Sarasota County seeks to curb spending to avert budget crisis
The story was updated with additional information from Sarasota County. Sarasota County is aiming to reduce its government spending next year to avoid a budget shortfall. A model from August 2025 showed that the county would be underwater on its general fund by 2028, with a $37.8 million deficit the next year....
The Queen of Broadway Comes to Sarasota
On March 6, The Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall and Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation will welcome the award-winning superstar, Idina Menzel, to the stage to perform as part of the Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation Gala: Defying Expectations: An Evening in Three Acts. The Foundation’s Gala will showcase Menzel’s...
Lakewood Ranch murder-suicide leaves 11-year-old, 14-year-old dead
The Manatee County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the circumstances leading up to a murder-suicide that left a 44-year-old mother and her two children, a 14-year-old boy and 11-year-old girl, dead Thursday in Lakewood Ranch. Deputies responded around 8:30 p.m. to a residence in the 8200 block of Pavia Way — in the...
Swine discovery has Sarasota officers seeking pig’s owner
Sarasota Police took into custody an unlikely fugitive overnight — a 100-pound, pot-bellied pig. No, there won’t be any swine/law enforcement jokes here, but the friendly and cooperative runaway porker wore no collar and carried no sign of whom it belongs to, other than its black spots on generally white hair with a...
Affidavit: St. Petersburg man arrested for driving 120mph on US-19
PINELLAS PARK, Fla. — The Pinellas Park Police Department arrested a man on "Super Speeder" charges after spotting him driving 120 mph on U.S. 19, according to an arrest affidavit. Andres Baron, 41, was traveling northbound on US-19 in Pinellas Park just after 1:30 a.m. Thursday, when police said...
South Florida Spring Break Rules
SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) - Fun, Smart, Talk. Our take on what’s making headlines on the Suncoast. Today, one of our Hot Topics included a discussion about new and old rules attracting visitors. If you have ideas for what topics we should discuss next, email us at [email protected]!
‘On edge’: Possible citizenship verification has Manatee County nonprofits searching for answers
Local nonprofits fear a provision under consideration in Manatee County to prohibit them from serving undocumented immigrants could jeopardize millions of dollars in funding, causing gaps in critical family services. Manatee County commissioners are expected to consider a plan to update funding agreements with...
Allman Brothers Band’s Dickey Betts to be honored with memorial highway along U.S. 41
Allman Brothers Band's Dickey Betts is being honored with a memorial highway on U.S. 41.
Lakewood Ranch Check Washing Scams Draw Postal Investigation
Checks that Lakewood Ranch residents thought were safely in the mail have been turning up in a very different form, according to victims in the master-planned community east of Bradenton. Neighbors say payments dropped in neighborhood boxes vanished, then resurfaced as chemically "washed" checks with altered amounts...
Sarasota’s First Greek Restaurant, El Greco, Reopening This Year
After becoming Sarasota’s first Greek restaurant when it opened in 1990, El Greco Cafe had a storied life on Main Street, owned and operated by George and Paulene Soublis until 2007, when it was sold. The restaurant stayed in action until 2017 before closing. And now, it’s preparing to make a comeback: El Greco Cafe...
