by Beth Kassab | Aug 26, 2024 | Election, News, Uncategorized, Zoning and Development
Steve Leary, with Buddy Dyer's endorsement, heads to run-off from second place
The Orlando mayor and Democrat lent his political sway to the Republican former Winter Park mayor who is running in a heavily blue Orange County Commission district. But Kelly Semrad, a UCF professor and Democrat, emerged from the primary in first place
Aug. 26, 2024
By Beth Kassab
Steve Leary, the former Winter Park mayor and Republican who outraised his opponents in the District 5 Orange County Commission race by more than 3 to 1 and touted the endorsement of one of the region’s most powerful Democrats in Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, is now heading into the Nov. 5 run-off from a distant second place.
Leary finished the Aug. 20 primary with 32% of the vote, 2,800 votes and 9 percentage points behind Kelly Semrad (41%), a Democrat and UCF professor who centered her campaign on how to protect rural lands from development and calls to spend the lucrative Tourist Development Tax on services and quality-of-life projects for residents vs. expenses backed by the tourism industry.
The gulf between Leary’s fundraising haul — nearly $200,000 — and Semrad’s $60,000 is stark. And political action committees such as Dyer’s Orlando PAC and the Realtor’s spent even more on Leary’s behalf.
A campaign ad paid for by Orlando PAC shows Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer’s endorsements.
A mailer just before the primary from Dyer’s PAC showcased Leary amid a slate of Democrats endorsed by the popular Orlando mayor who was first elected more than 20 years ago. The card also named U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost, Public defender candidate Melissa Vickers, Tax Collector Scott Randolph, Supervisor of Elections candidate Karen Castor Dentel and School Board candidate Stephanie Vanos.
A separate mass text message to voters from Dyer said the people on his list “lead with integrity and are committed to fighting for Orange County residents’ quality of life.”
Leary, who received campaign contributions from a number of development and tourism interests, was the only candidate on that line-up also touted by the local Republican Party and the only one who did not emerge in first place after last week’s election (except for Castor Dentel after the supervisor’s contest was pushed to November because of a court challenge).
Semrad won 35 of the 50 precincts in the district that runs from downtown Orlando through Winter Park and Maitland to Bithlo and Christmas at the eastern edges of the county’s border. One precinct showed an exact tie.
Of the 14 precincts won by Leary, which were centered in Maitland and Winter Park, he won seven by 10 or fewer votes.
The district has more than 145,000 voters with about 55,000 Democrats, 45,000 Republicans and 45,000 people who are registered without a party affiliation or major party.
Joy Goff-Marcil (who won 16% of the vote), also a Democrat, and Joel Antonio Montilla (who won 12%), also a Republican, were eliminated from the contest to fill the seat left open by Commissioner Emily Bonilla, who has reached term limits.
“We knocked on 17,134 doors,” Semrad, 47, said. “Our goal was the Top 2. We were surprised to finish so far out front as we were out funded on the books and we were way out funded in PAC [Political Action Committee] contributions.”
Samuel Vilchez Santiago, the chairman of Orange County Democratic Executive Committee, said his group sent out texts and mailers alerting voters that Leary is a Republican, not a Democrat. He said the messages were not in response to Dyer’s endorsement, but to educate voters.
“The election last Tuesday showed that money cannot buy people’s votes,” Santiago said, pointing also to the District 1 Commission race, where Nicole Wilson, a Democrat, was far outraised by Republican Austin Arthur. They are also heading into a runoff after primary results showed she led by just two votes.
Leary, 57, whose campaign said he was unavailable to be interviewed for this story, announced Dyer’s endorsement in a June news release.
“I have had the pleasure of collaborating with Steve Leary for over 10 years during his tenure as Winter Park Mayor and Commissioner,” Dyer said in the release. “He is bright, thoughtful, and an effective leader. His experience, vision, and collaborative approach will greatly benefit all residents of District 5. I proudly endorse and fully support him.”
The endorsement also comes at a critical time for Orlando’s growth plans.
On Monday, the Orlando Sentinel reported that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is attempting to annex into Orlando more than 52,000 acres of mostly untouched land in southeast Orange County, where development and environmental regulations are considered more restrictive on developers.
Earlier this year, Orlando annexed some 12,000 acres of unincorporated southeast Orange County designated for a new housing development known as Sunbridge and owned by Tavistock. The real estate and investment company is known for its billionaire founder Joe Lewis and is the same company that developed Lake Nona, owns Isleworth Golf and Country Club in Windermere and other high-profile investments across the globe.
