The Gabber Newspaper | Pinellas County, Florida

By Leigh Clifton
The Peninsula Inn was transformed Saturday night into a magical Wonderland, complete with a rabbit-hole entrance, a grinning Cheshire Cat cake made entirely of cream puffs drizzled with caramel and an upside down table set with china and candelabra. But the costumes, oh BOY, the costumes were absolutely to die for. Creative, colorful, resplendent in both design and imagination, the Gecko Ball brought out Gulfport’s finest creative minds. The theme; Alice in Wonderland and Geckos. Don’t ask me how they got put together, but because it’s Gulfport, it worked… beautifully. MORE

By Cathy Salustri
“It’s great to see this many people out for a cause,” Gulfport Police Chief Rob Vincent said at the start of Monday night’s meeting about recent burglaries in the marina district. The Chief called a special meeting to address concerns about recent burglaries in the area.
The city’s Marina District, the chief explained, refers to areas south of 26th Avenue South and east of 49th Street South. Although a local news station reported a “spike” in crimes, Chief Vincent showed the audience statistics for the past three years. Although the city had a rash of burglaries in the Marina District over the past few months, burglary statistics remained constant in the city over the past three years, he said.
“I’m not sure where the news reporter got the information, but these are the facts there has not been a spike,” he said. MORE

By Leigh Clifton
In her efforts to bring awareness to the efficiency of organic gardening, Gulfport City Councilwoman Jennifer Salmon hosted 10 organic gardeners last Saturday morning at the home of Bryan Hilbert. This meeting was one of a series she has been hosting at different locations to show would-be gardeners the benefits of an organic edible garden. Hilbert’s home is a landscaping co-op, with several gardeners renting plots for organic gardens. Hilbert’s own front yard is a massive collection of edible plants and trees.
Salmon brought along the DVD The Global Gardener, with Bill Mollison, an Australian whose permaculture method of gardening is being adopted by many. Permaculture is the method of sustainable agriculture. Using annual and perennial plants, MORE

By Melissa Lattman
Nine-year-old Alexa Pillz carries a yellow pedestrian flag as she crosses Gulf Boulevard between 82nd and 83rd Avenues along with her mom Theresa and her 17-month-old sister Ava. The flags are part of a new $6 million state program to provide pedestrians flags to wave as they cross the street in 39 Gulf Boulevard crosswalks from St. Pete Beach to Clearwater Beach. The flags are available in containers at the crosswalks then are deposited in the container on the opposite side once the pedestrian crosses the street.