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Government & Education

Downtown Mount Dora to transition some streets to one-way traffic

10/22/2025

 
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ABOVE: Aerial of a portion of the heart of downtown Mount Dora. (Mount Dora Buzz photo)
Downtown parking is among the stickiest and most frustrating topics for Mount Dora residents. A recently approved change to the traffic pattern may not go over well at first, but It’s difficult to ignore the problem at the heart of the situation.

The City Council was informed by the Mount Dora Fire Chief that under the current traffic flow and parking conditions, a fire truck might not be able to get down some narrow downtown streets to fight a fire.

In reality the council had no good options to ensure fire trucks could make it down the streets.  One suggestion was to do nothing.  Another was to keep two-way traffic and eliminate approximately 50 downtown parking spaces. The last option was to maintain the vast majority of those parking spaces and convert portions of three streets to one-way.

After a good deal of ardent discussion and debate, the  Council, by a 5-2 vote, decided to move forward with our traffic engineer's recommendation to improve public safety.

As a result of the vote:
  • Alexander Street will become one-way southbound between 5th Avenue and 4th Avenue with parking on both sides. 
  • Tremain Street will become one-way northbound between 5th Avenue and 3rd Avenue with parking on one side. 
  • Baker Street will be one-way southbound between 5th Avenue and 3rd Avenue with street parking on one side.

This change will not happen quickly and isn't expected to take effect until the summer of 2026 due to several steps required over the upcoming months.  In the meantime there will be a public information campaign to educate drivers and residents about the upcoming changes.

For more news and events in Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, visit the area's website and download the area's free mobile app.  ​​Be sure to follow Mount Dora Buzz's Instagram  and Facebook page for more local info.
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Recap: Mount Dora City Council Sept. 16 Meeting

9/30/2025

 
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By Marc Crail
District Four, Mount Dora City Council Representative
​

I've selected several items from the September 16, 2025 Mount Dora City Council meetings to comment upon today. As you probably know, I'm reporting to you as one city council member and not on behalf of city council in any official capacity.

During the meeting of our Downtown Community Redevelopment Agency Board we voted to renew our Freebee shuttle service agreement. You've likely seen the Freebee electric vehicles zipping around the downtown area on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Freebee has transported about 23,000 riders over the past year and achieved over 99% satisfaction ratings. We have applied for a state grant that may help reduce our costs. If you haven't tried Freebee, you'll soon be hearing more about how, when and where you can get shuttled to the downtown area and back again. Freebee is one way we can free up parking places downtown.

This is Hispanic Heritage Month. We recognized the many contributions of our citizens of Hispanic descent in a proclamation. I for one enjoy celebrating our many diverse ethnic, racial and religious groups, America at its finest!

You've been following the multi-stepped city budgeting process for several months now. We approved a series of resolutions this evening setting the final millage rate at 6.3000, approving the city budget for FY 2025-26 and approving an updated master fee schedule which will go into effect on October 1.

One annual budget related item is City Council members' evaluation of our city manager, Vince Sandersfeld. He is responsible for virtually every aspect of the workings of our city, our hundreds of employees, not to mention our $200 million budget.

I've been on city council for almost 10 years and I can say without question that our city manager doing an very good job. Staff morale is better than I've ever seen. Vince has our beloved city moving in the right direction and has been a skilled and hardworking leader for a year and a half now. His salary has been below average for comparable sized cities in our area so we set his new salary to reflect his worth to us and recognize his skills and effort. His new salary will be $201,300. That is certainly not the highest city manager's salary in Lake County but it is more in line with his peers.

I've heard from several people who enjoyed our "Advice From an Old Farmer" quotes from our last meeting. As it turns out, that farmer has lots more advice for us. Here are a few more of his admonitions;

"You can't unsay a cruel word."

"The best sermons are lived, not preached."

"Most of the stuff people worry about ain't never gonna happen anyway."

"If you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging."

"Good judgement comes from experience and a whole lot of that comes from bad experience."

Thank you for your interest in all things Mount Dora.

By Marc Crail
District Four, Mount Dora City Council Representative

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Public input invited during Mount Dora's Sept. 8 parking workshop

9/2/2025

 
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ABOVE: Downtown Mount Dora (Mount Dora Buzz photo)
The City of Mount Dora will host a public workshop to review and gather community feedback on proposed options to improve downtown parking.   The lack of a long-term parking solution in the city's downtown core has been a topic of concern among residents and visitors for several years. 

The options under consideration include:
  • Reconfiguring parking spaces to address public safety concerns
  • Converting Alexander Street, Baker Street, and Tremain Street to one-way streets
  • Downtown paid parking

“Our goal is to not only explore long-term solutions for parking but also to address public safety,” said Mount Dora City Manager Vince Sandersfeld. “Aside from the discussion about paid parking, this project aims to eliminate safety issues associated with the current parking layout while planning responsibly for the city’s future needs.”

