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I think they should put rows of planter boxes along the whole perimeter with a few openings for ingress/egress on Orange Ave and/or Pine St.

A friend sent me a pic of the dirt. I'm assuming it's meant to level out each lot since Washington is on a steep incline heading to Orange Ave

I think using artificial turf is a mistake for such a large flat area (vs a small accent area) and the ripples look terrible. After a nice rain it will probably retain some water. Can't imagine what kind of bacteria will begin to breed in the material

Yeah, I think it was called The Crystal or something. I found a pic in my Urban Planet gallery from a few years ago, but I guess the quality degrades after X years of not being used. There may be a better quality pic somewhere on this forum.

I fear that unless commercial rates are reasonably priced or subsidized in MEC, we can probably expect the ground floor retail space to remain vacant (just like the other ground floor units along W Church St/Division Ave).

Their loss. In a mixed-use building, wouldn't it make more sense for landlords to offer their residential tenants an amenity of some sort rather than leave the commercial space empty? That never made any sense to me - unless there is some tax loophole that I don't know about which allows them to write off vacant commercial space. Are commercial landlords not offering sliding-scale or percentage leases, or are those types of leases more of a rare opportunity in Orlando? Meaning the base rent could stay at $1,300/month, but they get a percentage of sales during peak months. Seems like a decent compromise, especially when the economy gets rocky. Also, I'm curious if you've ever considered operating a business in Winter Park - that seems to be where the money's at. As a small independent landlord, it always made more sense for me to charge below market rate which allowed my well qualified tenants to thrive and have extra spending money - they renewed for several years until they moved out of town, got married or bought their own property. For me, that strategy resulted in less vacancies and loyal tenants who renewed for several years and always paid rent on time - even throughout the pandemic. In my case, it helps that I bought over a decade ago, so maybe some landlords are hindered by today's high mortgages with increasing property taxes and insurance. Side note... While it's easy for everyone to blame corporate landlords and institutional investors, we also have to be cognizant that we might be contributing to the problem as well (albeit, inadvertently). For example, REITs have shareholders to answer to, but ironically everyday people struggling to buy a home or find affordable commercial/residential rentals may very well be the same shareholders profiting off the madness in real estate. If we disagree with what's going on right now, then it may be prudent to move money out of investments (mutual funds, IRA, 401ks, stocks, etc.) that do not align with our personal beliefs, morals and ethics. If commercial loans and homeowners begin to default/foreclose due to the high amount of debt being carried, investors are likely waiting in the wings to swoop in and buy even more properties. We have to decide if our investments are worth more than the impact on society. I'm not directing this at anyone specifically, just some food for thought.

I wondered the same thing. But I also wonder... with house prices the way they are, even if they sold their home, the profit they make could get eaten up when they purchase the next home (unless they move to the boonies or severely downsize). Also, the developer still has a budget to adhere to. There is probably a number that the developer will not exceed in order to remain profitable. For example, one of my relatives sold a home in College Park (well before the pandemic boom). At the time, they were only receiving offers slightly above land value, even though there was a small home on the property. But it was understood that people were only buying the property for the land and they would then bulldoze the old house and build a bigger one (which is what happened). So if Weekly Homes purchased the properties for $2M and will build 6 homes, they roughly paid an average of $333K for each lot (sales price varied for each property because some of the homes were on double lots), then the developer had the expense of clearing the lots plus construction costs. So Weekly Homes probably had a max number they couldn't exceed via offer and if the holdout didn't want to accept 333K (or possibly even less, because the home is on a single lot), then it wouldn't make financial sense for them to sell. I was curious so I went down the rabbit hole... play along and say they did receive a healthy offer of "$300K". What and where are you going to buy with that?? That's also assuming the mortgage (or any home equity loans) are paid off after selling. In this case, if my research is correct, the holdout appears to be trustee, home is paid off, probably renting out the existing home for $1,300 month @ nearly 100% profit minus maintenance/mgmt. So basically if you own that home, you choose if you want the money now, or wait it out and get the money later while collecting income over the years while maintaining your net worth.

Who knew anyone would have beef with the rainbow bandshell lol. Then again, people also complained about the original teal colors. Just seems like a very random thing to have qualms about -- especially from someone who doesn't even live downtown. The bandshell and other areas throughout town were painted in rainbow colors etc. as tribute to the victims at Pulse. You equate the bandshell as an icon to gays, however, I think that's the crux of your problem... it all comes down to you vs "them". Your problem is not only with the colors, but also the group that it represents. The tribute is singular to Orlando, because of what occurred. The focus was on a horrific massacre that occurred within our city. Thousands of gay and straight people showed up at Lake Eola to mourn and rally together as one. The community had such an overwhelming and palpable response both during and after, which as a gay person, I had never seen or felt before. I would also argue downtown is somewhat gayborhood-adjacent. A gay/straight duo was responsible for the turnaround of Thornton Park which itself has been regarded as a gayborhood. Even spenser would tell stories about gays cruising the area back in the day. Thornton Park is what attracted me to buy in the area, even though we had been going to Lake Eola since I was a kid. If there were a mass shooting at a local school, sports bar or office where 53 people were injured and 49 people were killed, I would totally understand if the City painted the bandshell as tribute. I might not like the colors, but I sure as hell would have the common sense to understand and respect the meaning behind it. P.S. The hotel doors of the Robert Meyer Motor Inn (FKA Harley Hotel, AKA Metropolitan at Lake Eola Condos) were also painted mod-rainbow colors, even back then.

