Author: LeAenSUAREZGroup

The Island Hopper Songwriter Fest kicks off its seventh year with an impressive lineup of talented singer-songwriters including Jimmie Allen and Michael Ray.

Allen, who won this year’s Academy of Country Music Award for New Male Artist of the Year, will perform on Sept. 26 at the pool party at the Pink Shell Beach Resort & Marina on Fort Myers Beach. The Delaware native made history as the first Black artist to launch a career with two consecutive No. 1 songs on country radio. His hit, “Best Shot,” claimed the No. 1 spot for three weeks and his second single, “Make Me Want To,” climbed the charts in March 2020. Allen recently released an album featuring collaborations with Little Big Town, Keith Urban and Mickey Guyton.

A Florida native, Ray joins the festival with three No. 1 songs, including “Kiss You in the Morning,” “Think a Little Less” and “One That Got Away.” He will perform on Sept. 23 at Pinchers at The Marina at Edison Ford in Fort Myers. Ray kicks off his summer tour in June with country star Luke Combs.

Tickets are available exclusively in the official festival app.

The Island Hopper Songwriter Fest, a free 10-day music festival except for a few ticketed events, will run from Sept. 17-26. It kicks off on Sept. 17-19 on Captiva, then moves to historic downtown Fort Myers on Sept. 20-23, and wraps up on Sept. 24-26 on Fort Myers Beach. It is the largest songwriter festival in Southwest Florida and offers an experience to interact with songwriters at pool parties and beachside venues. This year, over 60 singer-songwriters will perform more than 100 shows.

In addition to the headliners, other award-winning performers include Jay Allen, Dylan Altman, Aaron Barker, Hannah Ellis, Frank Myers, Dave Pahanish, Fort Myers native Sheena Brook and more.

While most of the performances are free, a few exclusive ticketed shows are available on the official festival app under the schedule tab. Download the app in the App Store or on Google Play for free.

Since 2020, festival organizers have produced a virtual concert series, Songs from the Sofa and Songs from the Sand, in preparation for the Island Hopper Songwriter Fest. The monthly concerts have featured a preview of songwriters who will perform at this year’s festival. Click here To view the recordings, visit

Engineers from Kimley-Horn met with panel members during a recent Captiva Community Panel meeting to discuss the potential plan for Captiva’s central sewer system.

Earlier this year, the CCP moved forward with conversations on a central sewer system that would connect to Sanibel’s Donax Wastewater Reclamation Facility, as opposed to the septic tanks residents of the island currently use.

This potential change is mainly due to the harmfulness that septic tanks can cause surface water.

After discussions on a central sewer system proceeded, Kimley-Horn was hired to do an engineering study to figure out the best ways a central sewer system can fit within Captiva’s landscape. This study was presented to panel members on Tuesday, who saw two different kinds of pipes being used for the system; gravity pipes, and pressurized pipes.

Wastewater flowing through gravity pipes does exactly what the name says and uses gravity to flow down the system. Pressurized pipes use pressure to complete the same task.

Douglas Eckmann, the head of this study at Kimley-Horn, explained to panel members that high density areas, like The Village on Captiva, would benefit more from the gravity system due to it being more cost effective and less complicated than a pressurized system.

But while the cost of the gravity system may be lower, it requires much more construction than that of a pressurized system due to the pipes needing to be at a precise angle so that the water can flow with gravity properly.

Eckmann explained that construction for this gravity system would require digging a trench for each street that starts off shallow and gets deeper as it goes.

However, Eckmann explained that if this were to be completed, the construction would be conducted one street at a time, allowing residents passage on the road during construction, as well as fixing the road once construction is complete.

But while the gravity system is recommended for residential streets, Eckmann said a pressurized system would be put in place along Captiva Drive where all of the wastewater on Captiva will flow to.

Construction for this pressurized system will not require any trenches, and will greatly reduce the disruption from construction, Eckmann said.

He explained that for a pressurized system, directional drilling would be used. This is a type of construction where a drill underground pulls the pipping along while being controlled from above the ground.

Eckmann said the only disruption that would be caused would be the submerging and emerging of the drill, which will occur every 300-500 feet and will require digging a small pit, which will be repaired once it is no longer needed.

Panel members also heard an explanation of lift stations, which are already present in some areas of the island. Eckmann explained that lift stations, which are mainly underground, move the wastewater from one area to another and are placed strategically to receive water from the gravity system.

These lift stations will be placed around Captiva, flowing with the central sewer system all the way down to the Turner Beach lift station, which is owned by Sanibel. The sister island has agreed to expand this lift station to make room for Captiva’s wastewater.

After flowing to the Turner Beach lift station, Captiva’s wastewater will then end up for water treatment at Sanibel’s Donax facility, which has already started to expand for the same purpose.

