That's probably as close as I'll ever get to commuter rail in Central Florida. It's my son's LEGO train set.

The defeat of the CSX incentive-laden bill has been hailed as a savings to taxpayers. Two quick questions though

1. When in the next few decades do you think building a commuter rail line will be cheaper?
2. How do you plan on building a rail line without some sort of involvement from CSX?

Here are a few quick answers:

1. Now or Never? If there is one certainty other than death and taxes, it's that major public-infrastructure projects don't get cheaper over time. So if you're complaining about the cost now, just wait a few years....especially when we don't have any Federal funds. Throw in a connection to Tampa and watch the cost get even higher. However land is a bit cheaper today than it was two years ago. Perhaps this recession is good for something :-)
2. Good Luck. They own the major rail lines in the area, so that leaves you with three options: a. build your own, sure....any estimate on what that right-of-way would be? b. deal with the devil, CSX that is....and I bet after this last go around they won't be lowering their price...or c. Use the center of I-4, after all that's what we widened it for right?

Once again regionalism has screwed over the area. Lakeland doesn't want more freight trains, Orlando is sick of them and wants commuter rail, Winter Haven doesn't seem to care as long as their is tax revenue to be gained. South Florida doesn't like funding an Orlando rail initiative with limited immunity, even though they benefit from a similar deal. The Four Corners is growing with residents that work and play in the Osceola/Orange area and we just killed their rail deal, that should go over well. The list can go on and on.

I hope that something good will come out of all this. Hopefully the entire region will begin to think about a good rail system, but it's going to be hard for any Orlando politician to deal with Lakeland for a bit. They'll get over it.....but when?

One day the planning will start and then the finger-pointing will resume all over. What's that...you want to build a high-speed rail connection between Orlando and Tampa but bypass downtown Lakeland and Winter Haven? No way!

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Will there ever be decent rail in Central Florida? In the past year I've seen a number of great commuter rail systems, but alas I don't think we'll ever get there.

I am often in San Francisco/San Jose/Palo Alto for business and I often use CalTrain when I'm there. I don't know the political/financial back-story on CalTrain, but I know it works for me and works well. If I'm at my Palo Alto office, I can get on CalTrain and be in the city within an hour and thanks to EVDO, I can work the entire way...or I can just relax. Something a car never allows. If only we had something like this in Florida.

I experienced something similar in the UK recently. Work had me staying in Windsor, but London was just a short/reliable train-ride away. The SouthWest Trains service was great and I ended up using it for three round-trips in 4 days. On two occasions I used it during rush hour. It's hard to imagine folks in Florida switching to a train-commute lifestyle, but I enjoyed it. Part of this is the make-up of our urban centers.......or perhaps more specifically our lack of urban centers. It would be nice to live in the English countryside and have work be a nice train commute.

Of course, once I arrive in San Francisco or London there is a good subway/transport system in place there to get me around the rest of the city. Something Orlando and Tampa are missing.

That's one of the often cited issues related to subways/rail systems. Cities like London/New York/Chicago had systems in place that allowed development around them. Trying to build after the fact is difficult and expensive, just ask MARTA about that.

When F O X, that's Florida Overland Express to you newbies, or whatever it was going to be called was a glimmer of hope I was just that, hopeful. I was traveling to Jacksonville quite a bit and the drive was killing me. I looked forward to sitting back, relaxing and doing some work while somebody else took care of the transit. Ah yes, dreams of the TGV and Thalys from my honeymoon in Europe.

So I'll repeat the question, will there ever be decent rail in Central Florida?

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So the CSX project is dead? The Ledger talks about the end of the CSX bill, while the News Chief talks about how the Integrated Logistics Center (ILC) is still on track (sorry for the bad pun):

Neither the intermodel center nor the ILC were dependent upon the commuter rail plan getting through the Legislature, said Sease, the CSX spokesman. If anything, it was the other way around, he said, adding that the commuter rail system will not work without the Winter Haven terminal.

That's the quote in the News Chief from CSX's Gary Sease. Is this true? Perhaps. If it is, things are about to get much more interesting, after all, we're just finishing season one.

Lakeland was upset with increased train traffic brought on by the ILC, or was it the commuter rail plan? Either way, they lobbied hard and won, at least they think they did. After all the CSX deal is dead. Well at least the commuter rail portion of it. But CSX says they're not related.

If the ILC goes through, then Lakeland will have their cake and eat it too, except the opposite...what's that? Losing your cake and paying for it too?