The public is encouraged to attend and provide input on the proposed options during the parking workshop on Monday, September 8 at 6 p.m.  in the City Council chamber at Mount Dora City Hall located at 510 N. Baker Street. 

For more news and events in Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, visit Mount Dora Buzz's website, its Instagram  and Facebook page.  Download the area's free mobile app for info on the go.  For local food recommendations, follow Mount Dora Foodie's Facebook and its official Instagram account.
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MOUNT DORA TAX UPDATE:  aUGUST 25, 2025

8/25/2025

 
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By Marc Crail
Mount Dora City Council, District 4 representative


​Building and approving the City's budget for the upcoming Fiscal Year (FY) 2025-26 is one of City Council's major responsibilities. City staff have worked over the past several months to identify their departments' needs and priorities based upon the Strategic Plan that council has put into place. What follows comes from me as a single city council member. I'm not reporting on behalf of city council as a whole.

I've selected some highlights from the presentation we heard and discussed.

You likely received your TRIM Notice in the mail a few days ago. There were several pages in one envelope. Your TRIM Notice is the page with Lake County Property Appraiser, Mark V. Jordan's name in the top left corner and a light blue box on the top right corner that says, "Do Not Pay This is Not A Bill". This isn't a bill but it represents the highest possible amount that you will pay for your property taxes.

There are 8 distinct taxing entities. The line for Mount Dora is about half way down the Taxing Authority column on the left. I can't speak for the other taxing authorities, but our custom is to propose a millage rate that somewhat higher than we think we will need to pay the bills (that figure is on the right side of the page in column #7), the darker blue column , 6.600 mills. Column #8 is the estimated dollar amount. I believe that when all is said and done on September 16th when the final millage and budget are voted upon, that proposed 6.600 mill rate will be reduced to 6.300 mills.

For my house, the 6.300 mill figure that I anticipate will shave off about $77. Ofcourse, your's will vary based on the tax value of your house and the deductions you might qualify for including things like "Homestead Exemption". Other taxing authorities may also reduce their proposed millage rates. Think of the number circled at the bottom of column #8 as your highest possible Ad Valorem (property tax). It won't go up and will very likely go down a bit.

6.300 mills is the same millage rate that we are currently paying but your Ad Valorem tax bill will be higher than last year because the value of your house has increased somewhat.

Here are some tax facts FYI...

Property taxes (Ad Valorem taxes) account for about 38% of Mount Dora's General Fund Revenues.

Personnel costs (wages and benefits) for city employees make up about 65% of our budget.

Police costs are about 23.5% of the budget. Fire protection is about 14.5%. Public Works is about 9.36%. Parks &                      Recreation is about 13.75% and our Library is about 3.31% of the budget.

Next steps; First Budget Public Hearing September 3rd. at 6:00 p.m. (Tentative Millage and Budget)

Fire Assessment Hearing Thursday, September 11th. at 6:00 p.m.

Second Public Hearing September 16th. at 6:00 p.m. (Final Millage and Budget)

Our quote for today comes by way of Comedian Bill Hicks. "Children are smarter than any of us. Know how I know that? I don't know a single kid with a full-time job and children."

By Marc Crail
Mount Dora City Council, District 4 representative

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MOUNT DORA CITY COUNCIL RECAP:  August 19 meeting

8/19/2025

 
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By Marc Crail
Mount Dora City Council, District 4 City Council Representative
​
 
Your Mount Dora City Council met on August 19th. I've selected several items from the agenda that I think might be of interest tto tell you about. Keep in mind that I'm not reporting to you on behalf of city council in any official capacity.

We heard about several pending projects.

Expect construction to begin this fall on a new electronic information kiosk to be located on the corner of Donnelly St. and 5th. Ave.

Our quest for a federal grant to purchase the railroad property to build a rail-trail has been stalled again this year. We will keep trying.

Drive down Lincoln to check out the beginning of construction of our Community Resource and Recreation Center. Dirt is being moved.

We heard about plans to expand the capacity of the historic Simpson Farmhouse located next to the library adding more space. That project is a couple of years out.

We approved a Task Authorization for design services that will help prevent flooding along Pine Ave.

We will be holding a parking meeting to discuss downtown public parking on Monday September 8.

Lake County Commissioners voted last week to purchase property on Britt Road so that the washed out roadway can be repaired.

You may have noticed a couple of model homes currently under construction in a new 143 acre property that will eventually have 158 single family homes, called "Lochside". It is located on the north side of SR 441 between ABC Liquor and the Country Club of Mount Dora. This development (like the apartments being built across 441 on the south side) were approved by Lake County because those former orange groves were in unincorporated Lake County, not in the city limits. Now, the Lockside property owners are asking to be annexed into the city. By annexing the development, we will collect the development fees and property taxes.

