Casselberryian

Ken Casselberry Dickson
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**Casselberryian** is a limited-series podcast featuring conversations with the people who have shaped, and continue to shape, the area of Casselberry, Florida. Hosted by Ken Casselberry Dickson, grandson of city founder Hibbard Casselberry, the series explores the city through personal stories, local history, business, development, government, culture, and everyday life. These are not formal histories or promotional interviews. They are conversations with residents, civic leaders, business owners, artists, historians, and other Casselberryians about how the city became what it is and where it may be going next. New interviews, short clips, archival material, and stories from Casselberry's past and present will be posted here.

  1. 3d ago

    The September Surprise | Casselberryian

    The September Surprise | Casselberryian SPECIAL ELECTION NIGHT EPISODE — NOVEMBER 3, 2026 On September 16, Casselberry City Commissioner Thomas Kirk posted a few photographs from a modest political gathering. Twenty-three reactions. Three comments. Barely a ripple on Facebook. Seven weeks later, that seemingly insignificant post looks remarkably different. The three candidates at the gathering—Tyler Knight, Lourdes Crosby García, and Amanda Hart—emerged as the apparent winners of all three contested seats on the Casselberry City Commission. And their host, Thomas Kirk? He's already a commissioner. Four of the city's five Commission seats could soon be occupied by people connected through one September gathering. Coincidence? Political organization? A changing electorate? Or the beginning of an entirely new chapter in Casselberry politics? In this special Election Night edition of Casselberryian, Ken Casselberry Dickson examines the three Commission races, Amanda Hart's decisive challenge to eight-year incumbent Mark Busch, and the consequences of moving municipal elections from August to November while eliminating runoffs. But the bigger question isn't simply who won. It's what happens when the people who campaigned for change become the people responsible for governing. The election may have changed the seating chart at City Hall. Whether it changes how Casselberry is governed remains to be seen. Sometimes the most important photograph in local politics isn't a campaign portrait. It's a seating chart. Election Results Disclaimer: This episode was recorded on November 3, 2026, using unofficial results from the Seminole County Supervisor of Elections. Results remain subject to certification. Official results: https://enr.electionsfl.org/SEM/4119/Summary/ About Casselberryian: An independent podcast exploring Casselberry, Florida—its history, government, politics, personalities, and the decisions shaping its future. #Casselberryian #Casselberry #ElectionNight2026 #CasselberryPolitics #FloridaElections

  2. 3d ago

    The Price of Entry - Election Day 2026 | Casselberryian

    How much does it cost to win a Casselberry election? And why do so many candidates pay for their campaigns themselves? In this Election Day episode, Casselberryian examines an unusual pattern in local politics: from 2018–2026, Casselberry commission candidates supplied approximately 59% of their own campaign financing, compared with 22% in six neighboring Seminole County cities. Political consultant "Mr. X" estimated that winning a Casselberry commission race could require $25,000–$30,000—and suggested that a large campaign war chest might discourage challengers. Is Casselberry's reliance on self-financing a sign of political independence, limited fundraising networks, or a barrier to entry? RELATED EPISODE Mr. X — Casselberryian SOURCES & DISCLOSURE Seminole County Supervisor of Elections campaign-finance filings and Casselberryian comparative research. Historical figures remain subject to transaction-level verification. Casselberryian does not endorse candidates. Recorded Tuesday, November 3, 2026 — Election Day.

