Cortez Village Historical Society

March 05

Cortez Fire Volunteers Schedule Mortgage Burning Ceremony Monday
Cortez Fire Volunteers Schedule Mortgage Burning Ceremony Monday

Click on the link:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=wFgmAAAAIBAJ&sjid=_nwDAAAAIBAJ&dq=cortez&pg=5235%2C138916

From the St. Petersburg Times - Jan 1, 1965

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March 01

CITIZEN STRICKEN FIGHTING FIRE
Bradenton Herald, Sunday, March 22, 1931, Front Page

"CITIZEN STRICKEN FIGHTING FIRE"

"DEATH COMES AT SCENE OF BLAZE DURING SATURDAY"

"Widow's Home Burns To Ground When Stove Explodes"

"BOY SCOUTS HELP"

"Victim Of Excitement Was Father-In-Law Of Home Owner"

"Ben Johnson, aged 63, died suddenly while combatting the flames that destroyed the home of Mrs. Middy Kight, his daughter-in-law, early yesterday afternoon, at Cortez.

Mr. Johns, with other citizens of the town, and a group of Boy Scouts, was fighting the flames, when he succumbed to a heart attack, dropping into a coma from which he died a few minutes later. Dr. Gates was summoned, but Mr. Johns died some time before he could get there.

While she was preparing the noonday meal, the kitchen stove in Mrs. Kight's home exploded, scattering the fire over the room, which was soon a mass of flame. The alarm was quickly given and the response of the citizens was rapid, they doing all in their power to save household goods and also to protect the adjoining houses.

Scouts Aid

Scout Executive Charles Wilson and a group of Boy Scouts from Bradenton, Manatee and Palmetto, who had been on a hiking expedition to an Indian mound on the Plaisted [sic] place near Cortez, were returning to Cortez for lunch, and were but a short distance away when they heard the alarm. They hurried to the scene and did heroic work in protecting nearby houses, many of the boys climbing to the roofs to scatter water over the scorching buildings. The Cortez troop of Scouts also were promptly on the job, the combined group doing valiant service in preventing the spread of the flames to other houses.

An alarm sent in to the city soon brought the Bradenton chemical truck, and the firemen, by their rapid work with the chemicals, succeeded in saving one of the endangered dwellings, that of Julius Mora, which caught on fire.

The Kight residence was a total loss, with practically all furniture and furnishings. It is said to have not been insured. Mrs. Kight is a widow and with her four children resided in the home. The dwelling was of one story, frame construction.

Many Burned

Many of the volunteer fire fighters received minor burns, cuts and abrasions, one of the men informing The Herald that he believed fully 10 people were slightly injured during the progress of the fire, which burned with great rapidity, the cozy little home in a short time being a furnace of flame and cinder.

Mr. Johns was a well known fisherman of Cortez. With his family he moved there about 10 years ago from Starke. He was widely known in that section and highly respected by all. Besides his wife, he is survived by a son, Curtis, of Cortez, and two daughters, Miss Hazel Johns and Mrs. Millman of New Orleans.

Last rites will be conducted by Rev. Edward Collins at the Wakeman funeral home Monday afternoon at three o'clock, with interment at the Fogartyville cemetery."

Bradenton Herald, Sunday, March 22, 1931, Front Page
_______________________

"TO REPLACE BURNED HOME"

"WIDOW WILL BE AIDED BY CORTEZ FOLK"

"Committee Named To Purchase Cottage And Furnish It"

The Cortez public which is largely made up of folks who engage in the fishing industry, will replace the home of Mrs. Middy Kight, a widow in their midst, which was recently destroyed by fire with a comfortable dwelling with all furniture and furnishings.

Decision to this effect was reached last night at a well attended meeting of the citizens of the thriving little village when arrangements were completed for the raising by subscription of approximately $600 for this purpose.

A committee was named, consisting of E. N. Green, chairman; William Guthrie, Raymond Guthrie, Jack Faltz and William Deffenbach to make a canvass for the necessary funds.

Plans call for either purchasing a four room cottage and moving it to Mrs. Kight's lot, or if no house is available at the price the committee can pay, a new dwelling will be erected and furnished.

