City Council - Regular Meeting

Meeting of the Orlando City Council. We're going to begin today's proceedings with the invocation of the Pledge of Allegiance led by Commissioner Keene. Invocation first.

Alright. Good afternoon. May is known as Asian American Pacific Island Heritage Month. This month we honor the resilience, innovations, and lasting contributions of AAPI communities throughout American history. So I'd like to highlight one of those contributions to honor an important historical figure in Orlando's history, Liu Jim Gong.

He was a Chinese American pioneer who became known as the citrus wizard in Central Florida, using his horticulture expertise to develop oranges that could withstand severe weather. Despite facing discrimination in his lifetime, his contribution to the field of agriculture helped revolutionize the Florida citrus industry, leaving a deep impact on the state's agriculture and economic sectors and developing our city beautiful as it is today. As we continue to celebrate AAIP Heritage Month, we recognize not only the historic achievements of AAPI individuals, but also the diverse voices, cultures, and leaders who continue to strengthen our community today. I leave you with the words of Liu Jingang. No one should live in this world for himself alone but to do good for those who come after him.

Please stand.

Thank you, commissioner Keane. We will call the meeting to order. Madam clerk, would you call the roll and make a determination of a quorum, please?

Commissioner Keene. Here. Commissioner Ortiz.

Here.

Commissioner Chapin. Here. Commissioner Sheehan. Here. Commissioner Rose. Here. Commissioner Burns.

Here.

Mayor Dyer?

Here.

Mayor, you have a quorum with all members present.

Thank you. Madam Clerk, first order of business is consideration of minutes from the April City Council agenda and workshop meetings. Motion by Commissioner Chapin, second by Commissioner Burns. All in favor indicate so by saying aye. Aye. Those opposed, the motion carries. Okay. We're going to move to awards presentations and recognitions. This is one of my very favorite council meetings of the year. I bet a large majority of you that are here today, it's either your first meeting or the only meeting that you will attend this year.

It's because we are celebrating our twenty twenty five employees of the year who've been selected because of their dedication for serving our residents and supporting their colleagues. We have four very deserving individuals that we are going to recognize now. I'm going call on Jessica Mason, who is our Assistant Director of Human Resources, to give an overview of the awards and the individual honorees. Jessica?

Thank you, Mayor Dyer. Good afternoon, Mayor Dyer, commissioners, and guests. It is my pleasure to announce the 2025 Employee of the Year Award winners. The purpose of the city's employee recognition program is to motivate, recognize and retain employees who demonstrate excellence in public service. The most prestigious honor presented through this program is the Employee of the Year Award.

Only the very best employees are nominated for this distinguished recognition. This year, 18 nominations were received and four outstanding employees were selected as our twenty twenty five Employee of the Year recipients. The twenty twenty five Employee of the Year recipients are Lizbeth Perez, Fiscal Manager, Departmental and Economic Development Anna Cruz, Office for Local Assistance Supervisor and Communications and Neighborhood Relations Alyssa Musashio, Sustainability Project Manager in the Office of Sustainability and Resilience and Donna Abdallah, Computer Operator II in Transportation. Mayor, if you could please come down for the award and presentation. The director for each of these outstanding employees will now introduce them and share highlights of their accomplishments.

First, the presenter will be Lillian Scott Payne, Director of Economic Development, who will introduce Lizbeth Perez. Followed by April Michael, Director of Communications and Neighborhood Relations, who will introduce Anna Cruz. Next, Mike Hess, Director of Sustainability and Resilience will introduce Alyssa Masaccio. And finally, Christina Martin, Director of Transportation will introduce Donna Abdallah. I'll first welcome Lillian up to the stage.

Good afternoon, mayor, commissioners, and guests. I am thrilled to stand here today to celebrate an extraordinary individual. Someone whose work ethic, character, and quiet but powerful leadership has elevated not just her team, not just her department, but the entire city organization. As the saying goes, the most valuable gift you can give to humanity is a good example. And Lizbeth Perez embodies this truth every single day.

Lizbeth has been the economic development department's fiscal manager for over ten years and this week she celebrates fourteen years with the city of Orlando. She oversees a number of operational functions within the department and an annual operating budget of approximately $140,000,000 across multiple funds and critical city programs. She manages financial forecasting, reporting, and compliance and monitors budgets for 12 organizational units within the department. Requiring a deep understanding of each unit's fiscal and operational needs. Yet even while managing such significant responsibility, she does so with an ever present smile, moving effortlessly through the challenges that would make others falter.

Without a doubt, an important part of what Lizbeth excels in is team engagement and education. She is known in our department as the HR guru. Sorry, Anna. She understands the importance of detailed research and has had great success in addressing challenging job reclassifications. Which ultimately benefits the city team and her colleagues career aspirations.

She directly manages a team of seven employees as well as oversees the city's very busy cashier's office. Her unique instructional and collaborative approach coupled with her bilingual skills helps even the most reluctant employees open up, actively listen and connect leading to greater team success. Lizbeth brings so much to the table each day. Her impact goes far beyond her technical abilities. She regularly displays a selfless attitude and she gravitates towards helping others achieve their goals.

Having come to The United States from Venezuela in 2006, Lizbeth as a young adult demonstrated great courage leaving her friends and relatives behind to make a better life for herself and ultimately forming a new family here in The US. Becoming a citizen two years after starting with the city, she has demonstrated resilience and true leadership by helping others in similar situations. Luzbe's kindness and generosity shine through when she coached a now retired city employee who at the time had an immigration status of permanent resident to become a citizen. She spent hours of her personal time guiding her colleague through the tedious process and even attended his naturalization ceremony. Her kindness truly has no limits.

Lizbeth willingly and caringly administers the economic development department's care team fund. Her creativity and compassion has elevated the care team fund and grown it over the last ten years. The fund helps EDV employees that are struggling with unexpected life challenges. Curated amounts are discreetly provided to any employee in need. The care team committee led by Lizbeth administers the program funds and organizes donation driven events supporting the fund's overall mission to help others.

This approach ultimately benefits not only the individual, but the department as a whole. Since stress is reduced, problems are lessened and the feeling of being valued is enhanced. And having received help, the recipients more often than not go on to assist in the future, either through future donations or other means creating a legacy of care. In closing, Lizbeth is more than just a talented fiscal manager. She is a cornerstone of our city family.

Her unique blend of financial precision, deep empathy and unassuming leadership has created a legacy of excellence. Lizbeth, thank you for your fourteen years of dedicated service, for your wisdom and for always leading with a smile. That makes the hard work look easy. Please join me in congratulating Lizbeth Perez on this well deserved honor and celebrate the incredible example she sets for us all.

Roger. I didn't know you got a check.

Yep. Oh, yeah. 07:30.

Thank you very much.

Good afternoon, mayor and commissioners. I'm happy to be with you today to honor Anna Cruz as a 2025 employee of the year. Anna is the kind of public servant who reminds us why this work matters. She shows up every day with compassion, determination, and a deep belief that every resident, no matter their background, deserves to feel supported and welcomed in our city. Anna doesn't just identify needs, she responds to them.

And while I can only share a few examples today, her impact stretches far beyond what we have time to highlight. For instance, when she realized Inglewood residents needed English classes, she partnered with the adult literacy league to bring those classes directly into the neighborhood. With participation, when participation was low in the city's energy savings program, she led outreach that boosted applications by a 116% and helped residents lower their bills. And thanks to her encouragement, Inglewood had the highest turnout in the adult literacy program. Her compassion shows in both big and small moments.

When an immigrant mother and her newborn faced a sudden crisis, Anna organized a donation drive, secured food support, and made sure that they had what they needed during an incredibly difficult time. She also established a partnership with local nonprofits, and that connected 152 individuals and families, many facing language barriers and limited access to services, to essential legal support and guidance. As the leader of the OLA office, Anna has created a welcoming resource rich environment. She established a clothing closet and food donation program so families in crisis could get immediate help. And she has even hand delivered bus passes so residents could reach job interviews and medical appointments.

