Gulf Coast Life

From the mid-1950s through the mid-1970s there was a land boom in Florida driven by what were known as Installment Land Sales, which offered lots in Florida for as little as $10 down and $10 a month. They were aimed at retirees, and the lots sometimes turned out to be completely unusable, or at least not very desirable properties that regardless have left a mark on the sunshine state to this very day. We learn more about this history, and how it’s still shaping Florida living, from Dr. Jason Vuic, author of The Swamp Peddlers: How lot sellers, land scammers, and retirees built modern Florida and transformed the American Dream.

In the early 1980s Sanibel-based artist Lucas Century learned of the effort to create the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. He believe an engraving technique he'd developed could help the project along, and he was right. All of the more than 58,000 names engraved into black granite were done so using his method, which saved the memorial's timeline and budget.

The Florida Center for Government Accountability helps fuel local, on-the-ground reporting by working to assist journalists and everyday citizens to gain access to public records. Executive Director Barbara Petersen joins us to talk about the crucial role investigative journalism plays in a robust democracy.

Manatees vocalize while feeding, resting, or playing using high-pitched squeaks, squeals, squeak-squeals, and chirps. Learn about innovative research being conducted at Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota exploring how and why manatees vocalize.

The Lee County Board of Commissioners will hold its next public hearing about redistricting on Tuesday, November 2 at 6:00pm. When the current district maps were drawn back in 2011 many of the homes in the Fort Myers Dunbar community were moved into District 4, which is primarily made up of North Fort Myers across the Caloosahatchee River. As commissioners consider new map proposals, we highlight efforts to get them to choose a new map which would reunite the Dunbar community with Fort Myers.

Bears begin eating more calories in the fall to pack on additional fat needed during the winter months. Bears will consume up to 20,000 calories per day and will snack on anything that’s convenient, including what's in your garbage.

What makes a monster? How does folklore affect culture? Dr. Emily Zarka, Monster Expert and host of PBS Digital Studios MONSTRUM, explores the complex histories and motivations behind some of the world's most famous monsters, myths and legends.

The Florida Museum of Natural History is looking for your help to track two species of native bee that you’ll probably hear before you see. Southeastern plasterer bees live in scrub, pineland, and sandhill habitats; adjacent open areas; and along roadsides.

Over the years as a journalist Craig Pittman has had the opportunity to write about some of Florida’s most interesting characters and the wild stories they tend to star in. He’s also the author of a number of non-fiction books, including his latest “The State You’re In: Florida Men, Florida Women, and Other Wildlife.” He joins us to talk about the new book, and his work documenting Florida’s weirdness, or shall we say its distinctiveness.

Governor Ron DeSantis and Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody announced a series of actions, Sept. 28, aimed at mitigating impacts of migrants seeking entry into the U.S. from the Southern border being resettled in the sunshine state. We’ll take a closer look at the situation with Fort Myers-based immigration attorney Indera DeMine and FGCU Law Professor and attorney Pamella Seay, whose expertise includes immigration and constitutional law.