MONROE COUNTY, FL – Local restaurants are encouraged to join Monroe County Solid Waste and Recycling and its partners to reduce single-use waste through September 2025 by taking the pledge to “Skip the Stuff” this summer. In addition, restaurant goers are also encouraged to “Skip the Stuff” too.
 
“We are asking restaurants and businesses to provide single-use silverware, straws, bags, napkins, and condiment packets, only upon request,” said Recycling Outreach Coordinator Melody Tuschel. “The goal of this program is to reduce single-use waste, show your business that it can save money by actively providing products upon request only, and keep plastic debris from entering our fragile local waters.”
 
Restaurants can sign up by taking the pledge through the Surfrider Foundation at https://floridakeys.surfrider.org/skip-the-stuff. 

The American Heart Association presents Get With The Guidelines® - Stroke Gold Plus award for proven dedication to ensuring all stroke patients have access to best practices and life-saving care

KEY WEST, Fla. – JULY 10, 2025 – Lower Keys Medical Center has received the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines® - Stroke Gold Plus quality achievement award for its commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines, ultimately leading to more lives saved and reduced disability.
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Stroke is the No. 5 cause of death and a leading cause of disability in the U.S. A stroke occurs when a blood vessel that carries oxygen and nutrients to the brain is either blocked by a clot or bursts. When that happens, part of the brain cannot get the blood and oxygen it needs, so brain cells die. Early stroke detection and treatment are key to improving survival, minimizing disability and accelerating recovery times.

Get With The Guidelines puts the expertise of the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association to work for hospitals nationwide, helping ensure patient care is aligned with the latest research- and evidence-based guidelines. Get With The Guidelines - Stroke is an in-hospital program for improving stroke care by promoting consistent adherence to these guidelines, which can minimize the long-term effects of a stroke and even prevent death.
“Lower Keys Medical Center is committed to improving patient care by adhering to the latest treatment guidelines,” said Drew Bigby, CEO.  “Get With The Guidelines makes it easier for our teams to put proven knowledge and guidelines to work on a daily basis, which studies show can help patients recover better. The end goal is to help more people in the Lower Keys and Key West experience longer, healthier lives.”

Each year, program participants qualify for the award by demonstrating how their organization has committed to providing quality care for stroke patients. In addition to following treatment guidelines, Get With The Guidelines participants also educate patients to help them manage their health and recovery at home.
 
“We are incredibly pleased to recognize Lower Keys Medical Center for its commitment to caring for patients with stroke,” said Steven Messe, M.D., volunteer chair of the American Heart Association Stroke System of Care Advisory Group. “Participation in Get With The Guidelines is associated with improved patient outcomes, fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates – a win for health care systems, families and communities.”
 
Lower Keys Medical Center also received the American Heart Association’s Target: Stroke℠ Honor Roll Elite Plus award. To qualify for this recognition, hospitals must meet specific criteria that reduce the time between an eligible patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with thrombolytic therapy.
 
Lower Keys Medical Center also met specific scientific guidelines as a Primary Stroke Center, featuring a comprehensive system for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients admitted to the emergency department. 

​MONROE COUNTY, FL – Monroe County will hold a special public budget meeting on Tuesday, July 15, 2025, at 3 p.m. at the Marathon Government Center. During this meeting, Assistant Budget Director John Quinn will present the recommended Fiscal Year 2026 budget to the Monroe County Board of County Commissioners, who will certify the proposed millage rate to the Property Appraiser, establishing the rate that will appear on residents’ TRIM notices. The agenda, detailed budget letter, and meeting information can be found at www.monroecounty-fl.gov/meetings.
 
Key topics covered in the recommended FY2026 budget and discussion include:

• Proposed $678.5 million Fiscal Year 2026 budget that begins Oct. 1, 2025, which is a decrease of $37 million from FY25.
• State and Federal decreases in revenue, including trends of local sales and bed taxes declining.
• Monroe County’s proposed millage rate, typically the lowest in Florida, to minimize property tax impacts on residents
• Major investments in public safety
• Measures to improve government efficiency, being guided by the State Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) through departmental consolidations and mergers, staff reductions, and cuts to non-core services.
• Discussion about building emergency and disaster reserves in preparation for potential changes to federal disaster assistance programs.
• Focus on maintaining existing county infrastructure.

