As homes continue to sell at a rapid pace, the housing boom affects many specialties, including lawyers and banks. Home sales are up about 20% nationally this year. According to Florida Realtors, in Polk County: The number of new listings in the first quarter of 2021 compared with the first quarter of 2020 jumped 3% […]
Auburndale City Manager Bobby Green’s retirement in April opened the door for the promotion of two key city leaders and the addition of two others with strong ties in the county. Jeff Tillman was promoted to city manager following the retirement of Bobby Green in April after 30 years in Auburndale. In June, Green received […]
Tourism is returning to Polk County quickly, led by outdoor sports and attractions. “We began the uphill climb last June when we began hosting sporting events, which was the first sector to rebound,” said Mark Jackson, director of Polk County Tourism and Sports Marketing. “Prior to that, we had developed a very comprehensive three-stage marketing […]
Incoming Polk County Schools Superintendent Frederick Heid has a variety of past experiences in education that he will lean on when he officially starts July 1. “It’s a comprehensive experience that I bring, from the classroom level as Sarasota County’s Teacher of the Year to the principal level, having successfully turned around several schools, to […]
Polk Vision and the Central Florida Development Council are rolling out a new Internship Guide to assist businesses wanting to start or advance a program to attract young talent to their companies. Polk Vision and the CFDC Talent Pipeline’s Countywide Higher Education Workforce developed the guide that includes Southeastern and Florida Polytechnic universities, Florida Southern […]
As more companies move to or expand in Polk County, it’s creating more jobs, attracting new employees and generating the need for additional housing. All that’s making the county a hotbed for residential and multi-family construction, led by the two largest cities, Lakeland and Winter Haven. Nicole Travis, deputy city manager for Lakeland, named two […]
Residents continue moving to Polk County from across the country and around the world, pushing our population to about three-quarters of a million people. But just where are they coming from? The New York Times reports that people are leaving the largest urban areas like New York, Los Angeles and Chicago and heading to counties […]
Planning for an emergency situation is never easy: You might not have any idea what the emergency will entail or be able to find the time to work on one. But it’s a critical cog to keep your business running when the unexpected happens. If we could look back on 2020 with 20/20 hindsight, we […]
When Jacqueline Byrd became superintendent of Polk County schools in February 2016, her goal was to unite the county around educational excellence and ensure every student, teacher and administrator was committed to the long-term vision. As she prepares for her last day in the office on June 18, Byrd reflects on how far the district […]
“Summer’s coming and so are more people,” says Garrett Kenny, owner of Balmoral Resort Florida in Haines City. “As more people started getting vaccinated in the second quarter of 2021, we saw an increase in vacation interest,” said Kenny, CEO of the Feltrim Group, which built the $110 million Balmoral Resort, a 115-acre vacation home […]