Construction workers work on the foundation of “Project Peach” as the Omni CRA held its groundbreaking for the development of the mixed-use affordable housing project in Overtown on Thursday, May 30, 2024, in Miami.
Carl Juste
cjuste@miamiherald.com
In South Florida, the pace of construction is far from keeping up with the needs of not only a growing senior citizen population filled with retiring Baby Boomers, but hourly wage workers who toil in the region’s traditional industries such as construction, health care, hospitality, retail, trade and transportation.
RentCafe, a firm that tracks apartment rental pricing nationwide, has released a survey that showed Broward and Palm Beach counties ranked well behind Miami-Dade in the construction of affordable housing for lower-income renters. The national survey took snapshots of new affordable apartment construction in nearly 150 metropolitan areas during two time periods: 2015 to 2019 and 2020 through 2024.
The greater Miami metropolitan area led the state “by a wide margin, with 8,690 affordable apartments completed between 2020 and 2024. These units account for about 19% of all new apartment construction in the metro,” Rent Cafe said. “Compared with the previous five-year period, affordable housing construction in Miami increased by 97%, reinforcing the metro’s role as Florida’s largest hub for income-restricted development.”
Investigators in Florida say a double homicide discovered during a well-being check was linked to a shooting rampage hours later in a gated community on the other side of the state, which left five more people dead including the suspected shooter.The suspect had a romantic relationship with one of the Fort Lauderdale victims, who was connected to the victims in the second shooting in Sarasota, but Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office detectives released few other details.“The suspect’s motivation for targeting the Sarasota victims is unknown,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement Wednesday.According to the sheriff’s office, deputies received a call around noon Tuesday reporting an adult male with gunshot wounds in the front yard of a residence in a gated community. That man was taken to a hospital where he died. Deputies entered the residence after neighbors said the man’s wife was likely inside the home.When deputies entered the home, deputies said they found four adult victims, two male and two female, pronounced dead on the scene. One of the male victims was the suspect, 51-year-old Russell Kot.While working to identify Kot, authorities in Sarasota received information from the Fort Lauderdale Police Department advising that they were actively investigating a double homicide, and they believed their suspect was involved in the Sarasota shooting.Fort Lauderdale is more than 200 miles away from Sarasota, on the opposite side of Florida’s main peninsula.Fort Lauderdale provided Sarasota with the suspect’s vehicle information, which can be seen entering the neighborhood around 11:30 a.m. Sarasota deputies said their investigation revealed Kot had been in a previous romantic relationship with one of the victims in the Fort Lauderdale double homicide.That victim was also connected to the four people shot in Sarasota.The suspect’s motivation for targeting the Sarasota victims is unknown, officials said.The victims in the Sarasota shooting were later identified as Olga Greinert, Florita Stolyar, Anatoly Ioffe and Yaroslav Blyudoy.The Associated Press contributed to this report.
SARASOTA, Fla. —
Investigators in Florida say a double homicide discovered during a well-being check was linked to a shooting rampage hours later in a gated community on the other side of the state, which left five more people dead including the suspected shooter.
The suspect had a romantic relationship with one of the Fort Lauderdale victims, who was connected to the victims in the second shooting in Sarasota, but Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office detectives released few other details.
“The suspect’s motivation for targeting the Sarasota victims is unknown,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement Wednesday.
According to the sheriff’s office, deputies received a call around noon Tuesday reporting an adult male with gunshot wounds in the front yard of a residence in a gated community. That man was taken to a hospital where he died.
Deputies entered the residence after neighbors said the man’s wife was likely inside the home.
When deputies entered the home, deputies said they found four adult victims, two male and two female, pronounced dead on the scene. One of the male victims was the suspect, 51-year-old Russell Kot.
While working to identify Kot, authorities in Sarasota received information from the Fort Lauderdale Police Department advising that they were actively investigating a double homicide, and they believed their suspect was involved in the Sarasota shooting.
Fort Lauderdale is more than 200 miles away from Sarasota, on the opposite side of Florida’s main peninsula.
Fort Lauderdale provided Sarasota with the suspect’s vehicle information, which can be seen entering the neighborhood around 11:30 a.m.
Sarasota deputies said their investigation revealed Kot had been in a previous romantic relationship with one of the victims in the Fort Lauderdale double homicide.
That victim was also connected to the four people shot in Sarasota.
The suspect’s motivation for targeting the Sarasota victims is unknown, officials said.
The victims in the Sarasota shooting were later identified as Olga Greinert, Florita Stolyar, Anatoly Ioffe and Yaroslav Blyudoy.
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Six people in Sarasota and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, are dead in what police say is a cross-state murder spree by the same suspect Wednesday morning. The suspect was also found dead, authorities said.
Police say the murder spree began in the upscale Victoria Park neighborhood in Fort Lauderdale and ended in a gated community in Sarasota County, about 200 miles northwest of Fort Lauderdale.
The Fort Lauderdale Police Department said it received a call for a well-being check on the 500 block of Northeast 15th Avenue, where they found two adults, identified as Larisa Blyudaya, 46, and Ben Azivov, 18, dead in the home. They were both residents of Fort Lauderdale.
The property manager for the home spoke with CBS News Miami, confirming Ben Azivov is the son of Larisa Blyudaya.
“She was just a happy, happy woman,” said property manager Joe Askerberg. “Never an ounce of negative energy in all my time dealing with her.
A neighbor told CBS News Miami that he saw someone go into the residence on Tuesday morning.
“[Y]esterday morning, I was loading my tools in my vehicle, and I saw a guy come running around here, and he went to the driveway and hit the keypad on the garage door, and the door went up, and I just didn’t think anything of it,” Mark Scinna said. “And then I got a call around 3 o’clock … what had happened. I started tying everything together and I was like, ‘Man, I hope that wasn’t the guy that I saw.”