She leads by example, always the first to step in, always the first to support our team, and always the one connecting departments and partners to serve our community. Anna and her team were recently reorganized into my office, and although I've worked with her for years, I hadn't fully realized just how much she and her staff were doing or how deeply their work was touching residents. Seeing her day to day operations up close has made it clear how committed they are to meeting people where they are and helping them navigate incredibly challenging moments. Their impact is not only felt by the community but inspired our entire office and her coworkers citywide. What stands out most is the way Anna treats every person who walks through the OLA doors.

She listens without rushing, guides without judgment, and walks with residents through complex systems until they feel confident and supported. Anna's work strengthens trust in our city and changes lives every day. She is a connector, a problem solver, a team builder, and above all, a compassionate leader. Anna, we're so grateful for all the work you do for our residents, our city teammates, and the community. Congratulations.

Okay.

Good afternoon, mayor council, everyone else. It's exciting to be here today. Brittany's actually going to join me, our assistant directors, and she did a lot of hard work pushing this application over the finish line, but it was well deserved. It is our pleasure today to recognize Alyssa Masaccio as one of the employees of the year. And also one day late, happy Mother's Day, she brought Amelia. Hi, Amelia. She won't even look at me. So Britney is just gonna mention a few things about Alyssa and the amazing work she's been

doing. And

just to add on to what Mike said, this wasn't hard to do at all because Alyssa is an absolute rock star. So first, in the past few years, she has more than doubled the size of our garden education program and now teaches about 200 students per year about growing their own food. And she's also expanded that program over the past year from growing to cooking through a unique partnership with the Kitchen House. She also manages over 500 volunteers from all kinds of organizations to maintain our beautiful community gardens throughout the city. And whenever a challenge emerges outside of her normal role, she always steps up to help with a smile on her face and a pep in her step.

One recent example is when we had to provide a 90 session digital literacy classes classes up against a pretty tight grant deadline. Alyssa jumped right in to help coordinate it with our neighborhood centers and it flowed seamlessly. She also recently received a very well deserved promotion to sustainability project manager for all this hard work.

And I think beyond the work, even more important, many of us think of her as our ray of sunshine because she is such an uplifting force for all of us. You know, the little kids that she teaches all the way up to senior staff. If you're ever ever having a bad day, just go see Alyssa, and she will instantly cheer you up with some sort of story. It's just amazing. So, she also plans all the birthday celebrations in our office.

I know there's one coming up that she's planning right now, so she's just she really uplifts the whole team. Amelia like that one. So because of her hard work and left uplifting spirit, I honestly can't think of anyone more deserving for employee of the year than Alyssa. So congratulations, Alyssa.

Good afternoon. I am beyond honored to be the person from our transportation department who introduces an exceptional operator in our traffic management center for the twenty twenty five employee of the year, our TMC queen, Donna Abdullah. So to start off, you all must know the star that we are honoring today. Donna graduated from high school and went into the Navy stationed at Guantanamo Bay. She moved to Orlando in 1984, worked for Disney and then found her home in the city of Orlando and had three kids.

Donna has been an operator at the traffic management center, get ready for this, since it opened in 1987, thirty nine years. Back in 1987, the city had 365 traffic signals, and today there are over 530. So that's quite accomplishment. But Donna's magic and what makes Donna Donna is that she listens. It is no surprise that after thirty nine years, Donna's aptitude and incredible depth of knowledge about the city's signal system is a gift for all those she engages.

She readily shares with those who have come behind her, And just as importantly, her warm Arkansas personality puts those who she trains and those who she listens to at ease. Donna and our TMC team are on the front lines during times of natural disaster or crisis. Donna listens as she takes community calls. Donna listens as she coordinates responses. And as she quickly but carefully works with the TMC team to restore signals, Donna listens to her team to keep our community moving safely.

You don't get the name TMC Queen unless you are the goat. Greatest of all time. Donna serves as a vital link between the public and the city's traffic signal operations. How does she do it? Donna listens.

Over these four decades, Donna has helped keep our city moving safely where signals were essential to get our city back up and running. After Hurricane Debbie, Faye, Ernesto, Tammy, Jean, Francis, Charlie, Irene, Aaron, Gordon, Keith and Bob. The holiday season can also be challenging time on our roadways, especially near high traffic areas like the Mall Of Millennia. Donna received repeated complaints about a signal in that area. She could have dismissed it as typical holiday congestion, but not Donna.

Instead, listened, identified the cause, the issue, and acted ahead of the holiday search. Our holiday rush moves a lot smoother because it was Donna who worked with the TMC timing engineer to improve signal coordination coordination and followed up with those drivers who had called it in. Not only does Donna listen, but she also follows through. While her work may often go unseen, especially from inside the four walls of the TMC, her impact is felt across the entire community during critical moments. Donna, we are so grateful you are recognized today for all you have done for the city of Orlando. Thank you, Donna, for four decades of service, and thank you for listening.

Okay. I guess it wasn't lost on anybody that all four recipients were women. And three of the four department directors were women as well. Okay. That brings us to the mayor's update.

So I have a little bit longer update than I usually do because we have so much good stuff going on. I want to start with an announcement that we made last week that Orlando is an Olympic City. How about that? We are going to play a key role in the road to the twenty twenty eight Olympics in LA. We have been selected to host the Olympic Q Series in June '28.

The event will be in and around Camping World Stadium and bring athletes from all over the world to qualify in up to six different sports. We're one of four global stops. So it's Tokyo, Shanghai, Montreal, and Orlando. That sounds pretty good, doesn't it? Another high profile event that solidifies our spot as the nation's premier sports destination. Jason Siegel and our Great Orlando Sports Commission are heavily involved in making this happen, and I want Jason to come up and give us some of the more specifics. Nice suit, Jason. You want to tell us about that?

Mayor, this is the air suit by Twillery.

Always high fashion.

Mayor, Commissioner, City Staff, thank you for the opportunity to be with you today. As the mayor mentioned some great news last week. Really really happy to join you today. If I could, this opportunity was eight years in the making. Mayor, you often read proclamations, but I do have the award letter with me and love to read the first paragraph.

Sincerely thank the entire Orlando team for the commitment demonstrated during the candidature phase of the Olympic Q Series in 2028 for 2028. We've been impressed with the visionary nature of your project. We also greatly appreciate valued open, respectful, and collaborative way in which you and the team in Orlando engage to explore opportunities and address every challenge throughout the process. Therefore, it is with great pleasure ir

And business. Point. I

reflects both the strength of your concept and the confidence placed in Orlando's ability to deliver an exceptional event for athletes and fans alike. With that, indeed, eight years in the making, you mentioned the global gateway cities that we'll partner with. A long but exciting process as our organization has spent probably somewhat up of thirty years. Our thirty fifth anniversary is coming up. Working with a number of U. S. Olympic governing bodies. But now taking it a step further with our partners in Lausanne, Switzerland. For the opportunity to now host an Olympic qualifier. A lot of folks involved, the U.

S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee, the LA twenty eighteen, we will be partnering and be part of the LA Summer Olympics. I also want to thank Mayor Demings and the Orange County Commissioner's approval of TDT funding to support the pursuit. Alan Johnson and Craig Borken are both here today with us from the venues team, Orlando venues team, We Can't Do This and half of the work that we do without them. Visit Orlando, Florida Sports Foundation, CFHLA, Universal Orlando Resort will be a partner on this.

Our chairman, Cesar Lopez, and our chair elect, Tammy Gustafson, are here with us today, as well as Brent Nelson, who's with our organization for thirty years. Jennifer Lastic's getting ready to start her twentieth year with us. And really, all of them played a critical role. We have a two year lead up mayor. We have a bold vision for what this can look like.

You mentioned there'll be somewhere between six hundred and seven hundred athletes. 100 to 150 of those will qualify and will have qualified for the Summer Olympics here in Orlando in multiple sports. So we're really thrilled to welcome the International Olympic Committee, our US Olympic Committee, along with a number of different international federations and governing bodies of sport here to Orlando. We've got a lot of work to do, but we're proud that you've put a lot of trust in the organizations. And thank you for your steadfast support, Mayor.

