01.05.18 Winter Park/Maitland Observer

WINTER PARK/MAITLAND

Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.

VOLUME 30, NO. 1

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FRIDAY, JANUARY 5, 2018

2018 FORECAST

SPORTS HOLIDAYS ON THE HARDWOOD Basketball teams from local schools spent their holiday on the court.

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YOUR TOWN CALLING ALL BOOKWORMS

People and stories to watch From new construction and park preservation to traffic woes and a growing arts scene, the Winter Park and Maitland communities promise to be chock full of news in 2018. SEE PAGES 2-13.

The works of renowned American novelist and social critic, James Baldwin, will be front and center during the “Let’s Talk Diversity, Equity and Inclusion” book club series in Winter Park, Florida January through March.

Taking place at both the Winter Park Public Library and the Hannibal Square Heritage Center the first two Sundays of each month, the series will spotlight the author’s essays and films addressing racial and class intricacies in Western society, as well as the role of activism.

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BAND MARCH ON PARK AVENUE Bands performed in the 11th Camping World Bowl ‘Parade of Bands.’

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EMERGENCY CONTACTS BY MUNICIPALITY ORANGE COUNTY n Orange County Fire Rescue Headquarters P.O. Box 5879, Winter Park (407) 836-9000 n Orange County Sheriff’s Office P.O. Box 1440, Orlando (407) 254-7000 MAITLAND n Maitland Fire Rescue Department 1776 Independence Lane, Maitland (407) 539-6226

Lessons learned After Hurricane Irma, local city and county leaders reflect on what improvements they can make for the 2018 hurricane season.

DANIELLE HENDRIX BLACK TIE EDITOR

After weathering Hurricane Irma — which experts have called the most powerful Atlantic storm in a decade — and many before it, Orange County leaders know a thing or two about disaster preparedness.

Hurricane Charley, which made landfall in the state as a Category 4 in 2004, was previously the strongest storm to hit the area. But after Irma tore through Central Florida in September, Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs said the storm damage was far greater than Charley’s aftermath.

Charley was a more powerful storm, but Irma was much larger in breadth. With more than $51.5 million in damage countywide, Irma was a force — one that had residents bracing for the worst.

Although basic emergencymanagement protocols are similar across the board, no two municipalities are exactly the same. Here’s how many of the areas covered by the West Orange Times & Observer, Windermere Observer and Winter Park/Maitland Observer fared as they both prepared for and dealt with the damage.

ORANGE COUNTY

Although the county itself made minor changes in areas such as sandbag distribution and traffic signal maintenance, as well as mass sheltering operational plans, resources and policies in place have remained largely the same since 2004.

Keith Kotch, assistant manager of the Orange County Fire Rescue Department and Office of Emergency Management, said although prepared-

IRMA BY THE NUMBERS 55,332 yards of debris in Winter Park 77 days to clean up storm debris in Winter Park 5 confirmed deaths due to Irma in Orange County

$51,676,838 total

verified storm damage in Orange County

3,001 Orange County

properties with verified storm damage

300,000 approximate

number of homes that lost power

ness planning is important and there are common threads among storms, each incident is unique and presents its own challenges.

“Hurricane Irma brought the similar issues of widespread power outages, areas of flooding, food, water and ice needs, but the extent or scale of the issues was more unique,” he said. “The fact that the majority of the state was impacted the same way added to the apparent slowness of recovery as service providers and vendors were affected as they had not been before. Not being able to count on quick resupply of local grocery stores and restaurants was a new challenge, as was the issue with protecting life amongst area health care facilities that had lost power.”

Effective and progressive emergency management and preparedness activities are always based upon post-hurricane evaluations and lessons learned, Kotch said.

“Some areas that are being re-evaluated due to our ‘lessons learned’ from the past couple of

hurricane seasons, especially from Irma, include: sheltering issues such as pet friendly sheltering, medical special-needs sheltering, issues caused by extensive and long-term power outages, flooding mitigation efforts and joint public/private response and recovery efforts,” Kotch said.

He encourages residents to take the time now to prepare for future disasters by developing a personal and family disaster plan, making an emergency supply kit and becoming wellinformed about disasters and how to be a disaster survivor and not a victim.

“The time to plan and prepare is now when we are enjoying blue skies, not when storm clouds are on the horizon,” Kotch said. “Being prepared is not just a hurricane season thing, it’s a thing for all seasons and all types of disasters.”

MAITLAND

New to the city of Maitland since Charley hit is a different emergency operations center (EOC). The result of a FEMA grant, Maitland’s EOC enabled the use of all of the city’s technological equipment to assist in communications and storm tracking.

City Manager Sharon Anselmo noted that social media was largely nonexistent in 2004, so it was an added resource for communication this time around.

“We implemented a debris hotline, which was very helpful in allowing the departments to focus on recovery and have one clear set of answers to debrisand storm-related questions,” Anselmo said. “We manned it on the weekends as well, a change from Matthew, which we will do again in the next event as we believe it was very successful.”

Anselmo added that the city has submitted two grants to FEMA, one to add a generator to the city hall and another to

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n Maitland Police Department 1837 Fennell St., Maitland (407) 539-6262 WINTER PARK n Winter Park Fire Rescue Department 343 W. Canton Ave., Winter Park (407) 644-1212 n Winter Park Police Department 500 N. Virginia Ave., Winter Park (407) 644-1313 OTHER EMERGENCY RESOURCES n Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: emergency.cdc.gov n CodeRED registry: Cities such as Winter Garden and Winter Park use this database, which matches your cell phone to your home address, allowing emergency dispatchers to contact you with pertinent information in an emergency. To sign up or see if your city used CodeRED, visit your local police department or fire rescue’s website. n Federal Emergency Management Agency: fema.gov n NOAA Hurricane Center: nhc.noaa.gov n OCFL Alert: Download this app for emergency updates from Orange County. Sign up for emergency texts and emails at ocalert.net. n U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: epa.gov/ hurricanes

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add permanent generators to several lift stations so that staff does not have to keep moving portable generators.

Maitland city leaders also plan to standardize some of its communications, so less time is spent preparing communications during an emergency.

Its fire department will focus on generator-safety education prior to and during the upcoming hurricane season.

“One of our changes for this season will be to create a single page on our website for all upto-date information and keep directing folks to the page via social media, rather than continuing to respond to individuals posting on social media,” Anselmo said. “We will be working with Duke Energy to address some of the issues encountered with communication during the recovery. …The city, as well as some other cities locally, also had a failure of the pre-contracted debris hauler to perform debris removal activities which resulted in a slow start to debris removal, but ultimately was able to contract and get the work performed by a local contractor.”

WINTER PARK

When Winter Park city commissioners met Monday, Dec. 11, one of the items of discussion was an After Action Report on Irma — essentially a summary of what worked, what didn’t, and what will change next time a storm threatens the area.

