by Beth Kassab | Mar 11, 2025 | City Commission, Election, News
Election Day Updates: Kris Cruzada, Justin Vermuth and the leaf blower referendum
Voters will decide who takes Seat 3 on the City Commission and the fate of a ban on gas-powered leaf blowers
March 11, 2025
By Beth Kassab
Update at 4:45 p.m.
Turnout has continued to pick up throughout the day, now at just under 18% in Winter Park or 3,943 votes cast.
That’s an increase of more than 1,400 votes since 11 a.m. this morning when turnout stood at 11% or 2,479 votes cast, including mail, early and Election Day votes reported in near real time by the Orange County Supervisor of Elections Office. There are 22,533 registered voters in Winter Park.
Polls remain open until 7 p.m.
Republicans have slightly edged out Democrats in turnout in Winter Park, where the GOP also holds a lead in voter registrations.
Next highest is Windermere at 16% turnout and and Belle Isle12% turnou t. Windermere is deciding a single city council seat and Belle Isle is deciding its next mayor.
Maitland, which is deciding a council seat, saw turnout at about 9% so far.
And Ocoee, which has three charter questions on the ballot, sits at just higher than 3%.
Winter Park will determine with Seat 3 incumbent Kris Cruzada gets a second term or if challenger Justin Vermuth gets a turn in City Hall.
Cruzada said it’s been a “positive” morning so far and he’s out waving signs at precincts.
Vermuth posted on Facebook that he and his wife voted early this morning and waved signs with their children.
Around the time the polls opened, Vermuth posted a photo of himself with Commissioner Craig Russell, who won last year’s election by just over 30 votes.
“The last City Commission race came down to just a handful of votes — so please, if you stand with Justin and want to ensure that we keep our taxes low and our spending responsible, support our small local businesses, prioritize hiring SRO officers over code enforcement officers, make sure our first responders have all the resources they need, and enhance our local parks, playgrounds and green spaces, get out and vote,” he wrote.
The City Commission has never had to choose between school resource officers and code enforcement officers. Both are funded. And school resource officers remained in schools even as Winter Park — along with others cities — and Orange County Public Schools negotiated how much each local government will pay for the costs of the officers. City Manager Randy Knight said he hopes to have a resolution to the negotiations soon, though not in time for Wednesday’s City Commission meeting.
Winter Park honored one of the officers assigned to Winter Park High School as its officer of the year in January.
For a Q&A with both candidates click here. For the latest update on who is funding the candidates click here.
Voters will also decide the fate of the city’s gas-powered leaf blower ban, which has prompted campaigning by Sen. Jason Brodeur, R-Sanford.
A “yes” vote will repeal the ordinance and lift the ban on internal combustion, or gas-powered, leaf blowers. A “no” vote will allow for the ban to remain in place. If voters keep the ban it would take effect in July.
The ban was unanimously approved by the commission in January 2022, but has never been enforced.
Other Florida cities like Miami Beach, Naples, Palm Beach, South Miami, Key Biscayne and Pinecrest have similar ordinances to reduce noise from leaf blowers.
Warren Lindsey was elected to Seat 4 without opposition after incumbent Todd Weaver decided not to seek reelection.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
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by Beth Kassab | Mar 7, 2025 | City Commission, Election, News
Senator and commissioner duel in final days before vote on leaf blower ban
Ahead of Tuesday’s election, voters are hearing from Sen. Jason Brodeur and Commissioner Todd Weaver about the ban on gas-powered leaf blowers
March 7, 2025
By Kathryn Brudzinski
In the final days and weeks leading up to Winter Park’s election on Tuesday, a state senator and a city commissioner faced off with dueling emails and campaign ads over the ballot question about a ban on gas-powered leaf blowers.
Sen. Jason Brodeur, R-Sanford, used a political committee he controls to pay for ads that call the ban “bad for local businesses.”
Brodeur, who got involved in the controversy over the ban last year and forced commissioners to put the issue on the ballot by threatening state action, told the Voice this week he didn’t think the commission adequately addressed the needs of the business community and the “obvious burden” to consumers through increased costs.