We had an extensive discussion about our ongoing negotiations with Lake County regarding a new Joint Planning Area (JPA) agreement. We will be asking for a time extension in order to resolve language issues.

We've got a quote today by none other than Dr. Seuss from his book, "Oh The Places You'll Go"... "You oughta be thankful a whole heaping lot, for the people and places you're lucky you're NOT. Did I ever tell you how lucky you are? You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose."

Thanks for your continuing interest in our wonderful city!

By Marc Crail
Mount Dora City Council, District 4 City Council Representative
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MOUNT DORA CITY COUNCIL RECAP:  aUGUST 5 MEETING

8/6/2025

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By Marc Crail
Mount Dora City Council District 4 representative
​ 

​Your Mount Dora City Council met on Tuesday, August 5. I've selected several items from our agenda to tell you about today. Please keep in mind that what follows come only from me and not from city council as a whole.

We heard that the city has received several grants which is good news. State Representative Nan Cobb and State Senator Keith Truenow were on hand to present a giant check for $123,590.00 for purchasing barriers to protect people attending events and festivals in Mount Dora.

We also accepted a $50,000 grant from the Florida Department of Agriculture to help improve our tree canopy.

We voted to approve applying for a $200,000  50/50 match grant that would be used to enhance plantings in Lincoln and Donnelly parks.

Much of our meeting was devoted to a request from The Palms of Mount Dora Condo Association located at 1400 Eudora Road (near the former bowling alley) to reduce or forgive a lien of $100,250 plus staff costs.

In September of 2022, city code inspectors found several unsafe conditions involving deteriorating  concrete stairs and second-floor walkways at the 80 unit condo buildings. They posted "Unsafe Do Not Occupy" signs. Following the proper legal process, they sent regular mail and Certified Mail letters to the condo's management but the certified mail was returned to sender. They sent more letters the next month and got no response from management.

There were some extenuating circumstances and the needed repairs have now been made so after questions were answered and the condo association presented their case, city council voted unanimously to cut the fine by about half. Payment must be made within 90 days or the original fine will be due.

Please remember that our local schools begin classes on August 13th. To help protect kids from speeding vehicles, cameras will be checking your speed. Watch your speed in school zones for the safety of the students and to avoid costly fines.

Our quote today comes from Tanya Niedzwiecki and I think it's appropriate with the new school year about to begin..."When I asked my son (5 years old) how his day was, he said it was awesome. I asked him what made it so awesome - his response was "because I wanted it to be."

Have yourself an awesome day!

By Marc Crail
Mount Dora City Council District 4 representative
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Mount Dora to launch speed zone cameras for children’s safety

8/1/2025

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(Mount Dora Buzz file photo)
The City of Mount Dora is taking a proactive step toward improving student safety with the launch of its new School Zone Speed Camera Program, which begins August 13, 2025.

This initiative is designed to protect children, pedestrians, and all road users by encouraging compliance with posted school zone speed limits. Drivers exceeding the speed limit by more than 10 MPH in designated school zones will be issued warnings during a 45-day grace period, giving the public time to adjust to the new system.

After the warning period concludes, citations of $100 will be issued for violations. All citations will be thoroughly reviewed by the Mount Dora Police Department. In accordance with state law, no points will be assessed and violations will not appear on the driver’s record.

“Failing to adhere to school zone speed limits puts children and others at serious risk,” said Mount Dora Police Chief Michael Gibson. “This program is about prevention, not punishment. If you don’t break the law, you don’t pay a fine.

Classes for public schools in Lake County begin on August 11. The City of Mount Dora encourages all drivers to remain alert and follow posted speed limits, especially during school hours, to help keep school children safe.

For more news and events in Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, visit Mount Dora Buzz's website, its Instagram  and Facebook page.  Download the area's free mobile app for info on the go.  For local food recommendations, follow Mount Dora Foodie's Facebook and its official Instagram account.
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FDOT continues safety and traffic improvements at edge of Mount Dora

8/1/2025

 
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Construction is now underway at the interchange of U.S. Highway 441 and Old Highway 441, where the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) is making operational and safety upgrades as part of a larger resurfacing project in north Orange County.
FDOT officials said all traffic movements will be maintained throughout construction, but motorists should expect temporary lane closures and closely follow posted signage as new lanes are added. The work is taking place south of downtown Mount Dora and is expected to impact both residents and visitors in the area.
​

A key element of the project includes correcting the current skewed alignment at the U.S. 441 and County Road 500A (Old Hwy 441) intersection. The realignment will create a standard T-intersection to improve visibility, reduce confusion, and enhance safety for turning vehicles—especially those turning left from northbound U.S. 441.

