Author: WENG Newsroom

Last call for Smitty's Bar and Grill in Sarasota next weekend. The bar on Manatee Avenue closes for good next Sunday. It has spent 27 years in business. An employee tells the Bradenton Herald that Smitty's owner... Read More.

Parking meters may return to downtown Sarasota. WWSB-TV reports the city commission votes May 16 on a plan to bring them back as soon as 2018. The first ones would pop up at Saint Armand's and... Read More.

The National Weather Service says a high rip current risk remains through this evening. These powerful channels of water flow quickly away from shore, most often at low spots or breaks in the sandbar. They also... Read More.

Venice firefighters are fighting a brush fire in the area of Twin Laurel Blvd. and Laurel Road, called in at 12:09 p.m. The fire started out at around an acre in size but grew... Read More.

Venice firefighters continue fighting a brush fire around Twin Laurel Boulevard and Laurel Road. Battalion chief Frank Giddens says it started at an acre in size, but the wind has helped it grow. Nokomis and county... Read More.

A study from RealtyTrac shows 14 percent of homeowners in the Sarasota-Manatee region remain "seriously underwater." The Herald-Tribune reports over 35,000 homeowners in that area owe at least 25 percent more on their mortgages than... Read More.

State Supreme Court has heard the case of whether or not to reduce a death row inmate's sentence to life in prison. This ruling could affect 400 condemned prisoners statewide. The inmate's attorney says his client's... Read More.

The National Weather Service has issued a lake wind advisory for the region until 7 o'clock tonight. Expect sustained winds of 20 to 25 miles per hour to cause hazardous boating conditions on the lakes. Gusts... Read More.

Some spots in the region continue drying out from flooding assocated with yesterday's rain. The rain flooded several major roads in Sarasota. A police officer had to help one motorist whose car stalled in the flood... Read More.

Florida's coral reefs keep disappearing. The Guardian reports a University of Miami study shows parts of the reefs in Florida Bay have started vanishing because of rising sea temperatures and acidification. Scientists previously thought the damage... Read More.