  3. 6d ago

    The Storage Ghost & Kevin the Talking Tree | A Casselberryian Halloween Special

    A ghost was unhappy with its accommodations, a tree had a name, and somehow, the tree ended up being called Kevin. In this special Halloween episode of Casselberryian, Ken Casselberry Dickson revisits a December 2024 public lecture by Deborah Bauer of the Seminole County Historical Society. Using archival audio from the presentation, we explore two rather unusual stories: A ghost reportedly upset about the relocation of historical records belonging to the late John Casselberry. A centuries-old oak at Brightwater that allegedly spoke to a visitor, announced it had a name, and declared itself a protector of the area. Naturally, we have questions. But beneath the humor is something worth considering. As Halloween gives way to All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day, this episode takes a quieter turn toward family, memory, preservation, and the people whose stories survive only because someone bothered to save them. ABOUT CASSELBERRYIAN Casselberryian explores the history, politics, personalities, and peculiarities of Casselberry, Florida. Available on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. Subscribe for more local history, interviews, civic commentary, and the occasional municipal absurdity. Recorded: October 31, 2026. #Casselberryian #CasselberryFL #Casselberry #Halloween #LocalHistory #Brightwater #SeminoleCounty #FloridaHistory #GhostStories #HistoricPreservation

  4. Oct 23

    Amendment 3: The Price of a Tax Cut | Casselberryian

    Florida voters are being offered something unusual: the possibility of a smaller property-tax bill. Naturally, there's a catch. There usually is. On November 3, 2026, Florida voters will decide Amendment 3. For qualifying homeowners, it could mean substantial relief from non-school property taxes. But what happens when homeowners save money and City Hall collects less? Meet Pat, a fictional Casselberry homeowner with a house assessed at $250,000. Under our illustrative assumptions, Pat pays about $2,600 a year in non-school property taxes. If Amendment 3 passes and fully applies to Pat in 2028, that portion could fall to zero. School taxes remain. And Casselberry wouldn't lose all $2,600. Pat's tax bill supports several governments. The Florida Revenue Estimating Conference projects Casselberry's annual municipal property-tax revenue could be about $2.2 million below the existing-law forecast in the first affected year—and nearly $4.8 million below it by year five. Those are modeled revenue differences, NOT automatic service cuts. With archival audio from the September 14, 2026, City Commission meeting, we examine the arguments over taxes, inflation, budgets, and a retiring bond. Then we consider three choices facing local government if Amendment 3 passes—and what happens if it doesn't. Three doors. Several governments. One taxpayer. Pat. WHO CAN STILL AFFORD TO BELONG TO THE COMMUNITY? CHAPTERS 00:00 — The Mailbox 01:14 — Meet Pat 03:48 — One Tax Bill, Several Governments 05:22 — Millage vs. Revenue 06:44 — Florida's Revenue Projections 08:42 — The $36,000 Budget Cut 09:59 — Casselberry's Millage 11:04 — Nancy Divita: Revenue Growth 13:49 — Mark Busch: Inflation and Costs 15:41 — The Retiring Bond 18:18 — Three Doors for City Hall 21:52 — What If Amendment 3 Fails? 22:55 — Who Benefits? 23:38 — Back to Pat 27:19 — Who Can Still Afford Casselberry? 28:28 — Closing SOURCES Florida Revenue Estimating Conference (July 10, 2026): Amendment 3 fiscal impact projections. Casselberry City Commission Meeting (September 14, 2026): Statements by Nancy Divita, Mark Busch, and City Manager Randy Newlon. City of Casselberry Annual Budgets: Operating millage rates (2024: 2.9000; 2025: 3.9999; 2026 final-adoption proposal: 4.2613) and the $36,000 Flock Safety item removed from the proposed budget. City of Casselberry Audited Financial Statements: Including General Fund reserves. Seminole County Property Appraiser: 2025 tax-roll millage information. Casselberryian — "This Is Not an Endorsement": Previous episode discussing property-tax rates versus total tax collections. ASSUMPTIONS & LIMITATIONS Pat is fictional, owns a Casselberry home assessed at $250,000, and qualifies for the proposed expanded homestead exemption. Some newer Florida residents may not qualify. The area's proposed 2026 rates are held constant for a 2028 comparison. Actual rates, assessments, and eligibility may change. Pat's existing-law example: approximately $2,600 per year in non-school taxes and $1,200 in school taxes. With full Amendment 3 eligibility in 2028: approximately $0 in non-school taxes. School taxes remain. The approximately $2,600 breaks down to $1,600 for Seminole County and fire/rescue, just under $1,000 for Casselberry operating expenses and voter-approved debt, and a small water-management remainder. Numbers are rounded. State estimates compare two possible laws, not guaranteed service cuts. The City's response would involve policy choices. Paying off a bond does not automatically free restricted debt-levy proceeds for operating costs. Reserves offer a temporary cushion, not recurring revenue. Commercial and rental assessment-cap changes may affect property owners. Whether tenants benefit is uncertain. Divita's $5.25 million (2022) versus $10.6 million (2026) ad valorem comparison is attributed to her hearing remarks, not independently reconciled audited actuals. EDITORIAL DISCLOSURE Independent commentary—not an endorsement. Illustrations are not personalized tax advice. Commission excerpts are archival audio. ABOUT CASSELBERRYIAN Casselberryian explores the people, history, government, development, and everyday life of Casselberry, Florida. Our purpose is to document the conversations and decisions shaping the community and make them accessible to the people who live here. CASSELBERRYIAN | Ken Casselberry Dickson YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Casselberryian Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0340rVzOUXheeZMQLpOIUB Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id6797350206 Subscribe for additional coverage of Casselberry's history, local government, and community affairs. #Casselberryian #CasselberryFL #Amendment3 #FloridaPropertyTaxes #SeminoleCounty

