New Look for TangerineFl Page

Apparently there has been some confusion as to who runs this blog. This blog is not associated with any community groups and simply represents some of the residents of  Tangerine, Florida. Disclaimers are posted on the “About” page and to futher clarify that my blog is independent, I’ve updated the look to a flashy red and black theme.

I’m aware that some Stoneybrook Hills homeowners think the purposeof this blog is to bash their community. It’s not. In fact, the vast majority of hits to this page are to an article about invasive Cuban tree frogs that are frequently discovered in toilets after entering homes through the plumbing vents. Having the page set to private prevented people who are seeking immediate help upon discovering an ugly white warty toad-looking frog staring back at them from their toilet. So the page is once again set to “public.”

Enjoy.

A Nice Touch

The driveway behind the post office that many of us use to park when we get our mail was recently repaved. Kudos to Kenneth Bremmer for the nice landscaping touches he added. I don’t know who repaved it, Mr Bremmer or the Post Office, but it looks great. Driving to pick up the mail, which I used to hate due to the disrepair of the road,  isn’t so bad either.

Incidently, this property is about 300 feet from the ugly building that is falling apart on the southeast corner of Lake Street and Earlwood. Sociologists have a theory, the “Broken Window Theory,” that when one building in an area falls into disrepair, the others nearby will follow.  Certainly this property is an exception to that rule. 

Thank you, Mr Bremmer, Tangerine loves your work and appreciates it every day. Oh yeah, I want to retain you to redo my house when I win the lottery. =]

Hometown Democracy Proposal

Across Florida, developers are frantic to win land-use changes that would set the state’s growth industry back in motion despite plummeting land values, historic levels of foreclosures and a saturated real-estate market choking on a glut of houses for sale.

And some governments are helping by positioning themselves to pull the trigger on the starting pistol the moment there’s an uptick in the economy. Even the Legislature jumped in earlier this year to skin the growth laws alive in a desperate effort to kick-start building.

The state Department of Community Affairs in April took a snapshot of developments either approved or pending since 2007, when the economy melted. The result? Some 630,965 new homes have been approved or requested for 410,126 acres. Read the rest of the article

 

 

Developer to Request Expansion of Stoneybrook Growth Center

Get your orange shirts out. Developer Tim Bailey is trying to get public support to rezone his 60+ acre cow pasture with a sink hole for something he’s calling “The Parks of Mount Dora.” He is fully aware that the boundaries of Stoneybrook [Foothills at the time] were never to be expanded beyond their current boundaries.

He gambled that he could use his political capital when he bought this property planning to  circumvent the agreement. In fact, he was an active member in the hearings limiting the development. We cannot let this happen. If he is allowed to go through with his “quaint village” concept the remainder of 441 will become a strip mall haven.

Dust off your “Where in the Heck is Tangerine?” shirts and mark these dates on your calendar.

Tangerine Community Meeting – October 2009. Date to be determined.

Planning and Zoning – December 17, 2009

Orange County Commission – January 12, 2010

Planning and Zoning – May 2010 [adoption]

Orange County Commission- June 2010 [adoption]

This was compiled using information from the TIS September 2009 Newsletter and other sources.

Development Alert for Pasture Next to Stoneybrook

   Community Meeting – Thursday, August 20,2009 6 PM – St. Patrick’s Church

Tim Bailey, owner and developer of the 60+ acres just north of Stoneybrook (cow pasture with the sink hole) is holding a community meeting with the people of Mount Dora Thursday, August 20, at 6 P.M.  He has held previous meetings with the residents of Stoneybrook and Sullivan Ranch and is looking for support to rezone his Agricultural property to a combination of  commercial/professional office/residential designations. 

Tangerine residents met with Mr. Bailey a few weeks ago and advised him that we would oppose any zoning changes to the property.  As part of the 2003 Agreement with Orange County, the Foothills (Stoneybrook) and the people of Tangerine, the boundaries of the Foothills “Growth Center” were not to be expanded past their current point.  In order for Mr. Bailey to develop at greater intensity than allowed under an agricultural designation, he would have to expand the growth center to include his property since he is not part of the Rural Settlement.  If allowed, this will then set the precedent for the remainder of Hwy 441 to develop in the same way. 

 Please come out and support your town. 

Good Stuff to Know

Hazardous Waste Collection

Do you have hazardous household waste in your garage such as old electronic items, pesticides, old paint, pool chemicals and so on? Orange County will accept it at Hunter’s Creek Town Hall, 14101 Town Loop Blvd from 8 to 3 on July 18, 2009. Call 407-836-6601 for additional information.

Free Landscape Trees

Two free native trees per household from 8 -12. Instructions will be given on tree establishment and care. Trees are available on a first-come, first-served basis. This is a great deal. The trees include live oak, southern magnolia, bald cypress, as well as other natives. You must have proof of Orange County residency such as identification with your address on it or identification with a utility or tax bill. Call 407-254-9200 for additional information.

Gardening Classes

The Orange County Extension Education Center offers classes on landscape design and fall vegetable gardening. The gardening class is free, there is a $20.00 fee for each family enrolled in the landscape design classes. Call 407-254-9200 for details.

Tangerine’s Shameful Mess

It’s hard to believe that this eyesore has been falling apart since I moved to Tangerine 17 years ago.  Have any of our elected officials been out here to see this? Our saving grace in this mess is that it hasn’t become a crackhouse. At one time it was a clinic for Dr. Snyder who treated patients that came to experience the healing waters of Lake Ola. Dr Synder retired and the building began its slow decay.

