Tim Aten Knows: 2 new eateries coming to East Naples After operating La Rosa Pizzeria for more than 15 years, owners Bill and Alda Rosa decided to sell their local business and restaurant space.
the weather authority Warmer with sun and clouds for your Friday plans The Weather Authority is tracking a warmer day ahead, with a mixture of sun and clouds expected this Friday afternoon.
FDOT to open all lanes of Caloosahatchee Bridge year ahead of construction schedule The Florida Department of Transportation announced it will open all lanes of the Caloosahatchee Bridge a year ahead of its pedestrian sidewalk project.
NAPLES 12-year-old collecting donations for the needy during the holidays A 12-year-old Naples boy isn’t worried about what he’s getting for Christmas. Instead, he’s working on his 6th annual “Holiday Sock Drive.”
Fort Myers man facing homelessness before the holidays A 75-year-old man is on the brink of homelessness despite working over 80 hours a week.
NAPLES Adoptee uses non-profit to provide suitcases for foster children This holiday season, a Naples woman is on a mission to bring foster children something many take for granted: a suitcase filled with dignity.
MARCO ISLAND City of Marco Island discusses lead awareness during city council meeting The city of Marco Island sent out 4900 letters to residents warning them that their pipes could contain plastic or lead.
NAPLES The future of electric planes in Southwest Florida Features of living near an airport include persistent headache-inducing engine rumbles and foul-smelling jet fuel, but electric planes could play a part in the solution.
PORT CHARLOTTE Neighbors awaiting answers on Port Charlotte Beach Park repairs Neighbors said a contractor hired by the Florida Division of Emergency Management mishandled the boats at Port Charlotte Beach Park.
FGCU introduces new technology for cognitive health screenings Ten minutes. That’s all it takes for doctors to assess how well you remember, how quickly you learn things, and how your brain is working overall.
WINK Investigates: Disgraced contractor faces new lawsuits and allegations Paul Beattie, a disgraced home builder is back doing business but legal challenges continue as another one of his businesses gets sued. Former employees of Beattie speak out, only to WINK.
SWFL reacts to UNC hiring Bill Belichick Southwest Florida reacts to North Carolina hiring Bill Belichick as its new head football coach and how that could impact the decisions of local recruits.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Some Floridians want more alone time during the holidays The holidays are all about spending time with family and friends, but nearly half of Americans say they really want more alone time during the holiday.
LABELLE Hendry County rolls out cameras for school speed zones The Hendry County Sheriff’s Office has rolled out a new way of enforcing school zone speed limits by using cameras that will target drivers traveling over a certain speed in a school zone.
Aggressive driving concerns on the rise in Southwest Florida The arrest of a man who, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office said, killed a motorcyclist after crashing into him on purpose is raising concerns over aggressive driving in Southwest Florida.
Tim Aten Knows: 2 new eateries coming to East Naples After operating La Rosa Pizzeria for more than 15 years, owners Bill and Alda Rosa decided to sell their local business and restaurant space.
the weather authority Warmer with sun and clouds for your Friday plans The Weather Authority is tracking a warmer day ahead, with a mixture of sun and clouds expected this Friday afternoon.
FDOT to open all lanes of Caloosahatchee Bridge year ahead of construction schedule The Florida Department of Transportation announced it will open all lanes of the Caloosahatchee Bridge a year ahead of its pedestrian sidewalk project.
NAPLES 12-year-old collecting donations for the needy during the holidays A 12-year-old Naples boy isn’t worried about what he’s getting for Christmas. Instead, he’s working on his 6th annual “Holiday Sock Drive.”
Fort Myers man facing homelessness before the holidays A 75-year-old man is on the brink of homelessness despite working over 80 hours a week.
NAPLES Adoptee uses non-profit to provide suitcases for foster children This holiday season, a Naples woman is on a mission to bring foster children something many take for granted: a suitcase filled with dignity.
MARCO ISLAND City of Marco Island discusses lead awareness during city council meeting The city of Marco Island sent out 4900 letters to residents warning them that their pipes could contain plastic or lead.
NAPLES The future of electric planes in Southwest Florida Features of living near an airport include persistent headache-inducing engine rumbles and foul-smelling jet fuel, but electric planes could play a part in the solution.
PORT CHARLOTTE Neighbors awaiting answers on Port Charlotte Beach Park repairs Neighbors said a contractor hired by the Florida Division of Emergency Management mishandled the boats at Port Charlotte Beach Park.
