Month: September 2024

A cadre of Sebring Historical Society members, community leaders and interested citizens gathered Tuesday at the Sebring Regional Airport. They were there for the dedication of a wall mural in honor of Major Thomas McGuire.

McGuire was a Sebring High School graduate, a football player and a clarinet player in the high school marching band. He also was a World War II fighter pilot ace who shot down 38 enemy pilots before being shot down himself two days after Christmas in 1945.

Sebring Historical Society President Bobby Lee, himself a US Army Brigadier General, gave an accounting of McGuire’s life – both his time in Sebring and an accounting of his phenomenal career in the US Army Air Corps. During his time, McGuire flew some 325 missions and got credit for 38 enemy kills (although there may have been more). He was the second highest scoring ace of all time.

Read more: Tommy McGuire Mural Dedicated at Sebring Airport

The Rotary Club of Sebring presented their proposal to build a public restrooms building adjacent to the downtown Circle at the September 3rd City Council Meeting.

Club president, Todd Scholl, explained that the club wanted to do a significant service project to commemorate the club’s 100th anniversary. The Rotary organization’s first service project was to build public restrooms in Chicago in 1907. The club wanted to honor that project, and felt it would meet the needs of the downtown area.

Scholl pointed out that there are many events held on the Circle each year, and having public restrooms available would really benefit the community. It would also be a big boost to the burgeoning businesses surrounding the downtown circle area.

Read more: Rotary Club to Build Bathrooms

by Bob Norman/Trident News

Members of the government board overseeing the Sebring Regional Airport — which includes the historic Sebring International Raceway — tend to speak slowly in a southern drawl, but they pulled a fast one last year with the sale of 17 acres of publicly owned land. 

Without properly notifying the public of the proposed sale or opening it up for competitive bids, the city-appointed Sebring Airport Authority sold the land to a partnership that included local developer Mark Gose, who has private business ties to several board members, and former board member John Haviland. 

The price for the land was $325,000, an amount the board was informed prior to the sale was grossly under market value. A rival developer, Bruce Ledoux, who owns land bordering the 17-acre tract and was excluded from bidding on it, warned the board the land was likely worth twice that amount.  

Read more: Sebring airport officials pulled a fast one on public with shady land sale