  5. Oct 23

    Casselberry Peacock Workshop: Oct 19 | Casselberryian

    The Casselberryian podcast has no particular ambition to become the world's leading source of wall-to-wall peacock coverage. There are limits, even to our editorial judgment. But the more we examine this controversy, the less interested we become in the birds themselves. The plumage is spectacular. The public policy, somewhat less so. The entire debate has become trapped inside a convenient, thought-terminating cliché: If you have a problem with the peacocks, you must hate birds, nature, and presumably everything beautiful in the world. However, the interesting story here isn't about peacocks. It's about a municipality that adopted an unusually ambitious bird sanctuary ordinance under the assumption that protection would require little in the way of ongoing expense, management, or enforcement. Almost a decade later, the birds have declined to cooperate with the planning assumptions. On October 19, 2026, the Casselberry City Commission held a special workshop to revisit the subject. Casselberry makes its regular commission meetings available online. Its workshops, however, do not receive the same treatment. In the interest of public accessibility, Casselberryian presents the complete audio recording of the October 19 workshop. The recording includes the city's presentation on peafowl history and regulations, public comments from residents on both sides of the controversy, and the commission's discussion of potential solutions. AMONG THE QUESTIONS DISCUSSED Should homeowners be permitted to arrange for humane removal of nuisance peafowl? Can the city prohibit feeding the birds, and could such a prohibition realistically be enforced? Should taxpayer-funded neighborhood improvement grants be used to address the problem? Can Casselberry amend its bird sanctuary ordinance without creating complications with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission? THE OUTCOME After nearly an hour of presentations, testimony, and deliberation, the commission expressed interest in exploring a possible exception for peafowl, pending further legal review and consultation with state wildlife officials. No changes to the ordinance were adopted. Municipal government marches onward. CHAPTERS 00:00 — Workshop Opening 00:59 — Staff Presentation: History, Biology & Regulations 06:55 — Public Comments Begin 34:48 — City Commission Discussion 40:13 — The Problem of Enforcing a Feeding Ban 43:51 — Neighborhood Improvement Grants 47:26 — City Attorney: Florida Fish & Wildlife Jurisdiction 53:30 — Commission Consensus & Next Steps 55:45 — Closing Remarks ABOUT THIS RECORDING This is the complete audio recording of the October 19, 2026, Casselberry City Commission Workshop, independently published by Casselberryian as a public-interest archival resource. The audio has been digitally processed to improve speech intelligibility, reduce background noise, and balance volume levels. No substantive portions of the meeting have been intentionally removed or rearranged. The recording is provided for public information and historical documentation. Casselberryian is an independent publication and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the City of Casselberry. ABOUT CASSELBERRYIAN Casselberryian explores the people, history, government, development, and everyday life of Casselberry, Florida. Our purpose is to document the conversations and decisions shaping the community and make them accessible to the people who live here. Subscribe for additional coverage of Casselberry's history, local government, and community affairs. #Casselberry #Peacocks #Casselberryian #SeminoleCounty #LocalGovernment

