Communication Builds Our Community

(233) stories found containing 'Community Redevelopment'


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  • Planners Propose Lake Wales Restore "A City in a Garden"

    Robert Connors, Associate Editor|Updated May 31, 2019

    A "City in a Garden" with landscaped streets, a redeveloped Grove Manor featuring a mix of housing types, and a new "town square" were among the ideas presented to Lake Wales citizens Friday evening to cap a week of intensive study by the planning firm of Dover Kohl. Most of the 100 in attendance were excited by the possibilities. The week-long effort, sponsored by Lake Wales Mainstreet and funded by local businesses, included gathering ideas and suggestions from the public,...

  • Commissioners Begin City Budget Talks by Sharing Priorities

    Chevon T. Baccus APR, Executive Editor|Updated May 15, 2019

    Lake Wales City Commissioners Tuesday, May 14 kicked off budget talks for the 2019-20 year by sharing their priorities and opinions with city staff. There was clear consensus that the report from urban planners Dover Kohl, expected in mid-June, will drive spending decisions, particularly use of Community Redevelopment Agency trust funds. Vice Mayor Robin Gibson, who chairs the CRA, said he expects Park Avenue in historic downtown to be the top priority and to set the standard...

  • Commissioners Meet May 14 to Discuss Budget Priorities

    Chevon T. Baccus APR, Executive Editor|Updated May 15, 2019

    The Lake Wales City Commission will meet Tuesday, May 14 to discuss priorities for the 2019-2020 budget. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. in the City Administration Building, after the commission meets at 5:30 p.m. serving as the city's Community Redevelopment Agency According to the budget workshop agenda by Finance Director Dorothy Eklund, "as the City Commission begins the annual budget process, it is customary for the City Commission to first hold 'priority setting workshops'...

  • City Manager Fields Named Public Servant of the Year

    Chevon T. Baccus APR, Executive Editor|Updated May 14, 2019

    City Manager Ken Fields was named Public Servant of the Year at the May 9 Annual Awards Gala of the Lake Wales Area Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Council. The award was presented by last year's winner, Kathy Bangley, the city's director of planning and development. She said when she won the award she didn't realize she'd be presenting the next one to her boss. She cited his 30 plus years' experience in government and the private sector. "To be a public servant...

  • CRA Grant Program Aims to Boost Food-Related Businesses

    Robert Connors, Associate Editor|Updated May 8, 2019

    New restaurants, coffee shops, micro-breweries and grocery stores planned for the heart of Lake Wales are eligible to take advantage of up to $50,000 from a new CRA grant program to help get them off the ground. The grants are designed to stimulate the development of new food-related businesses in Lake Wales' two Community Redevelopment Districts. They are administered through the City's Community Redevelopment Agency. Targeting a variety of food and beverage businesses, the...

  • City May Seek Proposals for 1919 School Building

    Chevon T. Baccus APR, Executive Editor|Updated Apr 24, 2019

    Downtown revitalization may have a domino effect and breathe new life into the old Lake Wales 1919 school building. City Manager Ken Fields told city commissioners April 16 that during the budget process this year he wants to talk about what to do with the city's red brick two-story structure that housed Lake Wales students for decades. Fields said city officials were waiting to see the recommendations of urban planners Dover Kohl, expected in June, which he believes could...

  • Citizens Invited to Help Plan City's Future

    Robert Connors, Associate Editor|Updated Apr 7, 2019

    Do YOU have an interest in the future of Lake Wales? In how our city grows, and the services and lifestyle we will enjoy? Then this is your moment to speak up. (See the outcome of a week of planning by clicking here) More than 100 of your fellow citizens have already shared their ideas and energies by participating in a Monday evening "charrette" at the Austin Community Center, organized by Lake Wales MainStreet and the planning firm of Dover Kohl and Partners. MainStreet...

  • Open Design Studio on City's Future Attracting Input

    Robert Connors, Associate Editor|Updated Apr 5, 2019

    An "Open Design Studio" is drawing visitation and input from citizens interested in helping plan a bright future for Lake Wales. Part of the "Connecting Lake Wales" effort sponsored by the Lake Wales MainStreet program, the studio workshop is filled with planners, architects, and designers actively working on concepts that will be shared with the public in a special presentation on Friday evening, April 5. The Studio will be open to the public from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on...