- Named Best Florida Newspaper In Its Class -
VOL 23 No. 48
July 26, 2023
Fire department changing rules for vacation rentals Owners of vacation rental properties can expect some changes from WMFR in the upcoming fiscal year, including increased assessments and safety inspections. BY KRISTIN SWAIN SUN STAFF WRITER | kswain@amisun.com
Saharan sundown
CINDY LANE | SUN
Offshore rainshowers and Saharan dust combined to make a spectacular summer sunset on Friday evening at Coquina Beach. Red dust frequently blows from the Sahara desert in Africa over the Atlantic Ocean to Florida in the summer.
Testing shows drinking water free of toxins BY KRISTIN SWAIN SUN STAFF WRITER | kswain@amisun.com
MANATEE COUNTY – County officials say that new tests confirm the drinking water coming from Lake Manatee is safe. In a July 18 press release, more than a week after attention was first drawn to the strange odor and taste in local drinking water, county officials said that the compound affecting the water is geosmin, not an algal toxin. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, geosmin is a compound, often related to the cyanobacteria Anabaena, that causes taste and odor issues in water related to blue-green algae outbreaks.
“While certain blue-green algae can produce toxins, it is important to note that not all blue-green algae blooms are toxic,” according to last week’s press release from county Information Outreach Manager Bill Logan. Logan’s previous press release from the county on July 10 stated that tests showed the presence of blue-green algae at elevated concentrations in drinking water. The algae bloom in the county reservoir, which provides water for a large part of the county, caused a musty taste and odor that persists, according to the county.
SEE WATER , PAGE 22
The CRA members will hold further discussion on the capital projects and improvements to be included in the new fiscal year budget. BY JOE HENDRICKS SUN CORRESPONDENT | jhendricks@amisun.com
BRADENTON BEACH – The Bradenton Beach Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) expects to receive $635,677 in ad valorem property tax revenues during the 2023-24 fiscal year. City Treasurer Shayne Thompson presented the projected CRA revenues and expenses to CRA board members during the July 18 budget meeting that
summer peach and mango sangria. 23
Anna Maria Island, Florida
SEE RENTALS, PAGE 11
Bradenton Beach CRA budget planning begins
COOL DOWN with
Page 25
MANATEE COUNTY – Property owners located in West Manatee Fire Rescue’s district recently received some mail they likely weren’t expecting from the fire department. District leaders sent out a letter to all property owners in the district, spanning Anna Maria Island, Cortez and unincorporated Manatee County in west Bradenton, notifying them of an upcoming public hearing to discuss increases in assessment rates. The good news for property owners is that unless you own a vacation rental property in the district, your rates won’t increase much.
marked the beginning of the board’s annual budgeting process. Further discussion and decision-making will occur at a future budget meeting before the proposed CRA budget is formally adopted in September. The city of Bradenton Beach has the only CRA on Anna Maria Island. The property tax revenues the CRA receives are a portion of the property tax revenues collected from residential and commercial property owners in the CRA district that extends from the Cortez Bridge to the southernmost residential property lines along Fifth Street South. Each year, the CRA also receives a state-mandated transfer of funds from the city’s general fund. For the
SEE CRA, PAGE 21
THE PRIVATEERS Christmas in July
brought Santa to the beach early. 8 HOLMES BEACH leaders lower city
budget by $2 million. 4 The Island’s award-winning weekly newspaper
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