  6. Oct 15

    Protection Without Management: Casselberry's Peacock Problem | Casselberryian

    TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES - Looks like there is an issue with YouTube playing some clips with low volume via mono (such as one earbud). The issue is being worked on. Thanks. KCD Peacocks have lived around Casselberry's Lost Lake neighborhood for decades. In 2017, residents came to City Hall worried that the flock was disappearing. The City responded quickly, adopting an ordinance that made Casselberry a bird sanctuary and specifically protected peafowl. Nine years later, residents returned with a very different problem. Property-damage claims. Repair estimates. Pool-screen repairs. Questions about population control. And a City ordinance that protects the birds while leaving the question of who should manage them considerably less clear. In this episode of Casselberryian, Ken Casselberry Dickson traces the peafowl controversy from the original 2017 ordinance through the 2026 dispute. The episode includes original City Commission audio, including a 2017 warning that protected birds could eventually become a nuisance and that the City might need a mechanism for dealing with problem animals. It also examines the economics behind a seemingly simple sentence in the original staff report: "Budget impact: There is no impact to the city budget." A cost can disappear from a government ledger without disappearing from the world. The question is not simply whether Casselberry should protect its peacocks. The harder question is: Protected. Who pays? CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 01:33 The First Problem 03:26 The Ordinance 04:51 The Warning 08:02 No Changes 09:01 Same House. Different Conclusion. 10:59 The Household Peacock Budget 12:15 The Claim 16:03 Protection Without Management 16:58 Then Something Interesting Happened 18:21 How Many Peacocks Are There? 19:13 The Loop Closes 20:25 The Accounting 21:41 Conclusion UPDATE The City of Casselberry has announced a City Commission Workshop for Monday, October 19, 2026, where discussion of the peafowl ordinance is scheduled to continue. Schedule subject to change. ABOUT CASSELBERRYIAN Casselberryian explores the people, history, government, development and everyday life of Casselberry, Florida. Available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts and Spotify. #Casselberry #CasselberryFlorida #Peacocks #Peafowl #LocalGovernment #Florida #SeminoleCounty #LostLake #Casselberryian Recorded - Oct. 15, 2026

