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(84) stories found containing 'Crystal Lake Park'


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  • Commissioners Explore Big Ideas to Develop Vision for City

    Chevon T. Baccus APR, Executive Editor|Updated Jul 30, 2019

    When Lake Wales commissioners were asked to envision what would produce a huge city success story by the year 2040, they enthusiastically detailed a bright future. Commissioners and senior staff came up with some big vision headlines for a "Miracle on the Ridge": "Lake Wales Annexes its Way to Prosperity and Success." "Lake Wales Restores Big Lake Wailes as Recreational Paradise." "Grand Hotel Open with Rotating Restaurant on Top." "Lake Wales Becomes Second Largest City in...

  • Bid Process Delays Crystal Lake Park Repairs

    Updated Jul 24, 2019

    Crystal Lake Park is still closed, more than a month since problems with a storm water pipe created a hole in the middle of the play park. Originally city officials thought repairs could be completed in three weeks, but assessing the damage and obtaining multiple bids for repair have taken longer than expected. Assistant City Manager James Slaton said after televising the line, the city determined repairs are worse than anticipated. "The original plan to slipline repair has ch...

  • City Closes Crystal Lake Park to Repair Hole from Stormwater Pipe

    Updated Jul 11, 2019

    Problems with a storm water pipe that created a hole in the middle of the play park have caused the City of Lake Wales to close Crystal Lake Park until further notice. City Recreation Coordinator Stephanie Edwards said the problem can't be handled by city workers, so an outside company will be brought in for the repairs. "For the safety of our citizens it closed," Edwards said. Assistant City Manager James Slaton said repairs may take three weeks, but he is hopeful once...

  • Commission Examines Park and Recreation Expansion Plans

    Chevon T. Baccus APR, Executive Editor|Updated Jun 26, 2019

    Scott Blackburn said he and his wife Carrie are tired of carting their four children to other communities because Lake Wales doesn't have enough recreation and sports facilities. Blackburn expressed his frustration to Lake Wales city commissioners at a recreation workshop Tuesday, June 25. Commissioners were reviewing the latest plans for expansion of the Crystal Lake Park complex between the city library and Lake Wailes Park. "We travel to other cities because we don't have...

  • Commissioners Consider YMCA Purchase Proposal at Recreation Workshop

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

    Lake Wales City Commissioners are holding a recreation workshop Tuesday, June 25 to further discuss plans to purchase the local YMCA and to develop a master plan for Crystal Lake Park. The public meeting will start at 6 p.m. at the James P. Austin Center at 315 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. If officials can come to terms with the Y, the city would pay off the Lake Wales Family YMCA mortgage and lease the facilities back at $1 per year for the YMCA of West Central Florida...

  • 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,...

  • Pickleball is Not a Pickle, But it is a Ball to Play!

    Drew Truitt, Sports Editor|Updated Apr 16, 2019

    What is Pickleball? "It was started in 1965, in Bainbridge (Island), WA," Ambassador Helene "Pookie" DeCocq states emphatically. "It's just getting to (Florida and) the Midwest. There's tournaments all over." Carol Yarbrough adds, "We started with like four people." Another lady Pickleball organizer and player Deborah Waldrip chimes in, "And it just started growing. It's one of the fastest growing sports." From those first four players the group soon doubled to eight, and...

  • Mayor Touts City's Good Health

    Robert Connors, Associate Editor|Updated Mar 26, 2019

    More than 100 civic and business leaders gathered for breakfast at the Vanguard School to hear the annual "State of the City" report delivered by Lake Wales Mayor Eugene Fultz on Wednesday morning, and most were impressed by what they heard. Ranging from a summation of new businesses arriving, including a Lake Wales Medical Center Wound Care facility, plus Aldi's, Wawa, and Love's, to imaginative plans for re-invigorating the downtown area and Crystal Lake Park, the address wa...

  • Melange is a Creative Hub in Historic Downtown

    Robert Bullock, Staff Writer|Updated Feb 25, 2019

    There is something very special happening in the downtown historic district of Lake Wales. Melange Antiques and Art Gallery has moved to a new location at the corner of Park Avenue and Scenic Highway, and is now offering much more than its former incarnation. Melange Antiques originated in Venice, Florida. Proprietor Linda Ann Truitt brought it in 2014 to Lake Wales, where it became Melange Antiques, Art Gallery & Wine Bar. In September 2018, the establishment moved down the...