 Seems as if this deadly grass disease is once again rearing it's ugly head in Venetian Isles.
New yards have been diagnosed with this disease on Michigan Ave North. Hawaii Ave North has also had this problem. I am not sure about other streets. New Outbreaks in Florida Beginning in 2013, outbreaks were identified in Pinellas County and Palm Beach County. Symptoms include the leaf mosaic pattern, but leaves also become necrotic (turn brown and die prematurely). According to Phil Harmon, UF/IFAS Plant Diagnostic Center, symptoms present as blotchy or streaky patterns of yellow and green color. Turfgrass tends to have broken yellow streaks running between the veins on an otherwise green blade. Symptoms of recently reported cases include mosaic, but then turn necrotic. The symptoms and dieback typically start in the fall months of September and October, and continue through the winter into spring. Some lawns may appear to recover in the spring. Unfortunately, lawns that appear to recover eventually die over a period of 1-3 years. Infected lawns may completely dieback. To minimize disease spread in areas where the virus occurs, mowers and other equipment should be sanitized between properties. The objective is to minimize movement of potentially infected plant material from lawn to lawn, so return clippings where the virus is known to occur rather than removing them from properties. We do want to remove clippings and any other plant material from equipment before moving to another lawn and then spray down parts of equipment or worker’s shoes that have the potential to transfer plant sap using dilute bleach, quaternary ammonia (Greenshield), alcohol, or another sanitizing agent according to the directions. When mowing multiple lawns where the virus is known to occur, mow apparently healthy lawns before those with mosaic symptoms and avoid mowing symptomatic lawns when the turf grass canopy is wet (avoid mowing when dew, irrigation, or rainfall persists). Fungicides and other pesticides are ineffective and cannot stop development or spread of this viral disease. Also, there are no known agronomic inputs that homeowners or lawn care companies can use to cure a lawn once it has become infected. The disease severity, which ranges from yellowing to death, will vary from lawn to lawn by variety of grass and by other environmental factors not well understood at this time. One potential complicating factor is that lawns with mosaic may also suffer from fungal diseases, but it is not known what impact one disease has on the severity of the others. Managing fungal diseases on lawns with mosaic has not been observed to impact development of the viral disease. Lawn Replacement St. Augustine ‘Floratam’ turfgrass has exhibited the most severe symptoms. ‘Floratam’ lawns that have died due to SCMV are susceptible to dying again if replaced with ‘Floratam’. The current recommendation is to replace lawns that have died as a result of SCMV with a more resistant turfgrass. ‘Palmetto’ and ‘Bitterblue’ are more resistant, but may still get the disease. Zoysiagrass is not known to be a host of SCMV. Although other grasses such as bermudagrass, seashore paspalum and bahiagrass have been reported with SCMV infections, St. Augustine is the only turfgrass of concern in Florida at this time. If you suspect that your lawn is affected by SCMV submit a sample to your local UF/IFAS Extension office or to the UF/IFAS Plant Diagnostic Center. For information on how to collect and submit a sample go to: http://plantpath.ifas.ufl.edu/Clinic/index.shtml. Check the Rapid Turfgrass Diagnostic Service Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/RapidTurfgrassDiagnosticService for up-to-date information on the spread of this disease. Please speak with your lawn service and pest control company about diagnosing this deadly disease. The results of the voting ballots are in and the majority were in favor of the plan. Results are as follows: Yes = 138 votes (55%) No = 105 votes (42%) Spoiled = 7 (3%) Total Ballots Submitted: 250 of 524 (or 48% ) The speed table is expected to be installed on Overlook Dr between the residences of #4717 and #4712 by November 30, 2017. See ballot results below from the City of St Petersburg. 
From the Engineering Dept at the city;
"I wanted to inform you that we had the pre-construction meeting today and the notice to proceed to start the construction is set for Oct 16, 17. You can expect some activities before the end of October. The duration of project is six months but we will do our best to finish the project ahead of schedule. "
Over 300 people attended and were treated to a host of salads and desserts contributed by attendees as well as sumptuous bratwursts and hot dogs prepared by the Michigan Ave Grillers and a variety of different beers provided by St. Pete Brewing.