Tavistock and companies affiliated with the church that operate its vast Deseret Ranch land have worked together to advocate for a controversial road through Split Oak Forest. The road would serve as a connector between the new developments and Osceola County.
The annexations have triggered a power struggle between Orlando and Orange County over the future of giant swaths of land and environmentalists have cried foul over what they see as the negative consequences of sprawl.
Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings’ commission this summer added two questions to the November ballot that, if approved by voters, would protect Orange’s rural boundary as well as give the county veto power over such annexations.
Dyer and other local mayors signed a letter to Demings opposing the annexation question, saying it violates “home rule” for cities. Winter Park Mayor Sheila DeCiccio did not sign the letter.
Dyer’s spokeswoman said she would need to speak to him directly about why he endorsed Leary and whether the decision is related to the annexation issue. She did not respond to a follow-up question.
Semrad is one of the most vocal advocates for strengthening the county’s control over annexations and the rural boundary, even initiating the ballot questions last year — though the Legislature intervened and only the County Commission had authority to put the questions on the ballot for approval.
Leary has stated he supports the question about the rural boundary.
But Semrad said the rural boundary question itself doesn’t have any teeth. The second question on the annexation veto power is what would give the county the power to ensure environmental and development regulations are followed.
“Annexing into the city has been a loophole to make quick cash, contribute to sprawl and pay less for environmental devastation,” she said.
Leary’s campaign website touts endorsements from Republicans such as former Congressman John Mica and former Florida House Speaker Dean Cannon as well as Edgewood Mayor and campaign consultant John Dowless. Other Democrats have also lent their support, such as Craig Russell, elected earlier this year as the first Black commissioner in Winter Park in more than 100 years, and Gary and Victoria Siplin, who served in the state Senate and Orange County Commission, respectively.
Semrad boasts endorsements from Frost, Randolph, Bonilla, state Rep. Anna Eskamani and incoming state Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith among others.
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by Beth Kassab | Aug 23, 2024 | City Commission, News, Uncategorized, Zoning and Development
Rollins proposes payment equivalent to some taxes on faculty apartments
The liberal arts college is often exempt from property taxes as a nonprofit educational institution. The agreement now before the City Commission would be a first for the city.
Aug. 23, 2024
By Beth Kassab
In a first-of-a-kind deal for Winter Park, Rollins College is proposing it pay a fee equal to a portion of the city property taxes it would owe on a faculty housing project up for City Commission approval next week.
The potential agreement comes after months of back-and-forth with city officials and residents over the liberal arts college first unveiled plans to build 48 apartments on land it already owns at Welbourne and Virginia avenues.
College administrators say the apartments, which would be rented to faculty and staff below market rate, will serve as a recruiting tool for early-career professors who would otherwise likely live much farther from campus as a result of the high cost of rent in Winter Park, where homes routinely sell for more than $1 million.
But criticism over the architecture of the project, lack of commercial space on a portion that once fronted New England Avenue, parking concerns and the college’s typical exemption from property taxes contributed to major revisions of the plans.
The project now contains 30 units vs. 48, a pocket park, additional parking and no longer includes a building fronting New England Avenue.
In what appears to be an effort to satisfy calls from the Planning & Zoning Board to contribute to funds for city services, the college says it will enter into a Payment in Lieu of Taxes or PILOT agreement with Winter Park if the typical exemption for nonprofit educational institutions is granted on the land.
The payment would equal about 50% of the taxes owed to the city or about 2 mills. Rollins estimated the payment at between $18,000 to $20,000 a year, though an exact figure won’t be available until it is built and assessessed by the Orange County Property Appraiser.
“The PILOT payment is intended to offset the costs of emergency services for the multi-unit residential project,” the college said in the language it submitted to the city.
“Currently, we have 14 units on the site, and we pay no taxes,” said college spokeswoman Jo Marie Hebeler. “So this is a significant commitment and contribution from Rollins.”
Rollins uses an older building on the site for graduate student housing, but that would be torn down as part of the new project.
The private college, known for its lakefront Spanish-Mediterranean campus and tuition and fees totaling more than $76,000 a year, had resisted such an agreement in previous meeting, citing what it said was already significant contributions toward city services such as allowing the police and fire departments to use old buildings for training and argued such a deal would set a bad precedent.