Across the state, Sarasota police were called after they say a man was shot at the front door of a home in a gated community in the Amberlea neighborhood near Proctor and McIntosh roads. There, the bodies of five victims were found, including the suspect, who police identified as Russell Kot, 51, of Fort Lauderdale. Police believe Kot died from self-inflicted gunshot wounds.
Askerberg said Blyudaya moved to South Florida from Chicago late last year. Her son and Kot lived with her, all residing in separate rooms, according to Askerberg. He said Kot kept to himself.
“He was very quiet. I have been scratching my head, wondering where, how he would go through with this, and then also drive four hours and see red the whole time and commit more,” Askerberg said.
The other four victims ranged in age from 39 to 66. They were identified as Olga Greinert, 49, Florita Stolyar, 66, Anatoly Ioffe, 61, and Yaroslav Blyudoy, 39.
Matt Binkley of the Sarasota Sheriff’s Office said police have accounted for “all persons” in the incident and there’s no threat to the public.
Regarding a motive in the Fort Lauderdale shooting, investigators say the gunman had a romantic relationship with one of the victims. The connection between the other victims in Sarasota County is still unknown. Fort Lauderdale police said homicide detectives are investigating.
Sarasota Police said they are not aware of any mental health crises or history of violence related to Kot.
A Fort Lauderdale woman was arrested Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026, and accused of stealing more than $1..2 million from a Deerfield Beach party store to “live the high life,” the Broward County Sheriff’s Office said.
Miami Herald File
A woman stole more than $1.2 million from a Broward event company, racking up big bills for diamond jewelry, private jets and renting out luxurious lodgings, the Broward Sheriff’s Office said Thursday.
Keshon Litesha Rivers, 32, of Fort Lauderdale wanted to “live the high life,” the law-enforcement agency said.
According to the sheriff’s office, Rivers owned a party planning business, Lock and Key Designs, and worked with Event Décor Direct — a party store in Deerfield Beach — “while she was stealing money from them,” between May and August 2025.
“We’ve been in business with her for quite some time, and it kind of shocked us that this happened,” Event Décor Direct Executive Manager Stephanie Menard told the Miami Herald.
Rivers is accused of making dozens of fraudulent credit-card transactions, including more than $85,000 for gold and diamond jewelry, $55,000 for a private jet flight from Fort Lauderdale to Los Angeles and $43,000 for mansion home rentals in Miami Beach and Los Angeles.
There were some issues with Rivers’ transactions that raised red flags, Menard said. It’s a small business, so the fraud “affected us in a big way.”
BSO spokesperson Carey Codd said the agency can’t provide additional information about how Rivers committed the crime, as the investigation is active and ongoing.
“This was a complicated, complex credit-card fraud scheme,” Codd said.
“To further the ruse, detectives say Rivers even created a fictitious individual who, when questioned, she blamed for the fraudulent credit-card charges,” the agency said. “Detectives determined that person does not exist.”
Rivers was arrested Wednesday and is being held without bond at the Broward County Main Jail, jail records show.. She is facing charges of organized scheme to defraud, grand theft of more than $100,000 and money laundering. Rivers did not have an attorney listed yet in court records.
Rivers is on probation on similar organized fraud charges out of Polk County until 2030, BSO said. . Anyone with information can contact BSO Detective Christopher Bradley at 954-480-4300.
Children enjoy a playground at Doral Central Park on August 26, 2024. Fort Lauderdale has adopted an ordinance that says adults are not permitted in playgrounds unless they are accompanying a child.
SAM NAVARRO
Special for the Miami Herald
Fort Lauderdale has adopted an ordinance that designates “Exclusive Children Play Areas” within city parks. The initiative comes with signs that say adults are not permitted in playgrounds unless they are accompanying a child.
So far, 44 parks have received the new signage.
District 4 Commissioner Ben Sorensen says the legislation came about after a constituent told him of a harrowing episode at a city playground.
“ She had her child in a playground area, and there was another adult without children that came into the playground area. They had their dog in that playground area, and that dog then attacked the daughter of this mother causing significant injury,” he said.
Sorensen says the new rule helps parents ensure that playgrounds are a safe and welcoming space for their children.
“ It’s not that we’re going to be proactively policing going around our park playgrounds. It’s a tool. So that should there be an adult that is acting in a way that’s not helpful, that’s not positive for the children around, police or park rangers can come and say, ‘Are you with a child? No? Then you need to leave the area,’ ” he said.
Other municipalities that have similar legislation include Miami, Hollywood and Palm Beach County.
This report was produced by Miami Herald news partner WLRN Public Media.
A 17-year-old has been arrested and will be charged with the shooting that killed another 17-year-old on New Year’s Eve at Fort Lauderdale’s Beach Place.
Marquice Henry, 17, was arrested Saturday after being found by Fort Lauderdale police’s fugitive unit and the U.S. Marshals Service. Whether or not Henry will be charged as an adult will be determined by the Broward County State Attorney’s Office.
A GoFundMe set up for the funeral of Joshua Gipson said he was at Beach Place, 17 S. Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd., when shooting started. In the crossfire, Joshua got hit in the back and thigh. He later died at a hospital.
This story was originally published January 11, 2026 at 1:29 PM.
Since 1989, David J. Neal’s domain at the Miami Herald has expanded to include writing about Panthers (NHL and FIU), Dolphins, old school animation, food safety, fraud, naughty lawyers, bad doctors and all manner of breaking news. He drinks coladas whole. He does not work Indianapolis 500 Race Day.
There was a New Year’s Eve shooting in the Fort Lauderdale beach area, according to Fort Lauderdale police, and social media said the shooting killed a 17-year-old.
Police said the shooting happened at Beach Place, 17 S. Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd. and sent one person to a hospital. By Thursday morning, Facebook and Instagram posts had identified the victim as Somerset Academy student Joshua Gipson Jr.
Along with 16-year-old Orlando Wedderburn, that means at least two teenagers were shot to death Wednesday night in Broward County.
