Southwest Florida

People who've never struggled before now are having to pick between buying food, or medicine, or paying rent and utilities. Is there enough private and government aid to help Southwest Floridians in need?

The pioneer developers who made this area what it's becoming leave a memorable legacy. But some people worry about our fragile environment, and the explosive population growth that continues.

We’re taking a closer look at a topic stirring conversations across the U.S.: Christian nationalism. While its influence is debated at the national level, its presence and impact are being felt right here in Southwest Florida.

Some deaf people in Southwest Florida say they face isolation, stereotypes and misunderstanding from hearing people. At the same time, the Sally Pimentel Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing is asking for help to serve more people.

Southwest Florida will be the site of three outdoor art festivals January 11 & 12: the Naples Artcrafters Fine Art & Craft Show; Bonita Springs National Art Festival; and the 40th Annual Cape Coral Art Festival and Market Place.

Big companies are snapping up land along the I-75 corridor, bringing a type of boomtown to Charlotte, Lee and Collier counties. Local leaders believe higher-paying jobs are coming to the area, easing the past dependence on tourism to drive the economy.

The Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island metro area led southwest Florida in annual job growth over the 12 months ending in February, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, besting the statewide figure by almost a half percent. Total nonfarm payroll employment for the Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island area grew by 2.7 percent year-over-year adding 4,500 jobs for a 173,700 employment total in that region.

Gov. Ron DeSantis and the state Cabinet on Tuesday will consider a $122 million proposal to buy agricultural land in Southwest Florida and allow current owners to lease and manage the property. The purchase, which is tied to a statewide wildlife corridor, is among five proposed conservation deals, at a cost approaching $220 million, that will go before DeSantis and the Cabinet.

The big, silver StoryCorps Airstream has rolled into Southwest Florida and is ready to get the conversations flowing. StoryCorps has now helped nearly 700,000 people across the country have meaningful conversations about their lives, most of which are collected in the U.S. Library of Congress and in their own online archive.

Southwest Florida's most influential environmentalists share a report warning the next massive red tide or blue-green algae outbreak will be a multi-billion-dollar disaster.