The F-16 jet team will perform their aerobatic expertise at the Nov 1-3 Florida International Air Show at the Punta Gorda Airport. Tickets and sponsorships are available now.

As of March 20th, Sunseekers Resort is officially building. Several walls went up quickly, pilings are now in the works. Phase 1 will include 3 buildings and the convention center. The project promises to offer hundreds of jobs in the local area.

This year, two districts will be electing candidates, District 3 and District 5. Important dates: Qualifing Period (forms/petition due) June 17 Noon to June 21 Noon. Primary election: Aug 27. General election: Nov 5. MORE INFO HERE

Punta Gorda ranks 10th in the state of FL in the Top 20 Safest Cities. Venice and North Port also ranked in this group. Thank you to our local Charlotte County law enforcement agencies – and to law-abiding citizens!

Every year the PG Chamber prints a substantial magazine that includes Chamber members, along with info-articles about the area. The Chamber office sees a steady flow of vacationers throughout the year and this is the first thing they pick up. Watch for it late May.

About every 3 years, Chamber prints a new, local-use street map of Downtown Punta Gorda, complete with featured downtown businesses. It just went to print and is due out late June.

Katie Mazzi, Friends of the Punta Gorda Library president, reports that the shelving and furniture for the new library have been ordered and is expected to arrive and be installed by July. A projected grand opening is still planned for August. The Friends donated $155,000 for the furnishings for the children, youth and teen areas. 

The Friends of the Punta Gorda Library requested that the teen area of the new library be named for Mary Knowlton. The County Commissioners have approved this request.   Mary was an educator and was committed to having a space in the new library for teens.

The new library will now be open on Mondays.  This means that the Punta Gorda-Charlotte Library will be open Mondays through Saturdays.

Starting salary for new teachers in Charlotte County was raised 17+% by the County Commissioners, bringing the them more in line with the state. Teachers in the system may also see a pay raise of about 6%. Says Superintendent Breiner, “[low salaries] has left our district in a less-than-competitive position in the recruitment, instructional and leadership staff.”

After airing a couple series in 2015, HGTV has been filming around Punta Gorda for three episodes on finding dream homes in Port Charlotte (beach front), North Port and Punta Gorda. VIEW HERE.

50 years ago, New York had 4-times the population of Florida, now Florida is larger than New York. Gov. DeSantis reports a $1.4B revenue surplus. In PG, home sales abound, small businesses see growth.