  
“We’ve developed a tiered plan to reduce expenses, closely tied to thoroughly reviewing our commitment to fiscal responsibility, protecting core services, and preparing Monroe County for future challenges,” said Monroe County Administrator Christine Hurley.
 
Core services are those fundamental to a safe and functioning county, such as public safety, roads, building safety, solid waste, emergency response, and environmental protection, and are usually non-negotiable. These differ from quality-of-life services, such as parks and beaches, recreational services, libraries, and nonprofit funding.
 
“While the county values quality of life programs, in times of constrained revenues, local governments must first ensure that essential services are preserved first,” said Hurley. “We need to focus on sustaining what works, pausing what doesn’t, and staying flexible.”
 
The proposed budget includes tier 1 and 2 reductions in spending:

• Tier 1 (anticipated a moderate revenue decline and we were able to plan for cutting $10.6 million in operating and vacancy savings),
• Tier 2 (anticipated a greater revenue loss and we were able to plan for cutting $13.6 million in operating, vacancy savings (17 positions), a 50 percent cut to outside agency funding, and approximately 20 occupied positions), and
• Tier 3 (anticipated a deeper impact with a plan for cutting and additional $4.4 million for a total of $18M in operating, vacancy savings (17 positions), a 100 percent cut to outside agency funding, and approximately 23 additional occupied positions for a total of 17 vacancy cuts and 43 occupied positions.

 
Commissioners will discuss Tier 3 reductions to apply the savings to emergency reserves, or they may increase the countywide millage rate to generate additional revenue for the reserves, or pursue a combination of both approaches, which could contribute up to $8 million. Emergency reserves are currently $10 million, but the federal government has been messaging that they may play a lesser role in disaster response and FEMA assistance.  Therefore, staff are recommending increasing emergency reserves.
 
“This year’s cost reduction scenarios include eliminating occupied positions, which is something that weighs heavily on all of us,” said Hurley. “We are grateful to the employees whose positions are impacted, who have served Monroe County with professionalism and dedication, and this decision to eliminate positions is in no way a reflection of their performance. This decision was not made lightly. Every option was considered, and we worked tirelessly to explore ways to minimize the impact while fulfilling our obligation to provide critical services to the community within our budget.”
 
Staff will continue to monitor the budget process throughout the summer and review several additional items that could impact the budget before its final adoption in September.
 
Following the special budget meeting in July, the first and final budget hearings will be held Sept. 3 in Key West and Sept. 10 in Key Largo, both at 5:05 p.m.

​MONROE COUNTY, FL – At the regularly scheduled Board of County Commissioners meeting on Wednesday, July 16, at approximately 11:45 a.m., at the Marathon Government Center and on Zoom, there will be a public hearing to consider adoption of an ordinance amending Section 6-112 of the Monroe County Code of Ordinances. The proposed ordinance clarifies that for temporary uses, excluding public assemblies and temporary construction staging areas, only one special building permit may be issued per property for a specific temporary use.
 
The agenda and meeting information can be found at www.monroecounty-fl.gov/meetings. The item is S6.
 
If adopted, a temporary use permit would not be extended or reissued in a way that would allow a food truck or other temporary use to remain on a property for more than six months in unincorporated Monroe County. Any proposed use to continue beyond that timeframe would require a separate building permit and/or additional development approvals. Temporary construction trailers or temporary housing, for example, after a hurricane, can be extended for longer periods of time.
  
Under the proposed amendment, once the initial six-month temporary use permit expires, temporary structures and associated uses must be removed. Any use, including a food truck, that intends to remain on a property for more than six months will be considered a permanent use and must meet all applicable standards outlined in the Monroe County Land Development Code.
 
For additional information on current regulations related to food truck uses within unincorporated Monroe County, visit www.monroecounty-fl.gov/181.
 
For questions, contact the Monroe County Planning and Environmental Resources Department at 305-289-2500.