Anyone with information on this can reach out to Fort Lauderdale police at 954-764-4357 (HELP) or Broward Crime Stoppers, either online or at 954-493-8477 (TIPS).
Since 1989, David J. Neal’s domain at the Miami Herald has expanded to include writing about Panthers (NHL and FIU), Dolphins, old school animation, food safety, fraud, naughty lawyers, bad doctors and all manner of breaking news. He drinks coladas whole. He does not work Indianapolis 500 Race Day.
A Seaside Celebration, Perfect for those local to South Florida and those traveling in.
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., December 4, 2025 (Newswire.com)
– This holiday season, trade snowflakes for sea breezes and celebrate in coastal style at the Fort Lauderdale Marriott Harbor Beach Resort & Spa. Nestled on 16 acres of pristine beachfront, the resort invites guests to experience a festive escape filled with tropical cheer, family-friendly activities, and unforgettable seaside memories.
From Christmas through New Year’s, the resort transforms into a holiday haven with twinkling lights, festive décor, and a lineup of joyful experiences for guests of all ages. Highlights include:
Hanukkah – First Evening – Join us on the first evening of Hanukkah and enjoy crafts and Hanukkah traditions with the chance for you to light your personal menorah during the celebration if you wish to bring.
In-Room Gingerbread Decorating Kits – Families can create sweet memories with freshly baked gingerbread pieces, colorful candies, and icing, all from the comfort of their room.
Coastal Holiday Experience – Add sparkle to your stay with a beautifully decorated guest room featuring an artificial Christmas tree and twinkling lights.
Elf Tuck-In Service – Children will delight in a magical bedtime experience with cookies, milk, a festive story, and a cuddly holiday plush friend.
Mrs. Claus Cookie Decorating & Story Time – A whimsical afternoon of sugar cookie decorating and North Pole tales, complete with an “Official Elf Cookie Maker” certificate and picture with Mrs. Claus.
Breakfast with Santa & Mrs. Claus – Enjoy story time, photos, and a reindeer food bar in a festive dining setting.
Holiday Cabana Nights – Celebrate poolside with lit Christmas tree additions, illuminated necklaces for kids, after-hours beverage service, and holiday lights.
Christmas Buffet at Riva Restaurant – Savor seasonal dishes and live carving stations curated by Chef Robert Sheldon, with sweeping ocean views as your backdrop.
New Year’s Eve Celebrations – Choose between a family-friendly buffet at Riva or a refined five-course dining experience at 3030 Ocean to ring in 2026 with elegance and flavor.
Seasonal Spa Treatments – Escape the holiday rush with rejuvenating treatments designed to restore balance and radiance by the sea.
Special Holiday Offers
Make the most of your stay with the resort’s Staycation Package, featuring:
Book your holiday stay today and experience the magic of winter by the water at harborbeach.ipoolside.com.
Set on 16 acres and a quarter mile stretch of private beach in Florida, Fort Lauderdale Marriott Harbor Beach Resort & Spa offers seven on-site food and beverage venues, a full-service spa, daily programming and entertainment, and more than 100,000 square feet of spectacular indoor and outdoor event space. Marriott Harbor Beach Resort offers laid-back tropical tranquility with signature Marriott service, and its central location places guests just minutes from Fort Lauderdale International Airport, the cruise port, and the shops, dining and nightlife of Fort Lauderdale’s famed Las Olas Boulevard.
To learn more about Fort Lauderdale Marriott Harbor Beach Resort & Spa, please visit marriott.com or call 954-525-4000.
Source: Fort Lauderdale Marriott Harbor Beach Resort and Spa
Campaign celebrates the “Venice of America” with a year-round focus on its water lifestyle.
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., November 13, 2025 (Newswire.com)
– Fort Lauderdale Beach is diving into the holiday season with the launch of “Ready, Set, Splash…Into the Holidays,” the first wave of a new, year-round marketing campaign funded by the City of Fort Lauderdale Beach Business Improvement District (BBID) and presented in media collaborations with Visit Florida and Brightline.
Designed to celebrate Fort Lauderdale’s reputation as the “Venice of America,” the “Ready, Set, Splash” campaign highlights the city’s deep connection to water, from its famous beachfront and boating lifestyle to its scenic canals, waterfront dining, and year-round events that bring the community together.
Through its media partnerships with Visit Florida and Brightline, the campaign will extend Fort Lauderdale Beach’s reach to travelers across Florida and key feeder markets, inviting visitors to discover, or rediscover, the destination’s signature water lifestyle and festive coastal charm. Throughout the year, residents and visitors will experience seasonal extensions of the campaign that showcase the many ways to enjoy life by the water, whether relaxing on the beach, exploring the Intracoastal, dining al fresco, or celebrating local arts and culture.
Launching this holiday season, “Ready, Set, Splash…Into the Holidays” sets the stage with festive décor, themed activations, and experiences that combine coastal spirit with holiday cheer. From illuminated boat parades and family-friendly festivities to luxury stays and oceanfront dining, the campaign invites everyone to make a splash this holiday season in true Fort Lauderdale style.
“Fort Lauderdale Beach truly shines as the “Venice of America,” where water connects our lifestyle, our culture, and our community,” said Lisa Namour, Chair of the BBID and General Manager of Bahia Mar, “This campaign captures that connection and celebrates it throughout the year, beginning with the holidays and continuing season after season.”
The “Ready, Set, Splash” campaign will evolve seasonally through 2026, spotlighting themes such as wellness, dining, arts, and adventure, all centered around the destination’s natural connection to water. The campaign aims to inspire both residents and visitors to explore the many ways Fort Lauderdale Beach makes every season a reason to splash into something new. To learn more about the campaign, click here.
