Website City of Sanibel Florida Website Sanibel is a town/city in Lee County, Florida, United States, on Sanibel Island.
Sanibel is a barrier island a compilation of sand on the leeward side of the more solid coral-rock of Pine Island.
The town/city incorporates the entire island, with most of the town/city proper at the east end of the island.
After the Sanibel causeway was assembled to replace the ferry in May 1963, the inhabitants asserted control over evolution by establishing the Sanibel Comprehensive Land Use Plan in 1974 helping to maintain a balance between evolution and preservation of the island's ecology. A new, higher bridge, permitting passage without a bascule bridge (drawbridge) of tall boats and sailboats, was instead of in late 2007.
Due to easy causeway access, Sanibel is a prominent tourist destination known for its shell beaches and wildlife refuges.
The Island hosts the Sanibel Historical Village and a range of other exhibitions and theaters, as well as many non-profit organizations like the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation, the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife, and the Sanibel Sea School.
In August 2004, Hurricane Charley hit the island causing mandatory evacuation for the inhabitants and resulting in the most storm damage to the island in 44 years. View of the Lighthouse at the southern tip of Sanibel Island Sanibel and Captiva formed as one island about 6,000 years ago.
Alternatively, the name may derive, as many believe, from "(Santa) Ybel", which survives in the old placename "Point Ybel", where the Sanibel Island Light is located.
Sanibel is not the only island in the region to figure prominently in the legends of Gaspar; Captiva, Useppa, and Gasparilla are also connected.
In the Gulf he befriended Gasparilla, who allowed him to establish himself on Sanibel Island.
Legendary pirates' dens aside, the first undivided settlement on Sanibel (then spelled "Sanybel") was established by the Florida Peninsular Land Company in 1832.
Construction on the Sanibel Island Lighthouse was instead of in 1884, but the improve remained small.
The City of Sanibel passed new restrictions on evolution after it was incorporated; these were challenged by developers, to no avail.
Currently the only buildings on the island taller than two stories date before 1974, and there are no fast food or chain restaurants allowed on the island except a Dairy Queen and a Subway, which were on the island before the laws were enacted.
The town/city is on Gulf coast of Southwest Florida, and is linked to the mainland by the Sanibel Causeway.
A short bridge over Blind Pass links Sanibel to Captiva Island.
More than half of the two islands are preserved in its natural state as wildlife refuges.
"Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge The island's most famous landmark, the Sanibel Lighthouse, is positioned at the easterly end of the island, adjoining to the fishing pier.
Since 1967, SCCF has been dedicated to the preservation of natural resources on and around Sanibel and Captiva and has led accomplishments to acquire and preserve surroundingally sensitive territory on the islands including critical wildlife surroundings, rare and unique subtropical plant communities, tidal wetlands, and contaminating wetlands along the Sanibel River. The Wall Street Journal chose Sanibel and Captiva Islands as one of the 10 Best Places for Second Homes in 2010.
Sanibel is positioned at 26 26 23 N 82 4 50 W (26.439608, -82.080456). According to the United States Enumeration Bureau, the town/city has a total region of 33.16 square miles (85.9 km2), of which 17.21 square miles (44.6 km2) is territory and 15.96 square miles (41.3 km2) (48.13%) is water.
The island's curved shrimp-like shape forms Tarpon Bay on the north side of the island.
A short bridge links Sanibel Island to Captiva Island over Blind Pass.
The Gulf-side beaches are excellent on both Sanibel and Captiva, and are world-renowned for their range of seashells, which include coquinas, scallops, whelks, sand dollars, and many other species of both shallow-water and deeper-water mollusks, primarily bivalves and gastropods.
Sanibel Island is home to a momentous range of birds, including the roseate spoonbill and a several nesting pairs of bald eagles.
There is a populace of American alligators on Sanibel Island.
"Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge. Plants on the island include the native sea grape, sea oats, mangroves, and a several types of palm trees.
A driving force in the preservation of the island is the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation which was established in 1967 with a mission to "preserve natural resources and wildlife surrounding on and around the islands of Sanibel and Captiva." 1,300 acres (5.3 km2) of territory on Sanibel are under the oversight of the Foundation; encompassed in this territory there is a "Marine Laboratory which actively conducts research in areas including seagrasses, mangroves, harmful algal blooms, fish populations and shellfish restoration." Sanibel Captiva Conservation Foundation also has a universal called RECON (River, Estuary and Coastal Observing Network) which includes a "network of eight in-water sensors that furnish real-time, hourly readings of key water character parameters." The foundation is also serves to protect the wildlife on the island and has a range of education programs designed to instruct citizens about the island's unique ecology.
"Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Covering more than 5,200 acres (21 km2) of land, the refuge strives to ensure that these lands are "preserved, restored and maintained as a haven for indigenous and migratory wildlife as part of a nation-wide network of Refuges administered by the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service" The lands also serve to furnish a home for many endangered and threatened species. Currently the refuge provides a home for over 220 species of birds native to the island. Visitors to the refuge can walk, bike, drive, or kayak though the wildlife drive which takes you through five miles (8.0 kilometres) of mangrove tree forests and tidal flats, this drive is perfect for watching the island's wildlife and looking at the island's native vegetation.
A view looking north on the beach at West Gulf Drive Beach access point #7, Sanibel, Lee County, Florida.
One of the reasons for these large accumulations of shells is the fact that Sanibel is a barrier island which is "part of a large plateau that extends out into the Gulf of Mexico for miles.
Sanibel also has an "east-west orientation when most islands are north-south.
People who are lucky enough to find the elegant brown-spotted shell of a Junonia on a Sanibel beach often get their picture in the small-town newspapers.
Junonia shells can be purchased at small-town shell shops, or can be seen on display in the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum, in some of the glass display tables at the Sanibel Cafe, or at the Sanibel Shell Fair in early March.
Throughout the year, many citizens come to the beaches of Sanibel to gather shells.
People are often seen bending down as they look for seashells, and this posture is known as the "Sanibel Stoop." There are beaches almost all around the island.
There are even beaches along the Sanibel causeway, and these are great for fishing and windsurfing.
Lighthouse Beach is titled after the famous Sanibel Lighthouse, which includes a prominent fishing pier and nature trails.
The most secluded beach on the island is Bowman's Beach; there are no hotels in sight and the beach has a "pristine and quiet" atmosphere. Barron's chose Sanibel and Captiva Islands as one of the 10 Best Places for Second Homes in 2010.
Sanibel Island, positioned in southern Florida, has a climate that is "subtropical and humid" with daily high temperatures ranging from 75 F (24 C) in midwinter to around 90 F (32 C) in the summer. The months of January through April (peak tourist season on the island) have the coolest temperatures, ranging from 75 F (24 C) amid the day to a cool 55 F (13 C) at evening, and there is very little rainfall on the island amid those months. The summer heat and humidity on the island, which has been recorded as high as 100 F (38 C), is cooled by the ocean seabreezes from the Gulf of Mexico, and by almost daily afternoon and evening precipitation showers, which are responsible for much of the island's rainfall.
On August 13, 2004, Sanibel Island was hit difficult by Hurricane Charley, a category four hurricane with 143 mph (230 km/h) winds. It was the strongest to hit Southwest Florida since Hurricane Donna in September 1960. While much of the native vegetation survived, the non-native Australian pines suffered serious damage, blocking nearly every road.
The Sanibel Lighthouse railwaywith little damage, and the Sanibel Causeway suffered mostly minor damage, save for a toll booth tilted partly over, and erosion of a small seawall.
A temporary town/city hall for Sanibel was set up on the mainland in a Fort Myers hotel, until utilities and transport could be restored to the island.
The library homes more than 60,000 titles and is a charter member of the Southwest Florida Library Network (SWFLN). Sanibel Public Library is owned by the people of Sanibel Island and governed by a seven-member propel Board of Commissioners.
Sanibel Public Library District is an autonomous special precinct created by the Florida Legislature, and is a governmental agency for all purposes under Florida Law. Sanibel Island is the chief setting for crime novels written by small-town author Randy Wayne White.
Romero's Day of the Dead were shot on Sanibel Island. Romero had a second home on Sanibel, from which he rewrote Day of the Dead in 1984. a b c "City of Sanibel Florida Website".
City of Sanibel Florida Website.
"Sanibel Captiva Conservation Foundation History".
"Sanibel Hurricane Emergency Management".
"Sanibel and Captiva Islands Information".
"Fort Myers Florida Weekly: Sanibel Causeway".
"Old age or cold snap to blame for crocodile's death on Sanibel Island".
"Sanibel Captiva Conservation Foundation".
"Sanibel Island Shelling and Beaches".
"Sanibel Captiva Weather".
"Sanibel and Captiva Hurricane Emergency Management".
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Sanibel Island.
Sanibel-Captiva Chamber of Commerce Official website for businesses on Sanibel Island and Captiva Island City of Sanibel Florida Website Portal style website, Government, Business, Library, Recreation and more Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau Information regarding travel and tourism to and around Sanibel Island
Categories:
Sanibel, Florida - Cities in Lee County, Florida - Seaside resorts in Florida - Populated coastal places in Florida on the Gulf of Mexico - Cities in Florida - Barrier islands of Florida - Islands of Lee County, Florida - Islands of Florida
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