Jason mentioned the six potential sports as well.

Sure, climbing, skateboarding, we've got flag football, we've got beach volleyball, we've got 3v3 basketball, and BMX. So, six great sports. We'll see some combination of those here in our community along with a terrific lead up. I'd be remiss if I didn't also say there's going to be the opportunity for significant activations in our community leading up to the event as we partner with each of those different sports governing bodies. So we're looking forward to making sure that this is not just a sporting event.

This will be a music, art, and sport festival that will take place on the grounds of Camping World Stadium. If all goes according to plan, we'll have a kickoff welcome reception the evening of June 7 and then be on the we'll be on the grounds, the Camping World Stadium grounds, June 8 through June 11, four days.

And we're the last stop before the Olympics, so we'll have all the finals culminating here.

Yes, Mayor. So all of it will culminate here, and then that'll be on the eleventh. And then the opening ceremonies, if you want to mark your calendar for the Summer Olympics in LA, are July 15. So just a short couple of weeks later in Los Angeles.

Well awesome. Great work.

Thank you. Thank you, Mayor.

Thank you. So, a few weeks ago, oh hey, the whole team over there, everybody that's involved, stand up. A few weeks ago our region lost a great leader and community champion and that's Charlie Gray. Charlie's diplomacy and advocacy resulted in countless monumental developments in Central Florida. He's involved in bringing Disney here.

He's involved in bringing UCF here, the Turnpike, the Expressway Authority, and on and on and on. If you ever had an opportunity to listen to Charlie's stories, you'd be amazed at the insight accuracy, vibrancy brought to our community. Charlie and his wife sailed around the world. Not too many people other than Magellan, I guess, have done that. They actually tracked Magellan's path all the way around the world.

So he leaves a lasting legacy in our community, and I'd like to just have one more moment of silence for him. Thank you. The Swans have been in the news, unfortunately, for a number of them passing away from the avian flu, and they've been a constant in our community for a long time, having started out. Sentinel had a good article yesterday, I think it was, on the fact that they had started out in Lake Lucerne, when Lake Lucerne didn't look exactly like it did today, navigate alligators and all types of things, but have survived through this latest tragedy in terms of losing a number of them. The well-being of our swans is first and foremost of importance to us.

It remains our highest priority. Since we had the avian flu, we have been closely consulting with state federal partners and experts in swan care. We have decided that it would be prudent to pause the swan program and work with partners in animal care to re home them. If you've been following our master plan, we're about to undertake major construction in Lake Eola Park. It would not be conducive for the well-being of the swans over the course of probably the next three years or so.

At the end of that construction period, we will revisit whether to reintroduce the swans. It would probably be in a more limited number than we currently have. It turns out that most of the experts would tell you that we have had more swans than we need to have. Now that does not mean that there won't be wild swans that visit us from time to time, and there may be a number of wild swans that decide since the swans that were resident there have left, it's a good place for them to come and visit, and we will try to establish the same rules of not feeding the swans and caring for them. So I want to thank the staff and the volunteers, Commissioner Sheehan, for all their work and advocacy over the years, but I think this is the most prudent step we need to take right now.

Items of note on the consent agenda. We have a contract for design build services for our Orlando fire training facility, and that is with McCree Builders, a new start state of the art training facility that will be over by the Expressway Authority and our Emergency Operations Center to provide advanced hands on training, including a burn tower, trench rescue, vehicle extrication, confined space rescue, structural collapse training to enhance our firefighter readiness. It'll be the first time we have everything together in one place. Also on today's agenda item B15 is Church Street Festival Street design project as part of the DTO action plan enhancing Church Street to support greater mobility, walkability, and economic activity in downtown. We have a Strive Agreement that is item D4 with Kratos Defense and Security Solutions.

They provide military organizations worldwide with training related products and services ranging from curriculum development to AirQ training centers. They will be investing $67,000,000 into their new 200,000 square foot facility, creating 100 new jobs by the end of 2032. Last week, we celebrated the graduations of our Orlando Kids Zone programs and recognized the twentieth anniversary of PKZ. We'll be supporting our Kids Zones partners by funding new image use center which provides after school programs and page fifteen which is a not for profit offering literacy and youth development programs. Today's agenda also includes several projects that continue strengthening Orlando's foodie scene in our downtown.

I don't know how many Michelin recognized restaurants we have now, but we have great momentum in bringing restaurants downtown with our restaurant incentive program. So there's a new food hall near Lake Eola, Jiang Kitchen, and the expansion of Crest are a few of the actions that will be taking place. So, great news for all of the foodies that want to have a great meal downtown. Alright. With that, we're going to move on to the consent agenda. And the consent agenda is a number of items acted upon through a single vote of council. We give each of the council members an opportunity to comment on the consent agenda and update you on important happenings from their district. We rotate the order that we do that. And first up today is commissioner Keene.

Alright. Thank you, mayor. I appreciate that. On April 23, I toured a gift for teaching. It's an amazing program that offers free supplies directly to teachers across Orange County and in the city of Orlando, and I'm proud to join them and community partners and volunteers on June 4 to help a gift for teachers prepare back packs for students as they head back to school, in the fall.

If you'd like to participate, you can reach out to my office. Investing in our students means investing in the future of Orlando. I was honored to attend expansion celebration of the Renesire Foundation in East Orlando on April 30. This organization plays an important role in supporting local families and strengthening the community, investment in programs provide opportunity, resources, and support services help create a stronger future for residents across the region. And I want to thank the Renault Serre Foundation for their continued efforts in Orlando.

On May 5, I participated in the groundbreaking celebration for Heron Bay neighborhood in District 1 and celebrated important investment in future of our community. New neighborhood development brings opportunities for families to support economic growth and helps meet the needs of Orlando's growing population. I appreciate the opportunity to meet with leadership from Greater Orlando Aviation Authority on May 6 at Orlando International to discuss continued growth infrastructure investments and the future of air travel in Central Florida. As one of the region's most important economic drivers, MCO plays a vital role in supporting tourism, business development, job creation throughout Orlando. I recently visited the YMCA swim classes in District 1.

Lake Nona YMCA is a truly unique community asset. District 1 is home to the only YMCA co located with an elementary school allowing swim lessons to be directly integrated into the children's physical education curriculum. This partnership ensures that water safety and swimming skills are taught early and consistently as part of school learning. In addition to serving students, the YMCA officers swim instruction to residents of all ages, creating opportunities for lifelong learning, recreation, and water safety. On the consent agenda, just like to echo the mayor's comment on three d four with the strive, incentive agreement with Kratos.

I'm looking forward to their expansion here in District 1 and the hundreds jobs that they're going to be adding to our local workforce. And lastly, but certainly not least, I want to extend my heartfelt grad congratulations to the graduating seniors of innovation high school. It will be their first high school graduation. Lake Nona High, Cypress Creek High School and Colonial High School. I commend these students for their hard work, perseverance and achievements throughout their high school careers and I recognize the support of families, teachers and school communities who help guide them along the way. As they move on to the next chapter whether college, career training or military service, I'd like to encourage them to continue striving for excellence and take pride in the strong foundation that they built here in Orange County and Orlando. Thank you, sir.

Thank you, commissioner. Commissioner Ortiz.

Thank you, mayor. First of all, let me start by congratulating the recipients of the employee employees of the year award. You know, these these guys work hard and sometimes we just live our life without really acknowledging the hard work they do. So congratulations once again. I'm gonna start with the agenda item four gs.

The that's gonna be the CRA agreement we have with the NEC, Neighborhood Improvement Center I mean, National Entrepreneur Center led by miss Belinda Kirkhart. I'm really proud of that agreement and I'm looking forward to the great things that you guys continue doing. So thank you so very much. We appreciate it. Alright. On issues of our community. On April 25, I proudly attended the tenth annual Florida Puerto Rican parade. Oh, boy. That was place was packed. Festival in Downtown Orlando, joining thousands in celebrating Puerto Rican culture, heritage, and community.

