While much of the environmental debate has focused on the fishing industry, another segment of environmentalists wants Long Bar Pointe to go to the birds -- literally.
Jim Stephenson, president of the Manatee Audubon Society, fears the mixed-use development project featuring a boardwalk, boast basin, hotel and commercial development will devastate birding tourism."
"We have an extremely special place here. We get species during migration that you don't see anywhere south of the Mason-Dixon Line," Stephenson said. "They're on their way through and stop at Long Bar, especially, because it sticks out."
The mangrove forest along the bay is prime habitat for Brown Pelicans and Roseate Spoonbills, neither of which are likely to frequent the area should the trees be trimmed and humans encroach into the environment.
