Florida
These are the top ten cities for retirees; five are in Florida
A recent AARP survey finds over half of adults over 50 are worried about having enough money for retirement
Florida remained a very retirement-friendly state in 2024, with five locales in the Sunshine State appearing among WalletHub’s ten best retirement cities.
Orlando, which is located in central Florida, nabbed the overall first-place title on WalletHub’s “Best & Worst Places to Retire” ranking this year.
The personal finance website indicated factors like its activity options and elder health care helped Orlando earn the title of best city to retire. Florida’s tax policies also played a major part, according to WalletHub.
The city’s total score was 61.49.
THE NUMBER OF 401(K) MILLIONAIRES HIT A NEW RECORD HIGH
This year, five other states had representation in the top 10 in addition to dominant Florida.
The list included a total of 182 U.S. cities. To determine the overall position of the cities on the list, WalletHub said it relied on several dozen metrics within the categories of affordability, activities, quality of life and health care.
According to WalletHub, 2024’s ten locales most favorable for retirees included:
1. Orlando, Florida
Orlando Florida, took the top spot for the best place to celebrate New Year’s Eve with some of the lowest price options and highest nightlife options. (iStock / iStock)
2. Miami, Florida
MIAMI, FLORIDA – SEPTEMBER 29: In an aerial view, the City of Miami skyline, where many renters reside in the apartment buildings on September 29, 2021 in Miami, Florida. According to an analysis from Realtor.com, rents nationwide are rising, with th ( Joe Raedle/Getty Images) / Getty Images)
3. Minneapolis, Minnesota
Aerial View of Minneapolis and the Mississippi river in summer (iStock / iStock)
4. Tampa, Florida
Aerial drone View of sprawling Tampa Bay Skyline, Florida. (Joe Sohm/Visions of America/Universal Images Group via Getty Images / Getty Images)
5. Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale Coastline Aerial (Photo by Hoberman Collection/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) (Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images / Getty Images)
6. Scottsdale, Arizona
Downtown Scottsdale and suburbs of Phoenix, Arizona, with the White Tank Mountain Range in the background (iStock / iStock)
7. Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati has seen a 125% increase in vacation rental demand, according to Vrbo’s report. (iStock) (iStock)
8. St. Petersburg, Florida
Sunrise on St. Petersburg Florida facing Atlantic Ocean explodes into orange color. (Photo by: Joe Sohm/Visions of America/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) (Joe Sohm/Visions of America/Universal Images Group via Getty Images / Getty Images)
9. Casper, Wyoming
CASPER, WY – JUNE 11, 2022: The last rays of sunlight fall on local favorite Jonny Js Diner on June 11, 2022 in Casper, Wyoming. Wyoming is a Republican stronghold and Liz Cheney (R-WY) is facing an uphill battle to retain her seat in Congress after (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images / Getty Images)
10. Atlanta, Georgia
The Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Alpharetta, Georgia, metropolitan area was found to be the best cold-weather winter vacation destination this year, according to WalletHub. Atlanta is pictured. (iStock / iStock)
“It’s important to choose wisely when picking where to retire, as many retirees are on a fixed income,” WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said. “As a result, the best cities for retired people are those that minimize taxes and expenses, as well as have good opportunities for retirees to continue paid work for extra income, if they choose to do so. In addition, the top cities provide high-quality health care and offer plenty of enjoyable activities for retirees.”
AMERICANS REVEAL THEIR BIGGEST FINANCIAL REGRET ABOUT POTENTIAL RETIREMENT
Of the top 10 best retirement cities, Miami received the highest rank for the main activities category, at No. 2.
Two of the other top-10 cities landed No. 3 placements for different main categories that WalletHub looked at to help formulate its list. Scottsdale came in third-place for quality of life. Meanwhile, Casper received that ranking for affordability, the personal finance website found.
MORE AMERICANS ARE THINKING ABOUT POSTPONING RETIREMENT
WalletHub’s best cities to retire comes after the personal finance website identified Florida, Colorado, Virginia, Delaware and Wyoming as top states for retirement earlier in the year.
In April, Northwestern Mutual found Americans think they must have $1.46 million set aside in order to “comfortably” retire. That was up 15% from the prior year.
Plans for a new Wawa to open in Port St. Lucie were approved.
A new Wawa fuel station and convenience store will open in Port St. Lucie now that the plans have been approved.
The Wawa will be at the corner of Village Parkway and Becker Road in front of the Lowe’s which is expected to open in the summer of 2026, according to the city’s website.
The plans for a Wawa convenience store and eight fuel pumps were submitted to the city Dec. 3, 2025.
What will go in Port St. Lucie’s Southern Grove?
The plans for the Shoppes at Southern Grove show there will be a new Lowe’s store and six additional outparcels.
The six additional outparcels include the following:
- Gas station: 5,915 square feet
- Outparcel A: 1.2 acres
- Outparcel B: 1.14 acres
- Outparcel C: 1.83 acres
- Outparcel D: 1.04 acres
- Outparcel E: 1.02 acres
Olivia Franklin is TCPalm’s trending reporter. You can contact her at olivia.franklin@tcpalm.com, 317-627-8048 or follow her on X @Livvvvv_5.
SUNRISE, Fla. – Five Florida Panthers players and five staff members will represent their home countries at the upcoming 2026 IIHF World Championship, taking place May 15 through May 31 in Zurich and Fribourg, Switzerland. Games will be broadcast on NHL Network in the United States.
