The Avon Park Housing Authority cut a deal with the owners of Ridgedale Apartments and expects to take the complex over July 31. ...more

July 24, 2008 |

AVON PARK — The Housing Authority of Avon Park's plans to acquire Ridgedale Apartments have stalled after the complex's owners balked at the possibility of paying a penalty for dissolving its contract with another management company, authority Executive Director Larry Shoeman said. According to Shoeman, Columbus, Ohio-based Ridgedale LLC needed to make the housing authority the property manager during the rehabilitation work that will be needed for the 36-unit project. To do that, however, Ridgedale needed to ditch its current management company, according to their contract. "The management is not willing to terminate the agreement without a penalty," Shoeman told the Housing Authority of Avon Park's Board of Commissioners Wednesday evening. "We're at an impasse at this point." ...more

June 22, 2008 |

AVON PARK — Bill Jarrett sat on the sidelines waiting for his turn to play in the first and probably only practice for the newly formed Highlands Hoppers at the South Florida Community College gym. "I keep thinking to myself that this is for a good cause," Jarrett laughed as he jogged onto the court and nearly came up with a block. The Highlands Hoppers are a menagerie of local hoopsters that have been assembled by local businesses to play the Harlem Ambassadors on Tuesday. The Ambassadors are much like their famous counterparts — the Harlem Globetrotters — with a bit of a twist. "They all must be either college graduates or working toward a college degree to be on the team," said Avon Park Noon Rotary Club president Alice Oldham. "They also have a very strong stay-in-school and anti-drug message for today's youth. That impressed me." ...more

February 21, 2008 |