LONGBOAT
Observer Longboat Key’s weekly newspaper since 1978
YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
VOLUME 40, NO. 18
FREE
YOUR TOWN
Scammers thwarted
•
Smiles for the holidays.
PAGE 1B THURSDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2017
Photo courtesy of Longboat Key Police Department
A security camera captured two men installing a skimmer on a Longboat Key gas pump.
Gas-pump find is a visible example of cybercrime, police say. PAGE 3A Courtesy photo
Janice Cook, Barbara Kerwin and Cathy Bishop did the shopping for the donations.
LAP-LANDERS
Garden Club plants presents The Longboat Key Garden Club is sure to make the nice list this year. Members of the club donated money to purchase toys and clothing for two classrooms of children at Children First, a nonprofit organization that serves more than 600 children in Sarasota County. Each child received a book, a learning toy, a wish list toy and an outfit.
Katie Johns Courtesy photo
Steve Herich holds up his client’s unusual catch.
Eliza, Jackson and Marin Mitchell pose for a photo with Santa and Mrs. Claus on Dec. 10 at The Old Salty Dog
Kids get a double-shot of Claus in a visit to The Old Salty Dog. SEE PAGE 15A
A fish out of (deep) water Blame it on Hurricane Irma ... or one fish’s bad sense of direction ... or the supermoon. Fishing with local guide Steve Herich on Dec. 3, Lakewood Ranch angler Bill Reese pulled an 18-inch mutton snapper from the beach alongside New Pass. Mutton snappers typically live well offshore and much farther south, so finding one a few yards from the beach was a shock, Herich said. And yes, mutton snapper are delicious, especially with a mango salsa.
BLACK
Bret Hauff
Projects see first scrutiny
Longboat Club Road and Colony redevelopment plans go before Planning and Zoning Board next week. SEE PAGE 4-5A
Fashion for a cause. INSIDE
TIE