FWC Marine Fisheries wants to hear from you at summer workshop series

June 30, 2015

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FWC Marine Fisheries wants to hear from you at summer workshop series

Do you have ideas about how Florida’s marine fisheries should be managed? The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) wants to hear from you.

Whether you are a seafood aficionado who wants priority placed on getting fish to the dinner plate, a recreational fisher who prefers to catch and release or a commercial fisher whose catch is destined for restaurants and homes around the state and beyond, the FWC wants to know what marine fisheries issues concerned you. This is your chance to let the FWC know what it is doing right, where you see opportunities for improvement, and what you think should be the state’s top priorities for marine fisheries management.

To gather this input and develop a better understanding of the public’s views on marine fisheries, the FWC will host several workshops across the state throughout the month of July.

The public is invited.

Groups that might be interested in participating include commercial and recreational fishers, wholesale dealers, those in the tourism industry, fishing guides, divers and concerned citizens.

At the meetings, staff will provide a brief presentation about statewide and regional fisheries management issues that are being worked on and other potential issues that have been brought to our attention. Then it will be your turn to fill in any gaps and let us know where you think the FWC should focus its efforts in the coming years.

Workshops are from 6 to 8 p.m. local time. Here is the schedule:

July 6:

• Key West – Harvey Governmental Center, 1200 Truman Ave.

• Naples – City Clerk’s Office, 735 8^th St. S.

July 7:

• Islamorada – Founders Park Community Center, 87000 Overseas Highway.
• Punta Gorda – City Hall, Council Chambers, 326 W. Marion Ave.

July 8:

• Coral Gables – Hyatt Regency Coral Gables, 50 Alhambra Plaza.   

• St. Petersburg – Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, 100 Eighth Ave. SE, Karen A. Steidinger Auditorium.

July 9:

• Jupiter – The River Center, Burt Reynolds Park, 805. U.S. Highway 1.

• Crystal River – City Hall Council Chambers, 123 U.S. Highway 19.

July 13:

• Pensacola – Sanders Beach-Corinne Jones Community Center, 913 South “I” St.

July 14:

• Destin – Destin Community Center, 101 Stahlman Ave.

July 15:

• Panama City – Gulf Coast State College, 2^nd Floor Conference Room #232A, 5230 West U.S. Highway 98.

July 16:

• Steinhatchee – Steinhatchee Community Center, 1013 Riverside Drive.

July 20:

• Stuart – City Commission Chambers, 121 SW Flagler Ave.

July 21:

• Fort Pierce – Garden Club of Fort Pierce, 911 Parkway Drive.

July 22:

• Cocoa – Central Brevard Library, 308 Forrest Ave.

July 23:

• Ormond Beach – City Hall, 22 South Beach St.

July 27:

• Statewide Online Webinar.

July 28:

• Carrabelle – City Hall, Cafeteria, 1001 Gray Ave.

July 30:

• Jacksonville – Jacksonville Public Library: Southeast Library, 10599 Deerwood Park Blvd.

For information, visit MyFWC.com/Fishing and click on “Saltwater,” “Rulemaking” and “Public Workshops.”