July 10, 2025 – (KEY WEST, FL).  The Key West Art & Historical Society invites the public to a special evening reception on Friday, July 18, from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Key West Museum of Art & History to celebrate the opening of Visions of Florida: The Photographic Art of Clyde Butcher, a captivating exhibition on temporary loan from the Museum of Florida History that offers an intimate glimpse into the raw beauty of Florida’s vanishing wilderness.

This remarkable collection showcases the work of Clyde Butcher, one of America’s most celebrated landscape photographers, often hailed as the “Ansel Adams of Florida.”  Through his powerful large-format black and white photography, Butcher captures the breathtaking serenity, mystery, and grandeur of Florida’s natural environment—its swamps, wetlands, mangroves, and the untouched corners of the Everglades.

Visions of Florida is more than a photography exhibition; it is an immersive journey into a fragile ecosystem under threat.  Butcher’s lens reveals a side of Florida that few tourists—and even longtime residents—ever experience.  Renowned for his adventurous and painstaking photographic process, Butcher often wades waist-deep into remote marshes, swamp waters, and riverbeds, braving the elements and wildlife to capture the perfect shot.  Armed with a custom-built large-format camera and a fearless spirit, he has endured mosquitoes, heat, and even close encounters with alligators—all in pursuit of a fleeting moment of perfect light and composition.

“Clyde Butcher’s work reminds us of the extraordinary natural heritage we stand to lose,” says Society curator Cori Convertito, Ph.D.  “His images speak not only to the aesthetic power of photography but also to the urgent need for environmental stewardship.”

The exhibition will be on view in the Bumpus Gallery at the Key West Museum of Art & History through October 19, 2025.  This reception is free and open to the public.  All are welcome to attend and experience the striking beauty of Visions of Florida through the eyes of one of the country’s most gifted nature photographers.

For more information, please visit kwahs.org/butcher-opening or contact the Key West Art & Historical Society at (305) 295-6616.

​MONROE COUNTY, FL – Monroe County Community Services – Veterans Affairs proudly supports the upcoming Southernmost Honor Flight for World War II, Korean War, and Vietnam War Veterans departing from the Florida Keys on Sept. 5 to travel Ft. Lauderdale and then fly to Washington, D.C. on Sept. 6 for a day of touring national memorials and monuments. This marks the first time an Honor Flight will originate from the Florida Keys.
 
“We will be here to support and celebrate our Veterans every step of the way,” said Director Cathy Crane, who is a U.S. Army Iraq War Veteran. “It’s a powerful way to recognize the sacrifices of our local Veterans and provide them with an unforgettable day of remembrance and connection.”
 
To help fund this historic flight, which is free for the participating Veterans, the community is invited to a military-themed fundraiser on Saturday, July 26, from noon to 3 p.m. at the Winn-Dixie shopping center, 91200 Overseas Hwy, Tavernier. A suggested donation of $20 includes food, drinks, patriotic fun, and sponsorship opportunities to directly support the flight.
 
To learn more about the Southernmost Honor Flight, visit www.honorflightsouthflorida.org or call Honor Flight South Florida Director of  Operations Ryan Paton at 954-445-4285. For more information on Monroe County Veterans Affairs, visit www.monroecounty-fl.gov/va.

​MONROE COUNTY, FL – The Monroe County Clerk of the Court and Comptroller released an audit evaluating the management of grants administered by Monroe County Social Services. The audit, covering the fiscal years 2022 to 2024, identified serious issues related to compliance, operational structure, and record-keeping that are being addressed immediately by Assistant County Administrator Tina Boan and the new Director of Community Services Cathy Crane, who assumed management of these operations in mid-June.
 
According to the clerk’s office, deficiencies in oversight and outdated practices may have led to a potential budget shortfall exceeding $2 million. The financial irregularities identified do not indicate employee theft. Rather, they indicate deficiencies in financial recordkeeping, including improper bookkeeping, unreimbursed expenditures, misclassification of expenses, and other accounting errors that accumulated over multiple years.
 
“We take the findings of the audit very seriously and are fully committed to long-term change to make sure the department is remediated,” said Boan. “The county is committed to ensuring the responsible stewardship of public funds and is implementing corrective measures to strengthen internal controls, improve operational efficiency, and ensure full compliance with grant requirements.”
 
