Government & Education news

EARLY VOTING IN LAKE COUNTY STARTS OCT. 19

10/12/2020

Lake County voters can head to the polls in advance of the November 3 General Election beginning on October 19. Early Voting will continue through October 31st and sites will be open from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily. Two additional Early Voting sites have been added this year to make a total of 12 locations throughout the county.

During Early Voting, voters may choose any one of the different locations to cast their ballot, instead of waiting until Election Day to vote at their assigned precinct.

“We believe there will be a high turnout at the polls. Utilizing the flexibility of Early Voting will help decrease wait times on Election Day,” said Lake County Supervisor of Elections Allan Hays.

For the list of all Early Voting locations and directions, click here. Additionally, secure drop boxes will be available at each Early Voting site for any voters wishing to deposit their completed vote-by-mail ballots instead of returning them by USPS.

Sample ballots will be mailed to all voters who have not opted to vote by mail. Voters can mark up their sample ballot and bring it with them to the polls. They can then easily transfer their selections to their actual ballot. “If voters are already prepared with their selections, it will help minimize the amount of time spent in the privacy booth and therefore improve wait times,” said Hays. Sample ballots are also available here.

For more news and events in Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, click here. For local things to do, click here and for the area's free mobile app, click here.

(Paid political ad)

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MDPD SEEKS PUBLIC'S ANONYMOUS INPUT WITH SURVEY

10/12/2020

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A quick glance on social media and it’s easy to see plenty of suggestions about how police can better serve their community. Now Mount Dora Police Department (MDPD) is asking residents to provide their anonymous input to help the department better serve the community.

Mount Dora’s Interim Police Chief Brett Meade is utilizing a community survey created by the National Police Foundation (NPF) to help assess the department. The 12-item questionnaire has been used by law enforcement departments across the country, and all of the information provided is anonymous and goes directly to the NPF for independent assessment. The NPF is a nationally-recognized police research organization with the purpose of helping police departments be more effective at doing their job.

The short survey will help identify areas of concern and accomplishment for MDPD and help officers and command staff to improve police policies, community policing, and other areas addressed in the questionnaire. There is also space at the end to provide further comments on topics not covered in the survey.

Available in English and Spanish, the survey can be found online here or hard copies of the survey are available at the Customer Service/Utilities window at Mount Dora City Hall. The survey will be available online for 30 days. Completed hard copy surveys can be dropped in the ballot box located in the lobbies of City Hall or the Mount Dora Police Department.

For more news and events in Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, click here. For local things to do, click here and for the area's free mobile app, click here.

Paid political ad.

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MOUNT DORA CITY COUNCIL UPDATE: Oct. 6 Meeting

10/7/2020

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(Mount Dora Buzz file photo)

By Marc Crail
District 4 City Council Representative

City Council had a full agenda so I've selected several of the items to share that I think you might like to hear about. Please keep in mind that I reporting from my own perspective only, not in any official capacity.

Throughout the pandemic we have tried to be flexible as we do our best to navigate the ever changing situations that we find ourselves and our city in. The Mount Dora Arts Festival is certainly one of the longest running and most loved events that we have in town. The Arts Festival is the single most important fundraising source for the Mount Dora Center for the Arts and it regularly brings over 100,000 visitors to town. Once people come to town for the Arts Festival they tend to come back later to shop, dine, stay and play here. The 2021 Arts Festival is scheduled for February 6-7. It will be smaller this year because some exhibitors and shoppers are reluctant to participate because of COVID-19. The City has agreed to forgo collecting event fees this year. With fewer booths it will be a bit easier to spread them out (10' apart) which will help with social distancing. Masks will be required. Food will be consumed only in a food court area. With these changes this event that is essential to the Arts Center and to our local economy will look different but we hope it can happen safely.

We approved a Resolution to add a couple of new businesses to the retail plaza near Target. A Panda Express drive through will be built there and another retail space will also be built.

You may recall that I've previously mentioned that the City is going to build two solar array fields in order to generate a total of about 6 Megawatts of electricity. Those solar arrays will be located on City owned land near Wastewater Treatment Plant II near the intersection of US Rt. 441 and SR 46 as well as near SR 19-A. Of course we will spend money to build them but we anticipate over $700,000 in cost savings over the 30 year lifespan of the solar farms. Good news I think.

We approved a Resolution to hire a company called CPH to create a citywide Transportation Master Plan. As new residential, commercial and retail developments are built it is critically important that we have traffic rules and regulations in place so that our City infrastructure is designed and constructed to handle the increased traffic. We want to have "smart growth" in Mount Dora and in order to do that our old 2007 master plan needs to be updated. It will take about a year and will cost us $200,000. I've been a big proponent of this project so I''m pleased that it is happening.

Every once in a while a Developer approaches the City with an unsolicited proposal for a Public Private Partnership called a P3. We're always interested in partnering if the proposal is beneficial to both Mount Dora and for the Developer.

There are costs involved for the City to reviewing P3 proposals. We are working on setting up some rules that will cover our costs while encouraging Developers to give us their best ideas. We're looking for win-win opportunities so we have begun to work on the parameters of P3s.

Remember that we will be voting on two Charter Amendments this year. City Council supports both of them. If you'd like more information before you vote visit: mountdoracharter2020.com

I've got a quote for you that I found on TheHealingMoon.com.

"The first to apologize is the bravest.
The first to forgive is the strongest.
The first to forget is the happiest."

Please stay safe and stay well.
Marc Crail
District 4 City Council Rep.

For more news and events in Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, click here. For local things to do, click here and for the area's free mobile app, click here.

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FINANCIAL HELP AVAILABLE TO LAKE COUNTY RESIDENTS

10/7/2020

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On September 29, 2020, the Lake County Board of County Commissioners voted to allocate $15 million in CARES Act funding to assist residents of Lake County. Eligible residents who have been negatively affected by COVID-19 may receive up to $4,000 in rent or mortgage assistance as a reimbursement of funds already expended or as a direct payment to a landlord or lender for past due balances.

Lake County anticipates the application cycle will open in mid-October, 2020. Interested applicants can preregister to be notified about the program criteria, required documents and the opening of the application cycle by visiting https://lakecountyfl.submittable.com/submit. Qualified applicants will be awarded on a first-come, first-served, first-qualified basis while funds last.

For additional information and preregistration of the Lake County CARES Resident Assistance Program, visit http://www.reopenlake.com#cares. For other inquiries, please email CRFhousingassistance@lakecountyfl.gov. Additionally, the CARES Act program helpline is available Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at (352) 268-9299.

For more news and events in Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, click here. For local things to do, click here and for the area's free mobile app, click here.

Entertainment Calendar

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