On Feb. 24th, 2025, the City of Casselberry held its bi-weekly City Commission meeting. Regular meetings are held on the second and fourth Monday of every month. The minutes for the commission’s previous meeting on Feb. 10th were unanimously approved without additions or deletions.
Two proclamations were held before the meeting began. The first proclamation was the recognition of the Florida Floodplain Managers Association (FFMA) declaring Mar. 3rd through Mar. 9th as Flood Awareness Week in the City of Casselberry. The recognition came with the recent floods in the city, causing damage to homes and buildings. “I’m really proud of our city for instituting flood management and our department has been instrumental in saving the city a lot of aggravation,” said Mayor David Henson, ”A lot of other cities can’t say that.
The second proclamation was a recognition of Yvette Goodman, retiring after twenty years as a Senior Records Clerk for the police department. Mayor Henson asked the entire commission to join him while reading the proclamation. “It’s been several years, we’ve always had to rely on a Goodman for one thing or another; and now we won’t have that,” said Mayor Henson, tearing up before reading the proclamation. She received a standing ovation from all who attended.
Three items were on the consent agenda for this meeting, labeled A through C. Agenda item A was the approval of Budget Amendment #25-015, which provided additional funding for lift station pump replacements.
The City of Casselberry’s wastewater collection system has seventy-six lift stations with pumps that must be replaced every ten years. Ten of these pumps will need to be replaced, costing the city $100,000; $10,000 for each pump. Agenda item B was the approval of Resolution 25-3484 establishing clear terms and conditions for the use of the Alert Seminole System. This allows Casselberry to use the alert system for emergencies within the city boundaries. Agenda item C was the approval of Budget Amendment #25-018 providing funding for a dedicated records center for Casselberry. The records center will be moved from the previous leased location to 80 N. Sunset Drive. According to the cover memorandum for this agenda item, the new location will save the city twenty-eight thousand dollars annually in rent and allow more records staff to be hired. The new location's clean, repair, and equipment will cost the city $155,000. Every item on the consent agenda was approved unanimously.
For future agenda items, Commissioner Thomas Kirk requested a further discussion on what the city is going to do with the Brightwater Property. “Right now, it’s just sitting there,” said Kirk, “I’d like to know what the plans are, and maybe have a public hearing to see what input we can get from the public.” He also requested a time and date for the demolition of the old police department building. City Manager Randy Newlon mentioned to the commission that the Brightwater Property was one of the discussion points at the City Commission Pre-Budget Planning Workshop on Feb. 26th.
The first three items on the agenda cover the Connection Project. A construction project building a sidewalk extension from the intersection of US Highway 17-92 and Home Depot entrance east to Sunset Drive, including a raised midblock crosswalk connected to the recently constructed shared use path on the east side of Sunset Drive. The sidewalk itself will be eight-feet wide with improved lighting. The first resolution pertaining to this project is Resolution 25-3485, providing for a Local Agency Program Agreement (LAP) with the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT). The project's total cost is $568,489, which was not calculated into the city’s budget for the 2025 fiscal year. To approve the extra spending, City Manager Newlon proposed Budget Amendment #25-016.
The second resolution on the Connection Project is Resolution 25-3486 approving a Locally Funded Agreement (LFA) with FDOT for Construction Engineering and Inspection (CEI) services for the Connection Project. The agreement allows FDOT to hire and partially cover the cost, $106,809, for CEI services needed to finish the project.
The third resolution on the Connection Project is Resolution 25-3487 approving a Three Party Escrow Agreement with FDOT and the Florida Department of Financial Services Division of Treasury to help fund the rest of the CEI cost not already covered by the LFA with FDOT.
Every resolution and budget amendment pertaining to the Connection Project was passed unanimously by the City Commission.
The first ordinance on the agenda was the approval of Ordinance 25-1618 amending City Charter Section 7.06 by changing the dates for candidates to qualify for the election, allowing more time for the candidate's names to be placed on the Seminole County general election ballot. This change comes from the passing of the Charter amendments in the 2024 election, eliminating runoff provisions and moving the election from the primary in August to the general election in November. The five-day qualifying period will be moved from the third full week in May to the third full week in August. During the discussion, Commissioner Nancy Divita requested to extend the five-day qualifying period. “You have to get this paper stamp from Donna (City Clerk) and then you have to have a check in your hand from your campaign account within five days,” Divita said, “That’s a pretty tight window to get a check in your hand when banks don’t give temp checks anymore.” City Clerk Donna Gardner informed Divita that you could get a check before the five-day qualifying period, the only thing received during the period is the stamp. The ordinance was passed unanimously.
The second ordinance on the ballot was the approval of Ordinance 25-1619 amending Article XVI, Signs, of the City’s Unified Land Development Regulations (ULDR), to permit the installation of Electronic Messaging Centers (EMCs) in specific zoning districts and provide for performance standards as requested. EMCs are ground signs that use a computer to electronically change the signage. These signs use static images that are only allowed to be displayed for a minimum of five minutes, ruling out any animations or moving pictures. The amendment promotes the installation of these signs, which have already been used by commercial tenants throughout Central Florida. “Staff feels as though this is a business-friendly decision primarily intended to help our local business continue to thrive,” reads the cover memorandum for the ordinance. The ordinance also ensures the residential districts are protected from any negative effects the signs may cause by only limiting them to specific commercial zones; CG, CS, PMX-H, PMX-MID, I, I-M, ROS, and PS. It also considers the possibility of using these signs in parks to promote certain events. The ordinance finds no adverse effects of the electronic messaging signs on the environment. Mayor Henson spoke on the ordinance explaining that they wanted to make sure local business owners can compete with those from neighboring cities who already allow these types of signage. The ordinance was passed unanimously. “Hopefully, that addresses most every concern our business community had,” said Mayor Henson after the ordinance was passed.
The next item on the agenda was the approval to award a construction agreement with Masci General Contractor, Inc. for Road Rehabilitation ADA and Pavement Improvements. The six-month-long improvements will improve the city’s roads and trails and make accessibility improvements for seven road miles; about 10% of the city’s roads, according to Special Projects Manager Martin Butcher. Major changes that will be made are raised crosswalks installed on Plumosa Avenue, Quail Pond Circle, and Winter Park Drive. Lake Shore Drive and Wyndham Way will be tightened, and skew lanes will be fixed. Avalon Boulevard will be getting bike lanes on either side. The improvement will cost the city $1,200,000, requiring budget amendment #25-017 to provide the full funding. The construction agreement and budget amendment were unanimously approved.
Mayor Henson adjourned the meeting at sixty-nine minutes and forty-five seconds. You can watch the full session and read the cover memorandums at https://casselberryfl.portal.civicclerk.com/event/451/media.
