by Beth Kassab | Dec 15, 2023 | City Commission, Election, News, Uncategorized
Michael Cameron criticizes city spending and priorities
The first salvo in the mayor’s contest comes as the newcomer and challenger to Vice Mayor Sheila DeCiccio makes his first public comments about the race
Dec. 13, 2023
By Beth Kassab
The relatively unknown challenger in the mayor’s race attempted to separate himself from Vice Mayor Sheila DeCiccio this week by saying he “wants to bring back fiscal responsibility to Winter Park.”
Cameron, who is president of a real estate school and is a first-time candidate, said in a press release this week that he would have different priorities than the current City Commission, though some of his claims underscore his status as a newcomer to local government. Cameron declined to immediately answer questions about his statements in the release, though he did revise a statement that initially asserted DeCiccio is “depleting the city’s cash reserves” after questions from the Voice.
Michael Cameron
“My campaign is focused on more substantive issues, like making sure the city has a strong cash reserve on hand with low debt, making sure the city is fully prepared for a storm, or economic downturn, making sure our first responders, schools and educators have the resources they need to be successful,” he said. “Making sure this city remains a great place to raise a family, lowering our residents’ tax base, facilitating property value increases and supporting the Winter Park business community.”
The city’s cash reserves have steadily increased in recent years to a record $19.1 million or about 26% of recurring operating costs in the General Fund, according to city documents. The percent of operating costs represented by reserves has declined since 2021 from about 30%, the city’s stated goal, as inflation, labor costs and other pressures on expenses since the pandemic have increased along with the overall size of the city’s budget.
Winter Park shifted significant resources this year to storm preparedness, particularly in the wake of flooding caused by Hurricane Ian last year. DeCiccio has repeatedly sounded the alarm and called for urgency when it comes to studies now underway to help prioritize stormwater projects. Police and fire budgets reached new highs this year as well with first responders making up the biggest slice of the city’s General Fund.
It’s unclear what Cameron meant by resources for “schools and educators.” City governments don’t have any say over school budgets, which are approved by local school boards.
“My opponent’s focus has been on purchasing green spaces, as well as issues like bike paths and extending sidewalks, which in the grand scheme of things aren’t as important, as say, planning for a financial crunch or getting hit by another major storm or readying the city for any other 21st century needs,” he said.
The only greenspace the city has purchased in recent years is the Winter Park Pines Golf Course, which it issued bonds to finance. The operating revenue from golf sales is helping to pay off the debt.
Winter Park is about to begin construction on Seven Oaks Park, which is now projected to cost about $800,000 more than estimates from a few years ago, but the city already owned the land for the project.
Asked to respond to Cameron’s comments, DeCiccio noted that the city hasn’t raised taxes in 17 years. However, the City Commission this year passed a number of increased fees for residents such as the cost at recreation facilities and higher prices for garbage collection.
DeCiccio said improving bike paths and sidewalks is a safety and quality of life issue for families, particularly in Central Florida, which has repeatedly ranked among the most dangerous places in the nation for pedestrians.
“That is a safety issue for our children,” she said.
Cameron’s release said he was born in Winter Park and he and his wife are now raising their two young boys in the city. He touted an endorsement from Republican Jeremy Sisson, who works in real estate and unsuccessfully ran in 2020 against Democrat Anna Eskamani, who represents Winter Park in the Florida House.
“I take my hat off to everyone who came before me who has worked hard to help maintain the old-world charm that Winter Park has to offer its residents and its visitors,” Cameron said. “Because of all of you, my generation and generations after me will get to enjoy the Winter Park that you all created. If elected as your mayor, I would work hard every day to maintain and improve upon that Winter Park we all know and love.”
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by Beth Kassab | Dec 9, 2023 | City Commission, News, Uncategorized, Zoning and Development
Winter Park Commons, Ravaudage incentives and Seven Oaks construction
This week’s City Commission meeting will bring potential resolutions and updates on several major projects
Dec. 9, 2023
By Beth Kassab
This week’s City Commission meeting, the final one of the year, is likely to bring some answers to questions about several major projects including a proposed townhome complex on the west side, a large mixed-use development and the construction of Seven Oaks Park.
