The Latest Local News

News Update for 11/14/22

Avon Park city council members will take care of a lot of business this evening when they meet in regular session. It will begin with the swearing-in of Mayor Garrett Anderson and Councilman Jim Barnard – both incumbents handily won re-election in balloting earlier this month. Council also will approve municipal budgets for the upcoming Continue reading

News Update for 11/11/22

A Sebring man was killed to day when he was hit by a semi tractor-trailer rig during the early morning hours. Florida Highway Patrol officials say the 42-year-old man was bicycling on Highway 27 and crossed into the path of the southbound rig near the Skipper Road intersection. The bicyclist was pronounced dead at the Continue reading

News Update for 10/10/22

Tropical Storm Nicole has come and gone, without any apparent damage here in Highlands County. The storm came ashore early this morning as a minimal Category One Hurricane but quickly downgraded. It ticked north, and passed through Polk County at its closest approach. There were some 571 customers without electric service during the storm, and Continue reading

News Update for 11/9/22

Highlands County’s Emergency Management office now is at a Level 2, in anticipation of Tropical Storm Nichole. Latest models now show the center of the storm passing directly over Highlands County. The Special Needs Shelter opened at noon today at the Highlands County Health Department. The Public Shelter will open at 4:00 – that will Continue reading

News Update for 11/8/22

As Tropical Storm Nichole wends its way toward Florida. Highlands County has declared a state of emergency in advance of the storm’s arrival. In a report to the commission, Interim Emergency Manager Mark Ellis told commissioners that Nichole will be basically a rain event, with most of the activity kept to the North of Highlands Continue reading

News Update for 11/7/22

You know all that hurricane stuff you bought? Don’t put it away just yet. A system in the Atlantic is churning this way and early models show it coming up against the east central Floria coast. Once known as 98L it’s know as sub-tropical storm Nichole and could impact us here in Highlands county. the Continue reading

News Update for 11/4/22

A new report by Smartest Dollar shows that the Avon Park-Sebring metro area lags behind the national average when it comes to the most new businesses per capita. The analysis shows that locally, we saw some 1,592 new business applications last year – which was 15.73 percent increase. That’s slightly behind the national average of Continue reading

News Update for 11/3/22

The search for a new Highlands County administrator came under fire at this week’s county comission meeting. Resident Ray Royce, who also is the executive director of the Highlands County Citrus Grower’s association and a Lake Placid Town Councilman, took Strategic Government Resources to task for a percieved lack of effort in the process. Royce Continue reading

News Update for 11/2/22

Contract haulers have been working their way through Highlands County, picking up debris from Hurrican Ian. To date, the trucks have taken in nearly 216,000 cubic yards of vegetative debris. Some 19,000 cubic yards have come out of Avon Park, with nearly 17,000 out of Sebring and 10,000 out of Lake Placid. The bulk has Continue reading

News Upate tor 11/1/22

The training sorties don’t seem to be letting up at the Avon Park Air Force range. Officials there say that they will have training exercises at the bombing range going on until late tonight. They caution that there will be increased levels of noise as the pilots work on honing their skills. Highlands County commissioners Continue reading