The chairman of the committee stated this morning that the members will begin an energetic campaign for funds at once, as it is the plan of the citizens to rush the work to an early conclusion in order that the family may be housed in their home at the earliest possible moment.

All charity minded citizens of the county desirous of aiding a very worthy cause will confer a favor on the members of the committee by making their donations as early as possible.

Mr. Green says that the committee will also welcome information on any one having a four room cottage that they will sell reasonably, getting in touch with the committee at the earliest possible moment. Plans call for moving any such dwelling that may be bought, bodily to Mrs. Kight's lot in Cortez.

It will be recalled that Ben Johns, father-in-law of Mrs. Kight, dropped dead Saturday while aiding in fighting the flames that destroyed her home."

Bradenton Herald, Tuesday, March 24, 1931, Front Page
____________________________

"Last Rites For Ben Johns Are Held Yesterday"

"Services Are Largely Attended; Burial At Fogartyville"

"Very impressive funeral services for Ben Johns who died of heart failure Saturday while fighting fire that destroyed the home of his daughter-in-law, Mrs. Middy Kight at Cortez, were conducted by Rev. Edward Collins at the Wakeman funeral home yesterday afternoon.

The residents of Cortez turned out enmasse to the last rites, as a mark of the esteem in which Mr. Johns was held in the community. What better can be said of a man than he died in the service of his fellow man?

Interment was at the Fogartyville cemetery."

Bradenton Herald, Tuesday, March 24, 1931, page 7

(Articles provided by Mary Rose)

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February 24

Fisherman's Labor is Their Love
Fisherman's Labor is Their Love

From the Sarasota Herald-Tribune - Feb 21, 1987

Click on the link:
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ZTcfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=3moEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6846,121725&dq=fisherman's&hl=en

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February 22

Mahoney takes cooking prize
http://www.islander.org/2-24-10/Cortez-mullet-winner.php

She came to defend her title from 2009, when she won best overall recipe in the Cortez Crab Cookoff sponsored by The Islander in conjunction with the Cortez Commercial Fishing Festival.

This year’s festival theme of “White Boots Ready,” inspired a call for mullet recipes, and Eileen Mahoney came prepared with a netload of two dishes.

And she did it again.

Best mullet cook: Eileen Mahoney takes two prizes in The Islander Cortez Mullet Cookoff. Islander Photo: Bonner Joy

Her “Hot Pepper Mullet” was a hit with the judges, including 12th Judicial Circuit Court Judge Janette Dunnigan, Manatee County Commissioner Joe McClash, Bradenton Beach builder Don Meilner and Island newcomer Socko Pearson.

Dunnigan liked that it was “independent” of typical recipes. “Original,” echoed McClash. And it looks good, said Meilner, although the judges were first worried it might be “too hot” for their tastes.

No to worry though, the fresh mullet, broiled and combined with onion, celery, garlic, cream cheese, sour cream and bread crumbs, stuffed into halved jalapeno shells — sans the hot seeds — was topped with shredded cheese, and the flavor was cool, the look colorful and the taste delicious.

It was deemed “Best of Show.”

Mahoney’s “Mullet Cakes,” styled after Maryland crab cakes, also achieved success with the judges, earning first place.

While the mullet seemed plentiful in the fall, the contest entries this year were slim. And Mahoney said she had trouble this year finding fresh mullet, while last year’s crab cookoff brought complaints that crabs were hard to find.

Next year, we hope for a good harvest, better weather, and plenty of entries.

Mahoney received her certificates at center stage at the festival, along with a check for $100 from The Islander.

“I’ll be back,” she said.

Mahoney’s recipes can be found online at www.islander.org.

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February 21

Cortez Fishing Festival nets a crowd
http://www.bradenton.com/news/local/story/2073074.html

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February 18

Fest offers education, seafood
Fest offers education, seafood

http://www.amisun.com/headlines.htm#three

BY CINDY LANE | SUN STAFF WRITER 

CORTEZ – The 28th Annual Cortez Commercial Fishing Festival this weekend offers much more than the food and fun it’s famous for.

Marine life lovers will find lots of learning opportunities, with informational booths on everything from sea turtles to scallops.

