Rotary seeks to promote peace through pole on Vero Beach property

Low beach attendance for January; no water rescues

VERO BEACH — While chilly temperatures caused a drop in beach attendance last month, lifeguards are happy to report that there were no water rescues that occurred in January. "It's a great thing," Vero Beach Lifeguard Association officials said in a statement. "We hope people are paying attention to lifeguards and condition signs before they go into the water." The Vero Beach Lifeguard Association recently released its monthly report for the beaches at Jaycee Park, Humiston Park and South Beach Park. Lifeguards said about 54,105 beachgoers flocked to the shore in January. The highest beach-attendance record of 65,700 was set in 2019 for Vero Beach, lifeguards said. The record low for beach attendance was set in 2016 with 36,000 people, ...

Leisure Square rates adjusted after pool closure scare

VERO BEACH — It will cost more to participate in Leisure Square recreational activities, especially for users who live outside the city limits. The Vero Beach City Council at its Nov. 4 meeting unanimously agreed to a new fee structure at the facility, which includes a rate hike for certain room rentals and monthly memberships for non-city residents. The new fees — which go into effect Nov. 15 — were implemented after the council directed staff to explore methods to close the gap between Leisure Square expenditures and revenue after the board previously contemplated closing the facility’s financially draining pool. The city implemented a new $6 daily user fee for adults and $4 for students with a valid identification card ...

Indian River County’s newest nature preserve set to open Friday

INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — The county’s newest nature preserve featuring several hiking trails through unspoiled Florida uplands and a mechanism to help clean the ailing Indian River Lagoon opens on Friday. The nearly 84-acre Osprey Acres Stormwater Park and Nature Preserve, located at 925 5th Street Southwest, consists of five hiking trails totaling 3.8 miles along uplands and a serpentine floway that is part of a stormwater treatment system designed to remove pollutants from stormwater and canal water before it enters the Indian River Lagoon. The park’s pollution reduction system is expected to reduce nitrogen entrance into the lagoon by roughly 3,700 pounds per year and phosphorus discharge by over 300 pounds annually. "The Osprey Acres project will clean stormwater ...