NO,, 197
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^fisfsiftcbN j' NV 2S 1976
CLIPPING SERVICE
P.O. BOX 10278
TAMPA. FLORIDA 33609. .. .....
K E-11,000 5-11,230
Winter Hlavoen


NOVO-5 -7 6
y '


Ridge Basin Board Sought

SBy MARCIA CASSEL Peace River Basin of the .voters approved water South and Central Florida
News-Chief Staff Writer South West Florida Water management taxation for However, active lobbying
LAKE WALES Lob- Management District the state's five water in Tallahassee resulted in a
byists for independent water J(SW ) than to the management districts, legislative move to include
management, such as flood district which contains plans were made to include what was an interim
control, are not much more Miami. the Ridge, from Mountain district, the Ridge and
eager to pay taxes to the At the same time Florida Lake south to Sebring, in the Lower Gulf Coast Water
". ..Management District, in
... .. .. .. . . .. .... beWw w e
fective in January.
Thursday the Lake Wales
City Commission approved
a resolution calling for the
Ridge to be designated as its
own basin rather than in-
cluding it in the Peace River
Basin.
This would mean the
Ridge would have its own
basin board and levy its own
taxes for management
rather than contributing to a
larger area.
Arch Updike of Alcoma,
Inc. made the request for
the resolution by letter to
the commission, pointing
out that the Ridge is likely to
have fewer flood problems
than the plain area in the
Peace River Basin.
Representing Updike at
the commission meeting
was fellow lobbyist and
citrusman Frank Hunt, who
said the next step will be an
attempt to have the boun-
dary of the Ridge basin ex-
*tended west from Scenic
Highway to US 27 so that it
includes all of Lake Wales.
During the effort to in-
clude the Ridge in SWFMIE
during the legislative ses
sion, the lobbyists lined ul
similar resolutions front
several municipalities in
eluded in the Ridge an<
delivered them by hand t
appropriate committee
members in Tallahassee.