Thursday, June 11, 2026
Your new 7-mile shortcut opens tomorrow
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Partly sunny and 90 today, with the usual storms rolling in after lunch — a classic locals'-summer Thursday. And after years of orange cones, the Vanderbilt Beach Road extension finally opens tomorrow, changing the drive for everyone east of Collier Boulevard.
Today
Vanderbilt Beach Road extension opens tomorrow
Seven new miles from Collier Boulevard out to 16th Street Northeast open June 12 — Golden Gate Estates commuters finally get a real alternative to white-knuckling Immokalee Road.
Beach morning, anyone? Red tide is all clear
FWC's latest samples show nothing from Barefoot Beach down to South Marco, and high tide hits the Pier at 9:15 a.m. — go early and be off the sand before the afternoon thunderheads build.
This Weekend
A new boardwalk into the Everglades, right off Alligator Alley
At Mile Marker 35, an elevated walkway threads through five different habitats — with summer traffic this light, it's an easy weekend road trip that turns a rest stop into the destination.
Your summer of free stuff starts now
By one count we've got 67 days before the kids are back in school — this running list of free Collier events is the cheapest way to fill them.
Local News
The Gate Golf Club tees off in December
The county's new public course in Golden Gate brings a nine-hole regulation layout, driving range and restaurant — public tee times in a town where most fairways sit behind a gatehouse.
Publix at Neapolitan Way is back July 2
The rebuilt store off US-41 returns at nearly 52,000 square feet with a mezzanine and self-checkout — Park Shore neighbors can finally stop detouring for groceries.
NCH tops out its $295M heart and stroke center
The nearly 200,000-square-foot facility on the downtown campus is due in late 2027 — the kind of cardiac and stroke care that means not having to leave town when minutes matter.
Food & Drink
Eddie V's lands at Waterside Shops
The upscale seafood-and-steaks brand opened its first Southwest Florida location June 7 — a splashy bet on Naples appetites holding strong straight through the quiet season.
Naples chef Elmo Bida makes the 40 Under 40
Club + Resort Chef magazine singled out the 16-year veteran for dishes like a Bolivian peanut soup — proof some of our most inventive cooking happens behind club doors.