Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
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Construction is progressing rapidly on the Park Avenue Connector Trail, a 3000-foot multiuse trail being constructed by the Lake Wales Community Redevelopment Agency. The project is a key element of the Lake Wales Connected plans which are expected to transform and revitalize the city's center in coming years. Construction of the new trail is utilizing about one-half of the right-of-way of Park Avenue, which was 24 feet wide despite being a one-way street. The new design featu...
On a split vote, Lake Wales City Commissioners Tuesday evening voted themselves an annual raise of $2,400 intended to pay for the cost of local travel and expenses. City Manager James Slaton had proposed the increase at a commission work session last week, saying those expenses were often incurred by commissioners in the course of their duties. Newly-elected Commissioner Danny Krueger argued in favor of the raise, complaining that his 547 miles of travel around the city since...
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...
The conception of the Lake Wales Connected plan and the growing awareness of the city's strong connections to the works of Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. have combined to make Arbor Day an increasingly important event in Lake Wales. To mark the date this year the City of Lake Wales, in partnership with Lake Wales Heritage, is planting a 100-gallon cathedral live oak to observe the 150th anniversary of Arbor Day. Local residents are invited to witness the planting of the large oak...
Long before Frederick Law Olmsted left his generational "City in a Garden" imprint on Lake Wales -- and a decade before he transformed impoverished scrub into the lush gardens of Bok Tower – the first of his Florida landscapes was the verdant canvass of Mountain Lake. By early in 1915, the famed landscape architect who will be celebrated locally on April 30 – and whose work is the foundation for the city's current "Lake Wales Connected" redevelopment plan for the historic dow...
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...
Converting downtown streets into a shady pedestrian oasis through the Lake Wales Connected plan got a financial boost as the City of Lake Wales has received a Federal grant. Congressman Darren Soto (Dem, Kissimmee) arranged an $800,000 infusion for downtown street rehabilitation in the bi-partisan Infrastructure package approved by the US Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden. Those funds will aid in fulfilling the Lake Wales Connected plan, augmenting Community...
More than 70 guests gathered Monday evening at the Lake Wales Woman's Club to hear all five candidates for election to two city posts discuss issues and answer questions. Speaking from the stage all five candidates received polite applause following most of their answers, but there were also moments of division. All five candidates were asked the same questions. Mayoral candidates Curtis Gibson, Jack Hilligoss and Tammy James generally agreed on most issues, including that...
With some $4 million in interest payments riding on the decision, three city commissioners gave direction to staff at Wednesday's workshop to pursue a 30-year bond rather than shorter-term bank loans to finance the $18.5 million earmarked for the Lake Wales Connected plan. The most-significant action ever undertaken by the City of Lake Wales or its related Community Redevelopment Agency, the huge investment is intended to breathe new life into the venerable heart of the city,...
A review of city commission meeting videos has revealed that only one commissioner has missed a significant number of meetings. Commissioner Daniel Williams has been absent from 12 meetings since being sworn in only ten months ago. William’s absences included seven of 20 regular city commission meetings, four CRA meetings, and one agenda workshop. The review was conducted after the recent absences of two commissioners and the forced departure of a third left the board w...
The re-imagining of downtown Lake Wales and the application of the Connected plan is now inspiring some significant proposed changes to Central Avenue between Scenic Highway and First Street. In keeping with the concepts advanced in the award-winning Lake Wales Connected plan, a new pavement configuration which will add a bike lane to the north side of the street was approved at Tuesday's Community Redevelopment Agency meeting. The board will enter a $35,000 contract with...
Dining choices in Lake Wales have expanded recently, and the official grand opening of one new restaurant drew a happy crowd of diners to celebrate. Wales Pointe, already a popular spot for brunch, lunch and dinner. was welcomed to the business community at noon Thursday by Lake Wales Mayor Gene Fultz and Chamber of Commerce officials. A formal ribbon cutting ceremony at the stroke of 12:00 saw more than 30 crowding to be included in the celebratory photos. Wales Pointe is...
A day after a bare three-member quorum at the Community Redevelopment Agency meeting gave city staff direction on the form of a planned $18.5 million dollar bond issue in the absence of commissioners Jack Hilligoss and Daniel Williams, Mayor Eugene Fultz voiced his frustration at the absence of the same two commissioners at the City Commission's 2:00 pm Wednesday agenda workshop. Vice Mayor Robin Gibson, who attended both meetings, had let his fellow commissioners know that...
Private investment in the Lincoln Avenue commercial district, one of the goals of the Lake Wales Connected plan, seems to have begun even before the first spade of dirt is turned. In a presentation before the Community Redevelopment Agency on Tuesday, representatives of restaurant operator Whadda-Wing LLC and NuJak Construction described their plans to construct a new restaurant building on a parcel at the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and A Street. It's the third new...
After expressing concerns about the lack of success achieved by the Lake Wales Housing Authority, the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) changed their tune after a joint meeting with the Smith & Henzy Advisory Group, the consultants for the Housing Authority. A December discussion had led to the CRA had issuing a letter to the Authority on December 16 threatening to withhold the million dollars they had pledged toward the project, recognized as an important part of the Lake...
A portrait of a city undergoing numerous changes was delivered to about 100 community and business leaders Friday at the annual "State of the City" report delivered by outgoing Mayor Gene Fultz in a darkened auditorium at the Vanguard School. It was the first opportunity for him to deliver the speech since 2019 due to the impacts of Covid-19. He will be leaving office this year after nine years as the city's first elected mayor. Citing an aggressive pursuit of improvements...
