News Briefs

+ MW Development continues to pitch plan
MW Development Group wrote in a Monday, April 23, email to Colony Beach & Tennis Resort unit owners that it has the support of InterContinental Hotel Group (IHG) to brand the Colony with the upscale Crowne Plaza Resorts and Hotels flag. Crowne Plaza is one of many IHG brands.

MW Development Group is owned by Longboat Key resident Manfred Welfonder who has partnered with Sarasota developer Jay Tallman, to pitch their redevelopment plan to unit owners. The company was one of six finalists competing for redevelopment of the resort before its proposal was eliminated in August.

The Colony Beach & Tennis Resort Association Board announced Club Holdings Ventures LLC as its development partner in September.

+ Key Club oral arguments scheduled
The Second District Court of Appeals has scheduled oral arguments in the town and Longboat Key Club and Resort appeals of a writ of certiorari granted to the Islandside Property Owners Coalition (IPOC) in their challenge of a development order approved by the Longboat Key Town Commission for the Key Club’s proposed $400 million Islandside redevelopment project.

The cases are scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, June 5, at the Lawton M. Chiles Jr. Courthouse, 1005 E. Memorial Blvd., Lakeland.

+ Blogger arrested for trespassing at Key Club
Police arrested Kristen Melanie Pace on trespassing charges early Saturday morning after Pace allegedly began knocking on doors on the fifth floor of the Longboat Key Club and Resort in an attempt to locate a guest, whom a witness confirmed was actor Dominic Monaghan. Pace is a former blogger for This Week in Sarasota, a partner of The Observer Group Inc.

A Longboat Key police report states that Pace, 35, said she had been with the guest earlier that evening. Police asked Pace, who appeared to be intoxicated, to call a cab or a friend for a ride home but arrested her after she continued to talk about going to the fifth floor to find a friend.

Pace was booked into Sarasota County Jail and released on $250 bail. Pace was photographed with Monaghan in the hours before the incident at a Sarasota Film Festival event.

+ New smartphone app tracks area attractions
A new Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau application allows visitors to Longboat Key, Anna Maria Island, Bradenton and Lakewood Ranch to book their vacations via their smartphones. The application uses a geotracking device to provide information about area attractions, hotels, events, restaurants and more. To download the free application, search “Bradenton area” in the iTunes Store.

Meetings & Agendas
• Planning & Zoning Board meeting — 9 a.m. Tuesday, May 1
• Longboat Key Town Commission meeting — 7 p.m. Monday, May 7
• Code Enforcement Board — 10 a.m. Monday, May 14