What Makes a City Great?
What Makes a City Great?
Charley Williams – Guest Columnist
Editor's Note: Articles written by citizens reflect their own opinions and not the views of the Winter Park Voice.
For the better part of two years – and, really, for many decades prior to that – Winter Park has been engaged in a discussion of how to preserve the character of our city — the character that makes us cherish the privilege of living here. We all want the same thing, but we have difficulty agreeing on how to achieve it.
What Do We Want?
Basically, we want our city to stay beautiful.
How do we do that?
The attached video articulates in a simple, vivid way, six principles of civic beauty. Regardless of which notion you espouse of beauty and how to achieve it, this entertaining, instructive piece offers a framework and a vocabulary with which to conduct the discussion.
Six Principles of Beautiful Cities
1. Variety and Order
2. Visible Life
3. Compact
4. Orientation and Mystery
5. Scale
6. Make it Local
Seventh Principle for Winter Park
7. Create Shade – shade trees, awnings, misters – anything to protect us from that famous Florida sunshine.
I hope you will take the time to enjoy this short video, originally published by The School of Life, located in London’s famed Bloomsbury district. They describe themselves this way. “The School of Life is devoted to developing emotional intelligence through the help of culture. We offer a variety of programs and services concerned with how to live wisely and well.”
To learn more, visit http://www.thebookoflife.org
© The Book of Life
Charley Williams has been a Winter Park resident for 14 years. He serves as a Trustee for the Florida First Amendment Foundation and is a past state Board Member, Florida League of Women Voters.
Mayor Announces Comp Plan Task Force
Mayor Announces Comp Plan Task Force
Comp Plan Review in 2016
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.
Library Public Info Meetings
Library Public Info Meetings
Three Meetings Next Week
The Winter Park Public Library will host three Community Conversations next week. Meetings will be in the Library Community Room on the first floor.
Dates & Times:
Wednesday June 1 — 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 Noon
Thursday, June 2 — 5:30 to 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, June 4 — 12:00 Noon to 2:30 p.m.
Public Conversations About the New Facility
Residents will have the opportunity to get facts about the proposed project. Discussion will include the characteristics and best practices of 21st-century libraries. Library personnel will be on hand to gather residents’ feedback to further define our community’s priorities for materials, services and programs in the new facility.
Open-House Format
The three sessions will follow an informal, open-house-style format. Flexible times are designed to accommodate as many residents as possible.
Recent Comments