“If people want battery powered blowers, they can just hire them now,” Brodeur said in a text message. “A ban on choices in the marketplace is a slippery slope. Next it will be trimmers, then lawn mowers, then they’re telling you what color your house is and that you must have a brick mailbox. They are not a homeowners association, they’re a city commission.”
Jason Brodeur
Brodeur is the chairperson of Citizens for Solutions, the political committee that sent the mailers and emails.
In a Feb. 28 email signed by Brodeur, the committee argued that the ban was “not just about leaf blowers – it’s about stopping unnecessary regulations that hurt working families and small businesses.”
Commissioner Todd Weaver, one of the most outspoken advocates for the ban, sent an email to residents this week and questioned what he called Brodeur’s “strange attention to local issues,” while so many critical state issues loom such as low wages and homeowner insurance rates.
“One must wonder why we have a state senator, who lives in Sanford, and who continues to meddle in local Winter Park affairs,” read the email from Weaver, who opted not to run for re-election this year.
In January, Brodeur sent residents emails to argue against an unrelated city matter, but one also personal to Weaver. He urged residents to speak out against Weaver’s request to add his home to the city’s historic register. The request was ultimately tabled.
Brodeur’s mostly Seminole County district folds in a small piece of Orange County, including Winter Park.
Weaver argued the commission provided contractors “ample time” to make the equipment switch by delaying enforcement multiple times since the leaf-blower ordinance was first passed in 2022.
He also emphasized the long-term cost and public health benefits electric blowers can offer, despite the equipment being more expensive up-front.
“The energy to run electric lawn tools costs about ¼ of what gasoline currently costs,” the email read. “This does not translate to higher costs for customers as Brodeur implies. Worst case: the cost difference is a wash … More importantly, it is about the health of landscaping workers using gas-powered tools.”
Voters will find the question on their Tuesday ballots along with the race for City Commission Seat 3 between incumbent Kris Cruzada and candidate Justin Vermuth.
Todd Weaver
A “yes” vote will repeal the ordinance and lift the ban on internal combustion, or gas-powered, leaf blowers. A “no” vote will allow for the ban to remain in place. If voters keep the ban it would take effect in July.
The ban was unanimously approved by the commission in January 2022, but has never been enforced.
Other Florida cities like Miami Beach, Naples, Palm Beach, South Miami, Key Biscayne and Pinecrest have similar ordinances to reduce noise from leaf blowers.
Winter Park’s ban received major pushback from local landscape companies in the months before it was set to take effect last year. They complained about the cost of changing equipment and concerns about battery power that would slow them down and hurt business.
That’s when Brodeur stepped in as the state Legislature was still in session. He threatened to write a law that would cancel out the ban if the city didn’t once again delay enforcement and put the question on this year’s ballot for voters to decide.
The result was a 3-2 decision by the commission in April 2024 to place the issue on the ballot. Mayor Sheila DeCiccio, Commissioner Craig Russell and Cruzada voted in favor. Commissioner Marty Sullivan and Weaver voted against.
Brodeur still added language to the state’s budget attempting to prohibit cities from enacting gas-powered leaf blower ordinances until after a $100,000 study on the life cycle of gas-powered versus battery-powered blowers was completed.
The study was vetoed by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
During the commission’s April 2024 meeting DeCiccio and others voiced their concerns about Brodeur’s approach and the future impacts of the referendum.
“I am worried about the precedent that this will set if any time someone does not like what the commission does, they can complain to the senator and threaten preemption,” DeCiccio said.
She also said that landscapers had nearly three years to make the transition to electric leaf blowers from the time of the original ordinance.
Weaver said during that meeting that in addition to numerous noise complaints, severe health and environmental impacts associated with the use of the gas-powered lawn equipment were also cause for concern.
“The reason this tool was picked out, not only for the noise, is because it’s the only one of the arsenal of gas-powered tools that almost always run at full-throttle,” Weaver said, adding that he was concerned Brodeur had not effectively researched the issue.
