Polk County | featured news

Our four-legged friends play many roles in our lives, from security dog to comfort companion to salamander chaser. Now it's time to add one more thing to the list. A recently completed economic impact study shows the largest local non-profit organization dealing with animal welfare does even more: SPCA Florida contributes nearly $12 million annually to the regional economic engine.

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The killing of a 21-year-old man during a planned transaction in a store parking lot shows the dangers involved in meeting strangers to sell items, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said Tuesday morning.

The main items on the agenda when the City Commission meets at 7 p.m. Wednesday is a public hearing on the the proposed tax rate and budget for fiscal year 2016-17. The meeting will be at City Hall, 1 Bobby Green Plaza.

A homeless man faces a charge of attempted murder after allegedly stabbing another man at a Lakeland gas station Monday night.