City of Cape Coral approves grant funding for Utilities Extension ProjectThe downtown Fort Myers post office is set to reopen Monday
CAPE CORAL City of Cape Coral approves grant funding for Utilities Extension Project The City of Cape Coral voted unanimously to provide $25 million in funding for the Utilities Extension Project.
downtown fort myers The downtown Fort Myers post office is set to reopen Monday The long-awaited return of the downtown Fort Myers post office is soon to be over, as the location is expected to reopen on Monday.
NAPLES Naples-based fashion designer supports teen who was denied entrance to prom Sophie Savidge is getting some swanky bow ties from Naples-based fashion designer Peter Jean-Marie.
FORT MYERS BEACH Staying safe against rip currents Mother Nature is throwing us for a loop. Right now, most of our beaches are at high risk for rip currents.
FORT MYERS Football officials work to keep the ‘Friday’ in Friday night lights Whether you think they are making good calls or bad ones, without officials there would be no Friday night lights.
LAKE OKEECHOBEE Army Corps prepares Lake Okeechobee ahead of ‘extremely active’ hurricane season This year, we had an abnormally wet dry season. The lake rose when it should have been receding.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral man charged with felony after allegedly backing into Publix employee A man on a grocery store run turned into a hit-and-run victim after he allegedly backed onto a Publix employee, according to the arrest report.
FORT MYERS Avoiding the “Summer Slide”: How to keep students engaged during the summer Every kid looks forward to summer, but they also face the “Summer Slide”, a term for students who aren’t mentally engaged over the summer.
NAPLES Details: Judge Judy files defamation suit against National Enquirer parent company Television personality Judge Judy Sheindlin, a resident of Collier County, filed a defamation lawsuit Monday against Accelerate360 and A360 Media LLC, the parent companies of the National Enquirer and InTouch Weekly.
CAPE CORAL Exclusive video shows why family of 13-year-old hit and killed in Cape Coral is filing civil rights complaint In a newly released exclusive video sent to WINK news, you can see the moments before a 13-year-old was fatally struck while riding his electric scooter in Cape Coral.
Tackling the teacher shortage in Lee County Are your kids losing out on the value of going to school because of inconsistency in who their teachers are?
6 bus crash victims identified; Immokalee community mourns loss Eight Mexican migrant farmworkers’ lives were cut short in an instant during a bus crash in Central Florida, and now we know who at least six of them were.
CAPE CORAL CCPD holds memorial service for fallen officers The Cape Coral Police Department, along with city employees took some time Wednesday to pray, thank, and honor the men and women who risk their lives every day to make sure our families are safe.
NAPLES Greater Naples Fire Rescue District starts Project Fire Buddies Greater Naples Fire is the first fire department to start a Project Fire Buddies program in Florida.
LEHIGH ACRES LCSO investigating shooting at Fleming Ecological Park in Lehigh Acres; 1 injured The Lee County Sheriff’s Office is reporting one person has been injured in a shooting near the Jim Fleming Ecological Park in Lehigh Acres, and though they haven’t arrested anyone, they are investigating.
CAPE CORAL City of Cape Coral approves grant funding for Utilities Extension Project The City of Cape Coral voted unanimously to provide $25 million in funding for the Utilities Extension Project.
downtown fort myers The downtown Fort Myers post office is set to reopen Monday The long-awaited return of the downtown Fort Myers post office is soon to be over, as the location is expected to reopen on Monday.
NAPLES Naples-based fashion designer supports teen who was denied entrance to prom Sophie Savidge is getting some swanky bow ties from Naples-based fashion designer Peter Jean-Marie.
FORT MYERS BEACH Staying safe against rip currents Mother Nature is throwing us for a loop. Right now, most of our beaches are at high risk for rip currents.
FORT MYERS Football officials work to keep the ‘Friday’ in Friday night lights Whether you think they are making good calls or bad ones, without officials there would be no Friday night lights.
LAKE OKEECHOBEE Army Corps prepares Lake Okeechobee ahead of ‘extremely active’ hurricane season This year, we had an abnormally wet dry season. The lake rose when it should have been receding.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral man charged with felony after allegedly backing into Publix employee A man on a grocery store run turned into a hit-and-run victim after he allegedly backed onto a Publix employee, according to the arrest report.
FORT MYERS Avoiding the “Summer Slide”: How to keep students engaged during the summer Every kid looks forward to summer, but they also face the “Summer Slide”, a term for students who aren’t mentally engaged over the summer.
NAPLES Details: Judge Judy files defamation suit against National Enquirer parent company Television personality Judge Judy Sheindlin, a resident of Collier County, filed a defamation lawsuit Monday against Accelerate360 and A360 Media LLC, the parent companies of the National Enquirer and InTouch Weekly.
