Administrator Ernie Casali stands Sept. 22 behind the new — nearly finished — bar at the iconic Anna Maria Island Moose Lodge No. 2188. Casali said it will be one of the largest bars in Manatee County. Casali is planning a members-and-guests only ribbon-cutting and grand re-opening at noon Saturday, Oct. 3, at the lodge, 110 Gulf Drive S., Bradenton Beach, one year after the project began. “We’re just about there,” Casali said of project completion. For the event, Casali plans to have a steel drum band on the rooftop deck, a performance by a Neil Diamond impersonator and raffles to raise money for charities into the night. “This place is going to be packed,” he said. Islander Photo: Ed Scott
