ORLANDO, Fla. - A stage illuminates as hundreds of residents and community members gather at The Plaza Live Tuesday morning.

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Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer stands center and reflects on the progress the City Beautiful has made in 2025.

The annual State of the City Address opened with a poem by Shawn Welcome and a musical performance from City Beautiful Voices.

Dyer says the pillars of Orlando’s success are focusing on the basics, investing in the future, and embracing innovation and big ideas.

Prioritizing Safety

Dyer announces that $25 million in property taxes for Fiscal Year 2026 will be funneled into the police and fire departments.

How are we all going to fit?

The most recent data from the National Low Income Housing Coalition from 2023 shows that in the Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford region, there are 19 affordable and available rental units per 100 households for those who are extremely low income.

Dyer says the City is tackling the housing crisis by removing barriers for developers to create more varied housing options.

“Because when we expand supply, we not only lower costs, we give people the power to choose where and how they want to live,” said Dyer.

He shares the success of newer neighborhoods like the Packing District and The Milk Stacks, where the city has partnered with developers to use underutilized lands to create live-work-play environments.

According to the City, 90,000 people will soon call Orlando home by 2035. 46,000 new units will be needed to accommodate this growth.

Currently, there are more than 9,000 units under construction, 18,000 units approved or under review, and additional zoning has been reserved for 43,000 units.

An Honorable Rename

Dyer commended the success of Baldwin Park, the former military training facility that was transformed into a walkable neighborhood through master planning in 2003.

He announced that the park surrounding Lake Baldwin will now be named in honor of Mayor Glenda Hood, a major proponent of urban redevelopment in the area at the time.