This year's theme was build a future in Puerto Rico. I would have called it build a future in Orlando because that place was really packed. Honored Yabuko and highlighted the resilience, pride, and spirit of the Puerto Rican community. From the music and dancing to the flags lining Orange Avenue, the event was a vibrant celebration of unity and tradition. The place was really packed. I've never seen Orange Orange Avenue. It's so packed with people. On the evening of April 26, I had the honor of attending the mayor's MLK Youth Humanitarian Award, which recognized outstanding students who embody legacy of Doctor. Martin Luther King Jr. Through their leadership, service, character.

It was an inspiring evening celebrating young makers who are making a meaningful impact in the schools and communities throughout through compassion, dedication, and service to others. Thank you, Marcia Hope Goodwin, Reggie McGill for the invitation, mayor. Thank you too. I know that you were there earlier. On the morning of April 30, I attended the Renaissance Foundation ribbon coating ceremony celebrating the opening of a new facility and the expansion of community organization service East Orlando and Oviedo.

These expansions reflect strong collaboration and continued commitment to increasing access to services and supporting the growth and well-being of our community. On the morning of May 1, had the privilege of joining Mayor Dyer, Commissioner Burns, Wendover House Partners for the groundbreaking of Legacy Place, the Clear Lake neighborhood. The important project will be bringing 100 affordable housing unit for seniors earning over 80%. I want to congratulate Commissioner Burns and his community. I know this development will make a huge difference to that community and it keeps adding affordable housing to a community so much needed here in the Central Florida region.

So many people arriving and so many people finding themselves in distress because of not enough. But it's not that we don't want to. We wanna build as fast as we can. It's just that people arriving here faster than what we can accomplish or finish this this project. So we're moving forward.

Later that afternoon, I attended a celebration a celebration reorganizing 19 students graduating from the youth employment program. Program provides young people with meaningful internships opportunity to gain real world experience, develop essential skills, prepare for the future through workforce development initiative. It was a privilege to congratulate the students and celebrate the important milestone in their personal and professional growth. May 5, I attended Downtown Orlando Partnership, Golden Brick Awards, and the doctor Philip at the doctor Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, celebrating outstanding projects and leadership shaping the future of Downtown Orlando. Congratulations to all of this year's honorees, including Ryan mister Ryan Young, who was named downtowner of the year for his lasting contributions to our city's growth and development.

That same afternoon, I was honored to attend Hope Community Center of Minupopka, Seat of Hope twenty twenty six. The event highlighted the organization's impactful work supporting local youth, families, and educational programs while sharing powerful stories from those directly affected. It serves as a meaningful reminder of the importance of investing, you know, opportunities that strength and uplift our community and also highlights the, accomplishments of our, immigrants in the Central Florida region that sometimes go to the sidelines and we don't recognize them. I think it's one of the reasons why we're seeing inflation also, how we're seeing it because we have let go of so many who has been working with us for so long and now we are desperate looking for people to fill those spaces. So anyhow, the afternoon that afternoon I was I'm sorry.

On the morning of May 6, joined Mayor Dyer, fellow commissioners, Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings, and community leaders for the announcement of the Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida's new Center for Women and Families. This new campus will provide safe shelter, meals, healthcare access, and housing support for women, children, and families experiencing homelessness. Helping move individuals from crisis to stability in permanent housing. It reflects strong partnerships at every level and a shared commitment to dignity, opportunity, and long term independence for our residents. The city, county, and Congressman Frost Federation contributions were amazing.

So we see a community growing, a community involved, a community inclusive, and by all means trying to overcome the needs that we're having right now working together. Later that evening, I joined mayor Bodhi Dyer and my fellow commissioners in celebrating the class of twenty twenty six Orlando Kids Zone graduates. This year is also marks the twentieth anniversary of the Paramore Kids Zone, which has expanded into Holden Heights, Englewood, Mercy Drive, continuing to support students and families across Orlando. I wanna congratulate all the students, all the graduates for their incredible achievement. Thank you, Rodney, Abe, Alex, and all the staff.

This program and our police department works is what is driving crime statistics down, and we should be proud of it. Finally, on 05/06/2026, I attended the forty fourth annual Orange County Law Enforcement Memorial ceremony honoring 44 Central Florida officers, deputies, investigators who lost their lives in the line of duty. Law enforcement memorial ceremony is more than a gathering of uniforms, flags, and solemn salutes. It is the heartbeat of a grateful community pausing to honor those who stood between peace and chaos, between safety and fear. It is a sacred moment where we remember that every badge carries a promise of sacrifice, courage, and service beyond self.

For our community, this ceremony is a reminder that the freedoms we enjoy and the peace we cherish are often safeguarded by men and women willing to face danger so others may sleep in comfort. We gather not only to mourn the fallen, but to celebrate lives lived with honor to embrace the families who carry both pride and pain and to reaffirm that their sacrifice will never fade into silence. In their memories, our community finds unity, gratitude, and enduring strength to stand together. That's all I have, mayor. Thank you.

Thank you, commissioner. Commissioner Chapin.

Thank you, mayor. I've had a great couple of weeks. Been very educational and joyful, and I feel like I might be starting to hit my stride a little bit. I had a great opportunity to visit the Rolling Loud Festival this weekend at Camping World Stadium. Police chief Eric Smith, fire chief Jason Revolt, and the head of venues, Alan Johnson, showed me around. It's very impressive what they were able to do to keep everybody safe, to keep everybody organized. They have drones. They have on-site hospitals. They have traffic management. So I wanna thank all the officers, all the fire department officials, all of the city workers, code enforcement.

It was a big three day festival that I think went very well. I'd like to congratulate Gerald Childs, who is the director of the Rosemont Neighborhood Center, on being inducted to the twenty twenty six city Youth Sports Hall of Fame. Gerald has impacted the lives of countless children through the supportive environment he fosters within our sports programs. I had a fantastic time attending the Trash to Trends at the Orlando Science Center in Lock Haven. I wanna especially thank commissioner Patty Sheehan for encouraging me and inviting me to attend.

We sat together and had a great time. Keep Orlando Beautiful certainly knows how to put on an event, and the evening showcased the best of our community by highlighting creative and innovative ways to approach sustainability with imagination. Keep Orlando Beautiful executive director Madison Smathmary exemplifies the spirit through her energy and dedication. She also organized an Earth Day event in my district, which may or may not have started and ended at Ivanhoe Brewery, but I attended that on enjoyed that on April 22. As commissioner Ortiz stated, we had an opportunity to attend the Golden Bricks Award hosted by the Downtown Orlando Partnership.

I'd like a special shout out to District three winners, Sparrow Wine Bar and The Good Poor, both recognized for their success. Also enjoyed attending the Coalition for the Homeless Kickoff, where they announced they are already $50,000,000 into their $60,000,000 raise, and I've been happy to be a part of that capital campaign. Recently attended the Orlando Homeless Association in Rosemont. I wanna thank Linda Kaufman for hosting me as well as Commissioner Ortiz at the Seeds of Hope Immigrants Are Welcome luncheon. Very enjoyable, very educational, a great group advocating on behalf of immigrants out in Apopka.

I'm looking forward to attending the ribbon cutting for the Orlando Fringe Festival this Thursday. I also had the opportunity to attend the Orlando Fire Department's awards ceremony at Harry P. Lou Gardens last week, which was amazing to hear hear the stories and hear the actual 911 calls and see the positive results of our men and women at the fire department helping save lives every day. I am also coming up this Thursday, May 21 is the Ivanhoe Village Main Street State Of The Village, where they're going to update us on lots of things going on in the Ivanhoe Village area. On legislative notes, I wanna highlight item three k one on today's consent agenda, which initiates segment a of the Edgewater Drive complete street projects, projects, including including the the planned roundabout at Edgewater Drive and Lakeview, and we all know how everybody feels about roundabouts.

Half of us love them and half of us hate them. So we've got that to look forward to. So thank you to the city transportation department for working with FDOT through the local planning program to begin to bring this project forward. Thank you, mayor. That's all I have.

