U.S. Census Bureau Reports Central FL Population Explosion
How will Winter Park Cope?
Documentary Film – “Rebels With A Cause”
The 14th Annual Global Peace Film Festival and Rollins College present the documentary film “Rebels With A Cause,” in which a group of “ordinary” northern Californians dealt with just such a question.
Thursday, September 22 – 8:00 pm Rollins College Bush Auditorium Click here to buy tickets
Panel Discussion
Immediately following the film, there will be a panel discussion moderated by Orlando Sentinel Columnist Beth Kassab. The five panelists are: Mark Brewer, President & CEO, Central Florida Foundation Becky Wilson, Attorney, Lowndes, Drosdick, Doster, Kantor & Reed Bruce Stephenson, Professor Environmental Studies, Rollins College Chris Castro, City of Orlando Director of Sustainability Steve Goldman, Winter Park Visioning Steering Committee
Central FL Growing Fastest
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Central Florida is the fastest growing of the 30 largest regions in the country. In January, Orlando Economic Development Commission CEO Rick Weddle told an audience at the Orange County Convention Center that Orlando is “growing at close to double the rate” of the U.S. population. “More people are expected to move here than at any other point in history,” said Weddle, “with a net immigration of 350,000 new residents by 2020.”
Sooner or later, all 350,000 of our new neighbors will find their way to or through Winter Park.
How Will WP Preserve Quality of Life?
One of the overriding concerns expressed by Winter Park residents during the recently completed Visioning Process was how to preserve the character of Winter Park in the face of such growth. Steve Goldman told the Voice in a recent interview, “One thing became clear as we spoke with thousands of people during the Visioning process, and that was that people place a very high value on the village feel of Winter Park. They value the lakes and the tree canopy – the feeling of openness. They expressed a concern that all that was eroding as density increased, and they felt boxed in.”
Can Parks, Green Space Keep Pace with Population Growth?
A growing number of Winter Park residents, including Goldman, believe the only way Winter Park can preserve our quality of life is to ensure that our parks and green space increase at the same rate as the population. “Imagine New York without Central Park,” said Goldman, “or San Francisco without Golden Gate. Without the relief of that green space, neither place would be as attractive, and real estate values would certainly not be at their current levels.”
Government Can’t Solve the Problem
“Everyone seemed to be expressing the same concerns,” said Goldman, “and it became clear to me that government wasn’t going to solve this problem. Nobody wants to raise taxes to buy green space. It became clear that it was going to take a private initiative to bring this about.”
It’s Been Done
“This movie, ‘Rebels with a Cause,’ illustrates that if enough people believe something can happen, it can happen,” said Goldman. “As I’ve been talking to more people about this idea of creating a trust fund to acquire greenspace, I’ve found almost universal excitement about it. The real question is how do you bring people together to do something like this?”
Come See the Inspiring Story of How They Did It
“Rebels with a Cause” chronicles the long journey of preserving coastal lands in Marin and Sonoma Counties in California. Writes Nadine de Coteau of EarthJustice: This film is “a reminder that a strong coalition of ‘regular people’ can achieve a truly ambitious goal.”
Winter Park’s pick for Top Cop, Dallas Police Department Narcotics Division Deputy Chief Vernon Hale, announced over the weekend that he has withdrawn his name from consideration. This leaves the post open as Brett Railey begins his final week as Chief of Police of the city he has served for nearly 35 years.
The news leaked out during the August 22 Commission meeting. No reason was given for Hale’s change of heart – simply that he “had changed his mind.” In a subsequent interview, Chief Railey told the Voice that the City has a sizeable pool of well-qualified applicants from which to draw, and that he expected a new Chief will be announced soon.
Whoever Railey’s successor turns out to be, he’ll have a big pair of shoes to fill – and some decorating to do.
Older vs Bolder
Are These the Cars of Arts & Culture?
Previously, during Commissioner reports at the end of the August 8 Commission meeting, Commissioner Sarah Sprinkel reported that she had seen a strange looking police car in a Publix parking lot. While the paint job identified the vehicle, a small SUV, as a Winter Park police car, Sprinkel was taken aback by the new paint job.
It turned out that some of the younger officers had approached Railey with the notion that the old paint job on the police sedans looked a little, well, stodgy. “Too Nineties.” Here is Chief Railey describing what happened when he challenged the officers to come up with a new look.
Once the design was approved by City Manager Randy Knight and senior staff at the police department, all new vehicles were slated to have the new look. Winter Park now boasts eight small SUVs with the new design.
“Not My Favorite,” says Leary
“The police cars are some of our most visible branding devices,” said Mayor Steve Leary. “And I don’t think that paint scheme, that detail, matches anything else we’re doing in the city of Winter Park.” Leary went on to explain that there should be a “more consolidated view” of branding, and directed the City Communications Department to become more involved in the design of the new cars.
