COVID cases rise; 1 new death
May 27, 2020
As the Florida Keys get ready to reopen to visitors on Monday, June 1, the chain of islands has experienced an uptick in coronavirus cases since Friday and recorded its first death in...more
= Denotes Subscription RequiredFeeding chickens a no-no, implore Key West officials
May 27, 2020
Love them or hate them, it is undeniable that the chickens roaming free around Key West add a certain joie de vivre to the city.
But the wild chicken population is booming, according to Key...more
Task force to see what school will look like
May 27, 2020
Continued virtual options will be available to students this fall when they return to school Aug. 13 in Monroe County. Some parents’ preferences to continue distance learning prompted the...more
Coronavirus
Florida revenues fall by nearly $900 million amid pandemic
TALLAHASSEE — The state of Florida might have lost nearly $900 million in tax revenues in April — far more than state officials anticipated — as the coronavirus pandemic siphoned away tourist...more
Neighborhood boxes share love of books
May 27, 2020FLORIDA KEYS — Take what book you want and leave what you like. It’s a handmade wooden box that works as a neighborly honor system for paperbacks and heavy tomes alike. That’s the simple idea...more
Dry Tortugas starts reopening
May 27, 2020The National Park Service has increased recreational access to Dry Tortugas National Park. Over the Memorial Day weekend, the Dry Tortugas National Park reopened access to the outdoor areas on...more
June 1 reopening leaves some behind
May 27, 2020FLORIDA KEYS — As the Florida Keys prepare to open the checkpoints and lodges Monday to allow visitors to return, dozens of small businesses will remain shuttered, while others eagerly await a...more
KEYS defers late fees
May 27, 2020Keys Energy Services will continue waiving late fees through June 30. Beginning July 1, late fees will resume for customers who have not paid their past due balance or signed up for a payment...more
News
Man back in jail hours later on gun/burglary charges
A 23-year-old Marathon man released from jail Saturday afternoon on gun- and drug-related charges was arrested Saturday night on new gun and burglary charges. Rickie Santiago Pacheco was...more
Chicken kicker booted into jail
May 27, 2020A 43-year-old Marathon man was arrested Monday for kicking a chicken. Nicholas Kevin Chew was charged with animal cruelty, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office. Sgt. Joel Slough...more
DeSantis sends Jamaican- and Cuban-American to Supreme Court
May 27, 2020MIAMI — Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed two Floridians from minority communities to the state Supreme Court on Tuesday: a Palm Beach County circuit judge who immigrated from Jamaica and a former...more
Veteran charged with taking guns to VA clinic in Florida
May 27, 2020PENSACOLA — A U.S. Navy veteran has been indicted on federal charges of bringing a rifle and a handgun to a Florida veterans clinic with the intent to commit a crime. A federal grand jury in...more
Florida revenues fall by nearly $900 million amid pandemic
May 27, 2020TALLAHASSEE — The state of Florida might have lost nearly $900 million in tax revenues in April — far more than state officials anticipated — as the coronavirus pandemic siphoned away tourist...more
Citizen's Voice
Citizens Voice: May 27
“Out to dinner last night and only three tables had diners. This is a shame on two counts: all this mask-wearing and social distancing is virus theater, much as the TSA is security theater. And,...more
Dry Tortugas starts reopening
May 27, 2020The National Park Service has increased recreational access to Dry Tortugas National Park. Over the Memorial Day weekend, the Dry Tortugas National Park reopened access to the outdoor areas on...more
KEYS defers late fees
May 27, 2020Keys Energy Services will continue waiving late fees through June 30. Beginning July 1, late fees will resume for customers who have not paid their past due balance or signed up for a payment...more
Mosquito control aerial mission Thursday
May 27, 2020On Thursday, May 27, the Florida Keys Mosquito Control District will conduct an aerial larvicide mission via helicopter, weather permitting, from 6:30 to 9:30 a.m. The treatment area is Key...more
United Way offers online directory
May 26, 2020United Way of Collier and the Florida Keys has created a comprehensive online listing of COVID-19 Monroe County resources, including food pantries and other critical services, changes to...more
Bookings for 05/27/20 All charges are preliminary
Key Largo, Islamorada, Marathon & Big Pine News
Neighborhood boxes share love of books
FLORIDA KEYS — Take what book you want and leave what you like. It’s a handmade wooden box that works as a neighborly honor system for paperbacks and heavy tomes alike. That’s the simple idea...more
June 1 reopening leaves some behind
May 27, 2020FLORIDA KEYS — As the Florida Keys prepare to open the checkpoints and lodges Monday to allow visitors to return, dozens of small businesses will remain shuttered, while others eagerly await a...more
Majeska resigns from sewer board to run for county seat
May 27, 2020KEY LARGO — Robby Majeska has announced his resignation from the local sewer board in order to run for the Monroe County Commission Seat 5 in November.“I had to resign 10 days before I qualified...more
Keys nonprofit spares foxes from fur farm
May 20, 2020KEY LARGO — Marred by slight imperfections, red foxes “Libby” and “Louie” were recently deemed unwanted by a Midwest fur farmer. To save them from certain death, longtime animal advocate Nicole...more
Huge fire burns mainland Monroe
May 20, 2020MONROE COUNTY — The winds shifted south days after the “Moon Fish” wildfire broke out, wafting smoke over the Florida Keys, perhaps the only hint locally of the enormous blaze that has threatened...more
Editorials
Cheers and Jeers
Cheers: To the City of Key West and Monroe County for working very hard to keep virtually all Keys residents virus-free for the past 60 days. And while we agree that the Keys deserves to reopen...more
Key West as ‘Animal Farm’?
May 20, 2020The cruise tourist haters invoke the One Human Family slogan to paint themselves as advocates for all people. However, like the corrupt ruling class in George Orwell’s classic, “Animal Farm,”...more
Picking up the pieces
May 20, 2020I understand that people want and need to get back to work just as I do. We all want things to be normal again. I have read with curiosity about the protests for an unbridled opening of our...more
Vote for safety
May 20, 2020Recent surveys show that Key West citizens are concerned about the biggest cruise ships with the worst health, safety and environmental violations. The Committee for Safer, Cleaner Ships was...more
When fear meets desperation, we must all weigh choices
May 16, 2020Suddenly, it feels like we are approaching an inevitable crossroads in the Florida Keys. It’s as if we’re a volcano about to erupt. When the dust settles, our landscape could be changed...more
Sports
Ricart to play basketball at FNU next year
For the past half-decade, Leta Ricart has been a staple of the Monroe County girls basketball scene as she has been a part of the All-County team for each of the past five seasons and twice...more
WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN?: Conchs moving on but will always ponder potential outcome of season
May 23, 2020What could have been?That will be a question that is never answered but often pondered by Key West High baseball fans and players, as the 2020 version of the Conchs seemed primed to snap a...more
Walters signs to play baseball at Santa Fe
May 22, 2020Graduating from the University of Florida is just part of being a Walters, as Michaela, Rachel and Sean, all of whom graduated from Coral Shores, went on to become Gators. So while, the...more
Hurricanes end with bang to give seniors some closure
May 22, 2020Stepping onto the diamond March 13, the Coral Shores High baseball team knew it would be the final game they played for at least the next 11 days as it did not have a Spring Break trip planned...more
Achievements for ‘Fins in shortened season set team up for future
May 20, 2020It may have only been 12 games, but in that span before the shutdown due to the coronavirus, Marathon High baseball coach Joey Gonzalez is confident the numerous accomplishments his program...more
