Project to cut pines on islands is on hold

By DOUG SWORD

SIESTA KEY - Plans to restore a trio of high-profile spoil islands near Siesta Key are off, at least for now.

After running into a "buzzsaw" of opposition from residents on the key, Sarasota County commissioners voted Wednesday to wait for better economic times to undertake the controversial projects.

Residents worry that the islands immediately south of the main bridge to the key will be turned into unsightly brown bumps during and after the work. They are now covered with Australian pines.

Advocates for the projects point out that the pines, though pretty, are invasive and have replaced native mangroves that improve water quality.

Restoration plans for Little and Big Edwards islands and Skier's Island were scheduled for design this year as part of the county's economic stimulus plan.

Instead, the projects probably will have to wait several years.

"I know they're invasive, but they still provide some green and some ambiance," Lourdes Ramirez, president of the Siesta Key Association, said of the pines. "If they try to wipe everything out, it would just look too bad by the time the mangroves grow back."

All three islands are in Roberts Bay, which is considered one of the most stressed of the county's six bays.

Spoil islands were created or enlarged with material taken from dredging the Intracoastal Waterway.

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