3 To Know: Stay up-to-date on debris removal

1. Stay up-to-date on debris removal

The city of Marco Island is publishing zone maps indicating when citizens can expect horticultural debris pickup to take place in their neighborhoods, says Larry Honig, chairman, Marco Island City Council.

The city receives notice of truck allocations each morning, and then requests that the contractor cover certain areas, he added.

“First priority was the arterial and collector roads such as Collier Blvd., San Marco Rd., Barfield Dr., and Bald Eagle Dr. The second priority was the schools, and recently this was expanded to include nearby neighborhoods so that Halloween trick-or-treating will be safer for children walking on sidewalks. The third priority was the park areas, which were prioritized to get the organized-play parks back online first. The fourth priority was commercial areas where customer traffic was inhibited. The fifth (and ongoing) priority is to reduce the height of any debris piles obstructing the view of vehicular traffic. The last priority is the neighborhood streets, which are being addressed in zones.”

Visit cityofmarcoisland.com.

2. Storm recovery to raise budget 

Gov. Rick Scott’s budget chief told senators they should expect to set aside $127 million in next year’s state budget to pay for recovery costs from Hurricane Irma, creating a larger gap they will need to make up.

But Sen. Jack Latvala said any unforeseen costs from the Sept. 10 storm

that made Category 4 landfall in the Florida Keys and knocked out power to 64 percent of the state will be covered by the state’s $3.8 billion in cash reserves.

“We’ve got that in the rainy day fund, and if this wasn’t a rainy day then what is?” said Latvala, R-Clearwater, who is running for governor. “It would be irresponsible for anyone to say there’s a cash flow problem.”

3. Sketch depicts man who tried to lead boy away

The Collier County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday released a composite sketch of a man accused of trying to lead a 3-year-old boy away from his family on Sunday.

The boy and his family were taking pictures behind the Church of God Naples in the 11900 block of Collier Boulevard about 1:35 p.m. when a man approached the child, according to the Sheriff’s Office. While the mother was distracted, the man took the child by the hand and tried to lead him away, authorities said.

The man was described as Hispanic, in his 50s, 5-foot-8 and weighing about 180 pounds, detectives said. He has salt-and-pepper hair and brown eyes and was wearing jeans and a button-up black and white plaid shirt, the Sheriff’s Office said in a release Wednesday.

Authorities also are investigating two other recent reports of a man trying to lead a child away.

On Oct. 19, a man tried to lure a child into his vehicle in East Naples, deputies said. The Sheriff’s Office released a composite sketch for that suspect last week.

Two days earlier, Marco Island police responded to a report of a man trying to lure a middle school student into his car.

The Sheriff’s Office is asking anyone with information about the incidents to call 239-252-9300.