Heat. Heat. [Music] [Music] [Music] Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. Heat. [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] Heat. Heat. N. [Music] [Music] Hey hey hey. Hey. Hey. Hey. [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] Hey everybody. [Applause] [Applause] [Music] [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Applause] [Music] [Music] Good afternoon everyone and welcome to the April 21st, 2025 meeting of the Orlando City Council. We're going to begin today's proceedings with the invocation and the pledge of allegiance led today by Commissioner Bari Burns. Commissioner. All right. Thank you, Mayor. Uh please join me in a word of prayer if you're so inclined. Gracious Father, as we gather here today, we humbly seek your guidance and wisdom. Grant us clarity of thought and understanding as we embark on this meeting and conducting the business of our great city. Help us to make decisions that align with your will and bring about positive outcomes for all who call Orlando home. Grant us the ability to communicate effectively and do to comprehend one another's perspective. This and other blessings we ask in your name. Amen. To the flag of the United States of America to the republic for it stands one nation indivisible liberty and justice for all. Okay, madame clerk, I'm gonna call the meeting to order. Would you call the role, please? determine that we have a quorum. Commissioner Gray here. Commissioner Ortiz here. Commissioner Stewart here. Commissioner Sheen here. Interim Commissioner Rose here. Commissioner Burns here. Mayor Dyer here. Mayor, you have a quorum with all members present. Thank you, Madam Clerk. Uh, first order of business is the meeting minutes from the gender review and city council meetings of April the 7th, 2025. Motion by Commissioner Stewart, second by Commissioner Sheen. All in favor indicate so by saying I. I. Those opposed. And so the motion carries. Well, today is a day of celebration, but also a day of sadness. Um, we are celebrating a valued member of our team who has served the residents of our fair city for over 30 years. So, I would like to call on our director of communications and neighborhood relations, April Michael, to honor Susan Harris, who is retiring. Good afternoon, mayor and commissioners. It is my honor to be with you today to celebrate Susan Harris and her 30 years of dedicated service to the city of Orlando. Since 1995, Susan has been a kind and trusted friend to residents across the city. Beautiful. Throughout her career, she has led trainings and large projects, hosted meetings, volunteered, organized neighborhood associations, built relationships, and problem solved, often turning issues into opportunities. Susan understands and cares for people. She's a friend maker. Whether it's her personal network of friends far and wide or the friendships she is responsible for establishing amongst our many neighborhood leaders and our city team, her passion for people and bringing them together to get stuff done has been invaluable to the city. She's dedicated. She has volunteered year after year for long hours on the phone during hurricane season, helping residents get connected to information and resources. She has also volunteered for all kinds of city events and projects that brought residents together on topics like housing, homelessness, and public safety. And during one of the darkest times in our city's history, Susan was there to help families as they received heartbreaking news following the Pulse tragedy. She's an Orlando encyclopedia. She knows what was here before that building went up, the history of that project, or who you should talk to if you really want to get that thing done. If you're lucky, you've crawled into her car or been on a bus and taken tours throughout our neighborhoods to learn what makes them unique and how to best serve their needs. She's honest. What sets Susan apart is her integrity and her joy. She will always tell you the truth, even when you might not want to hear it, and definitely with a shrug and a sorry. She is warm and inviting and rarely seen without a smile. In fact, she shared with me recently that she failed many times at taking her passport photo because she couldn't stop smiling. You're not allowed to smile in that photo. Susan is beloved by so many in our city, in our community, and beyond. She wanted to go out quietly, but a very wise friend reminded her that this is also for us, that we also need the opportunity to celebrate her and her many accomplishments. Thank you, Susan, for your tireless dedication to our city. We will miss you terribly, but we are so very excited for your next chapter. Mayor Dyer, after you read the proclamation, we'd love for you and the entire city council to join Susan for a photo. Okay, we have a retirement proclamation. City of Orlando. Whereas, thanks to the dedication and professionalism of its employees, the city of Orlando provides critical services, programs, and amenities that residents rely on every single day. And whereas during her three decades with the city of Orlando, Susan Harris has been