Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
Sorted by date Results 176 - 200 of 226
Despite objections from nearby Ridge Manor residents, the Lake Wales City Commission July 6 approved preliminary plans for an 84-home subdivision on Lake Belle. City Attorney Chuck Galloway said denying the project could subject the city to litigation since the Belle Lago project obtained approval of the city's Planning and Zoning Board and met or exceeded the city's requirements for such a development. Attorney Shelby Loveless, who lives in the area, cited concerns about...
Responding to increased complaints from citizens, Lake Wales City Commissioners agreed they need to put regulations in place on mobile car wash and detailing businesses. But they tabled the first draft of a proposed city ordinance after several business owners expressed concerns. City Manager James Slaton said city officials were trying to resolve complaints about noise, hours of operation, blocking traffic and fixed locations. He said some were setting up on city streets or...
A recent statistically valid survey of residents in the northwest section neighborhood of Lake Wales revealed 60 percent of respondents say they "feel hopeful about the future of their neighborhood." City commissioners recently discussed results of the survey, which was conducted by the ETC Institute, a national firm renowned for helping local governments gather data from residents to enhance community planning and the delivery of municipal services. The survey, which was both...
The Ranch Taproom and Coffeehouse in downtown Lake Wales officially opened April 16 with enthusiastic crowds and rave social media reviews. Owners Jessica Garrett and her mother, Cathy Becton Garrett, were pleased with the successful opening. "Opening weekend was incredible and the support we received from the city, Mainstreet and the community was greatly appreciated," Garrett said. "Being Lake Wales natives we are excited to be a part of downtown. We look forward to being a...
Lake Wales Police Chief Chris Velasquez released an investigative report Friday, March 26 that concluded there was no evidence of criminal wrongdoing by two officers during a Feb. 5 arrest. The complaint involved a traffic stop of 37-year-old Christopher Cordero that escalated into charges of resisting arrest without violence, threat of death or serious bodily injury of a law enforcement officer and assault on a law enforcement officer. Cordero accused Officers Colt Black and...
The Florida Department of Transportation is a few months into work on the reconstruction of the interchange of SR 60 and US 27 in Lake Wales. The current interchange configuration was originally constructed in the mid-1960s, a few years after U..S 27 was built along the ridge in eastern Polk County connecting State Road 60 with Interstate 4. Both roads are important regional highways in Central Florida and have seen their traffic volumes increase by 3,000 to 5,000 vehicles a...
One Lake Wales police officer has resigned and a second has been placed on administrative station duty pending an investigation into formal complaints against the officers. Christopher Cordero, 37, was arrested during a traffic stop Friday morning Feb. 5, and charged with resisting arrest without violence, threat of death or serious bodily injury of a law enforcement officer and assault on a law enforcement officer. Cordero claims Officers Colt Black and Travis Worley struck...
The next meeting of the Lake Wales Citizens and Police Community Relations Advisory Committee is scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday, Jan. 25 at the city administration building, 201 W. Central Ave. The meeting opens with communications and petitions, a time when citizens may speak about their experiences with the Lake Wales Police Department. Citizens may attend in person, but space is limited and masks are required. People also may join the meeting online and speak by registering...
LakeWalesNews.net recently celebrated our one-year anniversary. During our first year we published more than 1,200 stories and about 1,500 photos. This online news site is still a volunteer venture. The editor, writers and photographers receive no compensation. Most of us consider it a public service and a labor of love. We hope you enjoy LakeWalesNews.net and will continue sharing it with others. For those of you with time on your hands (like, most of you) now is the time to...
The Lake Wales City Commission Dec. 1 approved its first permit for a large-scale event in 2021 – the 50th annual arts festival the weekend of Feb. 19-21. Lake Wales Arts Council Executive Director Andrew Allen described safety modifications being made in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Allen said the artists' booths will be configured differently to allow a one-way flow and more green space between them. Marketing materials will stress the importance of wearing masks and f...
Three California men have been arrested and face first degree murder charges in the shooting deaths of two Lake Wales men. Investigators said the motive is unclear. Detectives found the bodies of Randy Bonds Sr., 33, and Jerry Bonds Jr., 39, in a wooded area near Forbestown, CA after family members reported Oct. 21 they had lost contact after the brothers flew to Los Angeles and rented a car. The FBI and multiple law enforcement agencies got involved after their rental car...
The city's consultants in an online open house Aug. 20 unveiled a design plan for a Crystal Lake Connector Trail that links downtown to the trail around Lake Wailes. City staff will be showing off designs and answering questions from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, Aug. 21 in a storefront at 220 E. Park Ave. About 30 citizens participated in the online open house with city staff and consultants from urban planners Dover-Kohl and design architects S & ME. The consultants are working...
A vision of restored brick streets and sidewalk cafes under the shade of umbrellas and spreading Live Oaks changed many viewers' ideas of the future of downtown Lake Wales Thursday evening. Those images were among many shared during a 90-minute presentation by consultants and engineers hired by the Lake Wales Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) to create the "Lake Wales Connected" plan. The plan is designed to attract crowds, and thus business investment, to the neighborhood...