Railey responded, “That’s an understandable concern that you may have,” and suggested the Commission direct the City Manager to direct the new Police Chief to change the paint job moving forward.
The Comprehensive Plan review has begun in earnest.
The Comprehensive Plan – a.k.a the Comp Plan – is described by the City Communications Department as “the document that governs the City’s plans for growth through policies that guide development.”
Comp Plan = City Blueprint
The policies set forth in the Comp Plan protect and improve our city assets and provide for city infrastructure. In terms of importance to the city, the Comp Plan is second only to the City Charter. The Comp Plan is required by Florida Statute, Chapter 163.3161, and is given legal status mandating that public and private development must comply with the Comp Plan.
Deadline for Completion – 2/1/2017
The Comp Plan is updated every seven years to ensure it is in compliance with Florida statutes. Last reviewed in 2009, an update it is now due. The Commission has until February 1, 2017, to approve the Comp Plan and send a final version to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity in Tallahassee.
The City Planning Department will spearhead the review, with the assistance of the Comprehensive Plan Task Force — Nancy Miles, Laura Turner and Marc Reicher — and the City advisory boards that oversee the various elements of the Plan.
Don’t Give Up – Keep Reading (or skip this section and come back to it)
The Comp Plan consists of two major documents. The one entitled “Goals, Objectives and Policies” (GOP) is adopted by the Commission and carries the weight of law. The information from which the GOP derives is in a support document entitled “Data, Information and Analysis” (DIA). In our current Comp Plan, the GOPs and DIAs are organized into nine chapters, or ‘elements.’
• Future Land Use – Includes map of land use allowed on every property in Winter Park.
• Transportation – Addresses roadways, sidewalks, buses, rail and biking and walking trails.
• Housing – Includes projection of future population.
• Public Facilities – Infrastructure services such as sanitary sewer, solid waste disposal, potable (drinkable) water and storm water drainage.
• Conservation – Defines conservation lands, air and water quality and water conservation.
• Recreation and Open Space – Plans and policies to meet projects need for parkland and open space. Current level of service requires 10 acres of publicly owned park and conservation land per 1,000 residents.
• Capital Improvements – This element is updated annually as part of the City budget process and includes all infrastructure required to support the population.
• Intergovernmental Coordination – Outlines the City’s agreement with other government entities such as the FL Department of Transportation, Orange County School Board, St. John’s Water Management District and surrounding municipalities and counties.
• Public Schools – Reflects agreement with Orange County Public Schools to provide facilities to serve resident school-aged children.
You Still Awake?
As always, the devil is in the details. Here is one example. If you go to the City website and click the “Comprehensive Plan” icon on the main page, it will take you to the Comp Plan. Under “Data, Analysis and Inventories” is a chart listing all parks and the precise acreage of each. The total acreage listed there is 296.45 acres. dia-ch6-recreation-open-space.pdf
A document distributed by City Planning Director Dori Stone at the August 1, 2016 meeting of the Comp Plan Task Force, entitled “Park Level of Service Standards,” states Winter Park’s park and conservation land at a total of 346.16 acres.
Where Did That 50 Acres Come From?
On August 5, the City Communications Department wrote to the Voice, “Staff will need to research the differential in total acres. GIS is a factor, some new parcels were added, i.e., the West Meadow, and we need to research what others resulted in the difference.”
GIS, by the way, stands for Geographic Information System, which is a more accurate way of measuring land area. Even with GIS, however, as of this writing we are still not sure about those 50 acres. Part of the Comp Plan review process will be to manage discrepancies of this sort.
Why Does 50 Acres Matter?
At a level of service of 10 acres of park and conservation land per 1,000 residents, 346.16 acres would support a population of 34,616. (Winter Park population estimate as of 2015 stands at 28,967.) Since Winter Park is landlocked, how would we fit another 5,000 to 6,000 people? By increasing density. Where would we increase density? In those single-family residential neighborhoods the Comp Plan is meant to protect?
Is the Comp Plan Review Important to You?
If you care how this city will look in two or five or seven years, it is important. The Voice will post updates as the review process moves from Advisory Board to Advisory Board under the guidance of City staff and the Comp Plan Task Force. A “2016 Comprehensive Plan Timeline” is posted on the city website. 2016-comprehensive-plan-timeline.pdf
The City will update the schedule as necessary, and all meetings are open to the public.
As technical and wonky as it may seem, the Comp Plan review affects how we live. It is worthy of our attention. In the words of Commissioner Carolyn Cooper, our Comp Plan is “a contract between the residents of Winter Park and our government that defines how and where we will grow and what level of public services we will enjoy for the taxes we pay.”
Meet Michael Ott. He appears to be a healthy, normal 5-year-old – that is, until you put a golf club in his hand. Then, he’s all business.
