
“It’s always exciting to be recognized, and I think it’s a recognition of the team effort,” said Managing Principal Tim Hoeft. “As our team continues to grow and build relationships with clients and partners on projects, that experience just continues to feed on itself — to take the next project to the next level.” Straughn […]

As County Manager Jim Freeman prepares to retire, he quietly reflects on his accomplishments — rather, his team’s accomplishments; the future of Polk County; and his own plans, post-retirement. He says other people say he will be remembered for guiding the county through the Great Recession of 2008. “It was challenging,” Freeman said. “It took […]

Heather Novis knew she wanted to become a nurse when she watched her aunt help her brother through treatment for Burkitt’s lymphoma, an uncommon but aggressive form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma that affects children. “Seeing her help him made me want to help others,” said Novis, 22, who spent her middle and high school years at […]

The city of Lakeland is “Envisioning a Better Downtown,” a path to the future that will enhance not only Polk County’s largest city, but the entire region. “As we have often said in our county, ‘All ships float as the tide rises,’ ” Lakeland City Manager Tony Delgado said when talking about the strategic “Envisioning” […]

Polk State College’s 16,000 students will soon have an easier path to a four-year degree at Florida Polytechnic University as the presidents of both institutions formalize an agreement they’ve been working on for a year. The transfer-articulation agreement means students who graduate from Polk State with an associate of arts degree will be allowed to […]

LEGOLAND Florida Resort continues to make a positive impact on Winter Haven and Polk County, with no signs of slowing down. Its latest bit of news came recently, when toymaker LEGO and a group of investors (private equity firm Blackstone and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board ) announced they were buying Merlin Entertainment, which […]