§ City government · commission
The five seats.
Every member of the Lake Wales City Commission — the seat they hold, the term the city posts, the districts behind the seats, and the published ways to reach them. Nothing here is guessed: names, terms, and contact routes come from the city's own pages.
Current members
Who holds each seat.
Mayor · Seat 1 / At-Large
Jack Hilligoss
Mayor of Lake Wales, elected citywide.
Term began May 3, 2022 · term expires May 2, 2028
Current term began May 6, 2025. The mayor is elected at large and may live in any district.
Commissioner · Seat 2
Daniel Williams
City commissioner for Seat 2.
Term began May 4, 2021 · term expires May 4, 2027
Current term began May 7, 2024.
Commissioner / Deputy Mayor · Seat 3
Keith Thompson
City commissioner for Seat 3 and the commission's deputy mayor.
Term began May 2, 2023 · term expires May 1, 2029
Current term began May 5, 2026. The deputy mayor acts as mayor during the mayor's absence.
Commissioner · Seat 4
Carol Gillespie
City commissioner for Seat 4.
Term began May 7, 2024 · term expires May 4, 2027
Current term began May 7, 2024.
Commissioner · Seat 5
Terri Miller
City commissioner for Seat 5, seated after the April 2026 election.
Term began May 5, 2026 · term expires May 1, 2029
First term began May 5, 2026, after the Seat 5 municipal election.
Source: City of Lake Wales — City Commission, current members, captured September 29, 2026. Names and terms are repeated exactly as posted; seats can turn over between elections, so confirm against the city's page before relying on it.
Reach a commissioner
City Hall
201 W. Central Ave., Lake Wales, FL 33853
jnanek@lakewalesfl.gov
Jennifer Nanek, City Clerk · 863-678-4182, ext. 270
The city posts no individual office hours for commissioners — they serve part-time. Use each member's contact form, the main line, or public comment at the next meeting.
Next meeting →How the seats work
- Five members serve three-year staggered terms: a mayor elected citywide and four commissioners.
- The four commissioners must live in — and be nominated by — the district their seat represents.
- The commission elects a deputy mayor from among its members who acts as mayor during an absence.
- Commission pay is $9,072 a year; the mayor's is $13,608, per the city's commission page.
Districts
The four districts behind the seats.
The city draws four residence districts for the four commissioner seats. It publishes the boundaries — the legal descriptions below are paraphrased from the city's map document — but does not publish which seat covers which district, so we don't assert one. If you need to know whether an address falls inside a district, the boundaries document is the record to check.
Commission district
District 19 — northeast
The northeast side of town: blocks around Grove Avenue, Hamlin Street, Thirteenth Street, Sunset Drive and North Lake Shore Boulevard, running out to the city limits on the east and north.
Commission district
District 27 — northwest
The northwest edge along US Highway 27: the area between Sundown Drive and the Mountain Lake Cut-off Road, bounded by the city limits on the west and north.
Commission district
District 28 — south
The south side of the city: blocks around Polk Avenue, South Lake Shore Boulevard, Marietta Street and Eleventh Street, largely south of State Road 60.
Commission district
District 122 — central & west
The central and western sections: from North Wales Drive and Burns Avenue west to the city limits, and the US Highway 27 corridor near Mountain Lake.
Office hours
When you can reach the city.
City Hall is open Monday–Friday, 8 a.m.–5 p.m.. Commissioners keep no posted office hours of their own — the city publishes contact forms for each member and takes public comment at every regular meeting, which is often the surest way to put an issue on the record.