Communication Builds Our Community

Articles from the June 5, 2024 edition


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  • Guest Commentary: Homebuilders Helped Rewrite State Law to Speed New Subdivisions

    Jason Garcia, Seeking Rents|Updated Jun 15, 2024

    Gov. Ron DeSantis recently signed a bill that will let homebuilders across Florida throw up new housing subdivisions faster and cheaper. The new law, records show, was largely written by Lennar Corp., one of the nation's largest residential developers. Dubbed by lobbyists as the "Lennar permitting language," the legislation (Senate Bill 812) will compel cities and counties across Florida to issue building permits for most of the homes in a proposed subdivision before the...

  • Charter School Board Fires Superintendent Rodolfich During Hearing Today

    News Staff Report|Updated Jun 10, 2024
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    The Lake Wales Charter School board summarily dismissed School Superintendent Dr. Wayne V. Rodolfich during a meeting this afternoon after hearing a report from the Tampa law firm of Barbas Cremer regarding their investigation into anonymous grievances which were filed against Rodolfich earlier this year. Dr. Rodolfich has led the seven-school charter district since July 2022 after a year-long hunt ended in his hiring in March of that year. He came to Lake Wales after leading...

  • Lake Wales Little Theatre Offers Comedic Hit

    News Theatre Critic|Updated Jun 7, 2024

    Lovers of laughs and comedy, be it stand-up or SNL varieties, will enjoy a fun outing to Lake Wales Little Theatre to see "Just Another High School Play," which is anything but that. Performed by an ensemble cast of 26 talented young actors, the play is based upon the premise that their opening night has found them without a director and unprepared to perform. A box full of old un-matching scripts gives each actor an excuse for the often-hysterical chaos that follows. In what...

  • Possible End to Serious Drought in Sight as Pattern Begins to Change At Last

    Robert Connors|Updated Jun 6, 2024

    With much of central Florida in a serious drought situation and wildfires becoming a growing threat, forecasters are at last predicting a potential start to the normal summer rainy season. Conditions across the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico will begin to normalize over the coming week as the "Bermuda High," a sprawling moisture pump that feeds moist tropical air northward to Florida, beginning to set up in the Atlantic. At the same time, a persistent high-pressure area that has...

  • Talent Show Auditions and Performances Scheduled, Bring Your 'A' Game

    Special to the News|Updated Jun 6, 2024

    Area residents with special talents will have another opportunity to showcase their skills as the Lake Wales Public Library hosts their annual summer talent show, this year with the assistance of the GFWC Lake Wales Junior Woman's Club. The show is scheduled for Saturday, July 27, but auditions will be held on Saturday, June 22 at the Lake Wales Recreation Center. If you can sing, dance, juggle, or have any other special talent, the stage is waiting! This is your chance to...

  • Large Wildfire Breaks Out at Indian Lake

    News Staff Reports|Updated Jun 5, 2024

    A large wildfire is raging tonight near Indian Lake Estates and the Canopy Oaks resort in eastern Polk County. More than 25 emergency units have been assigned to try to bring the inferno under control, and the Florida Forest Service has delivered heavy equipment to firefighters in an apparent attempt to build firelines to stop the spread of the flames. Units from Lake Wales and Frostproof were sent to the scene to assist state and county firefighters under the direction of the...

  • Walter Elder Ferguson III, 1952-2024

    News Obituary Services|Updated Jun 5, 2024

    Farewell to Walter Elder Ferguson III, a gallant human being, who passed away at age 72 on April 26, 2024, of natural causes. A Celebration of Life will be from 10 to 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, June 8 at Lake Howard Heights, 650 North Lake Howard, Winter Haven, presented by his family and classmates. Born on Feb. 26, 1952, with cerebral palsy, a lifelong condition that affects movement and coordination, Ferguson lived an extraordinary life. When his mother died in a car accident...

  • Lake Wales Envisioned Documentary Wins 2024 Communicator Award

    News Staff Report|Updated Jun 4, 2024

    Lake Wales Envisioned, a film documenting the development of the eponymous project created to help guide the community through the challenges of rapid development, has been named as a recipient of the 2024 Communicator Award for excellence in film-making. The 30-minute film was created by Lee Dover of the planning firm of Dover, Kohl & Partners, who were the lead planners responsible for the award-winning plan. It was selected for screening at the Redfish Film Festival in...

  • Fired Bartow Police Officer Faces Additional Charges

    Special to the News|Updated Jun 4, 2024

    The former Bartow police officer who remains in the Polk County Jail for his arrest on May 28, 2024 for inappropriate and criminal behavior with four teenage females, now has additional criminal charges from the Polk County Sheriff's Office. Detectives from the PCSO became aware of a comment on a Facebook post about the arrest of 24-year old Markanthony Fernandez, which indicated that the commenter may also have been a victim of Fernandez. The commenter was contacted by a...

  • The Orange Blossom Revue Announces Lineup for 10th Annual Concert

    Special to the News|Updated Jun 4, 2024

    The local favorite Orange Blossom Revue is poised to celebrate its 10th anniversary with a jam-packed musical lineup of bands featuring JJ Grey & Mofro, The War and Treaty, Robert Earl Keen, Steep Canyon Rangers and more December 6-7, 2024 in Lake Wales, FL. Held annually amidst the bounty of Spanish moss, palmetto trees, and citrus groves that define the central Florida landscape, the boutique music and arts festival has steadily become a cultural cornerstone that reflects th...

  • MOVIE REVIEW: Challengers - Serve and Volley Isn't Your Standard Tennis Flick

    Jennifer Nanek, News Film Critic|Updated Jun 3, 2024

    Luca Guadagnino's "Challengers" isn't your standard tennis flick. It's a deft volley between ambition, love, and betrayal, played out against the backdrop of the glamorous, cutthroat world of professional tennis. This movie is about tennis, friendship and sex and not always in that order. Zendaya reigns supreme. Her portrayal of Tashi, a tennis prodigy turned coach, is captivating. This is very much Zendaya's movie as she is the lead actor and a producer. The movie also stars...

  • Polk's History Shaped by the Compassion of a Former Slave

    Charles Warren|Updated May 31, 2024

    Polk County history is filled with fascinating stories of the people who pioneered the communities we live in today, but few resonate like that of L.B. Brown. Less than two hundred years separate the bustling cities and transportation networks that define Florida from the pristine conditions that existed during the thousands of years when the First Nations people occupied this land. Prior to Emancipation, much of the work of building towns along the Florida frontier was laid...