Home › News › Local news
Work on parking garage continues, despite hawks
Photo Gallery
Cooper's Hawks Halt Construction
A pair of Cooper's Hawks shut down work on a new $8.6 million parking garage by building a nest in downtown Naples.
RELATED STORIES
- Naples downtown parking garage project delayed again since Cooper’s hawks still around
- Cooper’s hawks dive bomb passers-by to guard their downtown Naples nest
- Naples officials eyeing a downtown nest for Cooper’s hawk hatchlings
- Naples garage construction will wait for hawks to fledge
More Local news
- Marco Community Bancorp launches private placement stock offering
- East Naples firefighters donating 100 turkeys to St. Matthew's House
- Man dies a day after being struck by truck in Golden Gate
Tell us about it
- What would you add to this story? Tell us what we missed.
- Do you have photos from this event? Documents we need to see? Share with us.
- Upload photos & videos
- More ways to get your stuff online and in the paper.
STORY TOOLS
Share and Enjoy [?]
Two Cooper's hawks aren't budging from their nest atop a mahogany tree despite the resumption of work at a parking garage site today in downtown Naples.
The federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act makes it a crime to cause the hawks to abandon their nest on the edge of the work site at the corner of Eighth Street South and Sixth Avenue. Violations carry a penalty of up to a $5,000 fine and a year in prison.
City Manager Bill Moss stopped work last week for a day after a downtown merchant discovered the nest. Moss gave the go-ahead Friday to restart work today to drill a test hole for the garage.
Crews worked until about 3 p.m. getting equipment in place for the drilling, which will start tomorrow morning, the city's Natural Resources Manager Mike Bauer said.
The test hole will be filled with concrete and then allowed to set for 30 days before weight is applied to it to determine whether the soils at the parking lot will support the weight of the garage.
The hawks' nest has at least one egg in it, maybe two, and could stop any further construction until the chicks have left the nest, in about two or three months.
Councilwoman Penny Taylor, also the city's vice mayor, considered calling an emergency meeting of the City Council over the weekend, with Mayor Bill Barnett out of town, to address the hawk issue.
Councilman Bill Willkomm sent an e-mail Sunday to Moss expressing concern that moving ahead with the work before the eggs hatch could damage the city's reputation and risk legal sanctions against the city.
He called on Moss to suspend work at the garage until the City Council can make a decision about when to proceed. Taylor said Monday she wants to discuss the garage at the council's April 14 meeting.
Comments
This site does not necessarily agree with comments posted below. Comments are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. Break our rules, and we will ban you. No exceptions, no second chances. Read our privacy policy & user agreement.
I hope Bill Moss & Penny Taylor are ready to pay the fine and do the time if these hawks abandon their nest. And I hope the council is ready to hold them to it. Seriously, a week could prove fatal to the birds. Suspend the work and then resume after the few months it will take for the chick(s) to grow. Snowbirds are going home - it's not like the garage is needed this minute.
#1 Posted by nickismom on April 7, 2008 at 7:15 p.m. (Suggest removal)
nickismom. Moss bullied to get his way on Marco Island. Doubt the Mossbird will change his stripes in Naples. Like you. if anything happens to the birds, I would love to see this pompous fellow pay big for ignoring solid advice from Mike Bauer. Moss doesn't have all his minions installed yet from Marco. Wonder when he will give Bauer the boot and bring in Lisa Douglas whose claim to environmental knowledge was once being employed by DEP. Bauer has real credentials and real knowledge.
TSK, TSK Moss. Empire building often clashes with nature, but Moss keeps rolling on.
#2 Posted by BlueTonguedVole on April 7, 2008 at 7:55 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I suspect Mr. Moss, being confident that this is a local matter, realizes that no one will tell the federales about the construction/egg abandonment issues once the protected bird parents vacate. Bill knows none of us will rat on him causing $5K and one year in the can.
#3 Posted by PuffyStormClouds on April 7, 2008 at 9:18 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I don't get this. Moss works for the City Council, and elected Mayor does he not? Then why in the heck is he making the call regarding work proceeding or not? Tell him to sit his butt down, and wait until you want him to talk, while Bill, Penny and company stop construction.
On the other hand, this is what they get for SETTLING on used goods from Marco.
Does any of this remind you of the Thompson circus and the school board?
Both these clowns in less than a year.
Lucky Naples.
#4 Posted by sowestfla1975 on April 7, 2008 at 9:52 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I see Mr. Moss has his standard operating procedure in place at his new position. Good luck Naples, he's all yours. The term "above the law" come to mind...
#5 Posted by marcor0se on April 7, 2008 at 10:07 p.m. (Suggest removal)
sowestfla1975. You don't know Moss Some on Marco do. "lucky" Naples...just glad he isn't the county manager!
#6 Posted by BlueTonguedVole on April 7, 2008 at 10:23 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Moss is in tune with the times in not letting some stupid federal regulations concerning hawks interfere with progress in Naples. Go Moss, we are proud of you for not listening to the lawyers.
#7 Posted by ZhuZhu on April 7, 2008 at 10:33 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Post your comment
(Requires free registration.)