OSCEOLA 360
An Investigative Look Inside Osceola County
A Special Report for The Sun Post News
By Marcos A. Tejeda
Publisher & Editor-in-Chief
The Sun Post News
September 24, 2026
OSCEOLA COUNTY, Florida — One of the most recognizable tourist landmarks along the U.S. 192 corridor has changed owners in a deal worth nearly $24.5 million, while Osceola County prepares for a temporary shutdown of its online permitting system and new processing fees for electronic payments.
The two developments are unrelated, but both touch sectors that are central to Osceola County’s economy: tourism, small businesses, construction and development.
The first involves private investment.
Old Town, the well-known shopping and entertainment district in Kissimmee, has been acquired by Todd and Radha Rambilas, owners of R-S Equity Services. The transaction closed on September 16 and covered most of the property at 5770 W. Irlo Bronson Memorial Highway. County property records cited by local media place the purchase price at approximately $24.5 million.
The second development involves county government.
Osceola County’s Permit Center will be unavailable beginning Thursday, September 24, at 4 p.m. and is expected to return Monday, September 28, while the system undergoes an upgrade.
Once the system returns, credit and debit card transactions will carry a 2.9% convenience fee, with a $2 minimum, while eCheck/ACH transactions will carry a $1.50 fee.
The county says those charges will be collected by the payment processor and that Osceola County will not receive any portion of the convenience fees.
Both stories deserve closer scrutiny.
Old Town: nearly $24.5 million for a piece of Kissimmee tourism history
Old Town is not simply another shopping center.
The entertainment district opened in December 1986 and occupies approximately 18 acres along the U.S. 192 tourist corridor.
It is home to more than 70 shops, restaurants, bars, attractions and other businesses, along with its well-known classic-car events and entertainment activities.
That makes the sale significant beyond the real estate transaction itself.
Todd and Radha Rambilas, through R-S Equity Services, acquired most of the complex for nearly $24.5 million.
The buyers have described themselves as local, family-owned operators and have said they intend to invest in the property while maintaining the identity that has made Old Town recognizable to residents and visitors for decades.
But the purchase price tells only part of the story.
The more important question for Osceola County is: What happens next?
New owners promise investment, but the numbers are still missing
The new owners have outlined a general vision that includes upgrades to common areas, refreshed spaces, additional experiences and the recruitment of new businesses and attractions.
They have also said they intend to preserve Old Town’s nostalgic character.
What has not yet been made public is equally important.
There are no detailed figures identifying how much new capital will be invested, which sections will be renovated first, what new attractions are planned or when those improvements will take place.
That distinction matters.
Buying a property for nearly $24.5 million and investing millions more into redevelopment are separate financial decisions.
OSCEOLA 360 will be watching for building permits, major renovation plans, tenant changes and other records that show what the new ownership actually intends to do.
More than 70 businesses have a direct stake in what happens next
The community impact of the sale rests largely with the businesses already operating inside Old Town.
The district includes more than 70 stores, restaurants and attractions, many of them connected to independent operators.
There is currently no published evidence of a broad displacement of those businesses.
The new ownership has said it wants to retain the character of the district while creating additional opportunities for local restaurants, independent businesses, artisans and other operators.
But any ownership transition involving a major commercial property raises legitimate economic questions.
Will rents change?
Will existing leases be modified?
Will new standards be imposed on storefronts or renovations?
Who will pay for upgrades?
Will current tenants still be able to afford their spaces if the value of the complex increases?
Those questions should not be answered through speculation.
They should be answered by following leases, permits, development plans and business changes as they become public.
U.S. 192 is part of the story
Old Town sits at 5770 W. Irlo Bronson Memorial Highway, within one of the most visible tourism corridors in Osceola County.
That makes the transaction more than an isolated commercial sale.
Private investment along U.S. 192 influences the appearance of the corridor, commercial activity, employment, visitor experience and surrounding property values.
Old Town has undergone major changes before.
A significant renovation completed in 2019 included, among other improvements, an 86-foot observation wheel.
The latest ownership change could mark the beginning of another transformation.
But that transformation should be judged by what is actually built and invested, not simply by initial promises.
Osceola temporarily shuts down its permitting system
While private investment is changing hands along U.S. 192, Osceola County is introducing another change that will directly affect contractors, developers, property owners and residents who use the county permitting system.
The county’s Permit Center is scheduled to be offline beginning Thursday, September 24, at 4 p.m. and return Monday, September 28 while the system is upgraded.
The timing deserves attention because the permitting portal plays an important role in a rapidly growing county.
Registered users can use the system to apply for permits, pay fees and schedule inspections. The public can also use the portal to search permit-related records.
That means contractors and residents with time-sensitive transactions should account for the announced period of unavailability.
The county should also be evaluated afterward on whether the upgrade was completed on schedule and whether it caused significant delays in permit processing or inspections.
Paying by card will cost 2.9% more
The most direct financial change begins when the system returns.
Starting September 28, payments made by credit or debit card will carry a convenience fee of 2.9% of the transaction amount, with a minimum fee of $2.
Payments through eCheck or ACH will cost $1.50 per transaction.
The difference can become substantial on larger payments.
For example, mathematically, a 2.9% fee on a $10,000 transaction equals $290.
On a $25,000 transaction, it would equal $725.
Those examples do not mean that every permit costs $10,000 or $25,000, nor do they establish that every type of payment is processed under identical circumstances.
They simply illustrate what a percentage-based processing fee can mean when applied to larger transactions.
For some users, the $1.50 ACH option could therefore be significantly less expensive.
Who receives the money?
Osceola County has made one important distinction clear.
The convenience fees will be collected and retained by the payment processor.
The county says it will not receive any portion of those charges.
That statement opens an important administrative question.
Who is the payment processor?
How was the company selected?
How long does the agreement last?
Was there a competitive procurement process?
How much money passes through the county’s electronic payment system each year?
And what could 2.9% of that transaction volume represent over time?
There is no basis in the information reviewed to suggest wrongdoing.
But when a private company collects percentage-based fees connected to government transactions, the contract, economic terms and procurement process are legitimate matters of public interest.
The transition away from cash began earlier
The county’s Community Development operation had already stopped accepting cash beginning January 1, 2026.
For in-person transactions, the office accepts payment methods including Visa, Mastercard, Apple Pay, Google Pay, money orders, cashier’s checks and personal checks.
The new electronic payment structure should therefore be viewed as part of a broader transition in how residents and businesses interact with county government.
Digital payment systems can reduce cash handling, make remote transactions easier and improve administrative efficiency.
But they can also transfer processing costs directly to the person or business using the service.
The relevant question is not simply whether the system is digital.
It is how much it costs to use, what alternatives are available and who receives the fee.
Two stories, one changing local economy
The sale of Old Town and the changes to Osceola County’s Permit Center may appear unrelated.
Together, however, they show two sides of a county undergoing constant economic and physical change.
On one side, nearly $24.5 million in private capital has changed control of one of Kissimmee’s best-known tourist destinations.
The new owners say they plan additional investment while preserving Old Town’s identity.
On the other side, county government is updating the electronic system used by property owners, contractors and developers to process part of the activity that physically reshapes Osceola County — while also introducing new payment-processing costs.
In both cases, the headline is only the beginning.
At Old Town, the questions are how much will be invested, what will change and what happens to the businesses already there.
At the Permit Center, the questions are who processes the payments, under what contract, how much the new fees could generate and whether the system upgrade actually improves service.
In a county that continues to grow, it is not enough to report how much money changes hands.
Public accountability also requires following where that money goes, who receives it and what the community ultimately gets in return.
