ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
MGN MILAN (AP) – With lower gas prices shifting North American driving preferences toward bigger vehicles, Fiat Chrysler has accelerated its transition away from passenger cars with an impact on its manufacturing footprint across the globe. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Sergio Marchionne gave out pieces of the plan to exit the small- and midsize car business in the U.S. and shift factories to hotter-selling SUVs and trucks. They will keep selling muscle cars like the Charger, Challenger and 300 and premium brands like Alfa Romeo. Marchionne said he told the United Auto Workers union that the plan would create more jobs in the U.S., but where all the jobs will end up isn’t clear. He has said previously that the market shift in the U.S. to trucks and SUVs is permanent, aided by low gasoline prices, and that FCA would adjust to it. The North American market, he said, “is relatively healthy in areas where we function well,” like Jeep and Ram. “It has gotten a lot stickier on the passenger car side,” he said. “I think the call that we made to exit those businesses as producer in the United States in hindsight was probably one of the best calls we made.” The production changes will bring an increase in North American jobs, but some of the production will be moved to Mexico, Marchionne said. Some temporary layoffs will take place as plants are retooled from cars to trucks, he told analysts on a conference call. Marchionne called the transition painful but said it would be finished by early 2018. Here’s what we know about the production plans so far: – FCA will retool a factory in Sterling Heights, Michigan, north of Detroit, so it can make a new Ram pickup truck that will come out early in 2018. The plant, with 3,000 production workers, now makes the Chrysler 200, a slow-selling midsize car that is among the segments that FCA plans to exit. – A factory in Warren, Michigan, that now makes the Ram pickup will be retooled to make the Jeep Wagoneer or Grand Wagoneer, an SUV that’s larger than the Jeep Grand Cherokee. The plant with 4,000 production workers, would keep making the Ram until Sterling Heights begins making the new truck. – Production of the aging Jeep Compass and Patriot compact SUVs would move to Toluca, Mexico, when a new version comes out. Those are now made at a 4,000-worker factory in Belvidere, Illinois. The Illinois plant also makes the Dodge Dart compact car, a market that FCA also wants to exit, so its future may be in peril. Last year’s contract with the UAW promised new vehicles for Sterling Heights and Belvidere. – FCA is talking with other manufacturers to make small and midsize cars, but Chief Financial Officer Richard Palmer said he couldn’t discuss the talks. – FCA will continue to make larger rear-wheel-drive muscle and luxury cars and should be able to grow in that area, Marchionne said. But it’s possible, he said, when the plans are finished that “the true passenger car side will represent the lesser portion of our portfolio than it does today.” That doesn’t include Alfa Romeo, which is being built in Italy for export under plans to shift Italian production to higher-margin premium models. “I am not concerned about the competitiveness of the U.S. market as it applies to Alfa,” Marchionne said, adding he also was reassured by Alfa’s marketability in China after a recent visit. FCA also announced Tuesday that it would invest $74.7 million at its Trenton, Michigan, engine plant near Detroit so it can build a future four-cylinder engine. The move doesn’t create new jobs but retains 245. The company gets a $770,000 state tax break. The CEO also complained about the lack of clarity in the European regulations as automakers deal with greater scrutiny in the wake of the VW diesel admissions scandal. Marchionne said he agrees with Germany’s transport minister that regulations aren’t clear and some automakers interpret them differently than others. “I think we have done our best to meet those standards over time,” he said. North America was the clear driver of first-quarter FCA earnings. The Italian-American carmaker reported a net profit of 478 million euros ($539 million) in the first quarter, up from 27 million in the same period last year, a figure that had been adjusted to exclude the recently spun-off Ferrari division. Net revenues rose 3 percent to 26.5 billion euros. Fiat Chrysler said its North America adjusted earnings before interest and taxes doubled to 1.2 billion euros on higher revenues, lower advertising spending and lower recall campaign costs. Sales of Jeep, Ram trucks and minivans led an 8 percent boost in regional sales to 634,000 vehicles.