Fort Myers debates fluoride in water as city council vote looms TuesdayGator stuck on Estero porch gives homeowner a wild surprise Sunday night
FORT MYERS Fort Myers debates fluoride in water as city council vote looms Tuesday The debate over fluoride in drinking water has been reignited following an announcement by the Florida surgeon general urging cities to halt fluoride treatment.
ESTERO Gator stuck on Estero porch gives homeowner a wild surprise Sunday night Imagine glancing out your back door and seeing a gator sliding around on your deck. That’s exactly what happened to an Estero homeowner who found an unexpected visitor on their property.
NORTH FORT MYERS North Fort Myers crash leaves motorcyclist with life-threatening injuries A motorcyclist is in critical condition following a collision with a sedan at the intersection of North East Pine Island Road and Judd Creek Boulevard in North Fort Myers.
FORT MYERS BEACH Hurricane Ian recovery delays impact tourism and local businesses Fort Myers Beach is still grappling with the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, which struck over two years ago.
FORT MYERS Alliance for the Arts hosting Jazz on the Green, celebrating historic music genre Catch Grammy winners and jazz virtuosos at the Jazz on the Green event hosted by the Alliance for the Arts in Fort Myers.
FORT MYERS Twins host fans for open house and first full squad workout The Minnesota Twins held their first full squad workout of Spring Training as well as hosted fans for an open house.
Shingle roofs could phase out in the future Florida Insurance Commissioner Michael Yaworsky recently made comments at the Florida Chamber Insurance Summit about the potential phasing out of shingle roofs in the state.
SANIBEL Sanibel islanders rally to restore beloved fishing pier after Ian damage The Sanibel Fishing Pier, a beloved spot for many, has been in disrepair since Hurricane Ian struck more than two years ago. Now, dedicated fishers are pushing to restore it using private funding.
PUNTA GORDA Gunfire erupts on US 41 bridge in Punta Gorda; bikers arrested A road rage incident escalated into gunfire on the U.S. 41 bridge connecting Punta Gorda and Port Charlotte, causing fear among drivers.
BONITA SPRINGS Will San Carlos Estates merge with Bonita Springs? Residents of San Carlos Estates in Bonita Springs are fighting to maintain their neighborhood’s independence.
PUNTA GORDA New flight routes at Punta Gorda Airport The Punta Gorda Airport is expanding its offerings, adding new flight options for travelers.
LEE COUNTY Bregman’s arrival and Devers’ denial highlight Red Sox first full squad The addition of Alex Bregman and Rafael Devers’ refusal to change positions highlighted the first full squad workout for the Red Sox.
NORTH FORT MYERS March to a Million Meals: Teaming up to help feed families Feeding a quarter of a million people each month requires a lot of money and help.
Charlotte County residents voice concerns over Burnt Store Road upgrades An emergency meeting was held to address concerns from residents about the development along Burnt Store Road in Charlotte County.
PORT CHARLOTTE Local nonprofit gives back to veterans for their service A military wife has found a heartfelt way to honor veterans and first responders.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers debates fluoride in water as city council vote looms Tuesday The debate over fluoride in drinking water has been reignited following an announcement by the Florida surgeon general urging cities to halt fluoride treatment.
ESTERO Gator stuck on Estero porch gives homeowner a wild surprise Sunday night Imagine glancing out your back door and seeing a gator sliding around on your deck. That’s exactly what happened to an Estero homeowner who found an unexpected visitor on their property.
NORTH FORT MYERS North Fort Myers crash leaves motorcyclist with life-threatening injuries A motorcyclist is in critical condition following a collision with a sedan at the intersection of North East Pine Island Road and Judd Creek Boulevard in North Fort Myers.
FORT MYERS BEACH Hurricane Ian recovery delays impact tourism and local businesses Fort Myers Beach is still grappling with the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, which struck over two years ago.
FORT MYERS Alliance for the Arts hosting Jazz on the Green, celebrating historic music genre Catch Grammy winners and jazz virtuosos at the Jazz on the Green event hosted by the Alliance for the Arts in Fort Myers.
FORT MYERS Twins host fans for open house and first full squad workout The Minnesota Twins held their first full squad workout of Spring Training as well as hosted fans for an open house.
Shingle roofs could phase out in the future Florida Insurance Commissioner Michael Yaworsky recently made comments at the Florida Chamber Insurance Summit about the potential phasing out of shingle roofs in the state.