Last summer, three bay scallop searches in Sarasota Bay, Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor resulted in good news, said John M. Stevely, one of the festival’s original organizers, a speaker at the festival and Florida Sea Grant’s local marine extension agent.

Tampa Bay Watch searchers counted a record 674 scallops, Charlotte County’s search uncovered 94 scallops and the Sarasota Bay Watch search revealed 131 scallops.

A routine cleanup effort by the Sarasota Bay Buddies and the Boys and Girls Clubs of Manatee County first uncovered the fact that scallops had returned to Sarasota Bay in July 2007, near Emerson Point at the mouth of the Manatee River. Scientists called it the largest population of scallops found in the region in the previous 25 years.

Efforts to clean up the bay, including restoring the 95-acre FISH (Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage) Preserve in Cortez, have resulted in the scallops’ return, according to Stevely.

It’s fitting that the proceeds from the $2 festival admission go to the restoration and expansion of the FISH Preserve on Sarasota Bay, known as the "kitchen” to generations of Cortezians who have found food there, he said.

More information about scallops will be available at the festival at the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program booth in the community center. Look for the scallop shell on the logo.

Other family-oriented activities at the festival include Stevely’s talks on the docks at Star Fish Co., boat tours of the village’s shoreline, marine life displays, live music, clogging, kids’ games, nautical arts and crafts and the seafood that made Cortez famous.

The event, which draws more than 20,000 visitors a year to the picturesque historic fishing village, will be Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 20 and 21 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

This year’s theme is “White Boot Ready,” a reference to the boots worn by commercial fishermen. The theme will be pictured on the 2010 festival T-shirt, available near the main stage. The Cortez Village Historical Society also will unveil its new memorial T-shirt featuring a photo of Cortez gill netter Vernon Mora, who died last year.

Entertainers will include the Richard Culbreath Group, Sunshine Express Cloggers, the Crackerbillys, Soul R Coaster, the Triad Folk Band, the Manatee River Bluegrass Band and the Wheedles.

Raffle tickets for a 1986 Com-Pac 19-foot sailboat will be on sale at the festival for $5 each or five for $20.

Parking is available east of Cortez village off Cortez Road. Remote parking is available in the Cortez Commons shopping mall parking lot at the corner of Cortez Road and 59th Street West at 5584 Cortez Road, and at Coquina Beach Bayside. Shuttle buses to Cortez cost $2 per round trip.

Admission is $2, with kids under 12 free. For more information, visit www.cortez-fish.org.

Cortez Commercial Fishing Festival entertainment schedule

Saturday, Feb. 20

10 – 10:45 a.m. 
Richard Culbreath Group 
10:45 – 11 a.m. 
Sunshine Express Cloggers 
11 – 11:45 a.m. 
The Crackerbillys 
11:45 – noon 
Sunshine Express Cloggers 
Noon – 12:30 p.m. 
Blessing of the Fleet / 
Awards Ceremony 
12:30 – 12:45 p.m. 
Richard Culbreath Group 
12:45 – 1 p.m. 
Sunshine Express Cloggers 
1 - 1:45 p.m. 
The Crackerbillys 
1:45 – 2 p.m. 
Sunshine Express Cloggers 
2 - 2:45 p.m. 
Soul R Coaster 
2:45 – 3 p.m. 
Sunshine Express Cloggers 
3 - 3:45 p.m. 
Richard Culbreath Group 
3:45 – 4 p.m. 
Sunshine Express Cloggers 
4 - 4:45 p.m. 
Soul R Coaster 
4:45 – 5 p.m. 
Sunshine Express Cloggers 
5 - 5:45 p.m. 
Richard Culbreath Group 
5:45 – 6 p.m. 
Sunshine Express Cloggers

