KELLY FARRELL / Staff

The Marco Eagle begins charging for pick up in newsstands Wednesday. The Eagle will still be free for home delivery. If interested in subscribing, call the circulation desk (239)263-4839 for their free subscription.

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MARCO ISLAND — Beginning Wednesday, a trip to the newsstand will require a jingle of quarters in the pockets of some news junkies. The Marco Eagle will be charging $.50 for single copy pick up in vending machines and at participating stores, after having been a free paper for about two years.

Home delivery, to both single family homes and condominiums on Marco, Goodland and Isles of Capri, will still be free, said Eagle General Manager Bob Sandy.

Residents, whether permanent or seasonal, who once picked up a free copy from newsstands may call the Eagle and request delivery to still obtain the newspaper at no charge.

Keith Dameron, vice president of Orion Bank, said he is an avid news reader and “as a business man” thought the change was a bit unusual.

“You’d think it would be the opposite and there would be a charge for the expense to bring it to the home ... It would send a message to people to sign up for home delivery,” said Dameron.

Chris Doyle, publisher, said “it was just not the time” to add an expense to local readers.

“We don’t want to charge at home because we know times are lean,” said Doyle.

He added that the idea was inspired by comments he heard from the community that the Marco Eagle as a product has value and people would be willing to pay for it.

“We are still as discounted as you can be. We’re free (to locals),” he said.

Currently about 55 percent of the total press run is dedicated to the newsstands, according to Thomas Janning, director of circulation. The balance is divided among deliveries to the homes and condos, hotels such as the Marco Island Marriott Beach Resort and out of town mail, he said.

The change may also allow increased delivery to out of town readers, said Russell Tuff, executive editor of community publications.

In the past, only one edition a week was available to out-of-towners; now all editions will be available for mail delivery, said Tuff.

The move from being free to paid is not particularly common according to officials of the Florida Press Association, a nonprofit agency that has worked to protect the freedoms and advance the professional standards of the Florida press since 1879.

“The cost of news print has increased substantially this year. Many of our members, whether daily or weekly, are looking for innovations. It’s very important for us to continue looking for more innovations,” said Dean Ridings, executive director and president of the Florida Press Service.

While it was unusual in the past for newspapers to shift from free to paid, it is a trend that is becoming more common, said Dick Shelton, the FPA’s Director of Government Affairs in Tallahassee, who is known by his colleagues as the “historical well” of the news industry.

“It’s increasingly expensive to produce a newspaper. We’re seeing newspapers go into a community as a free publication, establish readership and then convert to being paid,” said Shelton.

Fay Biles, President of the Marco Island Taxpayers Association, is an Eagle reader who did not think the idea was a good one.

“I hope the Eagle does not start charging at the boxes. With the economy the way it is, people will not pay for anything,” said Biles.

Tuff said he heard some community members suggest the Eagle should charge for their product at an In the Round forum hosted by Orion Bank in September.

“Let’s try it and see if the rest of the community feels the same way,” said Tuff.

Biles said she would like to see public notices printed in the Eagle and it’s possible this change could help make that happen.

Public notices are advertisements placed in newspapers commonly by municipalities, other government agencies, businesses and individuals. They include advertisements for bids on government contracts, foreclosures, unclaimed property, notices from the city government and other legal notices.

Adding public notices “wasn’t part of our thinking, but it’s something we may consider,” said Doyle.

Tuff said more than half of the issues would need to be either paid or requested in order to qualify.

“It would be wonderful if we could,” said Tuff of the possibility.

Printing public notices would be one of the “biggest changes from a business perspective,” said Sam Morley, general counsel for the FPA.

While these public advertisements may be a change on the distant horizon, other advertisers are currently finding it more difficult to reach their target audience, said Ridings, of experiences learned from Florida publications.

Ridings said changes in Florida media and the national media even more so, have made local papers one of the few remaining outlets for community-oriented businesses to reach the local community they serve, he said.

“People do not know what is going on except for (the Eagle) and the MITA Newsletter,” Biles said, affirming the lack of media outlets for local information.

Dameron said he was among the residents who paid for the Marco Eagle in the past when it was a weekly paper up to 2006 and he would pay for it again if the cost had to be reinstituted.

“The paper is all about Marco. It’s my source to get that community information ... Everyone is trying to do the best they can. If they have to start charging they have to do what’s right to survive,” said Dameron.

In addition to grocery store inserts and other products the Eagle uniquely provides to Marco, Goodland and Isles of Capri readers, Dameron said there is another aspect of the paper he thinks makes it valuable.

“People will either love or hate part or the whole of what’s in the paper, which to me, makes it even more valuable,” he said.

While Dameron will continue to receive free home delivery, he said paying again would take an adjustment but wouldn’t it stop the morning routine he and his wife share, sipping their coffee, sifting through the newspaper and talking about what’s going on.

News industry professionals seemed to agree that it will take an adjustment period.

“Some people will get a little upset when you start charging, but they will stay with you because you got them hooked,” said Shelton.

Single copies will be available at nearly 150 locations throughout the Island, including dealers such as grocery, convenience and book stores. Every residence on Marco Island is also eligible for a free subscription.

Readers may receive a free subscription of the Marco Eagle or obtain additional copies for their condominium complex by calling the Marco Eagle circulation desk (239)263-4839.