Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
Sorted by date Results 851 - 875 of 1183
Audrey Louise Audette, 94, of Lake Wales passed away Sunday, June 28, 2020 at her residence. She was born August 17, 1925 in Cambridge, MA to the late Cyril and Margaret LeFort. She has been a resident of Lake Wales since 2015, moving here from Port St. Lucie. Audrey was a retired riveter for Sealol Company and helped put Apollo 11 up. She was part of a craft group since the 1970s and was very active in the community at Spanish Lakes in Port St. Lucie. Audrey was preceded in...
Lake Wales city commissioners will consider a resolution July 7 that would strongly encourage, but not mandate, residents to wear face masks while out in the public. During an agenda workshop meeting July 1 the five commissioners seemed unanimous that the city create a resolution regarding the issue, but some did not rule out passing an actual ordinance mandating masks at some point in the future if the current COVID-19 outbreak doesn't start to subside. City Attorney Chuck...
This is the eighth 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. It is impossible to overstate the importance of the private enterprise segment of a successful community redevelopment effort. Florida's Community Redevelopment Act illustrates the point. The very first section of the Act is entitled "Encouragement of private enterprise." The Community...
Lake Wales City Commissioners want to talk with representatives of the Florida City and County Management Association (FCCMA) on July 1 before making a final decision on how to proceed in hiring a new city manager for Lake Wales. The FCCMA has a group of retired managers, called Senior Advisors, who can aid in a search for a new city manager, including helping narrow a field of candidates based on their qualifications. Commissioners will hear from them at workshop at 3 p.m....
Roger Lee Strickland, 82, of Lake Wales passed away Friday, June 26, 2020 at the Winter Haven Hospital. He was born December 31, 1937 in Flatwoods, KY to the late Joshua and Martha Strickland. He graduated in Russell, KY in 1955, received his two-year Associate's degree from Ashland Community College, his Bachelor's from Marshall, and a Master's from Webber. He was a certified Management Accountant. Roger moved to Jacksonville to work for his brother-in-law at Stewart's Air...
The City of Lake Wales may take possession of the historic Seminole Hotel, now two and one-half years after it was first condemned as unsafe. The Lake Wales Code Enforcement Board Thursday, June 25 authorized the city to move forward with foreclosing on the property, since owner Cardiff Howell had been unable to correct multiple code violations or to sell the hotel to someone who could restore it. If the city takes possession, commissioners will have to decide what to do with...
The Lake Wales Charter Review Committee held its organizational meeting Wednesday, June 24, and all five members expressed a willingness to kick in with twice monthly meetings to get the job done by December. The charter details how the city is governed, and any suggested changes will be put to the voters in April 2021. The committee elected consultant and publisher Chevon Baccus as chairperson and college administrator Andy Oguntola as vice chairperson. Other members are all...
This is the seventh 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. The Dover-Kohl plan is much more than an update of the well-worn 1973 improvements to Downtown. The plan covers the town's historic core. It is thorough, comprehensive, and doable. The entire plan can be viewed at: https://www.doverkohl.com/lakewales. Appropriately named "Lake Wales...
Lake Wales has long been known as "The Crown Jewel of the Ridge," but that didn't happen by accident. It took the efforts of Edward Bok and Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. While many are familiar with Bok, the name of Olmsted, arguably the more significant historic figure, is an enigma. It was Olmsted who designed Bok's famous gardens, as well as Mountain Lake, and scores of private landscapes there. It was Olmsted who designed the Colony House, and our familiar Town Clock. And it...
Lake Wales Assistant City Manager Kathy Bangley resigned Thursday morning June 18, effective immediately. She quit less than a week after Interim City Manager James Slaton put her on a six-month probation for "poor performance and unprofessional behavior." A 14-year city employee, Bangley worked closely with and got superior evaluations from recently retired City Manager Ken Fields, who in October 2019 gave her a $2,612 raise and the title assistant city manager for planning...
City Commissioner Al Goldstein is proposing that the city fund a "Lake Wales Black Music and Cultural Center" on Lincoln Avenue. He brought it up at the end of the June 16 commission meeting, and plans to talk more about it during the July budget workshop. "Why music? Because Blacks are famous in music," Goldstein said, noting Elvis Presley was greatly influenced by Black musicians and Black gospel music. Goldstein said Black children often have low self-esteem and that creati...
A blue-ribbon committee of residents will spend the next few months reviewing the Lake Wales charter – the document that details how the city is governed – with an eye towards putting any suggested changes in front of voters next spring. The five-person group will conduct all its meetings publicly, and ultimately can only suggest changes. Those suggestions are then considered by the current city commission, and then go on the ballot if they give them a thumbs up. The com...