About Fort Lauderdale Beach Fort Lauderdale Beach is one of South Florida’s premier coastal destinations, offering visitors a vibrant blend of natural beauty, cultural experiences, and laid-back luxury. With 24 miles of pristine beaches and turquoise waters, the area is perfect for sunbathing, swimming, water sports, and scenic strolls along its walkable oceanfront promenade. The beachfront district also boasts an array of hotels, dining, shopping, and entertainment options. Whether you’re seeking outdoor adventure, waterfront relaxation, or dynamic local events, Fort Lauderdale Beach offers a welcoming, unforgettable experience for travelers of all ages.
About the Beach Business Improvement District (BBID) The BBID, encompassing commercial properties on SR A1A, from Harbor Drive North to Sunrise Boulevard, is dedicated to enhancing the experience, vitality, and economic prosperity of the Fort Lauderdale Beach area. Through strategic initiatives and community partnerships, the BBID supports local businesses and promotes the area as a premier destination for visitors year-round. To learn more, visit discoverftlbeach.com and follow @discoverftlbeachon Instagram.
Source: Fort Lauderdale Beach Business Improvement District
Early cancer detection advocate Lainie Jones dies at 41.
Courtesy of Lainie Jones’ family
Lainie Jones believed in the power of being early.
She credited early detection as the reason she survived six different types of cancer—and it became the driving force behind her lifelong advocacy for early detection research and support for others facing cancer. Jones, who suffered from Li-Fraumeni syndrome — a rare genetic condition that made her prone to multiple cancers — shared her journey with her Instagram followers around the world, encouraging them to do self-checks and stay current with doctor visits.
Her first battle with cancer was when she was only 18 months old. Jones died Oct. 14 at her Fort Lauderdale home with her husband, Joseph “JJ” Jones, by her side at 41.
Jones’ father, Jeff Schultz, 74, said it was her advocacy that kept her going. “She really enjoyed being a mentor to people who had cancer,” he said, recalling one young woman who called herself one of Jones’ “mutant buddies” at her Thursday funeral in reference to their shared Li-Fraumeni diagnosis.
Her optimism and candor reached far beyond her social media. Jones thrived in her work with the American Cancer Society, where she worked for the Hope Lodge in New York City, and later joined the organization’s events department and helped lead its gala. “She was infectious,” friend and former colleague at the American Cancer Society, Lorraine Katt, 52, said. “People just wanted to be around her.”
Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz first met Jones in 2009 at a Sharsheret Walk in Boca Raton and was immediately “enveloped by her light and energy and her ferocity.” The two went on to work together over the years to raise awareness, funds and legislation for cancer research and early detection.
Lainie Jones and Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Courtesy of Lainie Jones’ family.
“She was all gas, no quit,” Wasserman Schultz said. “She had every reason to really only think about herself, but instead thought about everybody else but herself.”
Even after enduring brutal treatments for brain cancer, Jones insisted on speaking at Wasserman Schultz’s annual Cancer Survivorship Summit last month. “She was so determined to be able to be at that summit and deliver her message,” the congresswoman said.
Her last message to her Instagram followers showed her commitment to funding research for cancer treatment.
“I’ve faced seven primary cancers, gone through multiple treatments, and I’m still thriving,” she wrote in one of her final Instagram posts. “Research doesn’t just matter — it saves lives.”
‘Live every day like it’s your first’
Schultz remembers his daughter as “the center of attention” from the moment she was born. Jones was the middle child in the family, which moved to South Florida when she was around 6.
After her first battle with cancer when she was a toddler, she was eventually declared cancer-free.
But by age 24, she was diagnosed again—this time with breast cancer. By then, Jones had been dating JJ Jones, who she met at the Abercrombie & Fitch store in Boca Raton Town Center in 2004, for a few years.
Doctors told her she’d need a full-time caregiver and might have to move back in with her parents. Unsure what to do, she called JJ Jones. He knew exactly what to do—he packed up his place in Boynton Beach and moved in to care for her.
Lainie Jones and her husband, Joseph “JJ” Jones. Courtesy of Lainie Jones’ family
“Most young men would have bolted,” Schultz said of his son-in-law. “He has been with her through anything and everything that she’s gone through.”
JJ Jones proposed to Jones on April Fool’s Day at her favorite place—Disney World—because she loved how magical and happy it felt. They were married on March 3, 2012.
Over the years, she would face breast cancer, thyroid cancer, melanoma, sarcoma, adrenal carcinoma, non-smoker’s lung cancer and finally glioblastoma.
But JJ Jones said that his wife never lived her life in fear and instead chose to “live everyday like it’s your first.”
Optimism never dimmed
Jones was also a devoted fashionista, always ahead of the latest trends, her husband said.
Her sense of style is what Katt, her friend and colleague, first noticed when Jones came in for an interview at the American Cancer Society’s Hope Lodge in New York City in 2015.
“I remember seeing her walk out of the elevator in a bright pink blazer and thinking, oh boy, who’s this? She’s definitely Florida,” Katt said from New York City.
Katt, now the lodge’s general manager, said she immediately told her boss, “If we don’t grab her, this will be such a big mistake.” The two quickly became close friends.
Lainie Jones and Lorraine Katt Courtesy of Lorraine Katt
Jones thrived at the American Cancer Society, and she later would thrive as an advocate on social media through her Instagram account, @theearlydetective. She encouraged followers to do self-checks and stay up to date with doctor visits. Her husband said she would light up whenever someone messaged to say her posts helped them catch cancer early.
Katt last spoke to Jones on Sept. 30, to tell her she was dedicating a 180-mile fundraising hike in Spain to her. “You guys are wonderful, and I love you,” Katt said Jones told her during their final conversation.
Even after multiple diagnoses, her optimism never dimmed. “She would always say, ‘What’s the alternative—be negative? That’s not me,” Katt said.
Lainie Jones Courtesy of Lainie Jones’ family
Those who knew and loved Jones knew she would want to be remembered as a warrior, with her husband also describing her as a rainbow—always colorful and bright. Lainie Jones is survived by her husband JJ, her father Jeff and mother Kathy Schultz, and her brothers Brian and Joey Schultz.
