August 11, 2021 | Issue

Inside the Moon Rosy Birds A2 Beach Before School A7 Demolition Continues A9 Issue 904 The 27° 37' 0.5952'' N | 97° 13' 21.4068'' W Photo byRobert Johnson Island Free The voiceMoon of The Island since 1996 August 12, 2021 Weekly www.islandmoon.com FREE Photo by Evelyn Pless-Schuberth By Dale Rankin Things are mostly both hunky and dory as we wind down toward the Photo courtesy of Texas Surf Camp. end of the summer season on our little sandbar. The beach crowds have By the numbers been steady but not overwhelming. A wreck that jammed up the JFK Who lives on Causeway on Saturday reminded us No Relief in Sight for that our umbilical cord is only two lanes in each direction and the screech The Island? of tires and crumpling fenders at the The Padre/Mustang Island Aquarius/SPID traffic light are now Area Development Plan is now part of the Island soundtrack. The Island's Short-Term finalized and contains demographic information for The Island based Cancellations on the year 2019. Here are some of The Beach to Bay event for October the numbers it includes. has been cancelled due to COVID 10,178 Mustang/Padre island and it was announced Tuesday that Rental Problem population (not including Port the Town Hall Meeting regarding Aransas) Short-Term Rental properties that 10,783 projected population in was scheduled for August 26 has also City council denies request to allow a 2024 been cancelled. There was discussion of doing it as a Zoom meeting but Income it was decided it needs to be an in- Bed and Breakfast on Mizzen Street person event so tentatively it will be $103,202 Median household reset for September if the COVID By Dale Rankin income numbers come down. We will keep Months of frustration from Islanders $315,139 Median home value you advised. have been leasing the property as a carries the possibility of a $1000 enduring the presence of houses STR since purchasing it in October, fine, however, under questioning Age Get off my lawn! being leased by the day as hotels in 2020. from City Councilman Mike Pusley Island neighborhoods boiled over at it was revealed that due to a backup 48.5 Median age The Corpus Christi City Council on The discussion at city hall took Corpus Christi City Hall on Tuesday of 4500 cases in the Corpus Christi 42% age 35-64 Tuesday passed an ordinance making more than two hours and exposed the as forty-four of them made their Municipal Court system none of it illegal to park on “unimproved” frustration of Islanders at a lack of 23.5% age 65-84 opinions known. the cases have been to court and surfaces in front yards but it won’t enforcement of illegal STR properties while the cases are pending the STR 21.2% age 15-34 have much of an effect on The Island. The occasion was a vote on whether on Padre Island, about 70, and the properties that have been cited can The first thing to know is that gravel to rezone a house at 13845 Mizzen critical flaws in the enforcement 13% age 85 plus continue to operate. The new city is considered “improved” so as long Street from RS-6 Residential to allow process from the Corpus Christi City budget allocates $50,000 to hire new 8.1% age 5-14 as there is enough gravel that a it to operate as an overnight stay Bed Attorney’s Office. The complaints code enforcement officers. vehicle doesn’t leave tire tracks it is and Breakfast facility. ranged from noise, to increased 3.4% age 0-4 fine. Grass is off limits since vehicles The council unanimously denied crime, trash, light pollution, and “But hiring new code enforcement Education leave tracks in grass but most Island the request after only two people speeding boats in Island canals. One people isn’t going to help the Short- front yards with grass are not used for spoke in favor of the rezoning, one of Island resident told the city council Term Rental problem if none of the 39.1% College degree parking anyway. which was the manager of the Mizzen she and her husband moved to Padre cases ever get to court,” Pusley said. 25.9% Some college property who said the owners would Island from Galveston because of the Riley P. Dog Park The request by the owners of the 17.8% Graduate or prefer to operate the location as a STR proliferation of STR properties there. Mizzen property to rezone was Professional degree The Riley P. Dog Park at the west rather than a Bed and Breakfast but Testimony from the Code previously unanimously denied by end of Whitecap is now open on STR properties are not allowed under Enforcement arm of the city said the city Planning Commission. The 16.7% High