When Mayor Buddy Dyer thinks of Orlando, he sees the cow pastures it came from and the flying cars that, he says, are on their way.
On Tuesday, Dyer delivered his state of the city address – a big milestone for The City Beautiful as it celebrates 150 years. He did so at the Plaza Live, in Orlando’s Milk District, which he identified as the heart of Florida’s citrus industry, once upon a time. He told stories of Orlando’s greatest hits, the development of Thomas Gilbert Lee's milk empire, and about how cows once roamed the streets (until a city ordinance outlawed it). Dyer romanticized the 1950s when the Colonial Shopping Plaza – with the first movie theater in the area – was deemed the plaza of “tomorrow.”
“This is just one example of how our community has leveraged reinvention and rebirth as the engine of progress. And there are so many more,” he said.
Celebrating the city
Dyer spoke on how the city had developed in safety, remarking on how Orlando was experiencing one of the largest reductions in crime in its history. According to the mayor, homicides in Orlando were down 50% this year, and 100% of them had been solved.
Dyer attributed this to the investments made in Orlando police and fire, stating that next fiscal year, $406 million would be invested into both. He said that 2026 property tax collections increased by $21 million, but police saw an increase in investment by $25 million.
The mayor didn’t skip on Orlando’s growing pains. The city has about 1,500 people moving to the region every week, according to the Orlando Economic Partnership. The city is projected to maintain that pace, eventually reaching a population of 5.2 million people by 2030. The housing market has not kept up, and a shortage exists, driving up prices and locking some residents out of residency.
“Everyone deserves the ability to choose housing that fits their lives,” Dyer said.
To accommodate, Dyer said that the city has removed bureaucratic red tape, with the aim of encouraging more construction.
“We've worked very quickly to create a pipeline that has delivered 9,200 units under construction, 18,000 units approved are in the permit review, and new zoning in place for close to 40,000 new units,” he said.
In a separate announcement, Dyer declared that the park around Lake Baldwin was to be renamed after his mayoral predecessor, Mayor Glenda Hood, who he credited for developing the Baldwin Park neighborhood. The area had once been a military training base during World War II and into the 90s.
“Believe it or not, Baldwin Park was controversial,” he said. “But because of Mayor Hood, Baldwin Park is a global model for adaptive reuse and urban redevelopment.”
Orlando’s Future
Then Dyer painted his image of Orlando’s future, one invested in advanced transportation.
First, he laid out plans to develop Orlando’s train network. Orlando’s commuter train, Sunrail, has 16 stations from Poinciana to DeBary and operates Monday through Friday.
Dyer said one of his top priorities is getting the train to travel to and out of the Orlando International Airport.
“We've got to get to the airport and then eventually out to the International Drive area in Disney, and then that will also facilitate allowing Brightline to get to Tampa. So for our transportation future, there's probably nothing more important than that,” he said.
Dyer said connecting SunRail to the airport would also expand its operating schedule to more nightly hours and the weekend.
One of Dyer’s final notes addressed a new technology that, to some, may feel faraway in the future, but Dyer said flying cars and taxis are on their way to Orlando’s transportation network.
“We're preparing Orlando to be one of the first communities in America to welcome flying cars and taxis,” he said. “Advanced Air Mobility is the next great leap in transportation, and it's going to be the next great leap in logistics and delivery, the defense industry, and even public safety. It will unlock massive economic opportunity and create a higher standard of living.”