FGCU introduces new technology for cognitive health screenings Ten minutes. That’s all it takes for doctors to assess how well you remember, how quickly you learn things, and how your brain is working overall.
WINK Investigates: Disgraced contractor faces new lawsuits and allegations Paul Beattie, a disgraced home builder is back doing business but legal challenges continue as another one of his businesses gets sued. Former employees of Beattie speak out, only to WINK.
SWFL reacts to UNC hiring Bill Belichick Southwest Florida reacts to North Carolina hiring Bill Belichick as its new head football coach and how that could impact the decisions of local recruits.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Some Floridians want more alone time during the holidays The holidays are all about spending time with family and friends, but nearly half of Americans say they really want more alone time during the holiday.
LABELLE Hendry County rolls out cameras for school speed zones The Hendry County Sheriff’s Office has rolled out a new way of enforcing school zone speed limits by using cameras that will target drivers traveling over a certain speed in a school zone.
Aggressive driving concerns on the rise in Southwest Florida The arrest of a man who, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office said, killed a motorcyclist after crashing into him on purpose is raising concerns over aggressive driving in Southwest Florida.
Citrus greening impacting Florida citrus production. CREDIT: WINK News Florida prides itself on its juicy oranges, but because of citrus greening and powerful storms, the citrus industry is experiencing its lowest production levels since 1936. Between the last hurricane season, diseases impacting crops, and increased costs to keep operations productive, growers are feeling beaten down by the stress. WINK News spoke with Wayne Simmons, the president and owner of Labelle Fruit Company about the issues. “Farmers as a whole are eternal optimists. But there’s not a lot of optimism left,” said Simmons. LaBelle Fruit Company sign. CREDIT: WINK News Citrus growing and cultivation is what Simmons is particularly passionate about. “We like to call Florida-Orange-Juice ‘Florida gold,'” said Simmons. Although, that ‘Florida gold’ hasn’t grown like it used to. A decade ago, during its peak, Simmons’ grove produced 50,000 boxes of oranges a year. This past season that number shrunk down to 4,000 boxes. Tamiami Citrus had just completed its crop estimate in August. “We were really comfortable and felt good about the crop we had on the trees at the time. But then Ian hit,” said Ron Mahan, the CFO and vice president of Tamiami Citrus. Due to Ian, Mahan says their four groves suffered a crop loss totaling $4 or $5 million dollars. The sunshine state as a whole produced just under 16,000,000 boxes of oranges this year. “Ten years ago, we were producing, we produced 103 million boxes. 20 years ago, we were producing 242 million boxes,” said Mahan. Asian citrus psyllid. CREDIT: Photograph by Douglas L. Caldwell, University of Florida. Mahan explained that Hurricane Ian knocked out around half the state’s production, but the major obstacle for growers for the time being is citrus greening. Citrus greening is a bacterial disease brought on by a bug called a psyllid that’s no larger than a grain of rice. In Florida, every grove has it, and once it’s on the tree, it spreads. “Neighbor next door, he’s, he’s thrown in the towel,” said Simmons. Simmons’s neighbor is growing mangos and avocadoes. 20 years ago, Florida, with oranges on its license plate, had 900,000 acres of citrus groves, but in 2023, there are only 400,000 acres. Nevertheless, Simmons said he’s a little more hard-headed and won’t be throwing in the towel anytime soon. Sally Scalera is an urban horticulture agent and master gardener coordinator for the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agriculture Sciences. She explained citrus greening is caused by a bacterium spread by the Asian citrus psyllid. Citrus greening impacting oranges. CREDIT: WINK News “They just fly around and they find citrus trees or citrus-related plants, and then you know, they feed on those,” Scalera said. The bug feeds on the sap and passes that bacterium into the citrus tree. One predator helping to control the psyllid population is a special wasp, the Tamarixia radiate. Tamarixia radiata. CREDIT: Angel Hoyte and Jamie D. Yates, University of Florida, Citrus Research and Education Center. Tamarixia radiata. CREDIT: Angel Hoyte and Jamie D. Yates, University of Florida, Citrus Research and Education Center. “It lays an egg on the psyllid and then the egg hatches and eats the psyllid out from the inside. And then it pupates and comes out of the psyllid body as an adult,” explained Scalera. While the wasps cannot cure greening, they can help lessen the psyllid population and reduce the amount of citrus greening. Trees with citrus greening produce leaves with a mottled or blotchy appearance. If you have citrus trees and want some of the wasps offered by the state, you need to apply through the Florida Department of Agriculture.