Anna Maria Mayor Mark Short reported in a Feb. 6 email to The Islander that he had “a catch-up week” following a trip out of town.
Here are some reports from the past week:
The Phase 1A Pine Avenue brick paver project is proceeding. The focus is on areas in front of the storefronts between Gulf Drive and North Shore Boulevard.
“It looks great and it’s a needed improvement for pedestrians. Probably another three weeks are needed to complete this phase,” the mayor wrote.
Manatee County continues to clean up and prep Bayfront Park for its reopening, which is set for Friday, Feb. 14, a sweetheart of a deal for the city and all those who love to visit the park on the shore of Tampa Bay with a Sunshine Skyway Bridge view.
FEMA conducted a two-day site visit focused on evaluating hurricane damage to the city pier. A team examined the T-end with the help of boat transportation from the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office. The fieldwork was completed Feb. 5 and was the first step for FEMA to quantify the damages and determine eligibility for reimbursement.
The geotechnical work related to the pier reconstruction project is finished and a report is forthcoming. The next steps will be to complete the bidding process for demolition and removal of the debris in the walkway path.
The next commission meeting will be 10 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 13. Among other topics on that agenda, the city will recognize its Citizen of the Year. The winner is being selected by an independent committee of residents.
Holmes Beach Commission Chair Dan Diggins weighed in this week with an email about judging a Feb. 6 cook-off put on by Waste Pro.
According to Diggins, Waste Pro hosts barbecue contests at its many facilities across the country. The winners go to regional competitions and then on to a finale in Nashville, Tennessee.
Diggins was joined in the judging by HBPD Lt. Brian Hall, Detective Josh Fleischer and Chad Minor, director of development services.
The Waste Pro tasting featured three employees who cooked chicken and pork ribs on a wood-fired grill. “All three looked great but tasted completely different. We rated presentation, texture and taste numerically and the contestant with the highest overall number won,” said Diggins.
He added, “We had a great time but I couldn’t eat six ribs and three chicken thighs in one sitting!”
The winners, according to JT Thomas, city chief of code compliance, were Sean Pino, Joe Masias and Tyrell Leverett. (See photos online at islander.org.)
The group from Holmes Beach also toured the Waste Pro recycling operation and were “impressed,” Diggins said. “The massive sorting and baling machine processes paper/cardboard, metal, and plastic material that is stored in huge bales then sold to companies that next break the material down to its basic stage for reuse.”
And, P.S., if you’re missing the lifeguard chair from the “Welcome to Anna Maria Island” sign at the Kingfish Boat Ramp, HBPD Chief Bill Tokajer reports there was a “safety issue” and it was taken in for repairs.
Tokajer added, “It shouldn’t be long.”
Mayor Judy Titsworth said recovery efforts are ongoing and the city’s code compliance staff are actively issuing stop-work orders for work without a permit — with triple the fee.
She said they are educating people on procedures and still offer no-fee permits for repairs.