SIESTA KEY
Observer
Mote money not a sure thing. PAGE 4
YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
VOLUME 51, NO. 1
FREE
YOUR TOWN
•
THURSDAY, JULY 23, 2020
City turns away Bobby Jones offer Lease proposal rejected over commitment to renovation. PAGE 3
Nat Kaemmerer
Meet the mango queen
St. Armands Circle resident Carolyn Michel is never at a loss for mangoes. She can’t explain it — she doesn’t even try — but the trees in her yard often deliver a “mother lode.” “The trees just grow and do their thing,” Michel said. “I have no idea why sometimes there is a fabulous crop and why sometimes there isn’t.” She doesn’t sell her fruit, but happily gives it away to friends, family and neighbors in quantities of 10 or 12 at a time. She even gives them to passersby who ask nicely, but she will chase away those trying to surreptitiously snag a sample.
Wrap with a cap Ceremonies mark high school graduations. SEE PAGE 16
Young author reads live
It’s one thing to write a book and have it published. It’s still another to read that book publicly at age 8. At 2 p.m. July 30, Sarasota’s Sienna Alfano will have completed all three. Sienna will read her book “The Mysterious Notes” live on the Facebook page of The Music Compound, as part of the store’s Rock Your Summer Reading program. “I have known Sienna since she was just 4 or 5, when she attended Music Compound’s summer camp,” said owner Jenny Townsend. “She is a remarkable young lady.”
Harry Sayer
Joseph Cruz accepts his Sarasota High School diploma from Principal David Jones.
City votes to follow new road
Turtle Tracks AS OF JULY 18 TOTAL NESTS: 2020 2019 Siesta Key 412 671 Lido Beach 131 91 Casey Key 1,386 2,179 TOTAL FALSE CRAWLS: 2020 2019 Siesta Key 539 1,108 Lido Beach 206 188 Casey Key 1,880 2,837 Source: Mote Marine Laboratory
Image courtesy city of Sarasota
The Sarasota in Motion master plan proposed redesigning streets, such as 10th Street, to improve safety and accessibility for all modes of transportation.
Leaders OK premise of master plan but not the plan itself. SEE PAGE 6
A+E
Van Wezel aims to find a way. PAGE 20