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GENUINE SURPRISE CONA president says she found it hard to believe her former fellow Siesta Key Association director was charged with making a fraudulent campaign contribution in her name ��� Rachel Brown Hackney Having served with Robert Waechter for years on the board of the Siesta Key Association, Lourdes Ramirez told The Sarasota News Leader on Dec. 17 she was not surprised he had enough of her personal information to be able to use it in making a fraudulent campaign contribution in her name. ���We���ve known each other for 10 years,��� she added, though they have had little contact since she stepped down from the SKA board in 2011. Ramirez is now the president of the Sarasota County Council of Neighborhood Associations (CONA). She served on the SKA board from 2003 until 2011; Waechter remains on the board. Waechter, 70, a former chairman of the Sarasota County Republican Party and a member of the Sarasota Manatee Airport Authority, was charged Dec. 14 with a third-degree felony in connection with a $200 contribution made in Ramirez��� name to the congressional campaign of New College professor Keith Fitzgerald. (Full story here) GOING UP Fall tourism figures are ahead of the 2011 numbers, and early signs indicate more growth in the 2013 season ��� Rachel Brown Hackney Based on strong numbers for October and November, the president of Sarasota County���s tourism office says she is ���cautiously optimistic about the season ������ Virginia Haley of Visit Sarasota County told The Sarasota News Leader Dec. 19 that in November, the county saw a 10.4 percent increase in visitors compared to the same month in 2011, and their spending was up by 13.7 percent. The tourist development tax revenue for October was up 5 percent over the number for October 2011, she added. Fall usually is a good time for European visitors to come to Sarasota County, Haley noted, but after seeing such strong growth last year from that market, she was not expecting much this year. (Full story here) Click Any Headline To Go Directly To That Article AT A GLANCE TOP STORIES