Winter Park Fire/Rescue Department Chief Jim White brought to the commission a series of recommendations for the city to consider. Among these were looking into establishing a shelter in Winter Park.

He also said the city’s technology has advanced significantly since 2004. Winter Park used an application to log details regarding damage location and costs, and White suggested providing more training with GIS tracking would be helpful for next time.

City Manager Randy Knight said although the city developed the ability to use its automated meter reading system to pinpoint power outages in the days following Irma, it will have that up and running before the next storm hits.

The city will look to continue to improve all of the facets of emergency management and help residents to prepare even better for the next storm. Overall, White said, he thinks staff did as good a job as they could possibly do under the circumstances.

“I think we need to do more educating up front, and this is a good time to do that since it’s fresh on peoples’ minds — we’re not 10 years post storm,” he told commissioners.

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2018 FORECAST

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Age-old question

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FRIDAY, JANUARY 5, 2018

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How will Winter Park handle growth while maintaining its charm in 2018?

TIM FREED ASSOCIATE EDITOR

In cities such as Winter Park — steeped in rich history and full of charm — the ultimate struggle for leaders is how to retain its unique feel as it grows.

Those landing on the prodevelopment side see the benefits of the added tax revenues that come with new businesses and residents. Conversely, preservationists fear every square inch of open space lost is an assault on the small town they know and love.

Dirt soon will begin moving on the construction of its new library/event center.

Furthermore, the city has several properties leaders are looking to sell, including the Progress Point property at the six-way intersection of Orange Avenue, Denning Drive and Minnesota Avenue.

But what is the perfect balance between charm and growth?

MAYOR STEVE LEARY

The City Commission is always cognizant of both sides, Mayor Steve Leary said. Winter Park has taken numerous steps over the past few years to manage the growth, including removing the high-density R-4 zoning category from the Comprehensive Plan, he said.

“We want to maintain the current balance, look and feel of the city,” Leary said. “That’s something that’s been important to us. Commissioner (Pete) Weldon made the suggestion, and I think it was a good one.”

Leary said Winter Park has invested in its green spaces as well. The $1.2 million renovation of the city’s nine-hole golf course at the Winter Park Country Club included fresh greens and fairways, along with a reconfiguration of some holes to give golfers more of a challenge.

The city also purchased 55.6 acres of wetlands surrounding Howell Creek just north of Howell Branch Road earlier this year. The $305,000 purchase gave the city a chance to remove invasive species along the creek, allowing the water to flow freely and thus preserving it as a wetland.

Winter Park commissioners have carefully vetted each project that has come before them and will continue to do so this upcoming year, Leary said.

“Development is here, and development is allowed where it’s allowed,” Leary said. “It’s pertinent to just be judicious in allowing variances and modifications. That’s where you can’t have everything be 100% prescriptive — society doesn’t work like that. You need the ability to make reasonable decisions. We denied three fairly significant projects between the (assisted-living facility) on Howell Branch, the Orchard Supply on Aloma and the project downtown on New England. We’re pretty good at managing things.”

COMMISSIONER CAROLYN COOPER

There’s plenty to keep an eye

Tim Freed

Winter Park leaders strive to find a perfect balance between development and preservation.

on during the new year when it comes to development, Commissioner Carolyn Cooper said. It starts with the city’s ongoing discussions about the medical arts district first proposed in Winter Park’s new Comprehensive Plan.

“We are considering some major changes in our land-use development codes and the allowances within the city,” Cooper said. “The important thing that people never seem to understand is that they need to be involved in the process of actually putting the laws and the entitlements in place.

When they wait until after the laws are on the books, then it’s very difficult, because we’ve established entitlements.

People need to be very much involved in the development of the new mixed use codes and in the development of the new medical arts district.”

With the city entertaining the concept of medical arts district and mixed use projects, Winter Park residents should have their say now more than ever, Cooper said.

The city will be deciding what density and intensity of land use these different codes will allow, along with where it can be built, Cooper said.

The economy is strong, and people are ready to develop, so the city needs to get in front of it, she said.

“If we really want Winter Park to maintain its character as a very unique and charming and cultural community, then we need to be very present and active during the entitlements that are put in place in the codes,” she said. “I would say that it’s a huge, pivotal year for Winter Park. If people don’t get involved in those decisions, the die will be cast.”

Cooper added that one of her biggest priorities is the interconnection of green space and making it visible and unobstructed to residents.

COMMISSIONER GREG SEIDEL

Although there’s certainly such thing as good development, it’s all about working with everyone to find the best compromise, Commissioner Greg Seidel said.

“We can always get better at it,” Seidel said. “That’s what my goal is — better for the developers and better for the residents.”

Seidel said the city likely will continue to accept new redevelopment projects, which is always a benefit to the city.

“Do I think anything is going to go crazy developmentwise? No,” Seidel said. “We’re going to develop how we have been. You’ll see a lot of redevelopment, which is great. …

It means people are spending money on construction and their spending money on permits. They’re taking care of their property. I go to a lot of towns in Florida where there’s a lot of property for sale and no one wants to do anything.

We’re very fortunate.”

One critical area is how the city manages its green spaces, Seidel said.

“One of the things I said we need to be doing is this greenspace plan, looking at our corridors and tying in our green spaces so that when you drive through the city of Winter Park you feel like you’re in an open green area,” Seidel said. “How do you hide your density?

That’s what it’s about. How do you maintain the small-town feel but hide your density?

“I’m all for density in the right places,” he said. “I would rather us build in town instead of wipe out wetlands out in Volusia County. For me, it’s how you make it work for everybody. That’s what we’re getting smarter at.”

COMMISSIONER SARAH SPRINKEL

There’s a lot more to Winter Park than just charming buildings, Sarah Sprinkel said.

New families continue to

move in and shape the future of the city. Whether you are a new resident or someone who has lived in the city for decades, it’s those Winter Parkers who give the city its character and charm, Sprinkel said.

“I live in an old house, and I live in a settled community,” Sprinkel said. “I’m probably like 99% of the people in my community who do not embrace new houses. That’s just the way it is, and yet once they get built and one of these wonderful families move in, they add to the community.

“We’ve done a pretty good job of keeping it in good stead, and I don’t think you’re going to change the character of Winter Park,” she said. “The character of Winter Park is in the people and not just in the buildings.”

Regarding city-owned properties such as the old Progress Point site, it’s going to be a community effort to decide what gets built, she said.

“I don’t think the city should be in the business, to be very honest with you, of owning a lot of property that’s not being used by the citizens,” she said.

“The Progress Point property had bothered me for a very long time because it’s so unattractive. I go by it every day, lots of people do, and I still see that old building sitting there.”

Winter Park certainly has succeeded in acquiring a good amount of green space, Sprinkel said.

“How many acres did we have last year?” Sprinkel said.

“The most we’ve ever had ever?

