COUNTY 

Okaloosa Island Boat Basin reopened after several renovations made  

OKALOOSA ISLAND — Once considered rundown and unsafe, the newly renovated Okaloosa Island Boat Basin was reopened to the public Thursday with vast improvements.   

 

Your Observer  

Manatee County Commissioners set plans for additional decrease in millage 

Manatee County commissioners established plans Wednesday for a further reduction in the tentative millage rate for Fiscal Year 2022-2023. 

 

Hometown News 

Indian River County approves long range library plan 

INDIAN RIVER COUNTY – Indian River County commissioners have approved a five-year long range plan for the county library system. The plan will run from 2023-2027, providing guidance and a vision for the future. 

 

OPIOIDS 

Pensacola News Journal 

Escambia seeks to curb opioid overdose with EMS CORE program 

Escambia County Emergency Medical Services Manager David Torsell thought he’d seen it all after 26 years of working in public safety until he learned that on Wednesday an infant in Escambia County had to be given Narcan to be revived from an opioid overdose. 

 

WASTEWATER 

News-Press 

Lee County: Think big about wastewater treatment improvements  

Researchers with the Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute (HBOI) recently completed a study – published in top-tier peer-reviewed journal – revealing the frightening extent to which sewage contamination is a major water-quality issue in the Caloosahatchee River basin. The study took place in North Fort Myers, where more than two thousand buildings rely on septic. An estimated 100,000 septic tanks leak in Lee County. 

 

AFFORDABLE HOUSING 

Action News Jax 

Changes to federal housing guidance unlocks extra funding for affordable housing  

WASHINGTON D.C. — There’s a shortage of more than seven million affordable housing units nationwide. The need comes as high demand and rent prices soar throughout the country. 

 

Tampa Bay Times 

Hillsborough boosts affordable housing options 

TAMPA — Hillsborough County commissioners put an emphasis Thursday on building more affordable housing for renters and home buyers.