

Since Hurricane Ian, Boca Grande has seen a dry year. Of course, that could change at any time. 

After hurricanes or, really, any big rainstorm, there are a few areas of the island that flood – namely at the north end of the island along Gasparilla Road and on the southern end of the island, including Gulf Boulevard at the Gasparilla Island Light and the very south tip of the island.

Depending on the depth of the water, residents with taller SUVs and pickups can plow through the standing water, as they clear about over 10 inches. Cars today, however, can only clear about six inches.

OBITUARY: Lucy Hamilton

Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Obituaries.

Lucy Battel Hamilton died peacefully on July 19, 2023 at her summer home in Cooperstown, New York surrounded by her loving family.  Known to all as “Bunny,” she was born in Buffalo, N.Y. on November 13, 1933, the daughter of Lucy Mills Battel and John Lawrence Battel. After attending the Buffalo Seminary and Bennett College, […]

Cutting the Gordian Knot that is the Boca Grande cell tower

Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.

Another chapter has been written in the ongoing “Gordian Knot” saga of the Boca Grande cell phone tower, as this week cell tower committee members have announced that Lee County has finally issued a demolition permit for the Bakery Building. 

At the same time, the committee has had contractors come out to look at the wall between the bakery and The Barnichol Hardware, to determine if it is possible to start construction on the new cell tower base while the building still stands.

It wasn’t days after Hurricane Ian hit the island hard on September 28, 2022 when cellular services started putting up COWs on the island. These Cells on Wheels were placed in the middle of town, as well as one at the north end. There are no COWs south of 1st Street. Even with the COWs, service has been unreliable for many for 10 months now, with some people – primarily on the south end of the island – having no service at all.

PROFILE: Fr. Anthony Hewitt

Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Profiles.

Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church is now in the hands of its new pastor, Father Anthony Hewitt. Fr. Anthony began offering masses at the church this past weekend. This will be a major change of pace for him, but one he is looking forward to.  For the last 10 years, Fr. Anthony has been […]

THIS DATE IN THE BOCA BEACON

Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Columns, Community History.

FIVE YEARS AGO PJ’s Seagrille and The Grapevine were officially out of business. TEN YEARS AGO Kathy Banson-Verrico was named as the new GIBA director. The pipes were smokin’ in some island homes, as GIWA was looking for pipe leaks. FIFTEEN YEARS AGO The Boca Grande Reference Room in the Community Center was complete, featuring […]

Time marches on at the Fishery property …

Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Community History, News.

Tuesday, July 18 was the beginning of the end for two pieces of Cape Haze Peninsula’s history. The former home of Mike Schworm was dismantled and taken down to the ground, while Eunice Albritton’s little house that stood nearby waited forlornly for its turn under the proverbial wrecking ball.

Both homes were in grave disrepair even before Hurricane Ian, but afterward they were damaged even more. They had stood there since the 1940s, when Walter Gault brought his fishing operation from the village of Gasparilla at the north end of the island over the waters of Gasparilla Sound to the southern tip of the Cape Haze Peninsula, in Placida. He purchased the Gasparilla fishery property in the 1930s, but a decade later the railroad sold the land.

The saga of ‘The Forgotten Ones’ at Gasparilla Mobile Estates continues …

Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Community, News.

More developments have unfolded in the Gasparilla Mobile Estates controversy and they are just as strange as the ones that preceded them. Residents have a new eviction notice, a new reason given by the property owner for them to leave and a big difference in appraisal amounts.

Mike Leslie, a resident of the little community just off island, has been watching closely what happens to his southern property while he’s at his home in Michigan. He is doing everything in his power to make sure that the people of the park can be allowed to keep their homes. It is a constant battle, to be sure, as they face a new challenge almost every week.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Effie Joiner

Written by Sheila Evans on . Posted in Community History, Health & Wellness, Profiles.

Author George Bernard Shaw famously claimed youth was wasted on the young. Apparently, he never met Effie Joiner, because she is not wasting a moment of her youth. Effie is not yet 27 but is putting nearly every minute to good use and having great fun along the way.

Effie is the newest member of the staff at the Friends of Boca Grande Community Center. She is a program assistant, helping primarily on the music front. She also helps with the lecture series, selling tickets in the office and assisting wherever needed.

Slowly but surely, Palm Island recovers

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

Many were relieved to hear that Palm Island Resort fared as well as it did. It has become a generational family place to visit, with many grandparents taking their grandchildren to see Redbeard the Pirate perform, to eat ice cream at the tables outside Coconuts and play on the purple turtle playground, just as they did when they were young.