CAPE CORAL City of Cape Coral planning a new interchange with I-75 The city of Cape Coral is in the early stages of planning a new interchange with I-75, an idea that has been discussed for more than a decade.
Tracking invasive species after hurricanes Hurricanes Helene and Milton didn’t just bring wind and rain, they brought new threats to southwest Florida’s ecosystem.
PUNTA GORDA Woman in Punta Gorda shooting charged with 2nd degree murder A woman in a homicide investigation on Nasturtium Drive in Punta Gorda has been charged with 2nd-degree murder.
Lee County mother continuing fight to get children a bus stop The school district already told her she lives too close to the school to qualify for a bus route but she has not given up.
NORTH NAPLES Grant Thornton Invitational returns to Tiburon Golf Club Stars on the PGA and LPGA Tours are back in Southwest Florida for the Grant Thornton Invitational at Tiburon Golf Club.
FORT MYERS Black Flag brings classic punk energy to The Ranch in Fort Myers Legendary punk band Black Flag made their mark in Southwest Florida during the Fort Myers stop of their “First Four Years” tour.
Charlotte Technical College breaks ground on aviation facility The Charlotte County School District is flying high and keeping its “Space Academy” designation with a new aviation training facility for students.
CAPE CORAL Man arrested in connection with Cape Coral home invasion The Cape Coral Police Department has announced the arrest of one of three men suspected in a home invasion that took place earlier this month.
16 transported after 2 airboats crash in Collier County According to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, two airboats crashed south of U.S. 41 east between mile markers 74 and 75, leaving well over a dozen people injured.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral residents react to $100M North Cape land deal The city of Cape Coral is seeing two projects that will change the city. One is called one of the most lucrative deals in county history.
Royal Palm Coast Realtor Association breaks ground on new Fort Myers headquarters As Royal Palm Coast Realtor Association’s president pointed out, about 1,000 people are still moving to Florida every day, and many of them are finding their way to Southwest Florida.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte County drug trafficker sentenced to 10 years A Charlotte County man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for drug trafficking.
lehigh acres ‘How to sign away parental rights?’; Lehigh Acres woman accused of killing her 4-month-old baby The Lee County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a woman accused of killing her 4-month-old baby.
Punta Gorda Man accused of indecent exposure at school bus stop in Punta Gorda The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a man accused of indecent exposure at a school bus stop in Punta Gorda.
estero 76-acre prescribed burn at Koreshan State Park Park officials are performing a 76-acre prescribed burn at Koreshan State Park.
CAPE CORAL City of Cape Coral planning a new interchange with I-75 The city of Cape Coral is in the early stages of planning a new interchange with I-75, an idea that has been discussed for more than a decade.
Tracking invasive species after hurricanes Hurricanes Helene and Milton didn’t just bring wind and rain, they brought new threats to southwest Florida’s ecosystem.
PUNTA GORDA Woman in Punta Gorda shooting charged with 2nd degree murder A woman in a homicide investigation on Nasturtium Drive in Punta Gorda has been charged with 2nd-degree murder.
Lee County mother continuing fight to get children a bus stop The school district already told her she lives too close to the school to qualify for a bus route but she has not given up.
NORTH NAPLES Grant Thornton Invitational returns to Tiburon Golf Club Stars on the PGA and LPGA Tours are back in Southwest Florida for the Grant Thornton Invitational at Tiburon Golf Club.
FORT MYERS Black Flag brings classic punk energy to The Ranch in Fort Myers Legendary punk band Black Flag made their mark in Southwest Florida during the Fort Myers stop of their “First Four Years” tour.
Charlotte Technical College breaks ground on aviation facility The Charlotte County School District is flying high and keeping its “Space Academy” designation with a new aviation training facility for students.
CAPE CORAL Man arrested in connection with Cape Coral home invasion The Cape Coral Police Department has announced the arrest of one of three men suspected in a home invasion that took place earlier this month.
16 transported after 2 airboats crash in Collier County According to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, two airboats crashed south of U.S. 41 east between mile markers 74 and 75, leaving well over a dozen people injured.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral residents react to $100M North Cape land deal The city of Cape Coral is seeing two projects that will change the city. One is called one of the most lucrative deals in county history.
Royal Palm Coast Realtor Association breaks ground on new Fort Myers headquarters As Royal Palm Coast Realtor Association’s president pointed out, about 1,000 people are still moving to Florida every day, and many of them are finding their way to Southwest Florida.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte County drug trafficker sentenced to 10 years A Charlotte County man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for drug trafficking.
lehigh acres ‘How to sign away parental rights?’; Lehigh Acres woman accused of killing her 4-month-old baby The Lee County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a woman accused of killing her 4-month-old baby.
Punta Gorda Man accused of indecent exposure at school bus stop in Punta Gorda The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a man accused of indecent exposure at a school bus stop in Punta Gorda.
estero 76-acre prescribed burn at Koreshan State Park Park officials are performing a 76-acre prescribed burn at Koreshan State Park.
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) – Replicas of historic Marine Corps uniforms will be headed to Marine Corps Forces Central Command, or MarCent – a subcommand of MacDill-based U.S. Central Command in Tampa. The Tampa Bay Times reports retired Gunnery Sgt. Tom Williams studies history for a nonprofit educational group he helped create to support the Corps, and in the next few months he’ll be delivering a tangible lesson to MacDill Air Force Base: replicas of Marine uniforms dating to the service’s founding at Philadelphia’s Tun Tavern on Nov. 10, 1775. In November, MarCent signed a $47,000 purchase agreement with the United States Marine Corps Historical Co., the Virginia-based nonprofit organization run by Williams. MacDill officials say the uniforms were bought for a Marine Corps birthday pageant. The purchase contract was not put out to bid, MacDill purchasing officials said, because they determined the historical company is the only one able to fulfill the contract. About 200 Marines work with MarCent at MacDill, about 6,000 in the 20 nations of the entire CentCom region. MarCent serves as a conduit between the commandant of the Marine Corps and Centcom, which controls what they do in the region. “We purchased the uniforms for our Marine Corps birthday pageant,” said Maj. Brad Avots, a MarCent spokesman, “which shows the history from when we started to now.” A few weeks after retiring from the corps in 1994, after 24 years as an aviation crash firefighter, Williams was drawn back by the lure of the service’s deep tradition – an attraction born of memories from his youth about a Civil War battlefield near his Maryland home. Originally, he planned to instruct firefighters after his retirement, but he found himself “in the right place at the right time” and instead went to work full time for the United States Marine Corps Historical Co. He had helped create the nonprofit in 1990. Using “living history” educational techniques developed by the National Park Service, the company’s mission is to “take history from behind glass and put a human face on it,” according to its website. “We are a very small, intimately run company,” said Williams, whose staff includes a 19th century historical clothing specialist and two part-timers. When it started, the company mainly researched Corps history and helped outfit active duty troops who donned the uniforms for ceremonies and living history demonstrations. Now, Marine bases and commands like MarCent want their own sets of uniforms, so in 2006 the company began supplying them. “The uniforms reinforce the human element – that this generation of Marines stands on the shoulders of those who came before us,” Williams said.