It's an Anna Maria Island institution, but the powers that be have decided that the Cafe on the Beach will not get a new tender automatically when its lease runs out. But, according to the AMI Sun newspaper, the locals have been showing their support to the popular restaurant.
It reports that more than a thousand patrons have added their names to a petition asking county commissioners to renew the lease with the current concessionaires at Manatee County Public Beach. All but Commissioner Carol Whitmore voted to put out a request for proposals rather than sign off on a five-year extension to the lease with the current concessionaires.
Gene Shaefer and Dee Percifield-Shaefer have held the beach concession since 1992 under the name of P.S. Beach Associates.
Commissioner John Chappie, who voted in favor soliciting new bids on the concession, said at an Island Kiwanis Club meeting July 25 that he will ask the county to reconsider the vote on July 28.
We hope they do, who else is going to serve us unlimited pancakes and sausage while we sink our feet into the sand?
Don't just visit Anna Maria Island, stay here. For the very best in vacation rental properties visit www.amisland.com and spend your vacation in a real home from home.
Tuesday 28 July 2009
Tuesday 21 July 2009
All's well that ends well
We love a happy turtle story on Anna Maria Island, and so the events of Monday morning came as a nice surprise.
According to a report in the Port Charlotte Sun, two loggerhead sea turtles were put back into Sarasota Bay and reported to be swimming with renewed vigor after Mote Marine Laboratory's Sea Turtle Rehabilitation Hospital nursed them back to health.
Mote staff and volunteers released the adult female that was stranded on March 29 near Siesta Beach, and a subadult female that was stranded May 15 between Egmont Key and Anna Maria.
Both turtles dug their flippers into the sand and rushed seaward, the agency reports.
Padme and Ahsoka were suffering from lethargic loggerhead syndrome, an illness of uncertain origin that can immobilize loggerhead sea turtles, a threatened species protected by federal law. Thankfully they set off okay and were fitted with chips so Mote staff can locate them in the future.
Don't just visit Anna Maria Island, stay here. For the very best in vacation rental properties visit www.amisland.com and spend your vacation in a real home from home.
According to a report in the Port Charlotte Sun, two loggerhead sea turtles were put back into Sarasota Bay and reported to be swimming with renewed vigor after Mote Marine Laboratory's Sea Turtle Rehabilitation Hospital nursed them back to health.
Mote staff and volunteers released the adult female that was stranded on March 29 near Siesta Beach, and a subadult female that was stranded May 15 between Egmont Key and Anna Maria.
Both turtles dug their flippers into the sand and rushed seaward, the agency reports.
Padme and Ahsoka were suffering from lethargic loggerhead syndrome, an illness of uncertain origin that can immobilize loggerhead sea turtles, a threatened species protected by federal law. Thankfully they set off okay and were fitted with chips so Mote staff can locate them in the future.
Don't just visit Anna Maria Island, stay here. For the very best in vacation rental properties visit www.amisland.com and spend your vacation in a real home from home.
Tuesday 14 July 2009
Take care in the gulf
Sorry to say, here's another tale of the danger associated with beaches from this week's Herald Tribune. This time it concerns riptides, those unseen currents which can sweep bathers and swimmers off their feet.
It says: Lifeguards have shut down sections of some beaches so they can keep a closer eye on swimmers who brave the rough waters. Red warning flags, indicating unsafe conditions, are being flown on most public beaches.
Even with those precautions, more than a dozen swimmers have required rescue on Coquina Beach in the past two weeks. Almost 50 rip-current rescues have taken place on Sarasota beaches in the last month.
Rip currents are formed when water builds up between a sandbar and the shore. The pressure builds until the water breaks through the sandbar, causing a powerful current - similar to a fast-moving river - that can pull swimmers out into the Gulf.
In May of last year, rip currents dragged three swimmers to their deaths on unguarded beaches on Longboat Key.
Read the full article here
So again the message is take care. We want you to keep coming back to Anna Maria Island!
There really is only one company to trust with your Anna Maria Island vacation, and only one website you need to visit. Click on www.annamariavacations.com for the very best in vacation rentals on the island. From two-bed cottages, to huge homes for the whole family, waterside, gulf front, secluded, we have it all.
It says: Lifeguards have shut down sections of some beaches so they can keep a closer eye on swimmers who brave the rough waters. Red warning flags, indicating unsafe conditions, are being flown on most public beaches.
Even with those precautions, more than a dozen swimmers have required rescue on Coquina Beach in the past two weeks. Almost 50 rip-current rescues have taken place on Sarasota beaches in the last month.
Rip currents are formed when water builds up between a sandbar and the shore. The pressure builds until the water breaks through the sandbar, causing a powerful current - similar to a fast-moving river - that can pull swimmers out into the Gulf.
In May of last year, rip currents dragged three swimmers to their deaths on unguarded beaches on Longboat Key.
Read the full article here
So again the message is take care. We want you to keep coming back to Anna Maria Island!
There really is only one company to trust with your Anna Maria Island vacation, and only one website you need to visit. Click on www.annamariavacations.com for the very best in vacation rentals on the island. From two-bed cottages, to huge homes for the whole family, waterside, gulf front, secluded, we have it all.
Friday 10 July 2009
Fun in the sun
Sunrise and Sunset Cottage are two of our newer properties, but we have already had some glowing reports back from happy guests.
Here is one from the Bui family, who stayed in Sunrise Cottage - take a look at Sunrise here or its next-door-neighbor Sunset Cottage here
Hello,
We recently rented the sunrise cottage and wanted to provide some feedback on our experience but I didn’t see an option for this on your website. I have to admit, initially we were not certain that the pictures on the site would be an accurate depiction of the house. We’ve ran across other rentals that were too good to be true but this cottage was even better in person. We’ve used numerous websites and found that comments from previous renters have been very helpful in our decision making. Anyhow, getting back to what I was e-mailing you about.
