At last month's tourist development council meeting, the TDC, local business owners, and the Fish and Wildlife Service weren't close to an agreement. But today they have a plan, at least for now.

“This is the fifth time this has come before the TDC, and each time it was really to help make it a stronger more effective ordinance that really meets the needs of all the parties concerned."

The ordinance should reduce the impact of artificial coastal lighting on marine turtles by restricting light that could attract the turtles to land and away from the gulf. So lights will have to be shielded or replaced with turtle safe bulbs.

This ordinance had several different forms, and the main hold-up was just how do you know what prohibitive lighting is, and how will it be enforced?

“We've gone back and forth many times changing out fixtures, moving fixtures to try and obtain a balance so that we have no light on the beach and we still have sufficient light on properties."

After hours and hours of debate and trial runs at locations along the beach the TDC feels that this draft ordinance, if adopted by the city and county will begin protecting nests like this one from lights that threaten the turtles hatched here.

The 6-3 vote for the turtle lighting ordinance came with a compromise. It's designed to do two things, one it makes sure that our properties and homes are safe for people to use. But, also to lower the light on the beach to protect the sea turtles.

With the adoption of this ordinance the beach fulfills a requirement by the fish and wildlife service to be able to receive beach renourishment funding that could put much needed sand on the beach.

The city and county will now have to approve the ordinance. They will also have to figure out how to enforce it.

Rowe said that this was the first step of many that will be taken over the next five years to have a turtle friendly beach.