Senior Editor and Staff Writer Aisling Swift of The Naples Press was named one of three honorees in the series category of the Society of Professional Journalists’ 2026 Sunshine State Awards for her 2025 investigation into permit fraud in Collier County.
Swift’s reporting exposed the illegal use of an architectural stamp belonging to a 92-year-old retired Naples architect living in memory care. Twenty-five architects, builders and other professionals were investigated by state and local law enforcement agencies and disciplined in connection with the use of the stamp to certify building plans submitted to building departments in Collier County, Naples and Marco Island. An FBI investigation is ongoing.
First place in the category went to the Miami Herald and Tampa Bay Times for their investigation into Florida first lady Casey DeSantis’ Hope Florida Foundation. The SPJ competition drew 1,087 entries across numerous categories, with a first-place winner and two finalists selected in each.
Fellow Naples Press Senior Editor and Staff Writer Harriet Howard Heithaus earned a silver medal in the 2026 Independent Publisher Book Awards competition for Pelican Bay: A History of Our Home in Paradise.
The book, commissioned by the Pelican Bay Foundation and published by Naples-based Barringer Publishing, was judged against approximately 40 other entries in its category. The awards, known as the IPPYs, recognize independent publishing excellence, including quality, originality and diversity.
The book is available at the Community Center of Pelican Bay and the museum store at Artis—Naples.
You must be logged in to post a comment.