We had a wonderful time!!! We also had the opportunity to meet Lauren (the property owner). She was very gracious and helpful…even went out of her way to e-mail us some dining options. The house was such a welcoming site after the long car trip. The kids loved the pool and we all enjoyed using it every chance we got. We can see that she’s put a lot of effort into creating a warm and inviting place and she definitely accomplished that goal. The location was very convenient to the beach which was also a plus. Overall, we were able to relax and enjoy our vacation so it made the drive well worth it. We look forward to renting again for future trips.
Thanks,
Bui family
Here is one from the Bui family, who stayed in Sunrise Cottage - take a look at Sunrise here or its next-door-neighbor Sunset Cottage here
Hello,
We recently rented the sunrise cottage and wanted to provide some feedback on our experience but I didn’t see an option for this on your website. I have to admit, initially we were not certain that the pictures on the site would be an accurate depiction of the house. We’ve ran across other rentals that were too good to be true but this cottage was even better in person. We’ve used numerous websites and found that comments from previous renters have been very helpful in our decision making. Anyhow, getting back to what I was e-mailing you about.
We had a wonderful time!!! We also had the opportunity to meet Lauren (the property owner). She was very gracious and helpful…even went out of her way to e-mail us some dining options. The house was such a welcoming site after the long car trip. The kids loved the pool and we all enjoyed using it every chance we got. We can see that she’s put a lot of effort into creating a warm and inviting place and she definitely accomplished that goal. The location was very convenient to the beach which was also a plus. Overall, we were able to relax and enjoy our vacation so it made the drive well worth it. We look forward to renting again for future trips.
Thanks,
Bui family
Tuesday 7 July 2009
Tragic death highlights dangers
We get used to living in paradise on Anna Maria Island, but it is always worth remembering the dangers which surround us, especially those posed by the sea.
It looks beautiful and serene most of the time, but as this tragic story reported in the Tampa Tribune highlights, you can never let your guard drop in the ocean.
The report says: 'State wildlife officer Terry Noll regularly patrols Longboat Pass, a channel he says is one of the most dangerous parts of Sarasota Bay.
Last year, Noll was declared a hero when he rescued four people who left their boat and were caught in the strong currents that flow from Sarasota Bay and the Gulf of Mexico between Longboat Key and Anna Maria Island.
But on Friday, he was unable to save a Central Florida man who was swept under a barge and drowned after he and some friends lost control of an overturned jet ski.
“It was just the wrong spot at the wrong time for the jet ski to roll over,” Noll said.
On Monday, the local medical examiner’s office confirmed that Jose H. Medina, 30, of Deltona died of drowning.
The incident began when Medina, his wife, and a group of friends were picnicking at the southern end of Anna Maria Island, and just after 2 p.m. Medina’s jet ski overturned. It was quickly pulled by the current toward a moored tug boat and barge.
Friends in another jet ski joined Medina in trying to stop the jet ski from being sucked underneath the barge.
Eventually they were able to turn it upright. Only then did his friends notice that Medina was missing.
Lifeguards from Coquina Beach using masks and snorkels tried to search under the barge but could not hold their position in the strong current. Medina had been in the water for almost 40 minutes when a dive team brought him to the surface.
No swimming signs are posted at Long Boat Pass, Noll said. Still, some people try to swim across the pass.'
Read the full article here
So remember, please take care out there. Tragedies such as this are thankfully rare, but one such death on our island is still too many.
There really is only one company to trust with your Anna Maria Island vacation, and only one website you need to visit. Click on www.annamariavacations.com for the very best in vacation rentals on the island. From two-bed cottages, to huge homes for the whole family, waterside, gulf front, secluded, we have it all.
It looks beautiful and serene most of the time, but as this tragic story reported in the Tampa Tribune highlights, you can never let your guard drop in the ocean.
The report says: 'State wildlife officer Terry Noll regularly patrols Longboat Pass, a channel he says is one of the most dangerous parts of Sarasota Bay.
Last year, Noll was declared a hero when he rescued four people who left their boat and were caught in the strong currents that flow from Sarasota Bay and the Gulf of Mexico between Longboat Key and Anna Maria Island.
But on Friday, he was unable to save a Central Florida man who was swept under a barge and drowned after he and some friends lost control of an overturned jet ski.
“It was just the wrong spot at the wrong time for the jet ski to roll over,” Noll said.
On Monday, the local medical examiner’s office confirmed that Jose H. Medina, 30, of Deltona died of drowning.
The incident began when Medina, his wife, and a group of friends were picnicking at the southern end of Anna Maria Island, and just after 2 p.m. Medina’s jet ski overturned. It was quickly pulled by the current toward a moored tug boat and barge.
Friends in another jet ski joined Medina in trying to stop the jet ski from being sucked underneath the barge.
Eventually they were able to turn it upright. Only then did his friends notice that Medina was missing.
Lifeguards from Coquina Beach using masks and snorkels tried to search under the barge but could not hold their position in the strong current. Medina had been in the water for almost 40 minutes when a dive team brought him to the surface.
No swimming signs are posted at Long Boat Pass, Noll said. Still, some people try to swim across the pass.'
Read the full article here
So remember, please take care out there. Tragedies such as this are thankfully rare, but one such death on our island is still too many.
There really is only one company to trust with your Anna Maria Island vacation, and only one website you need to visit. Click on www.annamariavacations.com for the very best in vacation rentals on the island. From two-bed cottages, to huge homes for the whole family, waterside, gulf front, secluded, we have it all.
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