Longboat Key News and Sarasota City News encourages Letters to the Editor on timely issues. Please email to: letters@lbknews.com or mail to PO Box 8001, Longboat Key, FL 34228. We also print letters sent to Town Hall that address Longboat Key issues. We reserve the right to edit.Commission is ridiculous
To: Editor
The town is pathetic.
Owners are doing their best but ridiculous Longboat Key Town is not helping people with distressed property. They are too busy dealing with stupidity and failing owners miserably.
Last year’s property taxes need refunding to owners. The town continues with pathetic projects whilst totally ignoring property owners. Disgusted. ‘We are adding Seeds along the Key.’
Missing in action. Tell the ‘commissioners’… “Get in a car.”
Drive and see what you achieved in 9 months: next to nothing.
Stop faking and get the island sorted, if not…move on. Stop making out you know what you are doing…you don’t. Move on.
Trevor Gillot
Longboat Key
Follow up to Inquiries
To: Bob Gault
Here are the approved landscape plans from December 2023, which revised previously approved landscape plans for the project. Also attached is a rendering used during Unicorp’s presentation of the parking garage concept, which preceded the December 2023 plan update. Not sure if their intention was that the rendering (which most likely depicts fully matured trees and foliage) was for that concept to carry through with or without a parking garage. Please let us know if you have any more questions.
Isaac Brownman
Assistant Town Manager
Town of Longboat Key
Follow up to Inquiries
To: Longboat Key Assistant Town Manager Isaac Brownman
Thank you Isaac.
Bob Gault
Longboat Key
Follow up to Inquiries
To: Bob Gault
Yes, let me work our Planning, Zoning, & Building group to track that graphic down.
Isaac Brownman
Assistant Town Manager
Town of Longboat Key
Follow up to Inquiries
To: Longboat Key Commissioner Gary Coffin
Thanks Gary again to you and Isaac for the follow up on St Regis landscaping. As I recall the elevation rendering presented in the public hearings depicted a very dense grove of palms helping screen the facility, etc. I was thinking how
Thanks Gary again to you and Isaac for the follow up on St Regis landscaping.
As I recall the elevation rendering presented in the public hearings depicted a very dense grove of palms helping screen the facility, etc. I was thinking how can they plant palms so closely together side by side? It was a wall of landscaping.
Currently there are only a handful of skinny Queen Palms and allot of low grass type plants. Can we get a pdf of the rendering perspective presented in the Commission meeting please?
Just trying to understand what happened.
Bob Gault
Longboat Key
Follow up to Inquiries
To: Bob Gault
Bob, Thank you for your enquiry this week. Here are the responses from our directors to your questions. Should you have any other questions or feedback, please don’t hesitate to reply back or attend our next regular meeting scheduled on September 8th at 1 p.m.
Gary Coffin
Commissioner
Town of Longboat Key
Follow up to Inquiries
To: Longboat Key Commissioner Gary Coffin
As a follow-up to your questions last week, here are some answers below. Please let me know if you have any follow-up questions.
Landscaping in front of St. Regis.
Hearing from at least one resident that the expectation was that the landscaping would be heartier/more dense.
The landscaping installed at the St. Regis is consistent with the approved landscaping plan.
Does the landscaping they have implemented match their approved landscape plans?
Yes. Allen Parsons walked the site with the project’s Construction Manager to ensure the installed landscaping was consistent with the approved landscaping plan.
Does the landscaping implemented and approved on the landscape plans match the rendering they supplied during public hearings?
Yes.
Do they have any plans of adding more?
Beyond ensuring the installed landscaping was consistent with the approved landscaping plan, Town staff would not have any involvement in the St. Regis’ future plans for additional landscaping.
Seems sparse for a 5-star resort and condo development.
The landscaping installed at the St. Regis is consistent with the approved landscaping plan.
St. Regis Parking Lifts
Also, the recollection is that the final approved plan would have parking lifts. Have those been implemented?
As a part of an amendment package in 2023 (Resolution 2013-12), all 62 mechanical parking lift spaces were removed, and the parking was made up on an expanded surface parking area. The final approved plan in 2023 added one more parking space beyond the original 2021 plan that had the lifts. The 2023 approved plan included a total of 469 parking spaces.
971 Longboat Club Road
1. Property is out of sorts (still damaged from storms and no apparent repair activity in sight).
2. Any update/status to repairs on that property?
A Notice of Violation has been filed against the owner. Code Enforcement staff have been in communication with the property owner, who has committed to having her contractors file the correct permits. Code enforcement spoke to the property owner yesterday morning. The owner stated that she has signed contacts and does not know why the contractors haven’t applied for permits. The Code enforcement officer has requested twice for her to send him the contracts and still have not received anything. The Code Enforcement officer informed her that she has until 7.30.2025 to have permits applied for. If they are not applied for by then she will receive a Notice of Hearing to appear before the Special Magistrate.