School diploma weekends. It is still a work in progress the current city code. It was also they have written four citations to city staff recommended approval but is far enough along that Island revealed Tuesday that the property the Mizzen property for illegally because a city staff member told the dogs can run free there. Volunteers owners do not live at the Mizzen leasing to short-term renters which council, the staff only checks to see are still needed so if you can help property which is required for it to is a violation of the city’s Unified if the application meets city planning visit the Riley P. Dog Park Facebook be approved as a Bed and Breakfast Development Code after complaints FBISD Board page. operation under city zoning rules and from neighbors. Each of the citations Mizzen cont. on A4 Updates on Islanders Approves Pay We have updates on two longtime Increase for All Islanders this week. Colleen A little Island history McIntyre was back in town for a few weeks from Thailand where she Employees had been teaching and is headed for When Sports Illustrated Came to Padre Island Teachers and employees in the Flour Casablanca Morocco…of all the gin Bluff school district will get pay joints in all the world…where she Primitive, desolate and hot as a branding iron raises after a vote by the board on will be teaching English. Thursday. Editor’s note: In July, 1960 Sport The pay increases for staff include And in other news David Dunseth is Illustrated Magazine came to Padre the following: still alive! We got a call from David Island and interviewed one of the few and his first words were, “I’m calling people actually living here at the time. $1,200 pay increase for all teachers to let you know I’m still alive.” It This is the story that resulted. 2% pay raise for Administrators seems another David recently passed (Increase at the mid-point of the away and some of David D’s friends Flotsam for a family salary range) thought I was him. “My wife got a nice note from someone I barely The beachcombing Frenches 3% pay raise for Paraprofessionals know telling her what a great guy I find pleasure and profit (Increase at the mid-point of the was,” David said. So news of David’s salary range) roaming the Texas sand bar demise has been greatly exaggerated. 3% pay raise for Auxiliary Home subscriptions By Houston Horn (Increase at the mid-point of the salary range) The Island Moon is considering The longest stretch of undeveloped doing home subscriptions again. We seashore in the U.S., little known Additionally, the Board was have regular requests from readers outside its own neighborhood, is a provided information on the option who want it mailed so if anyone is noodle-narrow 117-mile sand bar to provide retention stipends for all interested please e-mail us at editor@ called Padre Island. Sixty thousand employees. If approved by the Board islandmoon and let us know. acres of subtropical semiwilderness, of Trustees during the August 26th the island lies a rough five miles off Regular Board Meeting, a retention Pickleball the Gulf Coast of Texas and extends stipend will be paid out to employees from Corpus Christi in the north The Island has been without tennis in December 2021 and May 2022 to Brownsville in the south. It was courts for almost a year now and we which coincides with the end of the once the year-round playground of have only one pickleball court which fall and spring semesters. the Karankawan Indians. They were is reserved for guests at an island cannibals. Today, tastes on Padre $1000 Teacher Retention Stipend resort. The city is in the process Island run more to shrimp salad and ($500 paid December 2021; $500 of adopting a new budget that will Lone Star beer; but otherwise, except paid May 2022) have money for courts and splash for the small civilized outposts at $750 All Other Staff ($375 paid pads. Maybe we can get pickled or either end, the island is much as it has December 2021; $375 paid May splashed…or better yet, how about a always been, primitive, desolate and 2022) pickleball court that is a splash pad! hot as a branding iron. Oh man! Employees can expect to see the pay There are some, of course, who like increase reflected in the September Say hello if you see us Around The paychecks. Island. History cont. on A4 August 12, 2021 Island Moon A 2 Texas Surf Camp Coming to Port Aransas Rosy Bird Watching on the Island Sunday, August 22 It's that time of year again! The Texas Surf Sign up links for each event are below.

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