Is Commissioner's 'Call the Question' Out of Order?

Dialogue meant to clear up confusion over some legal language in the city's new license agreement with Sail Honeymoon was squashed when one Dunedin leader spoke an oft-used phrase in parliamentary procedure May 2.

What began as a commission discussion meant to clarify legal language in a city contract, ended with one city leader uttering an oft-used phrase that squashed all hope for dialogue May 2. Vice Mayor Julie Ward Bujalski sought clarity in the parameters of the city's proposed 10-year agreement with Sail Honeymoon concessionaire Glen Steinke, questioning language that promised a five-year renewal option in 2023 because it goes against Dunedin's purchasing policy. She said she brought it up to avoid the possibility of confusion in the future. Steinke's license agreements with the city have a contentious and confusing history. City Attorney Tom Trask weighed in, explaining that renewing with Steinke in 10 years was the city's option, not the …

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Alan Jennings

6:17 pm on Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Jim, the unfinished business, under Robert, is in order after special orders, which follow the reports of special committees. If Robert is this council's parliamentary authority, then the current edition controls unless the council's parliamentary authority is defined as some specific edition other than the current edition. I don't know of anything in Robert that requires the chair to "have the …   more ›

City Leaders Consider 10 Years for Sail Honeymoon

Dunedin commissioners decide on an extended license agreement with Glen Steinke, owner of Sail Honeymoon kayak rental stand on Dunedin Causeway tonight at City Hall.

Glen Steinke may get the longterm contract he's always wanted. Dunedin leaders consider a 10-year license agreement for his upgraded services at Sail Honeymoon during tonight's commission meeting at City Hall. Steinke's latest proposed agreement promises a higher monthly lease, as well as upgrades to the kitchen and dining areas on Dunedin Causeway. The proposed agreement also allows for a five-year renewal option. The city originally requested proposals for services throughout a five-year term, with a five-year renewal option. Steinke, who has owned and operated the iconic kayak rental stand Sail Honeymoon on Dunedin Causeway for two decades, outscored a proposal from his competitor Osprey Bay Outdoors during a public bid discussion on …

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Talented Dunedin

Dunedin 'Target Rich' for Local Photographer

Richard Bennett's photo taken from the Dunedin Causeway is Patch's featured Facebook cover photo for April. Meet the man behind the lens.

Dunedin Patch's April Facebook cover photo is a timeless Dunedin scene. Lucky for us, this month's featured photographer Richard Bennett is a 10-year Palm Harbor resident who found himself on the Dunedin Causeway on March 30. It isn't the first time we've noticed his photos in the Dunedin Patch community scrapbook, so wanted to learn more about the person behind all the amazing shots. Here's some of his stats: Rick Bennett, 50, is St. Petersburg native and 27-year Pinellas County Sheriff's veteran, who became interested in photography when he retired in 2010. Find more of his photography at his website www.rwbadventures.com. Equipment: Canon EOS 7D digital camera and wide angle and super telephoto lens Mentor: photographer Adrian Maj What …

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Bicyclist Hurt in Dunedin Causeway Crash is ID'd

An employer was able to identify Gerald Mihalinec, who was apparently hurt in a single bicycle crash earlier this week and who remained hospitalized Wednesday night.

Investigators have identified a man who was apparently hurt in a single bicycle crash on the Dunedin Causeway and who remained hospitalized Wednesday night. Gerald A. Mihalinec, 62, of Dunedin, was found shortly after 9 p.m. Monday seriously injured and lying on the sidewalk on the west side of the drawbridge near the beach access.  A 911 call led authorities to the man, who they believe was involved in a single bicycle crash and may have had a medical episode, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office reports. According to investigators, there did not appear to be any signs of alcohol or drug impairment. Investigators say Mihalinec is a server at a Clearwater restaurant, and that his employer called the sheriff's office April 10 to request a …

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Bicyclist Hurt in Dunedin Crash; Public Asked to Help ID Him

Authorities say they believe the man was involved in a single bicycle crash Monday night on Causeway Boulevard and may have had a medical episode.

Updated, April 11: Officials have identified the bicyclist in this week's crash. He remained hospitalized Wednesday night.   Earlier: Investigators are asking for the public's help in identifying a bicyclist who was found seriously injured and lying on the sidewalk on Causeway Boulevard in Dunedin. A 911 call led authorities to the man, who they believe was involved in a single bicycle crash and may have had a medical episode, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office reports. According to investigators, there do not appear to be any signs of alcohol or drug impairment. He was found shortly after 9 p.m. Monday on the sidewalk on the west side of the drawbridge near the beach access. The man was taken to a local hospital by ambulance for …

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Jason Bartolone

7:39 am on Thursday, April 11, 2013

The bicyclist has been identified. Here's an update: http://dunedin.patch.com/articles/bicyclist-hurt-in-dunedin-causeway-crash-is-id-d   more ›

Drone's Eye View of Dunedin Causeway

Bill Welch uses a personal drone to take striking aerial video of landmarks in Tampa Bay as well as whatever strikes his fancy. Take a look.