The ordinance came following noise complaints, which intensified as more residents worked from home during the pandemic, and environmental and health concerns. The commission gave residents and their landscape contractors 30 months to make the switch to alternative equipment like electric leaf blowers.
The city offered a one-per-household $50 rebate for electric leaf blowers purchased between Jan. 15, 2024 to Jan. 1, 2025 that would be applied as a credit to a resident’s utility bill.
Gas-powered leaf blowers typically use a two-stroke engine that mixes gasoline with oil to operate, burning a portion of the mixture and emitting the rest as an aerosol exhaust. Studies have shown public health concerns related to the exhaust because it contains known carcinogens and can be linked to diseases such as cancer.
Another concern is the level of noise the equipment produces. A 2017 study found that the sound produced by gas-powered leaf blowers can travel long distances in a community at “levels known to increase the risk of adverse health effects.”
Populations like workers, children, the elderly, the sick, those who work from home or work overnight shifts are considered most vulnerable to the impacts.
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Kathryn Brudzinski is a reporter based in Orlando and a University of Central Florida graduate with a degree in journalism, as well as a certificate in public and professional writing. Her work has appeared in Oviedo Community News, VoxPopuli and The Charge.
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by Beth Kassab | Mar 4, 2025 | Election, News, Uncategorized
Kris Cruzada v. Justin Vermuth: The candidates answer questions
Both men say they want to run an efficient city government but have different ideas about spending and whether cutting property taxes is the right call
March 4, 2025
By Beth Kassab
Next week, Winter Park will choose between Kris Cruzada, an attorney and the incumbent in Seat 3 on the City Commission, and Justin Vermuth, a first-time candidate who is also an attorney and lobbyist for the timeshare industry.
Cruzada, 51, is married with two children and grew up in the area and has owned his home off the Winter Park Pines golf course since 2007.
Vermuth, 43, is also married with two children and purchased a lakefront home off South Lakemont Avenue in 2015.
Justin Vermuth
Vermuth, was endorsed by the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce, and has accumulated a large campaign chest funded largely by real estate and business interests.
Cruzada, who was first elected in 2022, says he declined the Chamber’s financial support before Vermuth entered the race and is running a less funded campaign focused on door-to-door outreach.
Here are the candidates’ responses to emailed questions from the Voice. Some responses are edited for length and clarity.
Question: Can you tell me a little bit about your philosophy on parking? Does Winter Park have too much? Too little? What should be done in regards to parking policy?
Kris Cruzada: The city is balancing current needs with space efficiency. The city reduced parking minimums because of the over abundance of parking in some of the commercial office properties. At certain times, mainly lunchtime, there is a demand for parking along Park Avenue. A lot of patrons want to park within 1/8 mile to 1/4 mile from their destination. From a recent city study, data showed that there was sufficient parking within a 1.5 mile radius of Park Avenue and Morse Boulevard. From personal experience, I find myself parking at Capen or Whipple and walking in to Park Ave. In the future, I anticipate declining car ownership, the city has to balance future needs with current needs and multi-modal transportation options.
Kris Cruzada
Justin Vermuth: When it comes to parking, we need to take into consideration the needs of our small business owners in addition to the needs of residents. I believe we can balance protecting what makes Winter Park so unique with smart, well-planned parking options while prioritizing walkability. The Winter Park Chamber brought in Henry Grabar last year who offered up innovative ideas on how to address our parking dilemma.
Q: Do you support SunRail? What should the role of cities like Winter Park be in funding SunRail and wider transit options?
Cruzada: Yes. Currently, the city provides funding support [for SunRail] of $350,000, plus CPI [Consumer Price Index], per year. I would currently not want to fund more from the city due to our needs with our own Transportation Master Plan.
Vermuth: I do support SunRail! Between making it easier to travel to downtown Orlando and bringing in visitors who want to enjoy our restaurants and small businesses, I think SunRail has been a net benefit. I think that maintaining the Sunrail station in Winter Park is something that we can definitely do without raising taxes or increasing spending.
Q: Do you support the half-cent sales tax proposal (that’s been discussed by Orange County) for transit?