Here’s an overview of what to expect at Wednesday’s meeting:
- Winter Park Commons. Commissioners tabled in November a decision on a 53-unit multi-family housing project near Winter Park Village over concerns from residents that the multi-story townhomes were incompatible with neighboring smaller, single-family homes. The developer’s revised plans will go before the commission this week. The project remains 53 units, but now includes more single-family homes in place of some of the townhome units. Plans now also include five on-street parking spaces and a revised driveway on Webster Avenue.
- Ravaudage incentives. The city originally agreed to reimburse the developer of of Ravaudage, a mixed-use project, a maximum of $1.2 million for road improvements. The developer is now seeking an additional $300,000 for improvements that weren’t included in the first agreement because the land was not yet annexed into Winter Park. The commission tabled a decision on the new reimbursement in November, questioning the justification. According to city documents, two new businesses along the stretch in question — Bank OZK and Lifetime Fitness — would pay enough in mobility fees to cover the cost of the city’s reimbursement to the developer.
- Seven Oaks Park. The cost of the city’s newest park increased by about $800,000 to $5 million since the city first estimated the price a few years ago. With construction now slated to start on Dec. 18, city staff is recommending the City Commission postpone wifi upgrades to reallocate $220,000 use another $320,000 that had been set aside for planning studies. Staff also recommends another $250,000 come from the city’s contingency fund to make up the deficit. If approved, construction would begin this month and the park would be finished in the Fall of 2024, according to the staff memorandum.
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by Beth Kassab | Dec 8, 2023 | City Commission, Election, News, Uncategorized
New candidate enters mayoral contest as qualifying deadline nears
First-time candidate Michael Cameron Sidawi opened a campaign account to run against Vice Mayor Sheila DeCiccio
Dec. 8, 2023
By Beth Kassab
Vice Mayor Sheila DeCiccio drew an opponent in her bid for mayor with real estate school owner Michael Cameron Sidawi filing to run against her.
Reached by phone on Friday, Sidawi told the Voice he wasn’t yet ready to discuss his campaign and declined to answer questions.
He has until Monday at noon to turn in the required petitions to secure a spot on the March 19 ballot.
DeCiccio turned her petitions in earlier in the week and said she is focused on getting her message about maintaining Winter Park’s charm and fixing infrastructure needs in front of voters.
Sheila DeCiccio talks with residents at a meet-and-greet event. (Courtesy of DeCiccio’s campaign.)
“I am looking forward to running a positive campaign and highlighting the accomplishments of Mayor [Phil] Anderson and the commission, discussing the issues, answering questions and, most importantly, listening to the residents and giving them a voice at City Hall,” DeCiccio said.
She announced her campaign in October and resigned from Commission Seat 2 effective after the election in order to run. That triggered an election for Seat 2, which has drawn three candidates so far.
Jason Johnson, an attorney, and Craig Russell, a teacher and coach at Winter Park High School both submitted their qualifying petitions to run for the seat.
Stockton Reeves, director of the Center for Public Safety, is also running for Seat 2, but has not yet submitted his petitions.
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by Beth Kassab | Dec 1, 2023 | Uncategorized
Looking for the holiday spirit? Check the city's event schedule
From Nights at the Morse to the annual boat parade, Winter Park offers something for everyone
Dec. 1, 2023
By Beth Kassab
December is busy for everyone, but especially in the city of Winter Park where the calendar is jam-packed with holiday festivities.
You can find a full calendar of events here.
Wreaths Across America, the boat parade, Chanukah on the Park, visits from Santa and special events at the Morse Museum are all part of the lineup. Don’t miss your favorites!
Here are a couple highlights from the event earlier this week that featured Tiffany glass in Central Park alongside the Bach Festival Choir.
