Orange County advisory committee rejects first citizen map after residents press to keep Horizon West intact

A majority of the Orange County Mid Decennial Redistricting Advisory Committee voted on April 23 to reject a draft map presented by committee member Mark Arias after extended public comment pressing the committee to keep Horizon West whole and to avoid “packing” Pine Hills.

The vote came after a presentation of Arias’s map, a legal review by county counsel and roughly three hours of public testimony from residents and local elected officials. Committee member Bobby Shevsky moved to reject the map; Jimmy Alfond seconded. The clerk’s roll call recorded 10 ayes and 1 nay; the chair declared the motion passed.

Why it matters: The county’s recent move from six to eight commission districts makes the redrawing of boundaries consequential for representation, services and local planning. Residents at the meeting said rapid recent growth in parts of the county, especially Horizon West, creates different infrastructure and service needs that they want to be represented by a single commissioner.

During public comment, multiple residents said Horizon West’s rapid growth and distinct needs justify a dedicated district. Zach Waxler, who identified himself as a Winter Garden resident, told the committee: “What was once miles of Orange Groves is now home to 60,000 people, and projections say that number could double in the coming years.” Several other speakers made similar pleas; Rhonda (identified in the record only by first name) said Horizon West should not be “batched together” with older towns to the north because the newer area’s “utilities and infrastructure needs” differ.

Other speakers urged different priorities. Timothy Ayers warned the committee against legally risky lines that might “pack” Black voters into a single district and cited Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. Attorney White (counsel to the committee) told members the proposed map’s maximum population deviation was 8.63 percent, under the common 10 percent benchmark used to meet the one-person, one-vote standard, and that the map “could pass constitutional muster should it be challenged.”

Arias said he developed his map to work from the 2020 census baseline while also consulting more recent county and planning estimates; he emphasized the practical limits that growth places on the drawing of compact districts. “We need 2 commissioners in the Bottom Southwest,” Arias told the committee as he explained his rationale for splitting some existing communities to meet target population ranges. He also said, “I don’t work for the commissioners. I work for the public.”

Attorney White summarized the legal review: the proposed district numbering complied with state statute and the county charter’s staggered-election provisions, the districts were contiguous, and while several census-designated places and municipalities were split (including Horizon West, Lake Butler, Meadow Woods and Oak Ridge), those splits alone did not make the map legally indefensible. She said a written legal checklist would be posted for the public.

Committee discussion touched on two recurring technical issues: which population estimates the committee should consult beyond the 2020 census (Arias and several residents cited 2023–2024 county and University of Florida estimates) and whether compactness should be evaluated visually or with a formal metric. Member Gordon (maps submitted) and others asked for a consistent, documented methodology to compare maps using supplemental data; staff said the committee’s official baseline remains the 2020 census and that additional data layers are available as supplemental information.

The formal action: Member Bobby Shevsky moved to reject the Arias map; Jimmy Alfond seconded. The clerk’s roll call as recorded in the meeting transcript shows these recorded votes: Bobby Shevsky (aye), De La Portilla (aye), Kilsheimer (aye), Mark Arias (nay), Collin (aye), Affont (aye), Pizzini (aye), Henry (aye), Jones (aye), Co-chair Perez (aye) and Co-chair Evans (aye). The chair declared the motion passed.

Committee next steps and context: Co-chairs said they would meet with staff to refine procedures, post legal memos and consider a consistent approach to supplemental population estimates. The committee’s next public meeting was announced for April 30 at the South Econ Recreation Center; several members of the public said they intend to submit alternative maps for consideration.

The committee’s action does not adopt final county lines; it only accepted (by rejection) or declined one of many proposed maps. Members and staff repeatedly told the public that many more maps will be considered and that a final recommendation will come later in the process.

Quotes (selected)

“We need 2 commissioners in the Bottom Southwest,” Mark Arias, committee member and author of the map, said while explaining his approach to population targets and future growth.

“The maximum DV population deviation is 8.63%, which is under the 10% threshold and presumptively meets the one-person, one-vote standard,” Attorney White said during her legal summary.

“What was once miles of Orange Groves is now home to 60,000 people, and projections say that number could double in the coming years,” Zach Waxler, a Winter Garden resident, said during public comment.

“We’re not asking for special treatment…we’re just asking to be seen, heard, and represented,” Rhonda, a Horizon West resident, said in public comment.

Ending note: The committee rejected Arias’s first map and signaled that members will refine process rules, post written legal analyses, and continue reviewing maps (including several submitted by members of the public) at subsequent meetings. The April 30 meeting at the South Econ Recreation Center was announced as the next opportunity for public comment and new map presentations.