On Wednesday, August 23, high school students, parents, and area residents nearly filled the seats of the Performing Arts Center at Windermere High School. The draw was a community meeting hosted by Commissioner Nicole Wilson, in conjunction with Orange County Public Schools, that provided the public with details about a proposal to relocate the Windermere High School stadium to a permanent home on the school’s campus.

Windermere High School athletes currently have their “home” stadium at Dep. Scott Pine Park on Fiquette Road, approximately one mile south of the school campus. Christopher Mills, a Senior Administrator in Facilities Planning at OCPS, has submitted a request to Orange County that seeks an Amendment to the Special Exception that’s been in place since 2015, which allowed for the original construction of the school in the Rural County Estate district. This new amendment would allow for construction of an on-site stadium at this time. When zoning changes or special amendments for large projects like this are requested, it is customary for Orange County to hold a public meeting to provide project information, answer questions and collect any feedback or concerns from residents. They normally are not this well attended, which shows this is an important issue to the community.  The presentation itself was relatively short with the majority of time spent recapping current issues and detailing the ways high-tech sports lighting can serve to eliminate some concerns of nearby residents. After the formal briefing, members of the public took turns at the microphone to speak their support for the project as well as raise issues and concerns.

Orange County Presentation Details

Orange County Case Planner Ted Kozak began the meeting sharing the specifics of the proposal which includes:

• Construction of a stadium with 1,552 seats at the on-campus location which currently serves as the football practice field
• 1,068 Seats on the Home side
• 484 Seats on the Visitor side
• Potential for 300 future seat expansion
• Construction of 1,872 sq. ft. building, which will serve as ticket booth, locker rooms, concessions and restrooms facilities
• Construction of a new/relocated basketball court
• Storage containers for use of athletics
• Relocation of the existing long jump area
• Four new LED light poles to replace existing six poles

Additionally, it was explained that the parking requirement was 618 parking spaces, while the school site already has 860. School hours of operation will not change, and games will take place on Fridays at 7 p.m., ending no later than 11 p.m.

OCPS Presentation

This presentation began with a speaker enumerating the many safety and logistical issues with the current off-site stadium, which both parents and students echoed in their statements during public comment period later in the meeting.

Traffic conditions and a lack of parking were cited as major issues, but the most heavily stressed was the fact that there is nowhere for spectators to shelter during a lightning event, a common occurrence in the evenings in central Florida. The new on-site stadium plans would address all these issues.

Knowing that the stadium lighting would be a serious concern for nearby homeowners, OCPS has brought in Musco Sports Lighting, an expert in the sports lighting industry since 1976.

Bob DeCouto from Musco Sports Lighting shared that his company’s expertise is “putting the light on the field and controlling it from spilling onto the neighbors and subjecting them to unnecessary glare.” The LED technology being proposed for this site meets all the Orange County ordinances for light as well as the International Dark Sky Association’s (IDA) Community Friendly Sports Lighting Program.

He stressed that OCPS has gone to great lengths to ensure the highest standards are met. For example, the IDA requires less than 10,000 candela, a measurement of glare, at the 150-foot mark around the field, and the Windermere stadium design is less than 1000 candela. DeCouto said, “Essentially, you have zero light spill coming from this facility.”

The stadium relocation is contingent upon Orange County Board of Zoning Adjustment’s (BZA) recommendation for approval as well as approval from the Board of County Commissioners (BCC).

The BZA hearing is scheduled for September 7, 2023. And the BCC hearing is tentatively scheduled for October 24, 2023. Public comment will be accepted at these meetings as well.

If all the necessary approvals are received by November 2023, the stadium will be completed in August 2024.

Public Impressions

Just about every speaker that gave public comment made arguments in favor of this request. Several students from WHS Student Government Association took to the mic, giving articulate and impassioned speeches in support of moving a stadium on campus.

Windermere High School teachers and athletics coaches also gave heartfelt pleas to the community to embrace, not only the stadium, but what it means to a community to have a “home.”

Patricia Barra, the Dance Director at Windermere High, received thunderous applause after delivering her pre-written comments that painted a vivid picture of the problems experienced today as well as what could be. “If a community needs a school, then it needs a stadium…a place for the community to create memories, memories that become traditions passed through generations.”

Mary Moore, a language arts teacher at Windermere High, mentioned the mental health benefits to students and the community at large that can be facilitated by on-campus events which inspire camaraderie and bring people together.

The passionate speeches were frequently met with shouts of “whoop, whoop Wolverines,” the Windermere Wolverines’ chant, as well outbursts of clapping and cheering from the audience.

A resident from Lake Caywood Estates, a community across the street from the future stadium location, and another from Oxford Moor, a community adjacent to the high school site, used their public input time to share that they are indeed in favor of the stadium, but they did ask to have some empathy from the school community. They sought measures to dampen sound impacts and expressed concerns about the 11 p.m. end time for games as well as the potential traffic impacts on their neighborhoods.

When the designated meeting time was complete, a few students and residents were still waiting in the wings for their turn for public comment. Both School Board Member Pam Gould and Commissioner Nicole Wilson agreed to stay behind and talk with people directly, and both stressed that comments can be phoned in or emailed to their respective offices.

Commissioner Nicole Wilson: District1@ocfl.net • 407-836-7312

School Board Member, Pamela Gould:  Pamela.Gould@ocps.net • 407-317-3236

About the Author

Leah is our resident researcher and expert editorial writer for Horizon West Happenings’ Community Engagement Team. When she’s not creating content for the residents of Horizon West, you can find her playing at Disney parks around the world or scoping out the hottest healthy eats and trends in the Orlando area.

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