Okay. Thank you, commissioner. Commissioner Sheehan.

Thank you, mayor. And I too want to say congratulations to Lizbeth Perez, Anna Cruz Nieves, Alyssa Masaccio and Donna Abdalla for the McNamara Awards. That is a tremendous honor. I also want to thank the McNamara family for continuing to support this every single year. These are the best of our best and I'm glad we're recognizing people who usually people who don't get recognized.

So I think it's a wonderful thing for us to do that. I am very sad about the Lake Euless Wands of course that we had to relocate them during construction. That stress in addition to avian flu is just too much. I really hope we can bring them back after avian flu either subsides or there's some herd immunity or a vaccine. This disease is also decimating not just the icon of our city, the icon of our country.

It has decimated the bald eagle population as well. So this is impacting us nationwide. It's impacting the poultry industry and it's just a very, very sad thing that it's happening here in Orlando. I've been visiting the Swans since I was 14 years old, since I was a kid. And I've been you know actively involved in the program for fifteen years.

I picked up most of them personally, know most of them you know by name and it's really a sad time for me and I want to tell people it's okay that you have every right to be sad and grieve. A lot of folks have been saying you know it's better for them blah blah blah don't be sad. This is a loss for our city. It's okay to be sad. I want to thank all the long term volunteers who've worked to make the program successful and you know while this is a loss for now I'm hoping someday we can have some swans back and you will see the flyers.

We always have a few flyers that come in during the roundup and they come to visit but we won't have as many and we certainly will not have five of the seven varieties of the world but you know, in light of this, you know, we we had to really pivot when we had COVID for humans, and we're gonna have to deal with this with the avian flu. I also want to trash the trends. It is a great event making fashion out of trash, out of discarded items, but we can all do our part by recycling and not throwing trash out our windows. All of our culverts drain to lakes. So if you throw something in the road it's going to end up in one of our lakes.

So I want to make sure that people are doing the right thing and this is just an awareness event. It's a lot of fun. And Commissioner Chapin, I'm glad you had a good time. Maybe you can be a model next year. My sincere condolences to Sandra Gray and family over the loss of Charlie.

Charlie had his hand in so many cool things and just a small thing that I worked with him was the Jack Costanza star. He wanted to make sure that that was there for his friend Jack. And you know he was just a great guy and you know he was but he was a person that could work in a bipartisan fashion. You know what now everybody's always fighting and fussing and can't get along and it's performative rather than you know performative rather than service unfortunately now with a lot of people. And Charlie was there to make things happen and for the good of our community.

So he will be sorely missed in this community and he was just an absolute great guy. On the agenda today all I really have is item 3B3. I'm really glad we're doing Ashbryt for disaster recovery and debris removal because that's very, very important. We did not have assistance with debris removal after the freeze. That's why it took so long to get everything picked up.

And I know everybody was mad and everybody's upset, but there's a reason why we have these debris removal companies that we hire addition during hurricanes because it's a lot of stuff to pick up. And I would say we probably had more stuff to pick up yard debris after this hard freeze than we've even had after hurricanes. So I want to shout out to the public works department in solid waste. I know it's been hard and we can do our part by bagging and bundling. But it was just a lot of volume and they were in something else that happens that people don't realize during hurricanes, they keep the dump open twenty four hours.

That didn't happen this time because we did not have a disaster declaration. So again, they did the best they could. It's finally we're finally getting caught up, and I'm glad to see that. And that's all I had, Mayor. Thank you.

Thank you, commissioner. Commissioner Rose.

Good afternoon, everyone. Good afternoon, mayor and commissioners. Happy belated Mother's Day first. Many of the events we've all attended together, so I won't repeat them. I do want to congratulate the twenty twenty five employees of the year recipients.

I have had the pleasure of working with many of the employees throughout my years here at the city and as well as being a resident and now as the commissioner. And as you can see, we have a great functioning city. It's not perfect, but our employees work really hard to keep our city beautiful. Happy Haitian Heritage Month. This month, we celebrate the rich culture, history, resilience, and countless contributions of the Haitian community from art and music to food, language, and tradition.

Haitian heritage continues to inspire and strengthen communities around the world and right here in the city of Orlando. I also want to say happy Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month. This month we celebrate rich cultures, traditions, achievements, and contributions of Asian American and Pacific Islander communities who continue to shape and inspire our nation every day. I want to thank OPD for keeping our community safe this weekend. Rolling loud was three days of excitement, but OPD did their best and I want to publicly say thank you for keeping, the community safe, working well with transportation.

The road was not as bad as it has been with some of our larger events at Camping World Stadium. I want to thank OFD for your incredible work protecting and saving lives during our first successful Rolling Loud weekend. Your dedication, professionalism, and teamwork, OPD and OFD made this a major event a safe and unforgettable experience for everyone involved. Orlando showed up in a big way and it would not have been possible the hard work of our first responders and staff included, venue staff as well. We appreciate you all.

I also want to thank the Roland Loud team for many of the community activations. It wasn't just a common party for three days. There were lot of youth activations, a lot of small business participations. One of the things I advocated and worked with Rolling Loud is making sure that we had local businesses from our community to be vendors. So, a lot of our local restaurants from Nicky's Place to Poppy Smash Burgers here in downtown were vendors at the location.

There were also some activations with businesses within the community where they were kind of like encouraging some of the artists management to kind of book at the nightclubs. A lot of our nightclubs got to also see I would say what we miss is the small mom and pop economic drivers. While the hotels and the airports see the big locally from our corner stores to our gas stations to even down to the parking. The economic impact, while there will be a number, it's priceless. But I want to thank Roland Loud for the community activations. They gave out skateboards. They took the kid part of their, the event was a skate park. They brought kids from the neighborhood in. We got they got skateboards. They got some lessons.

They got helmets. They did behind the scenes tours and kind of understood and explained to the youth job opportunities from productions to building sets to be the management and understanding that it's more to an event than just the artists that are performing. And then we also had one of the local, one of the rappers who remain one of the headliners, he came and performed for a bunch of our kids and kind of spoke to them to tell them about, you know, there's more to life, stay in school, continue to get good grades. So I just want to thank Roland Loud, and all of the partners involved for being great partners this weekend and we'll see where it goes from there. I want to thank Publix.

Recently, volunteers came out to the Northwest Community Center. We have a community garden. We cleaned out some of our beds. We added new mulch and Publix continues to be an annual, great partner at Northwest helping our community garden there. We bring we have a head start that's associated with the, the Northwest Center. So our kids come out and they learn about gardening as well. So it's a great experience. Recently, I joined United Against Poverty for a community forum to discuss food insecurity. I want to encourage you all if you have time to volunteer with UP. It's an amazing organization making sure we address not only food insecurity but providing uplifting resources to help individuals get out of poverty and to get to self sufficiency.

I want to congratulate sustainability and staff for another great Earth Day Work Day event here at City Hall. I got to hold the snake and I got to hold out the baby alligator. I also joined and I want to thank Coke, Florida. They're in and around the district and celebration, we did a community cleanup. I want to thank USF Alumni Association for choosing District five's Legacy Cafe to celebrate Bulls Dining Across America.

And I want to thank the mayor for a congratulatory letter. So USF alumni across the nation, they go to different local businesses and they support and so we recognize them with the letter and thank them for choosing the city of Orlando. I also want to echo, congratulate Arenasar on their significant significant expansion. Expansion. They now serve a broader Hispanic community across Central Florida.

They're connect they're not just connecting people to resources, they're building pathways to stability, dignity, opportunity. And I've had the opportunity of working alongside of a renaissance a couple of years ago with an agent in place program where went to do, I guess you would call it case management with our seniors and provided resources. And we provided millions of dollars of tools and resources for our Asian seniors from, you know, refrigerators to stoves, things that they would not be able to typically afford living on fixed income. I had my first corporate five case. I guess I'm looking for the next out.

