A subcommittee of the Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage — a nonprofit supporting the commercial fishing lifestyle in Cortez for 25 years — arrived at some decisions July 18 about the 2016-17 FISH budget.
Present at the FISH budget meeting were president Kim McVey, vice president Jane von Hahmann, treasurer Mike Northfield and directors Linda Molto, Kaye Bell, Bill Miller, Doug Calhoun and Plum Taylor.
After discussion, Northfield adjusted the budget to allocate: $12,000 for the boat shop; $5,000 for legal; $24,225 for renovations at several properties, including Fisherman’s Hall and the former church parsonage; $5,000 to the Cortez Village Historical Society cultural center; $800 to the Miller community dock; and $120,000 to the preserve, which included $92,000 toward the purchase of three privately owned lots. The budget also included a $40,000 reserve fund.
Without a village government, FISH has led Cortez with programs, projects and acquisitions, including the 93-acre preserve — a buffer to development.
In 2015, FISH completed the first phase of a preserve restoration plan, partnering with Sarasota Bay Estuary Program and Manatee County and with a $250,000 grant from Southwest Florida Management District.
Budgeted projects discussed at the July meeting included stucco for the firehouse-community hall and the church classroom building and paint for the eaves on Fisherman’s Hall.
FISH generates income through rental property, dues and the Cortez Commercial Fishing Festival, which draws thousands to Cortez in February.
“There again, we’re not adding one dime of festival earnings,” von Hahmann said.
FISH also supports environmental causes, such as efforts to stop development in pristine wetlands at Long Bar Pointe, 2 miles southeast of Cortez, and Harbor Sound on Perico Island.
— Kathy Prucnell