Cruzada: I would, if Sunrail and Lynx could coordinate a budget that would prioritize weekend ridership and extended hours that would relieve parking on the weekends in Winter Park (especially when the City has events) and assist the service industry employees in Central Florida.
Vermuth: This issue will once again be for the voters to decide. I would like a clearer plan for how the money would benefit Winter Park residents. Before adding something like this to the ballot, we should do everything we can to meet our needs by reviewing our existing budget, cutting spending, and being more efficient.
Q for Justin Vermuth: Your campaign materials say you want to “lower taxes” and “limit unnecessary government spending.” Which taxes, specifically, do you want to lower and by how much? When it comes to spending, what would you cut and how?
A: Right now, our City Commission is declaring victory because the millage rate hasn’t increased. We need to cut the millage rate and stop spending money on unnecessary items, like additional code enforcement officers.
Q for Kris Cruzada: Your opponent says he wants to “lower taxes” and “limit unnecessary government spending.” Is cutting taxes in Winter Park (lowering the millage rate) possible without cutting services and, if so, and how? When it comes to spending, would you make cuts?
Cruzada: With inflation running high, and no signs of letting up in the near future, it would not be prudent to cut our millage rate. Keep in mind, for every rise or drop in our millage rate by a quarter point, .0025, we would gain/lose approximately $2.25 million in property tax revenue. When it comes to spending cuts, I’d look at two areas to help make us more efficient. Analyze the overtime hours and explore cross-training within some of our departments. In analyzing cost cutting, I’d be pay close attention to how it would affect our key performance indicators. I do not want to jeopardize our level of service that our residents have come to expect.
Q for Vermuth: What are examples of the “government overreach that attacks our small businesses and homeowners” you mention in your campaign materials? Which policies would you change in this regard?
Vermuth: One big example was the ban on gas powered leaf blowers, which caused additional costs for businesses and homeowners. I oppose the ban my opponent put in place and will be voting yes to overturn it! Another is the hiring of additional code enforcement officers–while failing to hire school resource officers! My goal is to protect what makes Winter Park special. We can’t let our government or a few empowered elites become an overly prescriptive Homeowners’ Association, telling small businesses and homeowners what they can and can’t do.
Context provided by the Voice: Cruzada was not yet elected when the ban was adopted as part of an amendment to the city’s noise ordinance in early 2022. Winter Park did not threaten to take school resource officers out of schools. In fact, the resource officers continued to work on campuses throughout the city even without a signed contract with Orange County Public Schools. City Manager Randy Knight has said the issue is not whether the city will pay, but how much. The cost is being negotiated because several cities, including Winter Park, argue the school district should use more of the state dollars designated for safety toward school resource officer costs.
Q for Kris Cruzada: How do you respond to your opponent’s claims that the current commission is engaging in “government overreach that attacks our small businesses and homeowners?”
Cruzada: The City is always trying to find ways to improve our quality of life. The leaf blower ordinance originally came about prior to my term on the dais. It came about because of the many residents working from home, during COVID on Zoom or Microsoft Teams calls, that complained about the noise from leaf blowers. The ordinance had a provision to delay enforcement for local landscapers/lawn maintenance companies to adapt. However, as we came closer to the time to begin enforcement, many of the lawn maintenance crews complained that it was difficult for them to charge electric blower batteries in the field or in shops because of the sheer number they had to have to fulfill their workload. As a result, the Commission voted to have it go to a referendum. We have listened to the residents and the small businesses within the community and brought it to a referendum for residents to decide.
Q: What is the role of arts in the community?
Vermuth: Winter Parks’ arts and culture are a huge part of what makes our community so special. I will oppose cuts to arts and culture while using my platform and relationships to seek state and federal funding sources to reduce the burden on taxpayers.
Cruzada: The arts allows for people to see and hear expressive ideas, which often bridge gaps between people and diverse groups. Arts within a community allows people to connect and grow with one another by reflecting on shared experiences, emotions and values.
Q: Would you support new expenditures to the Dr. Phillips Performing Arts Center?
Vermuth: Yes, provided they don’t lead to a tax increase.
