- January 11, 2025
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Before the first Ocoee City Commission meeting of 2025, the city presented its State of the City address to highlight its accomplishments from 2024 and to look forward to the exciting developments of the new year in the Center of Good Living.
“As we look ahead to 2025, we're excited to celebrate Ocoee’s 100-year anniversary; it’s a milestone that reflects our city's rich history and resilience,” said Ocoee Mayor Rusty Johnson. “But we're not just looking back; we’re looking forward to a bright future. Thanks to the dedication of our city staff and the support of our residents, we've made significant strides in improving our infrastructure, enhancing public safety and promoting environmental sustainability. Together, we will continue to share a thriving community where people can live, work and play.”
The nine-minute-long video, which can be viewed on the city’s YouTube page, touches on various accomplishments throughout the different Ocoee departments.
Ocoee Police Chief Vincent Ogburn shared an overview of the department in 2024, celebrating its work in fighting crime, growing the force and engaging with the community.
“Because of the hard work of the agency's members, innovation and dedication has driven the Ocoee Police Department forward in ways that make a real difference for our community,” Ogburn said. “Our dedicated police officers continue to work tirelessly to ensure the safety and well-being of our community.”
Ogburn highlighted the significant strides the department has made in various areas. Some of the highlights he shared included how the investment into cutting-edge technology has helped enhance the department’s crime-fighting capabilities and response times, how the addition of a canine unit dedicated to school safety has helped ensure a secure learning environment for the city’s students and how the department’s community engagement efforts have fostered a stronger community bond.
“As we look forward, I want to reaffirm our commitment to continuous improvement, innovation and collaboration,” Ogburn said. “We are creating a safer, stronger and more unified Ocoee.”
From improving the city’s roads to storm preparation and recovery and engaging with the community to promote sustainability, Public Works is a vital service for Ocoee residents.
“Our public works department has been essential in maintaining our city's infrastructure and enhancing our quality of life,” said Ocoee Public Works Director Steve Krug.
One of the biggest initiatives the department invested in last year was the resurfacing of 5.8 miles of streets in Ocoee to improve safety and aesthetics like road widening. Completing the Clark Road mobility corridor — which added 1.5 new lanes from Ocoee Vista Parkway to Clarcona-Ocoee Road — was another traffic-related highlight from 2024 for the department.
Public works was also vital to the preparations and recovery efforts from Hurricane Milton. To prepare for the storm, the department distributed 8,000 sandbags to residents and after, it removed over 20,000 cubic yards of storm debris throughout the city.
With nearly 8,000 calls for service, with a large portion being rescues and EMS calls, various community engagement events and major projects being green-lit, 2024 was a busy year for the Ocoee Fire Department.
“The Ocoee Fire Department remains committed to protecting our community,” said Chief Tom Smothers. “We're proud to serve our community and keep everyone safe. Looking ahead, we're excited to revitalize our fire explorer program and ramp up our truck company training to get our new ladder truck ready for action.”
Smothers says the delivery of the advanced fire-fighting equipment — Ocoee Fire’s first-ever aerial platform ladder truck — will empower the department to better serve the community. Along with the new truck, the homes of the city’s newest fire station and a new training facility were secured in 2024 and will begin construction in 2025.
The department also put a major focus on community engagement in 2024 by welcoming over 700 visitors to its annual open-house event, hosting its Citizen Public Safety Academy and visiting more than 70 Ocoee neighborhoods to spread holiday cheer during the 24th annual Operation Santa event.
The State of the City address video concluded with highlights and updates from Ocoee’s Utilities department, Community Redevelopment Agency and Parks and Leisure Services.
Major infrastructure expansion was the biggest highlight from the Utilities department’s 2024 list of accomplishments, including the completion of the Floral Street sewer and water project, which enhances water service reliability and provides central sewer opportunities for the downtown area. Along with this project, 2024 saw the city begin construction on a new electrical building at the wastewater treatment facility to increase electrical capability and ensure the infrastructure can meet future demands. This focus and forward-thinking by the department are just a couple of reasons why the city’s wastewater treatment facility was recognized with the Domestic Wastewater Plant Operations Excellence Award from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
For the Community Redevelopment Agency, 2024’s wins were focused on its revitalization efforts of the Fifty West Redevelopment District, which saw a host of new businesses open, international recognition for Healthy West Orange Wellness Park — earning top honors in the commercial outdoor living project category from the North American Deck and Railing Association — and construction begin on new developments, such as the Wawa on Clark Road and The Regency on Maguire Road, a new mixed-use development with 300 multi-family units and 7,000 square feet of commercial or retail space.
Parks and Leisure Services also welcomed new developments to the city’s parks system and continued to add to Ocoee’s diverse collection of public amenities and recreation programming. In 2024, the city introduced six new pickleball courts at Tiger Minor Park, a new basketball court at Central Park and an all-girls youth volleyball league.
To view the entire 2025 State of the City address video, visit bit.ly/4ag6Qdr.
