MY FAVORITE DAY! Learn how to do it right... - Government Day

I can only start this entry by giving a HUGE shoutout to our classmate Veronica Miller at the City of St. Cloud who worked SO hard on making our day possible and then ended up being sick and unable to make it. We had a BLAST and I wish she would have been able to share it with us! With that...off we go!

We kicked off the morning with a fabulous breakfast of sausage, eggs, biscuits...I know, I know...but sometimes...it's worth it. :) I had some fruit to justify my nutritious breakfast! We had to start the agenda with I'm a Little Tea Pot of course! See any repeat offenders?

Up next we heard from some of St. Clouds officials that between them have years of government experience. We met Vice Mayor Mickey Hopper, Coucilman Russell Holmes and the City Manager Tom Hurt who let us in on the keys to their success and how they are able to keep St. Cloud a small town while progressing forward with ideas like recycling, green technology and water treatment.

We headed off to learn more about St. Cloud's government. Now, a HUGE part of today's theme is "Government", but what I don't think a lot of people realize is that encompasses A LOT more than coucilmen and commissioners, senators or representatives, deciding things that make or break your lifestyle. We're talking water, sewer, trash, planning, zoning, building, permits, parks and recreation..it goes on and on. So I'm really excited to talk about these stations that were set up that tought us some behind the scenes to city work.

This photo makes a pretty big statement. I live in St. Cloud so this presentation on water grabbed my attention. The top bucket has been treated with their system and the bottom is straight from the aquafer. He explains here how the magnetic process picks up any dirt or allergens in the water, leaving behind a very clean product. Pretty cool stuff!

Up next we visited the "Digging" station where they explained "Know what's below" campaign which is statewide. Here is Tom Maurer with Turner Construction and a Leadership Osceola Participant, with his take on these:

"Did you ever wonder what those little plastic flags on small wires were used for and who put them there?  The flags are placed by utility locate teams. Anyone can call for a free locate service by dialing 811.

The flags show the location of buried pipe & wires. A metal detector is used to find the pipe (yellow thing in picture below). Balls containing metal particles are used to locate plastic pipe.  The colors represent different utilities.  The balls are place every 100' while the contractor installs the pipe."

There were also stations on pipe cleaning, fixing broken pipes, picking up trash (which involves a very talented employee who picked up a water bottle with the large piece of equipment!) and bucket trucks. Speaking of bucket trucks...

That's our friend Kelly Bender up there! Heyyyyy Kelly! Speaking of which, here are some of her thoughts on the morning...

Kelly Bender, Community Vision - "The City of St. Cloud visit was most memorable. I really enjoyed the great breakfast, learning about the great service and dedication of the council members and the staff toward the city’s residents. And seeing first-hand the Public Services staff’s dedication was quite a bonus. I truly enjoyed learning about the water-testing process, the tap water competition was fierce, and going up on the bucket truck to get a prize was the best! These employees go through a lot – like fighting off love bugs – on a daily basis to serve the community. And the pride shows in each every one’s face."

 Here is this pipe they found from 1925 underground when replacing some pipes. Some areas still have these operating today and are perfectly fine! I love how the inside is almost completely untouched.

We also got to watch two teams compete against eachother on fixing a leaky pipe. I had a video but I can't find it at the moment. I believe it became girls against boys, but we all know who won that battle....pshh...girls, clearly!

We hopped on the bus and headed toward the City of Kissimmee's City Hall. Greeted by Carla Banks, the PIO for the City, we broke into groups to visit their TV Channel, Access Osceola (shoutout to Chris & Chris!), Code Enforcement and met with Mr. Loubier on the CRA/Park & Recreation Lakefront Renovation Project.

Meanwhile, we showed up and this beautiful piece of art was on my chair! At least now if Keith makes me do work, I will look good doing it! :) Thanks COK!

Here are some photos from our station visits at COK.

Can you spot all the code violations?

 Dan Loubier is the Director of the COK's Parks & Recreation Department and I have known this man since I worked for the City as a Lifeguard. He took me under his wing since my Father had contributed many years to KFD and he is always looking out for me. Even when I started at KMS in April, he immeadiately reached out and scheduled a meeting to help me in anyway he can. :)

Above is the full set to Kissimmee FYI that Chris and Chris built! We got to do a mock script and I totally blew it! Marixa though did a jam up job!

