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TOWN HALL
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areas out there to protect and provide a carbon footprint
offset. We are also looking at updating the code
regarding our tree canopy. When August rolls around,
we all wish we had more tree canopy coverage. Unfortunately,
the tree ordinance that's on the books here in
Orange County is antiquated and has no teeth. So, its
update is on our immediate policy agenda.
In terms of local commercial development with a
sustainable mindset, I love the idea of being able to
walk or bike to a café. Thus, we want to make sure
our local entrepreneurs have the resources to not just
open, but stay open. When we get out there and meet
with community members, I hope we will attract
local entrepreneurs and small business owners. Come
out and dialogue with us so we can make sure we are
getting the right resources to you.
This community is your community. None of us
can create it alone. We have 400+ volunteer board
members on various advisory boards and oversight
boards in the county. We need you to participate. Go
on to the Orange County website, visit the Boards tab,
and fill out an application. You're going to see turnover
in zoning adjustment and planning—I've heard
citizens' concerns about these issues loud and clear,
and we take it very seriously. The people put into these
board slots will live here and work here. They will want
to see the type of walkable, livable community come
to fruition that we all want to see. Yes, volunteering
can be a thankless job, but I will thank you.
At the end of the day, we are all deciding what this
community will look like in the years and decades to
come. When I talk to residents of Horizon West, my
overwhelming sense is that you are extremely knowledgeable
and skilled. There is a lot of expertise here.
There are many people who moved
here because of the forwardthinking
master plan—perhaps
you were one of them. You will
be wonderful contributors to
the discussion.
Thank you and see you on
the trails!
Horizon West residents get to know
Commissioner Wilson and share their
past challenges and future hopes for our community.
HISTORY CONTINUED...
Sellen, who had been
Orange County's planning
director in the 1970s, embraced
the long-awaited
opportunity to create a "big
picture" vision. Workshops
were held where the public
was invited to help plan
what the area would look
like in 50 years. Would it
be a series of disconnected
subdivisions or maybe
even a new urban center?
Would it be possible to
preserve some natural land? It
took two years, but in 1995 a plan was
presented to the county for approval.
Sellen had drawn inspiration from a movement
called New Urbanism. Horizon West would be comprised
of "villages," each with several neighborhoods with
a mix of housing types, their own schools and parks.
The villages would be built around a town center, incorporating
green spaces and wide trails. It would be the largest
master-planned development in Central Florida's history,
but the idea was to make it close-knit and walkable, with
the feel of many small, interconnected micro-communities.
"What we have here, if it works, is a model for the rest
of the state of Florida," said County Planning Manager,
David Heath.
The county was impressed and agreed to amend
the Comprehensive Policy Plan to include Horizon West's
Village Land Use Classification. Shortly thereafter, the
state approved the change as well, and in January of 1997
the first village - Lakeside - was given the green light.
Now, just over 25 years have passed since the citrus
growers came together to turn their hardships into the
home we call Horizon West. They faced the challenge
by creating a plan that would take what had been a
patchwork quilt of burnt-out orange groves and turn it
into a community that Orange County can be proud
of. Horizon West is still growing into that plan, and just
like those who lived here before us, we continue to
support our neighbors and look to the future.
/TownHall