Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
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The ambitious, $20 million transformation of the urban center of Lake Wales into a shady and inviting oasis for pedestrian shopping and outdoor dining was launched Thursday evening with a groundbreaking that was both entertaining and inspiring, featuring celebratory remarks and even a "flash mob" dance team that surprised the crowd of more than 100. Hosted by Lake Wales Mainstreet on Park Avenue, the event featured the signing of the actual bond documents that will fund the...
An $18.5 million bond issuance received final approval from the Lake Wales City Commission on Tuesday, completing the funding of the award-winning Lake Wales Connected project. The approval in back-to-back meetings of the Community Redevelopment Agency and the City Commission was the final step necessary for the city's bond counsel firm of Ford and Associates. It is expected that the bonds will be offered on the market almost immediately. Ford and Associates has guaranteed...
A quick end to a lawsuit over title to the Walesbilt Hotel was raised as a possibility during a meeting of the Lake Wales Community Redevelopment Agency on Tuesday. "There is a good chance that the city will once again have title to the hotel, and I think we should notify everybody out there...that there may come a time when that hotel will be on the market," Chairman Robin Gibson told the commissioners. The city has been locked in a legal battle with Walesbilt LLC since...
A long-desired re-do of the aging Grove Manor housing complex north of downtown may be closer to reality if the recent actions of the city commission bear fruit. Commissioners, on a 4-0 vote, approved allotting all of the original funding, once spread over several phases of a reconstruction project, to be assigned to phase two of the 300-unit project. Commissioner Daniel Williams was absent. Housing Authority Executive Director Albert Kirkland Jr. and construction management...
The Lake Wales Connected plan took a major step forward this week as the Lake Wales Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) voted Tuesday to award a construction contract for the Park Avenue reconstruction. Work on the multi-million dollar project is expected to begin in January. "This is the showpiece project of the Lake Wales Connected plan," City Manager James Slaton told city commissioners sitting as the CRA board. "It's been at least a couple of years to get to this point."...
The City of Lake Wales finished the 2021-2022 fiscal year in better-than-expected financial shape, based upon figures included in a year-end budget amendment approved by city commissioners. The fiscal year ended on September 30, but final balances were not available for a few weeks. City Budget Director Dorothy Abbott presented the documents to the commissioners, explaining that the changes in the numbers reflected the needed final look back at the year concluded. The General...
After rejecting the only response received from a private developer regarding the Seminole Hotel, the Lake Wales Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) is taking a completely different approach. The building features prominently in plans for downtown revitalization in the Lake Wales Connected plans. "We're going to do it all over again," said City Manager James Slaton of the failure of the Request for Proposals (RFP) process. Despite multiple expressions of interest in the...
A spurt of new restaurant development will soon be offering a wider range of choices for Lake Wales residents. The growing list has risen to seven new food and beverage outlets. The first to open is expected to be Locorrito, a new effort from area restaurateurs Matthew Brock and his partner, Dwayne McQuillen. The new "fast-casual" spot will open in late September in a former pizza-outlet location at 218 SR 60 East, next door to Citizen's Bank. The building has been...
While two independently owned and operated new restaurants are planned for opening on Highway 60, including Locorrito and Brake Burger Garage, and two more are planned to open on First Street downtown and on Lincoln Avenue, three more are aiming for construction on US 27 near the Eagle Ridge Mall. All three new restaurants will be located on the east side of US 27, and will occupy among the last of the rapidly-filling mall outparcels. A Starbucks coffee outlet is planned for...
The Lake Wales Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) is celebrating the groundbreaking of two new houses which will soon be built next to one another on A Street in the Northwest Neighborhood. This affordable housing initiative marks the third development partnership between the City, Keystone Challenge Fund, and SouthState Bank. Earlier this year, two new houses and two refurbished houses were completed on B Street. Those homes were sold as a result of the partnerships. The...
Two new restaurants are being developed in the historic districts of Lake Wales, and both are receiving inducements from a special grant program. "Smokin' DJ's" anticipates opening early next year at 122 1st St N, Unit #4. The new restaurant will offer table service and the signature barbecue ribs already popularized locally by the "D on Wheelz" food truck. Co-owner Jennifer Leeks told LakeWalesNews.net that they are tackling the extensive renovations required to convert the...
Major improvements to a wide variety of city facilities are included in the new Five Year Capital Improvements Plan (CIP) being considered for adoption by the Lake Wales City Commission. The plan includes total expenditures of $117,518,667, of which about $17 million is anticipated to come from state and federal grants. A large portion of the remainder will be provided by Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) funds, some of which are being used to obtain about $18 million in...
