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Highlands Today

LP Tower Has Potential, If Public Access Is Allowed

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 19, 2008

Who doesn't want the Lake Placid Tower to open up for public viewing? Very few, that's for sure. Just about everyone moving here, and plenty of people driving through, wonder about the tower and want to go inside and to the top for a panoramic view of the area. We're guessing it's stunning, but then again, all most of us have ever seen is the tower from the ground up.

Several Lake Placid residents want to get the tower opened as a tourist attraction. They met with Highlands County's tourism director John Scherlacher to see what the possibilities are for the tower that has been closed for some time.

The owner says he doesn't have the money to upgrade the building to pass fire codes. Other work is necessary as well, and Lake Placid contractor Bill Brantley wants to meet with an engineer, electrician and welder to get a ballpark estimate on costs to make the necessary improvements.

Just about everyone likes the idea of the tower opening. There's probably going to be a lot of debate, though, on how improvements are made on a privately owned building. Clearly public funds couldn't be used for that, nor should they be. If the town had the opportunity to purchase the tower, that would be a different story.

As it stands, Lake Placid has a Leaning Tower of Pisa that doesn't lean. It's a monolith with no other functionality, at least not from a public perspective. It looks cool, and draws interest, but there's always a letdown when it's learned no one can venture to the lookout.

There is potential, however, and we support anything that boosts interest in our communities and increases quality of life. Lake Placid does a great job of that anyway, and the example the town sets is something other communities could learn a lot from when it comes to beautification.

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