        Sunday, Feb. 21

10 – 10:55 a.m. 
Triad Folk Band 
11 – 11:45 a.m. 
Manatee River Bluegrass Band 
11:45 – Noon 
Sunshine Express Cloggers 
Noon – 12:45 p.m. 
Richard Culbreath Group 
12:45 – 1 p.m. 
Sunshine Express Cloggers 
1 p.m. - 1:45 p.m. 
Manatee River Bluegrass Band 
1:45 – 2 p.m. 
Sunshine Express Cloggers 
2 - 2:45 p.m. 
The Wheedles 
2:45 – 3 p.m. 
Sunshine Express Cloggers 
3 - 3:45 p.m. 
Richard Culbreath Group 
3:45 – 4 p.m. 
Sunshine Express Cloggers 
4 - 4:45 p.m. 
The Wheedles 
4:45 – 5 p.m. 
Sunshine Express Cloggers 
5 - 5:45 p.m. 
Richard Culbreath Group 
5:45 – 6 p.m. 
Sunshine Express Cloggers      

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February 15

Fishing fest to lure crowd

http://www.islander.org/2-17-10/ac-cortez-02-17.php

By Lisa Neff 
Islander Reporter

Mmmm, mullet Mullet, the fish that made Cortez, is the primary ingredient in this year’s Cortez Commercial Fishing Festival Cook-off sponsored by The Islander. Entries must be delivered by 1 p.m. Feb. 20 at the Cortez Community Center, 4523 123rd St. Court W. Winners will be announced at about 3 p.m. Entry forms and details are available at The Islander Web site,www.islander.org, and at the newspaper office in the Island Shopping Center, 5404 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach.

Many days a white boot brigade shoves off from the waterfront in Cortez in search for the big catch, the fresh haul.

On Feb. 20 and Feb. 21, Cortez will celebrate the fisher’s way of life and the village’s history with the one-of-a-kind Cortez Commercial Fishing Festival.

The theme of this year’s festival is “White Boots Ready.” Those who don’t get the meaning can gain understanding by visiting Cortez on a workday: When fishers step off their boats at the end of the day, many are wearing white rubber boots that don’t quite reach the knee.

Those in the industry say that white boots are one commonality among a Croatian oysterman, a Vietnamese shrimper and a Cortezian crabber.

The festival, to be held from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. both days, honors the fisher, showcases Cortez’s history and features locally caught and prepared seafood and locally grown artists, craftspeople and musicians.

The festival schedule includes two full days of music. Also, at noon Feb. 20, organizers will hold the blessing of the fleet ceremony on the waterfront. Later in the day, The Islander will sponsor a cooking contest, with the winners announced at center stage.

The first fishing festival took place in 1981, drawing about 500 people to the waterfront. Over the years the festival has grown to encompass much of the village, from one day to two days and to attract a crowd of more than 20,000 people.

Admission to this year’s festival is $2 for adults and children 12 and over, with proceeds benefiting the nonprofit Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage Preserve — more than 100 acres of environmentally sensitive land on the east side of Cortez.

With limited parking in the village, organizers encourage use of the park-and-ride shuttle service.

Shuttles will be operating from the parking lot at Coquina Beach on Anna Maria Island as well as from Cortez Commons, 5584 Cortez Road, Bradenton.

A round-trip on the shuttle will cost $2.

In the lineup

Organizers of the 28th annual Cortez Commercial Fishing Festival recently announced the entertainment lined up for the two-day celebration Feb. 20-21.

The talent includes:

Feb. 20 — 10 a.m., Richard Culbreath Group; 10:45 a.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 11 a.m., The Crackerbillys; 11:45 a.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 12:30 p.m., Richard Culbreath Group; 12:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 1 p.m., The Crackerbillys; 1:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 2 p.m., Soul R Coaster; 2:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 3 p.m., Richard Culbreath Group; 3:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 4 p.m., Soul R Coaster; 4:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 5 p.m., Richard Culbreath Group and 5:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers.

Feb. 21 — 10 a.m., Triad Folk Band;11 a.m., Manatee River Bluegrass Band; 11:45 a.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; noon, Richard Culbreath Group; 12:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 1 p.m., Manatee River Bluegrass Band; 1:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 2 p.m., The Wheedles; 2:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 3 p.m., Richard Culbreath Group; 3:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 4 p.m., The Wheedles; 4:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 5 p.m., Richard Culbreath Group and 5:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers.

