{"id":935,"date":"2026-05-17T11:48:34","date_gmt":"2026-05-17T11:48:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=935"},"modified":"2026-05-17T11:48:34","modified_gmt":"2026-05-17T11:48:34","slug":"kissimmee-mayor-seeks-to-shut-ethics-probe-over-city-grants-to-her-businesses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=935","title":{"rendered":"Kissimmee mayor seeks to shut ethics probe over city grants to her businesses"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A complaint that Kissimmee Mayor Jackie Espinosa benefited from a public grant program she herself created has left this city\u2019s government in tumult\u00a0\u2014 and now the mayor is seeking to scrap the local investigation of her.<\/p>\n

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Espinosa and her attorney have moved to block a special prosecutor\u2019s probe initiated by the city, arguing the state has authority over such ethics complaints and not local officials.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet the Commission on Ethics decide,\u201d Espinosa said of the state board that typically investigates local ethical violations.<\/p>\n

The 110-page complaint, filed in March by a Kissimmee resident, is centered on the city\u2019s premier small business grant program Business Boost 2.0, which launched in September 2025.<\/p>\n

The complaint alleges that Espinosa led the effort to create the grant program in her first year in office \u2014 she was elected mayor in November 2024 \u2014 diverting nearly $1 million originally proposed by city staff to improve a community center. Subsequently, three businesses owned by her and her family received nearly $50,000 in funding from the grant program.<\/p>\n

Espinosa\u2019s businesses applied for the grants in September 2025 and received funds in November of the same year. The city\u2019s economic development department oversees the program and decides who gets the money. The program offers businesses between $5,000 to $20,000 to cover operational costs, retain employees or offset debt from the COVID-19 pandemic. It is funded though federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars.<\/p>\n

Adanse LLC is owned by the Espinosa Family Trust, state records show, and received $20,000. Kissimmee Diner Inc. received $15,000 and is registered under Espinosa. The Real Estate Gallery LLC received $15,000 and is registered under Espinosa\u2019s husband.<\/p>\n

\u201cThree of my 13 businesses got a grant, yes, of our family-owned businesses,\u201d Espinosa said Thursday in an interview with the Orlando Sentinel. But she argued that the federal ARPA dollars that paid for the program \u201cwere available way before I was the mayor.\u201d<\/p>\n

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She said her businesses applied because they suffered financially during the pandemic but did not offer more details. She said \u201cbalancing rising food prices\u201d with the \u201crising cost of minimum wage\u201d was difficult.<\/p>\n

Less than one month after the ethics complaint against Espinosa was submitted, Kissimmee Diner Inc. filed a voluntary dissolution of the organization on April 14. A business at the address listed under the Kissimmee Diner Inc., Matador Tacos and Tapas, announced its closure on April 18 in a Facebook post. A new restaurant called Saborealo has announced it will take over the location and will open in June.<\/p>\n

Espinosa said she wasn\u2019t looking to sell the restaurant she\u2019s owned for nearly a decade, but the prospective new owners offered \u201cthe right price\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey came in with a price we couldn\u2019t turn down,\u201d Espinosa said. \u201cTo not have the headache of a restaurant \u2026. and still walk away with great money and a great lease? I wouldn\u2019t be a good business person if I didn\u2019t take that deal.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The ethics complaint also alleges the firing of Kissimmee city attorney Olga Sanchez de Fuentes in February was retaliatory after Sanchez de Fuentes raised concerns about Espinosa accepting the grant money.<\/p>\n

In a December 5 email to the mayor and City Manager Mike Steigerwald titled, \u201cCEO grant is a prohibited contractual relationship,\u201d the then-city attorney cited three opinions from the state Commission on Ethics \u201cregarding receipt of grant funding from one\u2019s own agency which can create a prohibited, conflicting contractual relationship between the officer or employee.\u201d<\/p>\n

Three days later, Sanchez de Fuentes wrote an email to David Rodriguez, the economic development director, asking him to let her know if any elected officials apply for any grants going forward and pointed out Espinosa\u2019s acceptance of the grant was a violation of state ethics laws.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t know until last week that the Mayor got a grant through the business boost program,\u201d the email says. \u201cI have discussed this with [Espinosa] and she disagrees and will fight any ethics complaints filed against her.\u201d<\/p>\n

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On February 3, Sanchez de Fuentes was fired during a commission meeting where no public comment period was given. Public outcry spilled over into the following meeting.<\/p>\n

Espinosa said the commission voted to terminate the city attorney in a 3-1 vote, a decision which she said was based on performance issues and budget mismanagement.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThis wasn\u2019t a Jackie thing, this was a commission thing,\u201d Espinosa said. \u201cIt\u2019s an at-will contract so we\u2019re allowed to do that. I\u2019m trying to protect the city\u2019s interests.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, the battle has moved to how the complaints are being investigated.<\/p>\n

Kissimmee city code allows a locally-appointed special prosecutor 90 days to determine if there is probable cause to file articles of impeachment or drop charges, city spokesperson Alibeth Suarez said in an email.\u00a0Under the process, the Kissimmee city commission asked a local judge to choose the prosecutor, who then appointed attorney Mayanne Downs on April 27.<\/p>\n

Similarly, in 1996, the city employed retired State Attorney Robert Eagan to investigate then-Mayor John Pollet, who was then impeached over accepting Orlando Magic playoff tickets from a company negotiating for a huge city contract.<\/p>\n

Initially, Espinosa said at the April 21 meeting she was grateful her fellow commissioners voted to send her ethics complaint through the local courts.<\/p>\n

But a week after Downs was appointed, Espinosa\u2019s attorney filed a writ of prohibition with the Sixth District Court of Appeal and a motion to stay seeking to block an interview Downs requested with Espinosa, arguing that speaking with Downs would jeopardize a separate investigation by the state.<\/p>\n

Espinosa said she did not see the ethics complaint in full before thanking commissioners for pursuing it.<\/p>\n

She said an investigation by the state board is already underway into a complaint that alleges the same issues. She already sat for an interview for the state board about two weeks ago, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cPerhaps they didn\u2019t understand that this was already at the state level,\u201d Espinosa said. \u201cYou can\u2019t decide you\u2019re going to send the same complaint to five different courts because you want five different results.\u201d<\/p>\n

If the court of appeals decides the state\u2019s authority trumps the local process, Downs, who also works as the city attorney for Orlando, may have to end her ongoing 90-day investigation.<\/p>\n

If her investigation can continue, she can decide whether there is probable cause to file articles of impeachment or drop the charges. If impeachment articles are filed, the commissioners not being investigated would preside over a trial.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an embarrassment for the city of Kissimmee to allow this type of behavior because it\u2019s costing us money,\u201d Espinosa said of the concurrent investigations. Downs, for example, is paid $475 an hour for her work. \u201cYou\u2019re talking hundreds of thousands of dollars for the taxpayer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kissimmee resident Alex Alemi, who filed the complaint against Espinosa, spoke at the April 21 meeting and said the investigation is necessary.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re doing what our city\u2019s ordinance says you shall do when a sworn complaint is filed,\u201d Alemi said. \u201cThe whole point of this procedure is the independent oversight.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Orlando Sings opens America-centric festival with passion, beauty | Review<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Three businesses owned by Espinosa and her family received nearly $50,000 from a program paid with federal dollars but overseen by Kissimmee staff.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":934,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-935","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news"],"yoast_head":"\nKissimmee mayor seeks to shut ethics probe over city grants to her businesses - Orlando Relocation Report<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=935\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Kissimmee mayor seeks to shut ethics probe over city grants to her businesses - 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