Filed at July 1, 2009 under History and Florida Keys and Upper Keys and Islamorada by Keys
10 AM to 12 Noon, Every Saturday & Sunday
Hurricane Monument @ 81.6 mm
(305) 879-0390
Agenda Summery
The tour is approx 6 miles, with frequent stops. This is not a race and we will go at a comfortable pace.
Bring your own bike. If you don’t have one, ask your concierge or contact Back Country Cowboy 305-517-4177 backcountrycowboy.com for rates.
The tour is free. If you would like, a donation will be collected for local youth sport program
Bring water and use sun screen.
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Filed at May 16, 2009 under Entertainment and Florida Keys and Upper Keys and Islamorada by Keys
On Monday, May 18, at the TIB Bank of the Keys Amphitheater, fans can experience two of the most critically acclaimed guitarists playing today — Jennifer Batten and Vicki Genfan.
At one point Batten was in 6 different bands, playing everything from straight ahead rock, to metal, fusion, and funk. A major turning point came when she was selected from more than 100 guitarists to play in Michael Jackson’s band, resulting in 3 world tours over 10 years and playing in front of almost 5 million people. Spring of 98’ saw Batten joining legendary guitarist Jeff Beck, resulting in two CDs (“Who Else,” “You Had It Coming”) and corresponding world tours. Says the Cleveland Plain Dealer of Jennifer’s Rock N Roll Hall of Fame performance honoring Les Paul: “The evening’s showstopper was Jennifer Batten…amazing and technically dazzling.”
Vicki Genfan has captivated both US and international audiences with a unique style that defies description. Winner of the prestigious 2008 Guitar Player’s “Guitar Superstar”Award, Vicki has developed a sound all her own. As Joel Selvin of the San Francisco Chronicle writes, “Genfan doesn’t just play guitar. She also slaps it, tickles it, fondles it, scratches it, tosses it around in her hands and coaxes all kinds of unlikely, rhythmic sounds out of the otherwise simple instrument.”
Vicki is that rare artist whose live performances are becoming legendary among fans. Genfan’s newest release is “UnCovered.”
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Filed at April 17, 2009 under Accomodations and Florida Keys and Upper Keys and Islamorada and Resorts by Keys
The main building at Cheeca Lodge Resort and Spa in Islamorada caught fire for the second time this year around 11 a.m. on Wednesday, according to Keys fire officials. Islamorada Fire Chief William Wagner, who was in Key West but was monitoring the situation by radio, said three firefighters were transported to Mariners Hospital in Tavernier during the response – one for a sprained ankle, one for a cardiac issue and another for possible smoke inhalation. All were reported to be OK later that day.
The cause of the fire appeared to be accidental, according to assistant Islamorada Fire Chief Bruce Stoll. He reported that the fire started on the outside of the building and spread into a stairwell. Key Largo Volunteer Fire Department Chief Sergio Garcia said firefighters had the fire under control by 1 p.m. but were checking the building for flare-ups and were removing part of a stairwell. Fire and rescue crews from Key Largo to Big Pine Key responded.
Jim Costello, resort manager at Cheeca, said a demolition crew accidentally started the fire while cutting into a metal roof with a cutting torch. Sparks from the torch flew and accidentally caught the old thatch roof on fire, Costello said. Costello said the fire was contained quickly and won’t impact the resort’s plans to reopen by the end of the year.
Zirkelbach said the fire started somewhere along the northeast corner of the building opposite the starting point of the New Year’s Eve fire that severely damaged the structure and closed the resort. Zirkelbach said he heard reports that a welder’s torch ignited the fire somewhere on the fourth floor, but fire officials would not confirm it. Wagner said it appeared the fire could have started on a long thatch roof overhanging what used to be an outside dining area on the side of the building facing the ocean.
A thatched overhang on the north side of the building was the source of the first fire that is believed to have been sparked by an ember. The main building housed administrative offices, a lobby, two restaurants, bars, a conference center and 49 guest rooms.
“I’m just really distraught, how it could catch fire again,” said Wagner, who since the first fire has worked with other Keys fire officials to push for more stringent permit requirements for fire retardant on thatched structures. Wagner said his department hadn’t pushed for Cheeca to check its retardant on the ocean-side thatch, which was partially burned in the first fire, because Cheeca had planned to demolish and rebuild the structure. “They were going to demolish the building, so there was no reason to push the issue,” he said. “Now it’s just a matter of a big mess and drama.”
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Filed at March 15, 2009 under Florida Keys and Upper Keys and Islamorada and Animals and Fish and Lobster and Tourism by Keys
Big Betsey, once deemed the second-most photographed icon in the Florida Keys by Eastman Kodak, behind only the Southernmost Point, could soon migrate back into public view. Betsey, better known simply as The Giant Lobster of Islamorada, has been absent for months from her longtime post outside the former Treasure Village on Plantation Key. “We’re working on it,” Mia Berry said of plans for the re-emergence of the family-owned fiberglass sculpture.
