July 17, 2009 - City News

Mayor's Message

This week's severe weather and tornado touchdown was a real reminder of the need for Orlando residents to be prepared for natural disasters. Our community has been fortunate to escape the devastating impacts of hurricanes in the past few years, however, we must remember the 2004 season and be ready. As a City, we must ensure we are ready for anything and encourage our residents and businesses to do the same.

This week, I was joined by members of my senior staff for a hurricane training exercise to ensure our City has the ability to prepare for, respond to and recover from disaster situations. During this exercise, Manny Soto, Emergency Management Director, led the City's senior staff in reviewing emergency management systems, policies and procedures to ensure interagency coordination and communication.

Year round, the City of Orlando's Office of Emergency Management takes proactive steps, working with more than 100 local, volunteer, state, federal and international organizations to ensure Orlando citizens and all of Central Florida is prepared for a hurricane. The Public Safety section of City News this week contains information on volunteer opportunities at our Emergency Operations Center.

For more information on how you can prepare for hurricanes, visit cityoforlando.net/emergency.

Sincerely,

Buddy Dyer
Mayor
 

Healthy Heroes Back to School Bash

Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer invites you to attend the 5th annual Healthy Heroes Back to School Bash on Saturday, August 8, 2009 from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at Amway Arena (600 West Amelia Street). This event provides free immunizations, school supplies, back packs and school physicals for children attending Central Florida schools.

To schedule your appointment for immunization/physicals, please visit healthyheroes.org or call 1.866.229.6368. For more information visit cityoforlando.net.

Buy Local Orlando Business Profile

Buy Local Orlando is under way and each week we want to make sure you know that you can get great deals, discounts and offers. There are more than 150 merchant members participating in the Buy Local Orlando campaign offering special offers and discounts exclusively to Buy Local Orlando consumers.

• Do you need help organizing your financial records, paying your employees or navigating QuickBooks? Accounting and Tax Strategies, Inc. can help and Buy Local Orlando consumers receive 20% off all services. Visit Orlando-tax.com or call 407.443.6788 to make an appointment.
   
• Wild Woman Chocolate has plenty of delicious treats sure to cure any sweet tooth and Buy Local Orlando consumers receive 10% off purchases. Stop in and visit Wild Woman Chocolate today at 915 N. Mills Avenue. For more information, visit wildwomanchocolate.com or call 407.620.7997.

For more information on the Buy Local Orlando program, please visit buylocalorlando.net.

Emergency Information Center Volunteers Needed

Volunteers are needed to staff phone lines in the event of hurricane activation of the Emergency Operations Center. Formal training is mandatory for all phone line volunteers. Training will be held at the Emergency Operations Center, which is located at 110 Andes Avenue, Orlando FL 32807. Training dates to choose from are:

• Thursday, August 6 from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.
• Wednesday, August 12 from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Wednesday, August 12 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
• Thursday, August 13 from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.

Please RSVP to Jasmin Rodriguez at 407.246.3787 or jasmin.rodriguez@cityoforlando.net.

OPD Honor Guard National Competition Winners

On May 14, 2009, six members of the Orlando Police Department Honor Guard traveled to Washington D.C. to participate in the 2009 "Steve Young Honor Guard Competition". Lt. Robert Anzueto, Sgt. Doug Goerke, Officer Robert Andrews, Officer James Dean, Officer Norris Butler and Officer Livio Beccaccio were hand selected to participate due to their commitment to detail.

The competition is judged in three categories: Uniform inspection, posting of colors and the exhibition stage. The Orlando Police Department placed third in the overall competition and first in the exhibition stage.

The Orlando Police Department Honor Guard spent months preparing for the exhibition stage. They chose to present an eight-minute routine mirroring the "Tomb of the Unknown Soldier". The Orlando Police Department was well represented by the Honor Guard in this year's competition. The final result was an impressive display of professionalism, precision and dedication to duty.

National Night Out

On Tuesday, August 4, 2009 the City of Orlando will celebrate the 26th Annual National Night Out, a crime and safety event sponsored by the National Association of Town Watch (NATW). Last year, the City of Orlando finished with record numbers; 65 parties, 367 block captains and 7,982 residents participating. As a result, the City was awarded second place overall by the NATW.

National Night Out promotes police-community partnerships, crime prevention and neighborhood safety. This community-oriented event brings neighbors together for a crime and safety awareness night. Watch groups around the City will hold rallies within their neighborhoods to increase crime awareness in their community.

The top three Neighborhood Watch areas to display the most creative party plans with a crime prevention theme will receive a visit from the City's Officials. In addition, the winning Watch will receive a $200 check donated by OUC to be used for party expenses.

For more information regarding this event or to join Neighborhood Watch, call 407.246.2369.

