Bill Kurek had been coming here from Broward County for 40 years, and he kept passing the sign that boasted Lake Placid was the caladium capital of the world. ...more

November 16, 2009

One by one at just past dawn, five vibrantly colored balloons poked through a rapidly clearing fog, during the start of a 12 mile hour-long journey. ...more

November 7, 2008

Rains from Tropical Storm Fay hurt attendance at last weekend's 18th annual Caladium Festival, but organizers say crowds exceeded expectations and vendors were pleased with the turnout. ...more

August 31, 2008

No question about it; those are caladium tubers, but never bulbs, and they're caladium leaves, not flowers. ...more

August 17, 2008

In a town that takes the arts seriously, Monica Goodwin Turner was chosen as the contest winner for the official poster and T-shirt for the 18th annual Caladium Festival. ...more

August 17, 2008

LAKE PLACID — A pilot and passenger died after a fixed wing, single engine Piper Cub airplane crashed near Placid Lakes Airport at about 12:15 p.m., Friday said Capt. Paul Blackman of the Highlands County Sheriff's Office. There were no other passengers in the single plane accident. Word spread like wildfire around the Caladium Capital of the World that citrus grover owner Mason Smoak piloted the plane. Blackman positively identified Smoak as the pilot, and David Maehr's name was release later as the other victim in the crash. He was a scientist at Archbold Biological Center specializing in bear research. ...more

June 20, 2008

LAKE PLACID – A pilot and passenger are dead after a fixed-wing, single-engine Piper airplane crashed near Placid Lakes Airport at about 1:15 p.m. today, said Capt. Paul Blackman of the Highlands County Sheriff's Office. ...more

June 20, 2008

LAKE PLACID — If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, then Lake Placid is becoming an attention grabber. With $1.3 million of guaranteed state and federal grants slated for beautification and landscaping projects, the Caladium Capital of the world is poised to become greener. The projects will complement local private and business donors who banded together in 1987 to form the Keep Lake Placid Beautiful Committee. About $300,000 of federal funding, funneled through the Florida Department of Transportation, will pay for the extension of roadway median improvements on U.S. 27. ...more

December 8, 2007