  7. Oct 11

    This is not an Endorsement | Casselberryian

    THIS IS NOT AN ENDORSEMENT. As the Casselberryian Candidate Conversation Series comes to a close, this episode steps away from the individual candidates and looks at the standards behind the questions. Rather than telling anyone how to vote, I explain the five issues shaping how I look at Casselberry's local government: Affordability — Can the people who helped build Casselberry still afford to live here? Fiscal restraint — Is government focused only on the tax rate, or on how much revenue it's actually collecting? Stewardship — How should Casselberry manage public assets such as Brightwater, particularly when today's decisions may be difficult or impossible to reverse? Political renewal — When does institutional memory become institutional permanence? Communication — Is public information merely available, or is government actually understandable to the people it serves? The broader question running through all five: WHO IS CASSELBERRY BEING GOVERNED FOR? CHAPTERS 00:00 This is not an Endorsement 02:39 Affordability 04:57 Fiscal Restraint 08:06 Stewardship 11:38 Political Renewal 14:18 Communication 18:18 Five Standards CANDIDATE CONVERSATION SERIES Watch the complete Casselberryian Candidate Conversation Series: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKUttOgPP96M CANDIDATE WEBSITES Every qualified candidate was offered the opportunity to participate in the Casselberryian Candidate Conversation Series. Whether a candidate participated or not, voters should have access to the candidates' own information. Tyler Knight — Seat 1 https://www.knightforcasselberry.com Tim Veigle — Seat 1 https://www.timveigle4casselberry.com Lourdes Crosby-Garcia — Seat 2 https://www.lourdesforcasselberry.com Lindsay Feist — Seat 2 https://lindsayfeist.com Travis Kelley — Seat 2 https://countonkelley.com Mark Busch — Seat 3 https://www.markbusch.com Amanda Hart — Seat 3 https://www.hartforcasselberry.com SEMINOLE COUNTY ELECTION INFORMATION Seminole County Supervisor of Elections: https://voteseminole.gov ABOUT THIS EPISODE This episode does not rank, endorse, or oppose any candidate. The purpose of the Candidate Conversation Series has been to give participating candidates an opportunity to speak for themselves and to give Casselberry voters more information before making their own decisions. Do your own due diligence. Watch the candidate conversations. Visit the candidates' websites. Review official election information from the Seminole County Supervisor of Elections. Your ballot is your decision. ABOUT CASSELBERRYIAN Casselberryian is a podcast and video series about the people, history, development, government, culture, and life of Casselberry, Florida. Subscribe for future episodes and local conversations. #Casselberry #CasselberryFlorida #Casselberryian #LocalGovernment #SeminoleCounty #Election2026

  8. Oct 9

    Amanda Hart | Casselberry City Commission Seat 3 | Casselberryian Candidate Conversation

    In this edition of the Casselberryian Candidate Conversation Series, host Ken Casselberry Dickson sits down with Amanda Hart, a candidate for Seat 3 on the Casselberry City Commission. The goal of the Candidate Conversation Series is simple: give participating candidates time to speak for themselves and give Casselberry voters an opportunity to hear directly from the people seeking to represent them. CANDIDATE WEBSITE https://www.hartforcasselberry.com CHAPTERS 00:03 – Introduction 00:23 – Connection & Motivation 05:23 – Priorities & First Year 06:56 – Financial & Policy Tradeoffs 08:42 – Development & Quality of Life 10:16 – Public Participation & Transparency 11:32 – Distinction from Competition 12:29 – Peacocks 15:36 – Candidate-Specific Questions 18:17 – Conclusion ABOUT THE CANDIDATE CONVERSATION SERIES Every qualified candidate for the Casselberry City Commission was offered the opportunity to participate in the Casselberryian Candidate Conversation Series. These conversations are not endorsements. Casselberryian does not tell voters who should receive their vote. The purpose is to provide candidates with an opportunity to explain their positions in their own words and allow voters to make their own decisions. Interviews are prerecorded. Editing is limited to technical cleanup, clarity, and pacing without changing the substance or meaning of a candidate's answers. ABOUT CASSELBERRYIAN Casselberryian is a limited series of conversations about the people, history, business, development, government, culture, and everyday life of Casselberry, Florida. Available on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. Recorded: September 12, 2026 #Casselberry #CasselberryFL #Casselberryian #CandidateConversations #SeminoleCounty #LocalElections

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About

**Casselberryian** is a limited-series podcast featuring conversations with the people who have shaped, and continue to shape, the area of Casselberry, Florida. Hosted by Ken Casselberry Dickson, grandson of city founder Hibbard Casselberry, the series explores the city through personal stories, local history, business, development, government, culture, and everyday life. These are not formal histories or promotional interviews. They are conversations with residents, civic leaders, business owners, artists, historians, and other Casselberryians about how the city became what it is and where it may be going next. New interviews, short clips, archival material, and stories from Casselberry's past and present will be posted here.

Information

  • Creator
    Ken Casselberry Dickson
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    29
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026
  • Show Website
    Casselberryian