ORLANDO, Fla. — Following a months-long redistricting process, Orange County commissioners will make the final call to determine which district map will dictate the future of the county.

A panel of 15 members, known as the “Redistricting Advisory Committee,” spearheaded the entire process since January.

In November of last year, voters approved a charter amendment to expand the number of commission districts from six to eight, to account for the rapid population growth in Orange County.

For months, the committee gathered monthly to get input from residents across the county and reviewed close to 30 maps to determine which district map would best suit the county’s needs.

Now, it all boils down to Maps 1A and 7B, which have residents from different Orange County communities conflicted and one county commissioner split.

What You Need To Know

Orange County commissioners will vote on one of two district maps that will ultimately expand the county commission from six to eight seats

Voters approved the Charter Amendment last November to make way for the Redistricting process

For months, a fifteen-member committee helped gather input from the community for maps that would later be voted on by the board of commissioners

The two final maps up for consideration, 1A & 7B have yielded mixed reactions from different communities in Orange County

Depending on which district map commissioners approve, it could have a big impact on residents from two specific communities: Winter Park and Pine Hills. 

The city of Winter Park has openly expressed its support for Map 1A, which would group it with communities like Maitland, Baldwin Park, College Park, Eatonville and Pine Hills — cities that Winter Park officials say share similar issues and priorities.

Their concerns with Map 7B stem from the fact that it would group Winter Park with rural areas of east Orange County, whose issues and priorities, they say “are often dissimilar to those of Winter Park.”

But on the other side of that argument is resident Seven Charlestin, who was born and raised in Pine Hills.

His concern with Map-1A is that it would result in a lack of representation for Pine Hills residents, which he worries could have negative implications for those in his community.

“If we’re not making the decisions about what happens to our community, or for our communities, someone else is. I think for a lot of disadvantaged, marginalized folks, that’s a very hard place where you’re trying to survive in a place that doesn’t feel welcoming or doesn’t represent you,” Charlestin explained.

He also worries that Pine Hills residents’ needs won’t match those of Winter Park residents because of their socioeconomic differences.

“Winter Park is a homeowner-heavy, car-dependent area, and that is the identity of most of the communities in District 5. Maitland, Pine Hills and Eatonville, we’re more transit heavy, we’re more renter heavy,” Charlestin said.

As the redistricting process comes to a close, Orange County District 5 Commissioner Kelly Martinez Semrad said it’s a decision that she’s split on.

“This process was supposed to unite communities, not divide community and to ensure that each person’s vote has the equal weight of the other — you know one vote, one person, that is what this process is supposed to be all about,” Martinez Semrad said.

As for the president of the Pine Hills Community Council, Dr. Latanya Nichols, she’s got a different take on the matter.

Nichols encourages Pine Hills residents to keep an open mind, saying, “We have to think outside the box and think about what might be best for Pine Hills as we look at longevity.”

She believes that having Pine Hills in the same district as other communities like Winter Park could be beneficial in the long run, to help the community grow and change its reputation.

“The Pine Hills area needs more revitalization. It needs community redevelopment areas, and Winter Park has done really well with that,” Nichols said.

Residents still have one last chance to voice their concerns during Tuesday’s Board of County Commissioners’ meeting at the Orange County Administration Building.

The redistricting ordinance will be reviewed by the board at 2 p.m.

After the vote happens this afternoon, that will determine how Orange County commissioners will draw their new district lines, prompting an election for those new district seats in November 2026.