John Sinclair leads the Bach Festival Choir and Brass Ensemble at Christmas in the Park on Thursday. (Courtesy: city of Winter Park)
A Tiffany window on display in Central Park as part of the annual Christmas in the Park event. (Courtesy: city of Winter Park)
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by Beth Kassab | Nov 18, 2023 | City Commission, News, Uncategorized
Neighbor fed up with construction of mega mansion on Palmer Avenue
Marc and Sharon Hagle started construction on the 40,000-square-foot home that includes a greenhouse and a gun range in 2021
Nov. 17, 2023
By Beth Kassab
Jerome Henin says he wakes up to the sound of beeping construction vehicles, hears the loud whirl of a commercial-sized air-conditioning unit at all hours from inside his home and must repeatedly clean layers of concrete dust that has settled on his own cars.
“Every morning for three years, I wake up to the sound of these beeps at 6:45,” Henin said. “I open my door every morning … you have so much going on, it’s amazing how traumatic it is.”
It’s not the kind of ambiance you would expect along Palmer Avenue, a mostly quiet road lined with trees and stately lakefront homes where occasional speeders have been the primary nuisance.
For Henin, though, living next to the largest residential construction project in the region has meant a cacophony of disturbances and concerns, according to a letter from his attorney Tucker Byrd to the City Commission and city administrators.
“The city has done little or nothing to address the problems, which seem to compound and increase, almost daily,” the Oct. 27 letter stated.
The letter outlined concerns ranging from whether the permits are still active on the property nearly three years into construction to questions about noise and safety related to the gun range and stormwater runoff.
An attorney for the city responded last week that there are no code violations related to the property and that Henin’s concerns are unfounded.
“Living next door puts Mr. Henin and his family in the possible line of fire and sound,” said the letter from Byrd. “Possessing firearms may be a constitutional right, but discharging them in a neighborhood with impunity surely should be reviewed.”
The response from city attorney Richard Geller said the gun range is “permitted as an indoor, enclosed facility in the basement of the house.”
“The city does not understand your contention that Mr. Henin and his family are in the ‘possible line of fire,'” he wrote. “The gun range includes acoustical tiles for sound amelioration. The city addressed this concern when raised my Mr. Henin before construction began.”
When asked about the construction complaints this week, Marc Hagle, who operates large commercial and residential developer Tricor International, told the Voice, “I’m not going to comment on all of that,” and hung up the phone.
Hagle and his wife Sharon purchased the property in 2017 for $3.6 million. The couple has been called the first married pair on a commercial space flight after they took an 11-minute ride on a Blue Origin rocket some 62 miles above earth last year.
The Hagles made headlines this year over a lawsuit they filed against the CEO of OceanGate Expeditions, the company that operated the submersible vehicle to view the wreckage of the Titanic, before the sub imploded this summer, killing everyone on board. The couple had made a deposit to ride on one of the undersea voyages, but their trip was delayed.
Henin, a native of France, is also a developer of residential and commercial properties in Florida and Europe. His home next door to the Hagles was built in 1926 by famed Winter Park architect James Gamble Rogers and at 9,700-square-feet is less than a quarter of the size of the house under construction.
Henin said he is disappointed by the city’s response to his concerns. The city attorney suggested he call the police about noise complaints and said the Hagles’ contractor has said he will perform sound testing periodically to make sure there are no violations.
Geller, the attorney for the city, also said officials are not aware of any terrain alterations that would cause stormwater runoff onto the Henin property nor is there anything the city can do about a large electrical transformer box installed about 40 feet from Henin’s driveway because it serves the entire neighborhood and utilities crews must be able to access it.
“The city should be our guardian … should be our protector,” Henin said. “They are saying it’s not our problem, basically.”
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by Beth Kassab | Nov 15, 2023 | News, Uncategorized
Donna Kelce no stranger to Winter Park. Could Taylor Swift follow?
The mom of NFL stars Jason Kelce and Travis Kelce, who is dating Taylor Swift, nonchalantly promotes Winter Park on social media
Nov. 15, 2023
By Beth Kassab
Just two weeks ago, the world’s most famous mother — at least in terms of pop culture cachet — posed on the dock of the Winter Park Scenic Boat Tour and gushed, “Thank you Captain Tom … We had a fantastic time!!!”
