Trumparilla Boat Parade kicks off in Fort MyersThe Weather Authority: Hot temperatures, rain, and we’re watching the tropics
FORT MYERS Trumparilla Boat Parade kicks off in Fort Myers The Lee County GOP is hosting the Trumparilla Boat Parade in support of the Republican nominee.
Southwest Florida The Weather Authority: Hot temperatures, rain, and we’re watching the tropics Get ready for a typical Southwest Florida weekend. It’s going to feel like the triple digits before rain rolls in and we’re watching the tropics.
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.
FORT MYERS Trumparilla Boat Parade kicks off in Fort Myers The Lee County GOP is hosting the Trumparilla Boat Parade in support of the Republican nominee.
Southwest Florida The Weather Authority: Hot temperatures, rain, and we’re watching the tropics Get ready for a typical Southwest Florida weekend. It’s going to feel like the triple digits before rain rolls in and we’re watching the tropics.
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.
Many people think of train tracks as a way to travel, or even get annoyed when you have to stop at them, but for some those train tracks symbolize a history of safety and segregation. Mrs. Marion Jackson grew up with racial divide. She looks out from the front porch of her Fort Myers home and talks of a very different city than the one she sees today. As a born and raised native, she recalls what it was like growing up in Dunbar in the 50s and 60s, “No sidewalks, dirt road, I can remember it all.” Mrs. Marion Jackson sits on her front porch in Fort Myers. She also remembers a time when the railroad tracks that run through former Anderson Avenue – which became Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in 1991 – were considered by many to be a division between whites and Blacks. “That divided us,” she said “Evans Avenue really started Dunbar coming around … All of this was segregated; all the way from Cranford Avenue, you would go over all of that. Where I live on Economy was on the other side of Martin Luther King and all that was black.” Black people primarily stayed east of the tracks in an area called Safety Hill. John Tobler was a young boy during that time, “I remember, you know, you just didn’t come over in this side of town, especially not at night.” John Tobler. Years after the Jim Crow law of segregation was outlawed, the railroad depot was still segregated, all the way into the 1970s. Tobler, who is also the president of Tobler Construction, said, “There are stories of people that were hurt because perhaps a young kid did not know I was not able to drink from the side or go into that bathroom so it was really really trying times for people in the Dunbar community.” But in 2017 Tobler helped rewrite the narrative. He transformed the old segregated train depot into the building we now know as the Collaboratory, a place that’s inclusive for all. He explained, “We demoed the bathrooms where there were separate bathrooms, one for coloreds as it was called then, and white; and a part of doing the work and actually demoing that it represented a changing of the time.” And as Mrs. Jackson looks out on her porch, she sees the change too, right in her own Dunbar neighborhood. “In our area now, it’s white, Spanish, Black,” Jackson added. “I’m just proud of my community and I’m proud of Dunbar. I really am. Maybe there is room for improvement. A lot, they fight for all the time, and sometimes I just say, well it’s not as bad as it used to be.” But as for society as a whole, there’s still room to grow. On the east side of Dr. MLK, there used to be a lot of Black-owned shops, cafes, dry cleaners, and clothing stores. McCollum Hall was one of the few places where both white people and Black people would go on that side of the tracks. Old segregated train depot near downtown Fort Myers and present-day Collaboratory.