Our amazing lunch provided by Chef John's BBQ Restaurant near Bellalago called Cowboy Barbeque. So worth the drive if you are from the Downtown area! :)

Here is the control room. Hey Carla!

During lunch, we got a lesson on a council-commissioner form of Government from City Manager, Mike Steigerwald. I tried to take a good photo of the chart, but clearly I know nothing about photography. :) Basically, the City Manager is contracted by the Commissioners and he reports to them. Mike does a great job and we are extremely lucky to have him. He started off in the planning department and worked his way up to the 5th floor. His entire department has been so extremely helpful, nice, patient, caring, patient, welcoming, patient...as I start this new venture.

After our tour of the City, we hopped over to the County Courthouse. We entered the Commission Chambers where Mr. Don Fisher started out educating us on what his job as County Manager is, followed by the Interim Auditor and Interim County Attorney. After that, we each were assigned various rolls (commissioners, residents, builders, contractors) in the controversial SunRail project and acted out our parts. It was really fun and I hope that we convinced them to build the rail! :) If you look at the screen, I don't think a lot of them were paying attention...they were doodling!!

After that, we went to the Commissioner's presentation room were greeted by one of my FAVORITE people in the entire world, practically family to me, Commissioner Ken Smith. Mr. Smith and my grandfather have been best friends since I can remember. He's been teasing me about being a Gator since about then too and has been a great mentor to me on my life journey. Turns out, it was his birthday! We all sang Happy Birthday and had cake and ice cream! It was wonderful!

If you have never met him before, the first thing I think you should know about Mr. Smith is that he is a wealth of knowledge. There isn't a whole lot he doesn't know. He has been an educator in this County for years and chances are, he has taught you or at least someone in your family. He definitely taught my whole family except me. Although, I can tell you I have learned SO much from him outside of the classroom! 

He took us on a tour of the Historic Courthouse and even though I have taken it before, I learn something new every time! Here are some photos of our tour!

 They do not make hinges like this anymore!

The oldest working courtroom in the State of Florida!

 Tom, Tim and Kelly are some good lookin jurors!

 

So greatful to have had him as a guide. It doesn't get much better than that!

 So there you have it, my favorite day. I know...super-nerd.

Until next time...

Kelly

"Welcome to my new office...all 1.7 miles of it!" - Economic Development Day

So these days are my most VERY favorite because it just goes to show you HOW MUCH goes on behind the scenes to make your community what it is. Which brings me to a sorry excuse as to why I haven't been updating per the usual and now I'm a couple weeks behind schedule.

For as long as I can remember, I have really loved my community. I was born and raised in Kissimmee and with family roots that probably go all the way to China from here, I am proud to say that I have accepted the position of Executive Director at Kissimmee Main Street, a non profit that focuses on bringing the community to the Downtown area. It was by no means easy for me to leave Clear Channel and I still consider them a HUGE part of my work family. I was one of those super nerdy digital billboard geeks but I LOVED it and I was truly passionate about my job. But deep down after many prayers and much thought, I knew that this is where I needed to be. I'm about a month in (explains the slow blog-around time) and it has been a time of great trial and triumph but that has only confirmed for me that this is where I belong. The timing of everything was pretty perfect considering that normally, Kissimmee Main Street would have participated in Economic Development day, but considering I only knew a handful of things, we just drove by the office instead!! :) And with that...off we go! :)

I will start by saying a HUGE thank you to Chris Gent at KUA to volunteering his photos for me to use!

We started off the day at KUA, Kissimmee Utility Authority, our local company, who I could sing praises about ALL DAY LONG. Wherever I've been, growing up here, KUA has always been an active community partner and today was no exception. Some of the class forgot their nametags...sooo we decided they have to SING SING SING!! Check it out...

After that, our newest fearless leader, Chris Gent, KUA's VP of Corporate Communications, starts explaining what KUA does and how they have some of the lowest rates in the state! After that presentation, I wish I was a KUA customer...someday... :)

Up next was Christina Morris from the Osceola County Economic Development Department. I had seen Christina speak a few times before, but here, she explained exactly what it is that the ED office does. Things like business recruitment, filling vacant space in the community and working with demographics to make sure our community can support that business that is looking to move here. The department has a blog that I follow on the regular, Choose Osceola is their website. Check it out!

