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.
(AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File) Blame the coronavirus for a new shortage — not of toilet paper, but of pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters that is forcing some businesses to change their policies around how patrons pay for good and services. The Federal Reserve, which manages coin production and distribution, last month said it would temporarily limit the number of coins it gives depository institutions, such as banks, noting a significant disruption to both the coin supply chain and the normal circulation patterns for U.S. coinage — all because of COVID-19. As a result, some businesses say they are low on change. The convenience store chain Wawa, for one, is asking patrons of its 850 outlets to use exact change, or else pay with a credit or debit card, or by using the company’s mobile app. “Like many other businesses around the country, Wawa stores have been affected by the shortage of coins nationwide, as reported by the Federal Reserve,” a company spokesperson said in a statement to CBS MoneyWatch. Other retailers, including CVS pharmacies and discount chain Dollar Tree stores have implemented similar policies, citing coin shortages, according to local reports. The scant supply of coins is due in part to reduced production capacity. Workers at the U.S. Mint, which makes all of the country’s coinage, are producing at a slower rate than usual because of precautionary measures taken to protect them from the coronavirus. “The COVID‐19 pandemic has significantly disrupted the supply chain and normal circulation patterns for U.S. coin. In the past few months, coin deposits from depository institutions to the Federal Reserve have declined significantly and the U.S. Mint’s production of coin also decreased due to measures put in place to protect its employees,” the Federal Reserve said in its June statement. The Fed also added that it is working with the Mint to increase production capacity, and believes coins in circulation will return to normal levels once more businesses begin to reopen. So far in 2020, the U.S. mint has produced 6.5 billion coins, including more than 1 billion quarters. Coins are also accumulating in the homes — and pockets — of people still leery of going out in public. Coinstar, which operates a network of coin-cashing machines, said that it has seen lower coin volumes of late, and has been making more frequent coin pick-ups to get more metal back in circulation, the company said in a statement to CBS MoneyWatch. To help add to its inventory of loose change, Wawa is allowing customers to exchange their rolled coins for bills at participating stores. It is also encouraging customers to round up their purchases to the nearest dollar, donating the difference to the Wawa Foundation, which supports local health, hunger and “everyday heroes” charities. Wawa, with its 850 stores concentrated in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Florida, and Washington, D.C., indicated it won’t turn away customers who don’t have the ability to pay using a credit or debit card or mobile app. There’s concern that coronavirus will force society to rely more heavily on card and digital payments, which exclude vulnerable groups with limited access to banks or credit cards, as experts caution that COVID-19 can potentially be transmitted through handling cash. “Not everyone has a bank account,” Dr. Danielle Ompad, an epidemiologist at New York University’s School of Global Public Health, told CBS MoneyWatch in March. “There are some very important equity issues if we start encouraging cashless transactions.”