dec-2017

42 43 HAINES CITY, FLORIDA ONE CITY, ONE VISION H aines City, the third most populous city in Polk County, Florida,was originally incorporated in 1925. Its early settlers planted citrus groves, and citrus growing and processing was the main industry of the city for many years. In the latter part of the 20th century,Haines City was also home to a few tourist attractions, includ- ing Circus World, a theme park created by the Ringling Brothers and Barnum& Bailey Circus, which ran from 1974 to 1986, and Boardwalk and Baseball, featuring carnival games and rides,which closed in 1990. Today,Haines City is still advantageously po- sitioned in Central Florida’s tourist region- it’s thirtyminutes southeast of DisneyWorld, and a half hour northeast of Legoland.“We realize the strategic potential of our location,” says Addie Javed, the city’s PublicWorks Director,“and we’re trying to be one of the premier destinations for tourists and locals as they’re going east, north,