If the ILC is built, expect more freight traffic. What's stopping CSX from running more freight traffic through Lakeland/Polk County? After all, they own the tracks, can they do what they want? Actually that's a good question, Billy/Tom? Can they just do what they want, does it require any government approval to increase the number of trains, or can they just do it?

If so, then let's look at the recap: Lakeland helps defeat the commuter rail bill and manages to upset most of the Orlando area in the process. Then, at the end of the day it still might see more train traffic.

What's the next step?

What's that....the Van Fleet trail? Sure, that's easy for Lakeland....make it Polk City's problem, after all they're a bit below the lower-middle-class status and won't mind more trains.

What's the solution for commuter rail? Will we ever see a commuter line from Tampa to Orlando? And can that be done without involving CSX? Ask Dennis Ross (from The Ledger):

"They still hold all of the cards," Ross said, referring to the railroad corporation's ownership of the tracks.

In Part 2 I'll look at some recent commuter rail experiences I've had and in Part 3...well, we'll see.

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Friday night, I went to see the FDT2 performance at Florida Dance Theatre. And it was excellent!

Yes, I know. I'm a bad blogger. I actually waited almost THREE WHOLE DAYS to post this. And, of course, I didn't take a camera. I'm still getting the hang of this whole blog world. But anyway...

For those who don't know, FDT2 is like the understudy group for the professional dancers at Florida Dance Theatre and it's composed of the best of the Academy's students. These students seem to average about 14-18 years old.

The performance only featured these dancers, and about half of the pieces performed were choreographed by the students, as well. I was really, genuinely impressed. In fact, no offense to Carol, Freddy, or Kim (the three professionals who choreographed pieces for the show), but I think I enjoyed the student pieces even more in some cases! Since I'm no dance critic, and I'm still a fairly low level student, I'll leave further comments or criticisms on the performance to others, however.

It is amazing and wonderful to me that Polk County has such a talented pool of young artists to draw from, and I know that the students at Florida Dance Theatre are just a very small percentage of that. There are other talented dancers, musicians, visual artists, and actors here just waiting to be seen!

So KUDOS to FDT2! Keep up the great work guys, and I'll be seeing you all in class!

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In one corner we have Lakeland the other Orlando. One is for the Commuter Rail/CSX project, the other against. With that backdrop it's interesting to read the two headlines talking about the same story, the on-going debate in Tallahassee:

Orlando Sentinel: Orlando-Area Cmmuter-Rail Deal Gets Sidetracked

The Ledger: Railroad Deal Rolls Closer to Approval

So which is it? Closer or sidetracked? Is that good or bad? Depends on which headline you read and where you live :-)

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A few more favorite shots from my London trip (Part 1 here):

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Chuck Welch has a quick post and some photos from the Anti-CSX rally today in Lakeland. Just an outside observation from 2,000 miles away in Casper, WY. Do you think holding an anti-CSX rally in Lakeland is preaching to the choir? After all, Lakeland is the biggest opponent to the deal/project.

If they really wanted to make an impact they should hold a protest in downtown Orlando, or other stops along the proposed commuter rail line.

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While in Casper, WY for work I finally finished processing and uploading all my photos from my London trip. The photoset has 417 shots, but here are some of my favorites, Part 2 coming tomorrow:

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You remember in Star Wars - A New Hope when Alderon was blown up and Ben Kenobi felt thousands of voices crying out, then silenced? The same thing happened with Polk Online, the News Chief's former web site. If you visit PolkOnline.com it now redirects to NewsChief.com. All the old stories and links are dead. How many links? According to Google 116,000 links. That's a great way to kill your PageRank, search traffic, ad revenue, long-term relevance.

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When The Ledger purchased the News Chief, one of the benefits I hoped for was improved reporting, specifically around the CSX story. The News Chief has long ignored the CSX story from an investigative standpoint. Looks like things haven't changed much. Great case-in-point this morning. Shown below are the front pages of the News Chief and The Ledger.

The Ledger has a 'Special Report' on the CSX deal. Big news, with an investigation into the secrecy surrounding the state's deal with CSX. Surely this story has impact on Winter Haven? After all we're the proposed location of the ILS.

Nope, the News Chief featured a story about CSX, but a bit more positive....construction could start soon.

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The WHYPG meets tomorrow, Thursday the 17th, at Tanners for a networking social event.