While this is just a plan for now, a potential cost and timeline for the project are still being discussed, but Kimley-Horn made sure that the plan fits the needs of Captiva for a central sewer system.

One year after the island began feeling the effects of COVID-19 traffic crossing the Sanibel Causeway has returned to pre-pandemic numbers and May set a new record. That is according to a report released in June by Lee County, which owns and operates the bridge.

The reports shows 1,582,182 vehicles were counted at the toll booth from January to May, up 26 percent over the first five months of last year even though traffic had continued to decline in January and February due to the pandemic.

The Causeway bridge was busy in May with a record 323,157 vehicles crossing it that month. The report shows it is the first time May reached 300,000 vehicles since 1975. The previous record was set two decades ago with 284,199 vehicles. Traffic was up by 45.79 percent in May compared to last year or 101,000 more vehicles.

April nearly broke a two-decade record with 330,664 vehicles counted that month. It was just 200 vehicles shy of the record set in 2001. Last year, a moderate 123,000 vehicles were counted in April resulting in a sizable 168.5 percent difference.

March also rebounded with 352,000 vehicles counted, a typical number before the pandemic. And it remains one of the busiest months of the year.

When learning the ropes — and rods — of saltwater fishing, thorough preparation involves more than just a rich arsenal of gear and the appropriate attire. Open-water fishing is challenging and requires technique and prior research.

If you’re embarking on an open-water adventure for the first time, keep the following saltwater fishing tips in mind.

RESEARCH YOUR DESTINATION

The key to discovering a spot rich in saltwater fish is ample research. At least a week before your trip, you’ll want to read up on fishing reports, tide charts and weather forecasts.

Some areas are more crowded with fishing enthusiasts during different times of the year. Consider whether you are traveling in the spring, summer, fall or winter and do the appropriate research. You can get some ideas of where to go at MyFWC.com/Marine by clicking “Where to Saltwater Fish.”

THINK ABOUT YOUR TARGET SPECIES

The type of catch you’re after will dictate where you anchor your boat. Targets, such as yellowfin or other tunas, for instance, are surface feeders. Thus, you’ll want to be on the lookout for weed lines and baitfish breaking the surface.

On the other hand, some species including groupers and snappers are bottom feeders and prefer structures including reefs and wrecks. Angling for these species can require special equipment, such as a fishfinder, circle hooks, dehooking tools, descending devices and more. MyFWC.com/FishHandling explains much of this fishing gear.

Stay up to date on the latest regulations for saltwater fishing at MyFWC.com/Marine by clicking on “Recreational Regulations” or by downloading the Fish Rules app on your smart device. Learn about fish identification at MyFWC.com/FishingLines

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The State of Florida has notified the City consumers can purchase qualifying back-to-school supplies exempt from tax during the 2021 Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday. Passed by the Florida Legislature and signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis, the sales tax holiday begins Saturday, July 31, 2021 and extends through Monday, August 9, 2021

Items exempt from sales tax:

• Most school supplies selling for $15 or less
• Clothing, footwear, and accessories selling for $60 or less
• The first $1,000 of the sales price of computers and accessories (when purchased for noncommercial and personal use)

The sales tax holiday does not apply to the rental or repair of any of the qualifying items. Additionally, the sales tax holiday does not apply to sales in a theme park, entertainment complex, public lodging establishment or airport.

For more information and a list of qualifying items, visit the following link: https://floridarevenue.com/backtoschool or click through the following documents:

• 2021 Back to School Tax Holiday FAQs – Consumers
• 2021 Back to School Tax Holiday FAQs – Business

The 2021 Captiva Island Beach Renourishment project commencement is currently being coordinated with the resource agencies and contractor, Great Lakes Dredge and Dock. Following recent and ongoing planning discussions, construction is now projected to start no earlier than August 26, 2021 pending all notice to proceed approvals from the agencies. Barring any unforeseen delays, it is estimated to take approximately 35 days to place the contracted 600,000 cubic yards once construction is underway; if additional sand is authorized by the CEPD, the number of construction days will be adjusted accordingly. Construction of the beach will first move south near 16141 Captiva Drive to Turner Beach, and then north toward Chapin Lane. Once the southern portion of the island is completed, construction operations will move north to fill the remainder of the island in a similar manner.

On Monday, July 12th, the City of Sanibel will begin surveying the island’s beaches to monitor coastal erosion and accretion. This work will not interfere with access or usage of any of the beaches and will take approximately three weeks to complete.

This year’s monitoring project has been awarded to Aptim Environmental & Infrastructure, LLC. This project is half funded by the Tourist Development Council with the remaining half being funded by Beach Parking fees. The project is part of a continuing effort to collect and analyze beach profile data.

Please do not hesitate to contact the Department of Community Services Public Works Operations at 239-472-6397 if you have any questions regarding the 2021 Beach Monitoring project.