Podcasts about wslr

They did it after all: On Tuesday, Manatee County commissioners voted 6-1 to join a lawsuit against a controversial state law. that restricts counties' and cities' ability to control development.Then: The Sarasota County Sheriff presented a scaled-down version of a costly jail expansion project. But if current incarceration trends continue, the expansion will need an expansion in just 10 years.Next: It's trouble at Streets of Paradise, after the board of the non-profit for homeless Sarasotans fires a co-founder.Finally: A union candidate for state senator, a 100-year anniversary for stagehands, and plenty of protest - Ramon Lopez summarizes Labor Day action in Sarasota.

Expect your Sarasota County water bills to go up by nearly 10 percent. That's needed in part, the county says, because we have to spend upwards of $300 million to build infrastructure for the water needs of a growing population.Next:  If you're a homeowner in Sarasota County, there's more rising cost: The stormwater fee on your annual property tax bill. The county commission met Friday  to discuss stormwater management.Next: Here's another radical idea coming out of New College of Florida: Privatize it. Suncoast Searchlight brings us this report.Then: David Jolly is a former Republican running as a Democrat for governor of Florida. Ahead of a visit to Sarasota next week, he answered a few questions from our reporter Brice Claypoole.Finally: Mark Vengroff's One Stop Housing is on a roll. His workforce housing projects are multiplying in the area, and we bring you excerpts of a one-hour interview he gave to WSLR's Peace and Justice Report this week.

Coming up: The Sarasota County Commission approved Pat Neal's road in South Sarasota County, giving residents at his fast-growing Wellen Park development a straight shot to the beaches. Dania Hefley reports.  Next: Responding to an ultimatum by Gov. Ron DeSantis, the City of Bradenton removed paintings off sidewalks at Village of the Arts. Brice Claypoole reports.  Then: It's Labor Day this Monday, and we have union news. For one, City of Sarasota employees voted overwhelmingly last week to continue to be represented by the Teamsters. In other Teamster news, hundreds of warehouse workers in Sarasota got their first contract ever, and that comes with a big bump in hourly pay. We have the details. Finally: Did you know? One union in Sarasota is turning 100 this year. They will celebrate with a cake on Labor Day, and we will tell you which union it is.

City of Bradenton and City of Sarasota work crews are sandblasting art off sidewalks, to the dismay of artists. What's happening? Next up: Manatee County Schools have a new superintendent. Noah Vinsky tells us who the pick is.   Then: Suncoast Searchlight continues its series about the hidden costs of living in a privately run development: Josh Salman reports about trouble at a subdivision in Manatee County. Next: A luxury developer is proposing to tear down a 12-story office building in the heart of downtown Sarasota and replace it with a taller tower. We have the details. Finally: Some activists believe the historical Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall is facing death by neglect. But the City of Sarasota's interim manager told our reporter this ain't so.

The Manatee County Commission was set for a showdown this week with state authorities and developers over controls for new development. It did not happen, and WSLR News reporter Dania Hefley explains. Next up: Everybody is riled up about flooding. WSLR News reporter Ramon Lopez got Sarasota County's new stormwater management czar in front of his microphone, and he asked Ben Quartermaine a few questions. Then: After hand-wringing about runaway spending and a possible deficit opening up in a few years, Sarasota County Commissioners agreed to hold a fifth budget workshop this week. It ended with few, if any, cuts, as Suncoast Searchlight reports. Finally: A Miami judge just upended the immigrant detention center in the Everglades set up by the state government. We get local reactions.

The recently flooded Van Wezel got a few more years. The City of Sarasota is now taking steps to keep the historic performing arts hall in good shape, but there are many questions about the future of the Purple Cow. Next up: Layoffs at Sarasota County's largest manufacturing company seem to continue, after a merger last fall that resulted in the elimination of an entire shift. WSLR News reporter Noah Vinsky has the story of a struggling couple in North Port. Then: We continue to follow the deportation of a young woman from North Port. Today, Ramon Lopez brings us the third chapter of her journey: What does the future look like for Lulu Martinez in Mexico? And what are her legal options, if she tried to return to the United States? Then: Speaking of deportations - a protest is coming up in Sarasota this weekend.  Finally: Rob Lorei was not loud, but this Tampa Bay area journalist left quite the legacy. He passed away last weekend, and we bring you a eulogy.

After weeks of ICE detention, a young woman who grew up in North Port signed those deportation papers and walked across the Mexican border. She told WSLR News reporter Ramon Lopez what that was like. Next up: 400 million and growing - that's the cost of a new performing arts center in Sarasota. Suncoast Searchlight brings us a report that shows fundraising for that project is lagging.  Then: Downtown Bradenton is changing fast, with little public scrutiny. We bring you a report about a city council vote that will change a historic neighborhood nearby.  Next: Vaccination rates in Sarasota kindergartens have dropped below herd immunity levels. We bring you this Suncoast Searchlight investigative report. Finally: A plan for a family resource center connected to a school in Newtown is taking shape. But even before fundraising has begun, the project has mobilized hundreds of community members. 

Lulu Martinez grew up in North Port and graduated from college there just last year. Last week, she walked across a bridge to Mexico, and WSLR News interviewed her about the weeks at an ICE detention camp in Texas before that.  Next up: School board member Tom Edwards has been named executive director of Project Pride SRQ. Now the Sarasota Republican Party says this presents a conflict of interest and asks him to resign.  Then: The Manatee County School Board narrowed its search for a superintendent to two finalists. Who are they? Finally: Rents remain high across Sarasota and Manatee, outmatching wages for most renters. We bring you a Suncoast Searchlight analysis.

A local non-profit has tested the water quality in seven new locations in the bay, and what they've found is a lot of e. Coli. They recommend avoiding swimming at these spots. Next up: At a recent Republican gathering in Sarasota County, in-fighting within the GOP party reigned as a dominant theme.  Then: Minors in Manatee County will find themselves restricted by a new curfew. The County Commission also continues to push back against SB 180. Finally: Sarasota City Commissioners denied a rezoning request by a synagogue to build apartments next to the temple. 

Following whistleblower complaints about lack of financial transparency, the New College Foundation is coming under more scrutiny: This time it's about a donor who wants their money back. Mason Chambless explains.Next up: An analysis by Suncoast Searchlight reveals that buyers in this region have little choice but to live in neighborhoods controlled and taxed by real estate developers. Derek Gilliam reports. Then: Environmentalists and an indigenous tribe are suing state and federal agencies over the immigrant detention center in the Everglades. A Sierra Club organizer explains their reasons.Then: Reporter Noah Vinsky has the latest on Manatee Schools' superintendent search.Finally: The North Water Tower Park is one of Sarasota's best-kept secrets. Will it stay that way? 

The cold war between Manatee County commissioners and the DeSantis administration turned hot again at yesterday's commission meeting. Noah Vinsky reports. Next up: A Trump administration budget cut makes ripples before it has even begun. Suncoast Searchlight reports about the financial squeeze on a nearby rural hospital.  Then: We reported about the ICE detention of Lulu Martinez. The recent college graduate from North Port is now in Mexico, as Ramon Lopez reports. Then: Some protesters in Bradenton will express their rage at Rage Against the Regime, as Mason Chambless learned. Finally: Soon an open mic and yoga for the unhoused will be launching. Gretchen Cochran has that story. 

The Colson Hotel is a special place, and after its first 100 years, this Sarasota building is getting a new lease of life. Amayia-Marie Gaspard braced spiders to find out how.Next up: On Tuesday, dozens of people lined up at a Sarasota School Board meeting to speak out against a change in discrimination policy. But the two board members who voted against that policy change say they are more concerned about a different challenge: Money. I will bring you this report.Then: Sarasota City Commissioner Jen Ahearn-Koch is still fixing her home, after last year's flooding. Student reporter Oscar Moore interviewed her about this experience, and what she thinks the city should do about future flooding.Then: The city is giving away trees. Kiona Wehlage interviewed the City of Sarasota's chief arborist about the Neighborhood Canopy Program. Finally: The Mobile Freedom School and its focus on African American history is back this summer. Mason Chambless took one class and learned about … the history of traffic lights. 

WSLR News reporter Ramon Lopez is headed to Camp Blanding, where the governor wants to open a second camp to concentrate immigrant detainees. Ahead of his trip, Lopez brings us the latest news of this project.Next: FPL wants to bury more power cables in Sarasota. That's safer and more reliable after storms, but it's costly, too. Noah Vinsky checks who will pay the bill.Then: Thursday was Good Trouble Day, in memory of civil rights icon John Lewis. In Sarasota, it was a group of veterans who made the biggest noise. Mason Chambless has that report.Then: The Florida Department of Transportation wants cities to paint over rainbow crosswalks. What will the City of Sarasota do with its Pride display on Cocoanut and Second? Kylee Worth reports.Next: A Sarasota pastor connected to local political figures uses harsh anti-queer language, describes his political opponents as demonic, and portrays the country as on the precipice of war. Suncoast Searchlight brings us this report.

A 20-year old man who grew up in Southwest Florida and ran an ice cream shop in Tampa was killed in the West Bank. His death created an international incident, and two local events are ahead this week.Next: The big budget bill signed by President Trump on July 4th comes at a cost for hundreds of thousands of Floridians. Reece Helmick is looking at the effects of the new budget on health insurance.Then: New College presented its updated campus master plan yesterday. Reece Helmick has the details.Then: After 31 years, Rick Piccolo is leaving the helm of the Sarasota airport to a successor. We looked at the new guy's compensation, and his tasks ahead.Finally: Running in a legal gray zone, some 20 gambling dens are operating in Sarasota and Manatee County. Suncoast Searchlight and the Bradenton Herald teamed up on this investigative report.

The Sarasota-based Southwest Florida Planned Parenthood is no more. After a merger with the other regional chapter in Florida, it's now part of a bigger, statewide organization. Kylee Worth looks at the costs and benefits.Then: The Sarasota County utility chief is pushing back, after an investigative report revealed neglect ahead of historic flooding last year. A new Suncoast Searchlight report responds to Spencer Anderson's responses.Next: The panel making recommendations about the future of the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall reached its verdict, and Gretchen Cochran reports.Finally: Storms and flooding are costly, and real estate is slowing. And that means counties, cities and towns in the region are facing tighter budgets. Noah Vinsky puts the spotlight on Sarasota County's biggest city, whose voters just said ‘no' to more borrowing. 

Within just three years, Sarasota County will be facing a deficit, if spending continues to grow as it has. One of the biggest drivers has been the Sheriff's Office, as a Suncoast Searchlight report points out.Then: The county committed to helping build an indoor sports arena. How will they pay for it? Shuffling tourism tax revenues, as WSLR reporter Ozzie Konez found.Next: A developer from Naples is trying to leverage a new state law to go big and tall in downtown Sarasota. Ramon Lopez has the details.Then: Within barely a week of creating its new stormwater department, Sarasota County found the flood czar to head it. Ramon Lopez gets the inside track from the county administrator.Finally: It's reboot time for Sarasota's city manager search. WSLR News reporter Kylee Worth is following the journey. 

Donald Trump was expected to sign the big budget reconciliation bill on Fourth of July, and its Medicaid cuts are not good news for an already troubled MCR Health. That's the biggest local provider of healthcare services to low-income and underinsured patients.Then: In Manatee County, tensions are rising between big developers and a new set of county commissioners elected to rein in their power. Noah Vinsky reports.Next: The state legislature and governor just passed major restrictions on citizen-led constitutional amendment drives. The Florida Clean Water campaign suspended signature collections. The grassroots initiative is still hanging in there, but organizers say they need a miracle to get the signatures the state requires to get on the ballot. Reece Helmick has that report.Finally: It's Pride Month. But for aging LGBTQ people who have gone through criminalization, AIDS, and discrimination, the new political environment looks eerily like a bad past. We have a Suncoast Searchlight report. 

The damage to hundreds of homes in Sarasota after Tropical Storm Debby was not just the result of an epic natural disaster, but of neglect. That's according to a joint investigation by Suncoast Searchlight and the Florida Trident.Then: It's reshuffle time for Sarasota County stormwater management, after last year's flooding. Ramon Lopez is keeping track.Next: Lulu Martinez is a danger to her community, a judge ruled, and that's why she continues to be stuck in an ICE detention camp in Texas, rather than return home to North Port. Ramon Lopez reports.Then: A Sarasota company has helped in the construction of “Alligator Alcatraz”, and that's caused a firestorm. Mason Chambless reports.Finally: It's one more meeting, after all, before the Purple Ribbon Committee will let the Sarasota City Commission know what we should do with the Van Wezel. 

The board of New College met on Thursday to talk about finances, amid growing enrollment. There was no discussion about murky accounting at the foundation that supports the college.Then: Martin Hyde is a gadfly or worse to some. But few people doubt that he is an astute observer of local politics, a fiscal conservative, and a Republican. In an interview on WSLR's The Detail, he made some observations about New College.Next: Turning Point USA, the conservative student group, will hold its national meeting in Tampa in July.Then: Lulu Martinez made a wrong u-turn in North Port and ended up in an ICE detention camp in Texas. Meanwhile, charges over her traffic violation are piling up here at home. Our reporter caught up with her lawyer, as Lulu will be facing two court hearings next week.Finally: Remember the wilted grass, bushes and trees after the flooding during last year's storm season? Our reporter talked to an expert on how to prepare your yard for the next floods.

For the first time, Sarasota Schools are recognizing the district is facing a financial crisis. In an email to employees, the superintendent announced a hiring freeze. WSLR reporter Noah Vinsky has the details.Next: Local politics are not going Pat Neal's way. The Manatee County Commission gave the heavyweight of local developers a red light on a project that's at the core of Neal's new business strategy.Then: Street protests are not exactly a long-standing tradition for the 105-year old League of Women Voters. But the Sarasota chapter of the non-partisan organization is taking to the streets, in response to what they call a constitutional crisis.Last but not least: Listen up cowgirls- and boys! The Great Florida Cattle Drive is returning this January, and WSLR reporter Ramon Lopez has the details.

For tens of thousands of homeowners in Sarasota and Manatee their annual tax bill includes more assessments by developers and their homeowners association than taxes to local governments. A Suncoast Searchlight report sheds light on these hidden costs of living in Florida.Then: In the wake of the Minnesota assassinations, our reporter Kylee Worth interviewed anti-abortion picketers in Sarasota.Next: Only four percent of Planned Parenthood's services are abortions. WSLR News reporter Ishmael Katz has a look at the other 96 percent - and new programs they are adding.Finally: Controversies are swirling around the existing and future performing arts center in Sarasota. But a lot is happening in the emerging park around that building. WSLR Gretchen Cochran takes us on a stroll through the Bay Park.

The Florida Legislature agreed on a budget Monday. Among the losers: The governor's property tax cuts, New College's expansion plans, and land preservation.Then: The No Kings demonstrations in this area were the biggest this year. But one speaker at the Sarasota protest said the real work lies ahead. Klaus Obermeit has that story.Next: An immigrants' rights protest in Bradenton on Monday was followed by a picket at the Sarasota-Bradenton airport early Wednesday. Mason Chambless reports.Finally: Dancers are quitting the Sarasota Ballet in droves. A Suncoast Searchlight report looks behind the scenes at the Asolo Theatre.

Florida Highway Patrol is using a mass surveillance tool to catch undocumented immigrants, according to a Suncoast Searchlight investigation.Then: A Sarasota activist spent some days helping protesters in Los Angeles. In an interview with WSLR's Surreal News, Sarah Parker wants to set the record straight on what's going on.Next: Have you heard of the Bradenton Nine Devils? You will learn about the history of this Negro League team if you go to LECOM Park, the baseball stadium near downtown Bradenton on Saturday.Finally: Juneteenth is coming early to Sarasota. To be precise: This Saturday. We have the details.

I spent an hour yesterday talking with Tom Walker, who was interviewing me for the Peace & Justice Report on WSLR community radio in Sarasota, Florida.

Lulu Martinez is a recent college graduate. She was arrested after a wrong U-turn in North Port and is now at an ICE detention center in Texas. Ramon Lopez has her story.Then: The events in Los Angeles after ICE raids, protests and rioting, are making ripples here, too. A local immigrant rights advocate has scheduled a march across the bridge in Bradenton this Monday in response. This is the second immigrants' rights protest in this region within a week, and Mason Chambless has more on that.Next: A military parade will be rolling through Washington this Saturday, and “No Kings” is the theme of nationwide counter-protests. In the Sarasota protest, veterans will play a key role.Then: The Manatee County School Board last month fired the superintendent, in a tight and controversial vote. Our reporter was at the first school board meeting since that day, to understand what's next.Finally: Rise Above, the youth theater group in Sarasota, is taking a risk in the search of love. Tamara Solum went to see their latest musical, The Prom.

Two former officers at the New College Foundation are alleging administrators may have tried to cover up misuse of donation. Suncoast Searchlight has that report.Then: Sarasota County seems headed towards creating an entire new department in charge of stormwater management. It comes after public despair over lack of clarity and urgency in the wake of massive flooding last year.Next: Get ready for the storm season, local officials urge. Ramon Lopez has more. Then: Manatee County Commissioners seem to be headed towards a clash with both developers and the state. Noah Vinsky has more.Finally: Soaring egg prices influenced the outcome of the last presidential elections. A family farm in DeSoto County seems to have found the right answer to the main cause of those soaring egg prices. 

The Florida legislature is in overtime this week, negotiating a budget for next year. Driving the delay is a fight over what taxes to cut, and the governor's proposal to cut property taxes worries a lot of people. Noah Vinsky has a closer look.Next: Meanwhile in Manatee County, the all-Republican county commission was discussing how to shrink an already lean local government. Spoiler alert: It ain't easy, and some commissioners are expressing frustration. Then: FPL is asking state regulators to give it the biggest base rate hike in Florida history, if not U.S. history. We are looking at some of the grassroots pushback.Finally: As the next storm season looms, our reporter Ramon Lopez caught up with hurricane hunters.

Sarasota residents who were flooded last year are putting pressure on the county commissioners. But is Sarasota ready for the next storm season?Next: When it comes to sewage spills, Bradenton has been the worst offender in the region. Now that the city has outsourced its wastewater management, it is trying to get a sense of what all of this will cost. Then: In a meeting last week, the new chair ended the Mike Moran era in the Sarasota County Commission - at least when it comes to the former chair's makeover of social service funding. We have more on that.

The 3,000 signatures didn't make a dent. If it's up to the panel that makes recommendations to the City of Sarasota about the future of the Van Wezel, the historic performing arts center will be history soon.Then: A special board meeting at New College of Florida gave a glimpse of the retention and recruitment problems the movers and shakers behind the conservative makeover are facing. Next: Many legislators keep saying there won't be any cuts to public school programs as a result of the state's voucher program. Two local school board members beg to differ, as Tamara Solum found.Finally: Amid the devastation that will come with big new development, Sarasota County's oldest rural community celebrated a small victory.

More felony charges are piling up against the former communications director of New College. Suncoast Searchlight and The Florida Trident report.Then: The Sarasota County Commission wants developers to go back to holding in-person community workshops for neighbors. At least in part, as Ramon Lopez reports. Next: Cuts to the NOAA could impact the fishing industry and Red Tide research in the region. Suncoast Searchlight brings us this report.Finally: It was Alt Graduation Thursday night, an event where New College students are in charge. WSLR News intern Farah Vallecillo - herself a New College student - was there.

The Manatee County School Board is not boring anymore. Yesterday, in a tight 3-2 vote, the elected panel suddenly fired the district superintendent. Sunshine Law violations may have happened in the run-up to that vote, one critic says.Then: In its ongoing session, the state legislature could ban counties' use of tourism taxes for tourism promotion. Sarasota's boosters are worried. Sera Deniz has more on that.Next: 104,000 bucks. That's the annual income it takes for a family of four to make it here in Sarasota, and that amount keeps rising fast. We have a Suncoast Searchlight report on the United Way's annual ALICE survey.Finally: A state law that bans camping on public property has put Florida counties in a bind. Half a year after this anti-homeless law went into effect, Alex Lieberman is looking at its effects.

The panel that will make recommendations on what to do with the Van Wezel seems to have reached consensus: The performing arts center function has to move out of the historic building. But grassroots activists are pushing back.Next: Buyer beware! We have a follow-up to the Suncoast Searchlight report on developer-run mini governments.Then: Operation Tidal Wave, the dragnet that caught more than a 1,000 immigrants in Florida is expanding. WSLR News' Ramon Lopez reports.Finally: A young researcher and fish farmer from Manatee County is sailing through the Caribbean to document aquaculture practices in the region. Farah Vallecillo caught up with her.

Grassroots organizers celebrated a rare victory against a high-profile development project in Sarasota Tuesday. Johannes Werner reports.Next: A Suncoast Searchlight investigation describes the high cost of challenging development in the courts. Derek Gilliam brings us that story.Then: An empty seat on the Venice city council was filled Tuesday. WSLR News' Ramon Lopez reports.Next: A Democratic senator from Connecticut and the nation's youngest U.S. representative came to Sarasota. More than 1,000 flocked to their town hall, and WSLR News reporter Tamara Solum tried to find out why, and whether this experience may turn into movement.

Dozens of new governments have popped up in Sarasota and Manatee, and they are run by private corporations. Suncoast Searchlight has that report.Next: More than 1,000 migrants in Florida got caught up in the ICE dragnet a week ago, and Ramon Lopez looked at the few facts known about Operation Tidal Wave.Next: If and when MCR Health - the local non-profit that provides healthcare for 100,000 low-income patients - re-emerges from bankruptcy, it may face the next tough challenge: Medicaid cuts currently discussed by Republicans in the US Congress.

City of Sarasota commissioners voted to pay the attorney fees of a former colleague, after he defended himself against a conflict of interest complaint.Next: Employers in this area are scrambling to help employees with childcare. New College of Florida seems to be going in the opposite direction.Then: On Saturday, the youngest Congressman ever will be returning to Sarasota, where he worked for a year. WSLR interviewed Max Frost before his visit.Then: Lakewood Ranch Southeast is a done deal now. But the bulldozers could start moving on the mega-development just when the worst real estate slump in years is beginning to impact this area.Finally: Sarasota County commissioners are sending mixed messages on transit. 

What should happen to Sarasota's Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall? The climate change expert on the panel that will make recommendations to the city commission issued what looks like a death penalty.Then: How did Fred Piccolo Jr. avoid arrest and get hired for a high-profile job at a public university? Suncoast Searchlight reporter Alice Herman offers more details.Finally: Synia Carroll passed away in March. Ramon Lopez watched and listened at the jazz musician's recent memorial service. 

The first affordable housing opportunity strictly for veterans ever in Sarasota opened this morning. But not everyone likes it. Next: A forum on school privatization warned participants about defunding and state deficits, and called for teachers' support. Then: The Suncoast Searchlight calls attention to funding challenges for mental health in public education. Finally: May 1st is tomorrow, and protesters will hold local Congressmen's feet to the fire over their support for the Trump agenda. At least nine protests are set to occur tomorrow and Saturday in Sarasota and the region. 

And then, it was back to normal. On Wednesday, developer Pat Neal told the Sarasota County Commission why a road should be built in the south county that happens to benefit mostly residents of one of his developments. The commissioners obliged, unanimously.Next: The United States and Canada are in a tiff like not seen since the 18th century. WSLR's Peace & Justice Report interviewed a Canadian diplomat who also happens to be a snowbird with a condo on Longboat Key.Then: A veterans' group on the Suncoast is planting microforests. What gives? The Our Changing Environment hosts on WSLR bring us the details.Next: Four hundred people crowded into a town hall organized by opponents of a takeover of the Ringling Museum of Art by New College. Farah Vallecillo was there.

This ain't the Moran commission anymore: The Sarasota County commissioners yesterday voted to strip builders of funding for an education program.Next: Homeowners in a posh subdivision near North Port are learning the hard way that developers wield a lot of power - even after they sold you the home they built. Suncoast Searchlight brings us this story.Then: How did New College hire a politically connected figure after he appeared in three local police reports? Suncoast Searchlight is trying to find out.Next: Four hundred people crowded into a town hall organized by opponents of a takeover of the Ringling Museum of Art by New College. Farah Vallecillo was there.Next: It took Venice city councilmembers barely five minutes to decide how to fill the seat abandoned by Joan Farrell two weeks ago. Ramon Lopez reports.Finally: A decision on a controversial skyscraper project has been delayed - because of a missing green-yellow sign. Gretchen Cochran explains.

The shooting inside the student union of the Florida State University campus in Tallahassee Thursday impacted hundreds of students, teachers and staffers. We interviewed a witness. Next: New College let go its marketing director, after he was arrested by Manatee County deputies Tuesday for exposure of sexual organs. The Suncoast Searchlight and Florida Trident investigated, and we have their report.Then: New College fired a Chinese professor, citing a new Florida law, and that is making ripples. The Suncoast Searchlight has that report.Finally: It's unprecedented - bankers in Florida are joining unions. Five bank tellers in Bradenton are now bargaining with Wells Fargo, and Sera Deniz talked to a union organizer.

A Venice City Council member made ripples last week when she resigned in protest against peers seemingly favoring developer Pat Neal. WSLR's Ramon Lopez interviewed Joan Farrell and Ron Smith, who was elected by landslide after he said Neal had asked him to drop out. Next: The culture wars flared up again on Monday when Dr. Anthony Fauci spoke to more than 3,000 people in Sarasota.Then: Real estate prices in Southwest Florida are tumbling. We have a report from the Suncoast Searchlight.Next: Trump's executive measures will translate to hard times for our local economy and the finances of cities and counties on the Suncoast. That's according to one of the leading bond experts in the country who happens to live in Sarasota.Finally: Canadian snowbirds are upset - to the point where they stay away and sell their Florida homes. WSLR's Jennifer Johnston talked to two of them.

Developer Pat Neal got his way in Venice, overcoming well-organized opposition - and prompting the resignation of a frustrated city council member. Ramon Lopez reports.Next: The words “climate change” very rarely pop up in the official vocabulary of Sarasota County. But it just launched its first voluntary buyout program for repeatedly flooded homeowners. Farah Vallecillo has more on that.Then: The biggest suburban development ever in the history of Sarasota overcame a hurdle this week - but barely. Finally: The affordable housing gap keeps growing in Sarasota. This week, one advocate urged Sarasota County commissioners to adopt a set of measures.

A recent news report revealed that New College President Richard Corcoran produced an outline for the takeover of the neighboring USF Sarasota-Manatee campus. USF administrators are now telling their faculty that nothing is imminent, but WSLR News reporter Alex Lieberman talked to one USF professor who continues to worry.Next: New College is welcoming yet another controversial figure to its “Socratic Stage” series, triggering a protest and apparent distancing by the Sarasota Film Festival.Then: Developer Pat Neal hopes he will be getting his way at a Venice Council meeting going on right now. We have the latest.Then: Thousands of people in the region were on the streets Saturday for not just one, but six Hands-Off protests.Next: Sarasota Schools are set to end a mental health program for elementary school kids. We have this report from the Suncoast Searchlight.Finally: Did you know there's a cattle drive in Florida? Ramon Lopez recently put on his boots and hat, and he has more on that. 

Pacifica compiled reports from community radio reporters across the country, including WMNF and WSLR, of Hands Off demonstrations

The race for height is on when it comes to construction in downtown Sarasota, and some architects and urban planners don't like it. Gretchen Cochran listened to the critics.Then: Manatee County Commissioners are re-writing the master plan for new development. This week they discussed transportation, particularly alternatives to the automobile. But in the same meeting, one of the region's biggest developers pleaded for more roads he says are needed for more cars. WSLR News intern Sera Deniz watched and listened.Next: The Sarasota Film Festival is launching today, and WSLR News intern Farah Vallecillo has a preview.

A new Florida law makes interaction with China difficult. Citing that law, New College fired a teacher who is actually seeking political asylum here. We'll have this report brought to you by the Suncoast Searchlight.Then: Staying with New College: After 16 months of planning, the student-made Catalyst newspaper is back, but it's now off-campus.Next: Sarasota County wants to return stormwater management within city limits back to the city of Sarasota. Ramon Lopez explains what's behind this move.Finally: Elon Musk's cut-and-shut operations in Washington caused another ripple in Sarasota. Alex Lieberman reports. 

What to do with the Van Wezel? The committee that will make recommendations on the historic performing arts hall got a good look at the elephant in the room: Rising sea levels and intensifying storms.Then: The race for height continues in downtown Sarasota. Ramon Lopez gives us updates on two twin-tower proposals: the Hyatt Hotel makeover and the Mira Mar luxury condo project.Next: The current political atmosphere is tough for immigrant farmworkers. Even so - or maybe because of it - the Coalition of Immokalee Workers just started a tour of Florida to find new allies.Finally: “Women of Resistance” started as a series of paintings. Now it is morphing into a series of dances you will be able to see in Bradenton next week.

After massive flooding last year, Sarasota County is asking the City of Sarasota to take over stormwater management. That would end an agreement that began in the last century.Then: You'd think a forest that brings back turtles and birds would be a welcome addition to the neighborhood. It's not for one homeowners' association in suburban Manatee County that actually ripped out a microforest.Next: The Coalition of Immokalee Workers created a successful model that's not only good for immigrant tomato pickers, but also for farmers and grocery store and restaurant chains. As deportation talk is reaching fever pitch, the Coalition is reaching out to new allies across Florida.Finally: Red Tide produces a neurotoxin, and that may affect your brain health. WSLR News reporter Joanne Mills reports about groundbreaking research happening in Sarasota.

Three powerful deportation proponents shared the stage at New College Thursday. Farah Vallecillo tells you about some of the points they tried to get across.Then: Outside the same New College venue, hundreds of protesters told their side of the immigration story, and we talked to a New College student who was both in- and outside.Finally: A beloved jazz musician and former teacher passed away, and we'll play a tribute put together by Ramon Lopez.

Sarasota city commissioners decided to postpone a $400 million vote, and Gretchen Cochran has the details.Then: Downtown Sarasota is seeing a race for height and density for new skyscraper projects. Ramon Lopez explains.Next: Homeland Security Secretary Tom Homan openly defied a judge's order to stop the deportation of nearly 300 Venezuelans. He will be in Sarasota tomorrow to talk about immigration, sharing the stage with two other hardliners. New College students are wondering about their role in this "Socratic Stage" event, if any.Then: The second Tesla Takedown protest in Sarasota was bigger than the first. And it had a new element: A handful counter protesters. The WSLR News team was there. Finally: Red Tide produces a neurotoxin, and that may affect your brain. WSLR News reporter Joanne Mills reports about groundbreaking research happening in Sarasota.