Commissioner’s Corner, Alan Bildz
Hello Sunset Beach! I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of you for your continued confidence by re-electing me for another 2 years, albeit by an unopposed race. Speaking about elections, that was quite the ad campaign for the open US house seat formerly held by Bill Young wasn’t it. Are we ready to do it all over again in November, and add in a governor’s race? God help us! Beach re-nourishment is going to happen this summer, which is good news, but it won’t be as fast as originally thought. Should be in July now, instead of June. There will be opportunities for volunteers to replant the beach afterwards. My guess is sometime around September, but that is just a guess. How much sand would be left if we didn’t plant those sea oats? Not much, that’s for sure! The commission is always looking for ways to save money, but this time we are going in a direction that is divisive and I do not believe for this that there is majority support. The commission is going to see how much could be saved if we abolished our police department and contracted with the sheriff’s office. If Treasure Island were to do that, our charter requires not only a vote by the commission but also a vote by the voters so stay tuned. If it would happen, it will make headlines so it will be hard to miss. Our charter was designed in this fashion to make it hard to abolish either the police or fire departments for solely financial reasons. Treasure Island’s biggest financial drain, as you probably could guess, is our drawbridge. That is why I support a return of a bridge toll, even though it would be a long shot to implement. It looks like it is going to be a very busy summer!