Students enjoy an art-making activity at NSU Art Museum in Fort Lauderdale during ‘Our Voices: Festival of Words 2025.’
Art Prevails Project
When a 10-year-old reluctantly attended an improv workshop by the Art Prevails Project with her mom, she was so shy she barely spoke. Two years later, her mother reached out to thank the organization and shared an update: That same girl is taking acting classes and is thriving in school.
Stories like this, says Darius V. Daughtry, founder and artistic director of Art Prevails Project, embody the mission of the Fort Lauderdale-based nonprofit that provides arts education and exposure to students and families.
“Most of our students are not going to be future artists, that’s not necessarily going to be their path. But the skills that they get from being connected to the arts are going to be in their lives. These young people become lifelong lovers of the arts, but also, they just become better people,” says Daughtry.
He has been down that path, being encouraged as a child to write poetry as a form of self-expression. Though Daughtry began his college career as an accounting major at the University of Florida, late nights spent writing plays convinced him to change course, eventually graduating with a degree in English and finance.
He went on to teach English, creative writing, and theater in high schools for 10 years. It was there, leading poetry and drama clubs, that he first saw how the arts could change the trajectory of students’ lives. That realization would plant the seed for what became Art Prevails Project. But before launching his own nonprofit, he spent a few years working for the Jason Taylor Foundation, where he was director of poetry programs and realized the potential community impact a nonprofit organization could have.
“I wanted to give opportunities and access to communities through art education, but also through actual performances. I wanted to give community members an opportunity to see and hear voices that reflect their own experiences,” said Daughtry, an accomplished poet and playwright himself.
Founded in 2015, Art Prevails Project began as a one-man operation and has grown into a nonprofit with two intertwined missions: Providing arts education and staging performances that reflect the voices of the community.
“We are committed to empowering communities through the power of art and authentic storytelling,” he says.
On the education side, trained teaching artists – local writers, actors, and musicians – bring creative writing, theater, and performance residencies into schools. The students write poems, devise plays, and often publish booklets of their work. Along with literacy skills, he says, “they’re working on being able to communicate and collaborate with other students and articulate their point of view,” Daughtry says.
On the performance side, Art Prevails Project produces original theatrical performances, some written and directed by Daughtry such as this summer’s “The Bard in Bars” performance at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts that blended Shakespeare, hip hop and a string ensemble.
Maro Rodriguez does her best Lady M during Art Prevails Project’s ‘The Bard in Bars,’ written and directed by Darius Daughtry. Gregory Reed, MFA
The nonprofit also hosts community events, including an annual literary festival called Our Voices that has brought nationally recognized voices such as Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Jericho Brown to South Florida. Tickets for these events, if required, are kept very affordable, he says. “The whole idea with that is to continue to expose communities to these literary areas in as many ways that we can and hopefully inspire the next generation.”
Each year, Art Prevails Project reaches about 2,000 students through its educational programs and 3,000 to 4,000 community members through performances and events. Yet Daughtry insists numbers tell only part of the story.
The real impact shows up in small but powerful ways, he says, like when he sees students run up and hug their teaching artists, or when children’s faces light up when they see their words published in a book of poetry they contributed to, or when a parent is moved to tears during a post-show discussion about how much a performance resonated with his or her family.
“When I think about impact, I think about those things. That’s what excites me,” Daughtry says.
Hit hard by budget cuts
As with most grassroots nonprofits, the greatest challenge is raising funding to sustain and grow that impact. Art Prevails Project relies primarily on grants and donations, with only a small percentage coming from ticket sales and fee-for-service work such as corporate workshops or city partnerships.
The unpredictability of grants, especially during the current environment in which arts organizations have been hit hard, makes sustaining programming difficult. Daughtry says his own organization and some of his partnering organizations have experienced recent cutbacks.
“People forget nonprofits are businesses, too,” Daughtry notes. “We still need to pay staff and pay bills while making sure we’re reaching students and audiences consistently.”
Darius V. Daughtry, founder of Art Prevails Project, and the cast of ‘Seeking’ celebrate a successful run at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts in Fort Lauderdale in July 2024. Gregory Reed, MFA
That’s where individual supporters can make all the difference. For instance, he says, “a $25 donation can help provide teaching artists for classrooms that support 25 to 30 students, or it is the cost of a ticket for a show that may change somebody’s life.”
Despite the challenges, Art Prevails Project continues to grow. Just before the pandemic, Daughtry participated in Radical Partners’ social impact entrepreneurship accelerator for nonprofit leaders. Among many other things, the program taught him to run his nonprofit as a business with multiple revenue streams. Another learning: Stay true to your mission and be wary of taking on projects that don’t contribute to your core mission. Last year, he was chosen for the Miami Foundation’s inaugural yearlong Saltwater Fellowship.
Today, Daughtry’s team includes a director of operations, an education manager, and a communications manager. They are joined by a rotating cohort of 10 to 15 teaching artists that Art Prevails Project trains to lead classroom workshops.
What’s next?
Art Prevails Project plans to do a regional tour of its theatrical productions across South Florida, bringing original work to new audiences. The nonprofit also has been piloting a program designed for students with exceptionalities, ensuring that all children have the chance to experience the arts.
Daughtry’s longer-term goal is to establish a permanent home for the nonprofit, a space where community members can come and engage, whether it is as artists, workshop participants or audience members.
“If not for the arts, my life would have been entirely different,” Daughtry reflects. Ten years in, he remains driven by the belief that exposure to the arts can change lives.
How to help
Donate or volunteer to help Art Prevails Project bring the arts to more schools: www.artprevailsproject.org/support
More information: https://www.artprevailsproject.org/
Editor’s note: This story is part of the Miami Herald Giving Section that highlights local nonprofit organizations in the community.
A Fort Lauderdale homeowner was stabbed in his sleep, fought off the intruder and chased him until police K-9s and a sheriff’s helicopter tracked and arrested the suspect.
