Englewood tends vet memorial

ENGLEWOOD — Jim and Stormie McCracken enjoy visiting the Englewood Veterans Memorial regularly.

“It’s the sound of the water,” Jim said of the memorial that’s located at the west end of Dearborn Street on Lemon Bay.

“The memorial is important,” he continues. “It makes people reflect on history, the past, the people who keep the country free.”

Jim McCracken is a disabled Navy veteran who served on a destroyer from 1985 to 1988.

“Veteran parks are a reflection of the heroes, the people who really matter, who made a difference,” McCracken said.

The couple described the memorial as well-tended whenever they visited it.

The Englewood Community Redevelopment Agency Advisory Board, however, wonders if it could be better maintained. Residents who live near the monument complained about its condition at the CRA’s April 9 meeting, saying the grounds are often trashed by vandals, and the bathrooms can become disgusting, especially over the weekend.

The board discussed the memorial at its May meeting, and the board and county staff intend to discuss it further at their next meeting, scheduled for June 11.

The park is maintained by the county landscape contractor. Any additional maintenance would have to be paid by CRA or other fundraising sources, CRA manager Debbie Marks suggested at the advisory board’s last meeting.

Board member, Terry Redman, who also is president of the nonprofit Sarasota County Friends of the Parks, is forming a friends group to assist with cleanups and other assistance for the veterans memorial.

“We have to take care of veteran memorials and cemeteries,” Redman said. Caring for beaches, parks and other amenities are “nice,” he said, suggesting that the care for veteran memorials and cemeteries is a necessary commitment.

Several Englewood Moose (motorcycle) Riders signed up as recruits. A number of its members are veterans themselves, riders president Norm Coleman said.

Advisory board member Elaine Miller suggested a number of the plants may need trimming, but are alive and healthy. The plants were chosen as salt-resistant, Florida-friendly vegetation.

A particular problem is the “green” roof at the memorial. The original landscaper is no longer available to care for the plants, which includes climbing up a ladder to trim and maintain the plants on a quarterly basis.

“We need to talk about it, think about it and come up with some resolution,” Marks said, noting that a company wants $17,000 to clean up and replace the plants on the green roof. She also suggested the county might want to take over the maintenance when the CRA sunsets in 2029.

“It now sounds like it’s going be costly, time-consuming and difficult,” said advisory board chairman John Davison. He described himself as a strong supporter of the green roof.

The memorial faces other issues.

Brick pavers are sinking out of place along the seawall.

The memorial also had become a haven for the homeless, much to the dismay of neighboring residents.

“It’s getting better,” said Toy Coxey whose home abuts the memorial. “(Sarasota County sheriff deputies) are checking it more.”

Coxey, however, wasn’t sure whether the memorial is seeing fewer homeless due to the end of the winter season or that they found another location to congregate.

“We’ll know next season,” Coxey said.

For more information about the memorial, call the CRA office at 941-473-9795.

Email: reilly@sun-herald.com