Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
Sorted by date Results 801 - 825 of 1183
The recent kerfuffle in Lake Wales over a secular invocation and the subsequent rush by the commission to craft a policy that would exclude future similar invocations is nothing more or less than history repeating itself. One would have hoped that nearly 250 years of hands-on experience with the religious freedom and the equality guaranteed by our constitution would have brought us to a point where offering an invocation in a public meeting would immediately be met with "Cool....
Think of 25 people you know. One of them is likely atheist. And probably afraid of you finding out. We know that there are even nonbelievers working in governments and sitting on Boards or holding other elected positions who feel their nonreligious identities must remain hidden because they are made to feel as second class by things like discriminatory invocation practices and some of the public response we saw this week in Lake Wales, FL. A few weeks ago, I was approached by...
Theologian John Wesley is attributed with once saying that "Christ came to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable." After witnessing the actions of several local "Christian" leaders, I believe Rev. Wesley's words proved, unfortunately, to be true of those "comfortable" religious leaders that felt compelled to speak out during the Lake Wales City Commissioners meeting, Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2020. Controversy had been generated after a person, personally identified as...
I found out that this job can be incredibly challenging. It is not part-time as some will say. This job is tough, and it is not for everyone. You can be elected today and gone the next time around. Especially, if you are not up to putting in the work to carry out your duty to the people who elected you. There is no one-sided view on ANYTHING - you need to have an open mind and a drive to search for the answers that you need to effectively make the best decision for the people...
Deputy Mayor Robin Gibson in July voted against raises for himself and his fellow commissioners, but he's apparently had a change of heart. At the commission's Sept. 16 workshop Gibson asked for the issue to be reconsidered. Interim City Manager James Slaton quickly placed the item on the Sept. 23 agenda to meet a fast approaching deadline. Commissioners have the power to raise their salaries, but any action must be at least six months prior to the city election. The window...
Henry Kebabjian wants to redevelop the historic Seminole Hotel in downtown Lake Wales, but his timing may be a little off. Kebabjian bought the three-story hotel Aug. 19 at a bargain-basement price of $10,500, two months after the city's Code Enforcement Board voted to foreclose on the property. The city in 2017 declared the building unsafe, emptied it of tenants and condemned it for multiple code violations. Recent owner Cardiff Howell of Orlando was unable to submit an...
Lake Wales Interim City Manger James Slaton says if your grocery store has an outbreak of COVID-19 among its employees you can always go to another store. But he says there's no alternative if the pandemic impacts a large number of city employees. That's how Slaton justifies keeping city buildings shut down to visitors, when so many other businesses and government offices are opening. "There's no replacement for what we do," Slaton said, noting the city is taking a...
Lake Wales City Commissioner Al Goldstein has been tapped to chair the Florida League of Cities Land Use and Economic Development Committee. FLC President Tony Ortiz, an Orlando city commissioner, appointed Goldstein, who also is currently serving on the league's Federal Action Strike Team, which visits Washington, DC to discuss legislative issues at the national level. Ortiz said Goldstein will be responsible for working with other committee members to discuss the many...
The Lake Wales Charter Review Committee is ahead of schedule and looking for public input on changes that can make city government operate better. The next Committee meeting will be at 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 10 at the city administration building, 201 W. Central Ave. People can attend in person or join online by registering at https://www.lakewalesfl.gov/Register The current Charter, which was last reviewed in 2010, can be found online at http://lakewales.e...
Bienvenido "Benny" Fernandez, Jr., 70, of Lake Wales passed away Thursday morning, Sept. 10, 2020 at his residence. He was born October 11, 1949 in Yabocoa, Puerto Rico to the late Bienvenido and Edelmira Fernandez, Sr. He moved to Lake Wales from Winter Haven six years ago. Benny was a retired housekeeper for the Metropolitan Hospital in New York City and was of the Pentecostal faith. He loved cars, birds, his plants, his tools, and cooking. Benny is survived by his wife of...
Lake Wales City commissioners are looking to reduce or eliminate a small increase in the city’s fire fee when the first reading and public hearing on a proposed 2020-21 budget is held on Sept. 9. The overall plan totals $47.9 million – and actually trims the city’s millage rate to the rollback figure of $6.9747 per $1,000 in assessed valuation – which included a five percent increase in the city’s fire fee assessment. The residential cost was projected to rise $16 a year, fro...
Rotary on the Ridge has been recognized with a 2019-2020 Water Safety Advocacy Award by the Joshua Collingsworth Memorial Foundation. The regional after hours service club kicked off its water safety initiative in the spring of 2019 using the foundation's Josh the Baby Otter program materials. The club presented the water safety program to more than 500 children at Chain of Lakes and Spook Hill elementary schools and at day care centers in Dundee and Lake Wales. Planned 2020...
The pandemic forced some changes, but First Baptist Church of Lake Wales went forward with a modified Back 2 School Bash on Saturday, Aug. 22. Children's Ministry Director Candice McKeon said each year around this time the church is polishing the final details for the church's Back to School Bash. Normally there are bounce houses, water slides, shaved ice and of course, food. Each year an estimated 50 families attend to celebrate the start of a new school year. Unfortunately,...
