Are we in for another record-breaking season? (Gainesville, Lakeland: motels, house)

[kramco]

We've sent billions of dollars to Ukraine. I imagine that some of that money is going to works it's way directly to the gulf coast here. Ukrainians are not stupid. Tourist season is going to be good, and real estate too.

[MOforthewin]

Originally Posted by kramco

We've sent billions of dollars to Ukraine. I imagine that some of that money is going to works it's way directly to the gulf coast here. Ukrainians are not stupid. Tourist season is going to be good, and real estate too.

I'm so tired of hearing about Ukraine and the billions sent over there while our infrastructure in the USA continues to rot away and Ukraine gets new roads and power grids with it.

Yes, real estate will be good in the northern parts of Sarasota County, Sarasota, etc. In Lee, Charlotte, Collier (near the coast) not so much.

The hotels in Naples are trashed, most not even taking reservations until next year. The Ritz is closed off until at least March due to surge damage. Most houses around here have some kind of roof damage. While we didn't get surge in Charlotte County for example the wind damage was worse.

[1rainman]

I never saw anyone on vacation from Ukraine. Once they step foot on American soil they live here illegally until they can pop out an anchor baby. Most are born here but don't want to become American they just want to turn here into Ukraine with money.

I have seen the occasional polish tourist or more often German. 95%. Of Ukrainians live in poverty. Unless zelensky himself or his administration comes here no tourism. It's basically a white north Korea that makes Russia look less corrupt and wealthy by comparison.

Right now innocent Russians and Ukrainians are being killed by the thousands every day and our media and government are ecstatic and want more. That'll teach Russia for hacking the DNC and showing the public how crooked Hillary was.

The reason why trump could shoot someone on fifth avenue and still get elected is he would still be the lesser of two evils. Any half way sane person would want to negotiate an end to the war. There isnt much difference if some small piece of dirt is called Russia or it's called Ukraine. And part of this war is the united states and NATO violated their own peace deal which said Ukraine can never enter NATO.

[beach43ofus]

Based upon the number of people and cars I'm seeing now, this forum area is having another record setting season.

It started later than I though it would...after the holidays, but then it hit like a tidal wave.

We are likely getting some visitors that normally go to areas South of here that were impacted a lot more by Ian.

I'm shifting the times I do things, & where I go, & ditching dinners out until April.

I'm won't near Detweiler's/Venice because its a total zoo. They need to double the size of their Venice store & parking lot. They should take over the old KMart property further North.

I'm seeing lots of car accidents too, so be especially careful out there.

[1rainman]

It's because of the record breaking cold snap late December. Every time there is a big cold snap they book flights to Florida. If it's a mild winter it's less busy. We had a moderate season up until January after the cold snap. Now it's busy. It's not even a cold winter it's average but the cold snap came on the shortest days of the year and got extra cold for a week or two, enough for them to take out their ATM card and start booking hotels.

[MOforthewin]

Originally Posted by beach43ofus

Based upon the number of people and cars I'm seeing now, this forum area is having another record setting season.

It started later than I though it would...after the holidays, but then it hit like a tidal wave.

We are likely getting some visitors that normally go to areas South of here that were impacted a lot more by Ian.

I'm shifting the times I do things, & where I go, & ditching dinners out until April.

I'm won't near Detweiler's/Venice because its a total zoo. They need to double the size of their Venice store & parking lot. They should take over the old KMart property further North.

I'm seeing lots of car accidents too, so be especially careful out there.

Probably so. My business at the market in Ft. Myers I'm noticing foot traffic about 25 percent slower than last season! Remember no Ft. myers beach, no Sanibel Captiva, Naples hotels on the beach not booking as well. That's a lot of visitors I'm losing. I think it especially hits hard spring break time, but I worry about this summer because I do get some vacationers due to Ft. Myers beach.

Around me however no difference in traffic because we have a TON of out of state contractors in my area in their trucks clogging up the roads and they don't know where the heck they're going. All hotels booked around here with them. Even the seedy Knights Inn by me that's normally deserted has a packed lot full of contractors trucks from various states.

