‘It’s all about connection,’ Statement Peace makes jewelry with sustainability in mind2 arrested for firing gun at birthday party in Pine Manor
NORTH NAPLES ‘It’s all about connection,’ Statement Peace makes jewelry with sustainability in mind The brand Statement Peace, once started inside founder Jessica Lee’s home, is now in 2,700 stores across the country
Pine Manor 2 arrested for firing gun at birthday party in Pine Manor A party ended with two people behind bars.
FORT MYERS Shooting investigation on busy Fort Myers street Police are conducting a shooting investigation that involves a traffic crash near Michigan Avenue and Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard.
FGCU New FGCU athletic director Colin Hargis ready to build on department’s success New FGCU athletic director Colin Hargis talks about the department’s future amid the age of NIL and the transfer portal.
FORT MYERS More middle-aged women being treated for acne You probably thought you broke up with it after high school, but acne is rearing it’s ugly blackheads in adult women.
Lee County student ran up and hit teacher in head, report shows The report says a 13-year-old student ran up and smacked a teacher in the head because multiple classmates offered him money to do so.
NAPLES Collier Planning Commission continues discussion for apartments near Fiddler’s Creek The developer of Fiddler’s Creek wants to build hundreds of luxury apartments on a slice of a 600 acre-plus property known as section 29.
CAPE CORAL Fatigue sets in for third day of FEMA hearings Flying several hours to come to a FEMA code compliance hearing in Cape Coral is the reality for John Gasparini from Maryland.
Prescription drug shortages lead to higher prices There are currently more than 250 medications on the nation’s drug shortage list, according to the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. The organization says 2023 marked the worst year for shortages in about a decade.
Mental health resources to help children Here are some resources to help you navigate the mental health system when it comes to help for children. Park Royal Park Royal does not have in-patient options for youth; however, the facility’s launched a new intensive outpatient program for 14 to 17-year-olds. It typically last several weeks or months, and offers three to five […]
NAPLES Video: FWC releases bobcat after rehab stint at Naples Zoo Wildlife officials released a bobcat back into the wild after recovering from a broken leg at Naples Zoo for eight weeks.
Single-member vs. at-large voting debate intensifies in Lee County Three members of Southwest Florida’s state Legislature delegation hosted a public forum May 1 at Lehigh Acres Municipal Services Improvement District, established by the state in 2015.
Unsolved: sawfish deaths rise during Florida Keys mystery More endangered smalltooth sawfish deaths were reported in the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s weekly report.
Emails show beginnings, contradictions of South Seas resort amendment South Seas resort ownership group’s engineer proposed a land-use amendment for Lee County’s government at least six months before the first public discussions and at least seven weeks before the county’s official timeline began, emails between the resort’s representatives and county show.
ALVA SR 31: a dangerous road and persistent safety concern State Road 31 proves hazardous once again, with a recent fatal crash highlighting ongoing safety concerns. The road — particularly the stretch at the Lee/Charlotte county line — has seen numerous crashes, including Wednesday’s incident involving a 19-year-old who died after crashing with a car hauler. The Florida Highway Patrol has not released the victim’s […]
NORTH NAPLES ‘It’s all about connection,’ Statement Peace makes jewelry with sustainability in mind The brand Statement Peace, once started inside founder Jessica Lee’s home, is now in 2,700 stores across the country
Pine Manor 2 arrested for firing gun at birthday party in Pine Manor A party ended with two people behind bars.
FORT MYERS Shooting investigation on busy Fort Myers street Police are conducting a shooting investigation that involves a traffic crash near Michigan Avenue and Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard.
FGCU New FGCU athletic director Colin Hargis ready to build on department’s success New FGCU athletic director Colin Hargis talks about the department’s future amid the age of NIL and the transfer portal.
FORT MYERS More middle-aged women being treated for acne You probably thought you broke up with it after high school, but acne is rearing it’s ugly blackheads in adult women.
Lee County student ran up and hit teacher in head, report shows The report says a 13-year-old student ran up and smacked a teacher in the head because multiple classmates offered him money to do so.
NAPLES Collier Planning Commission continues discussion for apartments near Fiddler’s Creek The developer of Fiddler’s Creek wants to build hundreds of luxury apartments on a slice of a 600 acre-plus property known as section 29.
CAPE CORAL Fatigue sets in for third day of FEMA hearings Flying several hours to come to a FEMA code compliance hearing in Cape Coral is the reality for John Gasparini from Maryland.
Prescription drug shortages lead to higher prices There are currently more than 250 medications on the nation’s drug shortage list, according to the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. The organization says 2023 marked the worst year for shortages in about a decade.