Cruzada: Not at this time. I’d like to focus on more of our local nonprofit art institutions within the city.
Context provided by the Voice: A previous City Commission voted to spend $1 million on the Dr. Phillips Center in Orlando ($100,000 per year for 10 years) and that payment period has now ended.
Q: Any other specific elements of your platform that you want to share with readers? What other messages about your candidacy do you want to get across that help differentiate you from your opponent?
Vermuth: I have three kids who attend school at Brookshire Elementary. That’s why one of my top priorities is to ensure that the safety of our students, teachers, and everyone who works at Winter Park’s public schools comes first. In addition, I think that my campaign can appeal to families who have a story like me and Lindsay’s — people who have worked hard and saved up in order to buy a house here. I recently learned that 4 out of 10 Winter Park students qualify for free and reduced lunch. It’s clear that while Winter Park is a wonderful place to live and work, there is more that we can do to make sure that every family feels safe, supported and secure.
Cruzada: My platform reflects a balanced approach to managing a full-service city. Winter Park residents and businesses expect a high level of service, along with a great quality of life. My goals are to stay focused on maintaining our quality of life. I have taken the initiative to go out to meet the residents by canvassing. As I have campaigned, I have met so many residents on their doorstep. Sometimes, residents talk about their history of living in Winter Park and how they first came to Winter Park. Winter Parkers are passionate about their city and are always seeking ways to improve it. Whether they live in Brookshire Heights, Kenilworth Shores, Waterbridge, Orwin Manor, Lake Bell, Park Grove, Lake Forest Park, Windsong, Arbor Park, College Quarter, Virginia Heights, Killarney Estates, The Shores of Lake Killarney, (so many neighborhoods that are too many to list), I have learned so much from the residents and their neighborhoods and know that they care about the city.
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by Beth Kassab | Feb 14, 2025 | City Commission, Election, News, Uncategorized
Endorsed by the Winter Park chamber PAC, Justin Vermuth builds campaign chest
Incumbent Kris Cruzada said he is relying on mostly smaller donations from residents
Feb. 14, 2025
By Beth Kassab
Justin Vermuth, who is challenging Kris Cruzada for Seat 3 on the City Commission, is leading the fundraising contest so far, bolstered by at least $10,000 in contributions from companies related to the Holler family and the attorney for the prominent landowners and car dealers.
Vermuth, who was endorsed this week by the political action committee affiliated with the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce, reported $24,515 in contributions through Feb. 4 while Cruzada, the incumbent, raised $16,400 ahead of the March 11 election.
The bulk of Vermuth’s money, or $20,000, came in $1,000 donations — the maximum allowed per donor per campaign cycle.
For example, a total of $10,000 comes from companies associated with the Holler family such as Holler Hyundai, Holler Honda, Classic Mazda, Audi North Orlando, Classic Honda and Driver’s Mart Sanford. They gave $1,000 each.
So did Frank Hamner, the longtime attorney for the Holler family. Hamner, who serves as spokesman for the family, did not return a phone call or email seeking comment.
Asked about his relationship with the Holler family and how he met them, Vermuth said via email that he’s proud “to have support from residents, small businesses, and community leaders across Winter Park.”
“We’re building a broad coalition of supporters, many of whom have chosen to donate to my campaign,” he said. “I’m also proud to have an outstanding campaign team for advertising and polling.”
He declined to share the results of his polling so far.
Bundled contributions from companies related to the Holler family will seem a familiar strategy to those who follow Winter Park politics. Last year the family’s companies contributed in a similar way to Craig Russell, who won Seat 2 over Jason Johnson, by 34 votes.
The Hollers, along with landowner Mary Demetree, sued the city of Winter Park alleging that a series of development rules known as the Orange Avenue Overlay, where the family owns property, were improperly overturned in 2020. The new rules still stand.
Last year the City Commission, including Cruzada, approved the Holler’s proposal for a portion of its property at Fairbanks Avenue and Denning Drive that involved providing a piece of land to the city to widen the road and make improvements at the busy intersection.