committed to ensuring that our community's neighborhoods are vibrant, inclusive places for all who call the city beautiful home. And whereas Susan began her tenure in 1995 as a neighborhood outreach supervisor. Since 2003, she has held the leadership roles in the office of communications and neighborhood relations where she works to foster relationships with neighborhood organizations and leaders. And whereas she is known throughout the community as a warm, friendly, and knowledgeable person who residents and city staff can always reach out to for assistance and guidance. And recognizing the immense power of collaboration, Susan is always working to help residents partner with the city of Orlando through programs like Mayor's City Academy and I lead. And whereas she always works to connect residents with their neighbors to strengthen neighborhood associations that bring communities together to address challenges and improve the quality of life in the area. And whereas always putting integrity, responsiveness, and kindness at the forefront of all she does, Susan is a true public servant who has served the residents with great passion and pride. And whereas Susan is retiring after 30 years of service with the city of Orlando, will always be grateful for her leadership and countless contributions to our community. Now therefore, I buddy Dyer, mayor of the city of Orlando, do hereby thank Susan for serving our city and its residents and its neighborhoods. Extend best wishes for good health and much happiness in the [Applause] future. Let's go down. [Applause] Can fix your chair. All right, everybody else. That's good. We can't afford a new camera. [Applause] I got it. Okay, I'm not forgetting this. Although I was mad, my fob quit working. I was always used to my mom. You got to use your best now. I'm like, what? Well, she need to stay or else we can say nice things about her. Take off. Actually hey Susan. She doesn't have an hour to wait. Well, we're going to go right to I think each of you know what? Just do your Susan part and then we'll come back. Bari, you're our first up. Well, thank you, Mayor. Uh Susan, I'd just like to say thank you for uh your 30 years of service to the city of Orlando, but also thank you for your guidance and encouragement uh in this role for me as being one of the newest commissions. I I really appreciate it. Thank you very much. Commissioner Craig, Susan, thank you for all you've done. Job well done. We appreciate it. And best of luck to you. We're always here for you if you need us. There's a lot to be said. So, uh I know that they call you a uh encyclopedia. I walk I call you a walking library because you are and uh you're more than just a you've been a counselor to us. You've been a confident but more than anything else you have been a friend. I love you and this is just a what is it until until later. So, best of luck. Love you Susan. [Laughter] We've known each other more than 30 years. Yeah. And uh uh it is it is such an honor to call you a friend. Uh and I'm going to miss you and I'm going to miss um the opportunity to um commiserate with you. Is that a good way to put it? We love you and uh and wish you all the best, Commissioner. Well, I lost in 96 or I would have almost been here as long as you were. But, uh, I just want to say that, you know, we're going to have a tremendous loss of history and common sense with your leaving. And, uh, you know, I I I often say, uh, the the the mark of a good communicator is you can tell them to go to hell and look make them look forward to the trip. And while you never told anybody to go to hell, you always made us look forward to the trip. So, thank you so much Susan. So, I look forward to We're going to work outside of here. Congratulations on retirement. You just can't leave us like that. So, we'll find a way to bring you back. But it's been a joy over the last decade um dealing with Paramore issues as a resident when I was an employee upstairs. So, we'll continue to work together. Don't worry. Don't go too far. Susan, between you losing you and Kathy Russell in this short little time frame, a lot of institutional knowledge, some of it better swept away than remembered, I think. So, we love you. Thank you so much. Now you make go with your crowd. [Applause] Thank you. Okay, I have just a couple items for mayor's update. Um, as we mentioned, just about every meeting these days, we're celebrating the 150th anniversary of the incorporation of the city of Orlando. And it's a great time to learn about our past. And a great way to do that is over at the Orange County Regional History Center where we are collaborating with an a collection called Orlando Collected, which is an exhibit that has 150 items that showcase how Orlando has evolved over that time. a number of us over over there to open the exhibit um a couple weeks ago I guess and it will run through the end of the year but it's worthwhile going over and taking a peek. Um this is National Volunteer Appreciation Week and the city is proud to recognize the incredible service and dedication of our citizen volunteers in Americaore through um through Orlando