As a side note, she stated to the Code Enforcement officer that she has been dealing personal matters as well.
Isaac Brownman
Assistant Town Manager
Town of Longboat Key
Hurricane Recovery Question
To: Longboat Key Commissioner Gary Coffin
Hey Commissioner Gary, yesterday I had the need to travel our entire island up to the north end to Whitney Beach Plaza. Now that we are in the rainy, growing season it is so evident and sad to see the many very large Ficus Banyan trees that are not leafing back out and appear to be unquestionably dead.
This significantly diminishes the aesthetics of our once beautiful island and after the Town worked hard to get all the utility poles and lines down. Also, this is a safety issue with all the bare dead branches snapping off in storm winds.
As you know, much of our property values on LBK are buoyed up by our island paradise landscaping which now is damaged almost a year after our two terrible storms and highlighted by these very large dead trees. We hoped they would come back but many have not.
The question: is there, or will there be a Town plan to deal with these dead trees
on right of ways and on private property? Surely private property owners are hard pressed due to the priority repairs they had on their homes and may not have the cash flow to deal with removing these big trees. Can the Town help facilitate financial help from FEMA, State or County for these property owners? We all surely do not want these island eye sores to remain standing tall and dead for another year.
Bob Gault
Longboat Key
Commendation and Lifesaving Award Recommendation – Officer Mathis
To: Longboat Key Deputy Police Chief Frank Rubino
Officer Michael Mathis is a great guy. I’m not surprised he did what was required of him willfully and timely. We are all so fortunate to have such great public safety folks looking after us. Congratulations Michael.
Gary Coffin
Commissioner, Town of Longboat Key
Commendation and Lifesaving Award Recommendation – Officer Mathis
To: Longboat Key Town Manager Howard Tipton
It is with great pride and appreciation that I recognize Officer Mathis for his exemplary service and unwavering dedication, as outlined in the commendation submitted by Captain Hankins. I want to thank Captain Hankins for taking the time to formally document and submit this well-deserved recognition.
Officer Mathis recently distinguished himself in two significant incidents that reflect the highest standards of our department and the profession of law enforcement.
In the first incident, while on marine patrol, Officer Mathis acted swiftly and selflessly to save the life of an elderly man who was in imminent danger of drowning. Without hesitation and with complete disregard for his own safety, Officer Mathis entered the water and successfully brought the individual to safety. His heroic actions under pressure undoubtedly prevented a tragedy and are a testament to his courage and the Town of Longboat Key’s commitment to public safety.
In a separate incident, Officer Mathis again demonstrated compassion and professionalism by locating a missing elderly gentleman who had been the subject of a BOLO (Be On the Lookout) issued by the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office. Upon finding the individual, Officer Mathis observed he was disoriented and having difficulty using his phone’s GPS. He went out of his way to provide the man with printed directions back to Miami Airport. The gentleman later arrived home safely in Haiti, much to the relief of his worried daughter.
These incidents highlight Officer Mathis’s integrity, situational awareness, and commitment to public service. In recognition of his life-saving actions during the marine patrol incident, I am forwarding this commendation to the Department’s Awards Committee with my full support for awarding Officer Mathis the Lifesaving Award.
Please join me in commending Officer Mathis for his bravery, compassion, and exemplary service to the Longboat Key community.
Frank Rubino
Interim Chief of Police, Longboat Key Police Department
Road change
To: Longboat Key Assistant Town Manager Isaac Brownman
Based on what we know so far, I wonder whether we should start asking questions on this subject. Everything cited in Maggie’s note, including legislative history, seems to address the name of the body of water only and not that of anything else bearing the Gulf of America. I suggest we hold fire until fired upon.
Ken Schneier
Mayor, Town of Longboat Key
Road change
To: Longboat Key Mayor Ken Schneier
Thank you Mayor and Maggie, I am going to reach out to two of our FDOT District 1 leadership team contacts and see if they have direction related to the two questions/items below.
Isaac Brownman
Assistant Town Manager , Town of Longboat Key
Road change
To: Longboat Key Mayor Ken Schneier
The answer to your question is not as clear as I would like, but it appears that HB 575 only updated the statutory references for Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America. There does not appear to be an “explicit or implicit requirement” in the legislation for the Town to change the name of the road.
That said, the bill analysis includes certain assertions that imply that the drafters contemplated that there would be an impact on local governments (ie, cities). The comments state:
– “The bill aligns Florida Statutes with the recent federal designation of the “Gulf of America” in Executive Order 14172—Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness—by replacing references to the “Gulf of Mexico” with “Gulf of America.”
– The analysis indicates the only impact on local government would be an insignificant, negative fiscal impact from updating official documents, websites, signage, publications, and other materials to reflect the new designation change from “Gulf of Mexico” to “Gulf of America.”’
