Weekly Newsletter

Friday, Jan. 16, 2026

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We’re here to keep you informed on the local issues that matter most. Each week, we share our latest in-depth reporting, along with the most important stories from around the region, so you stay connected and up to date with what’s happening in your community.

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NEW FROM SUNCOAST SEARCHLIGHT:

SARASOTA WOMAN DEFRAUDED AS IMMIGRATION SCAMS RISE NATIONWIDE

A year after Fabiola crossed the border into the United States, the 33-year-old asylum seeker sent a message to the man she had hired to represent her in immigration court, inquiring about the status of her case. 

In response, she received an angry voice message.

“You know very well that I assisted you in your asylum case,” the man snapped in Spanish during the March 2025 recording. “You are a person who is, let me just say, very ungrateful.” 

Fabiola, a southern Sarasota County resident who requested Suncoast Searchlight withhold her last name for fear of being targeted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), listened in disbelief. What kind of legal professional would berate his own client? 

As it turned out, “Benjamin Gonzales,” who claimed to specialize in immigration law and boasted of high-level contacts in the U.S. federal government, may not have been a lawyer at all. 

Amid President Donald Trump’s broad crackdown on immigration, attorneys warn that scams targeting vulnerable immigrants with promises of quick access to a secure future in the country are on the rise. Some fraudsters advertise their services on social media, while others reach out to potential targets directly, promising unusually fast access to work permits, permanent residence and even citizenship. 

NEW FROM SUNCOAST SEARCHLIGHT:

SARASOTA MAYOR ACCUSED OF VIOLATING FIRST AMENDMENT BY CUTTING OFF SPEAKERS

The Sarasota City Commission ushered in the New Year facing complaints from residents who said the mayor violated citizens’ First Amendment rights during its first meeting of 2026.

Mayor Debbie Trice twice interrupted speakers during the public input portion of the Commission’s Jan. 5 meeting, warning them that they could not make “personal attacks” or refer to individual commissioners by name and insisting they were required to address the commission only as a body. In another exchange, she threatened to remove a speaker after he continued talking past his time limit. 

Trice, who began her one-year term as mayor in November, defended her actions in an interview with Suncoast Searchlight, saying she was trying to enforce proper decorum and exercise her own judgment about what is appropriate in public meetings. 

But First Amendment experts said that her approach could chill public participation and leave Sarasota vulnerable to costly lawsuits. 

“It’s bullshit and unconstitutional,” said Bobby Block, executive director of Florida’s First Amendment Foundation, after Searchlight shared Trice’s rationale for cutting off speakers.

NEW FROM SUNCOAST SEARCHLIGHT & SARASOTA HERALD-TRIBUNE:

FLORIDA BILL WOULD GIVE BENDERSON DEVELOPMENT ITS OWN TAXING DISTRICT AT UTC

A new bill in the Florida House would turn the University Town Center into a special government district and give one of the region’s most influential developers the power to set specific rules and levy new taxes.

House Bill 4091, introduced last week by State Rep. Bill Conerly, R-Lakewood Ranch, would give the largest private landowner in the district — Manatee County-headquartered Benderson Development Co. — its own local government to finance and oversee future expansions of the shopping hub, largely composed of commercial retail around the mall and rowing park.

The inclusion of Nathan Benderson Park in the special district, combined with the broad powers the new district would wield in an area that spans both Sarasota and Manatee counties, has raised concerns from a former assistant county attorney and at least one county commissioner.

Sarasota Commissioner Tom Knight raised the issue at a meeting on Tuesday, saying he didn’t understand the bill or how it impacts Sarasota County.

Even as the Sarasota County Commission cannot influence the outcome of the proposed legislation, Knight noted there’s nothing in the bill’s vague language that requires the new district to coordinate with other local governments.

“Something I noticed in the bill that would be missing is the cooperation between this new body – this new area that's being designated in two counties – and how that would affect us with public safety, our Phillippi Creek drainage system, and how that all will come together," Knight said.

Ever wonder how a story goes from a quiet tip to a full investigation?

Join Searchlight reporters for an inside look at how they turn tips into deeply reported stories. They will walk through how they follow leads, verify facts and shape reporting that holds power accountable, using real examples from their work.

📅 Save your seat!

Presented as part of the Searchlight Series with Gulf Coast Community Foundation and in partnership with Manatee Community Foundation.