[A little history here: Dr Synder was Steve Blanton's next door neighbor and Mrs. Holley, also a neighbor who passed on, was his nurse. ]

Do you think we could get Orange County Planning to take a look at this and approve it as a police substation as George Wiggens suggested in the past? After all, it’s at our town core. You’d think the same people that allowed StoneyBrook Hills [formerly the Foothills of Mount Dora] to be approved without notifying us of such a huge change could help us out on this one. Elected and county officials: are you listening? Please fix this eyesore ASAP!

Sunday at Tangerine Community Church July 5th

Tangerine Community Church 

The Little Church with the Big Heart

Established 1886

 

Last Sunday we enjoyed the very inspirational music of Valerie Hart as our soloist and Terry Beebe sang with the choir.  Terry will be with us this Sunday as we celebrate our country’s independence.  Terry, as our Guest Soloist, will provide us with some patriotic music.

 

Harriet and I are away this Sunday at a minister’s conference in North Carolina.  Robert Ward is our Guest Preacher for Sunday July 5^th.  Robert is currently preparing for duty in the Armed Service s as a Chaplin.  His sermon, “Freedom In Dependence”, will look at our freedom because of our dependence.

 

Our Christian Sympathy  is extended to Ed McGuckin in the death of John Reddish and to Kiki Donofrio and family in the death of her mother.

 

Late Addition:  Please excuse the tardiness of this newsletter.  Harriet and I are in the mountains for a minister’s conference and this is the first time that we have had internet access.  What did we do before the internet?

 

This Sunday is communion Sunday.  We will celebrate the Lord’s Supper, remembering Jesus sacrifice for you and Me.

 

Don’t forget the continental breakfast this Sunday from 10:15 to 10:45 in the TIS Hall.  Bernice is bringing really yummy goodies.  Come early and visit with friends.  God Bless and have a happy 4^th and a wonderful day on Sunday at church.

 

 

John and Harriet

Reposted from an e-mail sent in by a reader

 

Ice Cream Social and Meth Lab Presentation

Marty Roberts organized the ice cream social for Citizens on Patrol that was held at the Tangerine Improvement Society’s hall on Sunday. The purpose of the social was to promote Tangerine’s Citizens on Patrol program and bring residents and law enforcement together to work on local problems.

We were fortunate to have Bill Reed of the Lake County Sheriff’s Department’s  Methamphetamine Lab Team share a powerpoint on the dangers of meth labs and how to recognize one.  Methamphetamine  (meth) is a powerful drug that is becoming more common across the United States. Deputy Reed answered questions about meth use in the local area and explained how common household chemicals can be used to manufacture meth.  Everyone learned that the most important thing if you discover a meth lab is to NOT TOUCH ANYTHING and call 911. Even switching a light on or off can trigger an explosion. Meth labs can produce toxic residues that can be fatal long after the lab itself is be gone.

Eddie Appleby of the Orange County Sheriff’s Office  attended in full uniform on his day off and addressed resident concerns regarding Orange County Sheriff’s Office patrols and suspicious activity near Tangerine.  He is quite aware of neighborhood concerns and that residents would like to see more patrols.

Our Citizen’s on Patrol (COPS) is in need of additional volunteers in order to provide patrols at the level the community desires. The COPS program does not replace officers, however it does provide extra eyes and ears to assist law enforcement.  Please see Steve Blanton or call him at home for additional information. (Sorry, I can’t put the phone number out on the internet, but any Tangerine Improvement Society member can share it with you.)

Gerry Jaillette  of Lakewatch briefly spoke about issues related to Lake Ola. He asked everyone to prevent grass clippings from being washed into the lake. Fertilizers are washed into the lake along with the grass but his main concern was the clippings sinking to the bottom of the lake and reducing the lake’s oxygen content as they decay.

Approximately 40 residents enjoyed Marty’s home-made cookies and yogurt. Attendees chose among 14 different flavors of Breyer’s ice cream from Publix. Marty Roberts and George LaPierre came in early and ran the kitchen. Lynn Bucklew helped serve ice cream as well. Special thanks to Chic and Laura Keller for cleaning up and preparing for this Saturday’s Pancake Breakfast.  Others helped as well and it went so fast that I everything was done before I had a chance to think about noting who was doing what.

A big thank you goes out to our speakers who willingly came in on their days off to help better our community. Everyone learned something and enjoyed tasty treats. No one does it like Tangerine!

Orange County Planning Division: Future Growth Patterns

The Orange County Planning Division will be holding a Community Meeting concerning amendments to Chapter 38 of the Orange County Code to implement the requirements of the Wekiva Parkway & Protection Act.  There are two meetings scheduled:

#1:  June 29 @ 6:30 PM – Apopka High School, 555 Martin Street, Apopka

#2:  July 6 @ 6:30 PM – West Orange High School, 165 Beulah Road, Winter Garden

 The official notice with “Frequently Asked Questions”  

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This particular amendment does not include any language which references the replacement of septic tanks or forced connections to a public sewer system.  It does, however, outline the future growth patterns for our area which includes “clustering” of houses within the protected areas.  [From a TIS e-mail]

Note: It is most important to attend these meetings. Our winter friends are away for the summer and people are focused on other concerns and major changes can slip in unnoticed. If fact, if my recall is correct, we got stuck with the “Growth Corridor” when we weren’t paying attention. Don’t let that happen again! ~ Ed.