- Named Best Florida Newspaper In Its Class -
VOL 23 No. 30
March 22, 2023
Parking garage bill in high gear
A state bill to build a parking garage despite a city ordinance prohibition has passed one committee with a unanimous vote. BY KRISTIN SWAIN SUN STAFF WRITER | kswain@amisun.com
Swing time TERRENCE KERR | SUBMITTED
A young man used some creative ingenuity to make a swing to watch the sunset in Holmes Beach, using ropes from the beached ‘Lucky Us 2’ and his skateboard.
Anna Maria officials oppose one rental bill… The city of Anna Maria opposes the state Legislature’s efforts to take away the city’s ability to regulate short-term vacation rentals. BY JOE HENDRICKS SUN CORRESPONDENT | jhendricks@amisun.com
ANNA MARIA – Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy traveled to Tallahassee last week to express the city’s opposition to Senate Bill 714. SB 714 is the Florida Legislature’s most recent move to further limit local government’s ability to regulate short-term vacation rentals, giving more authority to the state. House Bill 883 serves as the companion bill.
Both pieces of proposed legislation are currently working their way through various Senate and House committee stops. If SB 714 and HB 883 successfully pass through their respective committees, they would then be placed before both houses of the Legislature for final votes. If the Senate and House both adopt similar bills, the legislation will be sent to Gov. Ron DeSantis to sign into new state law or veto. Murphy arrived in Tallahassee on Wednesday and returned to Anna Maria on Friday. While in Tallahassee, he hand-delivered to key state legislators copies of the city resolution the Anna Maria City Commission adopted on March 9. The resolution expresses the SEE ANNA MARIA, PAGE 21
TALLAHASSEE – A bill in the Florida House of Representatives to circumvent Holmes Beach ordinances and build a three-story, 1,500-plus space parking garage has passed its first roadblock on the way to becoming a reality. HB 947, proposed by Manatee County Rep. Will Robinson Jr., passed the Federal Affairs and Special Districts subcommittee with a unanimous vote on March 15 despite Holmes Beach Mayor Judy Titsworth, City Attorney Erica Augello and other city staff members making a trip to the Florida Capitol to speak in person during the meeting. After the subcommittee meeting, Titsworth said she was disappointed but not surprised at the outcome. “We knew ahead of time that they had the vote,” Titsworth said. “We still went so we could at least and on record state our position. The staff did great. This is Florida government at its finest, unfortunately, and an exercise on what to expect when a city takes a stance on quality of life SEE PARKING BILL, PAGE 24
…while Holmes Beach officials oppose another Another bill is going before state legislators that would preempt the majority of local vacation rental regulations to the state. BY KRISTIN SWAIN SUN STAFF WRITER | kswain@amisun.com
HOLMES BEACH – Another bill in the Florida House of Representatives is proposed to undo local vacation rental regulations, pushing control to the state. House Bill 105 is designed to preempt local restrictions on vacation rentals pertaining to sanitation standards, inspections, duration or frequency of rentals and any prohibitions of vacation rentals.
All local vacation rental ordinances that were in place on or before June 1, 2011 are exempt from the restrictions of the bill concerning the prohibition of vacation rentals and regulations regarding the frequency and duration of rentals. In Holmes Beach, city leaders are concerned about the bill because it would effectively do away with the city’s vacation rental certificate ordinance and regulations, which were passed in 2016. Local governments would be able to require the owners and operators of vacation rentals to maintain the name of a designated contact and information for someone responsible for each unit. SEE HOLMES BEACH, PAGE 21
TRY ORZO for a fun
STATE, FEDERAL officials
variation of chicken and rice. 17
address red tide issue. 16,19
Page 23 Anna Maria Island, Florida
TWO POLICE OFFICERS
honored for saving a life. 3 The Island’s award-winning weekly newspaper www.amisun.com