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Paul “Andy” Stewart
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Ledger, The (Lakeland, FL)
September 17, 2010
Manager Has Plans to Give Dundee Boost
Author: MICHAEL W. FREEMAN
DUNDEE Hoping to cash in on the arrival of a new theme park and the state's designation of a
local roadway as a scenic highway, Dundee is looking to build a stronger economy and a larger
base of visitors in the near future.
'There sure are exciting things going on,' said Andy Stewart, Dundee's town manager, during a
presentation to the Dundee Area Chamber of Commerce on Monday. Stewart acknowledged
that the town has struggled in past years as the recession has hurt tax collections. 'For the past
few years, the town of Dundee has been in what we call a state of financial emergency,' he said,
adding that this leaves little to no money for new projects. 'Unfortunately, all we have are our
general taxes, and things are tight right now,' Stewart said.
Still, Stewart said he's feeling more optimistic about the town's future because of two upcoming
projects. One is the building of Legoland Florida in Winter Haven which is expected to open
next fall. 'We're excited about what the CFDC (Central Florida Development Council) has done
in bringing in new businesses like Legoland,' Stewart said. 'I've been asking people what we can
do to prepare for that.'
Stewart said he's considering several projects to provide a boost to Dundee's historic downtown,
'so we're not known as ‘Take the left or right at Hardee's,' ' a reference to the Hardee's restaurant
at the intersection on U.S. 27 that takes motorists to Dundee's downtown neighborhood. Stewart
said he recently secured a $22,000 grant to help beautify the downtown. 'We've got a grant from
the Division of Forestry to plant trees downtown,' he said. 'That's going to make a big
improvement to our downtown. As you beautify things, more businesses will move in.'
Stewart said his office would plant 80 oak trees in downtown as part of the beautification effort.
At the same time, officials are planning to advertise the downtown on busy U.S. 27 in
anticipation of Legoland attracting more visitors along that roadway. 'We're going to put some
signage on 27, and we hope things pick up from that,' he said. Stewart said he hopes to gain
some momentum from the state's designation of State Road 17, which cuts through the town, as
the Ridge Scenic Highway. The state designated S.R. 17 as a Florida scenic highway in February
2005.
'In 2009, the Florida DOT (Department of Transportation) completed the master plan for
bicycles and pedestrians to go through all the cities (along S.R. 17) and give this highway a
unified look,' Stewart said. 'It connects Dundee to Lake Wales and Lake Hamilton.'
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