Katiuska Carrillo

Dozens of community members gather in front of the Yacht Basin on Wednesday night. These residents wanted questions answered about what will happen to them when redevelopment of their homes occur.

Community members at the Fort Myers Yacht Basin express concerns about redevelopment of the marina

Katiuska Carrillo

Dozens of people who live at the Fort Myers Yacht Basin showed up to express their concerns and have questions answered by Fort Myers City Council member Liston Bochette and City Manager Marty Lawing. They did so at a recent meeting at the basin. This follows the City of Fort Myers' request for proposal for developers to manage, lease and/or redevelop the basin. The city has had contact from five developers offering changes to the marina that include, but are not limited to, demolishing the current yacht basin and building a new marina with stores, restaurants and other buildings.

Director of marketing for Rhinostics, Chere Griffin, alongside President and CEO of Rhinostics, Cheri Walker. Rhinostics was a finalist for the 2022 Edison Awards under the category of COVID-19 innovations.

Edison Awards event brings the world's innovators to Fort Myers

Katiuska Carrillo

The Edison Awards and Latimer Fellows have made their way to Fort Myers. The awards were presented Thursday evening, and on Friday, attendees will hold the first-ever event at the new Caloosa Sound Amphitheater along the Caloosahatchee River in downtown Fort Myers.

Collier EMS ambulance as seen on the Collier County Emergency Medical Services government website. Collier EMS asked for an increase of 12 FTEs in order to fill vacancies in hopes to avoid burnout and fatigue.

Collier County’s EMS request for increased workforce highlights a state and nation-wide issue

Katiuska Carrillo

The Collier Board of County Commissioners unanimously approved adding 12 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) positions to the county’s Emergency Medical Services (EMS) division.The hiring of 12 people is supposed to ensure the county’s EMS operations has sufficient staffing to support ambulance services, reduce overtime for paramedics and Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) and to provide plans for EMS expansion throughout the next two years.

Produce section in Seed to Table grocery store in Naples on April 7, 2022. The accessibility and affordability of fruits and vegetables impact the health of communities and highlights health inequities because of social determinants.

Two communities, one county: how social determinants impact food security

Katiuska Carrillo

One grocery store in a community of roughly 25,000 people. This community has a poverty rate of 32%. The majority of the population is either Black or Latino. The median household income is roughly $33,000 a year, just $7,000 above Florida’s federal poverty line.About 50 miles away in the same county, an affluent city bursts with life and luxury. The City of Naples has an average household income of $118,141 with a poverty rate of 8%.Social determinants of health are a major reason why people born in one part of Collier County are expected to live 15 years longer than those in other parts of the county, according to life expectancy estimates from the U.S. Census Tract and the National Center for Health Statistics.

Construction site located on Ben Hill Griffin, across from Florida Gulf Coast University's campus. When land is cleared, wildlife is forced to relocate and pushed out of their natural habitat.

Increases in development in SWFL cause some to question the preservation of wildlife

Katiuska Carrillo

Cleared land and construction sites are commonplace in Southwest Florida. According to U.S. Census data, Lee County is the second fastest-growing county in the state. The increase in population leads to the need for more development, which raises the question of how to preserve the wildlife that makes this region so unique.

JetBlue Park on the Boston Red Sox's first spring training game of this year on February 17, 2022. The area around the stadium on Daniels Parkway was expected to get developed for the past decade, but little to no development in the area has appeared throughout the years.

Development around JetBlue Park in question for a decade; fans weigh in

Katiuska Carrillo

Acres of trees, pasture and a few storefronts surround JetBlue Park, the spring training home of the Boston Red Sox located on Daniels Parkway in Lee County. The stadium opened in 2012 and some predicted it would create a trendy, highly-developed area east of I-75. However a building boom of hotels, restaurants and retail outlets has not happened around JetBlue in the past 10 years.

Sheriff Carmine Marceno, Commissioner Ray Sandelli, and Commissioner Brian Hamman at the LCSO press conference in reference to the expansion of the Narcotics Unit. The expansion of the Narcotics Unit is intended to combat crimes related to drug, gang activity, and narcotic deaths.

Lee County pays to expand sheriff's narcotics unit

Katiuska Carrillo

The Lee Board of County Commissioners approved $1.7 million for the expansion of the Lee County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) Narcotics Unit.Sheriff Carmine Marceno requested an increase in funding for his Narcotics Enforcement Unit to combat crimes related to drug and gang activity. He also hopes to see a decrease in narcotic deaths in the county.

The intersection of Hendry Street and Main Street on February 24, 2022. This may be home to a new project, the Hendry Street Pedestrian Mall, that will link Midtown to Downtown Fort Myers.

The Hendry Street Pedestrian Mall could link Midtown to Downtown Fort Myers

Katiuska Carrillo

The City of Fort Myers has been trying to link Midtown to Downtown since 2018.Matthew Leger presented the Hendry Street Pedestrian Mall as a possible way to bring together the two communities. He did so at a recent Fort Myers City Council meeting.

The construction site of the Immokalee Affordable Housing Project on February 18, 2022. The project is intended to house farmworkers and other low-income families in the community.

Affordable housing and affordable rents are a priority for an alliance of relief organizations in Immokalee

Katiuska Carrillo

A shuttered Tex-Mex, Spanish and American food store and rows of run-down trailers sit across the street from a construction site in Immokalee. This site at the corner of Lake Trafford Road and North 19th Street is the future home of the Immokalee Affordable Housing Project, started by the Immokalee Fair Housing Alliance.The alliance formed after Hurricane Irma in 2017 when several disaster relief organizations, faith-based organizations, non-profits and caring people came together to provide disaster assistance.

Darrell Harris in front of Hearts and Homes for Veterans on Thursday Feb. 10, 2022. Harris was once a homeless veteran who utilized the organizations services and is now a member of their team.

The collaborative efforts to help homeless veterans in Lee County

Katiuska Carrillo

There are 1.5 million veterans in the state of Florida, with veterans in Lee County making up 10% of the county’s population.“One veteran's experience in homelessness is one too many,” Michael Raposa, CEO of St. Vincent DePaul CARES, said.