Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News.
Water service was interrupted for most of the island for several hours on Thursday, Aug. 6. As of 3 p.m., water pressure had been restored, though a boil-water notice will be in effect for at least the weekend.Bonnie Pringle of Gasparilla Island Water Association said their contractors were performing sewer repairs, when they compromised a water […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News, Profiles.
BY JACK SHORT Three years ago, I wrote my first profile. The subject was a former ambassador to Morocco and an undersecretary general of the United Nations. I could barely fit his resume on any number of pages, and in trying to show how elite he was (and consequently how important I was), I produced […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in Editorial.
Submitted by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Whether diving in Pensacola, scalloping in the Big Bend, lobstering in the Florida Keys or seeing the sights below the water’s surface in one of the many rivers in the Sunshine State, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) wants to remind divers to use […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in Letters to the Editor.
To the Editor: In honor of Mote Marine Lab’s 60th anniversary, Florida residents are invited to discover the wonders of Mote Aquarium for just $6 every Saturday this September. This year, Mote is celebrating 60 years of world-class marine research and education. As an independent, nonprofit Lab, Mote has succeeded through its wonderful partnerships with […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News.
Boca Grande has gorgeous beaches and, even though they are public, they have a wonderful way of giving beach goers a sense of privacy. As Boca Grande becomes more popular as a beach destination, the issues and perils of parking are going to have to be addressed. In light of that fact, the Gasparilla Island […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News.
BY JACK SHORT Defendants have begun to answer accusations made against them in a lawsuit over access to Three Sisters Island. The lawsuit was filed almost immediately after the resolution of decades’ worth of acrimonious dispute between homeowners in Boca Grande Isles, a private, planned community connected to Gasparilla Island by bridge, and Three Sisters […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News.
BY JACK SHORT Both Silver King Entertainment, LLC and Save the Tarpon, Inc. would rather their case be heard by a judge and a jury of peers than a magistrate. The Charlotte County Court issued an order on July 15 canceling a scheduled, non-jury hearing in an ongoing case between the two corporations. That case […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News.
BY KAITLYN FUSCO Mote Marine Laboratory scientists are conducting a novel study of the protected goliath grouper offshore of Lee and Charlotte counties to understand where and when these fish aggregate, and what type of habitat supports them — critical information for ensuring population recovery of this species. Goliath grouper, capable of reaching several hundred […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News, Profiles.
BY JACK SHORT Gene Glidden is soft-spoken, ruddy-cheeked man whose cheerful demeanor belies the ruthlessness of the man who sits atop a commercial and residential painting empire. Just kidding. But he is absolutely cheerful, if a little quiet, and he built a business out of nothing that now reaches into several counties. In 40 years, […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News, Opinion.
BY MARCY SHORTUSE So this week we had a lesson in social media. The tale of Sam Samsonov, “our Sam,” as we call him, went viral worldwide. The story of a man who collected tolls for the Gasparilla Island Bridge Authority for almost 30 years was picked up and made it into the worldwide media […]