Ocoee Commission awards grants, positions

OCOEE -- One week after the March 10 municipal elections in Orange County, District 2 Commissioner Rosemary Wilsen and District 4 Commissioner Joel Keller swore in for three-year terms to officially complete their re-elections to the Ocoee City Commission.

This will be the third term for Wilsen, first elected in 2009, and the fourth for Keller, first elected in 2006, with both terms scheduled to end in March 2018.

The commission unanimously voted to appoint District 1 Commissioner John Grogan Ocoee Mayor Pro Tem. Grogan will succeed District 3 Commissioner Rusty Johnson in that role beginning April 15.

The commission also appointed liaisons to various boards, with no apparent changes from 2014, given the same elected officials. Grogan will be a liaison for the Citizens Advisory Board for the Police Department; Wilsen for the Parks and Recreation Board and the Tri-County League of Cities; Johnson for the Citizens Advisory Board for the Fire Department, the Personnel Board and the Education Incentive Board; Keller for the MetroPlan Advisory Board and the Human Relations Diversity Board; City Manager Robert Frank for the West Orange Chamber of Commerce; and William Maxwell for the West Orange Airport Authority.

GRANTS

Community Relations Manager Joy Wright announced proposed recipients for Most Valuable Partnership and community grants.

For the MVP Grants for improvement projects, Admiral Pointe HOA, Roberts Rise HOA, Rotary Club of Ocoee and Sleepy Harbour HOA requested $7,500 altogether in matching grants, which the commission approved.

Eight non-profit organizations deemed benefitial to Ocoee and its residents received commission approval for $500 community grants, totaling $4,000.

ANNEXATIONS

The commission passed annexations of two properties: 1102 E. Silver Star Road and 112 Lee Street.

The former contains four subject parcels on the west side of Second Street and the east side of Whittier Avenue, with one single-family dwelling.

The latter contains the farm of Mike Swatkowski and was rezoned to A-1 (Agriculture), consistent with adjacent Orange County properties to the south. After the approved annexation and rezone of this 5.01-acre property, Swatkowski offered to donate and install five Cathedral live oaks from his property to the city as a certified arborist.

PROCLAMATIONS

Mayor S. Scott Vandergrift proclaimed April 16 Ocoee Arbor Day, with West Orange Seniors joining the city in a noon tree-planting ceremony and a picnic to follow.

Vandergrift also proclaimed April Ocoee Water Conservation Month and a day of remembrance of the Holocaust to reflect on good treatment of all people.

READINGS

First readings occurred for ordinances involving reduced road impact fees and changes to false alarm response fees involving police and fires.

Under the former, most impact fees would drop by about 25%. For the latter, proposed changes include a flat fee of $100 for fourth and subsequent false-alarm violations in a six-month period.

Public hearings for these ordinances are scheduled for the next commission meeting, April 7.

Contact Zak Kerr at [email protected].