Another similarity to last year’s election cycle: Vermuth, like Russell, has the support of Winter PAC, the political action committee affiliated with the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce. The PAC has raised more than $85,000 since the start of last year’s campaigns and spent more than $40,000.
It’s most recent expenditure on Feb. 10 is listed as nearly $8,000 for mailers related to a candidate paid to MDW Communications, which shares the same Lake Worth address as a political consulting firm called Claughton Consulting. Vermuth’s campaign has paid more than $11,000 to Claughton Consulting for polling, palm cards, e-mail services and yard signs, according to financial reports.
“The Winter PAC board of directors voted to endorse Vermuth because they believe he will bring a needed perspective shift in leadership, and he has personal experience with issues families in our community are facing,” read a press release from the PAC released this week.
Cruzada said he was approached with a potential contribution from the chamber PAC before Vermuth entered the race in mid January, but declined because he said he felt more comfortable taking contributions from individuals.
A chamber spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a question from the Voice about whether Cruzada was offered the group’s support.
“I think I have a record that shows I have worked with the Winter Park chamber,” Cruzada said, noting that he helped the group lobby for arts dollars in Tallahassee and also supported changes to the city’s parking code pushed by the chamber to reduce the amount of parking spaces developers must build in certain instances. “I was more about individual donations versus, say, a PAC … My supporters who walked neighborhoods and campaigned for me, I didn’t want to leave them behind at all. They are very well informed voters and participants in Winter Park policy.”
Less than half of Cruzada’s $16,000 campaign fund — about $6,000 has come in the form of $1,000 checks. His top donors include two former mayors — Phil Anderson and David Strong and Sally Flynn, a local resident and an organizer and volunteer for his campaign. (Full disclosure: Strong and Flynn are key supporters of the nonprofit Voice, which is solely supported by community contributions. See our editorial policy here.)
Most of Cruzada’s contributions come in the form of smaller-dollar amounts from more than 45 individuals, mostly Winter Park residents.
Vermuth’s other contributors included $3,000 from Seth Heller and his financial services companies in South Florida. Jason Gamel, president of the American Resort Development Association, also gave $1,000.
Vermuth serves as a senior vice president and chief lobbyist for the association that represents timeshare companies across the nation.
Two lobbyists from the firm The Southern Group — Kelly Cohen and Kaley Slattery — gave a combined $300. The firm represents a list of influential clients from Walt Disney World to Tavistock Development Company, which is seeking to develop large tracts of land in east Orange County.
About 20 Winter Park residents contributed to Vermuth’s campaign, including former Commissioner Sarah Sprinkel and chamber officer Carroll Goggin, according to the reports.
Update: This story was updated to include comments from Vermuth.
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by Beth Kassab | Jan 21, 2025 | City Commission, Election, News, Uncategorized
Warren Lindsey walks into Commission Seat 4 without opposition
Incumbent Kris Cruzada draws opponent Justin Vermuth for Commission Seat 3 as qualifying ended Tuesday ahead of the March election
Jan. 21, 2025
By Beth Kassab
First-time candidate and local defense attorney Warren Lindsey was automatically elected to the Winter Park City Commission on Tuesday after no other candidates qualified by the noon deadline.
Lindsey will take Seat 4 in the place of Todd Weaver after a swearing-in ceremony set for late March. Weaver opted not to run again.
He said he looked forward to getting to know more city staff and preparing to start his term.
“The polestar of my service will be to always put the interests of our citizens first and to promote our local businesses,” said Lindsey, a registered Democrat, on Tuesday afternoon.
Kris Cruzada
City elections are technically nonpartisan, but party politics historically bleeds into the campaigns and, in turn, some city issues with local party officials providing funding and campaign help.
Records show Lindsey raised nearly $35,000 for his campaign, including a $20,000 loan from himself. Contributors included prominent Democratic donors such as former Mayor Phil Anderson and Jennifer Anderson and former Commissioner Sarah Sprinkel, also a registered Democrat.
