Genesis of Naples breaking ground on new car dealershipEmails show beginnings, contradictions of South Seas resort amendment
Genesis of Naples breaking ground on new car dealership A genesis—or new beginning—is under way for Genesis of Naples. The local franchise plans to break ground this summer on a new and expanded luxury auto dealership in North Naples.
Emails show beginnings, contradictions of South Seas resort amendment South Seas resort ownership group’s engineer proposed a land-use amendment for Lee County’s government at least six months before the first public discussions and at least seven weeks before the county’s official timeline began, emails between the resort’s representatives and county show.
CAPE CORAL 13-year-old arrested for allegedly getting involved in hit-and-run with stolen car, fleeing from Cape Coral police A teen was arrested on multiple charges after allegedly getting involved in a hit-and-run with a stolen car and then fleeing from police.
NORTH FORT MYERS Caloosahatchee River Bridge to close overnight for construction The Caloosahatchee River Bridge from First Street to North Key Drive in North Fort Myers will close so crews can perform bridge work.
CAPE CORAL Accused Cape Coral double murderer, Wade Wilson, will be in court to try to get death penalty off the table Wade Wilson, the man who allegedly murdered two women, will be in court to try to persuade the court to get the death penalty off the table.
Jupiter DeSantis announces funding for developmentally disabled individuals Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis spoke on education for children with developmental disabilities at the Els Center of Excellence in Jupiter.
CHARLOTTE COUNTY Bradenton man arrested after allegedly masturbating inside Charlotte County Walmart A man from Bradenton has been arrested after he was allegedly masturbating inside a Walmart in Charlotte County.
LEHIGH ACRES Lehigh Acres work trailer explosion injures 1 The Lehigh Acres Fire Control and Rescue District responded to a work trailer explosion that injured one person.
CBS News Trump and DeSantis, once GOP rivals, meet in South Florida to talk about 2024 election Florida Governor Ron DeSantis met privately with former President Donald Trump for several hours on Sunday morning to talk, in part, about fundraising ahead of the 2024 general election, several sources familiar with the meeting tell CBS News.
WINK NEWS Florida Prepaid open enrollment deadline approaches All parents fear the expense of college for their children; however, the state offers a great option in the Florida Prepaid Plan.
The Weather Authority Few showers this Monday afternoon after a pleasant and dry morning The Weather Authority is tracking a cool and pleasant Monday morning start with the possibility of afternoon rain showers.
NORTH FORT MYERS 1 dead, 1 arrested after North Fort Myers shooting The Lee County Sheriff’s Office arrested one person following an evening shooting that killed a man in North Fort Myers.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Bishop of the Diocese of Venice releases statement following sexual abuse allegations by SWFL priest The Bishop of the Diocese of Venice is speaking out after Charlotte County Reverend Leo Riley was arrested on five counts of sexual battery stemming from his past work as a priest in Iowa.
NEW YORK (AP) Biden officials indefinitely postpone ban on menthol cigarettes amid election-year pushback President Joe Biden’s administration is indefinitely delaying a long-awaited menthol cigarette ban, a decision that infuriated anti-smoking advocates but could avoid a political backlash from Black voters in November.
FORT MYERS Gone but not forgotten: Traveling Vietnam Memorial pays tribute to veterans A powerful symbol of honor and remembrance is standing proudly here in Southwest Florida. The Traveling Vietnam Memorial Wall is open to the public, a reminder of those we lost who served our country.
Genesis of Naples breaking ground on new car dealership A genesis—or new beginning—is under way for Genesis of Naples. The local franchise plans to break ground this summer on a new and expanded luxury auto dealership in North Naples.
Emails show beginnings, contradictions of South Seas resort amendment South Seas resort ownership group’s engineer proposed a land-use amendment for Lee County’s government at least six months before the first public discussions and at least seven weeks before the county’s official timeline began, emails between the resort’s representatives and county show.
CAPE CORAL 13-year-old arrested for allegedly getting involved in hit-and-run with stolen car, fleeing from Cape Coral police A teen was arrested on multiple charges after allegedly getting involved in a hit-and-run with a stolen car and then fleeing from police.
NORTH FORT MYERS Caloosahatchee River Bridge to close overnight for construction The Caloosahatchee River Bridge from First Street to North Key Drive in North Fort Myers will close so crews can perform bridge work.
CAPE CORAL Accused Cape Coral double murderer, Wade Wilson, will be in court to try to get death penalty off the table Wade Wilson, the man who allegedly murdered two women, will be in court to try to persuade the court to get the death penalty off the table.
Jupiter DeSantis announces funding for developmentally disabled individuals Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis spoke on education for children with developmental disabilities at the Els Center of Excellence in Jupiter.
CHARLOTTE COUNTY Bradenton man arrested after allegedly masturbating inside Charlotte County Walmart A man from Bradenton has been arrested after he was allegedly masturbating inside a Walmart in Charlotte County.
LEHIGH ACRES Lehigh Acres work trailer explosion injures 1 The Lehigh Acres Fire Control and Rescue District responded to a work trailer explosion that injured one person.
