Excellence in Healthcare, Here at Home
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1 “I’m going hungry” -- C.C. 1¢ Island INSIDE Roots Heritage Festival Key West will host the Island Roots Festival celebrating the connection beween the Southernmost City and the Bahamas. Started in 1977, the tradition has been rekindled with parades and parties planned for this weekend. See story, page 6. CONTRIBUTED WE ARE ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS Excellence in healthcare, here at home. Stephanie Gallaher Dr. Jennifer Charity Family Nurse Practitioner M.D. Board Certified in Internal Medicine 1111 12th Street Suite 210, Key West FL, 33040 • 305-295-3535 2 KEY WEST WEEKLY / MAY 19, 2017 512 Front Street SAVE THE DATE: MAY 19th THE BAREFOOT MANIS BACK! With a special street concert at Two Friends Patio with Ann Street closed for the performance. Barefoot Man is the voice of the Bahamas—and to celebrate we’re oering concert drink specials, marinated conch and much more! For more info call Two Friends Patio at 305-296-3124 or visit www.twofriendskeywest.com KEY WEST WEEKLY / MAY 19, 2017 LOCAL CHATTER 3 HAYS BLINCKMANN [email protected] This week celebrated Key West’s annual Queen Mother Pageant and we all have to admit there is just a little queen mother in all of us. We may not see it but somebody else might. So we asked locals ... Who would make a GREAT drag queen? “I have to say Tom Luna,” said Raymond Vasquez, “I want to make him laugh.” “Sarah Huckabee Sanders would make a perfect drag queen,” said Josephine Guerrera. It certainly would make White House Press briefings far more interesting. “Easy, Christopher Rounds (owner of La Te Da),” said One Human Family’s J.T. Thompson. “He’s the biggest queen on the block.” “Matthew McConaughey; he would be gorgeous,” said Gail Colburn. Kind of surprising he hasn’t already played one. “Jared Leto, he would be a very pretty queen,” said Susan Meyer. Dare say, prettier than any other! 4 SAVE THE DATE KEY WEST WEEKLY / MAY 19, 2017 Friday, May 19 • Battle of the Badges BBQ from Tuesday, May 23 • Happy Hour for Habitat for Hu- 4 to 8 p.m. at Key West Firehouse • Open forum from 11 a.m. to manity from 5 to 8 p.m. at Bottle Cap Museum. noon at Lower Keys Medical Center, Lounge, Key West. • Nimo and his Empty Hands tour Stock Island. • Key West National Organiza- at 7 p.m. at Unity of the Keys, Key • Aqua Idol benefiting Florida Keys 5450 MacDonald Ave. No.5 tion of Women meets at 5:30 p.m. at West. SPCA at 6:30 p.m. at Aqua Nightclub, Key West, FL 33040 Office: 305.453.6928 Shanna Key Irish Pub, Key West. Key West. www.keysweekly.com • Free movie: “Sing” at 8 p.m. at May 20-21 Bayview Park. Bounce houses, fire • Rescheduled Pops Stiglitz softball Wednesday, May 24 Publisher Britt Myers trucks, Home Depot workshop and tournament in Marathon. • Community Foundation’s 2017 [email protected] more starting at 6 p.m. Leadership Success Academy from 1 to Sunday, May 21 5 p.m. at the Hyatt Place Faro Blanco Managing Partner Jason Koler Saturday, May 20 • Free trivia at 6:30 p.m. at Ameri- Resort, Marathon. [email protected] • Multiple Sclerosis Support Group can Legion, Stock Island. Open to the • Wealth Builders Club meet- meeting at 10:30 a.m. at Key West public. ing from 1 to 3 p.m. at Glad Tidings Editor Sara Matthis library. • “One Particular Harbour” concert Church, Key West. [email protected] • Preschool program at 11 a.m. at from 5 to 8 p.m. at Margaritaville, Key • Bahama Village Music Program Key West library. West. recital from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at Oldest Copy Editor Mike Howie House, Key West. [email protected] Friday, May 26 Sales & Marketing Britt Myers • Yappy Hour benefiting Florida [email protected] Keys SPCA from 5 to 8 p.m. at The Gates Hotel, Key West. Account Executives Lesley Aaron [email protected] May 27- 28 Hollie Will Did You Know? • Big Head Todd and The Monsters [email protected] We Design & Install Custom Cabinetry at 8 p.m. at Key West Theater. Anneke Patterson [email protected] Kitchens, Bathrooms, Built-In Closets, Tackle Rooms, etc. Saturday, May 27 Browse styles and fi nishes in store. MaraTri11 at 7 a.m. at Sombrero Staff Writers Beach, Marathon. Kristen Livengood [email protected] 11500 Overseas Hwy, Marathon, FL 33050 | MM 53 Tuesday, May 30 Hays Blinckmann • Aqua Idol benefiting Florida Keys [email protected] 305-743-7130 | DAsignSource.com SPCA at 6:30 p.m., Key West. Gabriel Sanchez [email protected] Production Manager Sunny Gonzalez-Cepero [email protected] Design / Web Master Just for You Travis Cready [email protected] Design / Pre-Press Javier Reyes and Your [email protected] Classifieds Luis Bouzon [email protected] Honey too! 305.743.0844 Se habla español Keys Weekly Newspapers The best couples massage (ISSN 1944-0812) are a community newspaper group published every Friday by Keys Weekly Newspapers, on the island. Really. 