Cheatonville is an independent civic review of the Town of Eatonville, Florida — Town Council and Community Redevelopment Agency meetings, votes, and public records, every item tied to a primary public source. https://cheatonville.com/ 2026-08-14T00:00:00Z Cheatonville https://cheatonville.com/agendas/20260818-budget-workshop-meeting-agenda/ 2026-08-14T00:00:00Z

The second budget workshop pairs a slide deck — four departments presenting their FY2027 plans — with the budget workbook from the first workshop. Where the slides give totals, they don't match the workbook's; and the workbook's margins are worth reading on their own: the CRA's rows are marked "not presenting," and the forecast lands the General Fund on a to-the-dollar balanced budget the packet never explains.

https://cheatonville.com/agendas/20260818-regular-meeting-agenda/ 2026-08-14T00:00:00Z

No resolutions and no award votes this time. The evening is presentations and one discussion item: Councilwoman Randolph wants the Council to review the amendment chain that moved HostDime's deadline from 2019 to 2025, and to consider a third amendment — with daily penalties of up to $500, double the current rate. The packet's own timeline of those amendments does not match the agreements attached to it.

https://cheatonville.com/briefs/eatonville-tdt-requests/ 2026-08-12T00:00:00Z

The Town of Eatonville/TOECRA, Dr. Phillips Charities, and the Association to Preserve the Eatonville Community each asked Orange County's Tourist Development Tax task force for money on the same historic ground, in the same funding cycle, for a combined $135.5 million requested. One presentation also drew a question about the CRA's legal sunset — and the answer given did not mention a condition written into the county's own governing resolution, or into the Town's own.

https://cheatonville.com/agendas/20260811-budget-workshop-meeting-agenda/ 2026-08-09T00:00:00Z

This is the first of the Town's budget workshops for the fiscal year starting October 1. The packet includes five years of budget-versus-actual numbers, and several accounts are already running far above or far below what was budgeted.

https://cheatonville.com/recaps/20260804-regular-meeting-recap/ 2026-08-05T00:00:00Z

The Council tabled Resolution 2026-41 (Hungerford/SPLC lawsuit support) a second time — the fourth sitting for a version of this resolution in seven weeks — voted to engage TG Law as Town Attorney, and appointed Attorney Greg Jackson as Special Magistrate. HostDime did not appear for its scheduled presentation, prompting a dais exchange over the Town's utility-reimbursement commitment to the company.

https://cheatonville.com/agendas/20260804-regular-meeting-agenda/ 2026-08-02T00:00:00Z

Two hires, one bidder each. The Council discusses both legal-services proposals at a 6:30 workshop and votes on both at 7:30 the same night, along with the tabled Hungerford transparency resolution, back for a vote, and a new Heritage Tourism District.

https://cheatonville.com/recaps/20260721-regular-meeting-recap/ 2026-07-21T00:00:00Z

A full-quorum Council heard a walk-on update from Dr. Phillips Charities, passed a title change for the Records Coordinator 3-2, let a related salary resolution die for lack of a second, and tabled a third resolution supporting the Hungerford Sunshine Law lawsuit — the first two versions failed on recorded votes.

https://cheatonville.com/briefs/when-agencies-break-their-own-rules/ 2026-07-19T00:00:00Z

Florida law gives residents real tools when a city or CRA breaks a state statute — open meetings, public records, ethics. Far fewer exist when the same body breaks its own bylaws, purchasing policy, or a state rule that was never built with a state-level check attached. This brief lays out all three categories.

https://cheatonville.com/recaps/20260716-cra-meeting-recap/ 2026-07-17T00:00:00Z

The Board pulled March, April, and May financials off the consent agenda for individual votes, tabled a walk-on resolution requiring itemized budgeting for the $1.7 million line of credit, and revisited how the David Smith engagement came about after the CRA's single-family RFP drew no acceptable bids.

https://cheatonville.com/agendas/20260721-regular-meeting-agenda/ 2026-07-17T00:00:00Z

A workshop on property-tax ballot messaging and frozen HUD grants leads into a regular meeting where a third Hungerford transparency resolution comes back for a vote.

https://cheatonville.com/agendas/20260716-cra-meeting-agenda/ 2026-07-10T00:00:00Z

Six consent items, no discussion or decision items posted, and a same-night 5:30 workshop on the CRA's bylaws — posted separately, with nothing saying what, if anything, is proposed to change.

https://cheatonville.com/recaps/20260707-regular-meeting-recap/ 2026-07-07T00:00:00Z

Four members at the dais, one on Zoom without a vote. A corrective ordinance passed, the consent agenda got tabled, and two of the night's most contested items — the Development Review Committee and support for the Hungerford lawsuit — both failed 2-2.

https://cheatonville.com/agendas/20260707-cra-special-meeting-agenda/ 2026-07-07T00:00:00Z

A late-added CRA special meeting at 5:30, ahead of the Council night. One item — Resolution CRA-R-2026-28 — cancels and re-runs the homes RFP and stands up a permanent committee to rank construction bids. Here's what's in it and what's worth a question.

https://cheatonville.com/agendas/20260707-regular-meeting-agenda/ 2026-07-01T00:00:00Z

Two meetings back to back — a 6:30 workshop and the 7:30 Council meeting. Here's a plain-language walk through what's in the packet, and what's worth a question before anyone votes.

https://cheatonville.com/briefs/cra-mission-drift/ 2026-06-23T00:00:00Z

The CRA was created to beautify Eatonville, build its heritage corridor, and help residents improve their properties. This brief documents how that emphasis has shifted toward property acquisition and home construction — and what residents actually find when they go looking for help today.

https://cheatonville.com/findings/cra-section-4-6-voting-threshold-finding/ 2026-06-20T00:00:00Z

With six of seven members present, the board split one restriction-removal item into separate project votes; two were recorded as passing on three. The CRA statute and the bylaws both set the bar at a majority of the members present — four, with six there.

https://cheatonville.com/findings/cra-project-manager-finding/ 2026-06-20T00:00:00Z

A $25,000-per-home engagement, signed by the Executive Director, raises questions about competitive selection, board and Council approval, and how it was funded.

https://cheatonville.com/recaps/20260618-cra-meeting-recap/ 2026-06-18T00:00:00Z

What the board did on each agenda item, with the recorded votes.

https://cheatonville.com/agendas/20260618-cra-meeting-agenda/ 2026-06-18T00:00:00Z

What's on the agenda for the June 18 CRA board meeting — each item in plain language, and what's worth watching.

https://cheatonville.com/recaps/20260616-regular-meeting-recap/ 2026-06-16T00:00:00Z

What the Council did on each agenda item, with the recorded votes.