The department, under new leadership, has acknowledged the audit findings and is taking comprehensive steps to improve operations, including:

• Establishing defined workflows and implementing new policies and procedures
• Adding staff training and cross-training
• Implementing a centralized intake and case tracking system
• Transitioning from paper-based to digital records, including timekeeping and applications
• Improving budgetary tracking and grant reconciliation processes
• Enhancing communication with granting agencies and internal departments

 
The county will engage an outside firm to facilitate the forensic reconciliation of associated grant cost centers and will conduct a year-by-year review to identify expenditures that were not properly budgeted. Additional training and policy updates are underway to ensure alignment with county administrative requirements and federal and state grant compliance standards.
 
“The clerk’s office and county administration will continue to collaborate to address the issues raised in the audit and ensure sustained accountability and improved service delivery for Monroe County residents,” said Boan.
 
The audit will be discussed by the Board of County Commissioners, likely at the Aug. 20 regularly scheduled meeting in Key West. 
 
To learn more about the assistance programs social services offers, visit www.monroecounty-fl.gov/socialservices.

​MONROE COUNTY, FL – Monroe County’s Fleet Management has been recognized among the best in the industry, earning 17th place in North America’s 2025 Leading Fleets award by Government Fleet magazine and the American Public Works Association (APWA) and 24th in the 100 Best Public Fleets in the Americas. The honor places Monroe County among the top-ranked government fleet operations out of more than 38,000 fleets across the continent.
 
The awards recognize operations demonstrating excellence in efficiency, effectiveness, innovation, and leadership, including

• Efficiency, effectiveness, and modernity of the fleet operation.
• Metrics tracking and performance measurement.
• Leadership within the team, customer service, community engagement, and contributions to the fleet industry.
• Operational efficiency.
• A clear vision for the future and steps taken toward achieving it.
• Success in addressing and overcoming challenges.

 
“This recognition is a testament to the dedication, innovation, and hard work of our team,” said Fleet Management Director Daryl Greenlee. “Our department’s commitment to excellence ensures Monroe County’s vehicles are safe, reliable, and cost-effective for the many critical services staff members provide to our residents.”
 
Monroe County Fleet Management’s 20 employees operate three county garages and provide safety, maintenance, and repairs for approximately 850 vehicles, including 305 sheriff department vehicles. They are also responsible for the county’s 70 emergency generators and focus on being eco-friendly with high regard for safety. In 2024, the department completed 5,651 work orders.
 
The 50 Leading Fleets and 100 Best Public Fleets represent the industry’s elite, and these recognitions highlight Monroe County’s ongoing efforts to modernize its fleet, enhance sustainability, and deliver outstanding service to the community.

​On Saturday, August 16, from 10:00am – 1:00pm, experienced and aspiring artists can join a one-of-a-kind Paint & Sip workshop lead by Wesley Truman Daniel, professional artist, art instructor, and great-grandson of President Harry S. Truman, held on the beautiful grounds of the Harry S. Truman Little White House, 111 Front Street, Key West, Florida.

The event is the second installment in this year’s “TRU-ly Amazing Art” series, organized by the not-for-profit Key West Harry S. Truman Foundation.

Whether a seasoned painter or just starting out, this engaging outdoor workshop offers the rare opportunity to paint alongside Wesley Truman Daniel as he shares techniques, offers guidance, and connects with participants in a relaxed, inspiring atmosphere.

Each registered guest receives a genuine 1911 roof shingle from the historic Truman Little White House to use as their canvas. Artists bring their own outdoor painting setup: easel, paints, brushes, etc. A donation-based bar will offer wine, beer and non-alcoholic options, and participants are encouraged to pack a lunch and picnic blanket to make the most of this leisurely, art filled day.

TRU-ly Amazing Art events benefit the Harry S. Truman Little White House and are presented with the support of the Monroe County Tourist Development Council. The mission of the not-for-profit Harry S. Truman Foundation is to preserve Florida’s only presidential museum—the Harry S. Truman Little White House—and to provide programming that supports civic engagement, education, and the historical and cultural influences of the Truman era.
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Tickets and registration are available at https://www.trumanlittlewhitehouse.org/foundation/events