HERE'S WHAT ELSE WE RECOMMEND READING THIS WEEK

SCAMS TARGETING SENIORS ARE BECOMING AN 'EPIDEMIC,' BRADENTON POLICE SAY

FROM BRADENTON HERALD

Manatee County seniors are falling victim to scams daily — and the results can be disastrous, Bradenton police say. Fraud investigators say it’s a trend that’s getting worse across the nation, and it can leave retirement-age residents at risk of losing their entire life savings in the blink of an eye. The Bradenton Police Department recently launched an Elder Fraud Unit to these crimes through investigations and educational sessions. “Every single week, we have an elderly senior who sits in our office and talks about how they have lost everything," said Detective Jim Curulla.

READ THE STORY HERE

WITH AN ARMY OF LOYALISTS, DESANTIS BUILT A CONSERVATIVE HIGHER-ED EMPIRE

FROM THE TRIBUTARY

With only a year left in office, Gov. Ron DeSantis has a limited window of time to wield power in Tallahassee. But on college campuses across Florida, DeSantis continues to expand his army of political loyalists — both college presidents and university trustees, who are poised to dominate for many years to come, no matter who is elected governor in 2026. As a result, higher education could become DeSantis’ enduring political legacy. And the governor’s final year in office will provide still more opportunities to push academia in a conservative direction.

READ THE STORY HERE

SARASOTA SCHOOL BOARD CHAIR BRIDGET ZIEGLER WANTS DISTRICT TO COLLABORATE WITH ICE

FROM WUSF

The chair of the Sarasota County School Board, Bridget Ziegler, wants the school district and its police to pledge their support for federal agents — including those from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). She placed the issue on the agenda for the school board meeting on Tuesday, as emotions run high nationally in the wake of a federal agent's fatal shooting of 37-year-old mom of three, Renee Good, in Minneapolis last week. The five-member board contains three conservatives, including Ziegler, who was one of the original co-founders of the conservative group, Moms for Liberty.

READ THE STORY HERE

IS MANATEE'S BISHOP SHELTER EXPANSION FIT FOR DOGS? ADVOCATES RAISE CONCERNS

FROM BRADENTON HERALD

After a $12 million addition to the Bishop Animal Shelter in Bradenton, some animal advocates say they’re concerned the expansion doesn’t go far enough. The expansion added eight pre-fabricated kennel buildings, increasing the shelter’s maximum capacity by about 120 dogs. A second phase of the expansion will add a new adoption and administration building to the shelter at 5718 21st Ave. W., Bradenton, later this year. But during a recent board meeting, volunteers and advocates said they had concerns about the amount of space for dogs in the new kennels, emergency planning and noise levels inside Manatee County Government’s shelter expansion.

READ THE STORY HERE

'REDNECKS' AND A BILLIONAIRE. INSIDE A BATTLE OVER A FLORIDA DIRT ROAD

FROM SARASOTA HERALD-TRIBUNE

The battle between a billionaire housing developer and a few self-identified “rednecks” in Englewood broke into the public view on a particularly hot August afternoon in 2025 at the chambers of the Sarasota County Commission. In question was the Manasota Beach Road extension that would connect River Road (State Road 777) to Englewood Road (State Road 776). There are currently two portions. In between those two portions is Forked Creek and the kind of green space that’s rapidly disappearing amid Florida’s post-pandemic development boom. Neal wants to build a road through it.

READ THE STORY HERE

COMMENTARY: PHOSPHATE GIANT TURNS TO FLORIDA LEGISLATURE FOR HELP THWARTING LAWSUITS

FROM FLORIDA PHOENIX

There was a time, a dozen years ago, when you couldn’t turn on a TV in Florida without seeing an ad for the Mosaic Co. You’d see scenes of golden waves of grain and farmers tilling their crops, and you’d hear a woman talking in glowing terms about the world’s largest phosphate miner. “Our promise is to always take our commitment to the environment seriously,” the ads would say. Speaking of glowing, one word you never heard in those TV ads was “radioactive.”

READ THE STORY HERE

NEW COLLEGE CUTS DOWN A GROVE OF LIVE OAKS ON SARASOTA AIRPORT LAND. FOR WHAT?

FROM WUSF

New College of Florida has knocked down close to a dozen large trees, including protected live oaks, in Sarasota. They were next to the site of a proposed new baseball field on the college’s east campus, along Tamiami Trail. The decades-old trees were rooted on land that belongs to the Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport. Nearby, just a few yards south, a 3.7 acre plot belongs to New College. It used to be a car museum, and now serves as the primary site of a proposed $3.5 million ballpark, first announced in 2024. But construction on that so-called “Beruff Family Field of Dreams” cannot go ahead until a new lease is negotiated, according to federal aviation authorities, because part of the field would spill over onto airport land.

