A resolution calling for greater state and federal gun control measures failed Monday, but not for lack of support. Sarasota City Commissioners backed off a call for limiting access to military-style weapons after city attorneys looked into a state law that seemingly prohibits local jurisdictions from even weighing in on regulations surrounding gun rights. “It seems very wrong that we can’t even have a conversation,” says Sarasota City Commissioner Liz Alpert. “We can’t discuss common sense gun laws. We can’t work together and see if we can figure out a balance between the two.”

The resolution was shot down 4-1, with Commissioner Suzanne Attwell the sole vote in favor. “I appreciate convictions,” Attwell says. “I wish there was more courage to bring it forward.” The resolution, drafted by City Manager Tom Barwin, called for state and federal authorities to “limit military-grade, high-capacity magazine weapons to bona fide law enforcement agencies.” The resolution came after a mass shooting at an Orlando night club where 50 were killed, including Sarasota victim Edward Sotomayor.

City Attorney Robert Fournier says the resolution did not govern the sale or ownership or weapons, so it did not violate a state law preventing the regulation of weapons, but upon study of the statute, he worried the resolution would expose commissioners to legal risk if passed because of a broad provision allowing third parties to sue if their rights are pre-empted. “The legislature was trying to come down hard on it,” he says, noting a potential for a $5,000 civil penalty, one that cannot be covered by public dollars, on elected or appointed officials, who stray on the law. Fournier says there is no legal precedent on how the 2011 law should be enforced. Commissioner Susan Chapman says the city should pursue an Attorney General’s Opinion offering guidance on the matter, and if that opinion does not suggest the city resolution would violate statute, she would be “more than willing to put this back on the agenda.”

The resolution has incited lively discussion on the matter, and most of the participants broadly debated the appropriateness of gun control legislation. Carol Rescigno with the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence asked city commissioners on Monday to pass the resolution, labeling it “a start” in preventing further mass shootings. Founding fathers wrote, “we are endowed with certain unalienable rights. The first of those is life.” But state Rep. Greg Steube, R-Sarasota, says citizens need the right to arms for self-defense. “Did the law preventing guns in bars prevent the terrorist from walking into a nightclub and killing 49 people?” he says in an email. “No, it only prevented law-abiding citizens from defending themselves.” 

Fashion’s having a mouthy moment. The chatty couture sweatshirts, bad-girl beanies and talky tees currently populating your Instagram feed are equally suitable for sun salutations, a girls’ night out or your next lazy Sunday. These word-emblazoned finds have made their way from Melrose Avenue to the sandy shores of Siesta Key Beach, in the form of sassy graphic t-shirts available at local style enclave Pink & Navy Boutique. Tuck one of these tees into a sleek pencil skirt and top it off with a statement necklace for a night on the town, pair it with printed leggings for an eye-catching new yoga uniform or throw it over your bathing suit for a bold beach cover-up. Whether you’re seeking a rosé-soaked afternoon, want to declare your undying love for pizza or claim your rightful place among the local merfolk, you can let your tee do the talking.  

Pictured: Wordy tees from Pink & Navy Boutique. Photo by Heidi Stone.

Pink & Navy Boutique, 216 Pine Ave., Anna Maria, 941-567-4000

Maximize your marketing dollars with e-blasts. When designing electronic communications, or “e-blasts,” you can save money by leveraging the web hosting service you are already paying for. If you have a website, you’re already paying for hosting. Instead of subscribing to an additional e-blast service to host your images, you can simply upload a directory of images to your hosting web server and link to the files from your chosen email client or HTML code. This option enables you to remain in full control of your images and content while saving you money.

Another potential money saver is to actively update your current mailing list. For example, if your database is 10,000 strong and you receive 1,000 bounce backs or undeliverable email addresses, updating these addresses will minimize the number of bounces you receive. Afterall, do you want to pay for emails that cannot be delivered? If you are paying per email address, in most cases, making these updates will save you some money on your monthly bill.

There are a number of great statistical tracking applications you can use for free by simply creating a Google account. Ask your webmaster to and make sure your eblasts, landing page and website all have tracking codes on them, which assists Google in providing performance data to you. Google Analytics will provide you two forms of information: 1) It will validate your statistics from your chosen email client and 2) it will validate the traffic coming from your website. This creates a consistent method to overlap your data, ensuring that the traffic you are receiving matches the marketing expenditure. This analysis is a bit complex, however the returns on your investment of time is incredibly high.

Spending money on e-blasts or any other online or social media marketing vehicle (such as Facebook or Google Ad Words) must be tracked to access its effectiveness. Through analytics, you will receive hard data that will prove the return on your marketing investment. If you want to know how much it is costing to reach each current or potential customer, analytics will do the job.

It’s much easier to spend money when you understand the return that investment is providing. Additionally, you have the opportunity to continuously hone in with laser-sharp focus to adjust your advertising dollars and invest more into the markets and software applications that best serve you. Analytics will provide you a roadmap and true metrics to base your purchasing and funding decisions. E-blasts, e-blasts, e-blasts. 

Nuevo Advertising

A pressure cooker is a gadget that most people stay away from, usually citing a story about Grandma’s stew on the ceiling. I am probably spacier than most cooks, and I can tell you that in all the years I have used a pressure cooker there has never been an accident. And now they are much safer than in Grandma’s day.

What a pressure cooker provides is a cheap and healthy way to cook slow-cooking foods such as beans, potatoes and certain whole grains fast. It is also great for soups, stews and vegetables that take a while to cook, such as collard greens, kale, beets and artichokes. People who swear they don’t like collards love them when I cook them under pressure (my recipe here). This old-fashioned gadget can be more useful than ever in today’s busy world, so give it a try.

Pressure Cooker Tips

- Use about half the amount of water that you would use for conventional cooking.

- Don’t use a pressure cooker to cook split peas or lentils because they may foam up and clog the vent.

- For most foods, bring the pressure up over high heat, take the cooker off the heat and let it cool off naturally and your food will be cooked.

- For vegetable soups or faster cooking for vegetables bring it up to pressure and then cool it down quickly under running water. 

Vicki Chelf, Pulp Kitchen

Recent hires for Waterscapes Pools & Spas, Rob LaGasse and Kari Osnes have been added to the company as pool designers. The company is one of Florida’s largest residential pool builders and a subsidiary company of Neal Communities. With 30 years of experience in the pool business, LaGasse will be based in the Lakewood Ranch office. Osnes has over 20 years in the construction and design industry and will service Lee and Collier counties. 

Waterscapes Pools & Spas

Premier Sotheby’s International Realty has announced the addition of Elke von Oertzen as well as Ron and Debbie DoorenBos to its Venice office. With over 33 years of real estate experience in the national and international markets, Oertzen has been a top producer in the Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties for over 20 years. Ron DoorenBos has worked in real estate for ten years and Debbie DoorenBos has won numerous top agent awards throughout the years. 

Premier Sotheby's International Realty

Gulf Coast Community Foundation revealed scholarship awards of $544,182 to help local students pursue higher education for the upcoming academic year. With the awards coming from more than 50 different scholarship funds administered by the foundation, Gulf Coast awarded 451 scholarships to 287 students. 

Gulf Coast Community Foundation