The STOP Coalition on Wednesday formally demanded that a local Democratic activist retract accusations the group was improperly working to elect a one of the organization's steering committee members, Jennifer Ahearn-Koch, to the Sarasota City Commission. The same day, the Sarasota County Democratic Party seemingly rebuked the accusations as well, and voiced their own support for Ahearn-Koch and fellow Democrat Hagen Brody. The actions cap a busy political week where Republican leaders also released messaging attacking Ahearn-Koch and promoting Republican Martin Hyde.

Gabriel Hament says he no longer plans to file a complaint with the Florida Elections Commission alleging STOP violated the law with a mass email highlighting Ahearn-Koch as the only one of the three remaining Sarasota City Commission candidates to support a city-wide traffic study. “It is a moot point now since it has been revealed that they are operating as a 501(c)4,” Hament says. On Friday, Hament circulated a formal complaint against STOP, alleging the group should be registered instead under Florida law as an electioneering communications organization. Hament supports Brody in the commission race but is not working for any campaign.

Kate Lowman, a board member for STOP, labeled Hament’s accusations “libelous content” and said her group has operated as a nonprofit organization within the law. “There’s no actual case filed and a lot of what’s gone on has pretty much been a catfight in the press,” Lowman says. “We felt it was really important to say we don’t think it’s acceptable.”

Democrats announced yesterday that the party would actively help Ahearn-Koch’s and Brody’s campaigns. Party chair JoAnne DeVries says that includes assisting the campaigns separately with canvassing and by providing get-out-the-vote phone banking in the party’s office. “They have both proven themselves to be strong candidates with exceptional insight into the issues important to voters,” she says. She also issued a statement that the views of individual members should not be considered the position of the party. “Only SCDP officers and officially designated spokespersons are authorized to speak on behalf of our party and its leadership,” she says.

Hament maintains he supports only Brody because of Ahearn-Koch's views on issues like workforce housing and economic stimulation in north Sarasota remain insufficiently progressive. 

Earlier this week, Republican leaders also went social media this week with pro-Hyde and anti-Ahearn-Koch messaging surrounding the Democrat’s immigration views. 

The three candidates for Sarasota City Commission are seeking two seats on the board. The nonpartisan election will be held May 9.  

Editor’s Note: This is part 17 of an ongoing series documenting the flights of active-duty US Navy Pilot Ryan Rankin on his journey to fly 52 planes in 52 weeks through the year 2017.

Feeding the need for speed, Rankin steps behind the stick of an Aero L-39 Albatros, taking off from Palm Beach with former Navy F-18 pilot Bill Mills. A jet-engine aircraft developed in Czechoslovakia, the L-39 remains the most produced high-performance military jet training aircraft around and one of the few accessible craft of its kind. Propeller-driven craft have dominated Rankin’s From The Cockpit flights thus far, and, though he flies aerobatic jets for the Navy nearly every day, this ubiquitous trainer held a spot on his most anticipated flights for the year.

It’s a much smoother flight, he says, without the vibrations and buzz of the propeller filling the cockpit and shaking the plane. And there’s no p-factor (rotational forces of the propeller on the body of the plane) to counteract, lessening the pilot workload. But it’s also much faster. “You have to be ahead of the aircraft,” says Rankin. “Everything just happens a little quicker.” This may not mean much when simply flying from Point A to Point B, but it requires extra focus with less time for adjustment when landing, looping or flying in formation.

Executing barrel rolls across the sky, a Nanchang CJ-6 pulls up alongside Rankin and Mills, piloted by Mills’ friend. Taking the stick, Mills flies in formation with the Nanchang. Rankin is no stranger to formation flying, but leaves this run to Mills. “Because they’re all different,” says Rankin. “Every time you fly a new airplane in formation, you have to learn how to fly that plane in formation.” Formation flying may look easy to the untrained eye—like staying in your lane on the freeway—but is actually quite complex, particularly when the planes involved have different capacities. Throw aerobatics in to the mix and an untrained pilot is a recipe for disaster.

There’s always an element of danger to flying and no defiance of gravity should be taken too lightly. Nerves are a part of every flight, Rankin admits, but so is overcoming that trepidation and taking to the skies. “You don’t think about the hazard,” he says. “Your brain is laser-focused on the task at hand and you’re just in that flow-state.” It’s the same concentration that allows him to land a jet on an aircraft carrier in a storm under a moonless night. “It’s addicting,” Rankin says. “The more you do it, the more you want to experience that and push those limits.”