READ THE STORY HERE

VAN WEZEL FAMILY SUPPORTS SARASOTA PERFORMING ARTS PROJECT

FROM SARASOTA HERALD-TRIBUNE

The grandchildren of Lewis Van Wezel, Dr. Anthony (Tony) Van Wezel Stone and Katherine Van Wezel Stone, recently announced their support of the Sarasota Performing Arts Center project. The project is part of a public-private partnership between the city of Sarasota and the Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation, formerly known as the Van Wezel Foundation. The Van Wezel family said in a statement it has come “to an appreciation that the project is an evolving concept in which the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall will continue to serve the City as a venue for the arts in harmony with and alongside the new Performing Arts Center.”

READ THE STORY HERE

FLORIDA DEREGULATED NURSING SCHOOLS. SCAM COLLEGES AND FAILING STUDENTS FOLLOWED

FROM ORLANDO SENTINEL

Alarmed by a growing shortage of nurses, Florida lawmakers in 2009 eased regulations on the schools tasked with training them, inviting new institutions to enter the market. The results were swift: Within five years, the number of Florida nursing programs more than doubled. But many were for-profit institutions that churned out students whose pricey degrees left them ill-prepared to enter the field. As a result, Florida’s nursing education system is now among the lowest-performing in the nation, as measured by exam passage rates. In part because of that dismal performance, the state still projects a need for 60,000 more nurses by 2035. And patients are left with spotty assurances that the nurses they encounter in hospitals or homes are properly trained.

READ THE STORY HERE

CITY HALL BATHROOMS REOPEN AFTER 15-MONTH REHAB PROJECT

FROM SARASOTA OBSERVER

What began as a project to replace aging and failing pipes and remodel bathrooms at Sarasota City Hall morphed into a 17-month odyssey with the closure of the only public restrooms in the building. That left attendees of City Commission meetings sometimes scrambling to access two available stalls in the attached City Hall Annex and a temporary portable restroom facility parked outside of the building from July 2024 to January 2026. The duration of the project became the butt of jokes around City Hall, but there was good reason that what was intended as a simple project morphed into a complete remodel at a cost of $659,811.

READ THE STORY HERE



DID YOU MISS OUR PREVIOUS NEWSLETTER?

HERE'S WHAT WE SHARED:

GRAN PARADISO'S WATER WAR ENDS, BUT FALLOUT LANDS ON FORMER DIRECTORS

A three-year legal saga between residents of Gran Paradiso and their developer-controlled government has ended — resolving a fight over irrigation water rates that divided the upscale neighborhood and exposed the power imbalance between homeowners and special-purpose districts that control essential services.

The dispute escalated last year when the West Villages Improvement District shut off irrigation to the neighborhood altogether, browning lawns and water-starving plants as the lawsuit dragged on and a trial date loomed.

But the settlement, which was approved in November, came with some stark conditions.

Under the agreement, Gran Paradiso homeowners agreed to surrender their lawsuit, waive legal protections for directors who challenged the district and silence future criticism in exchange for the district supporting restoration of water service with no guarantee Gran Paradiso will have irrigation anytime soon — terms critics describe as punitive and retaliatory.

Gran Paradiso may also have to transfer a valuable piece of property to the West Villages Improvement District or make a large monetary payment to cover some of the district's legal bills racked up in the dispute, according to written statements to residents.

Six current and former board members of the Gran Paradiso Property Owners Association are excluded from the settlement, leaving them exposed to future lawsuits from the master developer over their criticism of its handling of the negotiations.

SARASOTA COUNTY OFFERED OTHERS FAR LESS FOR SIESTA BEACH LOTS AS HOLDERNESS DEAL LOOMS

Katie Gerhardt remembered when her parents’ Siesta Key properties sat so close to the Gulf that one parcel was entirely underwater and the other was barely dry.

During a violent storm in the early 1980s, she recalled, waves pushed wet sand into a rental home the family owned on the dry lot, leaving Gerhardt to scoop sandy muck out of the house for days afterward.

At the time, the Gulf lapped at the property’s edge. But over the years, sand accumulated through a natural process called accretion — first slowly, then more recently by as much as 7 feet per year.

Today, hundreds of feet of white, Siesta sand stretches all the way to the water.