Fifty-five acres. I think that’s pretty darn good. I think we did a great job with green space last year. ... Do I want to continue adding green space? Where it makes sense, sure.”

COMMISSIONER PETER WELDON

Although Commissioner Peter Weldon declined a direct interview, he referred the Observer to his blog, Winter Park Perspective, for his views on

development and growth.

In 2014, Weldon supported amendments to the city’s Comprehensive Plan that would change the rules for p l a n n e d d eve l o p m e n ts, allowing property owners to propose developments of a higher density and intensity.

“In summary, the PD changes are proposed to create the opportunity for property owners to add value for Winter Park,” Weldon wrote in a post dated June 7, 2014. “PD is not an entitlement. PD is only an invitation to negotiate a satisfactory mixed use value proposition for the city as an alternative to conventional strip center, apartment complex, office and retail use entitlements we get by default under existing zoning.”

The City Commission denied n those changes to the Comprehensive Plan following a large push by residents sporting “no density” signs in their front yards. Many residents objected to projects that had recently surfaced along Denning Drive and U.S. 17/92 as well.

Weldon, who served on the city’s Planning and Zoning Board at the time, wrote the city had allowed the recent projects under its existing codes and that Winter Park needs to shape its rules to in turn shape the landscape of the city.

“It is constructive for each of us to ask, ‘What does “no density” mean?’” Weldon wrote on Jan. 21, 2015. “Does it mean that we elect people to the commission who will refuse to approve development that is allowed by our zoning rules and thereby subject all residents to the attendant legal costs and consequences? I don’t think so.

“I think ‘no density’ means that we want commercial development in Winter Park to complement the residential character of our city and add to the amenities and quality of life we each seek in choosing (to) live here,” he wrote.

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WINTER PARK/MAITLAND

Observer “If we are to build a better world, we must remember that the guiding principle is this — a policy of freedom for the individual is the only truly progressive policy.”

Friedrich Hayek

“Road to Serfdom,” 1944 Publisher / Jackie Fanara, jfanara@OrangeObserver.com Executive Editor / Michael Eng, meng@OrangeObserver.com Design Editor / Jessica Eng, jeng@OrangeObserver.com Associate Editor / Troy Herring, therring@OrangeObserver.com Associate Editor / Tim Freed, tfreed@OrangeObserver.com Black Tie Editor / Danielle Hendrix, dhendrix@OrangeObserver.com Black Tie Reporter / Harry Sayer, hsayer@OrangeObserver.com Multi-Media Sales Executive Laura Rubio, lrubio@OrangeObserver.com Administrative Assistant Troy Herring

Eye on the future With their Capital Improvements Program in place, Maitland city leaders are planning major steps forward between 2018 and 2022.

TROY HERRING ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Just like many communities around the country, the city of Maitland is constantly looking to the future to improve the quality of life for its residents.

Making those improvements — whether people like it or not — is a long, arduous process that takes time, money, and resources to make happen.

That’s why, after much debate and tinkering, the city completed and finalized its Capital Improvements Program last September to set up a five-year plan, which includes major projects and improvements going on within Maitland.

The 85-page packet itself hits on five major master plans for the city: Stormwater/Lakes Management Plan; the Cultural Corridor Master Plan; Downtown Maitland Plan; Parks Master Plan; and the Sewer Master Plan.

Of the five, two — utilities and transportation — have dominated discussion at recent City Council meetings.

UTILITIES

Although 2018 will be a relatively low-cost year regarding improvements to the water system, 2019 is a bit of a different story — thanks in part to a water main upgrade on 17/92 between Ventris and Monroe avenues.

“It’s a huge, $6 million project,” said Maitland City Manager Sharon Anselmo. “So where it is now, is the city is attaining the easements to do the work — so these lines are on 17/92, so as you can imagine there are a lot of conflicts.

“They want those utilities outside the road right of way, so that’s what we are working on — developing the path,” she said.

The current plan calls for an initial $2 million to be used in

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2019, while $4 million already has been spent on the project.

No timeline was given on how long the project may possibly take.

Anselmo also said the project has been in the works for several years and was funded in 2016.

Along with ensuring that the level of water service is increased, the city also has an eye on helping to bolster the sewer productivity by finally finishing lift station No. 1 in 2018, which sits at Deloraine Trail.

The $2.3 million project, cost-shared by an unnamed entity, dates back more than a decade.

“Construction is funded this year, but we bought the property in 2004,” Anselmo said.

“What that station will do is allow the folks in Dommerich Hill to get on city sewer — currently they’re on septic tanks.

At this point, it should go out to bid some time in the Spring and start under construction.”

But of all the upgrades in utilities the city has planned, none have been more talked about that than the under-grounding of power lines. The hope for many is that by under-grounding the lines, the city will be better protected from the kind of power outages caused by storms such as the recent Hurricane Irma.

“It’s beyond the power outages — it’s the aesthetics,” Anselmo said. “Under-grounding increases your property value by just the aesthetics.”

Currently, the city has two projects lined up for Maitland, which includes under-grounding in Greenwood Gardens and Dommerich Estates.

The Greenwood project, which will cost $500,000, is scheduled to be completed in four months sometime in 2018. In Dommerich Estates, the process will be a bit longer.

The city will start planning for

the project in 2019.

Initial estimates call for $150,000 in 2019, followed by an amount of $500,000 each year from 2020 to 2022. So the Dommerich Estates upgrade will total about $1.6 million — combined with the work in Greenwood, and total costs for all under-grounding will be around $2.1 million.

TRANSPORTATION

Anyone who has lived in the area long enough knows the traffic in and around Maitland can be nightmare — especially during rush hour.

Over the next five years, there are plans to start eight projects, but only two are currently on the road to begin in 2018 and 2019. One will come in the form of traffic signal refurbishment on Sandspur Road at Maitland Avenue, while the other will be the planning and implementation of an Intelligent Transportation System.

The first will be a simple upgrade of the traffic signal at the intersection that will cost the city $225,000, but the new ITS infrastructure will be one of the biggest projects put forth.

“It’s smart traffic engineering … if something were to happen on I-4 and sends a whole lot of cars over to 17/92, it would be able to react to that and change timing signals,” Anselmo said.

“That’s about $1 million over five years — it’s mostly software and hardware.”

According to the CIP report, the money put into the ITS infrastructure will allow remote monitoring and controlled traffic by means of fiber optic communication, closedcircuit TV cameras, variable message designs and adaptive signal-control technology, among other things.

The hope is the changes will help to streamline the city’s transportation network while also making it safer and easier

See the upcoming projects list at OrangeObserver.com

to maintain.

Along with looking to better the traffic situation on the road, Anselmo said the city is looking to make it easier for those traveling via foot or bike.

While improvements are being made around the city to improve sidewalks and add more space for bicyclists, one of the main areas is next to City Hall on Independence Lane.

