The 12,500 doses of COVID-19 vaccine expected by the Florida Department of Health’s Polk County office this week had not arrived by Monday afternoon because of weather-related transportation delays, The Ledger reports. In addition to shots administered to people who registered through Polk’s coronavirus portal, the department held four mass vaccinations last week in senior […]
Author Archives: Barry Friedman
Barry Friedman founded Lkldnow.com in 2015 as the culmination of a career in print and digital journalism. Since 1982, he has used the tools of reporting, editing and content curation to help people in Lakeland understand their community better.
Posted inTransportation
Rail Work Scheduled for Road Crossings in Winston, S. Lakeland
Upgrades at CSX railroad crossings will likely cause traffic delays this week near Old Tampa Highway in the Winston area and at key crossings west of Florida Avenue in South Lakeland, according to Polk County officials.
Posted inNews Roundup
Read It in the Morning Paper: Covid Relief, Life Sentence
LANDLORDS AND RENTERS affected by COVID-19 will be eligible for $21.8 million in federal assistance through a Polk County government application process. MORE RENTAL RELIEF is on its way for Lakeland residents affected by COVID-19 through a $787,276 federal housing grant that is also helping four agencies that are helping people deal with the pandemic. DEATH […]
Posted inNews
Tigers Will Play Fewer Games as MLB Revises Spring Training
The week before Detroit Tigers players start arriving in Lakeland, Major League Baseball today announced changes to Spring Training schedules. The Tigers will play 29 games in Florida, down from the originally scheduled 34 under changes driven by the pandemic, the Detroit Free Press reported.
Posted inCity Hall / Local Gov't
Developer Close to Deal on 26 Acres Next to Bonnet Springs Park
The developers of Bonnet Springs Park say they are close to a deal to sell a large tract between the park and Lake Wire to an out-of-state company that wants to build a mixed-use project on the reclaimed property that once housed Florida Tile.
Posted inSports
Pouncey Twins Retiring From the NFL
Maurkice and Mike Pouncey, the 31-year-old twins who journeyed from the Lakeland High Dreadnaughts to NFL Pro Bowl careers, have announced they are retiring from pro football, CBS Sports reports. “As I write this farewell speech, I cry and I laugh that twin boys from Lakeland, Florida that grew up in poverty made it this […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Live Music in Lakeland This Weekend
Musicians playing at Lakeland venues this weekend include Shawn Rahn, Winterland, Swan City Jazz Project, Billy & Rich, Blue Collar Band, Sixx L Sixx, Noah Partly, Straightjacket Smile, SG Wood, Micah Shane, Paul Mazzarella, Smokepoint, 32 Trees, and Dennis O’Hagan. Keep scrolling for times and places, as well as other nearby listings.
Posted inArts & Culture
Artist Wrapping Up Pink Oak Project in Munn Park
A sprawling oak wrapped in pink ripstop fabric is the latest public art in Munn Park. Artist David Collins hopes to finish wrapping the tree and add cellophane orchids by the end of this week.
Posted inPeople
Lakeland Teacher’s Black History Month Art Wins Recognition
Lakeland artist and teacher Chanique Davis has gotten national attention for the Black History Month art she creates for the door of her classroom at Lake Alfred Elementary School. This year’s installation focuses on the Afro and Historically Black Colleges and Universities, News Channel 8 reports. | Watch a LkldNow in View conversation with Davis
Posted inActivism
Gospel Inc. Providing Homes for Transients Recovering from COVID-19
Nearly 40 mobile homes and cottages at Lake Parker Avenue and Lemon Street are being repaired by volunteers and turned into housing for formerly homeless people recovering from COVID-19, Fox 13 News reports. Gospel Inc. purchased the property with the help of a federal CARES Act grant. The few people already living there will be […]