Reports Submitted by the District 5 Office to the Board of County Commissioners
AI Data Center Moratorium on All Prospective Applications
On June 12th, 2026, Vice Mayor Dr. Kelly Martinez Semrad requested a BCC Discussion Item on a temporary moratorium on AI Data Center applications, to better understand their impact on our community and their place in Orange County Code. The purpose of this report is to 1) outline the emerging land use infrastructure, environmental, utility, and growth management questions associated with hyperscale and artificial intelligence (AI) data centers and 2) request that Orange County evaluate the existing regulatory and policy frameworks to determine its efficacy in the face of these emerging questions. As demand for data center infrastructure increases across Florida and the nation, Orange County sits in a regulatory gray area in our capacity to manage and regulate its uses. While data centers are implicitly regulated under industrial uses, the county lacks specific language that would allow for direct regulation.
This discussion item will be heard at the September 15th BCC Meeting at 201 S. Rosalind Avenue, Orlando. To make public comment, sign up here. To make your voice heard, email District1@ocfl.net, District2@ocfl.net, District3@ocfl.net, District4@ocfl.net, and District6@ocfl.net.
Sunshine Transportation Advancement Resolution (STAR) Ordinance – with Sunrise Movement
On June 4th, 2026, Vice Mayor Dr. Kelly Martinez Semrad requested a BCC Discussion Item on the Sunshine Transit Advancement (STAR) Ordinance. This initiative aims to establish a framework for Orange County to study, secure funding for, and develop countrywide rapid transit infrastructure for eight (8) high-volume transportation corridors. The Commissioner is seeking Board feedback and direction to evaluate the STAR Ordinance, create a continuous district a half-mile from STAR-designated corridors that will collect money through Tax-Increment Financing (TIF) districts, and create a Citizen’s Rapid Transit Trust Fund to be overseen by a citizen’s oversight committee.
This discussion item will be heard at the September 29th BCC Meeting at 201 S. Rosalind Avenue, Orlando. To make public comment, sign up here. To make your voice heard, email District1@ocfl.net, District2@ocfl.net, District3@ocfl.net, District4@ocfl.net, and District6@ocfl.net.
Appeal Authority on DRC-Reviewed Application Decisions
On January 14, 2026, the Orange County Development Review Committee (DRC) heard DRCA-25-12-304, an applicant-initiated appeal of the County Engineer’s denial of a variance from Orange County Code Section 37-539(4) for lot size requirements based on private potable well and individual on-site sewage disposal system (OSDS). The DRC voted to overturn the County Engineer’s denial and approve the requested variance, granting the ability to utilize an individual OSDS on the same parcel as a private potable well for commercial consumptive uses. Section 34-29 of Orange County Code provides the appeal process for decisions made by the DRC and generally allows appeals by a person who is “aggrieved” by a decision when they can demonstrate a special injury; that is, a specific, personal harm that is different from the general interest shared by the public.
However, a similar process does not exist in Orange County Code for the Board of County Commissioners to directly appeal DRC decisions. Absent a Commissioner-initiated appeal process, applications like DRCA-25-12-304 are approved administratively without being subject to meaningful engagement from the public or their elected representatives. The lack of oversight allows impactful decisions, which can have long-term implications for our communities, to stand without requisite transparency and in violation of long-standing policies. Specifically in the referenced case, policies prohibiting commercial properties from using septic (S. 37-539(4)). Result: Orange County staff was directed to include this language and is working on recommendations to bring back to the Board on September 29th, 2026.
Retaining Outside Counsel to Defend Against CFX Condemnation of Eagle’s Roost
On January 23rd, 2026, Commissioner Martinez Semrad requested an urgent agenda discussion item to discuss the immediate retention outside legal counsel to represent the County in its eminent domain case against the Central Florida Expressway Authority (CFX) concerning four County-owned conservation properties tied to the SR 534 East project.
As part of the requested action, the District 5 office noted the significant legal and financial risk of proceeding with the County Attorney’s Office due to the statutory authority of CFX and certain comments made in the public eye during past Board of County Commissioners meetings. Result: The Mayor decided to proceed with retaining outside counsel.
Exploring Protective Designations for Orange County Parks and Forests
On October 14th, 2025, the District 5 Office submitted a report on Wildlife Protection Designations in an attempt to identify additional areas of interest for wildlife protection under existing Florida Administrative Code. Orange County staff then began to identify existing Bird Sanctuary and Restricted Hunting Area Designations Under Florida Admin. Code, Chapter 68A-19 and developed the following response:
“Staff does not recommend identifying candidate County lands, preparing recommendations, or submitting a Chapter 68A-19 establishment request to FWC at this time. Chapter 68A-19 is not a general conservation, habitat preservation, wetland protection, climate resilience, education, or eco-tourism tool. It is a narrow FWC framework focused on the taking of wildlife with guns in developed areas where recreational hunting may be unsafe to the public. Because that framework does not match the rural or conservation-land rationale presented to the Board, and because EPD and Parks have not identified County-owned or County-managed lands that present the type of developed-area hunting-safety concern evaluated by FWC, staff recommends that the Board receive this update and take no further action on a Chapter 68A-19 request at this time.”
Commissioner Kelly Martinez Semrad 