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This Date in the Boca Beacon

FIVE YEARS AGO The lady who couldn’t make up her mind decided Boca Grande wasn’t for her. Hurricane Irma played tag with Southwest Florida for 11 days before she finally came through the state, but pretty much missed the island. TEN YEARS AGO Many local guides and fishermen went to the Florida Fish and Wildlife […]

Water rate hikes eminent …speak your piece now

According to the filed resolution, on January 18, 2022, the members of GIWA approved by a vote of 457 to 48 to increase their rates by Rate Indexing. This means that on October 1 of this year and annually each year after this one, water and wastewater rates may change upon approval of the Board, up to the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index U.S. City Average – All Urban Consumers. If they choose to increase their rates, they must request a rate increase from the Director of Utilities for Lee County. The request must be approved by the Lee County Board of County Commissioners. 

FPSC shoots down proposal to reconsider barrier island sewer

If you’ve been following our last two weeks of stories on this matter, you read that a private utility contractor who currently provides water service to parts of the barrier islands now was attempting to be considered as the primary utility in that area for central sewage.

The Boca Grande Club looks a little different as of late … here’s why

The pitch-apple is a native tree and loves the salt spray. It grows well in full sun and tolerates sandy soil, which is ideal for Island trees. The pitch-apple has coarse evergreen leaves, solitary white or rose flowers and a whitish, resinous fruit, which is poisonous. It makes an ideal hedge but also can grow to be a large tree, so it is quite versatile.

‘American Pickers’ is coming back to Florida, and they need your help to fill the season

The American Pickers TV Show is looking for leads and would love to explore your hidden treasure. If you or someone you know has a large, private collection or accumulation of antiques that the pickers can spend the better part of the day looking through, why not contact them? It’s worth a shot. American Pickers currently does not pick stores, flea markets, malls, auction businesses, museums or anything open to the public. If interested, send your name, phone number, location and description of the collection with photos to: americanpickers@cineflix.com or call (646) 493-2184. They can be reached on facebook, @GotAPick.

Think the island is sinking in season?

According to the last U.S. Census Bureau statistics, the Lee County portion of Gasparilla Island has 1,130 homestead-exempt people living here, which is a 41.8 percent decrease since 2020. The same area recorded 1,720 people in 2010, 1,500 in 2000 and 777 in 1990. If you go back to the 1980 figures above, that means 1980 was the last year for an increase in population that the Lee County portion of the island has had.

OBITUARY: Pamela Turnbull

Pamela L. Turnbull passed away August 30, 2022. She was born in California and raised in Virginia and Glencoe, Illinois.  Pam was most at home in Boca Grande, Florida and the mountains of Western Colorado. Her love of life brought an incredible richness to all the places she lived. Pam graduated from Culver Academy, attended […]

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: A new season of learning, music and much more in our area …

October programming continues with returning Hermitage Fellow and Pulitzer Prize winner Michael R. Jackson, following his acclaimed Broadway debut with A Strange Loop, which won the 2022 Tony Awards for Best Musical and Best Book of a Musical. In a conversation moderated by Hermitage Artistic Director and CEO Andy Sandberg, Jackson will delve into the inspiration and influences that have shaped his work thus far and what is on the horizon for him, including his fascination with iconic soap operas and the way they have shaped our cultural narrative. Presented on the Hermitage Beach as the sun sets on October 21st, don’t miss your chance to hear from one of the most exciting minds writing for the American theater today. Audience members are invited to come early and experience an open studio with acclaimed visual artist ektor garcia whose multifaceted work explores materials such as leather, ceramic, metal, and found objects. 

LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Many thanks to Dr. Ervin for all he has done

For the record, oncologists on two coasts were absolutely confident that Nancy had leukemia. The clinic doctors saw differently. In our earliest conversations, Ray told us that Tom suspected it was “something else.” On Nancy’s first day in the ICU, a nephrologist (now her nephrologist) correctly isolated a rare and deadly vasculitis as the culprit, but not before three major organs failed. The vasculitis attacked her heart, her lungs and her kidneys, but she was being attended by the necessary specialists. And. it was all happening on a right-now basis. Today her heart and lungs are back, performing as desired. Nancy has finally been accepted into Tampa General’s kidney transplant program.