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Fishing fest to lure crowd
http://www.islander.org/2-17-10/ac-cortez-02-17.php By Lisa Neff Islander Reporter Mmmm, mullet Mullet, the fish that made Cortez, is the primary ingredient in this year's Cortez Commercial Fishing Festival Cook-off sponsored by The Islander. Entries must be delivered by 1 p.m. Feb. 20 at the Cortez Community Center, 4523 123rd St. Court W. Winners will be announced at about 3 p.m. Entry forms and details are available at The Islander Web site,www.islander.org <http://www.islander.org/> , and at the newspaper office in the Island Shopping Center, 5404 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach. Many days a white boot brigade shoves off from the waterfront in Cortez in search for the big catch, the fresh haul. On Feb. 20 and Feb. 21, Cortez will celebrate the fisher's way of life and the village's history with the one-of-a-kind Cortez Commercial Fishing Festival. The theme of this year's festival is "White Boots Ready." Those who don't get the meaning can gain understanding by visiting Cortez on a workday: When fishers step off their boats at the end of the day, many are wearing white rubber boots that don't quite reach the knee. Those in the industry say that white boots are one commonality among a Croatian oysterman, a Vietnamese shrimper and a Cortezian crabber. The festival, to be held from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. both days, honors the fisher, showcases Cortez's history and features locally caught and prepared seafood and locally grown artists, craftspeople and musicians. The festival schedule includes two full days of music. Also, at noon Feb. 20, organizers will hold the blessing of the fleet ceremony on the waterfront. Later in the day, The Islander will sponsor a cooking contest, with the winners announced at center stage. The first fishing festival took place in 1981, drawing about 500 people to the waterfront. Over the years the festival has grown to encompass much of the village, from one day to two days and to attract a crowd of more than 20,000 people. Admission to this year's festival is $2 for adults and children 12 and over, with proceeds benefiting the nonprofit Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage Preserve - more than 100 acres of environmentally sensitive land on the east side of Cortez. With limited parking in the village, organizers encourage use of the park-and-ride shuttle service. Shuttles will be operating from the parking lot at Coquina Beach on Anna Maria Island as well as from Cortez Commons, 5584 Cortez Road, Bradenton. A round-trip on the shuttle will cost $2. In the lineup Organizers of the 28th annual Cortez Commercial Fishing Festival recently announced the entertainment lined up for the two-day celebration Feb. 20-21. The talent includes: Feb. 20 - 10 a.m., Richard Culbreath Group; 10:45 a.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 11 a.m., The Crackerbillys; 11:45 a.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 12:30 p.m., Richard Culbreath Group; 12:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 1 p.m., The Crackerbillys; 1:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 2 p.m., Soul R Coaster; 2:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 3 p.m., Richard Culbreath Group; 3:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 4 p.m., Soul R Coaster; 4:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 5 p.m., Richard Culbreath Group and 5:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers. Feb. 21 - 10 a.m., Triad Folk Band;11 a.m., Manatee River Bluegrass Band; 11:45 a.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; noon, Richard Culbreath Group; 12:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 1 p.m., Manatee River Bluegrass Band; 1:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 2 p.m., The Wheedles; 2:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 3 p.m., Richard Culbreath Group; 3:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 4 p.m., The Wheedles; 4:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers; 5 p.m., Richard Culbreath Group and 5:45 p.m., Sunshine Express Cloggers.

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Sen. Holland Principal Speaker Festivities To Open Cortez Bridge
Sen. Holland Principal Speaker Festivities To Open Cortez Bridge

From the Sarasota Herald Tribune Mar 3, 1957.

Click on the link:
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PjsgAAAAIBAJ&sjid=-WQEAAAAIBAJ&dq=cortez&pg=7270%2C334762

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February 09

Museum and Boat Shop Volunteers Needed
The Florida Maritime Museum at Cortez and Boat Shop need volunteers Neither one of our facilities can operate without a core of people willing to help. We provide all the training and you get the satisfaction of being involved in a great Community undertaking. Boat Shop volunteers usually work Thurs, Friday and Saturday. You do not have to work all three days. Museum volunteers are asked to work one shift a week for three hours. Volunteers are signed up for the RSVP program and are covered by their insurance while on duty. Interested museum people call Ted Adams 708-6120. Boat shop folks call Bob Pitt 704-2074.