Between the $800,000 extension of the road, which includes the development of a park next to City Hall (planned for 2020) and the Maitland City Centre, there is the expectation that foot traffic will be up, and the city is looking to help make traveling smoother.

“Some of it will happen naturally, just because you’re going to have more people in these buildings that are going to be crossing over to get to McDonalds or Walgreens,” Anselmo said. “So we did talk to FDOT about reducing speed here on 17/92 once we do have more pedestrians here — and also do some intersection improvements.

“Extending Independence Lane will make it walkable down to Lake Avenue, and then from Lake Avenue the new development there — where it use to be Maitland Shores — there is a bike path that is proposed to go through their complex that will connect you to Rauvadage and hopefully get you down to Winter Park,” she said.

With more foot and bicycle traffic also comes issues of safety, so Anselmo said the city is looking to implement more basic signage and stronger street security enforcement during specific times of the year.

For Anselmo and those at City Hall, the changes are all about creating a city where people can feel free and safe to walk about .

“The hope is that this is infill that the folks here will be out walking, and that in itself creates slower traffic,” Anselmo said.

Janice Carrion, jcarrion@OrangeObserver.com Creative Services Tony Trotti, ttrotti@OrangeObserver.com

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Making Orange County affordable To combat the lack of affordable housing, Orange County is brainstorming ways to incentivize developers to build more variety of housing types.

NEWS EDITOR

As many know through firsthand experience, finding an affordable home is a daunting task in highly populated areas.

And Orange County is one of them, which is why Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs launched a regional affordablehousing initiative in October 2016 that featured a series of workshops with architects and experts from local universities to inform policymakers on how to steer the private sector toward more affordable housing.

“From accessory dwelling units to innovative design, as well as the use of imaginative products and building concepts, we have the chance to make a real impact by creating a marketplace with a variety of high-quality affordable housing options,” Jacobs said. “And in keeping with our commitment to collaboration, we’re working with partners from throughout the state and region to bring forth a set of policies that will guide a regional approach to creating communities with a variety of housing types and incomes.”

IN DEMAND

Jacobs said the housing problem has intensified since the end of the recession. According to City-data.com, in 2016, the mean price for a detached single-family home was $287,901, and in November 2017, the average rent for an apartment in Orlando was $1,363, according to rentjungle.com, which collects rental data for about 80% of all listings in the country.

Mitchell Glasser, the manager of the Orange County Housing and Community Development Program, said the most significant challenge in tackling the situation in Orange County and surrounding Central Florida

counties boils down to demand versus supply.

“The biggest challenge is not that we don’t know how to create affordable housing,” Glasser said. “I think the biggest challenge is that the demand so far exceeds our supply, especially on our rental side, that it’s hard for us to compete in this environment when people can build market-rate apartments and pretty much charge a premium price. Those forces are difficult to counter when you try to encourage someone to build affordable.

“On the homeownership side, before the recession, we had a certain number of developers that specialized in building affordable housing,” he said.

“But after the recession, the market came back and now the only ones we have that are consistently trying to build affordable are nonprofits. So trying to get the private sector back into the game of building affordable is a challenge.”

FINDING A SOLUTION

But to counter those market forces, Orange County is hoping to use certain incentives to encourage developers to construct a greater variety of housing types catered to low-income families.

“We’ve been talking about different mechanisms that governments in other areas of the country use to encourage affordable housing or to encourage developments to include a certain number of their units as affordable,” Glasser said.

The county is considering everything from the use of community land trusts, subsidies for developments that build affordable units, and other financial and regulatory incentives.

The objective is to sort out what strategy will work best in each county and identify which are the most suitable areas that are near public transportation, jobs, schools and services.

“Say you’re building near

Courtesy photo

Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs launched an affordable-housing initiative in 2016.

THEN AND NOW 1950

983 square feet

3.37 people

2015

2,640 square feet

2.54 people

a transportation corridor like SunRail — a regulatory incentive would be to allow less parking spaces because the development is near transportation, meaning a family might not need to have two cars because someone might be using mass transit more,” he said. “So if you’re building near areas where there are good transportation and jobs, maybe there could be some flexibility in

in Orange County regarding intense development. But Glasser emphasized that vibrant cities in the country all lean toward dense development with smart design.

“Go to any vibrant city in the United States, even in Florida, and you’ll notice the trend is to move back into the cities and be near transportation,” he said. “Density is not necessarily a bad word. Good design and good layouts of communities can make an area very vibrant. I think one of the main purposes of this is to try and get our community and the private sector to develop more variety of housing types to offer more housing options.”

Jacobs has since hosted two workshops on the issue, with an upcoming third workshop set for later this year that will be focused on the strategies to increase affordable housing in the Central Florida region. The end goal is to use the knowledge to create better policy.

“Once we’re finished drafting a set of policy recommendations, rather than stick it on a shelf and let it collect dust, we’ll work on both short-term and long-term objectives — whether it be changes to the land development codes, the creation of certain programs, or the use of advocacy and outreach initiatives, we’ll implement the policies,” Glasser said.

parking requirements.”

A financial incentive could involve density bonuses, which would offset a developer’s overall construction costs assuming it builds a certain percentage of units designed for low-income families. Another possible incentive could take the form of a subsidy of the required impact fees if the developer builds single-family homes ranging between $160,000 to $210,000 or rental units that cost around $675 a month for a one-bedroom unit or about $750 for a two-bedroom.

Also under possible consideration for inclusion in the county’s future policy recommendations are what have been termed “inclusionary zoning ordinances,” which Glasser said has grown more popular within other highly populated and expensive areas.

“We’re also looking at inclusionary zoning ordinances, where you require all developers to build a certain percentage of affordable units,” he said. “They are usually done in more expensive areas of the state, but we’re starting to see that pop up more in South Florida.”

THE ‘D’ WORD

Glasser is aware some of the policy solutions under discussion require developments to increase residential density, despite strong concerns

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De Sola’s

TIM FREED ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Caring for Winter Park’s Pets and Their People Since 1955

It’s cold backstage in the Linda Chapin Theater, but that’s fine.

Ballet dancer Sasha De Sola has to warm up anyway.

Between a towering hallway of dark curtains just feet away from stage right, De Sola practices her craft while wearing a black tutu with elegant gold trim.

She hops in place for a moment before stretching her joints. Feet wrapped in silk extend straight out, carrying her entire body weight on her toes. She flexes her feet up and down in a crisscross pattern – her heels kissing the ground for just a second at a time.

The routine almost resembles the pregame warmup of a professional athlete, and that’s not far from the reality of being a worldrenowned ballet dancer, De Sola said. It could even be an understatement.

“We’re trained to make it look easy,” she said.

“I would train six hours a day from the age of 11 on. … It’s difficult on the body.”

Later that day she would be performing in front of 2,600 people.

But this isn’t just any audience – it’s her hometown crowd.

It’s been four years, but she’s finally come home.

