Mark Your Calendar

February will be a busy month! Let’s take a look at just a few of the activities, meetings, and events planned for this month:

• Thursday, February 5, 5:30 pm, City Hall: the regular meeting of the City’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee. Agenda items include a discussion of the feasibility of applying for a grant to fund the next section of the trail that now ends at Buck More Road.



• Friday, February 6, 6 – 9 pm, in the Park Ave. Rhodesbilt Arcade: James R. Hahn Productions presents “A Taste of Lake Wales” featuring drinks, food, art, and music, with a portion of the proceeds to benefit the Vanguard School Performing Arts Center project. Tickets are $25 and are available at the Gallery at 230 E. Park Ave or by calling 863-241-3852.



• Friday, February 6, 5:30 pm, City Hall: a meeting of the City’s Finance Committee. The agenda will include:


• a discussion on the feasibility of applying for $200,000 swimming pool construction grant. While the City has over $1,000,000 in the swimming pool construction fund, there is not an available revenue source to pay for the operation and maintenance of the pool. City staff recommends passing on this grant opportunity until there are more funds built up in the pool fund. The cost of construction is over $800,000, and user fees are not likely to support the on-going costs of operating the pool. This item will come to the City Commission for the final decision on this grant opportunity at the February 17 regular meeting;


• Paul Simmons will discuss the requested donation to the Winter Haven Area Transit (WHAT) system of over $5,000 for the route that serves Winter Haven and the area around the Eagle Ridge Mall. Mr. Simmons is also on the February 17 City Commission meeting agenda to formally make this request.


• Saturday, February 7, 9:00 am – 1 pm, City Hall: Polk County will hold its annual Household Hazardous waste drop off event in conjunction with Keep Polk County Beautiful. Area residents can bring a variety of hazardous items to City Hall and dispose of them for free. The items accepted include cleaners, polishes, solvents, automotive products, aerosol cans, insecticides, disinfectants, paint products, batteries, and pool chemicals. Residents can drop off up to five electronic items per household, including computers, monitors, keyboards, terminals, televisions, stereos, printers, fax machines, VCR/DVD players, video cameras, and video game consoles. Business waste will not be accepted. If you are planning on buying a new television to prepare for the changeover this month to the digital signal, this would be a good place to take your old television. In addition, up to 10 standard vehicle size tires without rims will also be accepted per household with a photo ID and proof of Polk County residency. For further information call (863) 284-4319 or (863) 399-2689, or visit the Polk County website at www.polk-county.net, or call Keep Polk County Beautiful at 676-7019 for questions about tires.



• Saturday, February 7, 10 am, Kiwanis Park: the Grand Opening of Barney’s Dream, the new playground constructed at Kiwanis Park by the Lake Wales Kiwanis Park for children of all abilities. Kawanian Barney Moore initiated this project and the Kiwanis Club raised the money through a variety of fund raising efforts to see the project to reality. Congratulations Barney and the Lake Wales Kiwanis Club for an outstanding job!



• Monday, February 16, 6 pm, City Hall: I will give the “State of the City Address” as requested by the Mayor and everyone is cordially invited. This address was given to the Chamber of Commerce at their January luncheon. Arrangements are being made to televise the address on Comcast Channel 33. (I will also give the address at the coffee meeting in Lake Ashton on Monday, March 23.)



• Tuesday, February 17, 6 pm, City Hall: The City Commission will hold their regular meeting.



• Thursday, February 19, 5:30 – 7:30 pm, City Hall: The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) will hold its anticipated Open House on the proposed project to construct medians on State Road 60 from 11th St to Capps Road. Consultants to FDOT have stated that they will be mailing a notice to all property owners along this route, as well as distributing flyers.

State of the City

Last Friday I was pleased to deliver the “State of the City Annual Report” to over 100 attendees at the January luncheon of the Lake Wales Area Chamber of Commerce. The year 2008 was a banner year of accomplishment for the City. Despite a continuation of new tasks being given to the City by the state, two waves of tax reform that eliminated over $400,000 from the City budget, and fiscal constraints that started in the 2000-2001 fiscal year, a broad spectrum of accomplishments are now in place.

Let’s take a look at just a few of these achievements:

Core Services Improvements

• Many streets have been resurfaced in the historic area of the City through the CRA bond. The debt service is paid for by CRA funds, of which the County contributes nearly half;


• Phase One of the downtown water improvement project, providing increased water pressure and flow. One immediate impact of this project came as it enabled the build-out of the Bank of America building and the retention and expansion of a long-time legal firm in town;


• Several key improvements in fire and police services, including a new fire pumper truck paid for in cash from fire impact fees (the first fire truck bought in cash in 30 years); the new paramedic program; new hand held radios, and the digital finger print system;


• The start-up of the re-use water system, which takes highly treated wastewater and uses it for irrigation rather than using potable water;


• The replacement of gas chlorine use at the City’s three water plants with liquid chlorine, a safer technology.

Services to Enhance Recreation and Education

• Completion of three major recreation facilities: the soccer/multi-purpose complex on Hunt Brothers Road, the skatepark at Kiwanis Park, and the rehabilitated boat ramp with expanded facilities on Lake Wailes, all with grant funding for the capital expenses.

