News Update for 4/18/23
Highlands County Commissioners today confirmed Nicholas Sawyer as the new Deputy County Administrator and Chief of Staff under County Administrator Laurie Hurner.
Commissioner Kevin Roberts objected to the process, saying they were being asked to confirm an employee, who they had no part in selecting.
In other action, commissioners approved a pair of zoning requests, changing two different agricultural tracts to residential designations.
Help is coming to some Polk County residents who live in a food desert. The city of Lake Wales broke ground last week on a community garden near the James P. Austin Community Center. The food grown there will be handed out at local community centers, starting in August.
A specialist with the Community Redevelopment Authority said the closest grocery store is at least two miles away, and there’s no place closer where people can get fresh fruits and vegetables.
It looks like Highlands County is getting ready to ditch a bunch of their surplus equipment. County commissioners at their regular meeting this morning are expected to waive the two-step procedure and allow Insight Auctioneers to get the highest and best bid for the equipment.
Listed on the manifest are printers, scanners, monitors, file cabinets and laptops among other things.
In other action, commissioners will hold a couple of public hearing on zoning. One would convert 32-acres of property off Desoto City Road from an Agriculture zoning to Medium Density Residential another would convert almost 40-acres off Martin Luther King Boulevard nort of Sebring From Agriculture Zoning to a Mobile Home Park District.