Much of Rollins’ property holdings in the city are exempt from the tax rolls and some residents have voiced concerns that the college is growing too far outside of its main campus and should contribute more toward the cost of development.
The college does pay taxes on some of its land that doesn’t qualify as exempt such as on The Alfond Inn, a luxury hotel it runs as a for-profit business. The college owes $767,000 in taxes this year on the inn, which is assessed at nearly $50 million, according to property appraiser records.
Jeff Briggs, the city’s longtime planning director, said this is the first time a nonprofit group has reached a PILOT agreement with the city. The deal will likely be closely watched by other nonprofits across the region including hospitals such as AdventHealth and Orlando Health and other colleges and universities.
The City Commission will take up the project at its meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 28.
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by Beth Kassab | Aug 17, 2024 | Election, News
How to recycle your campaign yard signs
After the Tuesday primary you can do your part to keep plastic signs out of the landfill
Aug. 17, 2024
By Beth Kassab
Winter Park officials are encouraging residents to recycle yard signs after Tuesday’s primary election.
The city, which typically ranks among the highest voter turnout in the region, is a hotbed for campaigning and signs spring up like hydrilla on the chain of lakes shoreline.
After the 2022 election season, the city recycled thousands of signs in partnership with Orlando, Orange County and the League of Women Voters, sparing the landfill from nearly 6 tons of additional bulk, according to a Winter Park news release.
The recycling effort transports the waste to NuCycle Energy, which converts the signs to cubes that can be used to generate energy.
“This recycling initiative will prevent an abundance of yard signs from going to a local landfill,” the release stated. “Most political signs are made from No. 5 plastic (polypropylene), a common plastic found in hundreds of household and commercial products, such as a yogurt container.”
To recycle your signs, drop them off between Wednesday, Aug. 21 at noon and Sunday, Sept. 1 at noon at one of the following locations:
• Cady Way Pool at 2529 Cady Way
• Mead Botanical Garden Community Garden at 1310 S. Denning Drive
• Fire Station 64 at 1439 Howell Branch Road
• For additional locations access cityofwinterpark.org/waste
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by Beth Kassab | Aug 16, 2024 | City Commission, News
Blue Bamboo wins zoning change for old library
The City Commission also approved new hours for Sunday alcohol sales and endorsed a sales tax renewal for public schools
Aug. 15, 2024
By Beth Kassab
Blue Bamboo Center for the Arts is another step closer to turning the old library into a performance venue after City Commissioners voted 3-1 to approve a zoning change for the property.
Mayor Sheila DeCiccio voted against the measure after questioning the fairness of a special carve out in the zoning code solely for city-owned properties.
“I am uncomfortable with this change just for city,” DeCiccio said. “I know I’m in the minority on that.”
While the high profile building on the corner of New England and Aloma avenues was used as a library for decades until 2021, the property was technically zoned for multi-family residences.
The move recommended by the Planning & Zoning board and now approved by the commision, changes the land to PQP, or “public, quasi-public.” An additional change also altered the definition of PQP to include “performance art venues together with ancillary gallery, educational, rehearsal, recording studios and offices to support the like, within a city- owned building.”
Commissioners Marty Sullivan, Craig Russell and Kris Cruzada voted in favor. Commissioner Todd Weaver was absent. No one from the public spoke on the issue.
If the lease between the city and Blue Bamboo to use the property is terminated, the land would revert back to R-4 zoning.
New Sunday alcohol sales
The commission also finalized new rules to allow earlier sales of beer, wine and cocktails on Sundays beginning at 7 a.m.
Those sales had been prohibited until 11 a.m. on Sundays until complaints from grocery managers who hear from inconvenienced residents brought the matter to the commission.
Two hearings and votes are required for the change and the second vote was the same as the first with Russell the only no vote.
He said he wanted to clarify his comments from the first vote last month when he said, “I have a belief that Sunday is a day of rest. I say leave it alone … I wouldn’t look to compromise my principles on agreeing to something like this.”
During the second vote he said, “People are under the impression that I had some kind of religious motivation.”
He said he did not take exception to the change on a religious basis, but because he did not believe people are inconvenienced by the Sunday hours and because not all residents drink responsibly. Russell, a teacher and coach at Winter Park High School, said he has witnessed students attend school or events drunk and has referred them for discipline.
“What does that tell to our kids and family about how we conduct ourselves?” he asked. “So if we have limitations to make the city a little safer then … It’s not me imposing my moral code.”
