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Opinion

    By
  • Matt Walsh
  • May 30, 2019
Public park, public funding

It's exciting to envision a $100 million park on Sarasota Bay. But then there's the issue of money. From where will it come? Now, the hard part has begun — figuring which taxpayers will pay.

  • Sarasota
  • Opinion
    By
  • Matt Walsh
  • May 29, 2019
Three quality-of-life issues for Longboat

National elected officials garner all the attention, dealing with Iran and Green New Deals. But issues that matter just as much as those that will affect your neighborhood. Pickleball, anyone?

  • Longboat Key
  • Opinion
Cycling safety doesn't just apply to the roadways. The town has rules for riding on the multi-use path as well.
    By
  • Guest Author
  • May 29, 2019
Letters to the editor: Cycling safety, building permit fees, the state of the town

Key readers speak up.

  • Longboat Key
  • Opinion
Ubreakifix owner Joel Scott tinkers with a broken computer.
    By
  • Jay Heater
  • May 25, 2019
Fix it myself? Not when I have these guys available in Sarasota

Fix it myself? Not when I have these electronics guys available in Sarasota

  • East County
  • News
    By
  • Matt Walsh
  • May 23, 2019
The crime of Bobby Jones Golf Club

Reading the city consultant's business plan for the golf course is like reading a prospectus of a company with a bad idea trying to make money in a declining industry.

  • Sarasota
  • Opinion
    By
  • Matt Walsh
  • May 23, 2019
Who pays to dredge Longboat canals?

Having to mitigate damaged sea grasses raises the cost of dredging canals exponentially. It's looking as though Longboat Key needs a pay plan similar to beach renourishment.

  • Longboat Key
  • Opinion
The issue of poles, pole height, aesthetics and cell-phone service have been front and center in town this year.
    By
  • Guest Author
  • May 23, 2019
Letters to the editor: Getting cell-service right

Island residents sound off on Key topics.

  • Longboat Key
  • Opinion
City Commissioners rejected a plan to explore Payne Park as a possible site for the Sarasota Orchestra.
    By
  • Matt Walsh
  • May 23, 2019
Vote on Sarasota Orchestra sends a message

The city seems at a turning point, as it was in the late 1960s when forward-thinking commissioners shaped a lasting vision.

  • Sarasota
  • Opinion
Payne Park
  • By Joseph Bartel
  • May 15, 2019
My View: Reject the Sarasota Orchestra’s land grab in Payne Park

The group's argument that moving to the downtown-adjacent park is all about rising sea levels is absurd.

  • Sarasota
  • Opinion
    By
  • Matt Walsh
  • May 10, 2019
School vouchers and choice for all

Think back to the GI Bill and how those college vouchers gave our veterans total school choice.

  • Longboat Key
  • Opinion
The Pillar of Hope stands in the lobby of CPC’s Child Advocacy Center. After a child’s initial services, the child and a staff member drop a blue marble down the pillar to join other marbles, symbolizing they are not alone.
    By
  • Emily Walsh
  • May 10, 2019
Prevention — proof it's protecting our children

As the Child Protection Center reaches its 40th year, new data showing the child abuse rate in Florida is declining prove that its services are working and must continue.

  • Sarasota
  • Opinion
    By
  • Guest Author
  • May 6, 2019
Letters to the editor: Master plan project fits with Selby's goals

Sarasota area readers sound off on key issues.

  • Sarasota
  • Opinion
    By
  • Guest Author
  • May 6, 2019
Letters to the Editor: Learn from The Bay's public engagement

Longboat readers sound off on issues.

  • Longboat Key
  • Opinion
Rendering of an affordable housing project proposed by the late Sarasota entrepreneur Harvey Vengroff. Citing frustration with city regulations, Vengroff abandoned the idea after spending three years and $300,000 on it.
    By
  • Adrian Moore
  • May 2, 2019
Affordable housing requires whole solution

The answer to Sarasota's lack of affordable housing is simple, but few communities are willing to commit to what's necessary.

  • Sarasota
  • Opinion
The Longboat Center for the Arts closed in 2017.
    By
  • Matt Walsh
  • May 2, 2019
Ringling reconsiders arts center venture: Now what? Don't give up

College's president didn't shut and lock the arts center door. When two sides want a deal to happen, they'll find a way.

  • Longboat Key
  • Opinion
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Latest News

1
Kiki Bullas will be busy over the next few weeks competing in the USATF and AAU regional track and field junior olympics, hoping to reach the national competition in both.
  • June 22, 2026
East County Athlete of the Week: Kiki Bullas
2
A May 2024 rendering of the Sarasota County library on Longboat Key.
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3
Manatee County staff and key stakeholders toss ceremonial dirt to kick off construction on a half-mile trail segment that will span from the Lake Manatee Water Treatment Plant to Rye Preserver.
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Trail system breaks ground near Lake Manatee
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Sienna Linn, a rising first grader at Lakewood Ranch Preparatory Academy, says she has no pets at home but has had a blast with her dog, Mia, at the Little Vet School camp.
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Little Vet School teaches skills at The Out-of-Door Academy's summer camp
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Palmetto community leaders showed up strong at Longboat Island Chapel's latest charity drive to support Mt. Carmel Resource Center on June 16. From left, Deputy Ken Jewett, Sgt. Joy Jewett, Chief of Police Scott Tyler, City of Palmetto Mayor Daniel West, Shirley Pearson, executive director of Strength in Action, Inc., Rev. Brock Patterson, Pearson's sister Laura Wallace, and Town of Longboat Key Town Manager Howard Tipton.
  • June 20, 2026
From food to furniture, chapel's programs continue to make an impact

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