"The island is an anomaly."
Russell Loomis is throwing a victory party.
“All weekend,” he said.
And he has just the place for it.
Around 18 months ago, at the bargain price of $63,650, Loomis and three friends bought 11-acre Pine Key — a popular boating and camping destination known by locals as Beer Can Island.
Loomis, Cole Weaver, James Wester and John Gadd sought to bring order to the once lawless island between Apollo Beach and MacDill Air Force Base.
They installed toilets and trash cans, built a small concert stage, anchored a floating tiki bar on the coast and held private parties for those who purchased island passes.
But Hillsborough County Code Enforcement said the activity can’t be permitted there because the property lacks a zoning designation of any kind. The agency issued the owners a fine and ordered them to stop what they were doing.
Then on Friday, the Code Enforcement Board — appointed by the County Commission — reversed the action and dismissed the violation.
Beer Can Island, it seems, had slipped through the cracks.
Read more at the Tampa Bay Times