Mental health resources to help children Here are some resources to help you navigate the mental health system when it comes to help for children. Park Royal Park Royal does not have in-patient options for youth; however, the facility’s launched a new intensive outpatient program for 14 to 17-year-olds. It typically last several weeks or months, and offers three to five […]
NAPLES Video: FWC releases bobcat after rehab stint at Naples Zoo Wildlife officials released a bobcat back into the wild after recovering from a broken leg at Naples Zoo for eight weeks.
Single-member vs. at-large voting debate intensifies in Lee County Three members of Southwest Florida’s state Legislature delegation hosted a public forum May 1 at Lehigh Acres Municipal Services Improvement District, established by the state in 2015.
Unsolved: sawfish deaths rise during Florida Keys mystery More endangered smalltooth sawfish deaths were reported in the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s weekly report.
Emails show beginnings, contradictions of South Seas resort amendment South Seas resort ownership group’s engineer proposed a land-use amendment for Lee County’s government at least six months before the first public discussions and at least seven weeks before the county’s official timeline began, emails between the resort’s representatives and county show.
ALVA SR 31: a dangerous road and persistent safety concern State Road 31 proves hazardous once again, with a recent fatal crash highlighting ongoing safety concerns. The road — particularly the stretch at the Lee/Charlotte county line — has seen numerous crashes, including Wednesday’s incident involving a 19-year-old who died after crashing with a car hauler. The Florida Highway Patrol has not released the victim’s […]
MGN PORTLAND, Maine (AP) – A proposal to revamp Maine’s elections is as easy as ranking candidates 1, 2, 3. Ranked-choice voting advocates say a referendum question would pave the way for people in Maine to rank their ballot choices from first to last, ensuring that a candidate wins majority support while eliminating the impact of so-called spoilers and rejecting party extremists who lack centrist appeal. Critics say it’s not that simple: There are constitutional questions as well as logistical concerns about instituting such a dramatic elections overhaul. If it’s approved on Nov. 8, then Maine voters would be the first in the U.S. to endorse on a statewide basis a system that’s in use in municipal elections in several cities across the country. “People are not OK with the status quo. It’s not working for them. They’re ready for change,” said Kyle Bailey, campaign manager for the Committee for Ranked Choice Voting. Ranked-choice voting works like this: A candidate who gets a majority of first-place votes is the winner. If no one gets a majority, however, then the last-place finisher is eliminated and voters’ second choices are applied to the remaining candidates. The process repeats until someone gets a majority. Critics say the new system poses logistical difficulties and, even worse, could violate the Maine Constitution which declares the winner by a plurality, not majority, and requires votes to be collected locally. Former Secretary of State Bill Diamond said it’ll be far more expensive and complicated than imagined. “I think it’s going to be a huge mess, and it’s going to be costly, and it’s unconstitutional, said Diamond, a state senator from Windham. Supporters say the constitutionality has been upheld elsewhere and several prominent lawyers and law professors believe it’d pass muster in Maine, too. If ranked-choice voting is approved, then there would be an 18-month period to figure out how it would work for primary and general elections. It’s been a low-key campaign, and polls suggest many voters are undecided. The Committee for Ranked Choice Voting is about to release its first TV ads. Beyond that, supporters have been focusing on house parties and beer tastings, the most recent of which featured a “ballot” of four frosty beverages at Foundation Brewing. Leslie Olson, of Yarmouth, one of the beer ballot participants, said she likes the idea of empowering those who’d like to vote for an independent or third-party candidate but fear that their vote would be wasted on a “spoiler” candidate. “You can’t vote for them or you’d feel like you’re throwing away your votes. Therefore, third-party candidates don’t stand a chance,” Olson lamented. Many supporters point out that such a system could’ve thwarted the election of Republican Gov. Paul LePage, who was twice elected in three-way races where a popular independent was accused of playing the spoiler role. But the idea has been percolating for years in Maine, where the winner in nine out of the past 11 gubernatorial elections has failed to get at least 50 percent of the vote. The League of Women Voters began studying the idea in 2008, after Democrat John Baldacci was re-elected with 38 percent of the popular vote in 2006, said Jill Ward, state president. Part of the appeal is that the proposed system gives a stronger voice to political independents that comprise the largest voting bloc in Maine, she said. Under the system, major party candidates would be encouraged to court mainstream voters – not just party faithful. Supporters point to success in Portland. So far, though, the winner with the most first-place votes has always come out on top in two mayoral elections in Maine’s largest city. However, the 2010 mayoral election in Oakland, California, showed how a candidate can come up short despite winning the most first-place votes. In that election, the front-runner was beaten by a candidate on the strength of nearly 25,000 second- and third-place votes. Less than two weeks ago, California Gov. Jerry Brown Jr., former mayor in Oakland, vetoed a bill to expand ranked-choice voting. “In a time when we want to encourage voter participation, we need to keep voting simple. Ranked choice voting is overly complicated and confusing,” Brown said in his veto message. “I believe it deprives voters of genuinely informed choice.”