Written by Staff Report on . Posted in News, Police & Fire.
Charlotte County has appointed Matthew McElroy as the new fire chief and public safety director for Charlotte County Public Safety. McElroy has served as acting fire chief since Oct. 31, 2025. Chief McElroy is a fourth-generation Floridian, born and raised in DeSoto County. He began his public service career in 1991 when he joined the […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Community, News.
The Monday, January 26 meeting of the Sarasota-Manatee Metropolitan Planning Organization will include the Charlotte County-Punta Gorda MPO. One item on the agenda is a discussion of the work on River Road and Winchester Boulevard, a key access artery for all of Cape Haze. The report states that construction of River Road from US 41 […]
Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Featured News, News.
A simple sewer break that turned complicated was finally fixed on Tuesday, Jan. 20. “The FPL power pole was directly on top of the gravity pipe,” said Ron Bolton, executive director of the Gasparilla Island Water Association. They had expected to complete the project on Monday, but the initial attempt at repair had to be […]
Written by Anna Ridilla on . Posted in Breaking News, News, Police & Fire.
The island has had a number of reports of recent thefts from unlocked cars, including watches and wallets. On Wednesday, Jan. 14, just after 11 a.m., Lee County Deputy David Scozzafava responded to Gulf Boulevard in reference to a burglary and theft from a car parked at the Boca Bay Pass Club the day before. […]
Written by Anna Ridilla on . Posted in Community, Featured News, News.
Ganong, Spurgeon and Kenan finish out 15 on Lee panel The Lee County Board of Commissioners met for the first time this year on Tuesday, Jan. 20. Commissioner Kevin Ruane recapped the Jan. 13 joint parking meeting with Charlotte County as a matter of public record. “They would like us to obviously do a parking […]
Written by Arlene Hall on . Posted in Featured News, News, Sports & Outdoors.
Decades of research, protective laws and community involvement are paying off for Florida’s sea turtles, a conservation success story shared by Dr. Jake Lasala of Mote Marine Laboratory during the opening talk of the Coffee with a Scientist 2026 series. “Sea turtles are keystone species, and you want them to be around for your kids […]
Written by Arlene Hall on . Posted in Community, News.
The agenda for Charlotte County’s Jan. 27, 2026, Regular and Land Use Meeting includes a change order regarding the Rotonda West/Pioneer Trail Annual Paving Program, which includes extending the contract with Ajax Paving, Inc., by 120 days, with a $555,932 budget adjustment. Funding is provided from Rotonda West Street and Drainage MSBU assessments. Also on […]
Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Editorial.
The United States is living in two worldviews these days. As the late Dilbert cartoonist Scott Adams would say, we are each living in two different movies. As a local newspaper, the issues we cover do not include national angles. We have enough of that at our dinner tables and in our conversations, and readers do […]
Written by Arlene Hall on . Posted in Community, Featured News, News.
At their Tuesday, Jan. 13, meeting the Charlotte County commissioners approved a list of suggestions regarding the Boca Grande parking ordinance they will present to the Lee County commissioners for consideration at a planned upcoming joint meeting. Potential dates in February and March were identified for the joint meeting but still need to be presented […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Events, News, Sports & Outdoors.
SUP Englewood continues its popular Coffee & Conservation series, designed to bring the community together to learn about local conservation efforts and connect with leading experts. The next installment will feature Armando J. Ubeda on Tuesday, Jan. 20, at the Englewood Chamber of Commerce. Join Ubeda for a captivating look into the world of mangroves. […]