Participated a couple of weeks ago and I guess that's a new thing for me. I want to thank the Florida ASN Medical Association. This is an organization that's comprised of dedicated professionals committing to advancing healthcare and the well -being throughout our state. They are here in the city of Orlando and they recently attended their anniversary to congratulate and uplift the work that they're doing. On to the agenda.

Honoring the past is really important and I'm glad to support CNC twenty twenty six ten thousand. We are changing Alexander Place to George Stewart Place. I'm happy to see the changes agenda items. We are rezoning Lake Lana Dunne from holding to public use because we are building a 6,000 square foot city families park and recreation office that will also have public assembly space. And on we'll get to it later, but in CRA, glad to support the expansion of Crest, the NEC, as well as the Eolo Food Hall that's coming into the district. That's all I have, mayor.

You, commissioner. Commissioner Barnes.

Thank you, mayor Dyer and good afternoon, everyone. First, I'd like to congratulate our employees of the year as well. Just say thank you for all that they do of this year because we could not serve our city without the great work of our employees. So, to our employees of the year and all employees, thank you for all that you do. Also, Jason, like to just say thank you for continue to work to have Orlando recognized as the premier sports city The U. S. And abroad. Exciting of everything that continues to happen, so good work on that. Also, over the past week, we had the chance to celebrate Mother's Day in District 6 with several events. I'd like to say thank you to the staff of L.

Claudia Allen Senior Center and the Grand Avenue Neighborhood Center for putting on great events that really made our mothers feel loved and appreciated. Also, thank you to the Carver Shores Neighborhood Association. I see the president, miss Heath sitting here for hosting their Mother's Day event in the newly renovated Poppy Park. So again, we showed our mothers a lot of love over the last week. Also, I was able to join mayor Dyer and fellow commissioners at the annual volunteer appreciation reception. And I just want to encourage everyone to, if you can, give of yourself to support this initiative that support our city because, we're here. Reason And

here

And that's playground is special because the upgrades were the youth actually had the opportunity to participate in selecting the colors and what type of equipment. So, it was good. The upgrade includes equipment for ages two to five, five to 12, multiple slides, ADA accessible swings and dual swings. So, our kids are taking full advantage of that right in time for our summer months. Also, I had the opportunity to participate in Earth Day at City Hall.

It was great. I always learned something. One of the things I learned this year, you all, I'm sure, have eaten an apple with the little plastic tag on it. And you know, we kind of rinse them off and the tag probably goes into your sink. Well, what I was told is that pull the tag off first before you wrap it, throw it in the trash because that plastic doesn't dissolve and it can impact our water system.

So, again, a fun fact, something I earned I learned at Earth Day. So, thank you to our sustainability team for that. Also, on April 30, I had the pleasure of awarding seven scholarships during the fourth annual Doctor. Kristi Hardy senior award ceremony at Jones High School. We honored seven graduating seniors from Jones High School.

In total, my office will be awarding 17 scholarships to seniors who live or attend school in District 6. So we're so proud of our, seniors as they graduate. Also on May 1, had the pleasure along with Mayor Dyer and some of our commissioners to, attend the groundbreaking for Legacy Place, which is a, affordable senior facility with a 100 units, and they're at or below 80% of the federal poverty guideline. And I know we've had some discussions about the percentage of AMI of these units. These units will have 15 units at 30% AMI, 63 at 60% AMI, and 22 at 80% AMI.

As we continue to advocate for affordable housing, I think we also need to advocate for more units at the lower percentage of the AMI. Also, I'd like to say kudos to Bobby Belton and Alexis Hicks and the rest of the FPR team for opening opportunities for the youth employment program. I had an intern in my office for eight weeks. She did a great job, Kaya Braggs. She's gone now, but I wish I could bring her back.

But I just wanted to say kudos to the team. We need to continue to support this program so we can give employment opportunities to our youth. Also, on May 4, celebrated the Teachers Appreciation Week by honoring teachers, faculty, and staff at the Washington Shores Shores Primary Learning Center along with we provided provided a grazing table with beverages and things of that nature. Also, May 5, attended the Orlando Neighborhood Improvement Onyk Prodigy Showcase. This is where youth performers who live in several of their apartment complexes showcase talents in dance, theater, music production, and additional creative arts discipline.

The youth did a great job and that's one of my favorite events. It takes place at the Doctor. Phyllis Performing Arts Center. Also, just some upcoming events, Central Florida Diaper Bank mobile distribution event will happen tomorrow, May 12 at 9AM at Grand Avenue Neighborhood Center. Diapers and hygiene items will be available will be distributed while supplies last.

Registration closes at 10:30. So, if you know someone who's in need of that type support, let them know. I have my satellite office hours this Wednesday, May 13. If you want to meet with me outside of City Hall, please reach out to me and we can meet out at the L. Claudette Allen Senior Center.

Also, Haitian Flag Day celebration, a charity basketball tournament will be happening this Saturday, May 16 at 01:00. Also, this Saturday, May 16 at the Willie Mays Park, Generational Mindset Inc. Will be hosting their third annual mental health awareness day, and it has a five ks walk associated with that. And then on the agenda, may I want to express my support for items 3E1, again, the funding agreement with New Image Youth Center that will provide support for their trauma informed approach of supporting over 130 youth in our community. This is especially a special time because a lot of them are out for the summer, so we need to make sure that they have activities that are beneficial to them.

Also, I'd like to express my support for items 3E2, funding agreement between the city and page 15 for literacy support of our youth. And with that mayor, I move approval of the consent agenda.

Motion by commissioner Byrne, second by commissioner Sheehan. Discussion and hearing none, all in favor of the motion indicates so by saying aye. Aye. Those opposed? And so the motion carries. Without objection, I'm going to recess the City Council meeting. If you were just here for the consent agenda, now would be a good time to make your way to the exit. We'll give you about thirty seconds. Okay. We will convene the CRA meeting.

I can handle A, B, and C. A is advisory board meeting minutes from February 18. Who got the motion? Commissioner Rose. Motion by Commissioner Rose, second by Commissioner Sheen. All in favor indicate so by saying aye. Aye. Those opposed? Motion carries. B is CRA meeting minutes from April 6. Second. Motion by Commissioner Sheen, second by Commissioner Rose. All in favor indicate so by saying aye. Aye. Those opposed. Motion carries. C is CRA meetings from April 20. Move it to four. Motion by Commissioner Sheehan, second by Commissioner Rose. All in favor indicate so by saying aye. Aye. Those opposed. Motion carries. Okay. David, I'm gonna let you take the rest of the show.

All right. Thank you very much, mayor. Good afternoon, commissioners. So it's an exciting day in the CRA. Mayor, as you mentioned, we have three different restaurant incentives that you'll be voting on today. And together, it actually represents almost 20 different new or expanding eating establishments in downtown as we continue to move forward on our foodie scene. So the first of which is for the Eola food hall. Hall. So that is at 150 East Central Boulevard. So that's right across the street from the library or Caddy Corner to Lake Eola.

So they're opening a nearly 15,000 square foot food hall there. It's on the first and the 2nd Floor. It's going to have 17 different vendor bays for different restaurateurs to be able to come downtown and showcase their exciting foods. They're spending approximately $2,500,000 on that build out. So for which they qualify for $400,000 in assistance from our restaurant incentive program in addition to $50,000 in first year's rental assistance. And I'm happy to address any questions.

Second. Motion by Commissioner Rose, second by Commissioner Sheehan. Discussion? Hearing none, all in favor of the motion indicate so by saying aye. Aye. Those opposed, motion carries. E.

Thank you, Mayor. So E is another restaurant, Yang Kitchen. So this one is specifically moving into 27 East Robinson. So that is the FedEx building area. If you can kind of place yourself there. So this restaurant tour actually has fifteen years of experience. Mayor, you mentioned it in your opening. Michelin starred. He was trained by a Michelin star chef, specifically in soup dumplings. So you're going to have to try those out ultimately when they open up.

They're going to be open 11AM to 10PM every day. And they're spending approximately $400,000 on their build out, for which they qualify for $225,000 in assistance from the CRA's program. That's a combination of $175,000 for tenant improvements and then the $50,000 for rental assistance. And I'm happy to address any questions.

