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October 23, 2009
- City News |
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Mayor's
Message |
Dear Friend,
When I first became
Mayor, we stopped printing the Mayor’s
newsletter and began sending it out by e-mail.
This enhancement saved money and delivered the
newsletter faster, allowing us to provide more
current information about City news and events.
Now, people are using social media sites like
Facebook to keep in touch on the web. So in our
continued effort to reach out to as many
residents as we can, we have created several
Facebook pages that focus on a variety of
different City programs.
The main
City of Orlando Facebook page offers a quick
glance at the City’s current activities. It
provides news releases and official
announcements. But, it also promotes the City’s
fun activities such as a movie at Leu Gardens or
a family pottery workshop, along with videos of
City events or services. On the
Mayor’s Office Facebook page, I share the
events and celebrations I attend, as well as
candid videos, such as my recent tour of the
Amway Center construction site.
The
Orlando Police Department’s Facebook page
gives crime alerts, news and information about
public safety events. For businesses in one of
the City’s Main Street districts, the
Orlando Main Street program uses their
Facebook page to keep in touch with their
members, provide business tips and promote their
events.
You can stay up to date with concerts and events
Downtown through the
Amway Arena’s group and by becoming a fan of
Downtown Orlando, which also promotes businesses.
In addition, both the
Amway
Arena and
Downtown Orlando can be found on Twitter.
The
Mennello Museum of American Folk Art
promotes its show openings and special events on
Facebook.
If you're a Facebook user, I encourage you to
explore any of the City's Facebook pages that
capture your interest and become a fan of that
page. It’s one more way you can stay in touch
throughout the week and keep up to date about
City services and events.
Sincerely,
Buddy Dyer
Mayor |
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Florida Housing Help
 Florida
Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink and Orlando
Mayor Buddy Dyer invite you to participate in
Florida Housing Help. Florida Housing Help is a
community outreach program designed to educate
and assist families facing foreclosure. The
event will be hosted by District 2 Commissioner
Tony Ortiz on Saturday, November 7, 2009 from 10
a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Engelwood Neighborhood
Center located at 6123 La Costa Drive. This free
workshop will include legal assistance,
information on foreclosure assistance programs
and the opportunity to meet with mortgage
lenders, Housing and Urban Development certified
counselors, local housing authorities and credit
counseling services. For more information or to
register, please call 850.413.3089 or
1.877.MY.FL.CFO (1.877.693.5236) Registration is
not required.
Buy Local Orlando
Highlight
 Show
your Buy Local Orlando card at
Café Annie (131 N. Orange Avenue, Suite 102)
to receive a free soda with the purchase of a
lunch. Call 407.420.4041 or visit cafeannie.net
for more information.
Need an orthodontist? College Park
Orthodontics (2511 Edgewater Drive) offers
free consultation and $250 off invisalign or a
full case of braces to Buy Local Orlando
consumers. Call 407.648.5511 or visit
collegeparkortho.com for more information.
Do you have VHS movies you’d like converted to
DVD? Mac's Digital Services offers 15% off music
and VHS to DVD conversion services and 10% off
all other services to Buy Local Orlando
consumers. Call 407.965.7545 or visit
macsdigitalservices.com for more information.
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OPD participates in the Orlando Start! Heart
Walk
On October, 3, 2009, more than 25
Orlando Police Department employees joined over
10,000 citizens in the American Heart
Association’s annual Orlando Start! Heart Walk
at Loch Haven Park. The Start! Heart Walk
consisted of more than 1,000,000 walkers in 500
events nationwide to raise funds for research
and education to help fight heart disease and
stroke. The Orlando Police Department embraces
the significance of this event because of the
risk for cardiovascular disease that police
officers face due to their high stress
profession. Officer Barb McClelland organized
fundraisers which were able to raise $3,400 in
support of the cause.
Orlando Police Department Open House
In conjunction with their
Family/Employee Appreciation Day, The Orlando
Police Department (OPD) will be hosting an open
house on Wednesday, November 4, 2009 from 5 to 6
p.m. in the Hall of Honor located on the first
floor of Orlando Police Headquarters, 100 South
Hughey Avenue. The open
house will showcase OPD’s special teams
including SWAT, crisis negotiation, emergency
response, emergency services, honor guard,
volunteer program, neighborhood watch and
recruiting. Tours of the Orlando Police
Headquarters will also be given. For more
information, please call 407.246.2461.
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Amway Center
Webcam
 You
don’t have to drive Downtown to see the progress
of the Amway Center. Watch the progress of the
construction with the Amway Center Webcams.
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, the cameras
take a picture every 15 minutes and save the
photos so viewers can watch the progress like a
movie. The webcams can be found online.
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City Council
Update |
At Monday’s council
meeting, the City Commission approved an
agreement that would give the City a four-year
option to purchase property on the east side of
Lake Eola Park adjacent to the children’s
playground. If the City is able to acquire the
property during the four year term, the land
would expand the open space of the park. During
this four year period of time, the City will
pursue grants and philanthropic opportunities to
cover the cost of purchasing the property.
The City Council approved changes to the City’s
building code, including providing
residential and commercial building permit
extensions to be extended for up to two years,
providing relief to area developers during these
challenging economic times.
The City Council approved adding seven new red
light cameras at City intersections as part of
the Orlando STOPS program, the City’s red light
enforcement system. Accidents caused by red
light running at the Orlando STOPS intersections
have been reduced by 33 percent.
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Did You Know? |
Parramore Kidz Zone
Sees Cats
 Parramore
Kidz Zone (PKZ) youth were able to attend the
Tuesday and Wednesday night shows of the musical
Cats thanks to a generous gift of ticket
donations from the Florida Theatrical
Association. The 200 tickets enabled many of the
children to enjoy their first Broadway
production and one of the longest running shows
in Broadway's history.
PKZ Pedaling 4 Pride
 Sponsors
have come together to make it possible for 200
Parramore youth to receive free bicycles for
this year’s 3rd annual Parramore Kidz Zone (PKZ)
Pedaling 4 Pride Bike Ride. AirTran Airways,
Target, WFTV Channel 9 Family Connection and
the Orange County Sheriff’s Office donated the
bicycles. The sponsors presented the bicycles to
the youth at 3:30 p.m. at the Orlando Downtown
Recreation Complex on Thursday, October 22,
2009.
The 3rd annual PKZ Pedaling 4 Pride Bike Ride,
which will take place at 9 a.m. on Saturday,
October 24, will begin at the John H. Jackson
Community Center and travel to Loch Haven Park.
The event, hosted by PKZ and Get Active Orlando,
educates children how to safely navigate the
neighborhood on
their bikes in real life traffic conditions.
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Upcoming
Events |
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City Halll
400 South Orange Avenue
Orlando, FL 32801
Phone: 407.246.2221
buddy.dyer@cityoforlando.net |
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