MH
A Fort Lauderdale homeowner was sleeping peacefully early Monday morning when he was suddenly awakened by a man stabbing him repeatedly. After an adrenaline-fueled scuffle, he fought the intruder off, who was later hunted down by police.
Around 4:30 a.m., the unidentified homeowner was sleeping in his house in the 600 block of Northeast Eight Avenue. He awoke to Joseph Defex, 31, striking him several times with a “sharp object,” Fort Lauderdale police said.
Defex then ran from the house, but the homeowner gave chase and fought the man in an effort to restrain him until police arrived. However, when the victim saw Defex still had a “sharp object” in his hand, he let him go.
Fort Lauderdale police K-9s and a Broward Sheriff’s Office helicopter tracked Defex down, police said. He was arrested and charged with burglary with assault or battery and giving a false name to law enforcement.
The homeowner was rushed to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Miami Herald Cops and Breaking News Reporter Devoun Cetoute covers a plethora of Florida topics, from breaking news to crime patterns. He was on the breaking news team that won a Pulitzer Prize in 2022. He’s a graduate of the University of Florida, born and raised in Miami-Dade. Theme parks, movies and cars are on his mind in and out of the office.
JetBlue Airways is the latest ultra-low-cost airline to expand its presence in South Florida, with nine new destinations coming to the Fort Lauderdale airport starting in November.
“As the top airline in Fort Lauderdale, with more departures than any other carrier on peak travel days, JetBlue is proud to keep raising the bar for customers in South Florida and to continue bringing them to the places they want to go,” said Dave Jehn, JetBlue’s vice president, network planning and airline partnerships, said in a Sept. 10 release.
The announcement comes as another low-cost airline, Dania Beach-based Spirit, drops 11 cities from its network in an effort to refocus on key markets, such as its hub in Fort Lauderdale. Spirit recently filed for bankruptcy for the second time in a year and other airlines have been quick to move in, with Frontier Airlines announcing 42 new routes just days later, many of them in South Florida.
JetBlue’s new routes include destinations in New Orleans and Pittsburgh, as well as Aruba, Grand Cayman, St. Maarten, Honduras, Costa Rica and more. There is also a flight to a brand new destination for the airline, Cali, Colombia.
The airline will also be increasing service on nine existing routes.
JetBlue offers low fares for any Fort Lauderdale flight this fall
To celebrate the estimated 113 peak daily flights the airline said it will be making from Fort Lauderdale by winter, the airline is offering one-way fares starting at $113 from Fort Lauderdale to any of the 46 nonstop destinations JetBlue will service this fall.
You must book by Sept. 10 for travel between Sept. 24 to Dec. 17, 2025. Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday travel only, and some blackout dates apply.
What are JetBlue’s new flights in Florida?
Flights to/from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) include:
Cali, Colombia (CLO), new route starting date and frequency to be announced
In April, JetBlue announced new service from FLL to Guayaquil, Ecuador, and Philadelphia and announced new service to Atlanta, Austin, Norfolk and Tampa in July. In June, JetBlue partnered with Florida’s privately owned passenger rail service Brightline to allow travelers to book both a plane and train trip directly on jetblue.com as part of a combined itinerary.
JetBlue also recently announced a return to Daytona Beach after an absence of nearly seven years.
In the span of two weeks, two toddlers have been shot in Fort Lauderdale, prompting city officials to declare that such violence will not be tolerated.
Trantalis, Schultz and Fort Lauderdale Commissioner Pamela Beasley-Pittman pledged to solve the recent murders and address the surge of shootings in the city. The event was held at Riverland Park, where 3-year-old Rylo Yancy was fatally shot while attending a birthday party.
“We are doing all that we can to solve Rylo’s murder,” said Trantalis.
The family of Rylo Yancy, devastated by the loss, spoke to Local 10′s Sanela Sabovic.
“They took my heart, they took my soul, they took a lot of people’s strength,” said Rylo’s grandfather, Jerrold Pough. “I want to say this… I already asked for forgiveness to who did this to my grandbaby. They don’t know how special he was to me, my family, the world.”
Rylo’s aunt, Beverly Isaac, tearfully pleaded for an end to gun violence.
“I didn’t know it would be the last time Sunday kissing Rylo,” Isaac said. “These people need to put the guns down. Please put them down!
Rylo was attending a one-year-old’s birthday party at Riverland Park on Sunday when two people in separate cars started shooting at each other. A stray bullet hit Rylo while he was on a slide. He was rushed to Broward Health Medical Center, where he died.
This incident follows another tragic shooting just two weeks earlier on July 8.
Five people were shot near a convenience store along Northwest 10th Terrace, resulting in the deaths of 38-year-old Tiarra Holliday and 45-year-old Sheldon Lawrence. Among the injured was Holliday’s 2-year-old son, Diego Henry, who was released from the hospital last week and now faces life without his mother.
From left: Tiarra Holliday and Sheldon Lawrence were killed in a double shooting in Fort Lauderdale on July 8. (Broward Crime Stoppers)
No arrests have been made in either shooting. Authorities discussed the need for public assistance.
“We are following leads but really need help from the public,” Schultz said. “If you have any information that can help investigators, give us a call or remain anonymous by calling Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS. There are cash rewards for information that leads to an arrest.”
Broward Crime Stoppers released a flyer on Wednesday stating that they will pay up to $10,000 for any information that leads to an arrest in connection with Rylo’s death.
Rylo Yancy. (Broward Crime Stoppers)
Schultz said that over the last five weeks, Fort Lauderdale has experienced three shootings involving 11 victims, including two toddlers.
Crime Stoppers also announced they would pay up to $5,000 for information that led to the arrest or arrests in the shooting death of Michael “Kirby” McKinney Jr.
Authorities said McKinney, 33, was fatally shot just after 7 p.m. on June 14 while standing outside near the 700 block of Northwest 22nd Road.
