2024 Year in Review

A Look Back at Some of Our Best Stories of 2024

Editor in chief Cooper Levey-Baker selects his personal favorites.

12/19/2024 By Cooper Levey-Baker

Rainbow Connection

The Limelight District's New LGBTQ+ Center Will Host a Grand Opening on Friday

Located in the Limelight District, northeast of downtown Sarasota, the center will offer a roster of services and workshops spanning mental health to gardening.

12/13/2024 By Kim Doleatto

Play Ball!

Spring Training Tickets Are on Sale Now

Grab your tickets for Orioles, Pirates and Braves games.

12/06/2024 By Staff

Stay Warm

Sarasota County Is Opening a Cold Weather Shelter in North Port Tonight and Tomorrow

Good-bye, hurricane season—hello, winter?

12/02/2024 By Staff

The Climate Connection

Climate Change Is Making Extreme Weather More Common and More Dangerous

This year's storms were the latest in a string of extreme weather events that have struck our area in recent years.

11/20/2024 By Cooper Levey-Baker

The Aftermath

Local Residents and Business Owners Pick Up the Pieces After a Catastrophic Hurricane Season

“You jump the first hurdle, then get a giant kick to the gut. That’s what’s been so traumatizing.”

11/20/2024 By Kim Doleatto

Outdoor Adventures

It's Election Day. Let's Go Take a Hike.

Stop refreshing your social media feeds and recharge in nature at Oscar Scherer State Park or Myakka River State Park.

11/05/2024 By Allison Forsyth

A Star Is Reborn

After Being Closed for More Than a Month, Cortez's Star Fish Company Will Reopen Tomorrow

"It’s never looked better," says owner Karen Bell.

10/30/2024 By Lauren Jackson

Hurricane Milton

Baltimore Orioles Make $250,000 Initial Donation to Hurricane Relief Campaign

The team is donating the money to the Community Foundation of Sarasota County's Season of Sharing campaign and will match every additional dollar up to $250,000. If $500,000 is reached, The Patterson Foundation will provided an additional $100,000.

10/16/2024 By Staff

Fly Away Home

Rufa, the Ritz-Carlton's Newest Restaurant, Is Open

Rufa specializes in shareable dishes accompanied by craft cocktails in an outdoor setting.

09/30/2024 By Lauren Jackson

Hurricanes

Ahead of Helene, Sarasota County Announces Evacuations for Residents in Level A, Mobile Homes

The county will send out an evacuation alert for Level A and manufactured home communities starting Wednesday, Sept. 25, at 7 a.m.

09/24/2024 By Staff

Head Above Water

Miracle Swimming Focuses on Mindfulness, Comfort and Confidence to Teach Adults How to Swim

“I was born to teach people how to swim,” says Miracle Swimming owner Melon Dash.

09/01/2024 By Lauren Jackson

Strip Mall Superstars

Sarasota's Best Under-the-Radar Restaurants

Our guide to out-of-the-way, hiding-in-plain-sight, if-you-know-you-know restaurants that will knock your socks off.

09/01/2024 By Lauren Jackson

Pedal Power

The Late Dr. Nik's Whimsical Bikes Have Been Saved from the Scrap Heap

A friend of the beloved local artist, who died in April, spotted the bikes on a flatbed trailer headed for the junkyard. The WSLR+ Fogartyville community rallied to save them.

08/23/2024 By Megan McDonald