Lake Wales city officials are hoping the state will help provide funding for needed repairs at one of the city's most historic structures. The Historic Stuart House on Central Avenue near downtown was damaged in 2017 when Hurricane Irma swept through the city, according to Lake Wales Museum Director Jennifer D'hollander. She said temporary steps to mitigate damage to the roof of the house were undertaken then, but that long term repairs are still needed. "Rehabilitation is...
Lake Wales City Commissioners spent a little under two hours in a workshop session June 10 becoming familiar with next Tuesday's regular June 16 meeting agenda and sharing their opinions informally with their colleagues and city staff. Commissioners indicated they like the new pre-agenda workshop proposed by new Interim City Manager James Slaton to identify and address commissioner questions prior to distribution of the formal agenda and to obtain their input on proposed...
New Lake Wales Interim City Manager James Slaton is trying something new - a workshop the Wednesday before the Tuesday regular city commission meeting. The first will be at 3 p.m. June 10. Slaton said the workshops are designed to give commissioners more advance notice of agenda items - they currently receive the agenda on Friday before the Tuesday meeting. The workshop also will help get input from commissioners, answer questions and give staff a couple of days to revise...
This is the sixth 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. First, let's talk about where we are headed, and next, about one of the trouble spots we may confront in getting there. Where We're Headed. The Dover-Kohl plan, entitled "Lake Wales Connected," is a comprehensive plan for the revitalization of the Lake Wales historic core. It connects...
Body worn cameras for Lake Wales police officers got put on the back burner during a budget workshop June 3, but not without heated discussion and passionate disagreements among city commissioners. Commissioners Terrye Howell and Curtis Gibson advocated for body cameras to be a budget priority, but Mayor Eugene Fultz, who previously supported them, cited budget concerns and his doubts that cameras would resolve issues between police and citizens. Deputy Mayor Robin Gibson...
Lake Wales Police Detective Travis Worley was suspended with pay Friday June 5 pending the conclusion of an active internal investigation, which Deputy Chief Troy Schulze called "the best decision for everyone involved." Worley was the prime target of a protest May 31 by the Winter Haven-based civil rights group the Poor and Minority Justice Association, which called for his termination for allegedly using racial slurs, excessive force, stealing from suspects, planting drugs a...
A Peaceful Gathering where prayer was the central focus was spearheaded just after sunrise June 9 by the Lake Wales Business Civic and Ministry Coalition of Lake Wales - a pastor's prayer group which meets each Friday morning at 7 a.m. Pastor Herb Schlenker, the coalition's prayer leader, started the gathering right on time as the sun was shining bright across the sparkling waters of Lake Wailes. This strong group of pastors from many denominations and churches from across...
Lake Wales Finance Director Dorothy Abbott tried to calm commissioners' fears at the first 2020-2021 city budget workshop June 3. She said she's been preparing city budgets for 19 years and if she's not panicking over the likelihood of reduced revenue, neither should they. "Everybody just stay calm, tell us what you would like to see and trust your staff to bring back a budget document," Abbott said. "If I'm not too worried yet, please don't be too worried yet." Abbott said sh...
Pastors, church leaders and other concerned people plan to assemble near the gazebo at Lake Wailes Lake at 7 a.m. Tuesday, June 9 to pray for the city, state and nation. Lake Wales City Commissioner Curtis Gibson presented the idea to Pastor Walter Nelson of IMPACT Church, who immediately started spreading the word. Rather than choose specific people to offer prayers, Nelson sent out an email, providing a corporate prayer for all assembled to use. He suggested bringing the...
About 125 peaceful protesters gathered Sunday afternoon at the Lake Wales Police Department, but unlike groups around the country their issue was not the killing of a black man by a white Minneapolis police officer. Instead, they were calling for racial justice at the local level and demanding the firing of a Lake Wales police detective, who ironically was named 2019 Officer of the Year. The Poor and Minority Justice Association, a Winter Haven-based civil rights group,...
Lake Wales City Manager Ken Fields and the city commission agreed Tuesday June 2 to part ways in something akin to an "amicable divorce" but it took a lengthy discussion to reach agreement on the terms for the split. "I hope I am viewed as someone who has made Lake Wales a better city," Fields said, noting leaving two years before his contract expired wasn't his choice but he was resigned that it was time to go. Fields' departure was effective immediately, but everyone made...
In the midst of Florida's stay at home order, the clubwomen of GFWC Florida (www.gfwcflorida.org) used online meeting technology to announce the unprecedented accomplishments of their 8,400 volunteer force. Participating in the online celebrations were clubwomen and guests from across the state and dignitaries from the General Federation of Women's Clubs (www.gfwc.org). GFWC Florida club women volunteered over 1.2 million hours in 2019, a 50% increase over 2018, and donated...
This is the fifth 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. Dover, Kohl & Partners is an internationally known town planning firm working out of South Miami. Among their many achievements are nationally recognized revitalizations of traditional communities much like Lake Wales. Victor Dover is co-author of the definitive work on the subject...
