PelicanPress SIE TA KEY
AN OBSERVER NEWSPAPER
Thursday, FEBRUARY 9, 2012
in this issue
DIVERSIONS
Audrey Landers steps out from her role in the movie ‘A Chorus Line.’ INSIDE
Chamber members enjoy networking at luncheon. PAGE B7
OUR TOWN
WHOSE VIEW?
inside Annual crafts festival draws thousands. PAGE 1B
By Rachel Brown Hackney | Managing Editor
Residents oppose park proposal Residents of an adjacent condo complex are fighting a proposal for an open Ocean Boulevard lot, with a view of the Gulf of Mexico, to be turned into a pocket park.
Courtesy photo
Winner Jim Hoseth devoured three veggie burgers.
+ Veg hosts burger contest Veg celebrated its second anniversary in grand fashion Feb. 4, at the restaurant on Gulf Gate Drive. The celebration included the restaurant’s second annual Veggie Burger Eating Contest. This year, five contestants bellied up to the table to see who could eat the most veggie burgers in three minutes. When all the plates had been cleared, Jim Hoseth, who devoured three burgers, emerged as the winner.
Saying a pocket park next to their complex would lead to excessive noise and traffic, and a subsequent decline in their property values, residents of Windward Passage voiced opposition to the proposed facility during the Feb. 3 Siesta Key Association meeting. Christine P. Johnson, presi-
dent of the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast, told the approximately 40 people in the audience the foundation had been approached about the possibility of working with community members to purchase the 1-acre vacant lot on the Gulf of Mexico, known for its view of Big Pass and South Lido Key.
“We don’t own it; we don’t have a conservation easement (for it),” Johnson said. “People in the community approached us, knowing that we’ve done this (type of project) in other areas … one of the things that we want to know is whether you’re even interested (in the park concept).”
Harold Esselborn, president of the homeowners association at Windward Passage, at 4712 Ocean Blvd., said residents already have had to put up with people gathering on the site. “They stay there to all hours
SEE PARK / PAGE 2A
+ Volunteers needed for cleanup Volunteers are welcome to help members of the Siesta Key and Siesta Key Village associations Feb. 18, when they gather for their quarterly Adopt-A-Road clean-up effort. Anyone who arrives at 8 a.m. that day at Village Café, 5133 Ocean Blvd., will get a free breakfast, thanks to the generosity of co-owners Tom and Kay Kouvatsos. SKA Vice President Peter van Roekens says heavy tipping for the wait staff will be much appreciated. Trash collection will begin at 9 a.m., covering Ocean Boulevard and the segment from Higel Avenue, up Siesta Drive to the north bridge. SKA Director Michael Shay will take charge of the effort north of the Ocean Boulevard/Higel intersection. SKA Director Bob Waechter will lead the trash pick-up on the south end of the Key, from Stickney Point Road south for 2 miles, plus Peacock Road and Old Stickney Point Road.
Tell us your news If you have a tidbit you think would be interesting to pass along, please call Rachel Hackney at 3663468, Ext. 357, or email rhackney@yourobserver.com. We welcome photos, too.
BUBBLE BLAST! Rachel S. O’Hara
Janice Frankel blows bubbles during Baby Rhyme and Sign Time at the Gulf Gate Library Tuesday, Feb. 7. The 45-minute program includes singing, signing, reading and playtime. For the story and more photos, see page 5B.
BIG BILL
By Rachel Brown Hackney | Managing Editor
$74,000 water bill being contested Whispering Sands homeowners say they should not have to pay Sarasota County almost $74,000 because of a malfunctioning water meter that they reported two years ago. An attorney for the Whispering Sands condominium complex on the Key contends the county has no legitimate grounds for trying to collect $73,663.17 in water bills the
county says the complex accumulated over several months when a meter was malfunctioning. Michelle L. Klymko, of the Becker & Poliakoff law firm in Fort Lau-
derdale, has offered the county $25,000 to settle the matter, but she said Feb. 3 she had heard nothing yet from the Sarasota County Attorney’s Office.
“It’s going to be my recommendation that (the homeowners) ap-
SEE WATER BILL / PAGE 10A
INDEX Briefs....................4A Classifieds ........ 12B
Cops Corner....... 12A Crossword.......... 11B
Neighborhood...... 1B Opinion.................8A
Real Estate.......... 9B Vol. 42, No. 28 | Three sections YourObserver.com Weather............. 11B