A big-box boost may be on the horizon for Sebring, with BJ’s Wholesale Club now pursuing a new site in town. City officials say the company is working through permits for a location just north of Keiber Boulevard near the Holiday Inn Express, with room for three additional outparcels. There’s also rising interest in nearby properties along U.S. 27. The closest BJ’s is currently in Davenport, but the chain continues expanding nationwide, serving over eight million members.
Highlands County is clearing up years of confusion: Trick-or-Treat will officially take place every October 31st moving forward. Commissioners say families have long been frustrated as different cities and neighborhoods picked different nights—especially when Halloween falls on a weekday. The new resolution isn’t a law, but leaders hope it nudges Avon Park, Sebring, and local HOAs toward a unified date. Events like Trunk-or-Treat and city festivals aren’t affected—this simply standardizes neighborhood Trick-or-Treating to the traditional Halloween night.
A Fort Meade woman is back in jail after being caught driving without a valid license. Fruitland Park police say 33-year-old Faith Farrer was stopped around 10 p.m. on December 1st after an officer noticed a headlight out on her vehicle along State Road 25. During the stop, the officer discovered her license had been suspended following a prior DUI arrest. Farrer was charged with a third-degree felony and booked into the Lake County Jail on a $10,000 bond. Her vehicle was towed from the scene.
Eight teenage football players from Philadelphia found themselves sidelined in Polk County—not for a bad play, but for a bad heist. Deputies say the teens, in town for a national championship, were caught on surveillance working together to swipe more than $2,000 in Nike, Under Armour, and football gear from Dick’s Sporting Goods at Posner Plaza. All eight were detained, charged with felony retail theft, and hauled to the Juvenile Assessment Center. Their championship dreams? Benched—along with their “five-finger discount” game plan.