Lindsey currently serves on the city’s Planning & Zoning Commission and played a role in pushing Rollins College to agree to make partial tax payments on an apartment project the liberal arts school proposed as a way to provide a more affordable housing option close to campus for its early career faculty. In August, the City Commission approved the project, including the first-of-its-kind PILOT or payment in lieu of taxes agreement between the city and a tax-exempt nonprofit, after multiple revisions to the apartments’ architecture.
“I thought that project represented a constructive and collaborative effort by the city, Rollins and the surrounding neighbors,” he said. “It resulted in a quality project with less density and more parking than originally proposed.”
Justin Vermuth
Joining Lindsey on the dais for a new term in March will be the winner of a two-way contest for Seat 3 between incumbent Kris Cruzada, an attorney, and newcomer Justin Vermuth, an attorney who works as a lobbyist for the timeshare industry. The election is March 11.
Cruzada, a Republican who was first elected to the commission in 2022, grew up in the area and said he wants to continue to serve the residents for another term to “focus on infrastructure, keep our milage rate low and partner with nonprofit institutions on arts and culture,” among other issues.
“Between 36 months ago to today, I’ve learned a lot,” Cruzada said. “I think the record of the commission with Seven Oaks Park, the redevelopment of Winter Park Village, the redevelopment of the former Bank of the Ozarks property has all laid a good foundation for how we would like to develop moving forward.”
Records show Cruzada has raised $1,700.
He said he doesn’t know Vermuth well, but did appoint him to the Lakes and Waterways Board in 2022.
“I look forward to hearing what he has to say and I hope it’s a collegial race where the residents will have the ability to fully discern and decide who will be best for the city of Winter Park,” Cruzada said.
Vermuth did not return messages seeking comment for this story. Because he just entered the race he has not yet filed a campaign finance report. His LinkedIn profile lists him as the senior vice president for government affairs for the American Resort Development Association, which represents the timeshare industry.
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CORRECTION: This story previously listed the wrong party affiliation for former Commissioner Sarah Sprinkel. She is a registered Democrat.
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by Beth Kassab | Jan 6, 2025 | City Commission, Election, Historic Preservation, News, Uncategorized
Winter Park Playhouse, a commissioner's home and gas leaf blower ban top first agenda of 2025
Commissioners are slated to move forward on the purchase of the Playhouse building as Blue Bamboo seeks to move ahead with renovations at the old library. Changes to historic preservation rules as well as a designation of a commissioner’s home on the local register also up for consideration
Jan. 6, 2025
By Beth Kassab
Winter Park commissioners will return to the dais on Wednesday for the first time in the new year with an agenda that also highlights some of the issues that are likely to remain front and center through the first half of 2025.
Let’s dive right in:
The arts scene
After a long period of uncertainty about its future, the Winter Park Playhouse appears on a solid path to expanding in the same place patrons have come to love the community theater.
Commissioners will take a vote on the contract to purchase the building, part of a deal use Orange County tourist tax dollars for the acquisition and renovations that would allow the playhouse to stay put. The nonprofit theater was unable to purchase the building on its own and risked losing its stage if the land was bought and redeveloped by another owner.
The city considered multiple options, with some commissioners even angling to help the theater construct a new building in Seven Oaks Park, but ultimately settled on applying for a Tourist Development Tax grant. The county awarded the city $8 million in the fall to move forward on the project.
The city will purchase the building at 711 N. Orange Ave. for $3.8 million following a 60-day inspection period if the contract is approved. The remainder of the grant along with $2 million to be raised by the playhouse will go toward expanding seating capacity by 50% and other upgrades.
According to a staff memorandum posted with the City Commission agenda, the purchase would not impose any immediate costs to the city because it intends to enter a lease with the Playhouse that says the theater is financially responsible for all upkeep. But with the city as the owner of the land, it’s likely that the property will become exempt from taxes that fund city and county services such as roads, parks and schools — an estimated loss of about $15,000 each year to the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency.
At the same time, Blue Bamboo Center for the Arts is moving forward on its plans to renovate the old library, which it’s leasing from the city.