Second. Motion by Commissioner Rose, second by Commissioner Sheehan. Discussion? Hearing none, all in favor of the motion indicate so by saying aye. Aye. Those opposed motion carries. And F.

F, so this is one of downtown's staple restaurants. So many of us have probably dined there or at least know where it is. It's Crest right there on Church Street. So happy to have them kind of locking arms with us and expanding and going to add some additional dining area. They're going to add almost 70 seats.

And this portion of the restaurant will be actually accessed off Orange Avenue. So it will go all the way around and provide even more access when we start to go our kind of reconstruction and rebuilding of Church Street. So they've signed a six year lease for that space. They're going to invest just shy of eight hundred thousand dollars in this expansion, for which they qualify for just under $340,000 in assistance in the CRA's tenant improvement program, as well as the $50,000 for initial year's rent assistance. And I'm happy to address any questions.

Motion by Commissioner Rose, second by Commissioner Sheehan. I see Rob Yeager in the back. Thank you for continuing to invest in downtown, which you've been doing for what, two decades now or more than that, probably? At least? Yeah. Okay. We look forward to the expansion of Crest over into the Orange Avenue side in the old Siegels Building, right? Yeah. Okay. Discussion? Hearing none, all in favor of the motion indicate so by saying aye. Aye. Those opposed, the motion carries. All right. Congratulations to all the restaurateurs who are making progress in downtown. How about the National Entrepreneur Center?

Yes, another great story. So we have the National Entrepreneur Center. The NEC two point zero goes well with DTO two point zero. I'm not sure if it was planned that way, but we'll take it. So they're gonna be relocating. They're going to be moving out of our Fashion Squared Mall and right into Creative Village, where they can really look to augment the amazing things that are happening in that corridor. The CRA is proposing to contribute 1,000,000 towards the build out of that space. It'll be paid in one lump sum payment. The agreement is actually with UCF. And we have the appropriate components to ensure that the building is delivered in that agreement. And I'm happy to address any questions.

Second.

Motion by Commissioner Rose, second by Commissioner Sheehan. Before we vote, I would like to Commissioner Sheehan has already mentioned Commissioner Ortiz has already mentioned that Melinda Kurgard, the CEO of the National Entrepreneur Center, here. Would you stand up and let us thank you for moving downtown and all you do for our small businesses. All right. Discussion? Hearing none, all in favor of the motion to indicate so by saying aye. Aye. Those opposed? And so the motion carries. Congratulations, Belinda. I like that type of celebration. Okay. And H.

Thank you, Mayor. H is the last item for the CRA. This is a service authorization with Jacobs Engineering Group. This is for our phase one of Church Street reconstruction. There was an additional OUC line that was found as we were doing some soft digs. So this just compensates them for relocating some utilities for that line, as well as helping design some raised planter beds to not interfere with it. The total cost is just shy of $210,000 Motion

by Commissioner Rose, second by Commissioner Scheehan. Discussion. Hearing none, all in favor of the motion indicate so by saying aye. Aye. Those opposed? And so the motion carries. Any further business, David?

There is none.

Then we will stand adjourned as to the CRA. Without objection, we will reconvene the City Council meeting. That brings us to hearings. The first and only hearing is a charter hearing for the acquisition of three parcels at 806 And 850 South Huey Avenue and 405 West Gore Street. It's a public hearing for the purchase of real property in excess of $3,000,000 As required by chapter 13, section seven of the city charter, notice of the hearing was published in the Orlando Sentinel on 05/04/2026.

Approval of the purchase purchase requires a majority vote of all members of the city council. Subject property is the former Triangle Repographics facility on Huey Avenue and Gore Street consisting of three parcels on 3.4 acres with over 57,000 square feet of office and industrial warehouse space, a 10,000 square foot covered parking and loading area, 121 paid parking spaces, three parcels located at 806 And 850 South Huey Avenue, 405 West Gore Street. The buildings will provide needed space near City Hall for multiple city services, including the sign and signal shop, sustainability, and several other city departments. City will purchase a project property subject to the existing lease within Bloom Forest, which occupies 6,970 square feet at the current rent of $11,157.54 per month with a 3% annual increase. The lease expires 03/31/2028 with two five year options to renew.

The owner of the property is the Jenny F. Thomas revocable trust and the Joanne F. Garner revocable trust. The city's estimate of the fair market value is between 8,800,000 and 11,300,000. The proposed purchase price is $9,400,000 Madam Clerk, I don't have any request from the public to speak.

No speakers, Mayor.

No speakers. Is there a motion then?

So moved, Mayor.

Second. Motion by Commissioner Sheehan, second by Commissioner Chapin. I'll just say it's well needed space. It's a great location. I was surprised at how huge and much great space there is there. Commissioners, you get a chance to get a quick little tour down there, it's worth your while.

I had to be quiet.

You had to be quiet.

I had be quiet. I couldn't tell anybody about the tour. Right.

Okay. All in favor of the motion indicate so by saying aye. Aye. Those opposed? And so the motion carries. Alright. Madam Clerk, you're up. So, we'll move to ordinances on first read 13 A.

Ordinance number twenty twenty six dash eight, an ordinance of the City Council of City of Orlando, Florida relating to solid waste management, amending chapter 28 article two entitled solid waste collection and disposal to revise collection and disposal fees and rates for residential and commercial premises providing for severability, codification, correction of scrivener's errors, and an effective

date. Second.

Motion by Commissioner Sheehan, second by Commissioner Burns. I don't have any request to speak from the public. Discussion? Hearing none, in favor of the motion indicate so by saying aye. Aye. Those opposed? The most so, the motion carries. 13B, Madam Clerk.

Ordinance number twenty twenty six-nine, an ordinance of the City Council of City of Orlando, Florida amending chapter 39 of the city code regarding parking by amending the hours and days of operation for parking, civil penalties for parking violations, delinquent fees, and immobilization device removal and replacement fees providing legislative findings and for severability, clarification, correction, scrimmage errors, and an effective date.

Move to approve. Second.

Motion by Commissioner Byrne, second by Commissioner Sheehan. I have no request from the public to speak. Discussion? Hearing none, all in favor of motion indicates so by saying aye. Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. And 13 C.

Ordinance number twenty twenty six-ten. An ordinance of the City Council of the City of Orlando Florida relating to regulation of sewer use. Amending chapter 30 entitled regulation of sewer use and rates to revise wastewater treatment rates and fees providing for severability, codification, correction of scribner's errors, and an effective date.

Move to approve. Second.

Motion by Commissioner Byrnes, second by Commissioner Sheehan. Again, I have no request from the public to speak. Discussion? Hearing none, all in favor of the motion indicate so by saying aye. Aye.

Those opposed? And so the motion carries. Okay. We have one more item on our scheduled agenda, and that is a quasi judicial hearing. There is a recommended order from the hearing officer in case number QJ2026Dash001 relating to the historic preservations boards recommended denial of a major certificate of appropriateness to demolish and construct a new tutor style single family home at 321 East Copeland Drive within the Lake Copeland Historic District.

The petitioners are the owners and their councils. Jason's ready to go, it looks like. So, he will give us the background on the case, and then we'll hear from the petitioners.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor, and good afternoon, commissioners. My name's Jason Burton. I'm the planning official of the city of Orlando. We won't go over the quasi judicial appeal 321 East Copeland Drive.

It's in the Copeland Historic District, Lake Copeland Historic District. And, just to give you a little bit of a background information on this particular project, this location is in the Lake Copeland Historic District at 321 East Copeland Drive generally at the corner of East Copeland Drive into Laney Avenue It's just an under an acre site that goes down to the lake in District 4 This is a legal conforming law within the district. So it's it's a rather a little bit of a larger lot The proposal was to demolish a contributing single family residence within the historic district and construct a new tourist style residence, which I'll show you in a moment. The existing building itself was just over 2,000 square feet and then the proposal was for an over 4,000 square foot building. Anyway, this is in the R1 Traditional City Overlay HP District overlay in aircraft Noise Overlay District Right there on Lake Copeland and just give you a little bit of background on the actual proposal itself There are several additions to this particular home.

