It is more difficult to form a historic district in Winter Park than in any other Florida city. Other Florida cities–including Sarasota, Jacksonville, and Ft. Myers–that have a voter threshold that must be reached to form a historic district set that threshold at a simple majority of votes received, or require that 50% of property owners in a proposed district return a “no” vote to defeat designation. In other cities, such as Orlando, Coral Gables, Tampa, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, historic districts are formed by the City Commission, not by homeowner vote. Lowering the threshold to a simple majority homeowner vote not only will bring Winter Park in line with other cities that value their history, but with all other Winter Park policies that just require a majority vote.
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