×
×
homepage logo
STORE

Welcome sign gets paint job

By Staff | Apr 29, 2015

MEL TOADVINE Lehigh Kiwanis Club members Amanda Plummer, left, and Tonda Soisson bring back the original colors of the image.

The giant circular Welcome to Lehigh Acres sign at the intersection of Homestead Road and Lee Boulvard has received a rebirth of sorts with the help of Lee County and members of the Lehigh Kiwanis Club.

The final renewal of the iconic sign took place on April 18 when several members of the Lehigh Kiwanis club repainted the image which had faded badly from sun exposure for the past 15 years or so.

The sign, which was constructed by the old Lehigh Corp. was first erected and stood at the firm’s old Welcome Center, which has been torn down on Joel Boulevard. It was moved sometime in 1996 to its present location on a triangular median plot of ground owned by Lee County.

Some people have referred to it as the old Wooden Nickel sign.

The sign was inspected a few months back and deemed to be in need of repair due to deterioration at the bottom causing some to wonder if the sign were safe. The Lehigh Community Council asked the county to help repair the sign. Some raised questions about what would happen if the sign were hit by a powerful hurricane or run into by a large vehicle.

MEL TOADVINE Richard St. Dennis at the top of the Welcome to Lehigh sign at the intersection of Lee Blvd. and Homestead Rd. giving the sign a new paint job.

According to county officials, if the sign were to have fallen over, it could have potentially been a hazard to traffic or worse.

County workers built two large side support columns to give additional reinforcement to the sign after repairing its base and other parts of the sign, according to Betsy Clayton, Lee County government communications director. The county spent a couple of weeks last month working to make the welcome sign structurally sound.

The sign has an image on it that was originally created by the late Jim Fleming, who was an employee of the Lehigh Corp. at the time, according to Ruth Ann Anglickis, an executive with Lehigh’s Landex Corp. She also once worked for the Lehigh Corp.

Fleming died about a decade ago while running for office.

Fleming first was appointed by Gov. Jeb Bush in 1999 to a seat on the East County Water Control District. He was reelected by affirmation in 2000 and in 2004. In addition to the ECWCD and the local planning group, Fleming was a lifetime member of the NAACP, the National Tax Cap Committee, and the Caloosahatchee River Citizens Association. He had been a founding co-chairman of the Lehigh Acres Community Redevelopment Agency. He was a founding chairman of the Lehigh Chapter of Habitat for Humanity. He belonged to several other groups and organizations. He was a member of St. Raphael’s Catholic Church.

MEL TOADVINE A plaque at the base of the Welcome to Lehigh sign has the names of those in the CRA who were involved in relocating it.

The East County Water Control District built the Jim Fleming Ecological Park in Fleming’s memory. It is located at 3713 5th St. West in Lehigh.

Some of those from the Kiwanis Club that participated in the painting project included Amanda Plummer, Tonda Soisson, Richard St. Dennis, Damon Shelor, Bruce Boyd and Rick Anglickis.

Now the Community Council of Lehigh is looking to find a way to light up the sign again at night. It is yet to be determined who will pay the electric bill. The sign has not been illuminated at night for at least a year.

Welcome sign gets paint job

By Staff | Apr 29, 2015

MEL TOADVINE Lehigh Kiwanis Club members Amanda Plummer, left, and Tonda Soisson bring back the original colors of the image.

The giant circular Welcome to Lehigh Acres sign at the intersection of Homestead Road and Lee Boulvard has received a rebirth of sorts with the help of Lee County and members of the Lehigh Kiwanis Club.

The final renewal of the iconic sign took place on April 18 when several members of the Lehigh Kiwanis club repainted the image which had faded badly from sun exposure for the past 15 years or so.

The sign, which was constructed by the old Lehigh Corp. was first erected and stood at the firm’s old Welcome Center, which has been torn down on Joel Boulevard. It was moved sometime in 1996 to its present location on a triangular median plot of ground owned by Lee County.

Some people have referred to it as the old Wooden Nickel sign.

The sign was inspected a few months back and deemed to be in need of repair due to deterioration at the bottom causing some to wonder if the sign were safe. The Lehigh Community Council asked the county to help repair the sign. Some raised questions about what would happen if the sign were hit by a powerful hurricane or run into by a large vehicle.

MEL TOADVINE Richard St. Dennis at the top of the Welcome to Lehigh sign at the intersection of Lee Blvd. and Homestead Rd. giving the sign a new paint job.

According to county officials, if the sign were to have fallen over, it could have potentially been a hazard to traffic or worse.

County workers built two large side support columns to give additional reinforcement to the sign after repairing its base and other parts of the sign, according to Betsy Clayton, Lee County government communications director. The county spent a couple of weeks last month working to make the welcome sign structurally sound.

The sign has an image on it that was originally created by the late Jim Fleming, who was an employee of the Lehigh Corp. at the time, according to Ruth Ann Anglickis, an executive with Lehigh’s Landex Corp. She also once worked for the Lehigh Corp.

Fleming died about a decade ago while running for office.

Fleming first was appointed by Gov. Jeb Bush in 1999 to a seat on the East County Water Control District. He was reelected by affirmation in 2000 and in 2004. In addition to the ECWCD and the local planning group, Fleming was a lifetime member of the NAACP, the National Tax Cap Committee, and the Caloosahatchee River Citizens Association. He had been a founding co-chairman of the Lehigh Acres Community Redevelopment Agency. He was a founding chairman of the Lehigh Chapter of Habitat for Humanity. He belonged to several other groups and organizations. He was a member of St. Raphael’s Catholic Church.

MEL TOADVINE A plaque at the base of the Welcome to Lehigh sign has the names of those in the CRA who were involved in relocating it.

The East County Water Control District built the Jim Fleming Ecological Park in Fleming’s memory. It is located at 3713 5th St. West in Lehigh.

Some of those from the Kiwanis Club that participated in the painting project included Amanda Plummer, Tonda Soisson, Richard St. Dennis, Damon Shelor, Bruce Boyd and Rick Anglickis.

Now the Community Council of Lehigh is looking to find a way to light up the sign again at night. It is yet to be determined who will pay the electric bill. The sign has not been illuminated at night for at least a year.