John Hargrove

Exciting stuff. When will it be done?

No kidding. OBJ should delete that article. 30 clicks of nonsense

So, regarding the Tremaine Boyd property -- there has been some site work but it doesn't look as though the project is under way. Here: There is another office under construction on the same block as this property. It's at 161 S Boyd: I pulled this from the February 9th, 2017 commission meeting in which it was approved. You can find that here (starts on page 78): http://www.cwgdn.com/files/city-clerk/minutes/2017/2017-02-09-ccm-agenda.pdf Here's a current picture of the site: Lastly, a recent commission meeting minutes contained this master plan / vision document for the eastern expanse of Winter Garden. Namely the "Gateway District", "Packing Plant District" and the "East Plant District." It was buried in a 300 page agenda that was about 250MB. I have extracted it and attached it to this post. Pages from 2017-05-11-ccm-agenda-revised.pdf

I too frequently wake up in a haze wondering how I ate 12 tacos

There is currently a "Space Available" sign in the window with a full buildout visible. Kitchen equipment, marketing signage, everything. You'd swear it was a functioning restaurant. But nope.

These areas aren't particularly pedestrian friendly either. Mills especially. Very little shade and a NASCAR race running down the middle of it. Milk is a little better. Robinson improvements could go a long way to improving that strip.

Yeah I'll wait to see how it shapes up before I'm all in on another "district". That said, I dig La Fiesta. Been there a bunch of times. They recently relocated across Curry Ford and into the Winn Dixie strip. Much more seating, nice build out, definitely a step up. If you like Mexican, check 'em out.

Agreed. I have added OrangeObserver.com to my list of daily distractions. I think this is under way. I've seen construction working going on there. I'll check it out this week if Spenser doesn't beat me. There are a few other small projects going on downtown: More offices (different from the 360 Plant, over on Main) development : http://wintergardenexperience.com/news/detail/new-office-building-being-proposed-in-historic-downtown-winter-garden Park Avenue Townhomes http://www.orangeobserver.com/article/winter-garden-expands-planned-townhome-development I'm sure I'm forgetting some.

The southern extension is also an important part of a holistic approach to transit. SunRail's disappointing numbers will be ancient history so long as the region and its people stay committed to it.

Was thinking of starting this thread myself. I just left downtown (55 West) and moved to a small development just off Plant Street and 5 Minute bike ride from downtown WG. It's been great and really eye opening. Some major projects come to mind: Dillard redo. From Plant Street to 50. This is very much needed. Looks like it would extend the WOT with a small southern spur. Great use of the ROW. http://www.orangeobserver.com/article/future-dillard-street The Ocoee Master Plan is bananas. Significant re-working of the street grid near 429/Plant, extension of the WOT into downtown Ocoee. All around great ideas. See here: http://www.ocoee.org/DocumentCenter/View/2827 and also http://www.ocoee.org/807/Downtown-Master-Plan Spenser already mentioned it, but the Plant to 429 corridor is going to change a lot. Once all of the above has occurred, you'll be able to bike from Downtown Oakland, through Downtown Winter Garden, and over to Downtown Ocoee. 100% on dedicated, car-free bike trails (sometimes in the median, but so much safer than sharrows and bike lanes next to parked cars). That's amazing. There's a certain urban/community fabric out here that I have wanted in downtown Orlando for the 10 years I've been here. Honestly I think you can attribute a huge amount of it to the trail. It is very busy. I bought a bike, and in a 30 minute ride during peak times you will encounter sometimes hundreds of people.

I'm sure he knew that.

I just spent 10 minutes trying to find a unicorn in the picture. Need to get my eyes checked

Color rendering and informational video here:

Wow. I don't think I've ever seen that. Wet season can't come soon enough, eh?

Looking forward to the completion of this:

As far as safety & comfort goes, there is a huge difference between the two. That said, there is the Urban Trail planned, and it would run north-south a couple blocks over ... so I think the demand for a dedicated bike road may be lower. Disclaimer: I bought a bike after moving to Winter Garden so prepare for me to become an insufferable bike advocate.

I will never understand the Florida tradition of painting things with that "public swimming pool" shade of green. Surely there are better options

That OBJ article also states that work will begin next month. We'll see. Exciting to see it still kicking either way.

Having spent time in the Pearl District ... it's a good influence. I'd love to have that here. ... I'd take the weather, too.

Hard to garden downtown. We had a small garden going but kept catching joints and lit cigarettes in our plants. Maybe somewhere other than 55 W.

I wouldn't be surprised if people feel uncomfortable after dark walking to City View. You don't have to go that far out of the CBD to get that experience. Honestly the poorly lit sections of Pine are just as uncomfortable at times. There's been a number of shootings along Pine west of Orange Avenue in the last few years, as well. I do think that it's getting better on the whole. Probably comes down to personal tolerances, sensitivity, situational awareness, etc.

Man I love Denny's. But I'm unapologetically low class.

Red Mug is a 24 hour greasy food diner. It's a little pricey, but I'm not sure that can be avoided downtown.

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And, unfortunately, The Exchange is basically a 9 to 6 operation. A good coffee shop is basically open from sun up to at least 9 or 10 pm.