Fence Book

ORLANDO, FL -- LifeTime Lumber®, a low-maintenance, eco-friendly and fire-resistant deck, dock and fence material, will demonstrate its new privacy fence and pergola products at the International Builders' Show (IBS) 2011, January 12-15 in Orlando.

One of the many controversial signs Hercules Fence posts. This one was posted during Breast Cancer Awareness month.Inside the Hercules Fence company office, a bulletin board is covered with yellowed newspaper clippings from every time the business has drawn attention — often from out-of-town press.

Other controversial signs at Hercules Fence Co.:
*2005: During Violence Awareness Week: "Take your ex-wife out. One bullet oughta do it."

*2007: "What has four wheels and flies? A dead cripple in a wheelchair." Advocates for the disabled picketed outside the business. The principal at Hillcrest School, which works with disabled students, expressed dismay; the company had done fence work at the school.

The company’s manager, Mike Garza, said the business is eager to get some fresh clippings.

The 58-year-old business’s claim to notoriety has little to do with fences, but rather the messages it posts on a roadside sign at its 4660 SE Maricamp Road location.

Now comes the latest offering. During Breast Cancer Awareness Month, while many businesses are awash in pink ribbons and encouraging slogans, Hercules Fence has taken the opposite tack. The company posted on its sign a message to women that a breast inspection site is 20 feet ahead, and encourages them to display their breasts as they pass by.

Patrick Jeffrey McBrideA 55-year-old Port Charlotte man and owner of Armor Fence Systems was charged with grand theft after at least seven cases were reported where homeowners paid for fencing jobs that were never done, the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office said.

Patrick Jeffrey McBride of 2083 Hanson St., charged him with one of those cases by the Economic Crimes Unit Monday, the sheriff’s office reports.

WINTER HAVEN - Winter Haven city commissioners are expected to discuss Monday an amendment to the section of city ordinances pertaining to fence and wall criteria.

The city's land development code establishes standards for the construction and installation of fences, walls and hedges and identifies materials that may be used to construct subdivision walls. Those materials are brick, stucco, split-face block, wrought iron, wood or a combination of material.

For two years, Ron Berger hasn't been able to park his car in his driveway -- forced to park on his lawn because a much-disputed fence put up by the nearby La Gorce Country Club cuts across the front of his house.

But now Berger, and other homeowners whose doors, driveways and garages have been similarly blocked, are looking forward to the removal of the black-barred fence.

''I'm like a kid waiting for Christmas to come,'' said Berger, whose home is adjacent to the private golf course on Alton Road.