Cares. Uh these individuals generously give with their time and talent to strengthen our neighborhood, support our youth and uplift our community. We are thankful for their service. If you're a sports fan, um our city's professional teams are in action. The Magic are in the playoffs. Didn't do so well yesterday. Um but we're anticipating a 4-1 sweep from here. Us sweeping Boston, not the other way around. But we do have for sure two home playoff games coming up this week. The Solar Bears are also in the playoffs and they have a game tonight. One item of note on the agenda is a contract. We had a great workshop this morning and one of the items that we talked about were uh reducing barriers to internet access and providing access to technology. On the agenda today is a contract with T-Mobile to do that and provide hotspot tablet and device checkout programs with laptops, tablets, and Wi-Fi hotspots available for checkout at our city's neighborhood and community centers. With that, we'll move to the consent agenda, which is the number of items voted on through a single vote. We give each of our commissioners an opportunity to comment on items on the consent agenda and updates you on important happenings from their district. We rotate the order that we do that and Commissioner Burns is first up. All right. Thank you again, Mayor. Uh on April 8th, I uh had the pleasure of attending the uh Paramore Kids Zone and the Holden Height Kids Zone postsecary graduation dinner at Grand Avenue. Uh this was an opportunity where we recognize the young adults who have completed some level of post-secary education or schooling. Oftent times we we uh celebrate the graduates of high school but oftent time never uh celebrate them again when they complete their postgraduate. So, thank you to um Joe Cesar and his team for ensuring that we were able to recognize those young uh young adults. Also, on April 14th, I had the pleasure of joining Mayor Dyer for a meeting with the governor of the state of Piranha in Brazil, uh our one of our sister cities. Had a great discussion. We're looking forward to uh more developments there. Also, this past uh week, I had the pleasure of um accompanying Mayor Dyer to the summer youth uh kickoff at We Print. Well, Reprint is a local printing company that uh is currently employing three of our uh youth through the youth internship program with Career Source. So, just like to say thank you to the uh owners of Rep. And then I would like to encourage other businesses to get involved with this uh summer internship program because it really gives our youth the opportunity to see upfront some of the uh employment opportunities that await them. Uh just a a couple other things. Our next satellite office hours will be uh this Wednesday, April the 23rd at the Elclaia Allen Center starting at 10:00 a.m. So if you want to meet with me and my staff, please reach out to the office. Then our next satellite office hours will be May 14th also at El Claudia Allen Center starting at nine o'clock. Uh and that's all I have. Mayor, thank you. Commissioner Gray. Thank you, Mayor. I'll be quick. Uh everything uh both past and future is on our website. Two words of thanks real quick. Attended uh on Wednesday the Hispanic Chamber lunchon where they recognized uh Hispanic business leaders. Uh well done there and congrats to those winners. and also was fortunate enough to have a community meeting with Goa where they introduced Lance Little, the new CEO and shared with the Lake Nona residents uh going on at the airport which is a lot of exciting things going on there. So that was that was great and I appreciate them doing that for the neighborhood and that's all I have. Thank you sir. Thank you Commissioner Ortiz. Mayor I'll be even faster. All my stuff is there was a lot. So I you can go to my website or you can go to the media all the outlets and and see what we're doing. Um I just want to be I want to give a big kudos to uh Cape Cade B uh for the transportation meeting we have with the community. Uh we're really looking forward to move forward with that bus rapid transit system in the summer and quarter. Hope that comes about you know sooner than what we think. And that's all I have mayor. Thank you. Thank you commissioner. Commissioner Stewart. Thank you, Mayor. And I appreciate Commissioner Gray and Commissioner Dielding their time to me so I can take some more time to thank you very much. I appreciate it. Uh, I want to mention a couple things. Um, Lock Friends of Lock Haven had a great cleanup uh on the 12th. Uh, collected more than 900 pounds of uh of uh debris and stuff around the neighborhood. Had more than 200 people show up. It was a great turnout. appreciate Shan um Atkins and and the whole crew that helped coordinate that with our keeper. Beautiful. So that's a wonderful program for us. Want to say welcome to the Sparrow Boutique in Bowwin Park. Um had an opportunity to um be over there for their grand opening. It was really nice. They're a group that's out of uh Vero Beach and now they have a place over here in Baldwin. Really excited about it. Had a couple Easter egg hunts. I