Gas Prices, Angels and Parking

COASTAL COMMENTS

Donna Fiala

donnafiala@colliergov.net

We’ve heard a lot about price of fuel recently. Last week I had to make an emergency trip to Ohio and the price of gas up there averaged $3.05 per gallon and a few places dipped down to $2.99.

Don’t you wonder what happened down here? You don’t happen to think that the owners of the gas stations are trying to gouge the visitors to our community (and of course us as well) because they know they can get it? They know they have us over a barrel (a little pun there) if we want to get to work, and being that they all fix their prices at the same amount, we can’t even price shop! Pretty lousy, don’t you think?

* You might have read about a project a few of us are working on to help the children in Copeland by providing two bus shelters for them while they wait for the school bus. Let me tell you about Craig Woodward and his band of angels in the Marco Island Sunrise Rotary Club, plus the angels we work with at the County under Nick Casalanguida, with “Huggy Bear” Travis Gossard at his side.

It has been a tumultuous road to get there, but none of the team has given up! And, we’ve found a solution that all can live with. A group of us met with Mitchell Roberts and Arita Parker in Copeland to discuss our ideas and plans. After the entire group met, discussed the options, toured the area, watched the school buses drop children off during the rain, noted the deep gulley’s on a certain road, and noted the paths that were available, Nick, Travis and Trinity Scott came up with a solution that would work, and included all of the “Angel Team.” I especially want to thank the Marco Island Sunrise Rotary for their dedication to the children who truly needed their help. What a great bunch of guys! And a special tip of the hat to Mitchell, Arita, Nick, Trinity and Travis! Thank you for all you do for others! You make our community a much nicer place to live.

• At the Oct. 14 Collier County Commission meeting, $179,919.44 was approved to increase the number of parking spaces and upgrade the gravel/shell parking lot to asphalt with additional curbing at Tigertail Beach Park parking lot. The funding was from the TDC Beach Park Facilities Capital Fund. The county in cooperation with the city has extra signs along Collier Boulevard, hoping to attract off-island visitors to Tigertail Beach and taking the pressure off the parking at the South Beach location. People from Manatee Road, Fiddler’s Creek, Mainsail Drive and Isles of Capri might find this a much better solution than traveling to the other side of the Island. People from the U.S. 41 E area just travel the eight miles to the beaches of Naples where there is plenty of parking and easy access.