City News

LAKELAND, FL (November 1, 2024) | To decrease the water levels at Lake Bonny, the City of Lakeland added an additional pump, provided by the Army Corps of Engineers, to assist in moving water from Lake Bonny to Lake Parker.  The initial test was successful and after 24 hours with the pump running, the Army Corps of Engineers increased the pump to 1800 RMPs. 

The City of Lakeland will host a public meeting for Lake Bonny residents that have been impacted by flooding due to Hurricane Milton.  The meeting will take place November 6, 2024, at 6:30 p.m. in the Lakeland City Commission Chambers located at City Hall, 228 South Massachusetts Avenue. The purpose of the meeting is to provide current information regarding the floodi

LAKELAND, FL (October 30, 2024) | To decrease the water levels at Lake Bonny, the City of Lakeland will be adding an additional pump as a TEST to see if it provides additional relief for Lake Bonny. 

LAKELAND, FL (October 24, 2024) | The City of Lakeland Parks Division will be on Lake Morton at 7:00 a.m. on Tuesday, November 5, 2024, for the 44^th Annual Swan Roundup. Parks, Recreation & Cultural Arts employees will be carefully gathering the swans by boat to get them ready for their annual veterinary check-up. The swans will be confined in large holding pens on the south side of the lake for their annual wellness examinations with My Pet’s Animal Hospital that will start the morning of November 6, 2024, at 8:00 a.m. The Annual Swan Round-Up allows the City’s Parks, Recreation & Cultural Arts Department to closely monitor the health and vitality of Lakeland’s swan population. 

LAKELAND, FL (October 24, 2024) | There is a concentrated effort taking place to mitigate the flooding that has happened around Lake Bonny.  The lake is swollen above typical levels due to heavy rains experienced with Tropical Storm Debbie, Hurricane Helene and most recently Hurricane Milton.   The City of Lakeland, the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD), Pol ...

LAKELAND, FL (October 22, 2024) | The City of Lakeland is working with several agencies in ongoing efforts to mitigate the sustained flooding on Lake Bonny.  The City of Lakeland has been coordinating with the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD), Polk County, US Army Corp of Engineers, and the State of Florida to develop a flood mitigation plan.

Residential Garbage Collection resumed normal operations. This includes garbage, recycling, and yard waste.  Expect delays in bagged and containerized yard waste collection. Place any extra bags of garbage next to the green garbage cart and it will be picked up. 

Lakeland Electric reports that power has been reinstated for customers who can safely receive service. As clean-up efforts continue, hanging tree limbs may impact service and cause isolated outages. Customers with damaged electrical equipment or those dealing with flooding may be unable to safely receive power until the floodwaters recede or their equipment undergoes assessment and repair by a qualified electrician. Once the property owner has made repairs, customers should contact 863-834-9535 to have power safely reconnected.

There are some areas around Lakeland that were hit very hard with flooding (photo attached) due to the impacts from Hurricane Milton.  The Lakeland area experienced over 12 inches of rain in 24 hours taxing the City’s stormwater system.  All area lakes are flooded, and it is very difficult to alleviate flood conditions and lower lake levels. Most of the drainage lakes, tributaries and rivers have high levels and that is not helping flood situations because of the higher-than-normal rainfall over the summer.  

Residential Garbage Collection resumed normal operations on Monday, October 14^th. This includes garbage, recycling and yard waste.  Expect delays in bagged and containerized yard waste collection. Place any extra bags of garbage next to the green garbage cart and it will be picked up.