1601 Lee Road, Winter Park

De Sola showcased her ballet skills alongside partner Max Cauthorn on Saturday, June 24 at the World Ballet Competition’s Gala Performance, performing “Black Swan pas de deux” from “Swan Lake” at the Orange County Convention Center.

The 27-year-old knows the Linda Chapin Theater and its backstage well – she grew up performing numerous ballet dances there. She was born in Winter Park Memorial Hospital and grew up not far away in Winter Springs.

But Central Florida isn’t just her home, it’s where she discovered her passion for dance.

Flying into Orlando from where she currently lives in San Francisco, the memories came flooding back for De Sola.

“It felt sort of surreal,” she said.

“Just even getting on 417, it’s very nostalgic. It’s a really good feeling to be back.”

BY TROY HERRING ASSOCIATE EDITOR

During Monday night’s City Council meeting in Maitland, the Council motioned and passed an ordinance to amend the Planned Development (PD) zoning district and Development Plan for an apartment complex in the city.

After a presentation on the plan’s specifics by Community Development Director Dan Matthys, and Becky Wilson, who was representSEE MAITLAND PAGE 5

YOUR TOWN MAYOR LEARY ELECTED TO FLORIDA LEAGUE OF MAYORS

Courtesy Erik Tomasson

Winter Park Mayor Steve Leary was elected to the Board of Directors of the Florida League of Mayors for a term ending August 2018. The Florida League of Mayors is an organization for mayors and governed by a Board of Directors of mayors from around the state representing geographical districts.

Winter Park ponders banning medical marijuana dispensaries TIM FREED ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Winter Park City Commissioners are pondering their approach to medical marijuana dispensaries in the wake of Gov. Rick Scott signing the medical marijuana bill into law last week.

City Attorney Kurt Ardaman gave the City Commission an idea of what’s next for the city of Winter Park during their meeting on Monday. The state legislation on medical marijuana preempts any local regulations in place, but

FRIDAY, JUNE 30, 2017

The controversial ordinance will be ultimately decided upon on July 10.

Professional ballet dancer Sasha De Sola gave a special performance in front of her hometown crowd on June 24 at the Orange County Convention Center.

SEE BALLET PAGE 4

Born in Winter Park, Sasha De Sola is now a world-famous ballet dancer.

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does give cities the opportunity to ban dispensaries if they choose to do so, he said.

Unless the facilities are banned outright though, the city has no control over where the dispensaries go or how many of them

Photo by Tim Freed

Will Winter Park ban medical marijuana dispensaries? Some City Commissioners think it’s for the best for now.

The general purpose of the League of Mayors is to provide a forum for Florida mayors to: • Jointly study and assist each other in solutions to problems faced by Florida’s municipalities.

• Work cooperatively for the general improvement and efficient administration of Florida’s municipalities.

• Promote the exchange of ideas and experiences in successful methods of administration of Florida’s municipalities.

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Impact of the arts

After a yearlong initiative in 2015 to draft a vision for the city’s future, Winter Park is looking to the arts to help bolster the economy and local culture.

TROY HERRING ASSOCIATE EDITOR

If you take a walk around downtown Winter Park, you’ll probably see the blue banners hanging from street lamps.

In white, sans-serif font, they read, “Arts & Culture,” and “Be Inspired” — it’s one of the many means of marketing that the city has been utilizing to promote the arts as a part of its vision program.

Back in 2015, the city decided to undergo a yearlong initiative to look toward the future of the community and figure out what it needed to do to help build the future for the area.

That initiative took the form of a combination of research and focus groups, and led the city to discover the things that really resonated with residents.

Through the year, the arts and culture was a topic that bubbled up consistently. It makes sense when you consider the city’s history, said Clarissa Howard, director of communications for Winter Park.

“After we (the city was) first established in 1882, arts and culture has always been a prominent part of our college, the First Congressional Church, and it still is today,” Howard said. “And with the vision it still will be 50 years from now — so it surpasses time.”

DOLLARS AND SENSE

With the vision program came forth the Arts and Culture Subcommittee, which works under the overseeing eye of the city’s Public Art Advisory Board. The group is made up of seven main members, but they represent 22 different art entities.

As a part of the process, the city asked Americans for the Arts — a nonprofit organization that focuses on advancing the arts throughout the country — to work on analyzing the economic impact of art in Winter Park.

In its recently released report, Arts & Economic Prosperety: The Economic Impact of Nonprofit Arts & Cultural Organizations & Their Audiences, the group found some impressive numbers regarding the role art plays in the community.

Because it takes time to collect and organize data, the report focuses on the 2015 fiscal year. In that year, the city saw a total industry expenditure of just under $46 million — $16.5 million of which came from the arts and cultural organizations themselves, and the remaining $29.4 million brought in by visitors to those organizations.

Comparing those numbers to the median of other similar areas examined by the group, about $40 million more was spent at Winter Park organizations by their audiences.

“The great thing about having that many arts and cultural organizations in such a small area is that you don’t only have to like painting, or visual arts, or clay — it’s so diverse.”

— Clarissa Howard

DIVERSITY IS KEY

So what’s been the driving force to helping lead Winter Park in the realm of art? According to Kyle Dudgeon, CRA/economic development manager for the city, it all comes down the unique variety of art and culture offered.

“Any time you’re dealing with civic economics, it’s really important to be diverse,” Dudgeon said. “So it’s not just about making sure it’s a good place for our producers that service men and women, but also getting that arm of the creative class that helps drive in people, as well as support a really strong work force.”

Dudgeon isn’t wrong. Those who take in the arts in the area have a wide variety to choose from that attracts people from all backgrounds, Howard said.

“The great thing about having that many arts and cultural organizations in such a small area is that you don’t only have to like just painting, (there is also) visual arts, and clay — it’s so diverse,” Howard said.

That diversity meshes into the attendees that made their ways into local arts institutions in 2015.

MOVING FORWARD

Of the 1,070,230 visitors to the galleries, museums, and other places of cultural in Winter Park, 576,854 (53.9%) came from outof-town tourists — the other 46.1% were visits from residents.

In every category Americans for Arts examined — meals and refreshments; souvenirs; ground transportation; overnight lodging; and miscellaneous items — tourists outspent locals an aver-

Photos by Troy Herring

age of $34.89 to $18.81.

It’s something that is pretty normal for communities in general, Dudgeon said.

“It’s not uncommon to see,” he said. “The really important takeaway is where we lie, from a competitive advantage standpoint, is this driver in the market of experience, and experience is really driven from authenticity and that’s why people want to come into Winter Park — for the authenticity.

“So that puts us in — particularly in a guest and visitor perspective — a much better position to do whatever we want,” he said.

While the incoming visitors are, of course, always welcomed by the city, Winter Park also is taking steps to help motivate locals to take in the arts.

Winter Park, alongside the arts organizations in the city, have numerous events spread out through 2018, with the biggest being the inaugural Weekend of the Arts that will take place from Feb. 16 to 19.

