Heather Schatz

North Florida Representative Al Lawson joined us to discuss last week’s attack on the Capitol, the continued fallout from it, and what comes next.

It has been a record-breaking week for new COVID-19 infections in Florida. So far, however, efforts to get vaccines distributed have been confusing and slow.

This month, Jacksonville City Councilwoman Joyce Morgan will lead a series of “Safer Together” workshops aimed at creating a safer community.

We kicked off the new year with a closer look at the latest on the proposed $457 million Lot J plan.

2020 was dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic and politics, and oftentimes, the two were intertwined in Florida.

COVID-19 has cost Florida billions of dollars and hundreds of thousands of jobs. The virus has hit the state’s biggest industry — tourism — hard.

In Jacksonville, there have been real efforts this year to address long-standing racial inequities in the city.

After a long and difficult year in this pandemic, some good news is finally on the horizon.

Florida’s top public health official said Tuesday that five Florida hospitals, including UF Health Jacksonville, could receive COVID-19 vaccinations as early as next week.

The leader of the Jacksonville City Council has kicked the discussion over the controversial Lot J development into next year.     

As we all prepare for what could be a tough winter dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, the drug maker Pfizer announced Monday that an early analysis of its coronavirus vaccine trial suggests the vaccine is very effective in preventing Covid-19.

President Donald Trump won Florida and its 29 electoral votes handily this week. 

More than 19,000 early votes had already been cast in Duval County by 3 p.m. Monday – and that’s on top of the more than 77,000 who have already voted by mail.

 A new report finds Florida is sliding deeper into an affordable housing crisis.

Edible medical marijuana products have been approved, four years after Florida voters approved the legalization of medical marijuana. 

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Sunday that she would call the House back from its annual summer recess for a vote this week on legislation to block changes at the Postal Service.

On today’s program we took a closer look at how the COVID-19 pandemic is dividing Floridians on issues such as wearing facemasks in public, reopening schools and playing sports. 

On Friday’s episode of First Coast Connect with Melissa Ross, our Media Roundtable discussed some of the top stories impacting Northeast Florida this week, including:

Violent crime continues to be an issue in Jacksonville.

A new report from the Jacksonville Public Education Fund (JPEF) looks at the state of our local school buildings.

Schools around the state - including Baker County - are starting to reopen today. 

A new forecast projects as many as one in three U.S. restaurants may close permanently this year, due to the coronavirus pandemic.

A move to rename Hemming Park after James Weldon Johnson, the Jacksonville native who composed the famous anthem "Lift Every Voice and Sing," ran into opposition this week. Local veterans organizations made a late-breaking push to rechristen the city's first and oldest park as Veterans Memorial Park.

Given the rising coronavirus numbers, it’s no surprise that many teens are anxious about going back to brick-and-mortar schools right now.

As the pandemic continues to rage throughout the state, tens of thousands of Florida residents have been cut off from the temporary unemployment benefits they had been receiving from the federal government. Congress has yet to come to agreement on a new benefit plan for the jobless.

On Friday's program, we got an update on Hurricane Isaias from Ray Hawthorne, who is a meteorologist with the Florida Public Radio Emergency Network (FPREN).