While early and absentee voting has been on the rise for years, election supervisors in Florida have seen a surge in requests for mail-in ballots this year, something officials believe could translates into a higher voter turnout for the Aug. 26 primary. 

Kathy Dent, Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections, said her office has seen a 75-percent increase in the number of absentee ballots mailed out for the gubernatorial primary this year compared to the primary in 2010—a jump from 21,465 ballots mailed out four years ago to more than 38,000 ballots sent out so far this year—and there are still more requests for ballots coming to the office every day. The total also smokes the number of absentee ballots mailed by the office in 2012, when 32,555 were sent out.

Dent said the practice of absentee ballots only becomes more popular each election cycle. "As more people vote that way, they decide they like it," she said. "The like the convenience. You are not going anywhere that you have to park."

A similar phenomenon is occurring in Manatee County as well, where the Supervisor of Elections' office has shipped out 38,000 ballots, compared to 27,000 ballots sent out for the primary in 2012. Scott Farrington, Manatee County assistant supervisor of elections, also said convenience was a big factor in the shift. He also noted that a change in Florida law allows people to make a standing request for absentee ballots for elections over the course of two years, rather than having to ask for a ballot every contest.  "That will bump up the number of people getting ballots," he said.

Whether it leads to more people getting ballots they don't bother sending back remains to be seen, Farrington said. But he figures in the end, the increase in shipped ballots will translate to a higher turnout in the end. Hypothetically, he said if the Manatee County Supervisor of Elections office sends out 40,000 ballots and just 20,000 ballots are returned, that represents 10 percent of the voters in the entire county. Primaries in Florida typically see a turnout of only 20-25 percent, and if 10 percent vote just by absentee, that would have a large effect on the final tally. 

Dent notes a few other factors driving up absentee interest. One is that both the Democratic and Republican parties have embraced major absentee ballot drives; returned absentee votes can be tracked daily so getting supporters to vote early means savings in mailers and other campaign costs. But another major factor is supervisors themselves encourage as much early voting as possible. "It helps cut down the lines on Election Day," she said. "It takes the pressures off… We don't want to be a Miami here in Sarasota." 

A mystery awaits in Arthurton. Underneath the small-town exterior, secrets and nefarious goings-on simmer and surge, never quite rising to the surface. That is, until mother of preteen super-sleuth Jenny LeClue is accused of murder. Armed with her wits and her flashlight, LeClue must delve into Arthurton’s shadows and clear her mother’s name.

So begins the latest project from Joe Russ, the game developer behind the independent studio Mografi. Inspired by the choose-your-own-adventure genre, Jenny LeClue is a 2D mystery/adventure game where players direct LeClue in her explorations, collecting clues and evidence, evading suspicious characters and uncovering new mysteries in the search for the truth behind Arthurton.

With fantastical settings and characters, samples of Russ’ work on LeClue have already garnered mention from national game-review outlets such as Kotaku, Joystiq and Rock, Paper, Shotgun, as well as being labeled a “Staff Pick” on Kickstarter.

“I’ve always been a gamer and I love adventure games and story-focused games,” said Russ. "I’m very passionate about visual storytelling, so if I can combine those, that’s ideal. And that’s what Jenny LeClue is.”

Russ hopes to release the story of Arthurton in an episodic fashion, doling out the story in chapters, each serving as a standalone story in itself, but also as pieces of a larger mystery. To keep players engaged between chapters, Russ plans to end certain episodes on a cliffhanger decision, letting users determine LeClue’s path and thus the starting point for the next installment.

Interactivity was key to Russ’ plans for the game—LeClue’s world should feel as full to the player as it does to her. Each location and character will have multiple points of interaction for players, who are rewarded for their curiosity with new information, background and animations. It’s a lot to explore, but beautiful animation and delightful voice-acting make it all worth the while.

But making a video game is a lot of work for one person, and costly. Russ turned to Kickstarter to fund the project and returned to Ringling for the manpower. Previously a professor at Ringling in the Motion Design department, Russ was sure of the talent he could find, but admits he had another motivation.

“The students are super-talented and there’s not a lot of resources here in Sarasota for the students to hone their skills professionally,” said Russ, who spent 10 years in New York working with big names such as Disney, CNBC and Reuters. ”I wanted to bring my professional experience to the students and also give them a chance to be really hands-on with a project.”

Disappointed at the lack of opportunities and the subsequent talent drain as they flee for tech-Meccas elsewhere, Russ began a summer mentorship program, bringing students into his studio to get some real world experience. He hopes to use this project as a jumping-off point for a larger Mografi presence and an example for other tech-related companies. 

Sydney Weiler, a rising senior at Ringling with experience in Computer Animation and Illustration, spent this summer working with Russ on LeClue, alongside two other Ringling students. Weiler agreed as to the dearth of opportunities for grads in Sarasota.

“It’s really sad that there aren’t more [opportunities],” said Weiler. “You’re here being trained and you’re learning, but then everyone’s aiming for a bigger company elsewhere. There isn’t really anything local to aim for.”

Her experience working with Russ this summer on LeClue, however has been a rewarding endeavor, she says. 

To learn more or support the project, visit the Kickstarter page

Five members of the law firm Icard, Merrill, Cullis, Timm, Furen & Ginsburg, are included in the 2014 edition of Florida Super Lawyers, and one has been named a Florida Rising Star. The annual listing has a rigorous screening process and represents no more than five percent of attorneys in the state. The Icard Merrill attorneys who were selected for this year’s print list include: Charles J. Bartlett, Thomas F. Icard, Jr., Robert G. Lyons, and Alyssa M. Nohren while G. Matthew Nohren was selected as a 2014 Florida Rising Star. 

Icard Merrill

R. Scott Collins, JD, LL.M., CFP, has resigned his position as managing executive of the Sarasota office of PNC Wealth Management to open a boutique wealth management firm, Fiduciary Wealth Advisors.  Collins opened Fiduciary Wealth Advisors to help clients with their financial needs, serving with a fiduciary duty that makes the clients’ best interests the critical focus and priority of the company.  Fiduciary Wealth Advisors offers investment advisory services and financial planning services.  

Fiduciary Wealth Advisors

The Southeast Building Conference (SEBC) crowned its champions of design excellence with the Aurora Awards and Sarasota-based Josh Wynne Construction was awarded Best In State and The Golden Aurora (Best In Show) for their Energy Efficient entry of the TipTopHaus on Lido Key. In all, TipTopHaus received 11 Aurora Awards and Grand Aurora Awards. Josh Wynne Construction was also awarded 2 Aurora Awards and a Grand Aurora Award for their FishCamp project in the Villages of Longboat Key. 

Josh Wynne Construction

On October 4, 2014, the Sarasota Cuban Ballet will join SRQ Media as one of the performance partners for our highly anticipated Bal Masqué gala. Of the partnership, SRQ Bal Masqué Event Producer Ashley Ryan said, “We are all looking forward to an elegant evening to enjoy the performances of incredibly talented artists in our community and raise funds for local charities. It is such an honor to have the SCB performing again this year. This is a company that I hold very dear to my heart! I cannot wait to see what they have in store for our guests this year!” 

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