Defenders of Crooked LakeDefending the Wild-Life of Crooked Lake

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  • [BABSON PARK Wed May 14, 2008]  Babson Park Visioning Group invites the public to the May 19th meeting at 7 p.m. in Fellowship Hall at Babson Park Community Church to discuss the proposed “Southeast Polk Selected Area Study.”  Aaron Flint, principal project planner with Polk County Long Range Planning Division, will present a draft purpose statement for the Southeast Polk Selected Area Study.  All community and area residents will be given the opportunity to hear and endorse the statement. The county has prepared the draft purpose statement which outlines the purpose and intent of the proposed study and provides a description of the study process.  One goal for this draft is to provide a solid foundation or “common ground” for the upcoming study.  The county is seeking the endorsement of the draft by the attendees of the visioning meeting, as one of the stakeholders in the project.  This meeting will conclude the visioning meetings addressing the study because the public process for the Southeast Polk Selected Area Study is beginning. For more information, inquiries can be directed to:  Babson Park Visioning Group,  P.O. Box 1, Babson Park, FL  33827.

  • [LAKE WALES Published: Friday, March 21, 2008 The Ledger]   Bok Academy Opening On Crooked Lake. A total of 327 students have already registered for Bok Academy Middle School, which will become the sixth school in the Lake Wales Charter system when it opens this fall.  Charter officials say they hope to have between 400 and 425 students when the school opens in August on the east side of U.S. 27, which was part of the original campus of Warner Southern College. In addition to such things as a science, nature and environmental study center, agriculture and economic programs, and a wellness program, she said, the extra money would finance such things as dirt bikes and two-person kayaks. "The school will be located on Crooked Lake and we want to use that lake all we can," she said. She said the school will have bicycles and kayaks for about 30 students.  Dunson would also like to begin a rowing program.  Information on Bok Academy is available at www.lwcharterschools.com.

  • [HILLCREST HEIGHTS Published: Sunday, March 16, 2008 The Ledger] Property Taxes Low in Hillcrest Heights.  Located on the eastern shores of Crooked Lake, Hillcrest Heights is an entirely residential community between Lake Wales and Frostproof.  It has the lowest property tax rate of incorporated communities in Polk County at 33.06 cents for each $1,000 of assessed taxable property.

  • [BABSON PARK Published: Saturday Feb 23, 2008 The Ledger] Babson Park wants to stay small.  "Our concern is whether we will be able to survive," Susan Welborn, president of the Babson Park Visioning Group, told about 75 residents attending a meeting of the group this week. The meeting was called to explore the possibility of incorporating Babson Park as a way to protect the community from rapid growth. "Babson Park is a state of mind," Welborn said. "We see ourselves as a community." Babson Park has long been separated from Frostproof by acres of rolling citrus groves, but there are indications that is about to change. In the past two years, many grove owners have contacted Frostproof and agreed to annex, fearing the designation of Scenic Highway as an official scenic route would result in county regulations that would limit the future use of their land. One project, opposed by residents of Babson Park, would have up to 1,500 homes on 395 acres that are now citrus property adjacent to the county's Crooked Lake Prairie preserve on Breezy Point.

  • [BABSON PARK Published: Thursday, February 7, 2008]  1st Phase of Scenic Corridor Plan OK'd  The first phase in an effort to recognize the Scenic Highway corridor in eastern Polk County won unanimous approval from the County Commission on Wednesday. Scenic Highway is a 39-mile stretch of mostly two-lane road from Haines City to Frostproof. It winds around lakes, up and down the hills along the Lake Wales Ridge, and passes historic and environmentally important sites such as Historic Bok Sanctuary, Chalet Suzanne, Crooked Lake and historic buildings in downtown areas of towns along the highway.A subsequent proposal, which will be the subject of public hearings later this year, will include specific land-use regulations for the corridor. The proposal involves a system of incentives and higher development standards intended to preserve as much of the corridor's character as possible.