SANIBEL Sanibel islanders rally to restore beloved fishing pier after Ian damage The Sanibel Fishing Pier, a beloved spot for many, has been in disrepair since Hurricane Ian struck more than two years ago. Now, dedicated fishers are pushing to restore it using private funding.
PUNTA GORDA Gunfire erupts on US 41 bridge in Punta Gorda; bikers arrested A road rage incident escalated into gunfire on the U.S. 41 bridge connecting Punta Gorda and Port Charlotte, causing fear among drivers.
BONITA SPRINGS Will San Carlos Estates merge with Bonita Springs? Residents of San Carlos Estates in Bonita Springs are fighting to maintain their neighborhood’s independence.
PUNTA GORDA New flight routes at Punta Gorda Airport The Punta Gorda Airport is expanding its offerings, adding new flight options for travelers.
LEE COUNTY Bregman’s arrival and Devers’ denial highlight Red Sox first full squad The addition of Alex Bregman and Rafael Devers’ refusal to change positions highlighted the first full squad workout for the Red Sox.
NORTH FORT MYERS March to a Million Meals: Teaming up to help feed families Feeding a quarter of a million people each month requires a lot of money and help.
Charlotte County residents voice concerns over Burnt Store Road upgrades An emergency meeting was held to address concerns from residents about the development along Burnt Store Road in Charlotte County.
PORT CHARLOTTE Local nonprofit gives back to veterans for their service A military wife has found a heartfelt way to honor veterans and first responders.
NEW YORK (AP) – Charter Communications is buying Time Warner Cable for $55.33 billion, creating another U.S. TV and Internet giant. And executives say they’re confident regulators will allow it. The deal comes a month after Comcast, the country’s largest cable provider and owner of NBCUniversal, walked away from a $45.2 billion bid for Time Warner Cable, the No. 2 cable company, after intense pressure from regulators. Time Warner Cable had chosen the Comcast deal and rejected a $38 billion hostile offer from Charter in early 2014. There has been a wave in consolidation in the cable industry as providers are starting to lose TV subscribers, costs for TV, sports and movies rise and pressure from online video services such as Netflix and Hulu increases. John Malone’s Liberty Broadcast Corp., which owns more than a quarter of Charter’s stock, is backing the acquisition, which puts Charter in the same league as Comcast. Liberty Broadband is expected to own about 20 percent of the new Charter, which will also include Bright House Networks, a smaller cable provider Charter said Tuesday it is buying for $10.4 billion. Charter, combined with Time Warner Cable and Bright House, will have nearly 24 million customers, compared with Comcast’s 27.2 million. It also lags AT&T, whose pending deal with DirecTV would give it 26.4 million TV customers and 16.1 million fixed Internet customers as well as tens of millions of wireless customers. Whether government regulators will approve the Charter deal after quashing Comcast’s bid for Time Warner Cable remains to be seen. The Comcast deal would have given it more than half of the country’s high-speed Internet subscribers, which the government feared would give it the power to undermine online video competitors. Charter will have less than 30 percent of those fast-broadband customers, the company said Tuesday. “We’re a very different company from Comcast and this is a very different transaction,” said Charter CEO Tom Rutledge on a conference call Tuesday. “We’re confident it’s going to get done,” said Time Warner Cable CEO Rob Marcus. In a statement Tuesday, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler said that the FCC weighs every merger on its own to see if it will be in the public interest, and that “an absence of harm is not sufficient.” He said the FCC “will look to see how American consumers would benefit” from the deal. “One has to be sober about genuine risks that this deal could still be rejected,” said MoffettNathanson’s Craig Moffett in a research note Tuesday, given the number of Internet and TV subscribers involved. The deal comes with a $2 billion break-up fee if it doesn’t go through. If regulators don’t approve it, Charter would pay Time Warner Cable; if Time Warner Cable kills the deal and goes with another buyer, it’ll pay. Charter Communications Inc., based in Stamford, Connecticut, will provide $100 in cash and shares of a new public parent company equal to 0.5409 shares of Charter for each outstanding Time Warner Cable Inc. share. The transaction values each Time Warner Cable share at about $195.71. The companies on Tuesday valued New York-based Time Warner Cable at a total of $78.7 billion, including debt. The deal is expected to be completed by the end of the year.