Dale Alston, 63, passed away on January 6, 2025. Dale was born and raised in New York City and worked as a Postal Worker, thereafter, moved to Florida in 2016 and worked at Mohawk/Daltile as a Maintenance Worker/Material Handler. Dale had a zest for life, he loved being a powerlifter, he had a black belt in Kungfu, he was a snazzy dresser, he loved seafood and was a kindhearted and generous person.
Dale was preceded in death by his son, Isaiah. Dale is survived by his loving wife, Arleen Alston and 4 daughters, April, Shaquanna, Faith and Joy, he also leaves behind several grandchildren, Shacorey, Joshua, Ava, Cherish, Josiah and Jaell. Along with his brothers and sisters, Robert, Gregory, Lisa and Leslie. Dale also left a whole host of family and friends that loved him so much in New York City and Florida.
With the first of a pair of public meetings on the matter just hours away, Bok Tower Gardens is just one local business voicing concerns over the newest proposal of the Central Polk Parkway, a toll road slated to offer an alternate route to I-4 amid a growing amount of traffic on US Hwy. 27.
The body of an email sent to annual members of the Gardens on January 13, 2025 states the following:

Connecting With Our Members
January 13, 2025
Dear Member,
As the landscape throughout Central Florida continues to change, we want our members to be informed about potential changes to our community that may impact the future of Bok Tower Gardens.
Recently, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise (Enterprise), proposed an Alternative Corridor Evaluation (ACE) for Central Polk Parkway East from SR 60 to US 17/92.
The ACE will evaluate corridor alternatives for a new tolled, limited-access highway from SR 60 to US 17/92.
The proposed highway will link to Interstate 4 and SR 429 (Western Beltway) through the future Poinciana Connector (SR 538), which will serve as a high-speed, alternate travel route to US 27. While traffic is a significant concern, this highway would seriously impact Bok Tower Gardens and the historic communities of Starr Lake and Mountain Lake. We are concerned about the 2025 proposed corridor as this route could negatively impact our viewshed, cause excessive light pollution, and create excessive road noise. The proposed highway could come within a half a mile of Bok Tower Gardens.
Bok Tower Gardens has been working for twenty years and has made significant progress in protecting the Ridge to River Wildlife Corridor along with the Florida Communities Trust, Green Horizon Land Trust, and the Polk County Environmental Lands Program. This wildlife corridor protects a major east-west panther crossing between the Starr Lake and Mountain Lake communities. Unfortunately, the proposed highway could obliterate that wildlife corridor.
What can our members do? Bok Tower Gardens is suggesting that the state agencies return to the 2012 approved route and appropriate wildlife underpasses be located on that route. The final route of the road should not impact designated conservation areas. We request the highway not be within 2 miles of Bok Tower Gardens to protect our viewshed.
We ask our members to attend the January 14 (Virtual Meeting) and January 15 (In-Person) meetings and recomend the 2012 corridor be considered instead of the newly proposed route. You can register here or click the link below.
Additionally, you can submit written or verbal comments to Jazlyn Heywood P.E. at [email protected] or by phone at 407-264-3298.
Thank you for supporting our efforts to keep Bok Tower Gardens the jewel of the Ridge and preserve our historical and cultural legacy. We will keep you informed of the progress via your weekly email.
David Price, president and CEO of Bok Tower Gardens, has confirmed the contents of the email, which discusses the proposed roadway. The email also notes what members can do if they are as concerned about the route the new toll road may take.