Marek Alscher, 22, will represent Czechia at the IIHF World Championship for the first time. He previously played for his home country at the 2024 IIHF U20 World Junior Championship, skating in seven games to help the Czechs capture the bronze medal over Finland. Alscher made his NHL debut with the Panthers in 2025-26, notching three assists over four games played. He also skated in 52 American Hockey League (AHL) games with Florida’s affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers, recording 11 points (3-8-11).
Aleksander Barkov, 30, missed the 2026 Winter Olympic Games due to injury but had been named to Finland’s preliminary roster in June of 2025. He previously earned a bronze medal at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games alongside current Panthers assistant coach Tuomo Ruutu, and earned a silver medal representing his home country at the 2016 IIHF Men’s World Championship. At the 2025 NHL 4 Nations Face-Off, Barkov served as captain of Finland.
Anton Lundell, 24, will be participating in his second IIHF World Championship after earning a silver medal with Finland in 2021, where he posted seven points (4-3-7) in 10 games as a 19-year-old. He helped Finland capture the bronze medal at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games this season and previously earned gold at the 2019 IIHF U20 WJC and 2018 IIHF U18 WJC, as well as a bronze medal at the 2021 U20 WJC.
Sandis Vilmanis, 22, will represent Latvia at the IIHF World Championship for the first time in his career. He played for Latvia at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in February as well as at the 2022, 2023 and 2024 IIHF U20 World Junior Championships, serving as an alternate captain in 2024 where he produced four points (2-2-4) over five games. Vilmanis made his NHL debut with the Panthers in 2025-26, logging five points (3-2-5) in 19 games with Florida while compiling 38 points (17-21-38) in 48 American Hockey League (AHL) contests with the Panthers affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers.
Matthew Tkachuk, 28, will attempt to become the first American to join the Triple Gold Club (Stanley Cup, World Championship Gold Medal and Olympic Gold Medal), as well as the first player in NHL history to win all three parts of the Triple Gold Club within a 12-month span. This will be Tkachuk’s first time participating in the IIHF World Championship.
In addition to his 2026 Olympic gold medal, Tkachuk also earned gold representing the United States at the 2015 IIHF U18 World Junior Championship and the 2014 U17 World Hockey Challenge, as well as a bronze medal at the 2016 IIHF U20 WJC. He served as alternate captain for the U.S. at the 2026 Olympics and 2025 4 Nations Face-Off.
Florida will have four staff members representing the United States. Panthers Assistant General Manager Brett Peterson is serving as General Manager for the second time after holding the position in 2024. Panthers Head Equipment Manager Teddy Richards will serve as equipment manager and Florida’s Head Athletic Trainer Dave DiNapoli will work as athletic trainer. Panthers President of Hockey Operations & General Manager Bill Zito will serve on the Advisory Group.
Panthers Assistant General Manager Gregory Campbell will assist with evaluating and selecting players for Canada.
Panthers fans can stay up to date on all the Cats’ representatives at the 2026 IIHF World Championships at FloridaPanthers.com/WorldChampionship.
2026-27 Florida Panthers Territory Memberships are available now! Click here to learn more. For all the latest in Panthers news, concerts and events at Amerant Bank Arena & FTL War Memorial, sign up for ’93 Society newsletter and receive information straight to your inbox. Visit FloridaPanthers.com or SeatGeek.com for all ticketing needs.
A Martin County slaughterhouse near Lake Okeechobee could increase toxic algal blooms in the C-44 Canal, St. Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon.
There have been 81 algal blooms in the past two years within 2 miles of a proposed slaughterhouse in western Martin County, according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection Algal Bloom Dashboard.
The slaughterhouse will increase pollution and bring more potentially toxic algal blooms to Lake Okeechobee, whose waters sometimes are released into the C-44 Canal and flow into the St. Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon in Stuart, opponents say.
Chancey Bay Ranch owner Tuny Mizrachi has proposed building a 56,784-square-foot slaughterhouse on 26 acres of his 2,046-acre-property at 8401 SW Connors Highway, abutting Lake O.
5 ways a slaughterhouse can increase Lake Okeechobee pollution
The Guardians of Martin County have raised at least five concerns with the Martin County Commission:
- Meat processing facilities, though necessary, have the potential to be noisy nuisances and significant sources of disease and pollution for air and water.
- The facility would be a new source of pollution in a watershed that’s designated as “impaired” because of elevated concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus.
- The facility would be a potential new source of pollutants near one of Martin County’s lowest income and most ethnically diverse communities.
- There’s no evidence the facility has a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit, or plans to follow effluent limitation guidelines or conduct water-quality monitoring.
- The South Florida Water Management District has permitted the facility to withdraw 6.7 million gallons of water per year for 20 years from Florida’s surficial aquifer, despite it being subject to varying levels of saltwater intrusion, especially in Martin County. The SFWMD has designated all of Martin County a Water Resource Caution Area.
Blood, feces, oil, grease, ammonia and antibiotic residue from the proposed slaughterhouse would contribute to harmful algal blooms, including toxic cyanobacteria, Martin County Administrator Don Donaldson wrote to the DEP and SFWMD.
Tim O’Hara is TCPalm’s environment reporter. Contact him at tim.ohara@tcpalm.com.
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