Market Spotlight
POLK COUNTY CIP
Polk County's new fire training and rescue center will include a burn tower structure and administrative office center for in-house training, while future plans include a burning vehicle and aircraft crash training protocols to simulate real-life calls. Photo courtesy of Polk County.
County leaders rely heavily on its seven division directors to know their needs and understand why they exist. “I’m always challenging the divisions to think outside the box,” Beasley said. “Is there another way, a better way, an additional way to engage the public? We like to hear the good and the bad, but in the end, I think in Polk County, we are doing the right things for the right reasons in the right manner. “People generally accept what it costs to do business in Polk County – (they ask if) the cost of government is acceptable to the people in Polk County who pay those taxes and fees. It sounds like certainly most do – that’s why they keep coming.” 46 | ENGINEERING FLORIDA
PR IOR IT IZIN G SA FE T Y Beasley indicated three primary drivers of growth in Polk County: quality education, affordability and, most importantly, a sense of public safety. The third is well represented in the CIP. The Board of Commissioners identified $15 million to build a new fire training and rescue center. The new facility will include a burn tower structure and administrative office center for in-house training, while future plans include a burning vehicle and aircraft crash training protocols to simulate real-life calls. County officials traveled to states across the Southeast to investigate facilities and integrate their systems, such as carcinogen-limiting zones.