• At the City Council workshop on Monday, July 13, Mayor Buddy Dyer delivered his annual budget address, giving an overview of the City's current financial situation and outlining the reductions necessary to achieve a balanced budget. Watch or read Mayor Dyer's budget address at cityoforlando.net/elected/mayor/speeches.htm.
   
• Once the site of a former strip mall and industrial block, Orlando's "SoDo" has been redeveloped following the principles of smart growth and sustainable urbanism. 1000 Friends of Florida presented the 2009 Better Community Award to SoDo's development team, Kimco Realty Corporation, at the City Council meeting on Monday, July 13. The 22-acre site now contains a central plaza, a pocket park, 330 residential units, 75,000 square feet of office space and nearly 400,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space within easy walking distance of an existing neighborhood. SoDo features the only SuperTarget in the world with rooftop parking.
   
• The Orlando City Council approved the selection of Balfour Beatty Construction as the construction manager for the pre-construction phase of the Dr. P. Phillips Orlando Performing Arts Center. The contract is valued at approximately $1.5 million and will continue through summer 2010. Exceeding the M/WBE requirements set forth in the City of Orlando's Blueprint Initiative, Balfour Beatty Construction has committed to 26.9 percent participation by minority firms. Additionally, nearly 40 percent of the total current Balfour Beatty Construction team members assigned to the performing arts center project are LEED accredited professionals.
   
• Five community organizations were approved to assist the City in implementing the Neighborhood Stabilization program. These organizations will acquire, rehab and either resell or rent properties throughout the City. The City has received $6.1 million from the federal government to assist areas with the highest foreclosure rates. Residents are expected to have the opportunity to purchase or rent these properties early next year.
   
• The City has been invited to apply for an exclusive Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Communities Learning in Partnership grant. If the City is selected to receive this grant, it will provide technical assistance and $250,000 in funding to cover the cost of a nine-month planning process and the development of a three-year strategic plan for doubling the number of low income young adults who complete post secondary education. At the conclusion of the planning period in June 2010, the City of Orlando, in collaboration with Valencia Community College, would also be eligible to apply for a three-year, $3 million implementation grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to implement the strategic plan.

Watch the progress of the construction of the new Events Center with the Events Center Webcam. Showing a bird's eye view of the two blocks south of Church Street and west of I-4 which will become the home of the City's new venue for sports, music and entertainment, this camera takes a picture every 15 minutes and saves the photos so viewers can watch the progress like a movie. The webcam can be found online.

Community Venues Construction Update

Did You Know?

Forbes Traveler named Orlando North American's Number 1 vacation spot in its ranking of destinations in the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. Orlando beat out cities such as New York, Chicago, Las Vegas and Maui. Read the full article at forbestraveler.com.

Dubsdread Celebrates One Year Anniversary

One year ago on July 10, 2008, the City of Orlando celebrated the re-opening of Dubsdread, Orlando's Historic Golf Course. Since its re-opening, Dubsdread has made great strides. Rodney Reifsnider, the General Manager, says, "The feedback since the renovation has been overwhelmingly positive. Some of our newest members have left other high-end country clubs in the area, realizing that Dubsdread offers one of the best conditioned golf courses in Central Florida with the best value for the price, especially considering these tough economic times."

One of the most recent programs launched is the Dubsdread Golf Learning Center, which offers a multitude of services for $179, including: six hours of instruction, five practice with the Pro sessions, five play with the Pro vouchers, a range discount, five discounted rounds of golf, and 10 percent off merchandise in the pro shop. For more information on this and other programs available at the Dubsdread Golf Course, please visit dubsdreadgolf.com or call 407.246.2551.

City's Own Speaks at National Advisory Panel

Malisa McCreedy, the City's planning manager for the Families, Parks and Recreation Department, has been invited by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to speak at an advisory group meeting about fighting childhood obesity on July 17, 2009 in St. Louis, Missouri. Her presentation will focus on implementing environment and policy changes to support physical activity and healthy eating among children through planning, transportation and related systems. The advisory group audience includes researchers, practitioners and policy experts in the field of childhood obesity prevention, including representatives from leading government and community organizations such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health.

Lawton Chiles Leadership Corps

In the state of Florida, funding for education is at an all time low. Florida needs to act now and reposition itself as a leader in education. An often overlooked source of leadership, support and idea generation is our youth. The Leadership Corps, a two-day conference at the University of Central Florida on August 8 and 9, will bring students from all over Florida together for a time of inspiration and hands-on training in community mobilization.

Students will have the opportunity to interact with leaders from various sectors (federal and state government, non-profit organizations and local businesses) and will participate in brainstorming sessions with peers that will hopefully result in their empowerment to affect change at a statewide level. In order to take part in the conference, students need to visit lawtonchiles.org or worsttofirst.org, download an application and follow all directions accordingly. Applications must be received no later than July 20.

Upcoming Events

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