School sales tax wins city endorsement
Orange County Public Schools is asking voters in November to renew the half-cent sales that goes toward school construction and maintenance.
Last week, Commissioners agreed to write a letter urging residents to support the tax after a presentation by schools Chief Communications Officer Scott Howat.
“We get zero dollars from the state for construction and maintenance,” he said, noting that visitors and tourists pay about half the sales tax in the county.
He said the district, which now has about 208,000 students, has built more than 60 schools and eliminated 3,000 portables since voters first approved the tax in 2002 and renewed it once before in 2014.
He estimated some 75 schools will be at least 25 years old by 2035, including Winter Park’s Lakemont Elementary. That milestone, he said, is an indicator of when schools will require construction dollars.
Russell said he viewed the tax as an investment in overall education, not just buildings.
“The learning environment is so impactful to students,” he said. “It’s money toward learning. Period.”
Cruzada disagreed and said he did not endorse a letter the city plans to send in support of the tax.
“I just don’t feel it would be prudent especially considering a lot of what’s going on in the economy right now with increasing costs,” he said, suggesting that an increased ad valorem tax rate for the school board or finding another source for the funds would be better.
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by Beth Kassab | Aug 10, 2024 | City Commission, News, Zoning and Development
Rollins wins P&Z recommendation for apartments -- with conditions
The board is pushing the City Commission to require the college pay a fee in lieu of taxes because it is exempt as a nonprofit educational institution
Aug. 10, 2024
By Beth Kassab
In what is certain to be a closely-watched case among nonprofit institutions across Central Florida, pressure continues to mount for Rollins College to cover some costs of city services related to its latest development proposal.
The Planning and Zoning board voted unanimously last week to recommend the City Commission approve the 30-unit, 2-and-3 story project on the corner of Welbourne and Virginia avenues, but only with multiple conditions attached including a pilot program that calls for the small private liberal arts college to pay fees in lieu of taxes.
Rollins, which charges about $76,000 a year in tuition, housing and food costs, according to its website, qualifies for a tax exemption on much of its property as a nonprofit educational institution, meaning that it doesn’t pay typical ad valorem taxes on its assessed land values, other fees or sales taxes.
But increasingly vocal residents in Winter Park are crying foul — arguing that Rollins should pay more of its share for basic services like police and fire rescue, flood control, roads and parks.
Dykes Everett, a local business owner, was just one of a handful of people who attended the meeting to encourage the board to push for a special payment program.
“I’m here in support of holding the line on a fee in lieu of taxes,” Everett said. “A private citizen would have to pay for police and fire … The impact is real and it’s just the same as every other citizen would have.”
Rollins attorney Rebecca Wilson argued against such a requirement for a payment.
“At this time, the college is not willing to agree to that,” Wilson said, noting Rollins pays more than $1.1 million in taxes on its unexempt property and partners with the police and fire departments to allow them to run drills in empty buildings on campus. “We believe Rollins has been a great partner to the city.”
The project, which has undergone a series of architectural revisions and is now smaller than originally proposed last year, is intended to provide below market rate housing for faculty and staff in a city with soaring home prices and to help the college recruit new hires.
She also said she isn’t aware that the city has asked any other nonprofits to make such payments.
Among the largest of those would be AdventHealth Winter Park, which operates a growing nonprofit hospital and its one of the city’s largest employers.
A Rollins spokeswoman suggested Rollins may reconsider such an agreement, but did not respond to a follow-up question from the Voice asking for details.
“We are working internally to accommodate the full motion approved by P&Z,” said Jo Marie Hebler, a Rollins spokeswoman. “We expect to have a mutually beneficial plan that will be on the Aug. 28 City Commission agenda.”
City Planning Director Emeritus Jeff Briggs said he was unaware of the details of such a plan.
The City Commission has the option of accepting the P&Z board’s recommendations in total or in part or of rejecting the proposal all together.
The recommendation for approval by Warren Lindsey includes the following conditions:
- The apartments will be built with 60 parking spaces.
- No student housing or classroom instruction space is allowed.
- Rollins agrees to own and operate the faculty and staff housing for 30 years.
- If Rollins wants to amend the agreement it must wait at least five years and the change must go through the P&Z process.
- If Rollins receives a state tax exemption on the property it must enter a pilot program with the city to pay the equivalent of city taxes and stormwater fees.
Members Jason Johnson, Bill Segal, Michael Spencer, Jim Fitch, Alex Stringfellow and David Bornstein all voted in favor.
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