Michael McKinney Jr. (Broward Crime Stoppers)
.Detectives said a 2-year-old boy, who was shot and placed in a medically-induced coma during the fatal double shooting on July 8, has returned home and is recovering.
Trantalis said over 40 police officers were hired in Fort Lauderdale over the past year to “ensure safety in the community.”
“The Fort Lauderdale Police Department will not stand for these acts of violence,” said Schultz. “We appreciate all the tips and assistance from the public but please reach out if you have any information.”
Schultz also confirmed that over 150 guns were stolen in the city of Fort Lauderdale this year.
Anyone with information on the shooter or shooters in any of the cases is urged to call Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477.
Local 10 News viewers can watch the press conference in the video below.
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Officers arrived at the scene to find multiple people suffering from gunshot wounds, including a 2-year-old boy.
Police confirmed that a total of five people were shot, including a woman who was pronounced dead at the scene and a man who died after being transported to Broward Health Medical Center.
The surviving victims were also taken to Broward Health Medical Center.
Loved ones identified the victims killed as 28-year-old Tiarra Holliday and 45-year-old Sheldon Lawrence.
According to Holliday’s family members, she was with her young son near a convenience store when someone opened fire.
Surveillance video shows that the shooter was riding in a silver car with the passenger door open when the shooting occurred.
Relatives said Holliday was shot in the head and her 2-year-old son was also struck by a bullet.
According to relatives, the mother ran into the store where she collapsed and died.
The toddler was identified by his grandmother as Diego. She said he was initially placed in a medically-induced coma and also suffered a broken leg.
“She did everything she could to save her baby’s life,” Shontrelle Holliday said. “That was definitely the person who she was. She would have preferred to save him over her.”
Relatives said Diego was no longer in a coma Thursday and was undergoing a second surgery to remove part of his skull.
Police confirmed Thursday that the silver vehicle was found abandoned shortly after the shooting, but no suspects are in custody.
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Detective Jennifer Saint-Jean 954-828-5570, Detective Jackie Sanchez at 954-828-5539, the Homicide Tipline at 954-828-6677, or remain anonymous by calling Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS.
Any information leading to an arrest may be eligible for a reward.
A GoFundMe page has been created by loved ones to assist with Diego’s medical expenses and Holliday’s funeral service.
Copyright 2024 by WPLG Local10.com – All rights reserved.
FORT LAUDERDALE BEACH, Fla. – A Sunday thunderstorm did not stop The Florida Panthers Stanley Cup champions from celebrating their Monday night victory against Edmonton with tens of thousands of fans for hours in Fort Lauderdale Beach.
Some fans had waited three decades for the victory, so they didn’t mind waiting a few more hours — under menacing clouds, rain, lighting, and a flood advisory — to participate in a beachside parade along State Road A1A.
The peal of trumpets was at Riomar Street. Police officers rode on motorcycles. A traditional Scottish band marched. White-clad dancers glided on the pavement. There were pickup trucks, sports cars, and fire trucks.
The players carried the Stanley Cup and the Title Belt on the top of ruby-red double-decker buses. Some took a dip with it in the Atlantic Ocean. Another ran through a crowd with it. In the end, they delivered it to the rally’s stage.
Vincent Viola, who bought the Florida Panthers in 2013 for about $250 million, danced on stage before Steve Goldstein, the team’s play-by-play announcer, introduced him.
“The cup is home,” Viola said. “Let’s get it back again.”
“It’s unbelievable to see how players win, and be with you at the Elbo Room, be with you at Pompano Beach, Sunrise, to Miami — all over South Florida,” Caldwell told fans. “When many teams win championships, they go to Vegas or they go somewhere else. Our people stay right here, locally with all of you.”
“Every guy back here considers you guys family, “ Bill Zito, the team’s general manager, told fans after pointing to the players. “The way you stayed out in the rain, and supported us … Thank you.”
Monica Cepera, the Broward County administrator, announced commissioners declared June 30 was Florida Panthers Day. There were a few speeches thanking fans for their loyalty.
Florida Panthers Coach Paul Maurice delivered on a promise. He stood on the rally stage and showed off his white T-shirt showing the faces of his two family cats Penny and Poppy over the team’s icons.
“My daughter made this shirt,” Maurice told fans during the rally. “I promised her, ‘If we win the Stanley Cup, I am wearing the shirt!’”
Linus Eriksson, who wore the Swedish flag as a cape, and Aaron Ekblad were among the Florida Panthers players who took turns on stage to lift and kiss The Stanley Cup.
Matthew Tkachuk stopped at the Elbo Room, a bar that opened in 1938. The American-Canadian forward and alternate captain also jumped into the Atlantic Ocean. A group of fans surrounded him.
Tkachuk, 26, later smoked a cigar and described the celebration to fans as the best day of his “entire” life.
“The Fort Lauderdale police and fire department, this had been the greatest day ever,” Tkachuck said. “Thank you for everything.”
“When I was drafted 10 years ago, 2013, I would have never believed that this day would come and here I am with my teammates, with the team Violas, management, everyone, we are here in front of you, all together on a rainy day, during hurricane season, we are here on the beach celebrating,” Aleksander Barkov, the Florida Panthers captain, said to great cheer.
“In my first interview, they asked me why I came to Florida. My answer was, ‘Because I want to with The Cup, and I want to do it here.’ And now he were are, five years later celebrating the biggest victory of this franchise,” said Sergei Bobrovsky, who was born in Novokuznetsk, a city in south-central Russia, about joining the Panthers in 2019.
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Fort Lauderdale police are investigating a shooting that occurred Friday morning outside a hotel.
The shooting was reported at 5:47 a.m. outside the Extended Stay hotel in the 6000 block of Northwest Sixth Way.
According to Fort Lauderdale police spokeswoman Casey Liening, the victim suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to a hospital by Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue.
She said the suspect is not in custody at this time, and this appears to be an “isolated incident.”
