IN BRIEF

+ Town selects groin contractor
The town selected a contractor, which will construct two, permeable adjustable-type groins behind The Islander Club for $899,898.

Town Purchasing Manager Gerry Wilson said Punta Gorda-based Marine Contracting Group Inc., the lowest bidder for the project, will be sent a contract next week for the project, which will counteract a fast-eroding beach behind the condominium.

The company will not outsource any of the work to other contractors, which led to the lower bid.

Wilson and town staff are pleased with the low bid, especially because the town estimated the project would cost between $1.5 million and $1.8 million.

Once construction begins in November after sea turtle-nesting season, a best-case scenario for completion of the groins is May 2010.

+ Buchanan opposes pipeline placement
Congressman Vern Buchanan, (R-Longboat Key), signed a letter along with four other senators and representatives last week, urging the U.S. Department of Transportation to reject Port Dolphin’s natural gas port and pipeline placement until an agreement can be reached with local municipalities like Longboat Key.

The letter asks the federal department to approve the project only after Port Dolphin relocates its proposed pipeline from its current route north of Anna Maria Island, which Longboat Key and other communities believe runs through white-sand sources for future beach renourishments.

+ Keep the status quo
The Longboat Key Code Enforcement Board unanimously voted Chairman George Noble, Vice Chairman Robert Krosney and Secretary Claudia Fuller to new one-year terms at its Monday, June 8 regular meeting.

+ Correction
In a June 11 article, it was incorrectly reported that the Longboat Key Club and Resort purchased Café on the Bay, at the Longboat Key Club Moorings. The club purchased only the land and the building, which formerly housed the restaurant.  

+ Meetings & Agendas
• Planning and Zoning Board Special Meeting — 9 a.m. Thursday, June 18.
• Town Commission Special Meeting — 1:30 p.m. Thursday, June 18.
• Town Commission Regular Workshop — 2 p.m. Thursday, June 18.
All meetings take place at Town Hall, 501 Bay Isles Road.