A rendering shows the proposed entrance for the new Blue Bamboo, which plans to repurpose the old library. (Courtesy of Blue Bamboo)
Executive Director Chris Cortez said the project is in the second round of permitting revisions and he hopes to start construction work soon. He is targeting opening the first floor of the building as a venue space during the first quarter of this year. Aside from adding stages and seating and making the bathrooms accessible to people who use wheelchairs, his team is looking at other changes such as converting the former book store into a space for records and retail similar to the Blue Bamboo’s old lobby.
“We love the original design,” Cortez said. “We aren’t proposing very many changes to the building structure at all.”
Historic Preservation
It’s unusual for city commissioners to bring business before their own board, but that will happen Wednesday when Todd Weaver asks fellow commissioners to add his home on Lake Bell to the city’s Register of Historic Places.
Weaver said he’s been contemplating historic designation for the mid-century modern home west of U.S. 17-92 for some time and decided to take action before longtime Planning Director Jeff Briggs retires this month.
Critics have asserted that Weaver has flouted city rules by adding on to the home without proper permits. But Weaver disputes those claims, noting that his neighborhood wasn’t annexed by the city until 2004 and the work he did was permitted by Orange County.
The home includes a 515-square-foot detached space that Weaver calls a “cottage.” He said it started out as a shed and was used as his shop for a time before he made changes to convert it into a living space.
Before he knew it was against city code, he rented out the cottage. But Weaver said he hasn’t done so since 2018 when he learned short-term rentals were not permitted by Winter Park.
He said he now offers the space for free to artists who are coming through town to perform with the opera or philharmonic.
A historic designation would allow Weaver to rent out the cottage for a minimum of 30 days at a time. Owners of historic homes are granted that perk to add value to properties that they have agreed not to demolish and rebuild at a larger footprint.
But Weaver says he doesn’t intend to take advantage of that provision.
“I don’t have any plans of renting it out now,” he said, but will allow the arts community to continue to use the space.
The Historic Preservation Board recommended last month that the home be added to the register.
“Many of these low-sloped roof, one-story homes from the 1950s are what the city routinely sees for tear-downs and rebuilds,” read the staff report. “Especially in lakefront locations. What this historic designation will do is to maintain the scale and look of the original homes built in this neighborhood.”
Commissioners will also consider new procedures and penalties when it comes to unauthorized construction or demolitions of historic properties. The changes are in response to recent violations in historic neighborhoods.
Under the proposed new rules, the ordinance would add a review process of construction plans after the initial approval. The code will also clarify that any authorized alterations or demolitions must be replaced by architectural styling from the era represented in the neighborhood, often from the 1920s to the 1940s.
In addition, if a structure is demolished without authorization, the city can revoke setback variances previously granted on the property in exchange for preservation. The new code also says property owners can propose financial compensation to the city as a way of retaining setback variances.
March elections
So far, the two City Commission seats up for grabs this year, have attracted just one candidate each. Without opposition, those candidates will be automatically elected and there will be no need for poll workers, ballot counting or any of the other related Election Day infrastructure.
As a result, commissioners will vote on Wednesday whether to convert the referendum on gas-powered leaf blowers to a mail-only ballot. The question before voters — if the city should keep and begin enforcing its ban on the lawn tools that generate frequent noise complaints — is the only other item on the March 11 ballot aside from the commission seats.
Commissioners gave initial approval in December to a mail ballot if no other candidates qualify to run for commissioner by the deadline at noon on Jan. 21.
So far Kris Cruzada, the incumbent, has filed to run again for Seat 3. Warren Lindsey, a criminal defense attorney, filed to run for Seat 4 after incumbent Todd Weaver opted not to run again.
The board is required to vote on the change a second time and will also consider revised wording intended to clarify the ballot question.
Up for discussion
Commissioners are also set to approve their own meeting schedule for the first quarter, including a series of discussion-only workshops through March. The topics of those meetings help illustrate the board’s upcoming priorities:
Jan. 23: The concepts for a Park Avenue refresh project
Feb. 13: A debate about the process and criteria, if any, the city should consider when awarding grants to local nonprofits
Feb. 27: Changes to the city’s election code
March 13: The group’s first discussion about the 2026 budget
March 27: The city’s street sweeping policy
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