Lake Wales Daily has requested Price make a statement on the matter with regard to potential effects of the toll road and have received the following response:
“At Bok Tower Gardens, we have been stewards of the land along with the Mountain Lake Community for over 100 years. The vistas and open lands are essential to protect and preserve the historic Olmsted design of the Gardens, grove lands, and community. As citrus declines, the Gardens has worked for decades with the State of Florida, Green Horizon Land Trust, donors, and various landowners to purchase old agricultural lands to restore the land to longleaf pine to preserve wildlife corridors. We understand that Polk County is growing and there will be a need for new roads, but our tireless work and planning should not be undermined by a lack of planning to preserve future road corridors. In 2012, the Polk Transportation Planning Organization worked with the public to set up a road corridor accepted by all. The route was public record. While we were protecting wildlife corridors, the County and municipalities were not protecting future road corridors. Now, they want to take our wildlife corridors, nature preserves, and historic communities to use as road corridors. The proposed 2025 Central Polk Parkway East Corridor could wipe out a documented panther and wildlife corridor and come within 2000 feet of the Gardens. Polk County Commissioners and FDOT should respect good planning, not penalize it.” -David Price
The Lake Wales Police Department will be receiving seven new vehicles and disposing of ten now that the City of Lake Wales has given their approval.
At their recent meeting on Tuesday, January 7, 2025, Lake Wales city commissioners voted unanimously to approve a separate item within its consent agenda. That item pertained to the purchase of seven police vehicles and the disposal of ten.
Specifically, according to the city agenda memo, the City has approved “the sixty (60) month lease-purchase of five (5) fully equipped 2025 Chevrolet police patrol vehicles and two (2) police K9 vehicles.”
These vehicles will be acquired from Alan Jay Fleet Sales. As the city agenda memo states: “The capital cost of these vehicles, if purchased outright, would be $538,036.85. Under the lease-purchase agreement, the monthly lease payment would be $10,414 for sixty (60) months, with a total cost of $624,840.”
The City has also approved the disposal of ten surplus vehicles. One of these vehicles will be donated to the Lake Hamilton Police Department.
During the meeting, a resident requested this agenda item be removed for discussion. That resident, Frank Lum, inquired about the value of these vehicles. He noted the vehicle being donated to Lake Hamilton allegedly had “no residual value” while the others were being disposed of.
“I dispose my trash on the curb and they do not pay me for it,” he said. “I’m sure some of this would be of value at a scrap yard.”
City Manager James Slaton explained that any new piece of equipment acquired by the city needed to be approved, which is why this agenda item was being considered. He further elaborated the vehicles being disposed of would be traded for new vehicles.
City Commissioner Carol Gillespie asked if electric vehicles were considered for the purchase. City Manager Slaton explained EVs had been considered, but that the city did not have the necessary infrastructure to facilitate them, especially charging stations.
Winter Haven Police are on scene of a shooting along Ave. H NW in Winter Haven.
At approximately 4:37 pm, a 9-1-1 call was received that a male was in an altercation with a male friend leading to the shooting. The male who fired the weapon remained on scene for investigators to interview. As a result of the incident, one apartment in the area received damage from gunshots, however nobody in the residence was injured.
The gunshot victim was taken to Winter Haven Health by Polk County Emergency Medical Services.
This event is currently in the early stages of investigation and this is all of the information available at this time. Additional information will be released tomorrow morning regarding the incident as it becomes available.
UPDATED 7:23 p.m.: Polk County Fire Rescue PIO says the call was originally made regarding the home at 110 Ridge Manor Drive and was dispatched to that address. PCFR erroneously reported this address as the location of the fire. The mobile home involved in the fire is located at 118 Ridge Manor Drive.
UPDATED 6:47 p.m. 1/13/25:
Katelyn Overcamp, Polk County Fire Rescue public information officer, has provided the following details regarding tonight’s fire:
“On 1/13/25 at 5:31 p.m., Polk County Fire Rescue crews were dispatched to a Mobile Home fire at 110 Ridge Manor Dr. in Lake Wales.
“Upon PCFR’s arrival at 5:36 p.m., crews were met with a fully engulfed in flames. Crews worked quickly to extinguish the fire.
“The cause of the fire is still under investigation. There were no injuries reported or patients transported.”
…
At approximately 5:28 p.m. on Monday, January 13, 2025, a structure fire was reported at 110 Ridge Manor Dr. in Lake Wales.
The fire is said to be a fully involved mobile home. It is a single story structure.
Please avoid this area at this time as firefighters and first responders work at the scene.
