Kissimmee City Attorney Oded now has approved contract
Kalanit Oded, the City of Kissimmee’s Deputy City Attorney, now has a contract and can proceed in that role.
Last week, the City Commission approved a contract that will pay her $238,000 per year along with a $6,000 annual car allowance. Both figures are in line with other comparably-sized area cities.
“I’m proud and excited about this. I’m very bullish on the city of Kissimmee,” said Oded, a former Deputy City Attorney.
Commissioners motioned for Oded, who had been serving as interim City Attorney since that board voted to terminate past attorney Olga Sanchez de Fuentes on Feb. 17, to take the role permanently by a 3-2 vote.
At the April 21 Commission meeting, Commissioner Janette Martinez, after hearing about the parameters of the city’s engagement with a legal firm to spend about four months searching for a new full-time attorney, introduced a motion to name Oded to the post full-time and suspend that search that City Manager Mike Steigerwald said would cost in the neighborhood of $30,000.
Vice Mayor Angela Eady seconded the motion, and while Mayor Jackie Espinosa and Commissioner Noel Ortiz voted against it, Commissioner Carlos Alvarez gave the third vote for approval.
“This is so she can maintain her staff, and we can get on with the business of the city of Kissimmee,” Martinez said.
Osceola Library System expands its Baby First early literacy program
Working with the Early Learning Coalition of Osceola County and the Healthy Start Coalition of Osceola County, the Osceola Library System announces the second phase of its Baby’s First program, expanding its commitment to early learning literacy.
Building on the success of the program’s initial launch in 2025, the Library has curated 100 care packages designed to support families from the very beginning of a child’s life. Each Baby’s First bag includes a bilingual board book, early literacy tips, a selection of essential baby items, such as bibs and bottles, and information about library resources, including the Baby & Me program, supplied jointly by the Early Learning Coalition and the Library.
These bags have been distributed to the Healthy Start Coalition, where trained home visitors will provide them to families during their first postpartum visit. By reaching families at home during a critical stage of development, the program helps remove barriers to access and encourages parents to begin reading to their children from birth.
This phase of the project was funded in part by a Tampa Bay Library Consortium grant.
Supplies are limited, and the Library continues to seek additional partners and funding to grow the initiative. Families are encouraged to visit any Osceola Library branch to sign up for a free library card and discover everything the library has to offer, from baby story times and early literacy programs to a wide selection of books, resources, programs, and events for all ages.
For more information, visit osceolalibrary.org.
