Mayor Rick Baker, who has led the city since 2001, has been chosen America's Mayor of the Year by Governing magazine. ...more

October 9, 2008

On several occasions, while volunteering at the church service centers in Avon Park, I would ask some seemingly able bodied aid recipients the reason why they were not working. Quite often, the answer given was a lack of transportation to get to and from work on a regular and dependable basis. At first I questioned that response but, upon reflection, I concluded that the lack of public transportation in the Avon Park-Sebring area is more than just an inconvenience; it is definitely a real hardship for many of our constituents. In fact last month, while traveling along Memorial Drive I stopped to pick up a walker and asked him where he was heading. He said "Homer's Restaurant." He informed me that earlier that morning he had been called to come in to work on his day off, and to start working by 8 a.m. Unfortunately, due to a lack of transportation, he had started walking the six mile distance to Homer's and had managed to reach that point at approximately 8:45 a.m. After dropping him off at the restaurant, he proceeded to thank me and rushed off to his job. ...more

February 16, 2008