Michael lives here in Winter Park with his Mom and Dad and his sister. He will begin Kindergarten in the fall at St. Margaret Mary.
Years of Experience
Michael has been playing golf since he was two. His father, Rich Ott, says Michael has only had two formal lessons, from Justin, the former head Golf Pro at the Winter Park County Club. One golfing enthusiast, upon hearing about this 5-year-old phenom, quipped, “I’ve got candy bars in my golf bag that are older than that!”
Making Long Drives
Michael plays golf every chance he gets. He regularly hits the ball 100+ yards. He told me that one time he hit it 121 yards. Since Michael is still fairly small in stature, that would be approximately 121 times his height. Eat your hearts out.
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Michael told me he likes golf better than he likes chocolate ice cream. Go figure.
When I asked Michael what his secret is, he said, “I just putt it and it goes in.”
Next World Champ?
Michael has become something of a celebrity in Central Florida golfing circles. This picture appeared on the cover of the Winter Park Parks & Recreation 2014 Annual Report.
On Memorial Day weekend, Michael won the Regional Qualifier, ages 8 and under, for the 2016 World Putting Championship. On July 9, Michael will be one of 30 competitors in his age group at the World Putting Championship in San Diego. His dad Rich will caddy for him. http://futurechampionsgolf.com/contests/putting/
When I asked Michael if he thought he might win the tournament, he said quietly, “Yes.”
Rich Ott has promised to keep the Voice updated on Michael’s progress in San Diego. Watch for updates over the weekend.
In the closing minutes of the May 23 Commission Meeting, Mayor Steve Leary announced the formation of a three-member Comprehensive Plan Task Force. Leary explained the purpose of the task force is to “help [staff] synthesize all the information from the advisory boards and to keep [the review process] on schedule.”
Comp Plan Task Force
Named to the task force are Nancy Miles, Marc Reicher and Laura Turner.
Reicher served as chair of the Economic Development Advisory Board. Laura Turner is a certified city planner who has also served on Winter Park advisory boards. Nancy Miles served on the Tennis Advisory Board and the Library Task Force.
Comp Plan: How We Grow
The Comprehensive Plan is the blueprint for how the City develops and grows over the years. The City reviews the plan every seven years and makes a formal report to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO). The plan was last updated in 2009, so is due for review in 2016.
City May Choose to Update Comp Plan – or Not
According to the DEO, the state agency that oversees Comp Plan reviews, the City may “determine whether the need exists to amend the comprehensive plan to reflect changes in state requirements since the last time the comprehensive plan was updated.” The DEO website notes that Florida has relaxed its regulations to afford local governments “more discretion” in determining whether they need to update their comp plans.
WP Review to be Public Process
City Communications Director Clarissa Howard told the Voice that the Winter Park Comp Plan review, “. . . will be a thorough public process to review each element [and] will involve the input and analysis of city staff, advisory boards and residents. The city will offer a variety of opportunities for public participation at advisory board meetings, special public workshops and City Commission meetings.”
City to Publish Comp Plan News
“All dates, locations and times will be posted on the Comp Plan page of the city website at www.cityofwinterpark.org/comp-plan,” Howard wrote.
Howard also noted that information will be emailed regularly to those who sign up for the Comp Plan email subscription at www.cityofwinterpark.org/citEnews.
Now that Winter Park voters are on board to pay for a brand new library, the city is cautiously considering moving city hall into the current library building.
After city staff recommended exploring the idea Monday, city commissioners called for more information about the site’s strengths and weaknesses. A staff report said the building was in “good” condition with a “fairly new” heat and air-conditioning system and energy-efficient lighting. City Manager Randy Knight also said some current city-hall functions could be moved to another site if they didn’t need to be in a prime location.
Not everyone was enthusiastic about the idea, however. Commissioner Sarah Sprinkel noted the city already knows about the existing library from the research done by the Library Facility Task Force. The task force nixed renovating the building after concluding it has too many challenges, including poor wi-fi connections and limited space and parking.
Commissioners Pete Weldon and Carolyn Cooper both stressed the importance of hearing from the public before making any decision about city hall or any other high-profile city properties valuable to residents. Cooper said it was “fiscally responsible to explore reuse of that [library] building,” but she would not support selling the property.
One staff option for city hall never made it into the discussion. Staff raised the possibility of another bond-issue to build a new city hall on the Park Avenue site, but Mayor Steve Leary said any discussion of that idea was “premature.”
Meanwhile, Winter Park’s new library seems destined to be built in Martin Luther King Jr. Park. The issue was never raised Monday except for a plea from former mayor Joe Terranova during the public-comment portion of the meeting. “You’re going to have to reconsider this,” he said, noting the close vote on the library bond issue. “You have a split community now.”
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