January 25, 2008 - City News

Mayor's Message

Dear Friend,

In 1883, cattle baron Jacob Summerlin donated the land around Lake Eola for a park. This created a tranquil oasis in downtown and a place for Orlando residents to gather for celebrations and events. From ball fields to hiking trails, from fishing ponds to skate board parks, the City of Orlando has continued to preserve natural places and create parks for residents to enjoy. This weekend, we will be dedicating three new parks in the Baldwin Park neighborhood, Harbor Park, Central Florida Veterans Memorial Park and the Baldwin Park Trail. In total, there are 400 acres of dedicated green space for conservation and public recreation, meaning 40 percent of the Baldwin Park community is dedicated to public green space.

But the parks and green spaces here in Baldwin Park only account for about 14percent of the City’s overall park space. Since 2003, we have opened or renovated 50 parks, ball fields and community centers and have more than 100 youth sports teams that practice and play at our community facilities.

The City of Orlando presently maintains more than 1,200 acres of community and neighborhood park land, not including Dubsdread Golf Course or the Wetlands Park which combined total over 1,500 acres. This is a visible representation of how the City of Orlando is working to create livable neighborhoods for our citizens.
 
 

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.

Illegal Gun Bounty Celebrates Anniversary

On Wednesday, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, Police Chief Val Demings and Crimeline announced the anniversary of an effort that generated more than 900 tips from the community, doubled the number of guns taken off the street and locked violent offenders behind bars. Modeled after a best practice from Jacksonville, the Illegal Gun Bounty program gives a $1,000 cash reward for information that leads to an arrest, a gun recovery and a weapons charge.

Based on the Illegal Gun Bounty program’s success in engaging the community, Mayor Dyer announced a new partnership with Crimeline and Clear Channel Outdoor aimed at identifying and arresting wanted criminals. Clear Channel Outdoor will feature photos of the wanted criminals on billboards to help increase tips that would result in an arrest.

In 2006, Mayor Dyer and the Orlando City Council committed additional resources to combat the rise in crime, including the multi-year, $100 million Public Safety Initiative which put additional police officers patrolling our streets. They also established the Safe Orlando Task Force to develop short and long-term recommendations, and OPD's deployment of TAC units. For more information on the City’s Public Safety Initiative, visit CityofOrlando.net.

 

Mayor Dyer to Break Ground on City’s Newest Fire Station

On Thursday, January 24, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, Fire Chief James Reynolds and members of the Orlando City Council broke ground on the new site for Fire Station #7. The new station will serve the Washington Shores neighborhood and surrounding area. Additionally, Fire Station #7 will be a “green” or LEED-certified building. The City currently has two “green” stations operating in other parts of the City.

The new station is part of Mayor Dyer’s 2006 public safety initiative which has added 60 new fire personnel, three new fire stations, new vehicles and state of the art equipment and training.

The groundbreaking for Station 7 comes on the heels of the Fire Department’s designation as an ISO 1-rated agency. In November, the Orlando Fire Department received the elite rating achieved by only 55 of the more than 44,000 fire departments across the nation.

 

Lake Nona Community Police Office Opens

On Friday, January 25, Commissioner Diamond and Orlando Police Chief Val Demings opened the City’s fourth community sub-station. The Lake Nona Community Police Office will serve the growing Southeast section of the City of Orlando.

The substation is part of Mayor Dyer’s continuing commitment to public safety and his three-year, multi-million dollar Public Safety Initiative. The Lake Nona Community Police Office is located at 10727 Narcoossee Road.

 

Cell Phones for Seniors

VOICE, the Volunteer Organization of Involved City of Orlando Employees, has partnered with CBS radio to collect old cell phones, even broken ones, during January. The cell phones will be reconditioned for 911 service and distributed by the City of Orlando’s Senior Links program to seniors in our community who are needy, homebound or isolated.

Drop-off locations in January include:

- City Hall rotunda

- Central Parking Garage, 53 W. Central Blvd.

- Fleet/Facilities’ Service Writer’s Office, 1010 Westmoreland Ave..

- Orlando Police Department Headquarters Supply Dept., Entrance on Bryan Ave.

- Families, Parks and Recreation Primrose Building, 595 N Primrose Dr.

- Streets and Stormwater Building, 1010 S. Woods Ave.

- Amway Arena, 600 W. Amelia St.

- Wasterwater, 5100 L.B. McLeon Rd.

- All City of Orlando Fire Stationss

- Select Metro PCS locations

 

On Tuesday, January 29, the City of Orlando will hold elections for the positions of Mayor and Commissioners for District 2 and District 6. Early voting will continue through January 27 at numerous library locations including the Downtown Orange County Library at 101 E. Central Boulevard and the Supervisor of Elections Office at 119 W. Kaley Street. Early votes may be cast from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday.  See a complete list of locations for early voting or find out your precinct’s polling place.  For more information, contact the Orange County Supervisor of Elections Office at (407) 836-2070.

Mayor in the Community

 

On Saturday, January 19, Mayor Dyer participated in the 24th annual Martin Luther King, Jr. parade to honor the legacy and life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

On Sunday, January 20, Mayor Dyer led the Candlelight Vigil and March starting at Orlando City Hall and ending at First United Methodist Church, where the Martin Luther King, Jr. Multicultural Celebration was held in honor of the civil rights leader and in recognition of Orlando’s cultural diversity.
 

On Monday, January 21, Mayor Dyer attended the 17th Annual Arthur “Pappy” Kennedy Prayer Breakfast in commemoration of Arthur Kennedy, Orlando’s first African-American elected official, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

On Wednesday, January 23, Mayor Dyer welcomed former City Academy graduates and celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Mayor’s City Academy at the City Academy Reunion.

Upcoming Events

Road Closure

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