CAPE CORAL Exclusive video shows why family of 13-year-old hit and killed in Cape Coral is filing civil rights complaint In a newly released exclusive video sent to WINK news, you can see the moments before a 13-year-old was fatally struck while riding his electric scooter in Cape Coral.
Tackling the teacher shortage in Lee County Are your kids losing out on the value of going to school because of inconsistency in who their teachers are?
6 bus crash victims identified; Immokalee community mourns loss Eight Mexican migrant farmworkers’ lives were cut short in an instant during a bus crash in Central Florida, and now we know who at least six of them were.
CAPE CORAL CCPD holds memorial service for fallen officers The Cape Coral Police Department, along with city employees took some time Wednesday to pray, thank, and honor the men and women who risk their lives every day to make sure our families are safe.
NAPLES Greater Naples Fire Rescue District starts Project Fire Buddies Greater Naples Fire is the first fire department to start a Project Fire Buddies program in Florida.
LEHIGH ACRES LCSO investigating shooting at Fleming Ecological Park in Lehigh Acres; 1 injured The Lee County Sheriff’s Office is reporting one person has been injured in a shooting near the Jim Fleming Ecological Park in Lehigh Acres, and though they haven’t arrested anyone, they are investigating.
Lee County residents, your voice is needed. Starting Wednesday, there’s an opportunity for you to attend public meetings and have your say on the draft action plan for a $1.1 billion grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The plan, carefully developed by the Resilient Lee task force over several months, was released Tuesday. It aims to improve housing, infrastructure, public services and planning initiatives in Lee County. The first of nine public meetings at the Bonita Springs City Council meeting released their final 264 paged draft for how they plan to spend $1.1 billion grant. [ READ MORE: Lee County seeks input on $1.1B federal aid for Ian recovery ] A public comment period has now opened and will run through the end of August, giving community members a chance to weigh in on the draft plan. WINK News discovered many people attending the first meeting on Wednesday had never heard of Resilient Lee. “Somebody hasn’t done a good job about voicing what this program is about and getting it out there,” Matt Davis said, who visits Southwest Florida. Two people spoke during public comment and asked how to apply for the money. The applications are not open yet. The county plans to submit the final draft to HUD in September. “All of those comments will be compiled and considered. And ultimately the board of county commissioners will potentially make modifications to the final plan that’s submitted to HUD,” said Glen Salyer, assistant county manager of Lee County. Proposed distribution of funds, according to Lee County HOUSING: $660,000,000 INFRASTRUCTURE: $207,980,950 MITIGATION: $144,506,000 PUBLIC SERVICES : $15,000,000 PLANNING: $25,000,000 ADMINISTRATION: $55,394,050 As currently written, the draft emphasizes affordable housing development, home assistance programs and even behavioral health services to help families impacted by the hurricane. However, to meet the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s guidelines, at least 70 percent of the $1.1 billion grant must benefit low-to-moderate income households. In Lee County, a single-person household would qualify at $47,700 or less per year, whereas the limit for total household income is $68,100 per year for a family of four. Proposed housing recovery projects include repairing, reconstructing and elevating single-family homes, rehabilitating multi-family and rental housing, building new affordable housing units and offering voluntary residential buyouts. The allocated funds for housing programs would cover about 2,800 households. Lee County also has proposed a Home Purchase Assistance program to help low- and moderate-income families get homes outside the special flood hazard area. As of now, the proposed allocation of $660 million for housing programs represents around 60 percent of the total county allocation. This recovery plan could take more than five years, and the county can make adjustments as the needs of the community change. Now, it’s up to the people of Lee County to share their thoughts on the plan. List of locations where the public meetings will take place 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2023: Bonita Springs City Council; 9101 Bonita Beach Road Bonita Springs, FL 34135 6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 3, 2023: Cape Coral City Council; 1015 Cultural Park Blvd., Cape Coral, FL 33990 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023: North Fort Myers Recreation Center; 2000 N. Recreation Park Way, North Fort Myers, FL 33903 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2023: Town of Fort Myers Beach / DiamondHead Beach Resort; 2000 Estero Blvd., Fort Myers Beach, FL 33931 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023: Veterans Park; 55 Homestead Road, Lehigh Acres, FL 33936 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2023: The Heights Center; 15570 Hagie Drive, Fort Myers, FL 33908 6 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023: City of Fort Myers / Stars Complex; 2980 Edison Ave., Fort Myers, FL 33916 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 24, 2023: Pine Island Elementary School; 5360 Ridgewood Drive, Bokeelia, FL 33922 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, August 29, 2023: City of Sanibel / Big Arts Sanibel; 900 Dunlop Rd, Sanibel, FL 33957