TREASURE ISLAND, Fla. — Sanding Ovations returns for its 17th year after 2024’s hurricane season canceled the popular sand sculpting festival.

What You Need To Know • On The Town previews the Sanding Ovations Sand Sculpting Festival • The dates are Nov. 20–23 and Nov. 29-30 • The location is behind the Bilmar Beach Resort in Treasure Island • Parking information for the festival

Sculptors make their own molds, and by compacting sand and water, they make their own building blocks — or “sandstone.”

“It’s pretty basic,” said Meredith Corson-Doubleday, festival co-founder. “It’s construction work.”

Corson-Doubleday knows many in her barrier island community who remain displaced.

“But they are all here. I’ve seen so many of them that are staying in condos, staying in hotels just so

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