Commissioners Propose Cuts and New Spending Ahead of Budget Vote

The first vote on the total $247 million budget is scheduled for Wednesday

Sept. 4, 2026

By Beth Kassab

In response to political pressure from state government to reduce expenditures, the Winter Park City Commission appears poised to spend less money maintaining its tree canopy as well as on code enforcement and parks programs and reduce a proposed increase to the library. But it is considering a new $45,000 payout to a local nonprofit called Men of Integrity that aims to mentor youth.

The commission is also in favor of raising more revenue for the city by adding red light cameras, starting a new program to charge non-residents for parking at the dog park at Lake Baldwin and Dinky Dock and charge credit card convenience fees on transactions with the city based on discussion at a recent work session.

The $247 million all-funds budget will be heard at the next commission meeting on Wednesday when the board is scheduled to take it’s first of two votes on the spending plan for the financial year that will begin Oct. 1. The city is expected to adopt the same property tax rate for the 19th consecutive year, though revenues from taxes have increased as a result of growing property values.

At least one commissioner pushed for more cuts to spending. Commissioner Warren Lindsey said he would prefer to reduce raises for city employees from 4% to 3.5%, but did not get consensus from other commissioners.

Lindsey said he viewed a smaller raise as part of the “painful reality” of local governments facing significant reductions in property tax revenue if Amendment 3 passes in November.

“My recommendation is that we do it this coming year and not wait until November,” he said. “I feel it’s the responsible thing to do.”

But Mayor Sheila DeCiccio and others said they didn’t feel comfortable with reducing staff raises and pointed to an ongoing hiring freeze that will help conserve funds.

The group agreed to keep open a vacant code enforcement position ($75,000), freeze two vacant fire positions ($200,000) and reduce winter hours at city pools, which would reduce part-time parks staff ($100,000).

Commissioners said they would review the open positions mid-year and determine if there was a need to add any of them back into the budget.

In addition, the city appears poised to cut back significantly on its tree program by removing from the budget a vacant tree specialist position ($73,680); axing the vacant tree permitting position ($60,000) and cutting a watering truck as well as new tree plantings (approximately $270,000).

City Manager Randy Knight said the city is no longer saving many trees on private properties that owners or developers want to cut down because of changes lawmakers made to state law. It’s another example of pre-emption by state government to limit how local governments can make decisions.

While the city forestry department typically plants hundreds of trees per year on city right-of-way, the city is running out of public land for those plantings, Knight said.

Also on the chopping block is $25,000 in funding for the library, $12,000 for an appreciation event typically held for people who serve on city boards, some Halloween and Easter events put on by the parks department some postage and printed materials that go to utility bill customers.

Even with the $25,000 reduction, the Winter Park Library is still slated to receive nearly $50,000 more than last year in support from the main city budget as well as the Community Redevelopment Agency budget for a total of $2.5 million.

Each year the city spends a quarter of one percent of gross revenues in the general fund, electric utility fund and water utility fund — or about $480,0000 total — on nonprofit community groups. This year those expenditures proposed as:

• $105,000 for Mead Botanical Gardens, a $3,000 increase over last year
• $99,900 for the Winter Park Historical Association, also about a $3,0000 increase
• $43,800 for Winter Park Day Nursery, a $1,300 increase
• $20,000 for United Arts representing no change from last year
• $28,900 for the Polasek Museum, a $900 increase
• $0 for Blue Bamboo, a $12,500 decrease after discussion by the City Commission
• $45,000 for Men of Integrity, which had not received any funding since $18,000 two years ago

Men of Integrity is a nonprofit that operates out of the Winter Park Community Center and serves about 24 boys, including 10 in high school and 14 under the age of 12, said Antwon Carter, the group’s leader. Many of the kids attend Winter Park schools but some travel from outside the city to attend the weekly program.

He wrote to the city in August and asked for the money to support his mentoring program that provides help with college readiness, STEM activities, financial literacy, fieldtrips and a hot meal during weekly meetings among other services.

An administrator for the program provided the Voice with a copy of Men of Integrity’s most recent tax filing that show’s the group’s revenues are typically less than $50,000.

The group said it mostly relies on volunteers and out-of-pocket expenditures by Carter.

“This mission is also deeply personal to me,” Carter said in an email to the Voice. “I grew up in Winter Park, and I understand firsthand what can be produced when a young person is given a strong foundation. For generations, programs centered around the Winter Park Community Center have played an important role in youth development. Whether young people came directly from the surrounding neighborhood or were brought there by their parents, the Center provided a place where they could experience mentorship, structure, opportunity, and the positive influence of the broader community.”

Carter, who said he now lives in Apopka, appeared at the budget work session and told commissioners the $45,000 would provide a needed infusion of dollars to reduce the group’s need to ask for more in the future.

Some commissioners, including Lindsey and Kris Cruzada, questioned if the group should receive the full amount of its request without providing more information to the city.

But there appeared to be enough commissioners in favor of the expenditure to move it ahead to a vote on Wednesday as part of the overall budget.

The nonprofit expenditures from the CRA budget are proposed as:

• $14,000 for the Enzian Theater, a $4,000 increase
• $51,500 for the Heritage Center, a $1,500 increase
• $44,300 for the Welbourne Day Nursery, a $1,300 increase
• $50,800 for the Winter Park Playhouse, a $1,500 increase
• $398,610 for the library, part of it’s overall $2.5 million in city funding

When it comes to raising more funds for the city government, red light cameras and credit card convenience fees are among the top projected generators.

Police Chief Tim Volkerson said the city is still considering where additional cameras could be placed and, if they are approved by the state, they likely would not be up and running until May or so and could generate some $750,000.

Credit card convenience fees could yield $1.2 million for the city when people buy permits, pay bills or conduct other business at City Hall.

And a pilot program to charge non-city residents to park at Dinky Dock or the dog park at Baldwin Park could bring in an estimated $100,000 or more when it begins as early as the spring.

Paid parking has long been a controversial topic in Winter Park ,which offers free parking throughout the city including along busy Park Avenue. If the pilot is successful, city officials said it could expand to other areas and, once again, be aimed at non-residents.

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