- November 24, 2024
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The March 5 meeting of the Ocoee City Commission saw a plethora of discussion, proclamations and approvals.
However, there was none more impactful to the city than the unanimous approval of the consent agenda item establishing the employment agreement between the city and Assistant City Manager Craig Shadrix to succeed Robert Frank as Ocoee’s next city manager.
This succession plan has been discussed at commission meetings since Jan. 16, when Frank mentioned that he was retiring from his position after two decades of service. Commissioner Rosemary Wilsen at the next meeting named Shadrix as her desired replacement for Frank, with the rest of the commission in support.
On March 5, the passing of the item officially confirmed Shadrix will take over for Frank once he retires, which could possibly be this summer.
The commission voted unanimously to bypass a charter review committee and allow voters in the November 2024 election to decide on three changes to the city’s charter.
In response to a court order regarding the qualification of former Commissioner George Oliver III to be his own successor in the March special election to fill the district commission seat he vacated to run for mayor, the proposed changes to the charter would accomplish three things.
First, the amendment proposed to section C-9 of the charter would give the commission more authority to interpret and enforce the charter. The adjusted charter would read, “The City Commission has the authority to interpret and enforce the provisions of this Charter, which shall be binding unless such interpretation and enforcement is held by a court of competent jurisdiction.”
The next adjustment in the charter would be to section C-10, and it would confirm the commission’s power to judge the qualifications — based on the charter — of both its elected members and candidates seeking to qualify as commission candidates in an election. The amendment would also give the commission power to establish the process of implementing this section of the charter.
The last amendment to the charter is focused on section C-17 and updating the language to establish the commission’s interpretation that a successor and the person being succeeded are two different people.
The proposed change to the charter would read, “A member who resigns from their office cannot thereafter seek election to any part of the same term of office from which the member resigned.”
Voters will have the chance to choose which of these proposed amendments to Ocoee’s charter will be implemented or rejected come the November election.
The other six consent agenda items passed unanimously by the commission included the approval of a $100,000 payment to the headlining entertainment of the 2024 Ocoee Music Festival, Brett Michaels.
There also was an approval for the development of a master plan for a park on the eastern shore of Lake Apopka, named the Lake Apopka Nature Park, which will cost the city $58,000. The development of the master plan will see the engineering and development consulting firm Kimley-Horn create the plan for the new park.
Other approvals include an interim agreement with Fortress Secured to proceed with the Ocoee Regional Law Enforcement Training Center and approval for the city to submit an application to the Firefighter Assistance Grant program for the purchase of Firefighter Emergency Bailout Systems.
Only one consent item was discussed and that was by Commissioner Scott Kennedy, who wanted to request the commission nominate another member to the Citizen Advisory Council for the Ocoee Police Department. The original item that reappointed members of the current council and one new member was passed unanimously.
The commission approved the taking of a $10 million loan for the design, construction and outfitting of a police and public safety training facility, which was discussed and approved at its July 18 meeting.
After discussions with its financial advisor, the city determined the best financing arrangement for the facility was this 10-year loan. A staff report said this loan would allow the city to have, “a healthy general fund reserve and to capitalize on current investment rates (5.57%), which are higher than the interest inputted on the note (4.4%).”