Promoting a Strong Sense of Community

• Completion of a plan for the area around the Grand Hotel and selection of a developer;


• City Commission approval of conduit financing for the Water’s Edge Retirement Village on First Street, which enabled the project to move forward.

Promoting a Vibrant Economy

• The area around the mall has strong commercial development. The new Hampton Inn and Suites opened last year as did the Gates Petroleum gas station;


• All of the buildings at the Airport have been replaced using insurance money, and the first fire hydrant system has been installed with a new well and storage tank using state grant funds. Without the construction of the fire hydrant system, the airport buildings could not have been replaced;


• The City’s utility service area significantly expanded in the northeast area through an agreement negotiated with the County;


• The City Commission approved a Chapter 180 plan to serve the SR 60 West area with utilities in the future:


• A number of significant commercial/industrial properties, including the Hunt Brothers offices and packing facility, annexed into the City.

Caretakers of the Environment

• New contract with waste hauler contains recycling incentives;


• Partial clearing of invasive plants from 2 lake areas.

Looking ahead to next year, here are some of the key areas in which achievement is anticipated:

Core Services

• Completion of the Southside water tower, which is being constructed near the intersection of Hunt Brothers Road and Scenic Highway. This project is needed for the continued expansion of the Longleaf Business Park and other area developments;


• Installation of new lighting on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd and Lincoln Avenue;


• Completion of the resurfacing of many alleys using recycled asphalt from the re-surfacing project.

Service to Enhance Recreation and Education

• Grand Opening of the Polk Community College J.D. Alexander Academic Center in old city hall. This project improves education, brings new business opportunities downtown, and restored an historic city landmark – all in one! The grand opening will be held on Friday, January 30 at 2 pm. Everyone is cordially invited!

Promoting a Vibrant Economy

• The redevelopment of the Grand Hotel and the Walker Building on Lincoln Avenue are anticipated;


• Commercial projects scheduled for completion around the mall include Holiday Inn Express, Kohl’s, Walgreen’s, and the Willowbrook Square commercial center.

The entire list of key accomplishments for 2008 and anticipated achievements for 2009 has been added to the City’s website at http://www.cityoflakewales.com/. [See "Annual Report 2008"]

Note: The next Lake Wales Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon will be held on February 20 at the First Baptist Church.

State of the City

On January 18 I will make my annual “State of the City” presentation at the Chamber of Commerce luncheon. This event will be held at the First Baptist Church at noon.

This year’s presentation will reflect the accomplishments of the past year but will focus on what we expect in 2008. The new year has the potential to be the most rewarding year in quite some time, as a number of projects that are being planned are scheduled to come to fruition. The areas of high expectation include downtown re-development, Lincoln Ave re-development, and City capital projects.

Downtown Re-Development

There are signs of a positive momentum beginning to take shape downtown:

• The renovation of old city hall is now well-underway, with a new branch campus of Polk Community College set to open in 2009;


• The Bullard building at Scenic and Stuart is being re-modeled at a sizeable cost to create office and apartment lofts upstairs;


• Tres Jolie has opened in their new location on Park Avenue with a substantial investment for its bakery, restaurant, and catering business;


• In anticipation of their mall lease expiring, Brenda’s gifts has opened a new store on Park Avenue;


• The Bank of America building has been sold to the 610 Corporation, a firm with holdings that include properties in downtown Winter Haven. Peterson Myers has leased the upper two floors and construction plans are being drawn. The third floor of that building has never been occupied!


• The City and the County have agreed to waive impact fees (except City water and sewer impact fees) in a “core improvement area” that includes downtown and the Lincoln Avenue neighborhood commercial district;


• The Chamber’s new CRA (Community Re-Development Agency) steering committee has hired Martin Vargas to do the first phase of a downtown study with a $25,000 donation from Richard Quaid, who purchased and just completed the remodeling of the north arcade. The study is scheduled for completion in February, and it is anticipated that some recommendations will be implemented immediately with CRA funds budgeted in this fiscal year;


• The City has received title to the Grand Hotel, and proposals for its use are being solicited with a deadline of March 31.

Lincoln Avenue Neighborhood Commercial Re-Development

There is progress being made in re-developing the Lincoln Avenue Neighborhood Commercial District:

• The first new business on Lincoln Avenue since the hurricanes is preparing to open! Massey’s Meat Market is located at 344 Lincoln Avenue, between C and D Streets;


• The Green and Gold Foundation operates a Farmer’s Market in the vacant lot at the SE corner of Lincoln Avenue and C Street on Fridays and Saturdays;


• The CRA has acquired the Walker Building at the SW corner of Lincoln Avenue and C Street and is working with an architect to explore re-modeling options;


• City staff is also exploring the feasibility of building a police sub-station at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and B Street with the help of an investor who is working with the Green and Gold Foundation.

City Capital Projects

The CRA Board, consisting of the City Commissioners, recently approved a $9.5 million bond issue for capital projects. The biggest single project will be street re-surfacing, with funds also budgeted for utility projects. All funds will be spent in the CRA area, which is generally the historic area of the City and includes downtown and the Lincoln Avenue/Northwest area.

Our town is welcoming the new year with great anticipation. Happy New Year, Lake Waleans!