By Marc Crail
District 4 Representative and Vice-Mayor​

Here's the scoop from City Council's August 2nd. meeting. I've selected four important items from the agenda to tell you about today. This report comes from me and not on behalf of City Council as a whole.

We approved an agreement with Round Lake Charter School to provide for a school resource officer there for the upcoming 2022-23 school year. Round Lake Charter will reimburse the City $69,781 to defray the cost. We also provide resource officers at Triangle Elementary, Mount Dora Middle School and Mount Dora High School. I sleep better knowing that our school students are under the protection of well trained police officers. Our school children are among Mount Dora's youngest citizens and they deserve the best safety that we can provide for them.

Plans are moving ahead for a Community Resource and Recreation Center. There will be multiple partners involved in the operation and programming of this resource center. We selected Borrelli & Partners firm to do the design and engineering for this center. Of course rising construction costs are of concern and we discussed that but your City Council voted unanimously to approve $385,624 for phase 1 design and engineering costs and $638,954 for phase 2 design and engineering. Please note that these design costs will come out of the Northeast Community Redevelopment Agency's budget and not the City's general funds.

Over the past few months I've reported that the Lake County Water Authority Board has approved having their 153 acre Wolf Branch Sink Preserve annexed into the City. Now Mount Dora City Council has approved the first reading of of an ordinance that will change the zoning of that ecologically fragile property from "Light Manufacturing" and "Residential" to "Greenbelt" which is will, when finalized, provide the highest level of protection from future development for Wolf Branch Sink and the surrounding acreage owned by the Water Authority.

We also approved the first reading of an ordinance voluntarily annexing 36.61 acres for a future development called Mt. Dora Hills to be located on the south side of SR 46 and east of Buttercup Lane adjacent to the railroad tracks . This property is in the Wolf Branch Innovation District area. We heard from the developer at a June meeting regarding his exciting plans for this parcel.

FYI, we heard from staff from Mount Dora's electric utility department that the price of natural gas that is used to generate electricity is getting much more expensive and is expected to stay high through 2023. Mount Dora Electric must raise its fuel cost rate to cover those exponentially higher costs. SECO, Duke Energy and other electric suppliers have or very soon will raise their fuel cost charges as well.  Get ready for higher electric bills no matter who supplies your home or business.

Our quote for today was adapted from a quote by Damian Barr. "We are not all in the same boat. We are in the same storm. Some of us have yachts, some have canoes, and some are drowning. Just be kind and help whoever you can."

Thanks for your continuing interest in our wonderful City.

By Marc Crail
District 4 Representative and Vice-Mayor

​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 on Instagram and Twitter for more local info.

Tropical storms and hurricanes can wreak havoc on Florida cities.  Roads, utilities, emergency services and infrastructure can be strained or interrupted during and after these tropical storms.  Hurricane season doesn’t seem to be an optimal time for a city to forgo permanent department leadership in critical departments like Public Works and Fire Rescue, and Police, but that’s the position the City of Mount Dora currently faces.

Mount Dora is also in the middle of planning its budget and determining its tax rate, yet it hasn’t had a permanent finance director since February.  

The longest permanent management vacancy is the city’s Fire Chief, which has been vacant for over a year.  Since then Deputy Chief Rich Loewer has been serving as the prolonged and capable Interim Chief.  Loewer, who has served with the department for almost two decades and is an integral part of the City’s emergency management and ISO and accreditation processes, has yet to have the permanent position extended to him by the City Manager.

Interim Police Chief Mike Gibson, a former MDPD captain and respected 27-year veteran of Orange County Sheriff’s Office, has been in his current interim position as Interim Police Chief for the shortest period of time due to the resignation of Chief Brett Meade last June.  

City Managers can opt to hire the qualified interim department heads or conduct an outside search for their replacements.  According to the City, no searches to fill the crucial positions are underway, so it's unclear why the interim managers haven't been offered the permanent positions. City Manager Patrick Comiskey did not respond to Mount Dora Buzz's questions about the reason for the lack of searches or whether the interim management personnel were likely to become permanent.  Comiskey also didn't respond to whether the interim directors were being compensated appropriately for their added responsibilities.

The potential short-term benefit of not making interim directors permanent or searching for replacements is saving money, while the potential longer-term outcomes are low morale, job uncertainty and the risk of qualified interim directors and their staff seeking employment elsewhere for professional recognition and salaries commensurate with their responsibilities.

Meanwhile, the budget for the city’s 2022-2023 fiscal year is being prepared by Interim Finance Director Rita Meade.   The City's budget and tax rate will be adopted in September.  

​​​​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 on Instagram and Twitter for more local info.