Bradenton Beach, FL

Manatee County is adding a third stop to the Gulf Islands Ferry, the closest one yet to Longboat Key.Beginning Thursday, Coquina Beach’s south boat ramp is a landing and departure point for the vessels that previously connected just downtown Bradenton and the Bridge Street Pier in Bradenton Beach.The new service launches Thursday and will operate through the Labor Day holiday weekend. The system normally operates five days a week, with a break on Mondays and Tuesdays. Next week, the break

As Manatee County wraps up a utility pipe relocation project, the Florida Department of Transportation is waiting in the wings preparing to build a $123 million fixed-span bridge in place of a 1956 drawbridge.Construction of the 65-foot-clearance bridge is expected to begin with phase 1 in September. Despite the bridge replacement, traffic between Cortez and Bradenton Beach will not be halted, but roadwork impacts will continue throughout the 1,200-day construction window.Traffic will be shifte

A routine patrol launch turned into a rescue mission this week when Deputy McBride of the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office Marine Unit spotted a lonely cockatiel at the dock. The bird turned out to be Kiwi, one of two cockatiels that escaped from a home near 67th Street West and Manatee Avenue West on August…