Nobody is a real expert these days and opinions are cheap. So for what it’s worth, here are one non-expert’s opinions in the form of a mid-year report card.
A+ for Naples living – Accolades poured in during the first half of the year. U.S. News & World Report ranked Naples the best place to live in the United States, a stunning endorsement based on quality of life, job market, health care, low crime and overall value for the dollar. Naysayers were quick to point out that the astronomical cost of living prices most people out of the Naples market.
Other distinctions …
• Forbes said Florida is the best state for retirement.
• Business Observer refined that by singling out Collier County’s Pelican Bay.
• Delnor-Wiggins State Park was said to have America’s 8th best beach.
• Four Florida cities were included among the country’s 10 hottest job markets.
D for home insurance – On the downside, Florida residents are taking it on the chin when it comes to housing expenses. Most debilitating is home insurance, by far the highest in the country. Nationally, property insurance rates are up 20 percent and Florida is the worst of the worse with an average premium of $10,996. No one expects much improvement going forward.
TRECKER
C- for workforce housing – Politicians have huffed and puffed for years, but little has changed. There is still a painful shortage of affordable housing. That’s true in Florida in general and Collier County in particular, where workers who can’t afford to live here still clog the highways as they commute to and from jobs every weekday. Some progress has been made. Locally, a hotel is being converted into low-cost apartments, Marco Island is pursuing unused office space and Immokalee
Fair Housing is continuing to build some affordable units. There may be a glimmer of hope.
A for philanthropy – Generosity is a part of life in Southwest Florida, as those who can afford to help continue to help. Collier got the nod as Florida’s No. 1 county for giving (SmartAsset) based on donation as a percentage of net income and the proportion of people who make charitable gifts. This comes as no surprise. The wealthy have shared their largesse for as long as I can remember. A good example is the Naples Winter Wine Festival, which this year raised more than $33 million for needy children.
C for state legislation – Tallahassee gave us ho-hum legislation in 2024, with something, but not much, for everyone. Gov. DeSantis signed off on a $116.5 billion budget that was distinguished primarily by coming in near current-year spending, maybe not a bad thing in these inflationary times. But the budget skimped on the arts and environment and boosted housing and education far too little.
Local programs scored modest gains. That’s better than nothing, I guess.
A+ for the arts – The Naples Philharmonic never disappoints, and 2024 was no exception. Several versions of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue delighted concertgoers in February. Sypert chamber music scored big with a terrific Mendelssohn string quartet in March. And Mahler’s Fifth Symphony put an exclamation point on the season in May. Dial up the applause.
F for the weather – So far, 2024 has been a stinker. Locally we’ve had drought followed by drenching rains followed by flooding. The country in general has been buffeted by searing heat, torrential downpours, wildfires, landslides and tornados. And it’s not even hurricane season yet. So, hunker down. The worst is yet to come. The next four months are supposed to give us some of the most severe coastal weather we’ve ever seen. ¦
— Dave Trecker is a chemist and retired Pfizer executive living in Florida.
The post Grading the first half of 2024 first appeared on Bonita Springs Florida Weekly .
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