Just curious since you're a business owner in the restaurant/food industry... With the economy and interest rates the way they are, what is your overall outlook on the scene for the next 1-3 years? Also, as an outsider, it almost seems risky to run a restaurant in the CBD with inflated rent and low foot traffic to support business... if I was a business owner and had to choose a location, it would be WP due to the higher income demographic. Do you think small downtowns will be able to recover? In Buddy's State of Downtown speech, he said "The days of our downtown as just a Central Business District are over... The rise of our downtown as a true neighborhood for everyone is here." https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2023/09/27/dyer-spotlights-plan-to-shift-downtown-orlando-from-business-hub-to-neighborhood/ They've been harping about making downtown more focused on lifestyle and experiences, but IMO a vibrant businesses environment is a key element in supporting their vision. I would even speculate business employees and non-residents probably spend more money downtown and provide more street-level activity than actual residents living downtown. Filling bodies in expensive apartments with little discretionary income has not worked. Not sure what the answer is, but my personal view of downtown going forward is quite bleak.

Single/childless employees need to revolt... pregnant coworkers can get 3 months off no problem, meanwhile I can barely get time off for myself without causing a stink about it. Their family planning should not affect my life. I'm all for support as long as it is evenly applied across the board. Yes, I'm that person lol

Never heard of that... unless it was during "value creation" layoffs. Even if staff work Variable Full Time hours (meaning 72 hours instead of 80 hours), there is usually a handoff at shift change. Anyway, it's pretty amusing when people say nurses and doctors don't get paid well when the rest of hospital staff get paid even worse - people's paychecks are stuck in the stone age. Orlando Health only recently increased their minimum wage to $15/hr. There is a lot more than meets the eye when it comes to keep a hospital running.

DoveCote Restaurant to move from its downtown Orlando location. They will announce the new location in coming months. They were an asset to downtown, so I view this as a loss for the CBD. I wonder what will take its place or will the commercial space become another dead zone downtown. Hoping for the best. https://www.wftv.com/news/local/dovecote-restaurant-relocate-its-downtown-orlando-location/R2RIGDUQEFCLLOU5SHSPTP2M2I/

Wow, lucky them! $2M seems like a huge get for that area. Even though you lost out on the opportunity, the good news is the homes will most likely be purchased by owner-occupants vs a REIT/institutional investor who will fill it with yet another renter paying overpriced rent to a landlord who doesn't maintain the yard/building properly. IMO, rezoning single family to multifamily is not appropriate... people buy in certain areas to avoid that. I'm not even in support of ADU's in areas with R-1 zoning because it's like a sneaky way to skirt zoning laws and shoehorn multifamily residences in areas that weren't zoned for that (for various reasons). And it undermines people who abide by the rules to specifically purchase R-2/multifamily lots. Why bother buying R-2 anymore when you can just convert an R-1 into multifamily?? But this is the world we live in now... twist existing city ordinances, laws, etc. to accommodate greedy desires, while disregarding the neighborhood's character. Same goes for the people who buy into HOA communities, but purposefully disregard the rules they agreed to (and later claim HOAs are the devil). BTW, that last bit wasn't directed at you Andy, I'm just venting as one of the suckers who purchased an R-2 lot before all of this ADU madness started to take off.

I must be getting old bc I read both responses as Lake Mary lol. I was confused why Lake Mary would even have a stop, but didn't question it

Don't forget the rest of hospital staff! Just my 2 cents: Can't speak to doctor's pay as they are very tight lipped about salary, but... most Nurses are now getting paid mid-30's/hr and many were getting insane bonuses to work during the pandemic. A nurse friend of mine made 130k - that is more than some medical professionals with a doctorate degree. Meanwhile others are not compensated appropriately... some techs and paramedics are still getting paid in the teens. Respiratory therapists dealt with severe/chronic treatments (but did receive bonuses). Housekeeping had to terminal clean each room after patients come in with covid, rsv, flu, etc. Xray/radiology has one on one contact w/pts and saw increase in workflow due to respiratory infections and clots. The lab was inundated with respiratory rule out testing on top of their normal workflow. Pharmacy had more IVs and meds to make and dispense on top of tech shortages due to crappy pay. Cafeteria short staffed, crappy pay and they don't work directly for the hospital anymore (meanwhile they prepare food for all patients, guests and staff). All underpaid and essential but many of the other departments did NOT receive bonuses or adequate pay increases during the pandemic despite increased workflow and are often overlooked because MDs and RNs typically have better positioned advocates than other depts.