Donna Kelce’s Oct. 29 Instagram post quickly tallied more than 11,000 likes from her nearly 360,000 followers. It was at least her second time on the tour — she also posted a serene video through one of the Winter Park Chain of Lakes canals in 2020.
“My daughter pointed it out to me,” said Tom Smith, who has led boat tours for 14 years. “She saw it on Instagram and said, ‘Hey, Dad, you had someone pretty famous on your boat!'”
Smith said he’s a big football fan and, of course, knows who Travis Kelce is, but he said Donna Kelce was unassuming and content to blend in with the crowd while she was on the tour.
Kelce, whose recognition has soared since Taylor Swift first appeared in the family box at son Travis’ Kansas City Chiefs game in September, owns a condo in Baldwin Park — the Orlando neighborhood just south of Winter Park’s border. (Full disclosure: this writer is an unabashed Swiftie, lover of all the lyrical Eras and known to have traded a friendship bracelet or two.)
And while Kelce is just like any proud mom supporting her sons and causes that are important to her, she can’t help but also promote Central Florida along the way since she appears to call the region home when she’s not traveling.
Her local presence is now gaining off-the-charts attention — a photo of her attending a showing of Swift’s The Eras Tour Film over the weekend at a local theater went viral after Swiftie and local movie-goer Danielle Sparks posted the sighting on TikTok. Every outlet from People Magazine to Entertainment Tonight carried the photo.
Sparks told the Voice in a text message that she isn’t naming the theater where she spotted Kelce to protect her privacy. This writer and Central Florida native’s best guess based on the distinctive carpet in the background, is that it wasn’t the newly-renovated Regal in Winter Park Village, but the AMC at Altamonte Mall.
By Sunday, when the photo first appeared, the whole world was swooning over Swift’s lyric change on Saturday night while performing “Karma” in Buenos Aires, Argentina with Travis Kelce in attendance. Instead of “Karma is the guy on the screen … ” she sang, “Karma is the guy on the Chiefs coming straight home to me.” A video of Swift leaving the stage and running into Travis’ arms has been shared hundreds of thousands of times since the weekend.
Kelce didn’t post about seeing the film herself, though she did confirm to People that she saw it and thought it was “awesome.”
She has, though, posted other Central Florida locales — even if by accident.
Kelce appeared in a video for Kind Snacks posted to her Instagram in October in front of what locals immediately recognized as the University of Central Florida’s football stadium.
And six months ago, she filmed a video inside the Chico’s on Park Avenue in Winter Park ahead of Mother’s Day where she answered questions about her famous sons and her personal style that was posted to the brand’s YouTube channel. Kelce said in the video that some of her favorite wardrobe pieces are from the boutique.
Winter Parkers are used to the trappings of wealth and fame.
The Central Florida enclave nestled on a chain of lakes is studded with stunning homes belonging to entrepreneurs, real estate moguls and NBA players. And plenty of well-known names claim the address, like Poet Laureate Billy Collins, comedian Carrot Top and, for a time, soccer star Alex Morgan.
“Mama Kelce,” as she is affectionately known, was already scoring name recognition and deals with brands before Swift entered the picture. She famously wore a jersey that was half Philadelphia Eagles (Jason Kelce’s team) and half Kansas City Chiefs when the brothers faced each other in the Super Bowl earlier this year.
Her connection to Swift, though, arguably launches her into another stratosphere.
The masterful songwriter’s Eras Tour and recent album releases have smashed records, earning comparisons to The Beatles. Her “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” just became her 13th No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 (tying Drake), a tally surpassed only by Jay-Z with 14 No. 1 albums and The Beatles with 19, according to Billboard.
But even The Beatles — well, one of them — was a regular around Winter Park not long ago. Paul McCartney was spotted around town with some frequency before his stepson graduated from Rollins College in 2015.
Could it one day be Swift (not in the blue dress) on a boat tour?
“That would be super fun,” said Smith, the boat captain. “I would love to do it. I don’t know if I’d do it during the day … We have these trips at night, which are really fun, and that might be better for her.”
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