With its former home having been transformed into a school, the lobster has been hidden away in a storage yard off the Overseas Highway. Within the next few weeks, however, the giant crustacean, 30 feet tall by 40 feet long, will re-emerge, luring passersby to the Rain Barrel Artisan Village on Plantation Key.
Rain Barrel Gallery LLC and Big Betsy owners Dennis and Mia Berry finalized a 10-year lease with a purchase option on Monday, Dennis Berry and Rain Barrel co-owner Mike Forster said. They did not disclose terms of the deal.
“We are doing this because we feel in this economy we need to generate more trips to the Rain Barrel for our tenants,” Forster said. “We figured that the lobster was a great draw. It always has been a great draw. It was a great draw at Treasure Village and it will be at the Rain Barrel.” Read more »
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Filed at February 6, 2009 under Accomodations and Florida Keys and Upper Keys and Islamorada and Resorts and Vacations by Keys
Holiday Isle Resort and Marina, a major hotel resort in Islamorada, is in foreclosure after lenders filed to recover $77 million loaned on an aborted condotel conversion. VII Holiday Isle Funding LLC, a subsidiary of Connecticut-based Starwood Capital Group, filed against several companies affiliated with West Palm Beach developer Adam Schlesinger, and his company, Ceebraid Signal.
It’s unclear how the filing will impact operations at the property, located at mile marker 84.5. But news of the legal action brought reaction from Islamorada’s Mayor Cathi Hill. “In conjunction with the events at Cheeca, this could not have come at a worse time,” Hill said. A New Year’s eve fire closed down Cheeca Resort and Islamorada officials and business leaders are still are unsure when the tony oceanfront resort will reopen.
Holiday Isle is also well-know for its charter boat row, where deep sea fishing boats line up for guests drawn from Holiday Isle and other resort properties throughout the Upper Keys. Charter captains, already on edge over an uncertain future for the resort and marina, talked Friday about their concerns with a weak economy and fewer people willing to shell out hundreds of dollars for a day of fishing. “I don’t know what our future is right now,” said Capt. J.R. Rudzin of the Captain JR charter boat. Read more »
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Filed at January 13, 2009 under Florida Keys and Upper Keys and Islamorada by Keys
The annual Art Under the Oaks features arts and crafts in many media and live music on Jan. 17. The show is at the San Pedro Church, Mile Marker 89.5. Food will be available. Admission is free. For details, call 305-853-0651 on Plantation Key in Islamorada. For information about the Keys, call 800-FLA-KEYS (352-5397) ext. 2 or visit www.fla-keys.com.
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Filed at January 1, 2009 under Florida Keys and Florida Keys and Upper Keys and Islamorada and Resorts and Vacations by Keys
A New Year’s Eve fire has heavily damaged part of a landmark Florida Keys hotel but there were no reports of injuries. The fire happened at the Cheeca Lodge & Spa in Islamorada. The hotel was popular with President George H.W. Bush who visited on bonefishing trips.
Monroe County Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Becky Herrin says a caller reported seeing flames burning through the roof of the main lodge building just before 10 p.m. Wednesday and that the fire was under control before midnight. The cause of the fire is under investigation, but it apparently started in palm thatching that was attached to the main building.
The resort has nearly 200 guestrooms and was fully occupied. Some rooms during the winter start at around $269 a night. Damage to the hotel is still being assessed. Guests in the main building were relocated to other nearby hotels.
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Filed at September 21, 2008 under Hurricane and Florida Keys and Upper Keys and Islamorada by Keys
By Robert Silk, The Key West Citizen Staff
Sea Oats Beach, Islamorada - after Wilma
The vulnerable section of the Overseas Highway along Sea Oats Beach was exposed anew when Hurricane Ike brushed the Florida Keys. Moderate tropical-storm force winds and a 2- to 3-foot sea-level rise were all it took to send water and debris over much of the roadway, prompting officials to close one lane for several hours.
Don’t expect that section of highway, spanning Mile Marker 74 to 75 on Lower Matecumbe Key, to be fortified anytime soon.
“Folks would like to see that area high and dry in any storm event, but I think there are other engineering concerns that make this the best we can do at this time,” said John Palenchar, a Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) environmental permits coordinator.
The waves on Sept. 9 overtopped the beach, including a newly constructed dune line, leaving seaweed, lobster traps, logs and other debris on the roadway. High tide that evening also reached the shoulder of the roadway, forcing more cleanup the next morning.
Read more »
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Filed at January 13, 2008 under Government and Florida Keys and Upper Keys and Islamorada by Keys
~Prepared by Robert Page
- Plantation Yacht Harbor was on the market in 1997 for sale for $4 million, a contract had been signed, but with the incorporation vote, the Village elected officials managed to secretly negotiate a purchase price of $8 million, all done very quickly, without any public input or support.
