Production of Florida oranges is now forecast to be about 17 percent below last season’s output, while the industry has seen a surge in demand linked to people staying home during the COVID-19 pandemic and rediscovering breakfast.
Florida’s vital tourism industry could start to experience an uptick midway through 2021, although foreign travel will continue to lag for several years, according to information posted online Nov. 24 by state analysts.
Phil Robinson and Christa Morgan met while both were working at Tanners Lakeside. Phil is a chef and Christa’s background is in the hospitality industry.
The private passenger-rail service Brightline announced an agreement Nov. 23 with Walt Disney World to build a station at Disney Springs as part of expansion plans from South Florida to Central Florida.
Gov. Ron DeSantis has extended a September executive order aimed at preventing business shutdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Lake Wales Area Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Council announced its 2020 Chamber Award Winners earlier this week.
A public hearing to determine whether to expand the industrial park surrounding the CSX Intermodal rail yard is scheduled to take place during a Winter Haven City Commission meeting on Dec. 14.
Located at 253 Avenue A SW in downtown Winter Haven, Michelle’s Resale Closet is the brainchild of Michelle Reddick.
Geanie Folder formerly worked in a nursing home but has long had a love of vintage items, so she started a vintage market called The Beatnik Exchange in Lakeland as a side-hustle.
Dennis Adams, a resident of Winter Haven has retired as a transportation supervisor for the four Central Florida dealerships of the Mahalak Auto Group.
Supporters of the Central Florida Development Council celebrated more than $700 million in various capital investments in Polk County over the course of the past few years during the organization's annual meeting Oct. 15, held at the Polk State College Center for Public Safety in Winter Haven.
Planet Fitness opened its newest location this past Saturday, Oct. 17, in Lake Wales. The new fitness center is located at 9 Eagle Ridge Drive.
HAINES CITY — Passersby on U.S. Highway 27 can easily spot the turquoise blue building that is home to Sisters Junktiques Vintage Market.
WINTER HAVEN – One of the city’s best-kept secrets, Mann Lake-Stromberg’s is tucked away among warehouses and commercial buildings in an industrial park on Lucerne Park Road.
LAKELAND — Situated just steps from the Polk Museum of Art is a house-turned-gastropub that serves up a culinary experience of excellence in an inviting atmosphere you’ll be tempted to unwind in.
WINTER HAVEN – In October, every day will also be a “yay” of celebration in Winter Haven’s honor.
HAINES CITY – A proposed partnership between the City of Haines City and the Feltrim Group to redevelop three parcels of city-owned property downtown took another step toward reality Sept. 3.
Did you know there’s a local dynamic duo that has morphed owning a food truck and a bakery all into one?
Citing the economic reality created by the ongoing pandemic, the executive director of the Central Florida Development Council told the Polk County Commission last week he had to slash his annual budget by nearly $200,000 — but also that the agency still plans on spending more than $1 millio…
The Polk County Sheriff's Office is investigating a fatal shooting that occurred in the unincorporated area of Auburndale.
A brand new kitchen incubator in Lakeland is helping innovative foodies turn their dreams into realities.
WINTER HAVEN – Each year, as a little girl from a small town near Cincinnati, Jennifer Garula anticipated the family’s summer vacations.
WINTER HAVEN – The Downtown CRA Advisory Committee voted Aug. 10 to recommend a few key projects for approval. A final vote on the Fiscal Year 2021 CRA budget will take place in September.
HAINES CITY – Although there will not be one of the company’s famous car vending machines at the location, the construction of the new Carvana Auto Inspection and Reconditioning Center in Haines City is well underway. It is expected to open late this year, perhaps in October.
In celebration of last week’s launch of NASA’s 2020 Mars Perseverance rover, an out-of-this-world display has landed at Legoland Florida Resort.
HAINES CITY — Garrett Kenny is ready to bet big on downtown Haines City.
Front Page Brewing, an upstart brewery in historic downtown Bartow, announced last week that it would reopen its taproom thanks to a partnership with Top Dog Concessions, a local food truck.
During her 30 years at Wauchula State Bank, Christy Page has served in a variety of positions in the bank’s major markets of Hardee, Highlands and Polk counties.
WINTER HAVEN — Kris Dehnert’s colleagues affectionately call him “Promo.”
Officials for Publix announced Thursday that, effective July 21, the company will require customers to wear face coverings while shopping in its stores.
When the Paycheck Protection Program went into effect, 237 local companies in the immediate coverage area of the Winter Haven Sun and Polk News-Sun signed up.
BARTOW – For at least the fourth time since December 2018, Mosaic staff have been mandated to report industrial waste leaks at the Mosaic Bartow Facility, located west of Bartow on the south side of State Road 60.
Buying alcohol will remain a to-go-only option at Florida bars for the foreseeable future as coronavirus cases continue to spike.
No matter how you slice it, Winter Haven’s newest pizza joint isn’t new to serving the community.
WINTER HAVEN – Jessie Skubna, the owner of Jensen's Corner Bar and Jessie's Lounge, has seen her two downtown bars closed for the past 16 weeks “with no end in sight.”
HAINES CITY – After moving to the area from Miami, R.J. Grimsley says he found it difficult to find fun activities for kids. As the father of five boys and the coach of a youth football team, transporting them to Orlando or Tampa for something to do was just not feasible.
The Florida Polytechnic University Board of Trustees has a new chair.
Florida’s ban on serving alcohol to people in bars will be reevaluated daily, the state’s top business regulator said in a series of tweets over the weekend that also offered apologies for the crackdown.
HAINES CITY – Lowes’ recently donated approximately 2,000 N-95 masks and four cases of face shields to the fire and police departments in Haines City and Davenport.
DAVENPORT – In 1845, Florida became the 27th state admitted to the Union.
With heart disease the leading cause of death in the United States and in Florida, cardiac care is a priority at AdventHealth Heart of Florida and a guiding force behind the new Heart Success Center.
State and local tax revenues from hotels will drop an estimated $1.3 billion this year in Florida because of the coronavirus-driven reduction in travel, according to a study released June 18 by the American Hotel & Lodging Association.
WINTER HAVEN – Originally scheduled for June 5, a major real estate closing between the City of Winter Haven and Caribbean Distillers LLC was recently rescheduled to July 7.
WINTER HAVEN – When Lou Delco noticed the three pickup trucks backed into his restaurant’s parking spaces so the passengers inside could enjoy the music, he knew he’d found the solution he’d been looking for.
On Wednesday, May 27, Polk County joined a growing number of counties in Florida in having vacation rentals allowed to reopen for business.
POLK COUNTY — Relief funding is on its way to Polk County’s small businesses and residents as the first checks from the Polk CARES 2020 funding were mailed from Bartow on May 22, just days after the county began accepting applications for funding.
WINTER HAVEN – Rex Jackson, the general manager at Legoland Florida Resort, met with Vice President Mike Pence, Gov. Ron DeSantis and other leaders within the state’s tourism industry at Rosen Shingle Creek Resort in Orlando on Wednesday, May 20.
DAVENPORT – The owners of the Ovation Bistros’ three locations are used to serving more than 20,000 guests a month at their restaurants.
POLK COUNTY — Today marks the first day that applications can be submitted by Polk residents, families and small businesses for financial assistance through the county’s share of money awarded via the federal CARES Act.
LAKE WALES — For 44 years, Cliff’s True Value Hardware has been a constant in downtown Lake Wales, providing common and not-so-common hardware store items at fair prices.
