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Longboat Key | News

A satellite image of Hurricane Irma.
    By
  • S.T. Cardinal
  • December 4, 2025
Hurricane season ends without Florida landfall

No hurricanes hit the continental United States in 2025, though the Atlantic hurricane season did see the second most Category 5 storms ever.

  • Longboat Key
  • News
Longboat Key Police Chief Russ Mager speaks at a Rotary Club of Longboat Key meeting Tuesday, Sept. 16. Mager, who spent nearly three decades in law enforcement primarily in Delray Beach, said LBKPD has training requirements similar to the much larger city of Delray and that officers on the Key are well prepared for any event that may take place thanks to partnerships the department has with neighboring jurisdictions.
    By
  • S.T. Cardinal
  • December 4, 2025
Longboat police chief begins community video series

Russ Mager will share monthly updates with the community on social media in an effort to show the department's transparency.

  • Longboat Key
  • News
Sidewalks on the southern portion of Gulf of Mexico Drive will be closed nightly as construction crews begin work to install a gas line to accommodate a dredging project in Sarasota Bay.
    By
  • S.T. Cardinal
  • December 3, 2025
Expect road, sidewalk closures on Longboat Key

The southmost segment of Gulf of Mexico Drive will be impacted as crews install a gas line and complete road work.

  • Longboat Key
  • News
Lucie Lapovsky, president of the Longboat Key Democratic Club, and Nick Gladding, president of the Republican Club of Longboat Key, are two members of Miracle on the Key, a group which aims to find common ground among hot-button political issues.
    By
  • S.T. Cardinal
  • December 3, 2025
Longboat Dems, GOP join together to find common ground

Miracle on the Key is a group of Longboat Key residents with opposing political viewpoints who get together to find common ground.

  • Longboat Key
  • News
A leatherback turtle hatchling crosses the beach.
    By
  • S.T. Cardinal
  • December 3, 2025
Turtles born on Longboat return home to nest decades later

Using brain-embedded magnetite crystals, sea turtles will make a 10,000-mile trek as adults back to their birthplace to nest.

  • Longboat Key
  • News
An e-biker rides south on the sidewalk parallel to Gulf of Mexico Drive. The town of Longboat Key is having initial discussions about writing a new ordinance to regulate the use of e-bikes to increase public safety.
    By
  • S.T. Cardinal
  • December 3, 2025
E-bike regulation considered by Longboat Key

With the rise in popularity of e-bikes, Longboat Key is mulling an ordinance to manage the rising mode of transportation.

  • Longboat Key
  • News
The Country Club Shores turn lane project on Gulf of Mexico Drive nears completion Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025, with landscaping and some striping remaining.
    By
  • S.T. Cardinal
  • December 2, 2025
Few steps remain for Country Club Shores turn lane improvements

“Thermoplastic” striping and vegetation are still being installed on the southern section of Gulf of Mexico Drive.

  • Longboat Key
  • News
Publix anchors The Shoppes at Bay Isles. To the left, Longboat Key Fitness is expanding and Reed Medical Group is moving into the corner unit.
    By
  • S.T. Cardinal
  • December 1, 2025
Reed Medical Group finds a new Longboat Key home

Dr. James Reed and his team of physicians move from temporary home at the Tidewell Building to the Shops of Bay Isles complex.

  • Longboat Key
  • Business
Petar Sibinkic is the owner and a trainer at Longboat Key Fitness, which is expanding to the unit next door, with the new space focused on stretching and massaging.
    By
  • S.T. Cardinal
  • November 28, 2025
Longboat Key Fitness expanding, stretching

The gym is expanding to the unit next door with the new space to focus on stretching and massaging.

  • Longboat Key
  • Business
The beach parallel to Gulfside Road south of the Ohana seawall recently underwent a $2.8 million interim beach renourishment project which wrapped up in February.
    By
  • S.T. Cardinal
  • November 26, 2025
Longboat has plan to renourish sand stolen by hurricanes

The hunt is on for where to find 800,000 cubic yards of sand for beach renourishment, and not just any sand will do.

  • Longboat Key
  • News
Longboat Key Planning, Zoning and Building Director Allen Parsons gave a demonstration of an artificial intelligence phone answering system to Town Commission Monday, Nov. 3.
    By
  • S.T. Cardinal
  • November 26, 2025
AI assistant begins answering phone calls for LBK planning department

If you call the Planning, Zoning and Building Department, you will get an answering machine — kind of.

  • Longboat Key
  • News
A screenshot of a video presented to the Sarasota County Commission shows personal watercraft activities in the vicinity of swimmers off South Lido Beach.
    By
  • Andrew Warfield
  • November 26, 2025
Law limiting personal watercrafts on South Lido still a year away

Sarasota County decides to pursue a lighter touch to resolve excessive personal watercraft activity at Ted Sperling Park, but relief may still be a year away.

  • Sarasota
  • News
Joan Durante Park entrance.
    By
  • S.T. Cardinal
  • November 25, 2025
Storm repairs wrapping up for Longboat green spaces

Longboat Key has seen its share of preservation wins from Sister Keys to Quick Point to Durante Park.

  • Longboat Key
  • News
Longboat Key’s Planning and Zoning Board met at Town Hall Tuesday, Nov. 18 to discuss solar panels, building inspections and tree regulations.
    By
  • S.T. Cardinal
  • November 25, 2025
Longboat Key to consider adding solar power chapter to town code

Solar panel installations are not prohibited under town code currently but could still lead to code enforcement action.

  • Longboat Key
  • News
Brightly colored stakes mark the sites of known turtle nests on beaches along Longboat Key.
    By
  • Eric Garwood
  • November 21, 2025
2025 was a record year for Sarasota sea turtles

Mote teams document more nests than ever, but turtle disorientations were also at a record level.

  • Longboat Key
  • News
1 2 3 4 5 »
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Latest in Longboat Key

1
A satellite image of Hurricane Irma.
  • December 4, 2025
Hurricane season ends without Florida landfall
2
Longboat Key Police Chief Russ Mager speaks at a Rotary Club of Longboat Key meeting Tuesday, Sept. 16. Mager, who spent nearly three decades in law enforcement primarily in Delray Beach, said LBKPD has training requirements similar to the much larger city of Delray and that officers on the Key are well prepared for any event that may take place thanks to partnerships the department has with neighboring jurisdictions.
  • December 4, 2025
Longboat police chief begins community video series
3
Sidewalks on the southern portion of Gulf of Mexico Drive will be closed nightly as construction crews begin work to install a gas line to accommodate a dredging project in Sarasota Bay.
  • December 3, 2025
Expect road, sidewalk closures on Longboat Key
4
Lucie Lapovsky, president of the Longboat Key Democratic Club, and Nick Gladding, president of the Republican Club of Longboat Key, are two members of Miracle on the Key, a group which aims to find common ground among hot-button political issues.
  • December 3, 2025
Longboat Dems, GOP join together to find common ground
5
A leatherback turtle hatchling crosses the beach.
  • December 3, 2025
Turtles born on Longboat return home to nest decades later

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