The family had long since sold the parcel with the rental home, but kept the one once submerged by water and now boasting nothing but beach. 

“I came back out here about 10 years ago, it was like, ‘Wow,’” she said. “‘Look what’s happening.’”

Gerhardt, a retired property appraiser, didn’t think much about the value of the family’s growing beach, calling the sandy lot her family has owned for about 50 years “basically worthless” because county development codes prevent anyone from building there.

So she was stunned — then outraged — to learn that Siesta Key businessman Michael Holderness stood to gain millions of dollars in value by swapping his adjacent beach lots that are nearly identical to hers with prime real estate owned by Sarasota County. The deal is part of a settlement of a property rights lawsuit filed by Holderness’ company, Siesta Beach Lots LLC, against the county — but is on hold after another Siesta Beach resident, Lourdes Ramirez, filed a legal challenge in circuit court to block it.

What angered Gerhardt the most, she said, is that the county is attempting to acquire her family’s beach lot — and at least two others nearby — for a fraction of what Holderness would receive. As recently as last year, the Gerhardt family was offered $30,000 for its parcel, which it rejected.

THE TALLY: WHAT WE KNOW — AND DON'T KNOW — ABOUT SUNCOAST TEACHER VACANCIES

Teacher shortages have shaped classrooms across Florida in recent years, forcing districts to rely on out-of-field teachers, long-term substitutes and other stopgap measures — especially in hard-to-staff areas like special education.

State officials say the situation is improving. The Florida Department of Education announced last summer that teacher vacancies had dropped 18% from the previous school year, suggesting the worst of the staffing crunch may have passed.

But when a reporter requested detailed, district-by-district vacancy data to understand where shortages persist, the state did not provide it. Instead, the department supplied links to general reports on high-demand teaching areas, leaving key questions about local conditions unanswered.

Data compiled by Florida’s largest school employee union offer a partial picture. An analysis shows teacher vacancies across the state have declined recently, but gaps remain — and limitations in the data make it difficult to compare districts or identify where shortages are most acute and how they are affecting students and classrooms.

Even with recent declines, more than 2,800 teaching positions remained unfilled statewide this year, with needs varying widely by district, school and subject area.

Here’s what we know — and don’t know — about teacher vacancies in the Suncoast and across Florida, and what those gaps mean for students, teachers and school staff.

SUNCOAST SEARCHLIGHT LAUNCHES 'PUBLIC RECORDS WATCH'

Suncoast Searchlight is launching a new feature called Public Records Watch to take readers behind the scenes of an important — and often invisible — aspect of our reporting. Through this occasional series, we will highlight some of the government records we’re seeking or have obtained and explain why they matter. 

Public records are the backbone of accountability reporting. They help journalists verify facts, uncover information that sources might not otherwise readily provide and can show how decisions are made by people in power. Yet journalists often spend little time, if at all, explaining to readers the process of requesting and negotiating for public records. 

Many of Suncoast Searchlight’s most important stories begin with a public records request. Sometimes we file requests seeking records to confirm a tip we have received. Or we want to verify the accuracy of information provided to us by a source. Other times, we request records to view the underlying documents upon which government officials made decisions — or we want to see the internal communications between officials that led to the decisions being made. 

Whatever the reason for our request, access to public records is essential to our job.

And Public Records Watch is a way to share that early work with our readers — not just the final story but the documents that helped get us there. By showing what we’re requesting and why, we hope to demystify how watchdog reporting works and reinforce why open records laws exist in the first place: to ensure government remains accountable to the people it serves.

If there are records you think the public should see, we want to hear from you — reach out to us here.

Read our first two Public Records Watch entries:

• Emails show public dismay about Karen Rose school board appointment

• AG’s Office charges $7K for “Combat Violent Extremism Portal” submissions

GOT A TIP OR STORY IDEA?

Share your tips and story ideas using our online form. Your name and contact info will be kept confidential.

Suncoast Searchlight is a 501c3 nonprofit news organization whose mission is to produce investigative and explanatory journalism that serves and empowers the residents of Florida’s Suncoast region (Sarasota, Manatee, and DeSoto counties). We shine a light on critical issues affecting our community. Through independent reporting and collaboration with diverse media partners, we foster transparency, accountability and an informed citizenry, ensuring that all voices are heard and that the public has access to the information they need to drive meaningful change.

CONTACT US:

Suncoast Searchlight

PO Box 99 Sarasota, FL 34230

(941) 724-4450