SEBRING — Whether Floridians will vote for a tax cut won't be known until Jan. 29, but four local government officials are against it. "The tax reform doesn't fix the problem," said Guy Maxcy, a Highlands County commissioner. It doesn't correctly modify the taxing system, Maxcy said. The county would lose $5.5 million, according to an estimate provided by Highlands County Property Appraiser Raymond McIntyre. That doesn't count the effect of portability, which would allow homeowners to move the Save Our Homes cap. Save Our Homes is a constitutional mandate that a taxing entity cannot raise the taxable value of the home by more than 3 percent each year. He estimated the average homeowner could save $230 annually in property taxes. But taxing authorities could raise the millage to offset any tax cut created by the Jan. 29 vote, McIntyre said. ...more

January 18, 2008

Last Monday we drove past the Kenilworth Lodge road sign. The message for the day read something like, "Today is National Clean Off Your Desk Day. Just toss it all on the floor!" Back home, feeling comfortable at our messy desks, we checked it out on our computers. Sure enough, the second Monday in January is National Clean Off Your Desk Day. It has been since 1982 when Ann Chase Moeller, daughter of the Chases (of Chase Annual Event Calendar fame), wrote it into their record book. According to Organizing Resources, "Desktop management is critically important to our well being - physically, mentally and psychologically." They say, "It is extremely difficult to concentrate on a particular task when bombarded with myriad piles of paper. The only papers that should be on your desk are the ones you are referring to at that particular moment. The only miscellaneous objects should be ones you use all the time, except for a few special mementos and a living plant." ...more

January 18, 2008

SEBRING — The question on everyone's mind was whether House Speaker Marco Rubio is for the proposed tax cut, which will be voted on Jan. 29. The answer seems to be that he wasn't in Sebring to talk about that. "I don't think there's any reason to vote against it," said Rubio, 36, an attorney who was elected house speaker in 2006. Because of the current Save Our Homes constitutional amendment, "There are homeowners who cannot move and cannot buy another home." ...more

January 17, 2008

LAKE PLACID — The American Red Cross has set up a family of three for three nights at the Kenilworth Lodge after an electrical fire Monday night left them without a home. ...more

December 19, 2007

SEBRING — One of the county's largest employers received the 2007 Business Excellence Award from the Highlands County Economic Development Commission on Tuesday night. ...more

October 17, 2007

SEBRING - At 10:20 a.m., Kate Anson was seated at Steelhorse Enterprises, a company which makes accent lights for motorcycles. She overheard a group talking about the 60,000 people who were supposed to show up the Run for the Heartland. "There's not 60,000 people here," she scoffed. "Maybe 500." Five hundred bikes? "That's generous," she smiled. Don Elwell, who manages Kenilworth Lodge, and Dave Greenslade, executive director of Avon Park Chamber of Commerce, came to the same conclusion. By 10 a.m., 190 bikers had signed up for the poker run, said Pat Alexander, who was taking $10 from each. The cross country course directs motorcycles to Neibert's Fish Camp, Devane Park in Lake Placid, Henscratch Farm and Winery off State Road 66, the Watering Hole, Thunder Chopper Works and back downtown to the Blue Crab. Riders get a playing card at each of the seven stops. The best hand wins a prize. ...more

October 7, 2007

SEBRING –– Idea people are always energizing. Often praised by progressives and sometimes reviled by the status quo, they are exciting to be around regardless of your opinion. Ken Melvin is civic minded, always attending county meetings. He describes himself as a bull in a china shop and an eccentric. His home on Mi-La-Kee Avenue with its underwater mural airbrushed by artist Bruce Maltz is an example. Previously, Melvin was involved with recycling and demolition. Now his dream is to create a citizens' committee putting together a group of business people, newcomers and retired people. Last week he got appointed to a citizens committee, looking into an action plan to reopen Lake Denton. He wants to encourage anyone with positive ideas for government so money and taxes can be saved and positive plans made for the future. ...more

September 10, 2007