So Christina gave us a little taste of what the ED Dept does. We broke up into groups, had mock cities that we represented and each of us had to convince the client why their business would be great here. Now, I'm thinking...ok I totally work in marketing...easy peasy...WRONG. I, being the guinea pig, get voted as the speaker of my group. Not gonna lie, it was really good practice since this could be a part of my job later down the road, just didnt think it would come so soon! You can see below the details of the company that is trying to move to the cities represented here. Christina and Donna acted as the business we're trying to sell to.

Tom is trying to teach me something about law...doesn't he know I went to art school!? I was really hoping he would just tell me what to write... :)

Here's our strategy to get the company to come to our town...We just made a list of Pros...there are really no cons...let's be honest. We're the best choice. ;)

Bud is looking pretty convincing!

But I think we all know which team pulled away with the win... :)

There is SO much that goes into it and you might even have to turn business away that creates jobs and stimulates your economy. You have to think... do your roads have the access to the highway? Do you provide good quality of life for their employees? In the end, it was a dirty fight with bankers offering 0% interest on their loans forever and unlimited passes to Disney World and free legal services...unlimited electricity even made the list! The things people were offering up as we use our resources to pull together and welcome a business... Crazy!

Up next we hopped on our nicely air conditioned charter bus that took us to...MY NEW OFFICE! Which is pretty much Broadway from Emmett to 192 where Craig Holland, Director of Development Services, gave us a tour Downtown.

We started in Toho Square (where you can find Main Street's Farmer's Market every Thursday from 7am-1pm...sorry, shameless self promo!) and walked up to Broadway where he explained the CRA's streetscaping project and why it is important to shop local.

We also took a tour near the tracks where the SunRail project could take place pending our Governor's decision in June.

If you haven't heard of the SunRail project, you can check it out here: SunRail: Changing the way CFL travels

We ended our Downtown tour at the CRA's new home, the Bryan Street House. This house was sold to the City and renovated for well over a million dollars to what it is today. There are SO many cool stories that my inner Downtown Tour Guide would love to chime in and tell you. I will tell you that the first floor belongs to the Osceola Historical Society and is a museum opened from 9-3pm. You can actually make a donation to a specific piece of furniture in the museum to make sure that it stays which is a pretty cool thing. The upstairs belongs to the CRA: Community Redevelopment Agency. It is a public entity created by a city or county to implement community redevelopment activities. It is governed by a separate appointed board of five to seven members. A CRA is created when the governing body finds one or more areas within the city that are in "slum" condition and have a need to rehabilitate, conserve and redevelop that area. After the CRA is created, the board, along with the agency, is required to prepare and adopt a redevelopment plan, which includes a detailed description of the boundaries for a redevelopment area. (I tried to write more about it myself, but their website did a great job of explaining it!)

Here are some photos of the Bryan Street House:

This is Kim from the CRA giving a tour of the Ladies Parlor. She is pretty much my lifesaver..for everything... :)

Tom and Tom look like they are having a GREAT time in the Ladies Parlor! BUSTED!

We all piled into the CRA's Community Room, which used to be a kitchen in the home, to hear presentations on the City of Kissimmee's Economic Development plan from it's ED Director, Belinda Ortiz.

We talked a lot about the Downtown area, mostly because of the HUGE redevelopment going on to accommodate large events like festivals and celebrations. You can check out the entire project here: Kissimmee Lakefront Redevelopment. There is A LOT to do in this town, despite what you might think...KISSIMMEE IS NOT A SLEEPY TOWN! ;)

We ventured out to KUA's Cane Island Power Plant where we saw little turtles as we pulled in. SO CUTE! :) Huge thanks to the AMAZING lunch from Tijuana Flats! Nomz! I could eat it everyday if it were 0 calories...

Here's a great shot of the group in front of the plant!

Thank you KUA for our sweet new hats!

Can you tell I'm a visual person...?

I learned a lot at the Cane Island plant. Most important factoid I took from the trip was that KUA shares the power from their plant, it is not just theirs. It goes all the way down to Key West in some instances and even into parts of Georgia I believe. They will be opening their 4th tower to provide MORE power to people.

Above is Mission Control for the Power Plant. I used to think I was so cool with my 27" monitor...pshh. Right. These guys are on duty 24/7 with a few shifts splitting the time. Loved it!