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February 02

Museum explores historic boat illustrations

Museum explores historic boat illustrations

http://www.amisun.com/feature.htm

SUN PHOTO/CINDY LANE Native landscaping planted
between Anna Maria City Hall and the Island Playhouse
lost some leaves during the prolonged cold snap
earlier this month, but is expected to survive.

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February 01

Fishing Festival


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January 31

CORTEZ FISHERMEN GET BIG THREE-DAY CATCH
CORTEZ FISHERMEN GET BIG THREE-DAY CATCH

From the Sarasota Herald - Nov 30, 1929

Click on the link

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=NIQcAAAAIBAJ&sjid=MmQEAAAAIBAJ&dq=cortez&pg=3673,4902252

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January 30

Cortez Children Pay Visit to Circus


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January 26

Lindsey Bell


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January 25

Group Born


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January 23

Unidentified Thing Towed into Cortez
Unidentified Thing Towed into Cortez

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=usMNAAAAIBAJ&sjid=UXQDAAAAIBAJ&dq=&pg=4629%2C5392673

From the St. Petersburg Times March 30, 1966

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January 19

Lorraine Marguerite Freeman Yount
Lorraine Marguerite (nee Swiger) Freeman Yount, of the Cortez Trailer Park, Cortez, Florida died December 11, 2009, in Bradenton. She was born in Paris (Mecosta County, Michigan) on February 6, 1919 to Lewis DeForest Swiger and Josephine Alberts Swiger. Lorraine married her first husband Edd Freeman in 1941 and her second husband, Rufus Yount in 1969 and retired to Florida in the early 1970's. Blessed with strong ambition, an outgoing personality, and natural beauty she was carried to unusual heights in the days before women had many opportunities. She was a reporter for the Traverse City Record Eagle in the 1940's. She was appointed Friend of the Court and later Justice of the Peace in Lake City (MI), and later operated her own bail bonding company covering Northern Michigan. She is survived by her daughters, Josette Rae Freeman of Sarasota, Florida and Jacquelyn Freeman of Traverse City, Michigan; a sister, Coila DeYoung of Martinsville, Virginia; 2 grandsons Eric Hulsman (Lori) of Atlanta, Georgia, and Jordan Lindberg (Marcy) of Traverse City, MI; and great grandsons Connor and Kyle Hulsman and Miles Lindberg; and neices and nephews. A gathering of friends will take place at Cortez Park.