Be careful on the roads, especially around Venice on south on I75. Noticing a lot of debris from these arseholes who don't secure their stuff. Today saw a ladder on I75. Buckets, straps, etc.

[1rainman]

Knights inn is the cheapest motel in port Charlotte. The grounds is nice but they clean the rooms by spraying Lysol usually dirty. Since last year they are $200 a night during season. There's nothing here worth seeing other than driving over the bridge and looking at the harbor. Every motel booked to capacity during season. They built a couple new ones. Same thing with storage. There's. Storage on every block but way over priced bad service and every unit rented out to capacity. I honestly don't know what is going on is there a secret cia base here maybe the drug smuggling. Why would these people pay this kind of money to live in port Charlotte or visit it. Our beach sucks and is mostly empty and so dirty it killed a kid last year from an infection.

It's nice to here fort Myers isn't normally booked to capacity. While business owners get away with charging triple the price the workers get $12 an hour. A couple chalupas at taco bell $8 in the rest of the country $13 here.

[MOforthewin]

Originally Posted by 1rainman

Knights inn is the cheapest motel in port Charlotte. The grounds is nice but they clean the rooms by spraying Lysol usually dirty. Since last year they are $200 a night during season. There's nothing here worth seeing other than driving over the bridge and looking at the harbor. Every motel booked to capacity during season. They built a couple new ones. Same thing with storage. There's. Storage on every block but way over priced bad service and every unit rented out to capacity. I honestly don't know what is going on is there a secret cia base here maybe the drug smuggling. Why would these people pay this kind of money to live in port Charlotte or visit it. Our beach sucks and is mostly empty and so dirty it killed a kid last year from an infection.

It's nice to here fort Myers isn't normally booked to capacity. While business owners get away with charging triple the price the workers get $12 an hour. A couple chalupas at taco bell $8 in the rest of the country $13 here.

Interesting. My relatives stay at one of the hotels near the bridge and it's a nice one and it doesn't cost over 200.

I would never swim in the harbour. Just looks dirty.

I have heard from locals a lot of retired CIA, secret service agents live in PGI. Not shocking since they have great pensions.

The knights in lot had mostly work trucks in them. Lots of em right now! Usually their parking lot is pretty empty no matter what time of year when I go by.

How can these workers stay in these filthy motels for weeks or months?

Look at Dan Bell's youtube channel. He goes and stays in the dirtest hotels and documents it.

[DovieHarding]

well...dirty places attract lowlife people...also birds of a feather the entire area from Tampa Bay, esp St. Pete to Manatee (even Lakewood Ranch) to Sarasota/south are beginning to attract lowlifes and even lowlifes "with money" (see Lakewood Ranch) like never ever before ....south Sarasota, e..g. Northport is attracting an unbelievable surge in eastern Euro organized crime, esp from Russia and Ukraine...it's sort of shocking but FL is quickly becoming a place that truly decent, upstanding people and families should consider avoiding. The negative changes occurred over the past 13 years or so are startling to us. The shifts in population and transplants combined with the onslaught of illegal immigrants are net negatives, NOT positive changes at all.

[MidModUSA]

We were in north Manatee county for 2022 season, living in temp housing waiting for our home to be constructed. I don't remember it being so bad last year and I drove into LWR and UTC areas pretty frequently. We also drove north into St. Pete quite a bit.

Now this is our first season to live in Sarasota proper. If I stay here in my little 'bubble' (Payne Park/Alta Vista area) everything is okay. But the minute I try to head out in pretty much any direction I quickly wish I hadn't. Our daughter just got her driver's permit and she is scared to even try to drive here.

EVERYWHERE we go has a line. Tried to eat at Chipotle and had to turn around and walk out because of the line at 2:30pm on Sunday. Line at Target so bad I set our stuff down and walked out. Can't find parking at the mall. Accidents everywhere - it's like people are playing bumper cars - no one is even trying to pay attention. So many people are flying around on bikes and scooters without helmets and with their small children behind them, also flying around.

I love living here, I truly do. But some days, our boring life and house in the 'burbs of the Midwest is looking pretty darn good!! The whole world seems to have found our piece of heaven and all at the same time.