RSVP today! Don’t miss the first WHYPG networking social event at the Tanner’s Pub’s courtyard. Meet and mingle with area young professionals under the beautiful stars. Enjoy delicious hors d’oeuvres from Tanner’s Pub. You also have a chance to win a great door prize. Admission is free for WHYPG members and $10 for guests and non-members. Cash bar. RSVP through the Web site. The WHYPG is affiliated with the Greater Winter Haven Chamber of Commerce and operates under the Winter Haven Chamber Foundation.

http://winterhavenfl.com/calendars/371-WHYPG-Networking-Social-Event-at-Tanner-s-/details

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Last night at the Central Park Stroll, Winter Haven resident and artist Albert Kriston found out that his sculpture, Reach, won Best of Show in the Eighth Annual Florida Outdoor Sculpture Competition. Not only that, but it also won the People's Choice Award by popular vote of the crowd that attended the Stroll!

Kriston was so thrilled he was absolutely speechless. Grinning from ear to ear after the award was announced, he stood on the stage at the microphone and just said, "I don't know what to say!"

The Central Park Stroll was held in honor of the Eighth Annual Florida Outdoor Sculpture Competition, a joint project of Polk Museum of Art and the City of Winter Haven. Besides Kriston's surprise win of the coveted Best of Show and People's Choice Awards, two other awards were announced as well. Rob Lorenson of Middleboro, Massachusetts, won second place with his sculpture Red Lion, and Dennis Howland of Tallahassee, Florida, received the Honorable Mention for Steppin Out (To the Moon, Alice!).

The Sculpture Competition is a national competition that has been gaining a great reputation among sculptors from all over the country. Every year they compete for a chance to have their work display in our community, and they have nothing but good things to say about the Competition, the Museum, and the City of Winter Haven.

The sculptures will all be on display in the Central Park area of Downtown Winter Haven through early February of next year. Be sure to go check them out. And if you see Al around, tell him congratulations!

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Wow, something I thought I'd never see. Polk County has made Gizmodo, one of the top gadget blogs. They picked up on the recent crime-ring bust. It seems they like bazookas.

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Well the article on 'Polk Bloggers' was published this morning in the Sentinel. Chuck has some thoughts, and here are a few from me in a different format: Winners & Losers.

Winner: Polk County - yeah we had something written about us in the Sentinel that doesn't mention naked people on crack and alligators.

Loser: Polk County - blogs are great for rural areas...yep that's us.

Loser: Billy Townsend and the Tampa Tribune - I told the reporter my discovery of the CSX rail-traffic re-route was done in conjunction with Billy and the Trib. No mention of that.

Loser: Me - nice misquote: "many people consider themselves citizen journalists" I said "some people" big difference.

Loser: News Chief - the standard trend of papers outside of Winter Haven covering CSX more.

Loser: Joy Townsend - the story almost seems formulaic, bloggers vs somebody else. Unfortunately for Joy she was cast in the part with her single-line quote. It's always nice when you talk to a reporter for 20 minutes and they choose one line.

Winner: Conversation - more people talking and aware of blogs/local issues, etc.

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Just a small note that Winter Haven's cnp_studio just helped launch yet another high-profile web project, this time for eBay. Both Nick and I noted the hat trick that cnp_studio has recently completed with projects for eBay, Yahoo and Sony. Who says we're a 'rural' community?

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Update: The article is out.

The Orlando Sentinel is putting together an article about the 'Polk Bloggers' and CSX. I was interviewed along with quite a few other people involved in that 'blogging-thing'. If you remember John Chambliss from the Ledger wrote something similar back in June of 2007. You can read the notes I had about John's article.

I was asked if I was in favor of the project. I said I was*, and stated so on this blog. That's the great thing about this format, if you need a quote you can just grab it from here. If you copy/paste and then cite the original source there is no way a reporter can misquote me.

What's that *asterisk you say? Well, more on that tomorrow.

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A while back I posted about the possibility of Lakeland's Linder Airport becoming a destination for low-cost commercial airlines. As I said then, it might sound far-fetched, but then again, maybe not.

Wednesday's edition of USAToday has a feature story on the growth of mid-size airports located near major cities:

Midsize airports outside major cities, such as New York and Los Angeles, are the fastest-growing in the nation and have seen passenger and flight volumes soar by up to 400% in the past decade, a USA TODAY analysis of federal data shows.

The growth is primarily fueled by two factors: discount airlines flocking to cheaper secondary airports and population growth in regions located about an hour from New York, Los Angeles, Boston and Washington, airport consultant Mike Boyd said.