The project also introduces a range of pedestrian and bicycle enhancements. Bicycle keyholes will be added at right-turn lanes to provide safer transitions for cyclists. Pedestrian improvements include high-visibility crosswalks, upgraded lighting, pedestrian refuge islands, new signals at Stoneybrook Hills Parkway, and sidewalk connections to nearby LakeXpress transit stops.

From Sunday, July 27 through Friday, August 1, drivers can expect alternating single-lane closures in both directions of U.S. 441 between Wadsworth Road and Sacred Oak Drive. The closures will shift between inside and outside lanes as crews widen medians and perform drainage work.

FDOT is urging all roadway users to travel with caution and observe safety signage throughout the construction period.
For more project updates, visit FDOT’s project site.

For more news and events in Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, visit Mount Dora Buzz's website, its Instagram  and Facebook page.  Download the area's free mobile app for info on the go.  For local food recommendations, follow Mount Dora Foodie's Facebook and its official Instagram account.
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July 30th, 2025

7/30/2025

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A Mount Dora advisory board to discuss Donnelly Park changes during July 24 public meeting

7/23/2025

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ABOVE: The concept plan for Donnelly Park changes to include. Note: event tents are not permanent structures. See more renderings and site plan belowl
During a July 1 Mount Dora City Council meeting, significant changes were proposed to the city’s central park at the corner of Donnelly Street and Fifth Avenue.  The plan includes a covered stage with grass and concrete terracing for seating, multiple concrete walkways, a 10-foot-wide vehicle lane for loading and unloading during special events, a shaded space for VIP seating, multiple small retention ponds, and other elements.  To offset the large amount of added impervious concrete, multiple small retention ponds were also included in the design to aid in managing stormwater runoff.  Although not included in the concept design, the retention ponds (labeled “rain gardens” in the drawing) may pose a safety concern to children and could require safety fencing. (see proposed site plan below)

The proposed project will be discussed again at the July 24 meeting of Mount Dora Parks & Recreation Advisory Board which will allow time for public comments on the designs. 

For decades the grassy hill in Mount Dora’s picturesque central park has been a popular downtown amenity for kids to run, play, and roll down the hill.  The new design concept significantly reduces the park’s green space which effectively transitions the family-friendly park into an event and pickleball venue which serves a different demographic.  

The proposed hardscaping and pathways in the concept design are intended to address existing accessibility and maintenance challenges in the park, according to Mount Dora Director of Public Information, Misty Sommer.  However, the park is currently ADA compliant since two of its sides are currently accessible.

Donnelly Park sits directly across the street from Mount Dora Music Hall which has a 605-seat auditorium for various events, and is also approximately four short blocks from Elizabeth Evans Park, another event venue which has a bandshell and can seat 3,000, according to the City.  Additionally, Sunset Park, which is predominantly cement and other hardscaping, is another downtown special event venue, and is approximately 2 blocks away from Donnelly Park.

The project is a priority of the Parks & Recreation Advisory Board, according to Sommer.  The committee gave their approval to the concept design on May 27, 2025. During that meeting Shonk advised the committee the park "needs to be a central park for special events."  It’s unclear who made that specific determination.  At the meeting, the board was directed by staff to pick one of two design concepts or combine the elements.  They weren't give the option to vote down both design concepts.

The concept design the board chose was then presented to Mount Dora City Council on July 1, by Mount Dora Parks & Recreation Director Troy Shonk.  In a memo to the advisory board for the upcoming meeting, Shonk stated the concept had been approved, however the City Council did not vote on it or approve it.  Mount Dora Mayor James Homich expressed strong opposition to the design and its decrease in green space and family-friendliness.  

The park’s proposed changes also were identified as priorities in the Parks and Recreation Master Plan, according to Sommer.  However, the concept design conflicts with the goal of preserving and increasing the City’s green space. 


City staff consulted with at least two private stakeholders on the design, and Shonk gained their approval. However, advance buy-in and input from the city’s main stakeholders, its residents, had not been sought.  

Unless the Mount Dora Parks & Recreation Advisory Board decides to go a different direction, the next step is the presentation and voting on full engineering and design plans by the board and City Council.  The cost of engineering and final plans will be in addition to the $16,400 for the initial design concepts.  Once the engineering plans are finalized, estimating the cost of the project can ensue and a source for funding can be sought.
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The meeting will be held on Thursday, July 24, at 5:30 p.m. at Mount Dora City Hall at 510 N. Baker Street.  The public is welcome to attend and may speak on the topic or listen for more information.

For more news and events in Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, visit Mount Dora Buzz's website, its Instagram  and Facebook page.  Download the area's free mobile app for info on the go.  For local food recommendations, follow Mount Dora Foodie's Facebook and its official Instagram account.
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