Bill Welch flies his GPS-driven drone like a hobbyist with a model airplane. His small flying machine is just two feet high and runs on batteries. But it takes spectacular aerial photos and video, with Welch at the controls on the ground. Welch, a 56-year-old wedding florist by trade, uses the "quadcopter" to fly over landmarks in the Tampa Bay area. He posts the amateur videos on YouTube. They include dramatic views of Dunedin Causeway, the tall kapok tree at St. Petersburg Museum of Art, the church spires in Tarpon Springs and an accident scene on Nebraska Avenue in Palm Harbor. (See YouTube videos with this post.) But don't call Welch's personal device a drone. He prefers "multi-rotor aerial machine," or quadcopter. Speaking for other …

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Road or Water, Quadski Turns Heads on Dunedin Causeway

The Gibbs Quadski is capable of reaching 45 mph on land or sea. The high speed amphibian vehicle is available at Cycle Springs and sells for about $40,000.

Four wheels and it floats. It’s called the Gibbs Quadski. Gibbs Sports Amphibians, the Michigan company that makes them, calls it a High Speed Amphibian vehicle. But users looking for a James Bond experience drive it like an ATV into the water and then ride around on it like a Jet Ski. The machine packs a 45-mph punch on land or water. It features a 140 horsepower, 1.3 liter, four-cylinder BMW engine and Gibbs jet propulsion system. To stop on land disc brakes are at each wheel. They cost around $39,000, said Marty Skapik, owner of Cycle Springs in Clearwater, a dealer selling the prototype machine that was unvieled at the Detroit Auto Show in October. Skapik just started selling them two week ago. A small crowd gathered on the sandy banks…

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Letter to the Editor: Give Sail Honeymoon a Longterm Contract

"To not give him a long term contract would be such a loss to all of us on the Causeway and Dunedin," writes Lucy Lynch, Dunedin Causeway resident.

Dear Editor, I have been on the Dunedin Causeway either visiting my family here or as a resident since the early 1970s. During that time I have seen many changes and watched many businesses come and go on the Causeway. I am writing to request that you give Glen Steinke and Sail Honeymoon a long term agreement and not go to RFP. I, as well as my fellow members of the Dunedin Beach Civic Association and the City of Dunedin, have been the recipient of Mr. Steinke's many years of care and consideration for the Causeway. He is certainly the trusted eyes and ears for us on the Beach. As you know, he was awarded and entered into the Dunedin Chamber of Commerce Business Hall of Fame for 2012-2013.  Mr Steinke has established a successful, reliable…

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SUP Paddler on 365-Day Journey Arrives on Dunedin Causeway

Afternoon walkers on Dunedin Causeway would have had no indication of Justin Riney's epic Expedition Florida 500 journey unfolding nearby on Monday.

Afternoon walkers on Dunedin Causeway would have had no indication of the epic journey unfolding in their very presence on Monday. Just across the street between 3:30 and 5:30 p.m. a large group of high school students appearing to be goofing around on Stand-Up Paddle boards were actually waiting for a speck on the horizon to arrive. The speck, their coach and teacher Dave Sica told them, was a paddler named Justin Riney, founder and CEO of Mother Ocean, a non-profit group dedicated to empowering ocean advocates around the world. Sica, a history teacher at Countryside High School and Pinellas Surf Organization coach, brought his family, along with 35 of his Pinellas Surf students, to meet Riney after school on Dunedin Causeway. He was on …

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Traffic Advisory: Causeway Construction Project Underway

One lane of westbound traffic is closed on Causeway Boulevard for a months-long water main replacement project expected to be completed later this year.

Crews began work this week on a months-long project to replace water mains along Causeway Boulevard and at Cedar and Curlew creeks, city records indicate.  One westbound lane is closed to traffic, as of Feb. 5. The roughly $2 million project first replaces a 18-inch PVC and ductile iron water main that runs along 1,700 feet of the north side of Causeway Boulevard near the the Bascule drawbridge, city records say. And after the Causeway Boulevard section is complete, two water mains that run along 900 feet of Curlew Road, just across the Bayshore Boulevard intersection will be replaced. Those water mains are under water. One of the mains cuts across 300 feet of Cedar Creek. The other water main crosses 450 feet of Curlew Creek on the golf …

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