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More private companies are investing in passenger rail — here's why

Aug 28, 2023
Passenger rail needs a public subsidy to work, experts say.
Private company Brightline planned to extend its passenger rail line in Florida, but this extension has been delayed.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

As Florida’s population surges, state invests in nursing schools to target shortage

Apr 4, 2023
Many colleges and universities are using state funding to recruit and retain students, as well as instructors, to boost nursing degree graduates and fill job openings in the state.
Nursing students celebrate at a recent graduation at Broward College.
Courtesy Broward College

Southwest Florida had an affordable housing shortage. Hurricane Ian made it worse.

Nov 22, 2022
Lee County in Southwest Florida, where the storm made landfall, still faces monumental challenges housing people displaced by the storm.
About a month after Hurricane Ian made landfall near Fort Myers, piles of debris lined the streets. "That has all of their drywall, carpeting, all their cabinets, beds and everything," said Gladys Cook at the Florida Housing Coalition. "There’s thousands of people in that situation.”
Mitchell Hartman/Marketplace

Florida cultural institutions are recovering from Hurricane Ian alongside homes and businesses

Nov 7, 2022
Damage along Florida's southwest coast includes museums and theaters that plan to rebuild.
The Venice Theatre suffered major damage from Hurricane Ian's winds and heavy rain, leaving collapsed walls and flooding in the main stage area at the rear of the building, which was built in 1926.
Mitchell Hartman/Marketplace

For the first time, homeless victims of a hurricane will be eligible for federal aid

Oct 31, 2022
In the past, aid's been reserved for people who lose their homes, not those who've already lost them.
An excavator is used to clear debris left in the wake of Hurricane Ian on October 06, 2022 on San Carlos Island, Florida.
Win McNamee/Getty Images

"Our whole life is in this house": Florida residents begin recovery after Hurricane Ian

Oct 14, 2022
The economic damage from Hurricane Ian could exceed $100 billion.
An aerial view of a neighborhood in North Port, Florida, in the wake of Hurricane Ian on Oct. 1.
Win McNamee/Getty Images

Ian's catastrophic damage in Florida falls on an insurance market in turmoil

Sep 29, 2022
The storm could cause more than $30 billion in property losses at a time when insurance companies in the state are losing money.
Hurricane Ian may be one of the costliest storms in U.S. history. Above, debris in Fort Myers Beach, Florida.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

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As poverty rises, South Florida organization for the homeless starts feeding neighbors, too

Jan 19, 2021
The number of people showing up for free hot meals has more than doubled since the pandemic began, the CEO of HOPE South Florida says.
A rise in poverty and homelessness has become a major concern as the pandemic recession has left millions of people without jobs. Above, a person in Miami sleeps on a sidewalk in 2001.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Floridians struggle to find good housing amid affordability crisis, pandemic

Nov 26, 2020
In Osceola County, many people are living in motels that offer limited facilities for long-term stays during a pandemic.
A woman looks on as the head of the Kissimmee-Poinciana Homeless Outreach, Barbie Austria, donates essentials to jobless people living in a motel in Kissimmee, Florida on Oct. 15, 2020.
Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images

Florida voters approve $15-an-hour minimum wage

Nov 4, 2020
Hourly wages for some 2.5 million workers in the state will rise to $10 next year, then a dollar a year through 2026.
Voters cast their ballots at a fire station in Miami, Florida, on Nov. 3, 2020.
Eva Marie Uzcategui/AFP via Getty Images