So if you can see my cursor on the right hand side of the house is an addition that occurred. The original structure is sort of the middle part. The garage was a later addition and there were further additions to the rear of the property so about One third of the property was the original so the house predominant predominantly faces south This picture shows the rest of the house on the left east and right end are those additions on the on the left and the right end are in this particular addition. So the proposal was for this particular structure is a Tudor style type of a residence. The proposed structure was taller than many of the surrounding properties and the maximum allowable height is just under 30 feet.

So this property met the typical maximum allowable height. The historic preservation reviewed that and the staff recommended that there'd be a greater setback to match the historic context of the district. So the site plan did not meet the typical historic preservation standards for setbacks and recommended at least a 46 foot setback while the applicant showed a twenty four twenty eight foot setback. The idea is that the height and the setback was not meeting the standards for mass and scale. Anyway moving right along the HPB looked at this request on 01/07/2026 staff recommended a denial petition as submitted but offered alternative solutions the h p b approved the staff alternative with additional conditions essentially they did not allow them to demolish the existing structure that was there they allowed some of the additions to be demolished, but they wanted the original contributing structure that was in the middle of the site to be kept, if you will.

So they also recommended that the roof could be replaced because there was some compromise of the actual roof itself. Anyway, the applicants appealed the decision and went to a quasi judicial hearing office. The petitioners were Andre Kressler and Carmen Ziss. They've finally finally filed a request for quasi judicial hearing to appeal the historic preservation boards denial of the request for major certificate of appropriateness to demolish the existing home and construct a new Tudor style residence. The property of course, is in the Lake Historic Copeland District.

A quasi judicial hearing took place on 03/12/2026 before the hearing officer, Derek Schroff. On April 1, the hearing officer issued a recommended order recommending the City Council grant in part and denying part the petitioners petition in opposition so just so you know HPP applications are quasi judicial matters that are implementing actions they're implementing policies if you will and are conducted per Florida Supreme Court decisions. People that are dissatisfied are entitled to a de novo or a new hearing before those hearing officers and of course they did that. That hearing as we mentioned was done on March 12. The hearing officers findings were that everyone was able to present their evidence and this is from the actual order itself.

Criteria for demolition barely but not for the proposed replacement of the structure. The petitioners claimed of due process violations and consistent treatment and the HPs be arbitrary capricious decisions were meritless. The petitioner may demolish the entire structure once a replacement structure has been approved by the h p b, which not be unreasonably denied. Courtroom courtroom and and upon approval by the HPB of an alternative replacement structures, and petitioners may demolish the existing structure in its entirety and build a replacement structure which shall not be unreasonably withheld. And just so you know, there are three things that the council can choose to do in this situation, which is adopt the recommended order, which is the staff's recommendation, or adopt a recommended order with changes, but you have to present findings for those particular changes or direct staff to prepare a revised order and prepare new findings if you will with that our staff recommendation is to adopt the hearing officers recommended order approving the petitioners petitioners petition in opposition in part for demolition and denying in part the replacement structure as previously submitted and I'm available for any questions

Okay questions?

Also the applicant is here as well as an attorney representing the applicant should you should they like to speak as well our tradition in the quasi judicial procedures is that they each would have a maximum of five minutes to speak if they wish.

Jason just took the part I was going to say next. He explained the process.

My understanding is since they're also in agreement with the staff recommendation.

So hopefully Who's gonna speak on behalf of the petitioners? Come on up. Michelle Hendon.

Good afternoon. Mayor and city commissioners. Thank you for your time. My name is Michelle Hinden. The address is 1303 North Orange Avenue in Orlando, Florida.

I am here with the law firm of Nashad Khan PL and I am here on behalf of the petitioners, Nashad Khan along with the homeowners, mister Andre ler, who is here with us today and mister Carmen Ziss. We are here today to respectfully request that you please adopt the hearing officers recommended order. As the city mentioned, an appellate hearing was held on March 12 before hearing officer mister Derek Schroth. At the hearing, the petitioners presented evidence establishing that the demolition criteria under section 62.707 of the city code was satisfied. Multiple reports and testimony from qualified professionals identified serious safety concerns including compromised structural elements, termite damage, fungal growth, and ongoing drainage and flooding issues.

Furthermore, the evidence showed that a small portion of the structure was confirmed as original. The hearing officer conducted a de novo review of the evidence presented in which he methodically applied the criterion of 62.707 and conduct and concluded that the evidence weighed in favor of demolition. The hearing officer further found that the structure lacks meaningful historical significance with substantially altered over time and is not unique within the district. There is also support from residents within the Lake Copeland Historic District including George Ann Carter of 310 East Copeland Drive, Charlie and Becky Becca Sloan of 219 East Copeland Drive, Nancy Brown Aberdescu of 311 East Copeland Drive, Robert and Deborah Moore of 733 Delaney Park Drive, an expert witness Keith Ori of 1640 Delaney Avenue. These residents expressed concerns related to safety, the property's deteriorated condition, flooding, and the safety concerns due with the risk of another potentially abandoned property in the neighborhood.

Members of the district appeared at both the historic preservation board hearing and the appellate hearing to express their concerns and their support for demolition. Finally, I would like to emphasize. This is in a very important aspect of the case. This did not begin as a demolition project. Before purchasing the property, mister Kressler and mister Ziss intended to renovate it.

They love the district. They envision this as their long term forever home and they explored renovation renovation options with the city before and after they purchased the property. They retained professionals with historic preservation experience including individuals familiar with the city's standards and they submitted a renovation application in good faith. However, during that process, the architect who was selected from the city's list of preservation professionals determined that the structure posed a life safety hazard and was at risk imminent collapse. Even then, the owners sought additional opinions from multiple professionals.

All who again and again and again reached the same conclusion. The structure is unsafe. The demolition is the only reasonable and responsible option. It is structurally compromised and it is not reasonable reasonably capable of rehabilitation. At this point, this was no longer a matter of renovation.

It became a matter of safety. And basically to them at that point they decided that demolition would be the only responsible thing to do. In conclusion the hearing officer carefully evaluated the evidence, applied the correct legal standard, and reached a recommendation that is supported by competent substantial evidence. His recommended order appropriately balances the city's preservation goals with the overriding concern for public safety. But the the petitioners do not object to the requirement that the historic preservation board approved the replacement structure.

They are willing to work with the historic preservation board and city staff to agree in structure that works for everyone provided that such approval is not unreasonably withheld by the board. Accordingly, we respectfully request that the city council adopt the hearing officers recommended order and approve demolition of the existing structure. We thank you for your time and your consideration.

Okay. We have a recommended order that both staff and the applicant support. Are there questions? Commissioner Ortiz?

Is anybody opposing this? Because it seems like everybody's happy.

I don't think so.

Not really?

Everybody be happy if we adopt the recommended order

as a result if you were to adopt the recommended order the action would revert back to the historic preservation board for the new structure and they'll have to submit a new proposal for the replacement structure structure and be still considered against the merits, if you will.

You Are happy start to print because you'll get new fees for

designing the Neighbors are happy. Neighbors are happy. The hearing officer is happy with this. Alright.

Mister Sheehan.

Yeah, mayor. I'd like to make a motion to adopt the hearing officer's recommended order approving the petitioner's petition in opposition in part for demolition and denying in part the replacement structure as previously submitted in case number HPB twenty twenty five-ten thousand two hundred two.

Okay. Motion by Commissioner Sheen, second by Commissioner Ortiz. Discussion? Hearing none, all in favor of the motion indicate so by saying aye. Aye. Okay. Motion carries and everybody goes home happy. All right. That's the end of our scheduled agenda. Commissioners, you'll be happy to know that we have 29 general appearance

requests. Yeah,

so that makes that a record, I'm not sure. But as I look around the room, I don't think all 29 are here. So the rules related to general appearance are that I will oh, Ed, could you get us ready for general appearance? I'm sorry.