want to say appreciate the all the guys who do all that work on that. There's a ton of work. CPNA did one. contract neighborhood association at Ottabbon Park. I saw one at Baldwin and I want to say a special thanks to I didn't get a chance to attend it to OFD who who did the um one for special needs kids on Dr. on DPAC was a what a great great idea. So um please pass on my congratulations to all your guys over there please. Um and then special Lake Formosa Neighbor Association is getting organized again. I'm excited about that. Had a chance to speak to them. Mayor, thank you for your your comments about the Orlando uh Orange County, the Orlando exhibit at Orange County Historical Museum. It was really neat to be over there and see some of that stuff. Um and um and appreciate the work that they did put into it. Some things coming up. Earth Day is coming up and those things are on my calendar if you'd like to see it. There's Rosemont Community Center is having a meeting and then of course on May 1st is the annual National Day of Prayer and I think the LEO um memorials that evening. So if you get a chance we want to spend time remembering those fallen officers on the agenda today um the law enforcement trust fund is passing out $85,000 from some of their funds um to some really important agencies in town. Um and I appreciate the work that they're doing. Let me see if I can just share a couple. After School Allstars, Camaraderie Association, Wounded Warrior Project, uh the AB, United Abolitionists that Fight Against Human Trafficking, Make a Wish, uh Runway to Hope, and the Police Survivors. This is a way that we uh we we want to make sure that we share some of this comp I guess confiscated funds and get back to the community. So, I appreciate that. Um three, item 3B5, uh is the Edgewater Drive complete streets project is starting to move forward. So neighborhoods, please look for some community meetings coming up during the summer. And of course, mayor, as I mentioned before and the other meeting, I'm stayaining on voting on item uh 3C6 and I filed the paperwork with the with the clerk. That's all I have. Thank you, Commissioner Sheen. Thank you, Mayor. And uh I'd just like to thank the Easter Bunny for all the kids events we had over the next last couple weekends with at Southern Oaks, Colonial Town, Thornton Park, Lake Como, and Colonial Town. in that Easter bunny suit is awfully hot this time of year. So, I appreciate the Easter Bunny very much. Um this morning, um Pope Francis passed away. Um he adopted his name from St. Francis, lived a life of service to others, particularly the poor. Um I was raised Catholic and my religious education informed by my catechism informs all of my morality and public service. Um while this wonderful man who was not perfect, he pressed us to be better people. he can live on in our commitment to justice, fair treatment of immigrants and the poor. I love that he insisted in riding in a Fiat rather than a Mercedes, and that he embodied humility, rest in heaven, our kind Pope, compassionate Pope, Pope Francis. That's all I had, Mayor. Thank you. Thank you, Commissioner. Commissioner Rose. Um, couple updates. I want to thank Bats Lake View Funeral Home for a wonderful Bunny in the Park event at Lake Lana Doom this past weekend. Um, everyone get your pickup sticks and your gear ready. This Saturday, there will be two cleanups in the district. Uh, Majestic Life on Saturday at 8 am and then this Sunday with City District and the other main streets at 9:00 am at the soccer stadium. Um, a big congratulations to Evans High School and Jones High School. For those that don't know, they receive full ride scholarships for any student that wants to go to Valencia. Um, and that's an amazing opportunity. It could be a two-year degree or it could be a trade opportunity. So, this is a great way to make sure that as soon as our students are done at Evston Jones, they have um a direct path to career. Um and so, as a proud alumni, go Pumas. Um the registration, so on June 21st, I will be hosting a hook and reel fishing event at Lake Lana Dune June 21st. Um there will be a lot of fun food, prizes, and a great opportunity to fish right here in the community. Um the registration is open. and you can find it on the District 5's uh Facebook and Instagram page. Um I want to thank the public's volunteers for helping. Um couple weeks ago we had the Northwest Community Garden as we talked about sustainability this morning. Um making sure our gardens are upkept. Um they installed some new beds and it was a great opportunity to interface with our early learning students. They came over and we picked carrots and they kind of cleaned up the garden as well. So thank you to Publix for that. Um, for those that don't know, on the second Saturday of every month at Lake Lana Dune, we have a market. So, I want to encourage everyone to come out uh 9:00 am. So, health is wealth is my big motto. Um, and I live by that in every way possible. So, I am grateful for a partnership with the Orange County Department of Health. Um, they are bringing their dental bus out to our schools within