Ray McNulty

Complaints from local residents about the repetitive and often-annoying noise that accompanies student pilots practicing takeoffs and landings at Vero Beach Regional Airport are nothing new.

Unlike Vero Beach officials, longtime island resident Don Urgo wasn't at all surprised the city received only two responses to its second attempt at finding a suitable developer for its much-anticipated Three Corners project.

We wanted the historic boardwalk to rise once again atop the dune at Humiston Beach – and it appears that this time, the nostalgic dreams of many Vero residents are going to be fulfilled.

A high-ranking Vero Beach police officer has filed a “whistleblower” lawsuit against the city, claiming he was targeted for retaliation after he accused the department's chief earlier this year of creating a hostile work environment.

Last Friday afternoon, Mayor John Cotugno and County Commission Chairman Joe Flescher joined former State Representative Charlie Sembler at Humiston Beach Park to discuss the burgeoning grassroots effort to rebuild the storm-damaged and later-demolished boardwalk.

At least 11 of the nearly 50 businesses operating at the Vero Beach Regional Airport were in violation of the terms of their lease agreements last week – because they did not have the required windstorm insurance coverage.

Six months after receiving its second consecutive “A” grade from the Florida Department of Education, the county School District learned last week that its 96.2-percent high school graduation rate ranked No. 4 in the state.

Ten months ago, Vero Beach officials unveiled Indiana-based Clearpath Services' breathtakingly spectacular, $500 million proposal for the development of the Three Corners site at the west end of the 17th Street Bridge.

The Vero Beach City Council has officially embraced a local grassroots campaign to rebuild the storm-damaged Humiston Park boardwalk, voting unanimously last week to change course after approving a less-costly plan last summer to replace the historic structure with a sidewalk.

One by one, the City Council's five members voted unanimously last week to remove the interim tag Sherri Philo has carried since July and make her Vero Beach's 20th City Clerk.