Polk County | featured news

Polk County School Board members Tuesday approved the proposed property tax rate and tentative budget for 2016-17 fiscal year with the unassigned fund balance at the level they want, but the upcoming year will still be financially difficult. With 6-0 votes, the board approved a property tax rate of $6.797 per $1,000 of taxable property value and the $1.2 billion budget. They also scheduled a second public hearing and vote for Sept. 9. Board member Lori Cunningham was absent.

Last fall, Raeshaun Potts lived his dream as he marched through the city with Bartow High School's band. Even when his rudimentary prosthetic legs failed him, he bounced back with a heightened resolve to finish the 2.3-mile parade route. His determination was unrelenting, but his prosthetic legs restricted him to moving only forward, preventing him from pivoting and turning like the other musicians. During the band's halftime performances last year, Potts played his trumpet from the sidelines.

Stephanie White clutched a stack of photos while sitting in a chair in her home. The television was on, loud, and turned to the local news. A story came on about the mass shooting at a nightclub that took her baby's life.

A Lakeland man was shot and killed at his home in South Lakeland after the shooter asked for him to come to the door, according to the Lakeland Police Department.