Lakeland

A combination of technology and community support reunited Britni Fultz with her beloved monitor lizard, Slug.

The 4-3 vote pauses new applications while the city develops rules for data centers and other exceptionally large utility customers.

Lakeland Electric and water utility officials provided more information to commissioners at the July 20 city commission meeting.

Two campus groves are being replanted as part of a larger revitalization effort for Polk’s citrus industry.

Speakers were in opposition to the project and in support of a moratorium; however, several felt a moratorium would not go far enough and called for an all-out ban on data centers in Lakeland.

A public hearing on the ordinance will be held on Monday, July 6, at 9 a.m.

Body cameras that translate over 50 languages, first-response drones and AI that assist in 911 calls and writing reports would be included in the $21 million bundle.

Faith-based nonprofit Hope House Florida is set to move into the former Faith Lutheran Church building in the Lake Hollingsworth neighborhood.

Commissioners asked the city attorney to draft a 12-month pause on large-scale facilities, with votes expected in July.

The tree is estimated to be about about 200 years old.

At least two commissioners want time to develop rules for a fast-growing industry that is not addressed in Lakeland’s land use code.

The “Project Swan” proposal remains active. The applicant only withdrew from the scheduled June 3 Development Review Team meeting, not from the development review process.