For more about the flight in Rankin's own words and a video of the flight, follow the link below. 

Pictured: Ryan Rankin and Bill Mills fly the Aero L-39 Albatros. Photo courtesy of Ryan Rankin.

Ryan Flies

Public service announcement: Sarasota’s no. 1 local sushi restaurant is now serving up donuts—of the sushi variety, of course. When you’ve had a sugar overdose on La Dona’s Billionaire Bacon donut (or the calories that come with it) head over to JPan and try a donut of a different (healthful) species. Get your social media platforms ready—sushi donuts are all the rage in foodie hubs such as New York City and Los Angeles. This Instagrammable dish is as cute as it is delicious: the sushi rice-filled donut gets topped with salmon, escolar, shrimp avocado, cucumber, premium seaweed wrap and white and black sesame seeds. Head to JPan today to try this trendy new dish and see for yourself if it lives up to the hype! 

Photo courtesy of JPan Restaurant

JPan Restaurant, 3 Paradise Plaza, Sarasota; 229 North Cattlemen Rd., Sarasota, 941-954-5726.

Out on the town and you’ve got to keep it together—your cuffs that is. Everyone considers the tie, but real fashionistas take a moment to consider the cufflinks. Understated or bold, cufflinks provide that final accent to bring an outfit together and Cravats’ Custom Clothiers and Haberdashery has all the options. Intricate sterling silver octopus cufflinks from Baade II lend a whimsical edge, while the inset amethyst and green abalone assures a sense of sophistication. For a classy but casual night out, pair with a sport coat and a splash of color. If the night calls for tuxedos, the subtle boldness and minimalism of Legére’s classic onyx rimmed in gold announces your presence with confidence while eschewing the gaudy. 

Photo by Phil Lederer.

Cravats' Custom Clothier and Haberdashery, 1530 Dolphin St. #5, Sarasota, 941-366-7780.

Ringling College of Art and Design is pleased to announce that Variety has named Ringling College Film Program Head Bradley Battersby as the 2017 Variety Mentor of the Year. In the article, available in the April 25 issue of Variety magazine and online, Battersby is quoted on his belief that, “In a film school environment, we get to experiment, we get to learn. I allow and encourage my students not to take the safe route.” Also cited as a factor in the Variety article is Ringling College’s Studio Lab Program, created by Ringling College and David Shapiro of Semkhor Productions, which has brought guest artists including Aubrey Plaza of Parks and Recreation and The Magnificent Seven director Antoine Fuqua to Ringling to work with students. In addition, students have earned professional credits in three in-house Studio Lab projects, including two web series created and directed by Justin Long and Dylan McDermott, and the Sundance independent feature Dark Night, directed by Tim Sutton. 

2017 Mentor of the Year

The School Board of Sarasota County has approved a plan to retain and restore a large section of the Paul Rudolph-designed concrete canopy walkway at Sarasota High School. The agreement between the School Board and the Sarasota Architectural Foundation (SAF) was approved April 18. The Sarasota County School District held community engagement meetings in June 2012 to seek public input about changes to the campus of Sarasota High School. As a result, the School Board and district staff agreed to renovate Rudolph’s 1960 additions to the campus, designated as Buildings 4 and 5. In March 2015, the Sarasota Architectural Foundation reached an agreement with Ringling College of Art and Design to retain a section of the Rudolph canopy walkway originally scheduled for demolition as part of the repurposing of the historic SHS building on Tamiami Trail. The Collegiate Gothic building will house the Sarasota Museum of Art when it opens to the public. The new School Board-SAF agreement identifies the portion of the Rudolph canopy walkway that remains and specifies the conditions for its renovation. As part of the agreement about the canopy walkway, the Sarasota Architectural Foundation has agreed to fund the additional renovation costs, estimated to be $34,000. Renovations will take place as part of the final phase of the SHS campus renovations, scheduled to be completed in August 2017. The plan also calls for SAF to install a plaque on one of the canopy pillars, designating the architectural significance of the canopy walkway. 

Sarasota County Schools