November 2, 2007 - City News

Mayor's Message

Dear Friend,

All our recent wet, tropical weather certainly hasn’t made it feel like fall, but November is here, and with its arrival, the anticipation of fall weather and the holidays to come.

The fall season also brings daylight-saving time. Don’t forget to set your clocks back an hour on Saturday evening. And, while you are at it, remember to replace the batteries in your smoke alarms as well. Smoke alarms are vital in saving lives if a fire should occur in a home. If you are a City resident and you do not have a working smoke alarm in your house, please contact the Orlando Fire Department at 407-246-3128. The Orlando Fire Department offers a free smoke alarm to any City resident who does not have one.

This week’s City News highlights Monday’s City Council workshop on Public Safety, a recent update on Operation Delta, the City’s Veterans Day Parade, the newest episode of Inside Orlando and my work-along at the Nap Ford Community School.

 

Sincerely,

Buddy Dyer
Mayor


 

This section of City News provides public safety updates on new and ongoing City initiatives and opportunities for citizens to become engaged in their neighborhoods.

Operation Delta Captures Top Criminal

On Wednesday, October 31, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and Police Chief Michael McCoy announced another pivotal arrest in the fight against crime. At the start of Operation Delta in early October, 19 major suspects were identified as participating in illegal drug activity in the Parramore Neighborhood. More than half were arrested during the Delta Unit’s “sweeps” earlier in October. However, the individual at the top of Operation Delta’s list managed to elude police until Tuesday. Through a combination of community engagement, aggressive police work, cooperation with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office and media involvement, a habitual felony offender who has been arrested 35 times in 13 years has been taken off the streets.

The Orlando Police Department is committed to making Orlando a safe place to live. The Department will continue using new approaches like Operation Delta to achieve that goal.


Public Safety Workshop

This Monday, OPD staff and members of the Safe Orlando Task Force presented an update to the City Council. Police Chief Mike McCoy provided a general overview of crime statistics, including a decrease in murders for the first six months of 2007 compared with the same period in 2006.

Dr. Stanley Stone, Chairman of the Safe Orlando Task Force, gave an update of the group’s recommendations and how they were being implemented, including initiatives such as the Illegal Gun Bounty Program and expanded efforts to promote police officer recruitment. Dr. Jay Corzine, a researcher from the University of Central Florida, presented the findings of a study on violent crimes in Orange County. The research being done at UCF is giving local law enforcement and community leaders valuable insights into who is committing crimes and why they choose to engage in illegal activity. The workshop is available online at http://cityoforlando.net/council.htm.
 

Orlando Takes Second Place for National Night Out
 

Orlando was, once again, selected as a national award winner for its outstanding participation in the 24th “Annual National Night Out” on August 7. Orlando achieved a second place ranking for cities with a population of 100,000 – 299,000, competing against hundreds of other large cities such as Modesto, California and Ontario, California, which historically have strong participation in neighborhood watch programs.

Nationwide, 35.4 million people participated in 11,310 communities from all 50 states, U.S. territories and military bases. This year, 47 parties were held in Orlando and 253 block captains participated, along with 7,151 citizens. This is a new record for Orlando, which placed third nationally last year.

The Neighborhood Watch members, area coordinators and block captains throughout the City played a large role in the success of this event. The Orlando Police Department thanks Orlando residents for contributing to the achievement of this special recognition.
 

On Tuesday, October 30, Mayor Dyer held a work-along with students from the Nap Ford Community School and Leu Gardens staff to plant a community garden. Community gardens are an important tool in engaging children and adults in beautifying the neighborhood while educating the community on the importance of locally-grown plants and vegetables. Encouraging community gardens is part of the Mayor’s “Green Works Orlando” environmental action agenda.

The 19 foot by 16 foot community garden includes organically grown tomatoes, cauliflower, collards, cabbage, broccoli, mustard, turnips, flowers and herbs.
 

On Monday, October 29, the City Council approved an agreement with Local Governments for Sustainability to become partners in the “Cities for Climate Protection Campaign”. ICLEI is an international membership association of local governments and national and regional government organizations that have made a commitment to sustainable development.

Joining this campaign requires that the City pledge to take a leadership role in reducing its own greenhouse gas emissions and promoting public awareness of the causes and impacts of global climate change. The City is making this commitment as part of the “Green Works Orlando” plan. For more information, visit cityoforlando.net/greenworks.

 

Mayor in the Community

On Monday, October 29, Mayor Dyer attended the Arts+Awards Celebration for United Arts at Sea World. The City of Orlando and Orange County were recognized with an award for the Community Venues initiative.

On Tuesday, October 30, Mayor Dyer attended the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority and Lufthansa inaugural flight press conference to greet Lufthansa’s inaugural flight to the Orlando International Airport.

On Wednesday night, October 31, Mayor Dyer attended the Orlando Magic’s Opening Night Tip-off for the 2007-2008 basketball season.

On Thursday, November 1, 2007, Mayor Dyer attended the Central Florida Mayors Prayer Breakfast at the Citrus Club. Later that same day, Mayor Dyer and District 3 Commissioner Robert Stuart hosted a safety meeting at the Calvary Towers to update residents on the City’s public safety initiatives.
 

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City Hall
400 South Orange Avenue
Orlando, FL 32801
Phone: 407.246.2221
Fax: 407.246.2842
Email:
buddy.dyer@cityoforlando.net