West Orange mayors give State of the County

It’s not often all the mayors from Orange County, Oakland, Ocoee, Windermere and Winter Garden are in the same room. 

But each of the mayors gathered together on the stage Wednesday, Sept. 17, at Ocoee Lakeshore Center to participate in  the West Orange Chamber of Commerce’s State of the County Q&A. 

The mayors address property taxes, major projects in their respective cities and towns, the seats being added to the Orange County Board of County Commission and more. 

Property tax reform 

A concern of all the mayors is the potential impact of property tax reform from the state. 

In Oakland, which Mayor Shane Taylor said has a population of about 5,600 within 2 square miles, a majority of the town’s revenue comes from property taxes because there aren’t many commercial properties in town. 

“If something like (property tax reform) were to happen, it would hit us very negatively,” Taylor said. 

Oakland brings in about $11 million in revenue. Taylor said if the state were to discontinue homestead exemption, the town would lose more than $2 million in revenue. 

“To put that into perspective for us, the $2 million can either be used for fire, which our fire is a little over $2.5 (million) or so right now, or our police and our police is about that same ballpark,” Taylor said. “It would force us at some point to have to sit and choose, ‘Residents, what do you want? Do you want fire or do you want police?’”

In Windermere, Mayor Jim O’Brien said the town has engaged with economists to “help get a better picture of what this would really look like.” His concern is regarding the proposal for replacement revenue if something were to happen to property tax revenue as the replacement revenue might not be predictable or stable and how it could be impacted by economic changes. 

“We value local control in our town,” he said. “We value local control in our county. People elect us to do what we do, because they feel we understand what makes them tick, because we live right next door to them. Those are the things you look at, and who do we want to have put their signature on that for our particular towns and municipalities and counties.”

O’Brien said the town of Windermere has accelerated its schedule of projects to be able to do everything the town can now in case changes are made. 

Winter Garden Mayor John Rees echoed O’Brien’s concerns of a replacement revenue source, as well as Taylor’s concerns of funding essential community services. He said 43% of the city’s revenue is from ad valorem taxes, yet the city’s public safety budget is 57% of the city’s overall budget. While the city is spending $9 million on public safety in the coming fiscal year, the city spent only $4 million on public safety a few years ago, but escalating costs have increased expenditures for the same services. 

“We are different today than we were 10 years ago, in the fact that your residents look for more and more services from your government,” he said. “If we go forward, we have to make sure that No. 1, we don’t cut public safety because that is a top priority to us. But other things are going to have to get cut, so you’re going to go back to your citizens and they have to understand that.”

Rees said Winter Garden is looking at potentially adjusting fees the city charges and implementing new fees on services. 

Ocoee Mayor Rusty Johnson shared the same concerns as the other mayors. He said although everyone wants their taxes to be lower, the city has a responsibility to its citizens to provide services and maintain the city. 

Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said although he believes “there’s probably an opportunity” to review taxes, “it has to be something reasonable and balanced.”

Demings said not only does the county provide services for its residents, but also on average, the city services 206,000 additional people who are visiting the area because it is a top tourist destination in the country. 

He said no matter the type of property tax reform passed, the demand for services will remain and continue to increase as the population continues to grow. 

Major projects

Each of the cities and towns are working on major projects to maintain and improve their municipalities. 

Oakland and Windermere are focused on septic programs. 

Taylor said with Oakland sitting on a hill, all the septic runs down the hill into Lake Apopka. 

“The quicker we can solve our problem, the quicker Lake Apopka can be cleaned up,” he said. 

In Windermere, O’Brien said not only is the town working on its potable water and sanitary sewer projects, but also there is a focus on easing traffic flow through the town. 

Rees said in Winter Garden, the top priority is the city’s water, wastewater and reclaimed water project, which the city has received more than $23 million from the state for the project. 

Johnson said Ocoee is focused on the utilities related to the expansion of the sewer facility. 

In Orange County, Demings said the city is exploring whether the city will advance “some type of sales tax initiative to the ballot in 2026,” such as an infrastructure tax that could help to pay for the expansion of the Sun Rail to go east to west. This would help have fewer cars on the road as people would use public transportation instead. Also planned are improvements in bicycle pathways, pedestrian safety and lighting. 

Quality of life

The mayors also are hoping to improve other aspects of their municipalities. 

Johnson said Ocoee is working to ease traffic flow through the city.

In Winter Garden, the city is in the process of updating its comprehensive plan. Tucker Ranch also is under construction and should be completed late summer of 2026, Rees said. The city also started the Legacy Fund in which the city is working with qualified homeowners to have major renovations on the exterior and interior of their homes. Zanders Park and Dillard Street also are seeing improvements. 

Windermere is focused on protecting the town’s trees. The town also has a legacy fund from its Wine and Dine event that now will be a part of the West Orange Chamber of Commerce. 

Taylor said Oakland is working to expand the town’s trail network to reach other residential communities within the town to connect them to downtown Oakland. 

Demings said the county is committed over a 10-year period to invest $100 million in buying green spaces and environmentally sensitive lands. 

Redistricting

The Orange County Commission has been developing maps in order to redistrict the county to add two seats to the board. 

Taylor, O’Brien, Johnson and Rees all said they wished the maps would have kept their communities together under a single representative. 

The maps under review had Ocoee with Apopka, while Winter Garden, Oakland and Windermere all would be under different representation. 

Despite the cities and towns being in different districts, all the mayors said they will continue to work together.