Pine Avenue Residents Comment

Bev and Joe asked that this be posted to the blog:

The upcoming City of Anna Maria Election

The decision as to who we elect for a seat on the Anna Maria City Commission must not be influenced by people who have a financial stake in the decisions that are made by the City Commission. The commissioners should be people who represent the greater interests of the islanders who own businesses and property here and are free and separate of anyone who stand to gain financially. The proper choice is to find balance when there are conflicting interests – that is why they are there. We are clearly faced with this very situation. So, our choices should reflect the current need to find the candidate who will listen carefully, ask thoughtful questions and weigh the impact of construction footprints which tend to be somewhat permanent. This holds true for residential and commercial properties alike.

The crossroad we face at this time has happened before in other communities. An example of this is Bethany Beach, Delaware, which is a town similar in size and character to AMI. In fact, it is promoted as "The Quiet Resort." It has a main street for commercial businesses similar to Pine Ave. and is considered the most family friendly beach in Delaware. They have a Building and Planning office that gave a couple of developers a free hand over the past decade. Now, there is an effort to roll back some of the decisions because traffic chokes the roads, the beach looks like the Normandy Invasion in bathing suits and there is not a parking spot to be found. The century old boardwalk is now a concrete sidewalk and the town has smoke belching, ten foot pirates overlooking miniature golf less than twelve feet from a residence. This "progress" is hard to undo!

Of course, progress will happen. In fact it is happening all the time, but like the hands on a clock it should evolve over time and not feel the pressure of money.

Because we believe this is an important election and we need representatives with a balanced perspective, we are supporting Harry Stoltzfus. If you think this is an important time for AMI, then spend the time and meet with Harry, as we have, and you’ll be impressed by his thoughtfulness and his passion for AMI. You’ll also see that he is both a resident and a business owner, so he will bring real balance to the decisions made by the commission.

Bev & Joe Hospital

522 Pine Avenue

Anna Maria