As the City of Lake Wales and Polk County prepare to finalize their annual budgets and set tax rates for the new fiscal year, both are benefitting from a substantial rise in property values. The changes could lead to further reductions in millage rates for property owners. In Polk overall, values have risen to $51,391,150,529, an increase of 17.75 percent, nearly doubling last year's sharp increase of 9.03 percent. That represents a current-year increase of more than $2.2...
A 312-acre parcel expected to host the Mayfair development nearly two decades ago is now the proposed site of a 1,020-unit project dubbed Ridgecrest. The Lake Wales City commission on Tuesday will consider the application for a preliminary subdivision plat and a special exception use permit for a residential Planned Development Project (PDP). Ridgecrest is planned to be constructed in three phases and will fill in a large blank in the city's residential areas stretching from R...
A $1.2 million contribution from the City of Lake Wales will empower a new business incubator designed to increase the number of new businesses and entrepreneurs in Lake Wales. Funds for the project will come from the American Rescue Act which was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden last year. The city received some $7 million which must be directed to economic development projects. The funds will be directed to the operations of "Bizlink," which will...
Efforts to re-imagine the urban core of Lake Wales as an attractive and shady pedestrian oasis filled with new businesses and restaurants continues to draw the support of both the public and private sectors. Congressman Darren Soto has announced that he is requesting a $1 million Federal grant to support street restoration in downtown Lake Wales. This project, one element of a multi-faceted effort, would revitalize 1st Street, which is a critical connector, unifying the...
Money to fund the extensive Lake Wales Connected plan has not been threatened thus far by rising interest rates, according to a presentation to the city commission sitting as the board of the Community Redevelopment Agency. The CRA is anticipating issuing bonds to raise about $18.5 million to fund the transformational project. After hearing a report from Will Reid, representing the city's bond counsel firm of Ford and Associates, commissioners had plenty of questions about...
Plans to create a "gateway" sign and landscaping on a parcel at the intersection of SR 60 and West Central Avenue are on hold after a preliminary environmental inspection revealed evidence of potential contamination on the site. The parcel, known locally as "Clark's Corner," was formerly a gasoline service station. The Community Redevelopment Agency had previously agreed to purchase the site for $60,000, but questions about the deal were raised in a story on...
EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been updated to include comments from City Manager James Slaton. A confusing staff report may have led to city commissioners, sitting as the board of the Lake Wales Community Development Agency, paying more than intended for a small parcel of land and a dilapidated building. A staff report contained errors on the value of the parcel. The prominent eyesore at the corner of West Central Avenue and SR 60 West property is eventually expected to be...
Plans to build sidewalks and plant scores of shade trees to enhance the Northwest Neighborhood, part of the Lake Wales Connected plan, received a major boost last week with the announcement that the City of Lake Wales was awarded nearly a $1.2 million grant. Lake Wales is one of ten Florida communities awarded funding through the Rural Infrastructure and the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, administered by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity. "This...
Citizens interested in learning the details and impact of the city-reshaping Lake Wales Connected plan are invited to attend any of four luncheon meetings on the topic beginning Tuesday, May 17. The plan, which is expected to include more than $20 million in infrastructure improvements in the city, will be the focus of four weeks of meetings hosted by the Lake Wales Noon Rotary Club at the Lake Wales Country Club, according to club spokesperson Bob Peppel. The first speaker...
A small crowd gathered Monday morning on Third Street near the shores of Crystal Lake to witness a historic moment for the city as officials formally broke ground for the long-anticipated "Park Avenue Trail." The location was perhaps an indication that the marketing name may not last long, as the trail will eventually encircle Crystal Lake and encompass parts of three streets and two parks. Outgoing Mayor Eugene Fultz called the event "historic," noting that the $1.4 million...
The City of Lake Wales and area partners are lending a helping hand to seniors, providing home improvements and repairs The city's Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) Legacy Housing Rehabilitation Program is designed to help homeowners 65 and older in the Northwest Neighborhood with a variety of services, such as roof repairs, exterior painting, light construction, and lawn cleanup. The program is supported by area partners including Keystone Challenge Fund, the Lake Wales...
A vital channel of communication between downtown merchants, the Community Redevelopment Agency and Lake Wales Main Street was opened at a breakfast meeting at the MarketPlace Café Thursday morning, The meeting was part of an effort to familiarize the group about the pending impacts of construction of the Lake Wales Connected revitalization project. Some thirty downtown businesspeople and property owners gathered to hear a presentation from Main Street Manager Karen Thompson,...
Downtown Lake Wales is seeing a significant uptick in property transactions that some see as the result of ambitious street renewal plans being advanced by the Lake Wales Community Redevelopment Agency. The CRA plans to invest some $18 million in renovations across a wide swath of the historic city center. In the latest transaction Monday, investors Stephen and Tammy James have acquired four additional parcels from the Park Avenue Building Company. The couple had purchased...
