Who shapes this city.

City of Lake Wales

Planning, infrastructure, and redevelopment policy. Controls zoning, redevelopment approvals, infrastructure projects, and grant allocations.

Lake Wales Community Redevelopment Agency

Controls redevelopment districts, property incentives, and project approvals. Has sold CRA-owned property on vacant lots to spur development and enhance the tax base.

Lake Wales Planning and Zoning Board

Approves land use and development changes.

Lake Wales Code Enforcement Board

Influences redevelopment indirectly by addressing blight and property compliance.

Lake Wales Main Street

Downtown business development, events, and preservation.

Lake Wales Area Chamber of Commerce

Business recruitment and networking.

Central Florida Development Council

Large-scale investment and economic recruitment.

Sara Jones

President of the Lincoln Community Development Corporation and founder of Sara Jones Law. In 2021 she purchased two CRA-owned parcels on Lincoln Avenue to build a three-story, 3,600 sq ft office complex designed as both law office and community asset — co-working space, event venue, covered balcony.

"The legacy of the neighborhood is inextricably connected with my own history, and I am deeply invested in its future."

Lincoln Community Development Corporation

Focused on revitalizing the Lincoln Avenue historic Black business district — the street that refused to be forgotten — and connecting its legacy to the broader Lake Wales Connected vision.

Lake Wales Connected

Award-winning revitalization blueprint for Downtown and the Northwest neighborhood, by Dover, Kohl & Partners. Revives the Olmsted Brothers' 'city in a garden' vision. Winner: FRA Best Planning Project (2020), APA Florida Plan It Award (2021).

Dover, Kohl & Partners

The Coral Gables town-planning firm behind Lake Wales Connected and Lake Wales Envisioned. Portfolio spans Chattanooga to Panama City to Charlotte Amalie. Walkable urbanism, community-driven design, form-based codes.

Bok Tower Gardens

The region's largest tourism draw and cultural institution.

Warner University

Major employer and student population center.

Mountain Lake Corporation

Influential in regional planning and preservation.

Frederick Law Olmsted Jr.

Created the city's 1929 master plan; also designed the gardens at Bok Tower.

Olmsted Brothers

Responsible for the 'city in a garden' planning concept; successors to Frederick Law Olmsted Sr.

Federal RAISE Grant Program

$22.9 million for street improvements, drainage, and connectivity through the Northwest neighborhood.

Florida Department of Environmental Protection

Funding trail expansion.

State & Federal Transportation Grants

Stack underneath the RAISE grant for street redesign, pedestrian improvements, and bike trails.

Pioneer Days Festival

One of the city's largest cultural events.

Lake Wailes Park

Major community gathering place on the lakefront.

Local Nonprofits & Civic Groups

Often drive neighborhood-level projects.