The Lake Wales "Sense of Community"

The Lake Wales Unity in Community group has volunteered to be involved in the effort to build a community swimming pool. This is one more example of the amazing “sense of community” that is present in Lake Wales.

Lake Wales Unity in Community

The Lake Wales Unity in Community (UIC) group was formed some years ago at the suggestion of Pastor JJ Pierce of the First Institutional Baptist Missionary Church. It was a project that was initially carried out by a Leadership Lake Wales class (an annual program offered by the Lake Wales Area Chamber of Commerce). The UIC group meets on the first Thursday of every month at the B St Center at 8 am. This group is dedicated to having an on-going dialogue about diversity issues and bringing our community together.

A Community Pool

The talk of building a City pool has gone on for decades. At this point the City Commission has set aside $1 million, which was realized from the sale several years ago of the Cooperative Fruit property on US 27 at Hunt Brothers Road. This money is in a separate line item account and is accruing interest. Presently there is about $40,000 in interest proceeds, and they continue to grow. But many questions remain, with the principal question being how the operation, maintenance, and capital replacement costs for the pool will be funded. Community pools elsewhere have annual operations and maintenance costs of over $100,000, and an additional amount on the order of $20,000 annually must be set aside for capital replacement costs.

UIC has offered its services in the quest to build a pool. The UIC is working with the new director of the YMCA, Nate Seidl, who has experience in the building of a community swimming pool and has generously volunteered to help. At last Tuesday’s workshop of the City Commission, UIC asked the Commission if they and Nate could work on this project, and they bring a new and fresh perspective. A community pool is a desirable amenity. Why not survey the community to determine the best way to address the questions surrounding this project, and then move ahead. The City Commission agreed, and a proposed schedule for this survey was presented by Nate at Monday’s meeting of the City’s Recreation Advisory Board:

• April 2 – UIC meeting, discussion of the survey instrument


• May – begin survey work


• Upon completion of the survey, prepare the report to bring back to the City Commission in August or September.

There is more to come on this project, and UIC and Nate are to be commended for their willingness to work on this project.

The Amazing Lake Wales Sense of Community

It occurred to me that this effort is typical of the Lake Wales sense of community. Lake Wales has the strongest sense of community of any of the towns that I have lived in. This sense – or spirit - of community is evident in many ways, but let’s just look at a few examples in the field of recreation.

This past Saturday was Opening Day for the Lake Wales Little League, which has been in existence since 1954. This is a parent-run organization, and the parents of the children playing in the league also volunteer to coach teams, work at the concession stands, and serve as announcers and official scorekeepers. Last Saturday was also the Opening Day for the Spring Season of the Ridge Soccer League, another parent-run organization that also has parents serving as coaches, concession stand workers, and volunteers.

Both of these leagues play on city-owned facilities, and the City is a partner with them in providing these wonderful recreational opportunities for our children. Other City recreation partners include the Boys and Girls Club, and the Little Theatre, both of which are also housed in City-owned facilities and also provide superb recreational programs.

The Pram Fleet operates out of a City-owned facility on the shore of Lake Wailes. For many decades this parent-run organization has taught our children how to sail, and on Sunday afternoons during sailing season the view of the little sail boats on the lake with their student sailors is priceless.

With all of these partnerships, the effort by Unity in Community is another example of the Spirit of Lake Wales. All of the individuals serving our community in these and other community organizations are to be commended.

Partnering with the Community

During the presentation of the City’s Annual Report it was noted that there are a number of factors that are having a negative impact on the City’s budget. These factors include the poor condition of the economy, the two waves of property tax reform, and new duties passed on from other levels of government. Governor Crist has announced that he will present several more tax reform proposals for consideration in the upcoming session of the state legislature. With these factors outside any city’s control, what can a city do to sustain its level of services?

Come budget time, there will be some very difficult decisions to be made. To use a time-worn cliché, city officials will have to begin “thinking outside the box.” One of the methods suggested in the Annual Report presentation could be re-phrased as follows:

Explore the Power of Partnerships

Actually, this is not a new idea in Lake Wales. Years ago the City Commission signed a long-term lease with the The Little Theatre group to use the former high school band building on Third Street. The Little Theatre has done an outstanding job in offering quality community theatre performances, as well as remodeling the building for a worthwhile purpose. The offering of the children’s plays, in particular, is an amazing enterprise. I remember the first year that my son Dave participated in this event. There were over 80 children in that production of Dr. Dolittle, and director Danny Baynard kept all of them focused through many rehearsals and performances.

Another more recent partnership came with the remodeling of the elementary school building at the corner of Seminole and Fourth St for the Boys and Girls Club. The remodeling was funded by a state historic preservation grant, and matching funds were provided by the Boys and Girls Club. Again, the City signed a long term lease with the Boys and Girls Club, and they maintain the building and offer an important program to our community.

The building of the soccer/multi-purpose sports complex on Hunt Brothers Road, the JD Alexander Center of Polk Community College, and Barney’s Dream playground are all examples of successful partnerships. In the building of the sports complex, the board members of the Ridge Soccer League (now the Lake Wales Soccer Club) partnered with the City in securing a county grant for the project. The City negotiated the sale of the larger property and the conveyance of the 18 acre complex area back to the City. The City then used the value of the property to obtain another grant. With these two grants and many other donations, the complex was completed.

The City Commission donated the old city hall building to Polk Community College and agreed to provide parking for the building. Senator JD Alexander led the way in finding state funding, and the newest branch of PCC was opened.

Barney’s Dream was a project of the Lake Wales Kiwanis Club, initiated by Kiwanian Barney Moore, in the City owned and maintained Kiwanis Park. That park has received much attention in recent years, with state grants providing the soccer field and the skatepark, while a county grant helped fund the playground, along with many donations.

The partnership model extends beyond capital projects. The City has entered into other agreements recently with the Chamber of Commerce and the Historic Lake Wales Society for the operation of the Main Street program and the Depot Museum respectively. The agreements provide for a more cost effective operation than in the past. The City has also partnered with the Green and Gold Foundation in the development of three residential lots, and the development of the Walker Building on Lincoln Ave is in the works.

The City has field maintenance agreements with the Lake Wales Little League and the Lake Wales Adult Softball League. These leagues maintain the city facilities that they use. The predictions on how long the recession will last are mixed, with a wide variety of opinion. What is certain is that the future will hold many more challenges than the recent past, and communities need to start exploring new ways of getting the job done. I am confident that we will prevail, as the City already has a track record of success in “thinking outside the box.”