It’s good news our Collier County commissioners addressed some key issues involving workforce housing. They did so because you made them do it! You called and wrote to commissioners and attended their town hall and government meetings. You demanded action and we got it!This past year we have witnessed a public awakening to this crisis impacting our essential workers, and ultimately felt by all of us. The de facto minimum wage has climbed in less than three years, from $8.50/hour to over $17. Still this is only $35,000 per year -- an amount no one can afford to live on in Collier County. It’s why over 50,000 of our workers spend up to three hours a day traveling from other counties to and from their jobs here.How does this affect us? That’s simple -- higher prices for everything, along with reduced quality of service everywhere. Our health care providers, schools, restaurants and even local governments continue to lose workers at a pace faster than they can hire them. And the workers they are losing have years of training.Let’s quickly celebrate the zoning changes our commissioners implemented last month. They were originally proposed by the consultants Urban Land Institute in 2017, so long overdue.Let’s also applaud the rules my former committee proposed and the commissioners adopted, so the $20 million earmarked for workforce land purchases can begin. This has been waiting since 2018 when the surtax referendum was...
Kevin Sabet, CEO of Smart Approaches to Marijuana, discusses a class-action lawsuit against Chicago cannabis companies for allegedly marketing products with false medical benefits on 'America's New...