I wonder why not Orlando though? I wanna guzzle a few cocktails before I take a joyride down to Miami, not gonna drive to Lake Mary when I live downtown

I'm only posting this since there's not a whole lot of development going on (I imagine we'll be in another development slump for a long time, but I digress). New homes on the way in Sodo/Wadeview Park on Page St (near TD Bank). Old homes razed and lots have been cleared for a while with no activity, so I thought construction would get put on hold during the housing slowdown... But it looks like they are going ahead as planned. Builder is David Weekly and per the booklet on page 11, six homes are planned for the area. Not sure if they are building homes one by one or as they sell. Asking price ~ $1M, so get your checkbooks ready! https://simplebooklet.com/orlandocentralliving#page=11 https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/201-Page-St-Orlando-FL-32806/46034661_zpid/

Does the Orlando station have a bar similar to the one in Miami? I love the fact that they have a lounge serving food and mixed drinks similar to airports -- that always makes air travel less annoying for me.

They kept asking, where is everyone? Even though I explained DTO is equivalent to a "neighborhood node" in Toronto, it still didn't register until they saw it in person. Granted it was a Tuesday afternoon, but besides the handful of people exercising and the usual sprinkle of homeless people dotting the park, we pretty much had Lake Eola to ourselves. Spent about 15 mins checking out the swans (which they rarely get to see), but we didn't even make it all the way around the lake before they wanted to leave. They weren't rude about it, but DTO just wasn't their vibe at all. A weekend trip would have been better, but DTO also lacks the upscale dining/shopping element which typically rounds off the rough edges of most established downtowns IMO. I'm frugal and have no need for high end dining/shopping, and my family are in no way snobs, but DTO doesn't offer a typical lifestyle experience because most assets are not within downtown, as @orlandocity87said. Park Ave and its environs were our next stop and despite the temperature, WP was pretty active around the same time. Seemed like lots of new homes are being built over there as well. To cool down, we went shopping at the Mall at Millenia, which was packed with people. The CBD has always struggled except for that bright spot just before the Recession where all of the fantastical developments were being proposed. Otherwise, the stagnation is nothing new although I always held out hope for another unique catalyst that would turn things around again. If it weren't for SoDo's revitalization, I fear the residential areas in SoDo would also begin to stagnate as well. The amenities and healthy property values in WP have kept the town vibrant and have only helped nourish demand. It's a symbiotic relationship and I wish I had the foresight back then to buy in WP when it was still affordable instead of downtown. Not totally unhappy and very thankful for what I have, especially in this economy, but I'm kicking myself in the butt for being short sighted and youthfully ignorant.

And when they see/visit our downtown, most are surprised and disappointed about how small and lifeless it is. Just had family visit from Canada, I took them shopping and sightseeing. They disliked DTO so much, the feeling was palpable lol. They seemed to love Winter Park and Miami Beach though.

How did you know about that? What was the issue? I wonder if the water leak has anything to due with the hole that opened up under Orange in June https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/traffic-alert-hole-orange-avenue-105215137.html. I submitted a work order on water seeping out of a manhole on Orange Ave back in February because I thought it might be sewage, but they said it was related to an OUC water meter valve. It was leaking for weeks before they addressed it. Interestingly enough, it's the same intersection as the hole that opened up on Orange Ave.

Erykah said the definition of woke "just means being aware. Being in alignment with nature, because if you're alignment with that, you're aware of everything that's going on. And it's not only in the political arena, that means with your health, that means in your relationships, that means in your home, that means in your car, that means in your sleep..." She understands the term has taken on an energy of its own. The Right regularly uses the term woke in a derogatory, disparaging way... basically to demean any boogeyman agenda they want to rail against whether politically, racially or environmentally. It's funny how the party of "less government" has no problem using government intervention the most when it suits them.

I've been away from UP for a while, so it was interesting to catch up on this thread. Everyone has their own interpretation of what woke actually means, myself included. To me, it meant being enlightened and informed. Not just about racial issues, but about all the things we've been conditioned to accept as normal, but in some ways are hazardous to our mind, body and health, etc. To me, the Matrix (movie) is an example of someone who has woken up. Not that I'm a user of the word, but I'm pretty sure I mostly understood the original context. Erykah Badu is considered the founding mother of coining the term woke. I've listened to her music for many years and I'm familiar with the song she incorporated the term into. In an interview with Ari Melber, she speaks on how the word has changed after being hijacked by the Right and briefly explains her original definition of the word. Video and article below if interested. https://www.vibe.com/news/national/erykah-badu-meaning-staying-woke-1234745393/

This. It's stupid and lazy. Instead of creating new characters or stories, they shoehorned another race into the role. It's not pleasant when characters get whitewashed and it's the same when roles are reversed because it causes a backlash/resentment. Is it really so hard to make new stories starring people of color? Casting directors also made Ariel's father, King Triton, a hispanic and Ariel's sisters were misc. races they really tried to check all the boxes in the movie lol.

Yes their store display window is kind of iconic. Your comment reminded me of the old pics from around town that I posted in the photo thread a few years ago, the Lightstyle window was one of them: