Latest news with #IndianRiverLagoon
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Dolphin freed from fishing line in Florida's Indian River Lagoon
The Brief A dolphin tangled in fishing line earlier this spring has been spotted swimming freely. Wildlife officials confirm the animal is no longer in distress, though scars remain. The outcome offers rare hope in the ongoing threat of marine debris entanglements. BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. - A dolphin once tangled in fishing line in the Indian River Lagoon is now swimming free, according to wildlife experts, bringing a wave of relief to the community and researchers who had been searching for weeks. What we know A dolphin previously seen critically entangled in fishing line in the Indian River Lagoon has been spotted swimming freely, according to the Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute. New video evidence confirms the animal is no longer in distress and appears to be healthy, though it bears scars where the fishing line was embedded. What we don't know It remains unclear exactly how the dolphin freed itself. No one witnessed the entanglement being removed, and researchers can only speculate that the fishing gear may have caught on a rock or piling, allowing the animal to struggle free. The backstory The dolphin was first reported in late March by boater Sean Beard in Sikes Creek. His early warning prompted a widespread search by wildlife officials, who scoured nearly 40 miles of waterways looking for the injured animal. Despite their efforts, weeks went by without a confirmed sighting. Big picture view Entanglements in marine debris, such as fishing lines, pose a growing threat to dolphins and other marine life. Successful outcomes like this are rare and offer hope—but they also highlight the importance of public vigilance and rapid reporting. What they're saying Sean Beard ran along a sea wall two weeks ago grabbing some videos when he first saw a struggling dolphin swimming below the wall. "I don't like to see no animal suffer like that," said Sean Beard who's a local fishermen and captured video of the dolphin. STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 35 ORLANDO: Download the FOX Local app for breaking news alerts, the latest news headlines Download the FOX 35 Storm Team Weather app for weather alerts & radar Sign up for FOX 35's daily newsletter for the latest morning headlines FOX Local:Stream FOX 35 newscasts, FOX 35 News+, Central Florida Eats on your smart TV The Source This story was written based on information shared by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and boater Sean Beard.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Here's how much affordable housing Fort Pierce high rise needs to circumvent local laws
A Florida bill intended to incentivize affordable housing has gained the attention of Fort Pierce city leaders and residents for allowing a proposed development reaching 17 stories on South Hutchinson Island. The Live Local Act, a state law passed in 2023, allows developers to circumvent local governmental approvals, such as height restrictions, if a project contains at least 40% affordable housing. The Fort Pierce City Commission fears that provision might allow the construction of five high-rises slated for the Causeway Cove Marina on the Indian River Lagoon at the southeast base of the Fort Pierce South Bridge. To qualify for the zoning exemption, more than 400 of the project's proposed 1,000 apartment units need to be set aside for affordable housing. That would mean those units would have to house people who earn 120% or less of the area median income. The median family income in Fort Pierce is $87,800, according to Fannie Mae. Housing is considered 'affordable' when the occupant is paying no more than 30% of their income on housing costs, such as rent or mortgage payments. Those who spend over that threshold are considered 'housing cost burdened,' according to the Department of Housing and Urban Development. About 57% of middle-class Floridians are considered cost burdened under the HUD definition. The affordable housing shortage is even more stark for extremely low-income renters, meaning those living under the federal poverty line. In Florida, there are roughly 26 available units for every 100 extremely low-income renters, data from the National Low Income Housing Coalition show. Fort Pierce is no exception. Roughly 26% of the city lives below the poverty line — that's more than double the rate in Port St. Lucie, according to Census Bureau data. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the Live Local Act into law despite widespread pushback from local governments, such as the Florida League of Cities, which represents 411 local governments, including Fort Pierce. The bill overwhelmingly passed the Legislature in 2023, 40-0 in the Senate and 103-6 in the House. "The act aims to significantly bolster the availability of affordable housing options for Florida's dedicated workforce, allowing them to reside in the very communities they tirelessly serve," according to the Florida Housing Coalition. Fort Pierce commissioners decried the bill, saying it has tied their hands from stopping the five high-rises proposed for South Hutchinson Island. "It's a developer's dream,' said Mayor Linda Hudson. However, the sky's not the limit for development — but it can get close. Under the law, developers can build up to the maximum height allowed on any property within a mile of the project. The tallest building within the one-mile radius of Causeway Cove tops out at 192 feet. That's more than four times taller than the zoning district's normal height limit. The Live Local Act also provides $406 million for the construction of affordable and multifamily housing. Those funds are distributed by a private-public partnership with the Florida Housing Finance Corporation, which oversees the state's two largest affordable housing programs: The State Apartment Incentive Loan (SAIL) program: provides low-interest loans to build affordable housing. The State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) program: assists low-income residents with home purchases, repairs and other housing needs. The Finance Corporation is tasked with helping developers overcome the hurdles of building affordable housing. Causeway Cove: 17-story high rises are part of 5-building complex proposed for South Hutchinson Island What to know: Proposed 5 high-rises,192 foot building on South Hutchinson Island Here's some of what the Finance Corporation can do under the bill: Provide a maximum $5,000 tax refund on building materials used to construct affordable housing. Collect tax liability payments from businesses, up to $100 million as donations annually, to build affordable housing. 'Every $1 million in tax credit contribution funds approximately 20 additional units of affordable housing for families and elders throughout the state,' according to the Finance Corporation. Jack Lemnus is a TCPalm enterprise reporter. Contact him at 772-409-1345, or follow him on X @JackLemnus. This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Is Fort Pierce Hutchinson Island affordable housing coming?
