SIESTA KEY
Observer
Remembering Ed.
PAGE 6
YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
VOLUME 50, NO. 52
FREE
YOUR TOWN
•
THURSDAY, JULY 16, 2020
School bell delayed Amid protests and split opinions, the Sarasota School Board plans to push back the start of school until Aug. 31. PAGE 3
File photo
The city’s budget proposal includes a $30.3 million cut in expenditures. Mark Bergin
COVID-19 budget squeeze begins
Even the King wears a mask The Elvis Presley statue outside of the Blue Heirloom thrift store on Swift Road got a new addition at the start of the pandemic: a face mask. “I get comments all the time, and people taking pictures, getting their pictures taken in front of the statue,” said store volunteer Martin Sperber, who added the accessory. Sperber said he believes “the King” would “definitely” advocate for wearing a mask if he were still alive. “What’s the phrase they’ve been using?” Sperber said. “We’re in this together.”
Tree honors class of 2020 Typically, senior classes are remembered by yearbooks that collect dust in the school library. Riverview High School, however, chose a more prominent way to remember the class of 2020: a magnolia tree at the front entrance of the school. “We had no prom, no graduation, no milestones,” Assistant Principal Glenn Wachter said. “So we wanted to do something that’s never been done before.” The magnolia tree, which is about 8 years old, was donated by Troy’s Tropics.
Brynn Mechem
Mark Buckalter stands outside his car with his sign at a protest during the school board meeting.
A+E
Girls Inc. to the rescue
Turtle Tracks AS OF JULY 11 TOTAL NESTS: 2020 2019 Siesta Key 394 644 Lido Beach 121 83 Casey Key 1,293 2,056 TOTAL FALSE CRAWLS: 2020 2019 Siesta Key 505 1,074 Lido Beach 191 173 Casey Key 1,763 2,692 Source: Mote Marine Laboratory
City and county prepare budgets with incomplete funding picture. PAGES 4-5
The nonprofit adds meal service to feed families in need. SEE PAGE 18 Courtesy photo by Cliff Roles
Justin De La loads food into a car as part of Girls Inc.’s effort to provide meals for local families in need.
The big (art) show PAGE 20