Stewards work to return animals to Gumbo Limbo
By Steve Plunkett
Before sea turtles can return to the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center, the state says Boca Raton must transfer “ownership or control” of the center’s two multimillion-dollar aquariums to the nonprofit Gumbo Limbo Coastal Stewards.
The Stewards group is applying for a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission permit to bring back and house Cane and Morgan, two “resident” or non-releasable turtles that lived for years at Gumbo Limbo before the center lost its permit in March.
The FWC says before it can issue a permit, state rules require the agency to be given a document from the city that “clearly states” the Stewards group has control over the center’s Mangrove and Shipwreck saltwater tanks, which also house numerous fish and other marine life.
“GLCS must have unfettered rights to occupy, possess, use, and make managerial decisions about the facilities housing the non-releasable sea turtles,” the agency said in a Sept. 13 letter to the nonprofit group.
At a City Council meeting Sept. 27, City Manager Leif Ahnell said staff and the FWC were discussing the situation when asked if the turtles were almost back or already back.
“Let’s call it almost,” Ahnell said. “There’s some, as I understand, technicalities on who owns the facilities versus who’s caring for the turtles. And I know staff has been communicating with the state about resolving that … interpreting … resolving that interpretation, if you will.”
Contacted after the meeting, Assistant City Manager Chrissy Gibson said the city and the Coastal Stewards are not troubled by the FWC’s letter.
“We’re confident we’ll get the turtles back,” she said.
Not much has changed in the sea turtle treatment area since the city removed the previous team of turtle rehab specialists. March 15, 2023 file photo/The Coastal Star
The FWC ordered the city to move Morgan, Cane and seven injured or sick sea turtles to other facilities in March after the city fired its sea turtle rehabilitation coordinator and assistant coordinator. The rehab coordinator held the FWC permit to care for turtles.
The terminations came as part of a developing plan to transfer all the care of the resident and ailing sea turtles from the city to the nonprofit group, which had been paying for the unit’s contract veterinarian and medical equipment.
John Holloway, president and CEO of the Coastal Stewards, told the Federation of Boca Raton HOAs in early September that his group would soon apply for an FWC permit to provide veterinary care to turtles; its application was completed Oct. 2.
Declining visitor numbers
With the turtles no longer at Gumbo Limbo, the number of visitors to the nature center has dropped to pre-pandemic levels after a record-setting 2022. Walk-in visitors averaged about 17,000 a month from April through August last year and about 11,900 a month for the same time period this year. The comparable 2019 average was just over 11,800.
COVID closed the nature center to the public from March 2020 to mid-August 2021.
Leanne Welch, the center’s manager, said this year’s low attendance totals were continuing.
“September numbers are 7,586 as of Sept. 25, so definitely following the trend,” she said. “We had a busy summer, though. The majority of our programs sold out and our fall programming is already filling up. In fact, all of our field trip programs are filled for the school year and we have an extensive wait list.”
Council member Yvette Drucker was the one questioning Ahnell about the sea turtles’ whereabouts while the City Council was deliberating how much money to contribute to various nonprofits. For the first time, it gave $10,000 to the Coastal Stewards, partly because the city this year decided to keep donations collected at the nature center’s door instead of letting the nonprofit have them.
Once a charity gets on the City Council’s donation list, it rarely is taken off.
Tower construction begins
Meanwhile, construction of Gumbo Limbo’s observation tower has begun and the boardwalk next to it is blocked off to visitors.
“They have excavated the foundations for the ramp and should begin pouring the concrete” the first week of October. “Construction is on track for a spring 2024 finish, and we have already begun workshopping the educational exhibits that we will install,” Welch said.
Boca Raton and the Coastal Stewards signed an agreement on April 25 letting the nonprofit take over all responsibility, operation and financing of sea turtle rescue, rehabilitation and release efforts.
The city owns Gumbo Limbo and the surrounding Red Reef Park, including the land and all facilities; tax dollars from the Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park District cover all salaries, operations and improvements except for the turtle rehab costs that the Coastal Stewards pay.
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