9709 Overseas Highway Marathon, FL 33050. Subscription rates are $100.00 per year outside of Monroe County. Please call for all other subscription rates including overseas mail. Periodicals postage pending at Marathon, FL and additional mailing offices. All stories, photos, and graphics are copyrighted materials. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Keys Weekly Newspapers 9709 Overseas Highway Marathon, FL 33050. News Deadline Tuesday Noon Advertising Deadline Tuesday 2 p.m. KEY WEST WEEKLY / MAY 19, 2017 MONROE COUNTY 5 “I do recognize this is a big expense. But, conservatively, we could recoup $770,000 in fines from violators in one year,” she said, add- County Fortifies Vacation Rental Enforcement ing that staff sat through more than 1 2 3 one presentation with the vendor SARA MATTHIS and interviewed other vendors. [email protected] “Knowing about an illegal vaca- tion rental and proving it in front of a special magistrate are two sepa- ne, file a notice with a state rate things,” said Commissioner agency to report real estate David Rice. Oagents who represent Host Compliance lists about vacation rental law scofflaws. Two, 60 city and county clients on its purchase software to identify and website ranging from nearby City of prosecute scofflaws. Three, hire two Fort Lauderdale to Napa, California. staffers to handle the job. Kolhage was the lone dissenter That’s the action the Monroe on the decision to purchase the County Board of County Com- software. “Not because I don’t want missioners took Wednesday at to prosecute illegal transient rent- its monthly meeting in Key West. als, because I do. But this should Not without some back-and-forth have been bid; it’s too costly and among commissioners, though, that’s why I don’t support it.” about cost and labor. The final part of the plan was All the commissioners were in to hire two new full-time staffers agreement that real estate agents to keep up with the workload the who have represented property county anticipates will be generated owners found guilty of violating by the software. With benefits, the vacation rental law should have two positions would cost the county their names forwarded to the state $140,000. Department of Business and Pro- At the moment, the county em- fessional Regulation. ploys one staffer tasked with this According to Assistant County duty. Hurley said she was only able Administrator Christine Hurley, the Software will pinpoint violators to tackle 93 cases. Commissioner county has already scheduled meet- Heather Carruthers questioned why ings with Realtor associations to let they shouldn’t be contract employ- them know of the coming change. o handle the growing number of vacation rental law ees, or why the county shouldn’t In the second move, the county violators, Monroe County “rented” a software license only hire one additional employee. agreed to spend $97,238 for one Tfor one year. At a cost of $97,238, Host Compliance will Kolhage and Carruthers dis- year of software to help identify ille- help the county identify vacation rentals advertised online sented and the measure passed. gal vacation rentals. Commissioner and provide the evidence needed to prosecute. Founder and “For the record, only the Demo- Danny Kolhage questioned the cost. CEO Ulrik Binzer said he experienced the need for this data crats were interested in saving “You sit one person down in first-hand, after serving on a planning board attempting to money,” said Carruthers, eliciting front of a computer and you can address a similar problem in Tiburon, California. a laugh from the rest of the board find all the illegal vacation rental “In true Silicon Valley tradition, I decided to build it. I’ve and the public. The two are the only advertisements that you want,” he teamed up with some smart engineers and data scientists,” Democrats on the board. said. he said. Hurley said this particular Binzer said that in a test, the software found about 2,500 software, Host Compliance, not only violators in unicorporated Monroe County. That’s a “true uses government data that outlines number” that takes into account homes listed on more than “Knowing about an illegal the specific regions to search, but one website. He said the software can also pinpoint how long vacation rental and proving also provides details needed for visitors stayed, a Key point in Monroe County vacation rental prosecution. A test search revealed law. it in front of a special more than 2,500 possible violators, “Well, most of those sites have calendars, and those can magistrate are two she said.