The hope is that the event, and the branding of “Rediscover Winter Park” will help draw visitors from the city and make it an arts destination for years to come.

“From the subcommittee level, to have more people experience the organizations and their offerings would be a success,” Howard said. “Overall, we do hope to increase the visibility and awareness of these gems.”

BY THE NUMBERS Economic impact of spending by arts and cultural organizations and their audiences

$29.4 million

Event-related spending by arts and cultural audiences (excluding the cost of admission)

$27.48

Average spent per person at nonprofit arts and cultural event (excluding the cost of admission) SOURCE: The Economic Impact of Nonprofit Arts and Cultural Organizations and Their Audiences in the City of Winter Park, Florida (FY 2015)

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Taking shape Winter Park may see the final design of the new library this year, along with the demolition of the Rachel D. Murrah Civic Center and groundbreaking for the new facility.

TIM FREED ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Winter Park’s new library/event center is coming closer and closer to becoming a reality.

As the year of 2018 begins, the exact design of the building may soon come to life as worldrenowned architecture firm Adjaye Associates is expected to craft the final renderings soon. The new year also may see the demolition of the existing Rachel D. Murrah Civic Center — tentatively scheduled for June or July — and the groundbreaking of the new facility — tentatively scheduled for August or September, Winter Park Public Library Executive Director Shawn Shaffer said.

THE NITTY GRITTY

On Nov. 30, Shaffer and other officials with the library met with Project Director Russell Crader, of Adjaye Associates, to discuss more details — everything from the placement of bookshelves to the design of a proposed artistic multi-layered curtain that will hang across a stage in a performance auditorium area.

The ideas just keep coming, and it’s incredibly exciting, Shaffer said.

“We just had a great meeting, where we went over the floor plan,” Shaffer said. “We got into some real specifics — like where are we putting the shelves, how high the shelves will be and where the story time room is.”

When visitors step into the new library, they will be greeted with a large open space with shelves of books and seating areas, Shaffer said. At one end of the first floor will be the flexible performance and presentation space with tiered steps sloping downward. Chairs and even tables could be placed on each of these steps depending on the

BY THE NUMBERS

Winter Park Library stats for FY 2016/2017

179,385

visits to the library

411,000

pieces of material circulated through the library (456,000 including electronic downloads)

1,975

events and classes hosted by the library

31,000

people attending library events and classes

event taking place. Even when the space is empty, visitors can sit on the steps and read a book, treating it as an open study space.

MORE THAN A PLACE FOR BOOKS

Shaffer said the library hopes to have a wide range of events at the performance space, from concerts and movies to TEDx Salon events, where groups gather on a weekly or monthly basis, watch live TED Talks and discuss them.

“That’s just an incredible opportunity,” Shaffer said.

“Flexibility is going to be the key. I want it to be a performance space where the Bach Festival can be and a venue for education or TED Talks.”

The other end of the library will include a series of smaller conference rooms, study rooms separated by glass walls and a “maker space” that will include a 3D printer, a sound studio and other forms of technology for visitors to use.

The first floor also will include

a bookstore and a cafe, which the library hopes will serve delicious food that draws a crowd of its own.

“I see this being a lot like New General, about two blocks from here on New England, where there’s a store and sort of that same kind of menu with coffee and teas and drinks, salads, toast — not a lot of heavy cooking,” Shaffer said. “Between the atmosphere and the building, the food will be so good that — even if you’re not coming to the library — you’re coming to the cafe.”

Stairs will lead up to the second floor, which will feature the children, tween and teen books, along with plenty of areas to sit and read.

Winter Park’s new library facility will demonstrate numerous improvements over the existing building, Shaffer said. Two floors will be much easier to navigate through and organize, she said. Instead of books for adults being split between the first and third floor, they’ll all be in one place “When you walk in, you’re going to be able to look right and left and really see everything,” Shaffer said. “You’ll be able to see where that auditorium is.

You’ll be able to see where the maker space is. It’ll be more open and inviting. If you can see it, we can see it – that makes it easier for us to manage as well. … You’ll walk in and you’ll know where to go.”

The library will have the feel almost of an Apple store, with staff spread throughout the library with tablets used to check out items, Shaffer said.

An automated conveyer belt system for sorting the books could also be implemented in the new building, she said.

As for the event center space, the building will work closely with the library and likely share

LIBRARY PROGRAMS RAMPING UP IN 2018 Winter Park Library has plenty planned for 2018.

“We’re the human search engines, and more people are calling the library and learning about library stuff than ever before,” Winter Park Public Library Executive Director Shawn Shaffer said. “So for 2018 here at this library, we’re going to try and build on that and all the stuff we’ve done in previous years past.”

Shaffer said the library has partnered with the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce and its Relaunch program, which helps women get back into the workforce. The library will be showing them how to put together a resume, how to job search and how to use LinkedIn. For the little ones, the library has worked with preschools in the past to host story times. Officials hope to reach out to the Winter Park Community Center to put on more story time events, along with Winter Park Memorial Hospital to start a program for newborns called Baby’s First Library Card.

A “sensory story time” program also is starting in January for children who are on the autism spectrum.

In late January the library will be bringing in a program called Project Magic by David Copperfield, through which children with disabilities or children who have suffered trauma do magic tricks for other children as a form of therapy. Winter Park’s library is expected to host three or four of the performances, Shaffer said.

The Winter Park Library also will be hosting an escape room in January for teens and adults.

Free half-day and full-day SAT and ACT prep courses will also continue at the Winter Park Public Library in 2018. The library pays the fee for the course and offers the books as well.

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spaces, Shaffer said.

Some libraries have hosted events like comic cons and author festivals, and the Winter Park Public Library would like to do so as well, she said.

“Our auditorium is (going to be) great, but the ballroom is going to be a much bigger venue for us, so when we want to bring in a big speaker or we want a bigger venue, we’ll want to use the ballroom,” Shaffer said.

“In many ways, we’ll be working together as one organization between the two of us.”

It’s been a long journey toward a new library, but it’s been an amazing process, Shaffer said.

“We’re getting there,” she said.

The library should see schematic drawings in late January/ early February, with the new library opening in the spring or summer of 2020.

“Winter Park has a unique opportunity to not only create and deliver a generational imperative to our community, but also to send a signal to the region and beyond, that comprehensive library projects are not expenses, but rather investments,” Winter Park Mayor Steve Leary wrote in a statement. “The new library should not only be a place to go and check out a book or even to connect to the internet but rather a place where dreams are created, careers are launched, relationships are strengthened, and bodies, minds, and souls are nourished.”

“The new library should not only be a place to go and check out a book or even to connect to the internet but rather a place where dreams are created, careers are launched, relationships are strengthened, and bodies, minds and souls are nourished.”