We headed out to another HUGE project in Osceola's Economic Development, REUNION! Reunion is a beautiful resort near I-4 and Champions Gate with everything you need for your vacation. You probably would never have to leave and as a matter of fact, I totally came home and told my husband it would be great for a STAYcation! As a resident, I feel like I have heard great things about the resort, all inclusive drinks being one of them, but I always thought that occupancy was really low with the economy being what it is and people traveling less. According to our host, they range from 80-95% full in their peak time. Crazy! They rent out everything from regular nightly hotel rooms to multi room condos to full blown 8 bedroom houses to wedding venues...it's HUGE!

We visited one of the houses and Manny got stung/bitten/something by this bug...poor guy :(

If you look close enough at the picture below, you can see it on the ground on the right side (yes that TINY spec) and guess who's giraffe print shoes those are right next to the bug!! Ahh!

We also heard from Shelley at the CVB (Convention and Visitor's Bureau) to talk about their impact on our economy, mostly in reference to tourism. Their job is to promote Osceola County as a premier travel destination while driving economic impact to our businesses.

 

 

 I love this graphic because it just shows you how much impact 1 single visitor has on the local economy, let alone millions that visit Orlando each year. As much as some of us complain about them (and their terrible driving skills), it makes me think what would we be without them?!

Here we are atop the Reunion Grande. You can see Epcot from here! I know...I am easily entertained and I LOVE Disney so it works... :)

 

 We finished up the trip at Kissimmee's Gateway Airport. A lot of celebrities fly into our airport because they realize it is a lot closer to the venues they are visiting and while it is a big extensive operation to run an airport, it is a lot smaller, less people, less of a hassle for them to get out and do their business and get back to their fancy lifestyles.

Included in our trip was a helicopter ride!! Most get claustrophobic on planes but a helicopter has so many big windows that it feels a lot bigger than it looks! :) Here is me and the Bud Man getting ready to take off!

 

Check out the billboard view from up here on the left! Wahoo! I actually suggested to my old supervisor that we start taking the billboard profile shots from up here. I almost had him... ;)

 

I love this shot. Looks like we just finished some famous mission or something!

We were the last group to talk with Kelly from SunRail who went over the challenges we face with transportation in Central Florida. I had seen her presentation before and it really is an excellent argument and extremely eye-opening. I'll keep my opinion to myself, but considering the impact this will have on our Downtown Kissimmee area, I am definitely staying on top of it! She did a lunch and learn when I was at Clear Channel Outdoor and I highly recommend if you are not educated on this subject to call them and schedule one in your office!

Here are some POVs from my classmates!

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Joanna Conley Associate Administrator, Osceola Regional Medical Center

Economic Development Day was definitely one of the best days of Leadership Osceola so far. As someone relatively new to Osceola County, I was amazed by the business leadership in this community and the many opportunities available for future economic development. The KUA power plant was impressive and it was amazing to think that Kissimmee had one of the first public utilities in Florida. I was surprised by the noise and the HEAT at the plant.

I enjoyed many of the conversations throughout the day focused on the future of transportation in Osceola County, especially the possible impact of SunRail on the county and Downtown Kissimmee especially. I previously commuted on the Seattle Sounder train every day and loved the experience. It was terrific to catch up on email, make phone calls, or read a good book every morning rather than fighting traffic. It would definitely be a big change for Central Florida if commuter rail were possible and it would be very interesting to see what new businesses and pedestrian traffic this may bring to downtown.

My favorite part of the day was the helicopter ride through the 192 corridor. I am a very nervous flyer and had never been on a helicopter before, so I was a little hesitant at first. Luckily my wonderful classmates helped me brave takeoff and soon after, I was engaged in what we were able to learn and see. I had no idea there is still so much undeveloped land so close to 192! It was also an interesting perspective to see traffic flow, age and upkeep of buildings throughout the area, and look at some of the amazing resources we have in Osceola County.

Leadership Osceola has been an amazing learning experience for me so far. I look forward to visiting with my classmates every week and engaging with the community in ways that I could not have previously imagined. I am thankful for this opportunity and feel that I am a more prepared leader and steward of our community through this experience.

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All in all, this week couldn't have come at a better time for me! It is really a great thing when you can see the whole picture come together! :)

Until next time,

Kelly