The islands' newspaper of record The dock at Jensen's gets rebuilt. Page 20 Week of September 9-15, 2004 SANIBEL & CAPTIVA, FLORIDA VOLUME 31, NUMBER 37 20 PAGES 75 CENTS Here we go again? New firehouse By Kevin Duffy breaks ground Staff Writer Many island hotels and restau- rants remain closed following the passing of two hurricanes in three weeks, with no plans to re-open until the latest threat posed by Hurricane Ivan is resolved. With this latest storm tracking west and due to hit Jamaica by Friday and Cuba by early Sunday, Floridians are punch-drunk from the potential of a third hurricane hitting the state in less than a month. And businesses are in no hurry to remove boards from their windows with another threat on the horizon. "At this point, it's not affecting the hotels as much as the restau- rants," said Steve Greenstein, executive director of the Sanibel Photo by Renny Secerop,ce Captiva Islands Chamber of (L-R): Asst. Chief Don Frye, Chief Rich Dickerson, Commissioners Commerce. Hoteliers, he said, are Photo by Jenny Burnham The signs say it a!!" Mike Lawrence, Alan Nave and Jerry Muersch, Administrator Mary content to remain shutdown during Hickey, and Project Superintendent Brian Lawhon of Ledge the current period of uncertainty again, it's giving them pause at this ten open but we were a little para- Construction Co. and turn their attention to remodel- point."' noid," he said of the approach of ing upgrades and repairs from The Mavz.tluna Reslau.anr has j Members of the Sanihei F*rc «.(A Rescue Bistrici break giouit J [• •. Hurricane Charley. Restaurants,, Frances from across the sta>e. 4ud rernaiijeu closed since Ciuajey a-iri it 5 iHOie OX iaine •"' -oi;- v/r'J>-, Greenstein said, have different might open next week following The old firehouse Station 1 was demolished in July 10 make way concerns. White saia. the passing of Ivan, said Bob "We're in the same predica- for a redesigned building that will provide an emergency helicopter "They are faced with the deci- White, general manager. ment," he said. "We'll probably pad, a fire and rescue training facility, living quarters, administrative sion of having to order large quan- In addition to water damage hold off, not knowing what Ivan is offices, equipment storage, and vehicle parking. The new Station 1 tities of inventory to replace what and ruined carpeting from a torn going to do. will also feature drive-through vehicle storage bays, which will allow they had to throw out," he said of away skylight during Charley, the Hotels can take additional time the firefighters better maneuvering of fire engines and emergency food that was lost as a result of restaurant lost all of its food inven- vehicles. Charley. "To re-order now and run tory during the storm, he said. While the new station is under construction, firefighters have tem- the risk of having to re-order See AGAIN? "Last week we could have got- page 3 porary quarters on Tarpon Bay Road and the office administration staff is located behind the Village Shops on Periwinkle Way. City readies for yet another By Kevin Duffy Please... DON'T Staff Writer Chief Rich Dickerson of the Sanibel Fire and Rescue District asks Not yet done cleaning up after Hurricane that we all be careful not to obstruct the hydrants with debris during Charley, and still unnerved from the close shave the cleaup process. It has been a problem in a few areas already. Hurricane Frances made with the region, Sanibel and the rest of Lee County held-off on removing plywood from windows with the spectre of Hurricane Ivan looming in the Caribbean. Ivan — carrying maximum winds of 140 MPH - was expected to strike Jamaica by early Friday and Cuba two days later. As of early Tuesday, the storm was travelling west at 18 MPH. See IVAN NOAA Satellite photo of Ivan as of Sept. 7 enter- ing the Caribbean page 3 INBEI PETS Fill SlPTIft • LETTERS ....page 6 Animals in Up-date island is • POLICE BEAT ....page 7 emergencies rebuilding • DATELINE ...page 10 What to do with your • REAL ESTATE ...page 12 pets when a hurricane FEMA has been busy Captiva is hard at comes. almost all over the state work recovering from » TV LISTINGS ...page 14 Charley • LOOKING BACK.......page 17 » Obituary ...page 17 — See page 4 — See page 8 — See page 20 « CLASSIFIES ...page 20 Pho.o by -Tann\ Burnkam O ir,rfwn(nn5 )n •n\M m/A 2 • Week of September 9 -15, 2004 • ISLAND REPORTER Rec Center gets double whammy By Kevin Duffy Staff Writer Heavy rains from Hurricane Frances compounded damage wrought upon the Sanibel Recreation Center during Hurricane Charley, and City Council will consid- er Saturday whether to include planned upgrades for the facility in this year's budget. Parks and Recreation Director