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Beaches notebook
By AMY WIMMER, Times Staff Writer INDIAN ROCKS BEACH -- The city plans to begin issuing permits for use of its popular dog park at the Indian Rocks Beach Nature Preserve. In response to complaints from neighbors and overcrowding problems at the dog park, Indian Rocks Beach will start charging nonresidents $50 annually for use of the dog park. Residents will not be charged a fee, but they still must register for a permit. The city also has applied for state permission to make the dog park a permanent fixture in the park. When first installed, the dog run was to be temporary, but city commissioners have decided to leave it at the nature preserve. They must seek state permission because the preserve was financed with grants. Permits will not be required or issued until the state has approved the dog park, which could be as early as mid-summer, City Manager Tom Brobeil said. The city is planning a Flag Day ceremony at noon June 14 that will include an opportunity for people to properly dispose of American flags. The ceremony originally was planned for Memorial Day but was moved because veterans' organizations already have Memorial Day plans. At the brief ceremony, the city will turn in old and tattered flags to VFW Post 10094, which later will incinerate the flags at Bay Pines Veterans Hospital. Because so many people have been flying flags since Sept. 11, Mayor Bob DiNicola said, many flags are tattered and need to be replaced. Anyone who has an old flag can bring it to City Hall from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays until June 13. Nonresidents are invited to drop off flags and participate, City Manager Tom Brobeil said. Applications are available for the Beach Art Center's summer Creative Arts Camp. The camp will run from June 10 to July 26, except for the week of July 4. Children 8-12 years old will explore American art history through activities such as drawing, painting, 3-D art, fiber art, sculpture and more. The program runs from 9 a.m. to noon weekdays. The fee is $70 per week including all materials and a snack. Children may attend one week or more. In addition to the Creative Arts Camp, children's pottery classes will be offered from 1 to 3 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays. Students will learn various hand-building techniques with clay. The fee is $24 per week plus a $7 materials fee to cover clay, glazes and firing. Phone 596-4331 for applications, registration and information. Enrollment is limited. The Beach Art Center is at 1515 Bay Palm Blvd., next to City Hall, in Indian Rocks Beach. GulfportThe city will have two public meetings to get input on its 49th Street Corridor Community Redevelopment Plan. City officials and an architectural firm will receive input into a planned redesign of the area bounded by 49th Street on the east, from the northern city boundary at the Pinellas Trail south to Gulfport Boulevard, 52nd Street to the west, and Tangerine Avenue between 54th and 49th streets, including city property at 117 49th St. S. The meetings will be at 5:15 p.m. May 15 and 8:30 a.m. May 18 in the cafeteria of Hamilton Disston School, 5125 11th Ave. S. For more details, call Susanne Hicks in the city public services department at 893-1086. St. Pete BeachSt. Pete Beach will have its annual Hurricane Forum on Wednesday. Scheduled are a discussion on hurricane safety, fire and police department displays, hurricane-related vendors demonstrating hurricane safety products, disaster preparedness and home safety information, as well as evacuation maps and information on sand bag locations. There will be door prizes and free hot dogs and sodas. The forum will be from 6 to 9 p.m. in the city gymnasium, 7701 Boca Ciega Drive. For information, call the St. Pete Beach Fire Department at 363-9206. City residents are invited to participate in a two-day visioning session. The meetings will be 6-8 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday in the city's gymnasium at 7701 Boca Ciega Drive. The discussion sessions will be led by James A. Moore, a design principal with Tampa based HDR, who recently helped Madeira Beach in a similar process. The Friday session will focus on community design and its applications in other cities nationwide. The Saturday session will be an interactive discussion that tries to build a consensus on establishing a vision for St. Pete Beach. The city will provide a light lunch and refreshments Saturday; anyone planning to attend that session is asked to call 367-2735 so the city knows how many people to expect. The meetings will be the first step in a year-long process of developing a master plan for the city. Redington ShoresThe town will sponsor a townwide garage sale Friday, Saturday and May 5. All residents are invited to participate. The next weekend, on May 11, residents may discard the items that didn't sell in the garage sale by leaving them on the curb during the Annual Town Cleanup. Everything will be picked up except hazardous waste materials, 55-gallon drums, tires and car batteries. The town encourages residents to place items on the curb the evening of May 10 for early morning pickup the next day. Treasure IslandThe American Master Cup Competition for sand sculptors will be May 17-19 at the County Park, 104th Avenue and Gulf Boulevard. The times are 5-9 p.m. Friday; noon-9 p.m. Saturday; and noon-5 p.m. Sunday. Hosts for the event will be Dan Doubleday and Meredith Corson, current world doubles champions and owners of Sanding Ovations, a local sand sculpting company. Sunset Beach Civic Association will hold its annual barbecue, 5-6:30 p.m. May 6 at Caddy's Waterfront, 9000 W Gulf Blvd., Treasure Island. The cost is $6 per person or $4 for children. South PasadenaMay 31 is the deadline for students who are high school graduates and residents of South Pasadena to apply for the city's annual scholarship award. Applicants must have lived in South Pasadena for the past four years, earned high grades, been accepted to an accredited college or university and have need of financial assistance. Applicants should apply at South Pasadena City Hall, 7047 Sunset Drive S, South Pasadena. Call 347-4171 for information. -- To submit items to the beaches notebook, e-mail
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From the Times South Pinellas desks |
