Local:
Fort Myers Beach’s Red Coconut RV Park Sold for $52 Million
The iconic Red Coconut RV Park, a long-lasting piece of the island for almost 100 years, was sold to the Seagate Development Group on Tuesday. According to NBC2, owner Fran Myers and her family agreed to sell the 10-acre park after the recent damage it experienced from Hurricane Ian. “My Tom never wanted to sell the park,” Fran said to NBC2, “And it would have been very hard for me to do that. Then, the storm came along.” Red Coconut RV Park was one of the first locations built on the beach in 1925, being visited by Thomas Edison and Henry Ford. The Myers family feels comfortable selling the company to a business that prides itself on family, and they plan to continue aiding their residents after Ian.
Designs Plan for $300 Million Cape Coral Bridge Project to Begin 2026
The Board of Lee County Commissioners unanimously approved an updated design to replace the Cape Coral Bridge. According to The News-Press, the bridge will add two more lanes and will switch to solely electronic tolls as well as add a pedestrian bridge. “The purpose of the project development and environment phase of this project is to address the aging Cape Coral Bridge while adding capacity to the roadway, improving traffic operations, adding multimodal facilities, and enhancing safety for roadway users,” said Lee County DOT Deputy Director, Rob Price. The bridge, first built in 1964 and later modified in 1989, will be reconstructed to help with traffic flow coming in and out of Cape Coral and Fort Myers.
State:
Florida is at The Top of the List in Most School Book Bans
Public school bans across the U.S. have gone up by a third this year compared to the previous year. According to the Tampa Bay Times, “Almost half of banned titles dealt with violence, abuse or sexual assault. A third included characters of color and racial themes. Another third represented LGBTQ+ identities. Finally, 6% had a transgender character.” Pinella County Schools was one of the many who have started to pull books, taking five more titles away from students to read this week. The Tampa Bay Times has traced over 600 complaints about the books back to the same two people. Awareness is being raised in places like Escambia County causing parents and students to file lawsuits against the book bans.
Mexico Defends Undocumented Immigrants Under New Florida Law
Mexico has been providing legal help to an undocumented immigrant after a new Florida law prevents him from transporting an undocumented crew of roofers. According to NPR, the administration of Mexico’s president has harshly criticized Florida. Raquel Lopez Aguilar was driving the six workers in his van when he was pulled over by state troopers in August. The van was pulled over for its dark tint and cracks in the windows, according to the arresting officers. Border patrol was then called and the man was arrested for four counts of human smuggling. Florida’s attorney general is defending the law against any accusations of it being unconstitutional.
Florida Brightline Runs Test to Connect First Private U.S. Passenger Line to link Miami and Orlando
The first test on Florida Brightline’s passenger line is taking place Friday, which can gain up to speeds of 125 mph. According to AP News, The company is charging single riders $158 round-trip for business class and $298 for first class, with families and groups able to buy four round-trip tickets for $398. Thirty-two trains will run daily. The trip would wind up saving 30 minutes less than usual drives between the two cities.“The idea that my car is the only way for me to get where I need to go is being challenged by a new product. A new product that’s safer, that’s greener, that is a great value proposition (and) it’s fun.” said Brightline CEO Mike Reininger. Brightline plans to possibly extend to Tampa and Jacksonville in the future.
National:
Biden Plans to Continue Helping Ukraine in War with Russia
Ukraine President, Volodymyr Zelensky, continues to gather support for Ukraine giving a speech in Washington to lawmakers. The message was an update on the war. According to AP News, the Biden administration announced Thursday $325 million in what’s known as a presidential drawdown to assistance for Ukraine. “The entire world has a stake in making sure no nation, no aggressor is allowed to take a neighbor territory by force,” said President Biden. “The people of Ukraine are steeled for this struggle ahead and the United States shall continue to stand with you.” Biden is providing funding, ammunition, and food to the troops as well as tanks to help them in their fight.
U.A.W strike Continues
The walkout which started September 15th extended its strike Friday at two huge Automakers-General Motors and Stellantis. Negotiations remained strayed as key ideas were brought up during the walkout. The strike began when many workers’ four-year contracts expired on top of many others dealing with unsatisfactory work conditions. According to the New York Times, “On Friday, the union cranked up the labor action to include 38 parts distribution centers at G.M. and Stellantis, but it did not include Ford in the expansion, citing progress in talks.” The strike extended due to serious issues not being resolved according to members of the walkout. The total U.A.W. workers on strike are slowly approaching 18,300 after the recent extension. U.A.W. president, Shawn Fain, made a statement that they didn’t target Ford industries as they have made progress with them in the negotiation.
U.S. Government Shutdown: What Would Happen
If Congress fails to provide funding for the fiscal year Oct. 1, essential workers would be working without their pay. In the case of a government shutdown, several factors will be put into play. According to Reuters, two million military personnel would remain at their posts, but 800,000 civilian employees would be furloughed. Police departments would struggle with gaining aid but important jobs such as agents at the FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration would continue to work. Training for new air traffic controls would stop. The National Institutes of Health would have to furlough most of its staff and delay new medical trials.10,000 children from low-income families would lose access to the Head Start preschool program according to the White House reports.
U.S. East Coast Under Tropical Storm Warning With Landfall Approaching North Carolina
A storm approached the U.S. East Coast bringing tropical storm conditions on Sept. 22. The storm made landfall in North Carolina on Saturday according to the National Hurricane Center. A storm surge watch was placed in effect due to the three-foot storm surges predicted to hit parts of the coast. According to AP News, Friday morning the storm was located about 330 miles southeast of Charleston, South Carolina. Three to five inches of rainfall is predicted along eastern North Carolina and into southeast Virginia through Saturday. The storm is yet to be named and is currently being referred to as “Potential Tropical Cyclone Sixteen”. North Carolina Emergency Management warned that large swells from Hurricane Nigel would reach the state’s coast on Thursday.