No other details were immediately released.
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A 8-year-old boy was discovered face down in a Broward County pool, where officers made a desperate attempt to rescue him while responding to a 911 call from the homeowner Monday evening. Days later, Ft. Lauderdale police are investigating the circumstances surrounding his tragic death — including how and why he got into the backyard and pool.
The homeowner, who lives at the 1000 block of Northwest 4th Avenue, called 911 around 6:30 p.m. after waking up from nap, noticing a pair of children’s shoes by the pool and seeing Ryan Amichette submerged beneath the water, according to an audio clip release by police Wednesday.
“I’ve never seen him before,” the homeowner, whom police has not named, said when asked by the dispatcher if he knew Ryan. “We’ve never had a stray child in here. I see his clothes are right here by the gate, and his shoes are by the pool, and he’s at the bottom floating, looking at the bottom.”
Sirens could be heard in the background as the man spoke with the 911 dispatcher. Moments later, he said officers arrived, jumped in the pool, pulled Ryan out and began lifesaving measures.
Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue rushed the child to Broward Health Medical Center, where police spokeswoman Casey Liening said doctors pronounced him dead.
“Based on the information gathered so far by detectives, this incident appears to have been accidental,” Liening said in a statement. This investigation remains ongoing to determine the circumstances, including why the boy entered the back yard and the pool.”
Fort Lauderdale police did not immediately respond to questions regarding where Ryan lived.
Ryan’s older brother, Gibson Severe, told WSVN 7 Monday that their mother paid a nanny to pickup the boy and watch over him after school. But when she saw him walking down the street with friends, he added, she turned around.
After his brother didn’t come home from school, Severe told the station that he and other family members looked all over the city for him.
Noticing a large number of police and first responders in the area, he asked an officer if they located a lost child.
“And then the police was like ‘We just found a little boy in the pool.’” Severe told WSVN.
David Goodhue covers the Florida Keys and South Florida for FLKeysNews.com and the Miami Herald. Before joining the Herald, he covered Congress, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy in Washington, D.C. He is a graduate of the University of Delaware.
COCONUT CREEK, Fla. – A Broward County Public Schools teacher stands accused of abusing a student in Broward County.
Broward Sheriff’s Office inmate records show Christopher Cagle was at the main jail on Friday in Fort Lauderdale. He works as a science teacher at Monarch High School.
“The individual has been reassigned away from the school and students pending the outcome of the case,” Cathleen Brennan, a spokeswoman for BCPS, wrote in a statement.
According to Scotty Leamon, a spokesman for the Coconut Creek Police Department, police officers arrested Cagle, 64, of Deerfield Beach, on Thursday.
On Friday morning, at Monarch High School, a student told Local 10 News that he saw a student and a teacher get into “a fight” on Thursday afternoon.
Broward County court records show Cagle is facing a third-degree felony charge of child abuse without great bodily harm and Circuit Judge Ernest A. Kollra was set to preside over the case.
Detectives asked anyone with information about this or other cases to call Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477.
This is a developing story. Local 10 News Assignment Desk Editors Wilson Louis and Frine Gomez, and Photojournalist Lani Yasuk-Carrier contributed to this report.
Copyright 2024 by WPLG Local10.com – All rights reserved.
Spirit Airlines celebrated the official opening of Spirit Central, its new corporate campus at Dania Pointe in Dania Beach, Florida.
The campus spans more than 11 acres and features four buildings, including a support center with offices, an amenity building, a new crew training facility built for hands-on experience in flight simulators, and a corporate housing facility. Additionally, the campus also includes dedicated parking garages for Spirit Team Members.
The new Spirit Central provides an expansive, centralized location for the airline’s main support teams and is only a few minutes away from Spirit’s largest operating base at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL).
“The opening of Spirit Central marks a major milestone as we celebrate a new chapter in our more than 30-year history and reflect on how far we’ve come in our mission to deliver high-value travel options across the United States, Latin America, and the Caribbean,” said Ted Christie, Spirit’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “Spirit is proud to make this major investment in Broward County, drive local economic development, and further strengthen our commitment to the South Florida community.”
The new campus interior includes design features that pay tribute to Spirit, including an 18-foot-long Airbus A321neo model plane, a 3D engine cowling, a gallery showcasing the famous “Howdy” sharklet, a history wall, and more. The main buildings on the campus include:
Support Center: The largest of all four buildings is approximately 180,000 square feet and features six floors of office space for more than 1,000 corporate Team Members from the Operations Control Center, IT, Flight Operations, Inflight and more.
Fueling Station: The amenity building is easily accessible from the first floor of the Support Center and features a café, fitness center, and lounge spaces exclusive to our Team Members.
Training Hub: The state-of-the-art training facility for Inflight and Flight Ops Teams will boast several high-tech flight simulator bays and fixed flight simulators, an advanced Cabin Emergency Evacuation Trainer (CEET), a door trainer, classrooms, and debriefing rooms.
The Landing: The corporate housing facility will be the home away from home for out-of-town Team Members visiting for company business and features accommodations for up to 400 Team Members, several meeting rooms, a grab-and-go market, a pool, a fitness center, and its own parking garage.
In celebration of Spirit Central’s official opening, the Spirit Charitable Foundation donated $25,000 to Dania Beach PATCH (Peoples Access to Community Horticulture), an urban farm and market created to provide local access to healthy foods and horticulture. The donation advances the Foundation’s Environment pillar by investing in a platform for education, cultural growth, access to healthy foods & community gardening, and economic development.
Spirit partnered with Florida-based architectural firm HuntonBrady, general contractor Brasfield & Gorrie, and project advisor Jones Lang LaSalle to design and build Spirit Central. The airline worked with Kimco Realty, the owner and principal developer of Dania Pointe, to secure the land.
The relocation from Spirit’s Miramar, Florida, facilities to Spirit Central in Dania Beach is expected to be completed in the coming weeks.
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