Helene Phillips said that the city is still conducting damage assessment on the Rec Center following the consecutive storms. Frances dropped tropical storm gusts of 40-60 MPH on the island over the weekend after Charley passed close to the west Aug. 13, the eye of the storm packing 145 MPH winds. "Most of this is from Charley and was aggravated fur- ther by Frances," she said, pointing toward ceiling tile sagging toward the floor from the weight of rain water. Staffers worked on clean-up Tuesday with plastic tarps hanging from the ceiling in order to catch water and falling tiles. Plans call for the Rec Center's gym to be double the size of the present 8,000 square-foot facility, Phillips said. An exercise pool will be incorporated to supplement the 75-foot pool currently at the center, and the existing play area for children will be enhanced, she said. Damage from the two storms will not necessarily affect the project, Phillips said. "I don't see it as a setback, council has to decide what direction the project will go in anyway," she said. Funding for the project includes greater costs to the city in the first year of implementation, City Manager Judie Zimomra said. "It's up to council to decide Saturday if it will still be included in this year's budget," she said. Photo by Kevin Duffy The pool remains closed to the public until damage Parks and Recreation staffer Billy Holden repairs the roof of a shower stall Tuesday while Russell Amadio prepares can be assessed further, Phillips said. A canopy which to give him some help. provided the pool area's only shade was ripped away by Charley, she said. And bubbling seen on the padded floor Mold intrusion as a result of water damage, she added, said. of the gym due to condensation was present prior to is also a concern. "People are struggling right now getting their lives in Charley, Phillips said. The center, a place for children to go after school and order, and we want to make sure they have a safe place to "I'm sure it's aggravating the situation," she said of participate in athletic and arts programs, takes on added go," she said. dampness left over from Frances. importance following events such as a hurricane, Phillips With damage from Hurricane Charley and a proposed increase to the city's millage rate, council should hold off on improvements to the Rec Center, resident Al Winslow said. "This is not the yeat-for a Rec Center," he said. BATMobile in Sanibel By Jenny Burnham Staff Writer The Collier County Sheriff's Department has loaned their mobile Blood Alcohol Testing mobile unit to Sanibel for use as a command center during the hur- ricane cleanup and recovery effort. Manning the unit are Trish Phillips of Sanibel Tree Service and Matt Fannin of the City of Sanibel, who is working with the city's Public Works and Utilities Departments. The BATMobile replaces the Incident Command Staging Post the city had established at the Sanibel public boat ramp According to Sheri Mausen, Spokesperson for the Collier County Sheriff's Office, the BATMobile is Photo by Kevin Duffy used during DUI operations and as a mobile command Coby Amadio, an aquatic supervisor for the city, works at her desk at the Sanibel Recreation Center Tuesday while a plastic tarp hangs from the ceiling nearby. \' \ See BATMOBILE page 9 Fabrication Technology At Its Finest jt Designs by Mark Christian tT • Screen Rooms • Pool Enclosures • Front Entrys • Rescreens • Security Gates • Mechanical • Driveway Gates • Railings • Welded Railings 848 S.E: 9TH ST. •Spiral Staircases CAPE CORAL FL j ' . Photo by Jenny Burnham Matt Fannin and Trish Phillips are manning the new, 910-1276 temporary facility. • i ! ISLAND REPORTER • Week of September 9-15, 2004 • 3 IVAN Frances From page 1 By Kevin Duff)' Tomlinson said. Staff Writer "It was mostly minor stuff, some people "It's a long ways away and there are be present in the Gulf, he added. lost power and some branches fell," he said. many variables," said Russell Henes, a "At this time there is no reason to After whipping Southwest Floridians In all, about 100 island customers lost meteorologist with the National believe it will weaken, it could into a frenzy over the chance of a second power because of Frances, Lee County Weather Service in Ruskin. "People strengthen even further," Henes said. hurricane in three weeks paying the region Electric Cooperative spokeswoman Karen just need 'to know it's there, but we Chief .of Police Bill Tomlinson said a visit, Hurricane Frances did little more Ryan said. don't want to needlessly alarm peo- he was concerned with residents than cause minor isolated power outages on "Probably throughout the whole storm, ple." choosing to stay on-island if a manda- the island.