Here is the key line for the Polk County/Lakeland area:

"Where you've got a population base and ease of access, you're going to get growth," Boyd said. The trend has helped alleviate strain on major metro airports and stimulated suburban development.

One of the info-graphics with the article shows that the busiest round-trip route is Atlanta-Orlando. While Sanford International Airport also serves Orlando, Lakeland is in a good position to cover Orlando and Tampa.

Would Lakeland build-up the infrastructure at Linder to handle commercial airlines?

The drawback might just be all the residential development that has occurred around the airport/Polk Parkway. I'm not sure local residents would like to hear steady jet-service over their neighborhoods.

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I'm in Seoul, South Korea for business, actually presenting at a conference. The 'Where in Polk' category is just a joke :-) More, photos from Seoul over at Flickr.

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When Bob posted his little hint about something going on in the local newspaper market, my thoughts were:

1. The News Chief is shutting down.
2. Somebody was going to buy them.

Truth be told, I figured option #1 was going to happen a long time ago. I thought when Wayne Ezell left and they didn't announce a full-time replacement that the writing was on the wall. I thought that since Wayne had been at the helm so long, they (being Morris) didn't want to shutter the paper while he was there. Better to let him move-on to Jacksonville, then let the paper die a few months later. People could always say, "See....once Wayne left, the paper was never the same."

Truth is the paper has never been much of anything for a while. That leads to option #2

If somebody was going to buy them, at first for me, the two choices were another outside group (as in outside of Florida) or either the Orlando Sentinel or the Tampa Tribune. Buying the News Chief would give them a beachhead into the Polk market. But of course what would they be buying? A dismal circulation and poor facilities? In the long run it would be cheaper to compete them to death, then buy them.

Enter The Ledger. As we now know, the Ledger is the buyer and they've indicated some of their plans. Here are some random thoughts:

- Nelson Kirkland is the man for the job. I've worked with Nelson on projects and chamber dealings (both Lakeland and Winter Haven) for a number of years. He's direct when it comes to business. Some people don't like that, but it's what gets the job done. He's also very connected (and concerned) about this community, something none of the previous two News Chief publishers were.

- Was it a mercy buy? Did they really need to buy them? Terms are not public, but could you spend the same amount of money improving the features/services
and just crush the News Chief? Or was it easier and cheaper just to buy them?

- With the end of the East Polk edition will Lakeland finally get their paper back? By this I mean will the Ledger become a Lakeland-focussed paper and the New Chief the Winter Haven/East Polk paper? Will this mean less Winter Haven news in the Ledger? It will be interesting to see how the content shifts in the coming months.

- The Ledger indicated that they intend to keep the News Chief masthead. Sounds good now, and makes everybody feel good about the purchase. But what about one year from now, will it still make sense for The Ledger to dilute their brand across the county with competition from the Sentinel and Tribune on opposite sides? The Ledger didn't acquire the facilities, just the titles/mastheads and some staff. Shutting down the 'paper' a year from now won't require much effort, compared to selling a building/presses/equipment, etc.

- I know many advertising folks were scared about a Ledger purchase of the News Chief since it would impact print ad rates once competition was gone. The Ledger indicates that the rates will remain the same for now. But, like the point above, let's see what happens one year from now.

- Is there a place for an afternoon paper? Thinking about the logistics....the News Chief will be printed by the Ledger at their main facility in Lakeland. How does this
impact the production of the Ledger. A few options:

1. The News Chief is printed first and thus has an earlier deadline. This would actually be status quo, since PolkOnline is usually updated around 11pm with tomorrow's stories.
2. The News Chief is printed after the Ledger and thus we have a tight delivery schedule.
3. The News Chief goes back to an afternoon paper. Think about that, it might be interesting.

- I can't wait to see better reporting in the paper. That's one thing the Ledger will bring to the News Chief.

- I'll have to ask Barry what the plans for PolkOnline are. I have some ideas, but I gave up working with newspapers last year. Barry lunch sometime soon?

Anyway, the next few months should be interesting.

Disclosures: In the past two years I have done paid consulting work for The Ledger and the Orlando Sentinel. Many years ago with a previous company I also did work for the News Chief. As far as the Tampa Tribune is concerned....I know Billy :-)

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We've heard from a number of people about the closing of the Citrus Festival. The articles in The Ledger and News Chief both quote Winter Haven officials, Citrus Festival officials, and local residents.

However there is one group that we haven't heard from. The citrus industry. After all, it's their festival. I use the word 'their' loosely here. They seem to be conspicuously silent in this matter?

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