The success of an event like this is not the result of one person, but of a great number of volunteers. I’ll not attempt to name them all but understand that your contributions are highly valued. I would like to thank the sponsors of the Oktoberfest:
Look for a return of this event in 2018. The food bank at St. Vincent de Paul happily took our excess food to serve those in St. Pete who are less fortunate. Thanks, Rich Rich Scanlon Venetian Isles Homeowners Association, President rscanlon@ourvi.org From Officer Donald Herring, St Petersburg Police Department a short time ago this morning:
40th Ave Bridge 40th Avenue bridge reopened at 10 a.m. this morning for in and out traffic. The speed limit is posted at 15 mph. The bridge does not have a lane of passage for bicyclist or pedestrian traffic so please do not go over the bridge that way. There is very limited space for vehicles. Thank you for your cooperation. The original post can be see on Nextdoor at the following page link: venetianislesshoreacres.nextdoor.com/news_feed/?post=61305480 From the City of St Petersburg a short time ago today:
40th Ave Bridge to Resume Two-Way Traffic Pattern Wednesday After days of utility re-location and rerouting of traffic lanes, the 40th Avenue NE Bridge will be open for two-way traffic starting on Wednesday, August 23, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. One lane of east bound and one lane of west bound traffic will be squeezed to the outer edges of the bridge, so that engineers can more closely inspect the interior and center pieces of the span. “This modification of traffic allows us the room to work safely,” said City of St. Petersburg Engineering Director Brejesh Prayman. “It also allows traffic to work both east- and west-bound at the same time restoring access for residents.” Traffic will be able to use the bridge after the morning-rush hour subsides Wednesday, allowing for drivers to get used to the new pattern for a few hours before the afternoon traffic picks up. Motorists are advised to proceed with caution and adhere to the reduced speed limit of 15 mph. Pedestrians are advised to utilize alternate routes. Trucks using the bridge are required to strictly adhere to the posted weight limits and reduced speeds. To see this post and the latest photos on Nextdoor, please visit the following page link: https://venetianislesshoreacres.nextdoor.com/news_feed/?post=61248929 From the City of St Petersburg earlier today:
Paving Underway. Bridge Set for Mid-Week Re-Opening The re-location of private utilities along the 40th Avenue Bridge between Northeast Park and Shore Acres is continuing to show progress. The removal of the Jersey barriers along the far northern -- and now southern -- portions of the span is allowing the paving and reconfiguration of a single lane of traffic in each direction. Once the work to re-locate utility lines is completed, the paving and modification of traffic can also be finished. The plan is to have the two-way traffic plan operational by mid-week. Director of Engineering and Capital Improvements Brejesh Prayman says that “reestablishing residents’ access and safety is a priority,” and he looks forward to sharing more specifics with residents and stakeholders at tonight’s meeting at the Shore Acres Recreation Center, 4230 Shore Acres Blvd. That meeting is scheduled to begin at 6:30 this evening. We will continue to update bridge status and projected re-opening details as that information becomes available. The post and latest photos can be seen on Nextdoor here: https://venetianislesshoreacres.nextdoor.com/news_feed/?post=61137175 From the City of St Petersburg this afternoon:
40th Ave Bridge Remains Closed To Motorists For Now After more than a week of work on removal and relocation of private utility lines, crews are hopeful to have a good chance of reopening the 40th Avenue Bridge with one lane in each direction (BOTH east- and west-bound) by the middle of next week. “Progress continues,” according to Brejesh Prayman, Director of Engineering and Capital Improvements for the City of St. Petersburg. He went on to point out that earlier plans of alternating one-way traffic on the north side of the span while work progressed on the southernmost Jersey barriers would have slowed the progress and not been as safe for workers or motorists. In the meantime, pedestrian and bicyclists can use the bridge until the modification of traffic is complete and vehicular traffic returns. Boaters should see no effect once again this weekend beneath the span which connects Northeast Park and Shore Acres. Once the traffic is moved to the edges of the bridge, engineers will be able to conduct further investigation into appropriate remediation of its compromised parts. Mr. Prayman will join other local officials at 6:30 Monday evening (8/21) at the Shore Acres Recreation Center, 4230 Shore Acres Blvd, to discuss the bridge and other resident’s concerns. He will have the latest update then. We will continue to update bridge status here as well. This post and latest photos are available on Nextdoor here: https://venetianislesshoreacres.nextdoor.com/news_feed/?post=60829370 From the City of St Petersburg today:
Work Progressing on 40th Avenue Bridge 8/16/2017 Work on the rerouting of vehicular traffic is continuing on the 40th Avenue Bridge connecting Shore Acres and Northeast Park. The northernmost Jersey barrier has been removed and utility lines have been relocated, allowing for paving of a new travel lane on the outermost edge of the span. Crews from Duke Energy are expected to remove the southernmost Jersey barrier and relocate power lines today and tomorrow. With that work completed, traffic engineers will reroute an additional travel lane along the southern edge of the span, creating two way traffic across the bridge by early next week. We will continue to provide updates as information becomes available. Original post and photos available here: https://venetianislesshoreacres.nextdoor.com/news_feed/?post=60596220 Update from the City of St Petersburg today:
Work is underway on both repairs and modification of traffic plans around the closed 40th Avenue Bridge. Video UPDATE: https://youtu.be/tNng08VqYbI While the waters beneath the span remain open to boat traffic, the main link between the Northeast Park and Shore Acres neighborhoods is still a no-go for vehicular traffic. Concrete cutting crews were on the job early Monday morning to remove the barriers that separate the roadway and pedestrian walkways on the north side of the bridge while cyclists and pedestrians can still use the southernmost walkway. Plans -- as of now -- are to remove these barriers and relocate the utilities that are inside. A single lane of traffic is then expected to have LOCAL access along the edge of the bridge in a one-way pattern with flag or traffic lighting controls in place – hopefully by the end of this week. Further efforts to initiate two-way traffic around repairs of the bridge deck will be ongoing as work progresses. We will continue to monitor the work and update as needed. |
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