News briefs

Town manager addresses boat mooring

Town Manager Dave Bullock has responded to a complaint lodged by two boaters who can’t find a convenient space to dock for lunch.

St. Petersburg residents Paul Tournier and Aleth Voarick sent an April 29 email to Mayor Jack Duncan, informing him they are having trouble docking between Moore’s Stonecrab Restaurant and Mar Vista Dockside Restaurant & Pub in the Longbeach Village. 

Tournier complained about approximately 12 sailboats anchored off the shore of Longboat Key in the area that they call “permanent residents of that anchorage.”

Bullock responded to the request in a May 1 email at Duncan’s request, explaining the boats are allowed to anchor offshore as long as they are not interfering with the marked channel in the Intracoastal Waterway.  

“Local governments, including the town of Longboat Key, are prohibited from regulating anchorages within waters of the state except in state-designated mooring fields,” said Bullock, who is also an avid boater. 

Bullock said the town’s marine patrol unit “is vigilant in checking the vessels in that area.”

Bullock says there’s no evidence that any of the boats anchored in the area live there full time. 

C.C. Shores seeks turn lane

Country Club Shores residents took to the podium at the May 4 Longboat Key Town Commission to express approval for a Florida Department of Transportation study that will analyze whether a future left-hand turn lane is needed on Gulf of Mexico Drive for drivers heading southbound on the road as they attempt to turn left into the community. 

“A left-hand turn lane is more about safety,” said resident Ed Jewett. “It’s an escape lane that allows us to also keep traffic moving.”

Commissioner Lynn Larson, a Country Club Shores resident, pushed for the turn lane as an FDOT priority for the road.