The Russell Cottage is where you will find Jodie Cerra and Florida Bay Forever.

Visit the Visitors Center at the Russell Cottage and learn more from Jodie and her staff and volunteers.  There is a great selection of gifts, books…  and art by volunteer Daphne Sanitz.

Do you know about it? The 8.7 acre property along Florida Bay at MM81.2 was acquired by Islamorada 20 years ago with grant funds from Florida Communities Trust.  It was once the home of former councilman and restaurateur, Henry Rosenthal. The village built a $2 million waterfront pavilion, with views of Little Basin and Florida Bay, near where the Rosenthal home once stood. There are nature trails, where you can walk through a dense tropical hammock, observe native species, and enjoy the beauty of nature. The floating kayak launch provides access through a short mangrove tunnel to Little Basin, not far from the Lignumvitae Area State Park. It is often where you’ll find Jodie of Florida Bay Forever The Russell Cottage, nearly 90 years old, is the heart of the property. And is home to the Village’s Environmental Resource Center and an educational and retail space operated primarily by Florida Bay Forever. Jodie Cerra is the Executive Director of Florida Bay Forever, an Islamorada-based nonprofit founded in 2016 to protect Florida Bay through community engagement, environmental education, and support for Everglades restoration. Take a nature walk through the hammock with Jodie! Attend an educational event or a bird walk.

A pathway to personal growth, teamwork, and achievement!  The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) published statistics that show that last year 311,233 Florida high school students participated in sports at their school. Across the country, 8,415,684 participated in high school athletics, with hundreds of different athletic programs included in the statistics.

According to their website, Coral Shores has: 22 varsity sports, 14 junior varsity, and 9 freshman sports.   This does not include cheerleading, Canettes, and Special Olympics. No wonder the high school is short of space. Bass Fishing as a school sport? We found it interesting that in the U.S. there are 1027 high school Bass Fishing teams with 7,694 total high school participants. But no saltwater fishing teams? Coral Shores does have a popular Fishing Club! Besides the Fishing Club, there are 36 other clubs and organizations that encourage student participation at Coral Shores. The high school sports at Coral Shores include swimming and diving, utilizing the pool at Founders Park. There is a synchronized swimming team at the Founders pool, but it is not a school sponsored sport. There are just 31 schools across the country that do have synchronized swim teams. How lucky are the young people in our community to have so many opportunities to participate!

On this day in 2013: 64-year-old Diana Nyad began her fifth attempt to swim from Cuba to Florida without a shark cage. The 110-mile journey ended nearly 53 hours later when she reached Key West.  Just think - that is more than 12 times the distance of the Swim for Alligator Lighthouse! Congratulations to all swimmers who brave open water swims of any length!

To keep Nyad swimming in a straight line and the shortest distance to her Key West destination, her support boat deployed a 10-foot streamer with a long pole to keep the streamer away from the boat. The streamer was designed to remain about 5 feet underwater, so that Nyad could swim above it, much like a lane line in a swimming pool. At night, the white streamer was replaced by a string of red LED lights.

And a parent and an Islamorada resident and taxpayer.

In a case that typifies the cronyism this village continues to apply to their decisions: At last week’s Council meeting, there was an appeal filed by prior Councilman Mark Gregg.

Gregg challenged the determination by the Village that a home he owns across from Founders Park is a single-family home.

He contends it is a duplex. 

Nearly 10 years ago, he appealed the original decision of the Planning Department.

The council, at that time, agreed with the Planning staff and voted 3-2 denying Gregg’s claim the home was a duplex.

Deb Gillis was on that council and voted against the majority, siding with Gregg that the home should be classified as a duplex. 

At that prior hearing, Don Horton, current council member, represented Gregg.

Now years later, Gregg filed a new request and asked the current Planning Director to revisit the prior decision of Council because of new information.

What was the new information???

Village Planning Director, Jennifer DeBoisbriand, rejected the request stating there was not sufficient new information to warrant a change in the decision. 

Gregg appealed DeBoisbriand’s decision to the council and requested a Public Hearing before Council. That appeal was heard last Thursday.

The Village Attorney, in order to avoid the appearance of impropriety, suggested Councilman Don Horton should recuse himself. Horton did and left the room.  

Horton has had a long-standing business relationship with Gregg having previously represented Gregg in the original appeal a decade ago.

Horton’s resume was included in the agenda as an expert at the previous hearing.   The 5-page document (attached) described Horton’s qualifications and personal construction background,  first as a Building Department employee with the County, the Village, and then in private practice.

It is public record.

Unfortunately, this type of conflict will arise again for several current council members who will be voting on development issues… issues pertaining to current and former clients continues to be a concern.

Two people testified during Gregg’s public hearing last Thursday, stating, under oath, that they had been in the house in question prior to Gregg’s 2015 purchase. 

Both provided sworn testimony that the structure was a single-family home.

Gregg acknowledged that he continued the multi-family use of the house, though losing the prior case, and that he only paid wastewater, stormwater and solid waste assessments for one unit and only had a single water and electric hook-up, and one address.

No matter.

The council voted 3-1, with Vice Mayor Mahoney opposed, to overturn the prior decision and the recommendation of our current planning director.

They voted to accept Gregg’s word that the home has always been a legal duplex.  

I ask again, what was the new information that warranted this reversal?

In exchange for the favorable decision, Gregg agreed to numerous conditions being placed on the property – no TDRs to be transferred, no increase in the footprint of the home, no second floor, no vacation rentals.

But do conditions like this matter? Does Gregg have something else up his sleeve?

When the Crooked Palms Distillery’s use was changed from a bank to a distillery,   there were 20 conditions required after lengthy negotiations by the prior Council.

Less than a year later, the current Council removed all of the conditions.

Why??

Crickets…

It is because of these types of decisions that residents question the council members’ ability to apply rules to their friends and business associates. Is it a logical concern?

Elections have consequences.

Tom

Village Council election on Nov 3, 2026 Seat 1: Anna Richards versus Joe Wischmeier Seat 2: Steve Friedman versus Deb Gillis (Gillis switched Seats August 11) Seat 3: Corie McGraw-Abel versus Sue Miller Seat 4: Don Horton versus Tom Raffanello Seat 5: Sharon Mahoney, elected, unopposed

Here's Tom!

• Don Horton (Seat 4), Mayor, Don.horton@islamorada.fl.us

• Sharon Mahoney (Seat 5), Vice Mayor, Sharon.Mahoney@islamorada.fl.us

• Steve Friedman (Seat 2), Council Member, Steve.Friedman@islamorada.fl.us

• Deb Gillis (Seat 3), Council Member, Deb.Gillis@islamorada.fl.us

• Anna Richards (Seat 1), Council Member, anna.richards@islamorada.fl.us

Baseball at Founders Park: The question: With the recent retirement of Patrick LeFere, who will assure upgrades to the CSHS baseball field will be completed in time for the 2027 baseball season?   Apparently LeFere’s project responsibilities have been assigned to various school district department heads pending a replacement for LeFere. Superintendent Tierney reportedly will be responsible for oversight of the Coral Shores baseball field at Founders Park.

There may be a real time crunch based on the current permit status.  While the permit application for the improvements were officially submitted to the Village building department a month ago, it appears as if there are still issues remaining before work can get underway.