WSLR News

Coming up: The Sarasota School Board will be changing the times of their meetings and many community members are not happy about it. Johannes Werner has the details.  Then: Sarasota Commissioners voted down a comprehensive plan amendment that could have transformed Siesta Key. Ramon Lopez reports. Next: A community advocate is bringing a countywide coalition of neighborhood groups back to life. Sh...

Coming up: The Sarasota legislative delegation met this week, and local officials and residents raised concerns about state proposals that could impact property taxes and local control. Johannes Werner and Klaus Obermeit have the details.  Then: We break down how the controversial SB 180 is creating new friction between state lawmakers and grassroots Republicans over local control. Alice Newman wi...

Does climate change make you act like a deer in the headlight? A conference coming up tomorrow slices the big challenge into digestible portions - small enough for action. Gretchen Cochran gives us a preview. Then: Sarasota was a global pioneer a quarter century ago when it became home to one of the first canopy walkways. Now, an effort is on to preserve and improve it. Brice Claypoole reports. Ne...

New College has been DOGE’d by the state, and the results don’t look pretty. The bad optics come at a time when the governor’s and legislature’s financial largesse could come to an end. We try to dig deeper. Then: Community Development Districts - the developer-controlled entities that tax homeowners, often with little to no representation - have received a not too flattering spotlight. The Manate...

The threat of for-profit operators taking over school buildings lit a fire under the Sarasota School District. The five school board members seem ready to approve this Friday a substantial reshuffle. We have the details. Then: Low school enrollment in Sarasota seems to respond more to demographics than to performance. Occupancy at Sarasota charter schools is as low as in public schools, the Suncoa...

Coming up: Turning Point, the organization founded by recently assassinated conservative influencer Charlie Kirk, is getting help from the governor in their push into high schools. SEE Alliance, on the other side of the political spectrum, now has ambitious plans to do the same. Then: A for-profit charter operator is asking the Sarasota School District for free access to a school for the disabled....

Manatee County’s state legislators opened yet another front in what many in the Republican county believe is a war against home rule: This time, it’s about taking away local control over one of the area’s biggest economic generators. Next: The Schools of Hope law forces districts to hand over buildings of underused schools to private operators. That, in turn, has prompted the Sarasota school distr...

For 24 hours, the City of Sarasota took down the hoops at a neighborhood park, after a neighbor made serious threats against teenagers playing basketball. We have the details.  Next: The Sarasota Sheriff’s Office seems eager to cooperate with ICE in the crackdown against immigrants. This comes from Suncoast Searchlight.   Then: A New College professor was denied emeritus status by the administrati...

Coming up: ICE is catching bad guys. That’s the simple message Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem brought during a quick stop during her whirlwind tour of the United States. Ramon Lopez got to ask her a couple questions.  Next: Noem’s visit came 48 hours after No Kings protests brought thousands to the streets in this area. Klaus Obermeit has that report.  Then: The Sarasota School district i...

Coming up: He’s home. A father of two and husband of a seriously ill mother is reunited with his family after he was released from ICE detention. This comes after the surprising ruling of an immigration judge. Ramon Lopez brings us this exclusive.    Next: The Bay - the big park project near downtown Sarasota - is expanding north, into the next two phases. We have the details.  Then: Gotta go? Hop...

It’s going to be not one, but six. “No King” protests in Sarasota and Manatee County are taking shape this Saturday, and Klaus Obermeit has a preview. Next: Phillippi Creek flooded many homes during last year’s storm season. One year later, Sarasota County will soon get dredging underway.  Then: Groundwater contamination keeps spreading at the historically African American community of Tallevast....

Coming up: The former Israeli defense minister who was in charge of the first year of the war in Gaza is coming to Sarasota. And that’s prompting pushback. Next: It’s raining private takeover notifications. The same for-profit school operator that wants to occupy three public school buildings in Sarasota has notified the Manatee County School District it wants access to two schools there.   Then:...

Wilkinson Elementary parents can breathe a sigh of relief. It looks like the neighborhood school will not end up being the first public school in Sarasota’s history to close, after all. Dania Hefley has this report.   Then: The race for Bridget Ziegler’s school board seat is heating up. Brice Claypoole reports. Next: The non-profit in charge of developing The Bay park near downtown Sarasota picked...

Florida could make the difference in next year’s congressional elections, which is why many here are concerned about early redistricting and gerrymandering. Brice Claypoole has this report.   Then: Distress is spreading amid the immigrant crackdown. Many are unable to go to work, stuck at home, or sick. A group of Sarasota churches is stepping in with help. Ramon Lopez reports. Next: Wilkinson Ele...

Coming up: It used to be that you paid bail, and you’re out of jail. Not anymore. Suncoast Searchlight brings us a report about ICE retainers, and how local jails are the first stop of a deportation pipeline for people held for minor infractions.  Then: It’s Hispanic Heritage Month, and the Ringling Museum of Art is providing a big platform to local Hispanic artists. We have the details about Nues...

The “Schools of Hope” law literally makes every public elementary and middle school in Sarasota and Manatee a takeover target for private, for-profit operators. WSLR News reporter Dania Hefley has the details. Next: Open Carry is upon us, and WSLR News reporter Brice Claypoole is looking at the implications. One thing is certain: There’s uncertainty. Even sheriffs seem to disagree over what you ca...

The Sarasota County Emergency Management folks want you to know: Hurricane season is at its peak - not the time to let your defenses down. Next: ICE is increasingly mining Florida jails for undocumented immigrants to arrest. That leaves in limbo many who have been arrested on minor charges. Suncoast Searchlight brings us this report. Then: Today, the Florida Board of Education discussed how to imp...

The Sarasota school district may end up closing down its first school since 1969. And Wilkinson Elementary is not the only Title 1 school that could end up disappearing, amid shrinking student numbers and budgets for public schools. Next: The Sarasota County Planning Commission has long been seen by activists as a rubber stamp board for developers. But at least one recent appointment could be chan...

Selby Botanical Gardens found itself in the awkward position of having to field legal arguments to be allowed to cut down grand trees that enjoy special protections by the City of Sarasota. We explain. Next: The ongoing immigration crackdown has thrown one Bradenton family into extreme distress. Ramon Lopez talked to a mother of two who is homebound facing a serious health challenge. Then: Sarasot...

The Sarasota County Commission rejected a big homebuilder’s bid to build 156 homes on pasture land next to a bird sanctuary. On Thursday, DR Horton was back with a changed plan, asking the county to reconsider. Noah Vinsky reports. Then: A small business owner in Sarasota ended up in a social media tornado, after she reposted an Instagram post on Charlie Kirk. We talked to her. Next: Florida schoo...

The Van Wezel’s lease on life seems to be expanding. Gretchen Cochran reports on the city’s latest plans with the historic performing arts hall. Next: Sarasota County is committing to keeping Midnight Pass open, after last year’s hurricanes blew open that inlet on Siesta Key. But that comes at a risk and cost. Then: New vaccine policies are creating confusion. Our reporter helps you understand wha...

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 discus...

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. N...

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...

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 Mana...