In honor of the shrimping and boat-building industries in St. Augustine, Long and a few others spearheaded a project to put a coquina and bronze monument on the edge of the San Sebastian River. The group raised funds from families of those involved in the industry for the $50,000 monument, which is on the river walk in front of Culinary Outfitters, near State Road 207 and U.S. 1 at 173 Shipyard Way in St. Augustine.
Officials held a dedication ceremony on Saturday.
Also, the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum has opened an updated exhibit about local shrimping history called Shrimpin’ Ain’t Easy.
The Commission changed the resolution to eliminate references to the nutritional value of shrimp and sustainability of shrimp, at the request of Commissioner Barbara Blonder. The practices of shrimp fishing using bottom trawling are very problematic in terms of maintaining marine ecosystems, she said.
But she voted for the resolution. I absolutely support this recognition, and as I understood it, it s a recognition of the culture and history of our shrimp fishing tradition and the families that contributed to that rich culture, Blonder said.
Vice Mayor Nancy Sikes-Kline made sure the Commission kept a line about the unique flavor of Florida shrimp.