Yahoo
11-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Tampa Bay Times sets a $175,000 target for annual weeklong fundraiser
Four years ago, Tampa Bay Times reporter Zachary T. Sampson began digging to understand why manatees were dying in droves in Florida waters. The reporting was painstakingly laborious. Sampson chipped away bit by bit while he tackled other stories. In mid-2022, he was joined by seasoned investigator Bethany Barnes and later Shreya Vuttaluru, a data specialist fresh out of college. Wading through voluminous documents and massive databases, they embarked on a mammoth project that detailed with exceptional precision and clarity how contaminated waterways imperiled the state's gentle giants. Sampson, Vuttaluru and Barnes found that nearly 1-in-4 waterways across the state had become dangerously polluted. That led to the decimation of seagrass — 89,000 acres of it — the main source of food for manatees. Without food, the epicenter of the crisis in the Indian River Lagoon became a graveyard. A tragic, avoidable catastrophe. No journalism outfit has ever attempted to examine pollution across Florida to this extent. It took more than a year of full-time focus from our reporters working under their editor, Rebecca Woolington, to bring this powerful and important story to readers. Few, if any, news outlets in Florida will devote that kind of time and energy to a single project. We do it with regularity because no one else will. And because it's essential. It's our mission. Our commitment. Our calling. And we can't do it alone. As the business model for news evolves, philanthropy plays a bigger and bigger role to help fund independent, local journalism. We have launched our annual weeklong 'It's Your Times' fundraising campaign. We began raising money in 2019 through grants and donations. Since then, we've received in excess of $3 million. It's an impressive number. But it represents a fraction of our annual news budget. The amount we spend on journalism is considerably less than it was just a few short years ago when we had more print subscribers, more print advertising and more staff. But it is still enough to produce the kind of smart, dogged journalism that the Times is known for. Because we make it a priority. Consider some of the outcomes. In 2021, we showed how a Tampa company had systematically poisoned its own workforce and the surrounding community. It took Woolington, Corey Johnson and Eli Murray more than two years to complete the project. Last year, Rebecca Liebson and Teghan Simonton detailed how corporate real estate conglomerates had amassed tens of thousands of rental homes across the state — changing the complexion of the housing market. The reporting spanned nearly a full year. Two years before Hurricane Helene, Sampson teamed with Langston Taylor on a series that foreshadowed how vulnerable our region has become to storm surge. The reporting lasted well over a year. Not every investigation takes that long. Max Chesnes and Emily L. Mahoney broke the story about how the state wanted to turn precious parklands into pickleball courts, golf courses and hotels. They followed up Chesnes' initial scoop with tenacious watchdog reporting — much of it published within a month. Our joint Times/Herald Tallahassee bureau has been dialing up near daily coverage on the Hope Florida saga, detailing how $10 million of state funds fueled a Casey DeSantis pet project, and, in turn, helped fund political campaigns of the governor's priority initiatives. But if an important story takes time, we are committed to do what it takes. That costs money. 'It's Your Times' started modestly four years ago. We've eclipsed fundraising targets each of the last three years. We are heartened by the outpouring of support and our community's generosity. Last year, about 900 contributors made a pledge, ranging from $5 to $25,000. This year's target: $175,000. Hitting our goal would pay the salaries of three journalists in our 80-person newsroom. It's ambitious. But so are our journalistic aspirations. We know the well of potential stories runs deep. With your help, we are determined to bring these stories to light.