— Winter Park Mayor Steve Leary

THE FUTURE OF THE EXISTING LIBRARY As for the future of the current library building at 460 E. New England Ave., it all falls on the shoulders of the city, Shaffer said.

“The land and the building are owned by the city of Winter Park, so we don’t have any say in what they do with it,” Winter Park Public Library Executive Director Shawn Shaffer said. “As far as I know, the city doesn’t have any plans. They’ve not started to think about what they might do with it.

They (have) a few pieces of property that they’re actively working on. We’re not going to be out of here until 2020. … It’s not as high a priority.”

Courtesy

Winter Park residents saw the new building’s first conceptual designs at a public meeting on Nov. 1.

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Such great heights Kurt Ardaman, the city attorney for Winter Park, Winter Garden and several other municipalities, recently embarked on an adventure in Nepal with his family.

GABBY BAQUERO NEWS EDITOR

As the city attorney for five local governments, Kurt Ardaman’s career involves stacks of paperwork and the minutia of realestate ordinances, stipulations and guidelines.

During his 33-year career, Ardaman has developed an expertise for solving problems and navigating the complex intricacies of law, which he emphasized is in constant flux because of new state laws and amendments.

His expertise is of great use for local governments that find themselves continually drafting ordinances to offer protection against state laws that encroach on home rule.

“There are so many wonderful things about law, and it changes every day,” he said.

“The most interesting part is coming up with creative ways to solve my client’s problems and reach their objectives.”

However, the problems associated with litigation, land-use law and home rule remained far from Ardaman’s mind as he faced a new challenge: the harsh environment of Mount Everest to reach the South Base Camp in Nepal.

Ardaman, who resides in

Gotha, took the trek alongside his two adult daughters, Ansley and Kara Ardaman, and his sonin-law, Nick Asma.

“We didn’t go out there with the intent to climb all the way up Mount Everest, but I still liked the challenge,” Ardaman said.

After signing up for the trek with Sherpa Mountain Adventures, Ardaman and his family trained their bodies before they embarked on the 13-day trip with 15 other climbers and 20 Sherpas from Oct. 18 to Nov. 9, 2017. Ardaman and his family ran up SugarLoaf Mountain near Clermont in Lake County and up and down the bleachers at West Orange High School.

But nothing could have prepared them for the nights spent trying to sleep in plywood buildings that lacked insulation, in which the Sherpas burned yak dung on a stove to produce heat.

The lower levels of oxygen, freezing temperatures, the ability to only shower once during the whole trip, and limited diet of hard-boiled eggs, yak cheese, rice, soups and steamed vegetables took some getting used to, Ansley said.

However, the challenges of the journey were worth the sights. The trek took them past picturesque views, temples and Buddhist prayer wheels. Most importantly, it gave them mem-

Courtesy photos

Kurt Ardaman, Kara Ardaman, Nick Asma and Ansley Ardaman enjoyed their time in Nepal.

ories of a lifetime.

One such memory involved an experience wherein the group had to cross a suspended threefoot-wide bridge alongside the yaks carrying their supplies. At one point, the bridge started shaking and the Sherpa shouted at them, telling them to run because a spooked 1,000-pound yak behind them began running across the bridge, Asma said.

“It’s definitely a whole different way of life,” Ansley said.

“There we were, sleeping in our trekking gear and down pants, and the porters carrying the supplies were wearing flip-flops and a shirt. We didn’t see any starvation or hungry people, but they were frugal and did not have much.”

The travelers said Nepal offers “a different way of life.”

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“There’s a lot of mobility and demand between the cities,” Anselmo said. “Now it’s not only for the SunRail station but if you’re on the west side of Maitland and you want to grab lunch somewhere, you have an Uber for that.”

In addition, the city has had a partnership with LYNX bus that will extend into 2018.

LET GO OF THE WHEEL

Harry Sayer

Covering its tracks The city of Maitland is trying new ways to breathe life into its SunRail station.

HARRY SAYER BLACK TIE REPORTER

The SunRail service is a helpful way for Central Florida denizens to get from one area to the next, often on the cheap.

However, Maitland’s station is one of the two worst-performing stations on the line.

According to ridership numbers provided by the Florida Department of Transportation, the Maitland SunRail station averaged just over 3,600 riders each month from November 2016 to November 2017. That number is far below that of its Winter Park counterpart.

As such, the city is in the midst of various transportation promotions it hopes will draw more people to use the train system.

The trick? Changing people’s transportation habits.

“We just want to make people feel OK to be away from their cars,” City Manager Sharon Anselmo said.

CATCH A RIDE

According to Anselmo, a big factor explaining the station’s reduced ridership is simply its location.

“Maitland Station isn’t as much a destination station as what we call a drop-off station,” Anselmo said. “What we’re finding is part of the problem with the ridership (numbers) is that our commercial base and our employment sector is on the other side of I-4, the west side.

So the station dropping folks off on 17-92 doesn’t really serve that west side.”

Riders getting off at the station, 801 N. Orlando Ave., often rely on public transportation

to finish their journey to work.

Sherri Perez is no different.

“I work on the other side (of Maitland), which is why it’s harder to get to work from the train station,” Perez said.

Perez, a Lake Mary resident who doesn’t drive, takes the Lynx bus from the station to her job. When she misses the bus, she typically takes an Uber ride.

The city has worked to make those rides less costly for citizens. In July 2016, Maitland joined a pilot program with Uber.

The program, started by the city of Altamonte Springs, offers a discount for citizens taking an Uber ride from the city station to anywhere in Maitland.

After a year, the city extended the function to conclude in August 2018. Beyond that, the service also has expanded to work between cities.

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Anselmo said there’s a simple reason the city is doing its best to promote public transit to its citizens: It wants people to use their cars less.

“If twice as many people are taking the SunRail, whether it’s driving to their jobs or out driving out to lunch, it helps with traffic congestion,” Anselmo said. “And when employers are looking to relocate to Maitland and see there’s not enough parking for their employees, that’s a problem. … They also want alternate ways to get employees to work or they build a parking garage, which is expensive.”

TICKING CLOCK

The Central Florida Commuter Rail Commission runs the SunRail with funding from the FDOT. However, that won’t be the case forever.

“At the conclusion of seven years, which I believe is about five years out now, the cities take over and will be providing the cost of the rail service as contributions to the (CFCRM),” Anselmo said.

Based on estimates from 2009, it costs about $500,000 to manage the Maitland SunRail station, she said. In that context, the low ridership numbers become a greater problem.

“If the ridership increases, the

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FRIDAY, JANUARY 5, 2018

RESIDENT RIDERS?

The city has another hope for bringing in riders to their station. Maitland Station, a brand new apartment complex being constructed right next to the SunRail tracks.

“That should feed folks to that station (when it’s finished); it’s the next lot over,” Anselmo said. “There’s also a metro square with 300 units across the street.”

The Maitland Station complex, which will have nearly 300 units, pulled its business permits in May 2016 and is expected to be completed in fall of this year, according to Anselmo.