- Borrowed $4 million dollars in 2004 and could not figure out how to spend it until 2007.
- Does not maintain an inventory of all items valued over $500.
- Have never conducted an inventory review to determine, if items purchased with taxpayers money is still in possession of the staff. Have any items been lost, stolen, or given away? Who knows or cares?
- Gave away a street ending at the ocean (no public hearing) on Upper Matecumbe Key to developer Bill Fountain which is against state law.
- Village has never completed one project on time and within budget.
- Former Mayer Frank Kulisky secretly bought property next to Plantation Yacht Harbor (Founders Park) for $700,000 then sold part of it to the Village for $1.4 million.
- Former Mayor Mark Gregg changed a single family residence into eight houses and sold the eight living units for millions of dollars.
- Village has borrowed $25 million dollars with no referendum vote or public support. Annual payments for eight loans are over $1 million a year.
- Village manager does not prepare a full and complete budget for review each year at the beginning of budget preparation time. He doles out the budget, in many small pieces, and the elected officials spend months going over the incomplete budget and never learn the bottom line until the very last moment when the millage rate has to be set He tricks the officials each year and they never catch on. Then the millage is set and nobody looks at the budget again to provide oversight to see that funds are only spent on authorized issues. That is why the left over funds from the previous year disappears.
- During Hurricane Wilma village computers, furniture and valuable documents were left on the floor of the Village Hall, knowing it was going to be flooded and computers ruined. Documents had to be sent to Texas for expensive recovery.
- Since incorporation in 1998, six managers have come and gone and village is now searching for number seven.
- No financial reports for six months in 2006, and none for September 2007 (end of fiscal year)
- Quote from newspaper Reporter “Over the past year, the Islamorada Village Council has spent countless hours and hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars searching for answers to issues that will undoubtedly shape Islamorada’s future” “as the year comes to a close, the majority of those answers remain elusive, leaving Islamorada cash strapped, without a manager and still working out ways to fund projects already underway.” Fire chief Wagner said “we have no reserves in the capital fund, we’re in really, really desperate conditions here” This is the guy that left his fire trucks on Lower Matecumbe to be caught in salt water during Hurricane Wilma and had to purchase new truck replacements. Councilman Reckwerdt said “we have no idea how bad our finances are”. Finance Director Fillinovich said “we need to set money aside for construction projects instead of taking out loans and paying through the general fund. She urged the council to put money aside for a rainy day” but it has not done so.
- The Free Press newspaper said “2007 was a year when the Islamorada Village Council had trouble making up its mind –repeatedly” ” Council spent nearly $600,000 on the municipal complex, much of it for architectural fees. Initially budgeted for $4.4 million, the complex earlier this year was expected to cost nearly $10 million.” “The council also had a difficult time making up its mind about this year’s tax rate. In an effort to protect village reserves, council members in July voted to override the 7% tax cut recommended by the state. But they reinstated the cut in September”.
- Newspaper Reporter called the Village of Islamorada “Dysfunctional”.
- When documents that might reveal false or embarrassing information are requested by the public – the Village Attorney just labels them ”exempt” from the public records law.
- Spent over $200,000 studying whether to ship sewerage to Key Largo.
- Plantation Key Colony Sewer program is mismanaged, resulting in cost overruns, sewer backups, resulting in houses being condemned, and torn down, family dislocated, insurance claims being ignored and the sewerage collection system is years behind schedule. The Fla Dept of Environmental Protection has cited the village for many violations and fined the village for the violations. Re-use of the treated sewage water has cost nearly $2 million and all we have is a tank full of salt water that cannot be used.
- Plantation Key Colony Sewer program budget is overspent by $1,055,709. Poor fiscal management.
- Village does not evaluate employee performance.
- Village has a turnover of personnel reported to be 60%. No exit interviews to find out why high turnover of staff.
- Village Manager gets an annual evaluation but the format is flawed by being too subjective resulting in a convoluted and meaningless report..
- Village Manager does not have a clear set of measurable performance standards. He needs to be told what is to be done, how much money the elected officials are giving him, and how long it should take to finish the task. Monthly progress reports will reveal if he is doing his job.
- Village attorney has been paid about $8 million dollars for legal services. Village should have in-house legal staff.
- Over 900 petitions were signed to require any expenditure of the village that exceeded $1 million dollars must be by referendum. Ignored by elected officials.
- Elected officials interject themselves into the operation of the village and continually give instructions to the staff and not the manager. Village attorney has repeatedly warned the elected officials that their job is to set policy and not to interfere in the management of the village. All of the elected officials like to micromanage the daily operation.
- I could go on with horror stories of incompetence but I think the message is clear.
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