South Lakeland holds five of the city's historic districts and is mostly ZIP 33803, where Zillow's typical value was $287,345 in August 2026.

Last checked Oct. 9, 2026. Sources: the City of Lakeland’s planning sectors map, historic district summaries (PDF) and neighborhoods map, Polk County Public Schools’ Address Zoning tool, the Florida Department of Education’s 2026 school grades, Zillow Research, Citrus Connection and OpenStreetMap.

South Lakeland is the city’s first ring of suburbs and the neighborhoods beyond it, from the edge of downtown south to the Polk Parkway. It takes in Lake Morton, Lake Hunter and Lake Hollingsworth, the Florida Southern College campus and five of Lakeland’s seven historic districts. About 88% of its land, and almost all of the addresses we checked, are inside city limits.

What this means for you

  • Zoned high school: Lakeland High for 52% of addresses and Kathleen High for 48%; check yours with the district’s Address Zoning tool.
  • Home value: $287,345 in ZIP 33803 in August 2026, according to the Zillow Home Value Index.
  • Nearest highway exit: Polk Parkway Exit 7, South Florida Avenue; the nearest I-4 exit, Exit 28, is about 6 miles away by road.

Part of our Lakeland neighborhoods guide.

Where it is

On the city’s planning sectors map, South Lakeland covers about 14.6 square miles. The Polk Parkway forms its southern edge and Bartow Road (U.S. 98) its eastern edge. South Florida Avenue, Harden Boulevard and Lakeland Highlands Road run through it.

ZIP codes: 76% of the addresses we checked were in 33803, 20% in 33815 and 4% in 33801, by the school district’s address records.

Historic districts. The city’s district summaries describe them:

  • South and East Lake Morton, south and east of Lake Morton and north of Lake Hollingsworth, “the first-generation suburbs of Lakeland,” mostly built in the land boom of 1920 to 1926, with brick streets, alleys and Bungalow and Mediterranean Revival homes. The Florida Southern College campus, with buildings by Frank Lloyd Wright, is at its south end.
  • Dixieland, between the east shore of Lake Hunter and South Florida Avenue, from Walnut Street south to Dobbins Park: a grid of narrow lots, alleys and Craftsman bungalows.
  • Beacon Hill, about 10 blocks south of Dixieland, west of South Florida Avenue and north of Beacon Road, with curving streets and larger lots.
  • Biltmore-Cumberland, east of Ingraham Avenue and west of Hollingsworth Road, north of Frank Lloyd Wright Way, laid out after Florida Southern opened in 1922.
  • Lake Hunter Terrace, about 65 acres on the west shore of Lake Hunter, with brick streets; two-thirds of its buildings went up during and right after World War II.

Exterior changes in these districts need the city’s design review.

Neighborhood associations. Active associations registered with the city include Historic Beacon Hill, Historic Cumberland, Historic Dixieland, South Lake Morton, Westgate Central Avenue and Camphor Heights, its neighborhoods map shows. These are neighborhood associations, not homeowners associations.

Schools

We looked up 1,829 South Lakeland addresses in Polk County Public Schools’ Address Zoning tool for the 2026-27 school year. Grades are the Florida Department of Education’s 2026 school grades.

Level School Share of addresses 2026 grade
High Lakeland High 52% B
High Kathleen High 48% C
Middle Southwest Middle 60% C
Middle Sleepy Hill Middle 36% C
Middle Crystal Lake Middle 5% C
Elementary Dixieland Elementary 59% B
Elementary Scott Lake Elementary 15% A
Elementary Philip O’Brien Elementary 8% C
Elementary Jesse Keen Elementary 6% C
Elementary Cleveland Court Elementary 6% A
Elementary Southwest Elementary 4% B

Dixieland Elementary rose from a D in 2025 to a B in 2026, and Scott Lake Elementary from a C to an A, the state’s file shows. Lakeland High is in this sector, at 726 Hollingsworth Road. See our schools guide.

Home values

The typical home value in ZIP 33803 was $287,345 in August 2026, down 1.9% from $292,906 in August 2025, according to the Zillow Home Value Index. In 33815, which covers the west side, it was $183,135. The index is a modeled typical value for the middle third of homes in the whole ZIP code, not a sale price. The citywide Lakeland figure was $309,954, down 1.3% on the year. More in our home prices guide.

Parks and trails

From the city’s parks map and our parks and trails guide:

  • Lake Morton, with the Lakeland Public Library at 100 Lake Morton Drive.
  • Lake Hollingsworth, with Thomas B. Mack Park at 18 Lake Hollingsworth Drive.
  • Dobbins Park, 514 W. Ariana St., about 10 acres.
  • Peterson Park, 3700 Cleveland Heights Blvd., and Dog Leg Woods dog park, 3326 Cleveland Heights Blvd.
  • Common Ground Park and the Beerman Family Tennis Complex, 1000 E. Edgewood Drive.
  • Kelly Recreation Complex and Gandy Pool, 404 Imperial Blvd.
  • Cleveland Heights Golf Course, 2900 Buckingham Ave., a city course.

The city lists the Three Parks Trail East, along New Jersey Road, as recently completed; the Three Parks Trail West on Cleveland Heights Boulevard and a Hartsell Avenue trail from Lake Hunter to Lake Beulah are next.

Getting around

  • Polk Parkway: Exit 7, South Florida Avenue, about 1.8 miles from the middle of the area by road; Exit 5, Harden Boulevard, about 2.7 miles. Exit numbers are from OpenStreetMap.
  • I-4: Exit 28, Memorial Boulevard, about 6.2 miles.
  • Downtown: about 2.1 miles to Munn Park.
  • Airports: about 6 miles to Lakeland Linder International and about 42 miles to Tampa International. These are road distances on the OpenStreetMap network measured with the OSRM routing engine, not drive times.
  • Buses: Citrus Connection’s Peach Line is the Dixieland shuttle, the Gold Line runs Florida Avenue, and the Coral Line uses Cleveland Heights Boulevard, according to the agency’s route brochures.

More in our getting around guide.

Groceries and everyday stores

From OpenStreetMap:

  • Publix, 2515 Florida Ave. S. and 3636 Harden Blvd.
  • Walmart Supercenter, 3501 S. Florida Ave.
  • Aldi, 2900 Lakeland Highlands Road
  • Walgreens, on Hancock Street

How we drew this area

South Lakeland is the sector of the same name on the city’s planning sectors map. School shares come from addresses inside it that we looked up in the district’s zoning tool on Oct. 9, 2026. Store locations are © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Frequently asked questions

Is South Lakeland a good place to live?

Here are the facts. South Lakeland is the planning sector between downtown and the Polk Parkway, with five historic districts, Florida Southern College and Lakes Morton, Hunter and Hollingsworth. About half its addresses are zoned for Lakeland High, which earned a B in the state’s 2026 grades, and Zillow put the typical home value in ZIP 33803 at $287,345 in August 2026.

What high school is South Lakeland zoned for?

Of the South Lakeland addresses we checked in Polk County Public Schools’ zoning tool, 52% were zoned for Lakeland High and 48% for Kathleen High. Check one address before you buy or rent.

What are the historic districts in South Lakeland?

South Lake Morton, Dixieland, Beacon Hill, Biltmore-Cumberland and Lake Hunter Terrace, all local historic districts that are also on the National Register of Historic Places, the city says. East Lake Morton reaches in from downtown.

What Polk Parkway exit serves South Lakeland?

Exit 7, South Florida Avenue, is about 1.8 miles from the middle of the area by road, and Exit 5, Harden Boulevard, about 2.7 miles.