District 5 and making sure that our students have healthy teeth. Um, everyone mark your calendars for May 10th. It is National Stamp Stamp Out Hunger Day. So, ultimately what you do is you get a bag of food and you put it next to your mailbox and the mail carrier will pick it up and they will um take it to a hub uh for food distribution. So, again, mark your calendar is May 10th, take a bag of food um whether it's canned goods, non-p perishable items and just put them all in a bag right next to your mailbox and the carrier will pick it up. Um, on to the agenda. Um, I want to congratulate two district 5 residents, David Hodgeges and Africa Henley for being appointed to the Orange Blossom Trail Development Board. I also want to congratulate Rachel from Dr. Phillips for being appointed to DDB and Shannon um to the public arts advisory. Um, and I'm glad to see 3C11 on the agenda as we increase affordable housing inventory here in the city of Orlando. Second motion by Commissioner Rose, second by Commissioner Sheen. All in favor indicate so by saying I. I. Those opposed. Motion carries. Okay. If there's no objection, we're going to recess the city council meeting. We're going to convene the CRA meeting. Uh 4A is meeting minutes from February 26th meeting of the advisory board. Motion by Commissioner Sheen, second by Commissioner Rose. All in favor indicate so by saying I. Those opposed and so the motion carries. Uh you should go ahead and take 4 B and C. David, we'll do mayor and good afternoon. Council mayor, council members. Uh so item two on the CRA agenda today. This is a companion item that you saw under the consent agenda under business and financial services for the adaptive reuse of the Bob Car. Uh obviously it is a gem in our community uh and the city and the CRA really want to embark uh on the effort to see how we can reintroduce it uh to our community in a very innovative way that furthers the goals that we've set forth for creative village. This contract is with Baker Barios and it is for design services for that building as well as potentially construction drawings uh and owner rep services. Uh it's split into two phases. Uh the first phase is that conceptual work as we can really envision what exactly uh we will be looking to gain from this building and the various uses that it will provide to us as well as the community. That's just over a million dollars. Uh phase two is then the construction drawings and potential um um um owners rep services associated with the construction at just over 3.8 million for a total potential cost to the CRA of just over $4.8 million. And I'm happy to address any questions. Motion by Commissioner Rose, second by Commissioner Sheen. Discussion hearing none. All in favor of the motion indicates so by saying I. I. Those opposed. Motion carries. And 4C. Yes. Thank you, mayor. This is a DTO facade grant uh for a home in our Paramore community at 701 Arlington Street. They're looking to do some upgrades specifically to the windows of that home. They qualify uh for funding from our facade grant. Uh their cost is just about $60,000. they qualify for $20,000 from our program. It did go before our advisory uh committee and they recommended approval on March 17th. Motion by Commissioner Rose, second by Commissioner Sheen. Discussion, Commissioner Rose. Um great to see res. I would like for us to work on some sort of outreach, doing some more outreach to make sure that the other residents take advantage. So, thank you. Further discussion hearing none. All in favor of the motion indicates so by saying I I those opposed. Motion carries. David any further business come for the CRA. That is all mayor. And we'll stand adjourned as to the CRA. We will reconvene the city council meeting. We'll go to hearings ordinances second reading 12. Madam clerk, ordinance number 2025-13, an ordinance of the city of Orlando granting SJP Enterprises LLC DBA Prince Containers, a non-exclusive franchise to provide rolloff container collection and disposal of solid waste within the city of Orlando, outlining franchises duties and providing the terms and conditions under which such franchise shall operate, providing for severability and an effective date. Second. Motion by Commissioner Ortiz, second by Commissioner Stewart. Discussion hearing none. All in favor of the motion indicate so by saying I I. Those opposed? Motion carries. I should say I don't have any requests to speak on either of the roll off items. 12B. Ordinance number 2025-14, an ordinance of the city of Orlando granting Earth Hall LLC, a non-exclusive franchise to provide rolloff container collection and disposal of solid waste within the city of Orlando, outlining franchises duties, and providing the terms and conditions under which such franchise shall operate, providing preservability and an effective date. Motion by Commissioner Sheen, Commissioner Ortiz. I'll take that as a second. Um discussion hearing none. All in favor of the indicates so by saying I. Those opposed. Motion carries. Okay, that is the agenda business for today. Let's get ready for general appearance. [Applause] [Music] [Music]