The complex already is offering pre-leases.

revenue increases, which offsets the amount the city would have to contribute,” Anselmo said.

“We have to see what our SunRail brings to the city.”

The city has a few ways out of the agreement. If they decide to no longer fund the station when responsibilities turn to them, the station can be closed.

“It’s an option for the city, but it’s not the preferred option (we want),” Anselmo said. “The development around the SunRail will feed riders into it.”

The City Council will begin examining the city’s budget for 2019 through 2021 in March.

“At this point, it’s going to become a budget reality for our budget process,” Anselmo said.

“It’s going to fall into the window of planning and affect our general fund.”

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FAST FACTS n Born in Atlanta but raised in Central Florida n Holds three degrees from the University of Central Florida: bachelor’s (1983), masters (1986) and EdD (1996) n Has been in the field of education for 30 years n Orange County Public Schools superintendent since 2012 n Has won numerous awards for her role in education, with the most recent being named the Florida Superintendent of the Year (2017)

Super Woman Dr. Barbara Jenkins has earned numerous accolades during her five years as Orange County Public Schools’ superintendent.

TROY HERRING ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Every morning, Dr. Barbara Jenkins wakes up to a day filled with work.

Agenda meetings, board meetings, school visits, community activities — the list is seemingly never-ending and feels like the kind of schedule that would take an army to complete.

But there she is, a figure of poise and pure drive to do her job — and do it well.

It takes that kind of grit to oversee the ninth-largest school district in the country. She’s at the helm of an operation that educates 207,000 students across 191 schools. It’s an enormous task that comes with an equal amount of responsibility.

But it also comes with the potential of unparalleled satisfaction.

“I love teaching and learning — I’m always learning myself, so it’s just something that I’m drawn to,” Jenkins said. “It’s also because I believe in young people.

“I’m invigorated — I just feel energized when I visit schools and when I’m around our young people,” she said. “I so believe in their potential and in their future, and I want to be a part of making sure that they are successful.”

FIRST LOVE

Jenkins’ love for all things teaching has always had a strong presence in her life, even when she was a child.

While other children dreamed of becoming firefighters or astronauts, as a first-grader, Jenkins already had made up her mind on becoming a teacher, thanks to the inspiration that came in the form of one of her teachers.

“That was my first love,” Jen-

kins said. “I’ve never veered from wanting to be in (this) profession.”

After graduating from Winter Park High School, Jenkins enrolled at the University of Central Florida, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education and administration in 1983. She followed that with a master’s degree in administration and supervision in 1986 and, finally, her EdD. After finishing her undergraduate degree and during her time working on her master’s, Jenkins started her first teaching job at Spring Lake and Conway elementaries from 1983 to 1987.

Over the next decade, Jenkins climbed the OCPS ladder — from her staff development resource teaching position at Lakemont and Killarney elementary schools to a role as senior director of elementary education from 1993 to 1998.

Also in 1998, Jenkins took her first major role helping to oversee a school system, but unlike her previous jobs, this one wasn’t in her own backyard.

For eight years Jenkins took over as the assistant superintendent for human resources for the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school system in Charlotte, North Carolina. There, she juggled numerous tasks for a district system that included 14,000 staff members and 120,000 students.

It was a satisfying, challenging position — and one that Jenkins hadn’t planned to leave.

“I actually didn’t expect that I would come back to Orange County,” Jenkins said. “I got this phone call from Ron Blocker, who was superintendent at the time, and he said, ‘It’s time to come home — I need you to come be my chief of staff,’ so I agreed to come back here and

then chief of staff later became deputy superintendent.”

During that time, Jenkins thought she was going to just take this role under Blocker and help as his deputy superintendent, but there was more to Blocker’s plan.

“What Ron Blocker didn’t tell me at the time was that he shortly thereafter announced a two-year notice of his retirement,” Jenkins said. “So during that period of time — the entire four years I was deputy — he gave me lots of opportunities and included me and let me have a lot of experiences. It made me a pretty strong candidate when the board decided to put out a search for a new superintendent in 2012.”

The rest, as Jenkins put it, “was history.”

VIEW FROM THE TOP

The job itself has been a rewarding adventure for Jenkins in more ways than one. Not only is her role as superintendent allowing her to continue her dream of helping oversee the education of local youth, but also it’s earning her and OCPS plenty of recognition in the process.

In 2014, under Jenkins’ leadership the district won the Broad Prize for Urban Education, which brought in $500,000 to

“I’m invigorated — I just feel energized when I visit schools and when I’m around our young people. I so believe in their potential and in their future, and I want to be a part of making sure that they are successful.”

— Superintendent Barbara Jenkins

Courtesy photo

go toward student scholarships from the Elie and Edythe Broad Foundation. Of everything Jenkins has accomplished as superintendent, she considers the Broad Prize to be one of the highlights.

The county also has received the Governor’s Sterling Award in 2014 and 2015, as well as the Sustained Excellence Award in 2017.

In the last year alone, Jenkins has earned herself two impressive honors — a presidential appointment as the director of the National Board of Education Sciences in January 2017 and the title of Florida Superintendent of the Year.

“I was in shock to be a finalist, because we have so many fine superintendents all across the nation and certainly in Florida as well, so I was honored to represent Florida superintendents,” Jenkins said. “I didn’t get the national superintendent of the year, but to be one of the four finalists, I was so honored and pleased for the state of Florida and any recognition that my peers and I could receive from that.

“Most importantly, that recognition is in honor of my board and my leadership team, and all the people who actually do the work here in Orange County — I didn’t earn that by myself,” she said.

With her family firmly nestled in the Orlando area — her husband, Harold, is a Realtor; her daughter, Hillary, works as an attorney at Holland & Knight; and her son, Harrison, is finishing his last year at UCF — Jenkins has no plans to leave her post any time soon.

“I get calls periodically about other opportunities and other possibilities for jobs in the education field, and I will tell you nothing has attracted me more than Central Florida and the tremendous work being done by our entire community,” Jenkins said. “While we have gotten some great accolades, but there is so much more work to be done here.”

n Has served on a number of boards and councils, including the Orlando Economic Partnership, the Commission for Homelessness and the Winter Park Health Foundation Board of Trustees.

TEACHING HISTORY n Superintendent, OCPS (2012 to present) n Deputy superintendent, OCPS (2010 to 2012) n Chief of staff, OCPS (2006 to 2010) n Assistant superintendent for human resources, CharlotteMecklenburg Schools (1998 to 2005) n Senior director of elementary education, OCPS (1993 to 1998) n Principal, Brookshire Elementary School (1989 to 1993) n Assistant principal, Lakemont/Killarney Elementary Schools (1988 to 1989) n Staff development resource teacher, OCPS (1987 to 1988) n Teacher, Spring Lake and Conway elementary schools (1983 to 1987)

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