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December 28

4-month grouper fishing ban in Fla. starts Jan. 1
http://www.bradenton.com/news/story/1939453.html By CAMMY CLARK The Miami Herald KEY WEST - In the next few months, customers of Chef Lupe's restaurants in the Florida Keys won't be able to order his signature sandwich: local crunchy grouper made with corn flakes. On Jan. 1, a new four-month ban on grouper fishing goes into effect to protect the species during its primary spawning season. Fishery managers and ocean conservancy groups say several types of grouper have been overfished for decades and need protection. Unfortunately for many in the Keys, the ban also coincides with the island chain's peak tourist season. Charter boat captains, as well as commercial fishermen, say the regulations are "Draconian" and economically devastating. "It's a bitter choice between sustaining the fishery or sustaining someone's livelihood," said Andy McDonald, the wholesale manager at the Islamorada Fish Co. "But if you don't sustain the fishery, there will be no livelihood." During the ban, which runs through April 30, commercial and recreational fishermen will not be allowed to keep shallow-water grouper - including gag, black, red and yellowfin - that is caught in federal and state Atlantic waters from North Carolina to Key West. The ban also extends into state waters on the Gulf of Mexico side of Monroe County. While the ban won't directly impact fishing around Manatee and Sarasota counties, it could have a ripple effect. "We are regulated by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council," said Karen Bell, of Starfish Co., in Cortez. "But what is happening on the Atlantic side does affect us because we are affected by anything that happens in the industry." It's too early to tell if the ban will cause the price of grouper to rise in Manatee and Sarasota restaurants and seafood shops, Bell and others said. "We've been through these bans before," said Rebecca Shannon, general manager of the BeachHouse Restaurant on Anna Maria. "We will have to see what the supply is like at the time. If the supply of grouper is down in the United States, there might be international vendors. There's also frozen grouper, which we don't sell but others might." "This couldn't come at a worse time," said Andy Griffiths, who owns a three-boat charter operation near Key West. "My business already is off 80 percent because of the economy." Griffiths, who has downsized from six boats, said he is now offering trips at 1990 prices - just enough to pay the captain and mate and keep the boats running to prevent deterioration. His clients, hearty fishermen who book overnight trips, come to the Keys primarily to catch grouper. Charter boat captain Bill Kelly, who served on the South Atlantic fishing council, said he's been in business 30 years and 2009 was his worst season. He's not alone. Skip Bradeen, who is well known in the Keys for his twice-a-day radio fishing reports, said his business was so bad in 2009 that he opened a piano bar. Both say the ban will keep away some clients when they need them most. The ban also couldn't come at a worse time for the Keys' commercial fishermen, who are reeling from low demand and low prices for their big ticket items: spiny lobster and stone crabs. Hal Osburn, executive director of the Florida Keys Commercial Fishermen's Association, said many commercial boats had been supplementing their dwindling incomes by catching fish such as grouper to stay afloat. The ban's ripple effects are expected to reach consumers, restaurants, seafood retailers, tourist-related businesses and state coffers. The price of grouper, already $17.99 per pound at several grocery chain stores in the Keys, could go higher when the supply goes down. The grouper ban was triggered in 2007, when the National Marine Fisheries Service said gag grouper was being harvested too fast to sustain the stock. Due to a beefed-up federal law, the reauthorization of the 1976 Magnuson Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, fishery managers had to take action to protect the species identified as overfished. Originally, the grouper ban was supposed to go into effect Jan. 1, 2009, but it was put on hold for further analysis after fishermen and others against the ban put up a fight. This time around, there will be no reprieve. "This ban will put people out of business using bad science and no complete economic studies," Griffiths said. "It is Draconian." Those in the Keys argued that gag grouper is not common in waters off the tropical island chain, making up only about 1 to 2 percent of the entire grouper catch. Doug Gregory, a fisheries ecologist with the Florida Sea Grant Extension Program, agreed: "I think the closure in the Keys is unnecessary, and will not do much to restore the gag fishery." Rodney Barreto, chairman of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, said he agrees that the data collection that led to the closure is "antiquated." He has asked Florida's two senators, Bill Nelson and George LeMieux, to help the state get funding for better data collection of fish stocks, especially as several more federal closures of fisheries are in the works that could devastate Florida's fishing industry. But despite some objections, Barreto said the FWC instituted a state ban on grouper consistent with the federal ban Dec. 10 to prevent law enforcement problems. "And," he added, "if we were to oppose the feds, they actually could impose harder restrictions and more lengthy closures." Barreto, who owns a home in Key Largo and is an avid angler, said: "We want to remain the fishing capital of the world. But it's not going to be any fun to go out and not catch anything. We want to do the right thing, and hopefully the closure will speed up the recovery effort of grouper." The ban will run annually until the stock has recovered. Tom Hill, owner of Key Largo Fisheries, said the government should put more effort into stopping "overpolluting" as opposed to "overfishing" of the oceans. But McDonald of the Islamorada Fish Co. said he sees a need for the grouper ban in the Keys, as painful as it may be to the local fishermen who sell him their catch.

9:57 AM GMT  |  Read comments(1)

December 16

Margery C. Taylor Thompson
Margery C. Thompson, 76, a lifetime resident of Bradenton, died Dec. 12, 2009.
Services will be graveside at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Palmetto Cemetery, 900
14th Avenue West. Brown & Sons Funeral Homes and Crematory, 26th Street
Chapel, is in charge of arrangements.
Survivors include sons Gene of Riverview, Donald of Palmetto and Tim of
Bradenton; daughters Linda Winger of Palmetto and Brenda Ward of Bradenton;
a brother, John M. Taylor of Cortez; 11 grandchildren; and eight
great-grandchildren

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1:41 PM GMT  |  Read comments(0)