April 27th, 2009 4:43 PM

Last weekend was the Shark Tooth festival. If you didn't attend, you missed a great time. Food was tasty, purchased jewelry, a painting, picked up delicious sauces for the grill and enjoyed the music. The shark tooth vendors had interesting items as usual. Bought some shark teeth and a mammoth vertebra. The vendors at the fair are the nicest people and a wealth of information. I brought some pieces I found on the local beach and I am now the proud owner of a fossilized tapir tooth. Life is good!

South Venice property owners may not feel the same. The county is proposing to extend central sewers and central water to South Venice due to the county finding high levels of fecal coliform bacteria in Alligator Creek, attributed to septic runoff. The cost for each property owner in south Venice would be $19,535. After a town meeting the county has decided to delay the the project for three years due to the financial hardship it would bring to many South Venice property owners.

In our office the real estate market in the past week has boomed. Buyers are staying longer this year and deciding it's time to put down their hard earned monies and purchase their home in paradise. Many of these buyers were considering purchasing last year, returned this year and after seeing how the prices have dropped, feel confident to purchase. Also, inventory is reducing in our area and that is an excellent sign leading to a more stable or recovering market.

Alice Salaices