– The analysis also references the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund (BTIITF) action: “On March 5, 2025, the BTIITF (a/k/a Governor and Cabinet) issued a resolution directing all state agencies, divisions, and personnel under its jurisdiction to update maps, records, publications, and resources to reflect the new designation. The resolution also mandates that administrative rules, policies, and procedures be updated on a continual basis and authorizes the adoption of rules specifically for this purpose. Additionally, all land managers of publicly accessible state-owned lands bordering the Gulf must designate suitable locations for signage recognizing the name change.” The jurisdiction for BTIITF applies to state agencies – which does not typically encompass municipalities.
The legislative analysis summary is intended to point out, that while the legislation does not specifically include a requirement on a municipality, the legislative analysis seems to indicate an implied assumption that general purpose governments’ (ie, cities and counties) would be impacted and would absorb costs associated with things like signage changes. So the analysis, which is not law, creates confusion.
As you are well aware, Gulf of Mexico Drive (a/k/a State Road 789) on Longboat Key is a road owned and maintained by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT). However, FDOT refers to its state road inventory using a numbering system, not a naming system. For this reason, I suspect (but have not found documentation) that the naming of state roads occurs at some other local level; and that Longboat’s Gulf of Mexico Drive was given that name by the Town, or Manatee County, or by the State. As you know, the same State Road 789 heading north is named “Gulf Drive” on Anna Maria Island.
Because of this uncertainty surrounding the origination of the road’s name, we are recommending that Town Staff: (1) reach out to the FDOT contacts for their perspective and see if they have issued any position on this question, and (2) conduct research into when (and which entity) named State Road 789 “Gulf of Mexico Drive”. I hope that with this additional information, our office will be able to provide a more definitive answer on the question.
Our firm will continue to see if there is any other guidance on this topic. Please give me a call if you would like to discuss further.
Maggie D. Mooney
Town Attorney, Town of Longboat Key
Road change
To: Longboat Key Town Attorney Maggie Mooney
Is there any explicit or implicit requirement that the name of Gulf of Mexico Drive be changed? It seems this issue will come up in the Fall.
Ken Schneier
Mayor, Town of Longboat Key
Road change
To: George Reenstra
G-we are in full accord and supportive of the change of name of the Gulf…Craig/Kip
Craig Hall
Longboat Key
Road change
To: Longboat Key Commission
I wanted to resend this email as I have not had a response. Please advise the next steps…should I attend meeting and raise this question, is it under consideration, what is the Town’s position?
George Reenstra
Longboat Key
Road change
To: Longboat Key Commission
The Florida legislature has recently passed for implementation by the FDOT house Bill 575.
This bill, signed by the governor requires agencies to make changes from Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America. I live on Longboat Club Road, I drive of Gulf of Mexico road daily.
I support the name change, can you please advise the timetable for compliance. I am not sure if the current name extents beyond the bridges at the north and south end of Longboat Key.
How do we proceed? I understand your privacy policy, I have BCC a number of residents that support this change.
George Reenstra
Longboat Key
My sympathies
To: Longboat Key Commission
I have read the correspondence in this mornings mail and m this morning’s mail regarding requiring actions to satisfy to autocrats: renaming a body of water and responding to bureaucratic DOGE demands for a large amount of information in a short time. My thought is “Thank God I am not there to deal with such nonsense.”
I also am reasonably confident that some of those who have been eager to earn their stripes in supporting a renaming would be among those complaining about wasteful Town spending at other times. As would The Longboat Observer. Address changes are costly for jurisdictions in signage, mapping, correspondence and a host of other things. Private properties will also have some expense in address changes and for condominiums, certain signage.
To what end? The body of water does not care. It exists regardless of human impositions, such as what someone decides they want to call it. And sometimes that body of water pays visits to those humans to make its point.
The Florida DOGE request speaks for itself in carrying on the proud and effective tradition of its Federal forebear. Toadying personified.
Good luck to all of you as I know these impose added effort that your position requires that you and staff grin and bear it. I do not have to grin and can be outraged. Free state of Florida my gavel!
Terry Gans
Former Mayor
Two (2) GMD Sidewalk locations: FDOT
To: Longboat Key Commission
Regarding the two sidewalk / multi-use trail spots you noted as potential trip hazards, FDOT has indicated that they made those locations temporarily safe and have scheduled to grind those spots down on Monday.
Isaac Brownman
Assistant Town Manager
Town of Longboat Key
Recycling seaweed on Lido beach?
To: Sarasota City Mayor Liz Alpert
Is there a way to gather washed up seaweed? Can we deploy individuals from juvenile detention or those doing community service to gather washed up seaweed? Can it be composted? Does Mote have any ideas about how to make use of what is otherwise an eyesore in tourist land?
Christine Schlesinger
Sarasota
Recycling seaweed on Lido beach?
To: Christine Schlesinger
I’ve never had anyone ask this question before. I am copying the interim city manager and deputy city manager so that appropriate staff can respond.
Liz Alpert
Mayor
Town of Longboat Key
