Kissimmee advisory board approves multiple community event grants and fee waivers

The Kissimmee Advisory Board on Monday approved several community grants and fee waivers for local events, awarding funds to Holy Spirit Sanctuary, the Healthy Start Coalition of Osceola County and a set of community celebrations after members reviewed scores, budgets and staffing recommendations.

Board Chair Hanan Khan opened new-business consideration of grants and led members through individual scoring and motions. For first-year applicants the board applied its percentage formula against a staff‑provided city expense figure of $940 for city services and event handling; staff said the percentage is applied to whichever is least — the requested amount or estimated city expense.

Holy Spirit Sanctuary (first-year applicant) received discussion about collaboration and scoring; a member noted the application listed no collaborators and assigned a lower collaboration score. The board moved to approve the award for the Holy Spirit Sanctuary Baptist School; the chair announced the award approved (transcript: "the amount 2,100 approved for the Holy Spirit Sanctuary Baptist School").

The Healthy Start Coalition of Osceola County was discussed next for its infant mortality awareness walk. Staff explained the city expense basis and corrected an initial arithmetic error during the discussion. After recalculating the percentage, the board approved an award described in the meeting as up to $752 and later clarified in discussion as $846 based on the revised percent calculation; the chair announced the motion carried "9 to 0." The director noted the corrected figure and asked staff to record the updated amount.

In the community benefit grant batch, Team Kareem (a year‑two applicant) drew questions about fundraising sustainability from one member who observed the group's paperwork showed a strong reliance on city fee waivers. Leah Perez, who identified herself as a local philanthropist involved with audits for nonprofits, told the board she audits the group's paperwork and said Team Kareem runs other fundraisers and is not entirely dependent on city funds: "I definitely told her this that, in effect, don't wanna believe they are supporting your entire mission. They wanna know that what you're doing is sustainable." Following discussion and member scoring, the board approved an award of $933 for Team Kareem.

The board then considered Hope Day (a year‑one applicant associated with Greenway Church). Several members said the church has a large operating budget and debated whether it should receive the maximum award; after scoring the board approved an average award reported in the packet as $767.

For a Black History celebration proposed for Chambers Community Center, a presenter described plans emphasizing youth engagement, local Black entrepreneurs and cultural programming and said sponsors include First Corinthians ministry and the NAACP. The presenter estimated a total event budget in the $6,000–$6,800 range. After member scoring the board moved and approved $1,900 for the event; the chair announced the motion carried (read in the transcript as "motion carries 9-0").

All motions were made on the record and carried by voice vote; the chair called for ayes on each motion. The board asked staff to double‑check arithmetic where members noted discrepancies and to record clarified award amounts in the administrative record.

The meeting packet and staff presentations supplied the award‑formula guidance used by the board: percentages applied to the lower of the requested amount or the city's estimated expense for the event. Where math was recalculated in the meeting, staff and the chair both said the corrected figures would be entered into the record.

What happens next: staff will finalize award paperwork and fee‑waiver documentation and return any required confirmations to applicants. The board did not set any new conditions or follow‑up reports during the meeting; members asked staff to confirm final award amounts after correcting arithmetic.