by SC Reporter Emilie Alfino
At its January 28, 2025, organizational meeting, the Planning Commission welcomed two new members: Tiffany Burns and Larry Schopp.
Burns has a master’s degree in Information Systems and Operations Management and has been involved with the construction or remodeling of approximately 20 island properties. She has volunteered with the Sanibel School and Heights Elementary School, for FISH and for Habitat for Humanity in Harlem Heights.
“As a Sanibel resident for the last two decades, I have come to know and love the uniqueness of our islands and the codes that have preserved and protected it for future generations,” Burns wrote in her application. “After Hurricane Ian, I realized the need for people to build back their properties and businesses in a sustainable, more resilient way; having built both a business and a home on the island, I want to assist my neighbors in doing the same while preserving the Sanibel vision. I feel I can offer a unique perspective because of the large number of islanders I interact with on a regular basis due to the public nature of my career. I believe my experiences as a resident raising a family and operating a business on the island and also my experiences permitting, building, and remodeling on the island give me the opportunity to represent a different point of view and knowledge base.”
Schopp has a law degree from New York University School of Law and had a 30-year career in corporate law. He retired as Vice President-Counsel from Bristol-Myers Squibb, Medical Products Group and served on the Committee on Medicine and Law of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York and the boards of the Riverside Park Fund and Friends of Riverside Park in New York.
Schopp has been a resident of Sanibel since 1998 and served on the city’s Wildlife Committee (since dissolved) and the City of Sanibel Charter Review Committee. He currently is a board member and a past president of Committee of the Islands (COTI), an SCCF volunteer docent on Captiva cruises for 10 years, the principal author of several amendments to the Sanibel City Charter that deal with land-use issues, and a regular attendee and contributor at Sanibel Planning Commission and City Council meetings for the past 20 years.
“These are challenging times for Sanibel,” Schopp wrote in his application. “The City must adapt to a changing environment if it is to remain a viable barrier island community while remaining true to the values that have made it such a unique place to visit and call home. I would like to make a ‘hands-on’ contribution to help the City meet those challenges and believe I could best do that as a member of the Planning Commission.”
The Commission then elected Paul Nichols as Chair, and Erika Steiner as Vice Chair. They are replacing Roger Grogman and Eric Pfeifer, who stepped down from their positions on the Planning Commission.
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