May 26, 2021 / Issue #2021-21

Hurricane season is June 1 - November 30

ALL HAZARDS GUIDE
provides some resources to help you be ready 

Brochure available at Town Hall while supplies last

There are many things you can do to get yourself and your property prepared. Visit the Town’s website for info

The first of three  “tax holidays”  for Floridians
kicks off on Friday, May 28, and lasts through June 6.

This temporarily suspends taxes on disaster supplies ahead of hurricane season.

Hurricane Re-Entry Pass

Fort Myers Beach residents and business owners who are not registered for hurricane re-entry passes can submit an application. Residents will be allowed to receive up to two re-entry passes. Business owners will be allowed to receive three passes and property managers will receive one pass per five properties with a maximum of five.

If you do not have a previous year's re-entry pass, applications for these passes are accepted at Town Hall. Fill out the application, download it and print it out, then call Town Hall at 239-765-0202 to make arrangements to drop the application off and receive the pass.

The application is required to receive a re-entry pass as well as supporting documents. Photo identification and proof of residency are required. The owner, tenant and business should have two of the following: driver’s license, vehicle registration, voter registration, utility bill, business tax bill, company letter, occupational license or lease.

Receive urgent alerts through the Town's CodeRed system by text and/or email

Sea turtle nesting season is May 1 - October 31

• Turn off unnecessary lights
• Make outside lights turtle friendly: fully shielded from beach view, low to the ground, downward directed fixture, long wavelength, wildlife friendly bulbs
• Block interior lights from beach view: use black out curtains, set an alarm to close the curtains at 9 p.m., move interior lights away from windows, use 15 percent transmittance tinted “turtle” glass
• Clear the Path: fill in holes on the beach before leaving for the day, remove beach furniture and other obstructions

If you see a turtle on the beach, do not disturb it with lights or photos or noise.
Quietly back away and let the mama turtle lay eggs and return to the ocean.

See The Town’s 2021 Sea Turtle Conservation Flyer

For more information, visit turtletime.org

Questions?
Contact Chadd Chustz, Environmental Project Manager
chadd@fmbgov.com, (239) 765-0202 Ext. 1312 

Encouraging bike safety with Beach Elementary

Mooring Field upland services and expansion update

In continued discussion about acquiring or building a facility to be owned by the Town to provide upland services for Matanzas Harbor Mooring Field, Town Councilors reviewed a list of seven possible sites at their regular meeting on Monday, May 17. These four sites were chosen for further review:

• Property for sale at the north end of the island on Estero Boulevard
• Property at San Carlos Maritime Park on San Carlos Island owned by Lee County
• Lots behind Town Hall on Chapel Street that are privately owned
• Bay Oaks Recreational Campus

In other business related to the Mooring Field, Town Council authorized staff to apply for and execute a grant agreement for approximately $41,000 with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection for the Clean Vessel Act Grant. 

Visit the Mooring Field page on the website

Important notice about FMB Community Pool

The kid pool and large slide are temporarily closed due to a delay in the contractor getting a new pool pump installed. Health Department guidelines require the kid pool to be closed until the pump is replaced.

However, a few water features are still open for smaller kids to enjoy until the kid pool is reopened. The lap pool is open as well and programs are available. 

Swim lessons will resume this summer! Watch the Town’s website and social media outlets for details as they become available.

Water aerobics are at 9 a.m. on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Aqua strength is at 10 a.m. on Monday, Wednesday, Friday. 

For more info,  visit FMB Community Pool.

Mark your calendars!

Future dates:

•  11/05/2021 – 8:00am to 12:00pm – Bay Oaks, 2731 Oak St
•  02/04/2022 – 8:00am to 12:00pm – Bay Oaks, 2731 Oak St
•  05/06/2022 – 8:00am to 12:00pm – Bay Oaks, 2731 Oak St
•  08/05/2022 – 8:00am to 12:00pm – Bay Oaks, 2731 Oak St 

New look to the Town's website launched Monday

For the past several months, staff have been working through a redesign of the Town's website with CivicPlus. CivicPlus is the vendor that the Town has used for many years to host the website and provide the structure for staff to manage the content.

This redesign was necessary for many reasons, one of which was to bring the site into compliance with standards set by federal law for people with disabilities to access information. The other reasons were to match the Town's branding strategy that was adopted by Town Council in 2020 and update content, menus, and page layout that had not been refreshed in several years. 

Do you have feedback on the redesigned site or need help finding something? Please use this form to let us know or call Jenny Dexter, Communications Coordinator, at 239-765-0202, ext. 1112. We appreciate your patience as we work to continue to update and evolve the site's content.

A note about accessibility

Since October, the website has been monitored by Audio Eye, a web-based software, for compliance with accessibility standards for people with disabilities. In addition to Audio Eye, staff continue to review and revise all documents contained in the site prior to 2021 for accessibility. Until that process is complete, some documents may not be accessible to optical character readers (OCR) and screen readers but alternative means to receive those documents are available. 

To receive any desired information through alternative means, please submit a public records request electronically or call the Town Clerk’s office at 239-765-0202. 

View Mound House Upcoming Outdoor Nature &
Education Events for:
May 27 through June 5, 2021

and Mound House & Newton Beach Park Program Calendars for:
  May 2021  and June 2021

Volunteers needed for lead and copper water
testing from their household taps

The Town's Utility Department is looking for volunteers to participate in the upcoming lead and copper sampling as required by the United State Environmental Protection Agency’s (USEPA) Lead and Copper Rule.  

The Lead and Copper Rule, 40 C.F.R. Sections 141.80 to 141.91, requires monitoring at the consumer taps to identify levels of lead in drinking water that may result from corrosion of lead-bearing components in a public water system’s distribution system or in household plumbing. These samples help assess the need for, or the effectiveness of, corrosion control treatment. 

Interested? Email fmbh2o@fmbgov.com to register.  

The Utility Department is planning on collecting the required samples in July 2021.  All participants will be contacted and provided with all supplies necessary for sample collection.  

People who live in, work in, or visit the Town of Fort Myers Beach are being asked to take part in an  online survey  conducted by the Public Safety Committee.

The survey is designed to determine the community’s level of need and interest in the possible development of a community policing/neighborhood program.

Topics that the survey addresses include pedestrians, homelessness, bike traffic lanes, law enforcement response, street lighting, and neighborhoods.

The Public Safety Committee will review the results and make recommendations to Town Council.

Deadline to take the survey is May 28.

Come work at the beach!

Our fun and unique beach town is hiring! 

Learn more and apply 

Keep up on the schedule of Town Council and advisory committee meetings

View the meeting calendar on the Town's website for the

Upcoming meetings