Fort Myers Right Now

Cape Coral is adding a five-dollar fee to certain building permits to help pay for a new city investigator focused on unlicensed contracting. The fee was approved alongside tougher local penalties for people doing regulated construction work without a license. City officials argue that the dedicated position will improve enforcement for homeowners and legitimate contractors who compete against unlicensed operators. One council member opposed the fee, saying the job should be paid from the normal city budget instead.

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SOURCES

• Cape Coral Uses Five-Dollar Permit Fee to Fund Contractor Investigator — Cape Coral Breeze — 2026-08-26
  https://www.capecoralbreeze.com/news/local-news/2026/08/21/cape-to-impose-fines-for-unlicensed-contracting/

Cape Coral has approved a local enforcement system that can impose civil penalties on unlicensed contractors, including fines up to two thousand five hundred dollars for violations found by the city’s special magistrate. The city is also creating a licensing-investigator position in Development Services. Officials say the change is meant to reduce dependence on state enforcement and give homeowners a faster local response when they report unlicensed work.

Production note: Madison is an AI-generated host using a synthetic voice.

SOURCES

• Cape Coral Unlicensed Contractor Penalties Now Reach $2,500 — Cape Coral Breeze — 2026-08-26
  https://www.capecoralbreeze.com/news/local-news/2026/08/21/cape-to-impose-fines-for-unlicensed-contracting/

Cape Coral police arrested a man in connection with the theft of an e-bike valued at more than seven hundred fifty dollars after investigators reviewed surveillance video and identified a suspect. The value matters because Florida theft charges increase in seriousness as the value of stolen property rises. E-bikes can easily cross felony thresholds because motors, batteries and frames make even midrange models expensive.

Production note: Madison is an AI-generated host using a synthetic voice.

SOURCES

• Cape Coral E-Bike Theft Arrest Follows Surveillance Review — Cape Coral Breeze — 2026-08-26
  https://www.capecoralbreeze.com/news/

Labor Day weekend is expected to bring heavier road traffic and higher travel costs across Southwest Florida, with I-75, airport routes and beach corridors likely to see the biggest pressure. The most difficult travel windows are often not the holiday itself but the periods when large numbers of people leave work, check into hotels or return home at the same time. A crash on I-75 can amplify those delays quickly.

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SOURCES

• Labor Day Travel Expected to Bring Heavy Southwest Florida Traffic — Gulf Coast News — 2026-08-26
  https://www.gulfcoastnewsnow.com/

Florida tourism has declined for a second consecutive quarter, with inflation and fewer Canadian visitors among the pressures being watched by Southwest Florida’s hospitality industry. Lee County depends heavily on visitor spending at hotels, restaurants, beaches and attractions, so statewide softness can show up locally through occupancy rates and room prices even when the region remains busy by normal standards.

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SOURCES

• Florida Tourism Declines for Second Straight Quarter — WGCU — 2026-08-26
  https://www.wgcu.org/

The Island Hopper Songwriter Festival is scheduled for September eighteenth through twenty-seventh, with performances spread across Cape Coral, downtown Fort Myers, Captiva and Fort Myers Beach. The festival’s format moves audiences between communities instead of concentrating every show at one venue. That spreads visitor spending across hotels, restaurants and bars while giving smaller rooms access to professional songwriters.

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SOURCES

• Island Hopper Songwriter Festival Returns Across Southwest Florida — Lee County Visitor and Convention Bureau — 2026-08-26
  https://www.visitfortmyers.com/island-hopper

Sanibel’s Sunrise Sale is returning September fifth with about 45 island businesses participating in an early-morning shopping event that begins around sunrise. The tradition is designed to pull visitors onto the island for local retail, dining and special promotions. For Sanibel merchants, coordinated events help create foot traffic that one store cannot generate alone. Customers may come for a discount at one business and spend money at restaurants, galleries or other shops during the same trip.

Production note: Madison is an AI-generated host using a synthetic voice.

SOURCES

• Sanibel Sunrise Sale Returns With About 45 Businesses — Florida Weekly — 2026-08-26
  https://www.floridaweekly.com/

Fort Myers Beach plans to use federal Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery money for the proposed Bay Oaks pool, tying a recreational project directly to the island’s long-term Hurricane Ian recovery funding. The town was awarded thirteen million dollars in CDBG-DR money two years ago. Those funds are managed through Lee County and must be spent on eligible recovery activities under federal rules rather than treated like unrestricted town revenue.

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SOURCES

• Fort Myers Beach New Pool Would Use Federal Disaster-Recovery Funds — Beach Talk Radio News — 2026-08-26
  https://beachtalkradionews.com/bay-oaks-committee-to-see-new-pool-next/

Roar Offshore powerboat racing is scheduled to return to Fort Myers Beach September eleventh through thirteenth, bringing the event back for the first time since Hurricane Ian disrupted the island and its event calendar. Town Council has approved key waivers, including noise and use of town property, while organizers still need final approvals from the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, the fire district and town staff.

Production note: Madison is an AI-generated host using a synthetic voice.

SOURCES

• Roar Offshore Returns to Fort Myers Beach After Ian Hiatus — Gulf Coast News — 2026-08-26
  https://www.gulfcoastnewsnow.com/article/event-roar-offshore-waiver-boat-fort-myers-beach/73515440

Sizzle Dining returns in September with about 140 participating Southwest Florida restaurants, the largest lineup in the promotion’s ten-year history. Restaurants will offer fixed-price menus designed to encourage residents to try places they might normally skip. The event arrives during a shoulder period before peak winter tourism, when restaurants can benefit from extra local traffic. Prix-fixe menus also let kitchens plan portions and purchasing more predictably than a completely open menu.

Production note: Madison is an AI-generated host using a synthetic voice.

SOURCES

• Sizzle Dining Returns With Record 140-Restaurant Lineup — Cape Coral Breeze — 2026-08-26
  https://www.capecoralbreeze.com/news/swfl-news/