Getting outside provides more than a fun break for adults, children and teens. It is also good for your physical and mental health and development. While staying at home and adhering to guidelines and recommendations during the current coronavirus crisis, spending time gardening is a way to nurture health and wellness for yourself and your children. Gardening is a great form of exercise and regular gardening can bring the joys of woodland animals, beautiful butterflies and...
EDITOR'S NOTE: The second "rallying point" gathering is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. July 16, weather permitting at Howell Family Park on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. The Lake Wales Police Department kicked off its new "rallying point" program Thursday, July 9 – setting up a canopy tent and chairs by the lake and inviting people to stop by for a chat. "We've got no agenda We want to talk about what the community wants to talk about," said Deputy Police Chief Troy Schulze. "...
This is the ninth installment in the Lake Wales Renaissance series. Lake Wales City Commissioner Robin Gibson serves as Deputy Mayor and Chairman of the city's Community Redevelopment Agency. Victor Dover and his co-author have poured their careers as town planners into what has become the definitive handbook entitled Street Design: The Secret to Great Cities and Towns. The book recounts the history and experience of a wide range of different situations across the globe that...
For the first time in 20 years, the City of Lake Wales is undertaking a full overhaul of its Comprehensive Plan. The consulting firm S & ME conducted an online public workshop July 8 to get input from city officials and citizens about priorities for developing the city over the next 20 years. Consulting Project Manager Chris Dougherty defined the comprehensive plan as "a document designed to guide the future actions of a city. The comprehensive plan also presents a vision for...
Lake Wales city commissioners will consider a resolution July 7 that would strongly encourage, but not mandate, residents to wear face masks while out in the public. During an agenda workshop meeting July 1 the five commissioners seemed unanimous that the city create a resolution regarding the issue, but some did not rule out passing an actual ordinance mandating masks at some point in the future if the current COVID-19 outbreak doesn't start to subside. City Attorney Chuck...
About 125 peaceful protesters gathered Sunday afternoon at the Lake Wales Police Department, but unlike groups around the country their issue was not the killing of a black man by a white Minneapolis police officer. Instead, they were calling for racial justice at the local level and demanding the firing of a Lake Wales police detective, who ironically was named 2019 Officer of the Year. The Poor and Minority Justice Association, a Winter Haven-based civil rights group,...
This is the fifth installment in the Lake Wales Renaissance series. Lake Wales City Commissioner Robin Gibson serves as Deputy Mayor and Chairman of the city's Community Redevelopment Agency. Dover, Kohl & Partners is an internationally known town planning firm working out of South Miami. Among their many achievements are nationally recognized revitalizations of traditional communities much like Lake Wales. Victor Dover is co-author of the definitive work on the subject...
Friends say when 22-year-old Kaitlyn Kinard smiled the atmosphere grew happier and more positive. "She had such a contagious type of personality - whenever she walked into a room you could feel an energy change - just the positivity she brought," explained Elise Coon, Kinard's longtime friend and co-captain of the color guard at Frostproof Middle-Senior High, where the two graduated in 2016. Coon is now mourning the loss of her friend, who died March 22 along with her dog...
Arnold Hans Heinrich Riecken, 92, of Lake Wales passed away Friday, March 13, 2020 at Halifax Medical Center in Port Orange, FL. He was born November 10, 1927 in Brooklyn, NY to the late Arnold and Adele (Wittorf) Riecken and he has been a resident of this area since 1995 moving here from Long Island, NY. He was a retired traffic manager for Bulb Tronics. Arnold was a member of the First Christian Church of Frostproof, American Legion and served in the US Army and US Air Force during WWII and the Korean Conflict. He was...
Lake Wales city commissioners in their role as the Community Redevelopment Agency authorized the city manager to explore the possible sale of the 1919 school property to the Lake Wales Charter Schools to become the permanent home of Bok Academy North. But commissioners raised several issues they want resolved during negotiations. Deputy Mayor Robin Gibson left the room during the discussion to avoid any ethical conflict since he serves as legal counsel for the charter system....
A three-vehicle crash on U.S. 27 near Tower Lakes Wednesday evening Feb. 12 resulted in the death of a 20-year-old Lake Wales woman. Police are unsure who was driving the 2006 grey Toyota Scion, which was headed south on U.S. 27 when it turned left at the entrance to Tower Lakes into the path of two other vehicles. The two occupants of the Scion were Natali Jane Moreno, who sustained life threatening injuries and was later pronounced dead at AdventHealth Lake Wales and 22-year...
Lake Wales Police would like to hear from anyone who might have witnessed a fatal accident where a pedestrian was hit by a car shortly after 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3 on U.S. 27 at Lakeside Drive. A 22-year-old Lake Wales woman, Regina Kelly, was attempting to cross U.S. 27 when she was hit by a car traveling south driven by Jill Smeal of Babson Park. Police said Kelly apparently walked into the path of Smeal's Buick. Kelly was pronounced dead at the scene. The investigation is ongoing and anyone with information is encouraged...