Lake Wales Daily has contacted Polk County Fire Rescue for additional details.
On Saturday, January 11, 2025, Polk County Sheriff’s deputies arrested 22-year-old Emerick Priddy of West Palm Beach, FL, after he groomed a 14-year-old Polk County girl online then traveled here to engage in sexual activity with her.
Deputies spotted the suspect’s Honda Civic parked in a parking lot just before 3:00 a.m. that morning. They found Priddy in the backseat with the victim. Both were in various stages of undress.
Priddy told deputies that he was 17 years old, but when they ran his driver’s license in the system, they learned he is actually 22 years old.
The investigation revealed that Priddy met the victim on Snapchat, and convinced her to sneak out of her home in the middle of the night and meet him. He then drove from his residence in West Palm Beach to her home in Polk County, where the victim climbed out of a bedroom window and got in Priddy’s vehicle. Priddy then drove her to the park, where they got into the backseat and engaged in sex. He told the victim when he met her online that he was 17 years old. She told him that she was 14 years old to which he replied, “its prolly a one time thing” and “I aint worried.”
Priddy was booked into the Polk County Jail and charged with:
Traveling to meet a minor for sex (F2)
Lewd battery (F2)
Transmission of material harmful to a minor (F3)
Interference with child custody (F3)
Use of a two-way communication device in a felony (F2)
“Emerick Priddy picked the wrong county to come to and sexually batter a child. He’s now facing five felonies and hopefully will be registered as a sexual offender for the rest of his life.” – Grady Judd, Sheriff
Winter Haven – The City of Winter Haven will be hosting its 10th annual Florida Arbor Day Tree Giveaway in South Central Park on Saturday, January 18th, 2025 from 11 am – 3 pm. This event will offer residents a free 3-gallon sized tree once they have attended three short educational demonstrations on how to properly plant, prune, and select the correct species for their space. 150 free trees will be available.
The species offered this year will be Seagrape (Coccoloba uvifera) – a tropical looking tree that thrives away from the beach, and can be pruned into many different growth patterns, often becoming a beautiful shade tree. Red Maples (Acer rubrum) will also be available which offer a rare glimpse of fall color in our area and grow into a large shade tree. Finally, Bald Cypress trees (Taxodium distichum) will be available – these adaptable trees while being an iconic wetland tree of our area can thrive in drier, urban soils as well and make a beautiful addition to any landscape – offering shade in the summer, and losing their leaves in Winter to allow for sun.
The Lake Wales Municipal Airport is one step closer to having its taxilane reconstructed now that the City of Lake Wales has authorized a contract agreement.
At their regular meeting on Tuesday, January 7, 2025, Lake Wales city commissioners voted unanimously to approve its consent agenda. One of the agenda items involved authorizing a contract agreement for reconstruction at the municipal airport.
The contract agreement will be made with CW Roberts, Inc. for the T-Hangar Taxilane Reconstruction and Taxilane Bravo Rehabilitation project.
According to the city agenda memo: “This project will reconstruct the taxilane that connects our t-hangars to the taxiway. It will also rehabilitate taxilane bravo that connects our FBO ramp to the taxiway.”
The cost of the agreement, which amounts to $871,65, will be funded 10 percent by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) and 90 percent by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
The 5th Annual Darleen Pearson Fishing For Farmers Bass Tournament, sponsored by the Lake Wales FFA Alumni, will be held at Camp Mack River Resort on Saturday, February 22, 2025
The Lake Wales FFA alumni consists of supporting students from Lake Wales Sr FFA, BOK Academy North FFA , BOK Academy South FFA , McLaughlin FFA & Hillcrest Elementary YLPA.
The tournament will launch at safe light and have a 2:30 p.m. weigh in. Entries will be $80 per two person team which includes a big bass pot. Payouts will be $1,000 for 1st, $500 for 2nd , and $250 for 3rd with a $250 big bass pot.
There will also be some raffles after weigh in and live entertainment from 11am-1pm at the river stage.
Camo Mack River Resort is located at 14900 Camp Mack Rd., Lake Wales.