Lake Wales Deputy Mayor Robin Gibson said he would prefer city commission meetings begin with a moment of silence, but the mayor and other commissioners agreed at their Sept. 2 workshop to go forward with a new invocation policy that appoints an official chaplain and sets up a rotation list of local clergy volunteers when he is not available. Commissioners will consider adopting a resolution formalizing the new policy at their Sept. 9 meeting. The resolution appoints Dr....
Lake Wales Police Officer Travis Worley has filed a grievance through his union representative claiming the discipline he received for using profanity against a citizen – an eight-hour suspension without pay – is "excessive and not appropriate." Union President Nick Marolda with the West Central Florida Police Benevolent Association filed a four-page grievance for Worley claiming the suspension violates the police officers' collective bargaining agreement. Marolda said the...
Dylan J. Morsch, 28, of Lake Wales passed away Thursday, Aug. 13, 2020. He was born February 8, 1992 in Queens, NY to the late Patrica Morsch. He moved to Lake Wales from Cooper City in 2017. Dylan was a fence installer and was of the Christian faith. He loved history; enjoyed hunting, and fishing; and was an avid pool player. Dylan is survived by his brothers, Daltin Morsch, Dakohta Morgenlender; and Daniel Morsch; and his grandmother, Suzanne Morsch Seims. A funeral service will be held 2 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 6 at Marion...
The city's consultants in an online open house Aug. 20 unveiled a design plan for a Crystal Lake Connector Trail that links downtown to the trail around Lake Wailes. City staff will be showing off designs and answering questions from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, Aug. 21 in a storefront at 220 E. Park Ave. About 30 citizens participated in the online open house with city staff and consultants from urban planners Dover-Kohl and design architects S & ME. The consultants are working...
People on both sides of the face mask debate voiced strong opinions to the Lake Wales City Commission Aug. 18, and in the end commissioners in a 3-2 vote imposed a citywide mask mandate. With some exceptions, people in Lake Wales will be expected to wear masks anytime they venture out of their homes unless they can maintain the recommended six-foot social distance. The ordinance applies only to indoor locations. Police will be empowered to give warnings on first offense and...
After hearing a national organization might file a lawsuit, Lake Wales City commissioners Aug. 18 paused their plans to adopt guidelines for invocations before meetings . Commissioners had decided in workshop session a week earlier to appoint Dr. James Moyer as the city's official chaplain and fill in themselves with invocations in his absence. Since 2009, Moyer, a retired minister of higher education and chaplain for the Polk County Sheriff's Office, has been the primary...
The City of Lake Wales is hosting a virtual open house Thursday, Aug. 20 to show off the preliminary site plan for the Crystal Lake Park Connector Trail. The focus of the trail is to connect Lake Wailes Park to Historic Downtown Lake Wales, while capturing the natural beauty of Crystal Lake. The open house from 5:30-6:30 p.m. will include consultants from city planners Dover-Kohl and Associates and SM &E, both of which are working on the city's downtown redevelopment...
This is the eleventh installment in the Lake Wales Renaissance series. Lake Wales City Commissioner Robin Gibson serves as Deputy Mayor and Chairman of the city's Community Redevelopment Agency. Nations strive for a positive trade balance, where they sell more products than they buy, thereby receiving increased capital and creating a higher standard of living for their citizens. The same holds true for any economic unit. Let's take Lake Wales downtown for example. It's a...
Lake Wales City Commissioners got good news at their second budget workshop Aug. 12. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic's negative impact on the economy, projected state revenue is about $100,000 higher than originally expected. Budget Director Dorothy Abbott said she is confident that the City can adopt a balanced budget at a slightly lower "rollback" millage, the rate that is expected to generate the same amount of property taxes as this year. The current rate of 6.9339 may be...
With all 167 precincts, early votes and mail in ballots tallied, Lori Edwards has coasted to another term in office, an indication that voters are pleased with how she is running the Supervisor of Elections office. The unofficial results are Edwards with 79,210 votes (77.67 percent) to Debbie Hannifan garnering 22,778 votes (22.33 percent). Edwards was the biggest winner of the night. This is not to say this race was without controversy, as her opponent unsuccessfully...
The city's unofficial chaplain, Dr. James Moyer, is likely to become the city's official chaplain Aug. 18, two weeks after a firestorm erupted when the Lake Wales city clerk invited a representative of the Atheist Community of Polk County to give the invocation to open the city commission meeting. Since 2009, Moyer, a retired minister of higher education and chaplain for the Polk County Sheriff's Office, has been the primary person offering invocations at Lake Wales City...
Eligible voters may vote in advance of the Aug. 18 Statewide Primary Election at nine convenient locations around Polk County. Early voting in Lake Wales will be at the James P. Austin Community Center, 315 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd N. Early voting begins Aug. 3 and continues through Aug. 15, and will be open from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. daily. Any eligible Polk County voter may cast a ballot at any Early Voting location. Other early voting locations include: Bartow - Polk...