CBS News Trump and DeSantis, once GOP rivals, meet in South Florida to talk about 2024 election Florida Governor Ron DeSantis met privately with former President Donald Trump for several hours on Sunday morning to talk, in part, about fundraising ahead of the 2024 general election, several sources familiar with the meeting tell CBS News.
WINK NEWS Florida Prepaid open enrollment deadline approaches All parents fear the expense of college for their children; however, the state offers a great option in the Florida Prepaid Plan.
The Weather Authority Few showers this Monday afternoon after a pleasant and dry morning The Weather Authority is tracking a cool and pleasant Monday morning start with the possibility of afternoon rain showers.
NORTH FORT MYERS 1 dead, 1 arrested after North Fort Myers shooting The Lee County Sheriff’s Office arrested one person following an evening shooting that killed a man in North Fort Myers.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Bishop of the Diocese of Venice releases statement following sexual abuse allegations by SWFL priest The Bishop of the Diocese of Venice is speaking out after Charlotte County Reverend Leo Riley was arrested on five counts of sexual battery stemming from his past work as a priest in Iowa.
NEW YORK (AP) Biden officials indefinitely postpone ban on menthol cigarettes amid election-year pushback President Joe Biden’s administration is indefinitely delaying a long-awaited menthol cigarette ban, a decision that infuriated anti-smoking advocates but could avoid a political backlash from Black voters in November.
FORT MYERS Gone but not forgotten: Traveling Vietnam Memorial pays tribute to veterans A powerful symbol of honor and remembrance is standing proudly here in Southwest Florida. The Traveling Vietnam Memorial Wall is open to the public, a reminder of those we lost who served our country.
Get ready for more insurance madness. Progressive is ‘rebalancing’ in Florida by non-renewing about 100,000 home policies. Progressive made the announcement Friday in a ‘Florida property update’ to its agents. Progressive’s ‘rebalancing actions’ include no longer providing dwelling/fire or DP3 coverage and nonrenewing certain ‘high-risk’ property policies in Florida. The Insurance Information Institute told WINK News Consumer Reporter Andryanna Sheppard Progressive is nonrenewing about 47,000 DP3 policies and about 53,000 ‘high-risk’ property policies. In addition, the insurer wrote select insurance agents will no longer represent Progressive Home and will begin notifying affected agents as soon as possible. Progressive noted Loggerhead Insurance headquartered in Tampa has agreed to offer replacement coverage to those affected Progressive policyholders. The insurer added it will begin sending its first nonrenewal notices for DP3 polices and “other direct and agency property policies in late December.” Affected policyholders will have until May 2024, just before the start of the 2024 Hurricane Season, to find replacement coverage. A Progressive spokesperson told Sheppard “the actions we’re taking are necessary to ensure that we can continue to write business in Florida in a meaningful way—and we expect these actions will better position us to build a stronger, more stable, and more competitive Progressive Home business for consumers and independent agents in the long run.” The Insurance Information Institute told WINK News about 56,000 home policies were quietly non-renewed across the state in 2022. Most were primarily due to roof age before the state regulation was changed. READ MORE: Farmers Insurance expected to still cover hurricane season Progressive has also stopped writing new home businesses in 2022 across all Florida counties. The Insurance Information Institute told WINK News that Progressive’s underwriting results in 2022 were one of the worst of any insurer operating in Florida. They were paying out $2.17 in claims for every dollar of premium collected. Progressive’s ‘rebalancing’ impact on Florida’s property insurance market This comes shortly after Florida legislators and officials announced more insurance companies are coming to the state and pointed to legislation passed over the last two years. “We did transformational change in the insurance and the tort side. Florida had been know as a judicial hellhole,” state Representative Bob Rommel said. “It’s not going to be an instant fix because we have to attract carriers that actually have the confidence that they can do business in Florida and be profitable. It was not like the insurance companies were making tons and tons of money. I’m sure some were but most of them are losing money and many of them went out of business.” “We’re in a better place today than we were a year ago. I would, by no means, say that we have recovered. Certainly anybody looking at their insurance bill would not feel like we’ve recovered. We have a lot of work to do. We have five new entrants to the market,” added Florida Insurance Commissioner Michael Yaworsky. “That is showing indications that we’re seeing belief system wide in the legislation that passed and that will travel down to consumers over time.” Progressive said in its statement that the company is “encouraged by and grateful for the work of Florida state officials who helps recently enact needed legislative reforms that are stabilizing the insurance business environment and encouraging new carriers to enter the market.” Progressive does not plan on leaving Florida and will “continue to insure more than 200,000 Floridians and their homes.” “This is just more disruption in the Florida property insurance market,” added Mark Friedlander with the Insurance Information Institute. “Every time we see some positive steps, such as new companies being approved to start writing business, we hear from companies that want to reduce their risk and are making major changes.” News of Progressive ‘rebalancing’ comes only a couple of months after AAA said it was not renewing some policies and Farmers Insurance is in the works to completely pull its branded home and auto lines from the state.