EVENT: Love of Literacy Three Author Series

County announces beach closures ahead of beach restoration project

At least two beaches will be closed starting this weekend ahead of the beach restoration project, which will start back up next week, county officials said. The project aims to restore sand - which had been washed away by storms and hurricanes over the years - at the beaches. Beach park access at Seagrape Trail Beach Access and Treasure Shores Park Beach will both close starting Friday, county officials said. Seagrape Trail Beach is located south of Wabasso Beach, off Highway A1A. Treasure Shores Park Beach is located north of Wabasso Beach. Construction at Treasure Shores Park Beach - which will start Nov. 1 - was expected to last for 45 days. Crews will finish dumping 30,000 cubic yards of ...

DeSantis signs bills that aim to improve early childhood education, literacy

VERO BEACH — Hoping to boost kindergarten readiness and create better school accountability statewide, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed two bills into law aimed at improving early childhood education and literacy. DeSantis, speaking in Vero Beach on Tuesday, signed House Bill 7011 - Student Literacy, and House Bill 419 - Early Learning and Early Grade Success. Both bills, which are now state law, require screenings and progress monitoring for children enrolled in the Voluntary Pre-kindergarten Education Program. "When I took office, our kindergarten readiness was 42 percent. We need to do better than that," DeSantis said at a 1 p.m. news conference held inside of the Childcare Resources Center, an early childhood education and development non-profit organization in Vero Beach. "HB ...

Community Development Department closes in-person services

The Community Development Department closed in-person services Monday as county officials implement more health precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Officials plan to add more physical barriers to the front counters inside the building, which already has temperature scanners installed. County employees and those who visit county facilities are already required to wear masks inside. County Administrator Jason Brown was not immediately available to confirm reports that six employees in the Community Development Department tested positive for the virus. Further details on the employees were not available. The Community Development Department includes current development, code enforcement, long range planning and fire safety divisions. The physical offices will be closed to the public possibly for a week, but residents can ...