Ivanhoe

You seem to have forgotten that Paula Dockery pulled every trick out of a hat to kill Sunrail and then governor Scott continually delayed state funding for it through legislative delays. It was the local counties in bi-partisan measure led largely by Buddy Dyer who fought tooth and nail against Tea Party Republicans and they eventually won.

I have no plan to respond to you point by point as this entire post is conjecture and little to do with anything I said. As par for your course.

It’s more than that. They are significantly more land restricted than Central Florida and their economies are more diverse. Construction is the second largest economy driver after tourism in Orlando and that endless sprawl has a lot to do with it.

If there isn’t enough money for it, one must ask where it’s going instead of the most clogged artery in Florida. Why is DeShameless wasting your tax dollars to put up signs at the entrance to Disney called the Central Florida Oversight District? Florida is doing a lot of things wrong right now but term limits are not one of them.

This should be unacceptable. That is atrocious. Gotta wonder what is going on at City Hall — this isn’t an out of the way location. The firm designed buildings back in the late 90s that were passable.

I totally disagree. Why should the tallest building in Orlando simply disappear?

I’d go with a copper finish to compliment Orlando City Hall but I highly doubt that is in their budget.

I agree it’s bad zoning, but on behalf of the apartments, 7-11, and Vista Cay. Those were built knowing that Universal was putting a theme park and hotels literally in their backyard. Universal Blvd was built as an extension of the tourism district of I-Drive. For that reason, I think it’s fair game for W to build a 22 floor hotel there. It’s less than mile from the 428’ Hyatt Regency and even closer to the 15 floor Rosen Shingle Creek.

I think W hotel will help to bookend that area nicely keeping in mind that it’s quite close to the EPIC hotels under construction facing Universal Blvd. Most of all though, I find its offerings most exciting — the restaurants, bars, pool deck and venue all guarantee it will be a runaway success. And if it is, this could bring similar brands to Orlando that aren’t here right now (let’s say for instance, the Standard brand).

Miami gets a federal grant for its Under deck park: https://www.thenextmiami.com/downtown-miamis-83m-the-underdeck-gets-federal-funding/

I’m not getting why that is funny to you.

I know.. There should still be a vision.

There are options. The acoustics were never it’s strong suit so instead of trying to create a performing arts venue I could see it used for smaller events and with a mixed-use flexible ground floor. Removing the atrium glass structure would make sense then as it was only added on later when space was limited. It’s never going to get Broadway-event style crowds again so it should be removed to let the building shine through.

It’s a perfectly acceptable plot of land on Orange Ave for Orlando’s tallest building. In fact, I believe it could bring some much needed depth to that stretch of the core. A good 600’ footer adjacent to the courthouse, across from Society and BOA, and viewable from Lake Eola would be a great addition. Also, dust off those OMA expansion plans and move it here where it belongs rather than a side street in South Eola.

Cobb County is where transit goes to die. There’s nothing to be proud about there. There’s also nothing that connects it to why Metromover is unpopular with the folks in Miami Beach.

Who needs parents when you have DeSantis looking out for you?

Another day another plan to hand the keys of the city over to Baker Barrios. https://www.growthspotter.com/2024/03/01/city-shortlists-four-architecture-firms-for-bob-carr-adaptive-reuse/

^Something about how downtown Orlando has deteriorated rather than even stagnating seems sad and different from peer cities. I’ve tried to go out downtown a few times in the last year and inevitably we just end up in the Milk District or Virginia / Mills area because it’s more hip, edgy, and well, more safe.

I don’t understand the emotions surrounding this non-existent development (height, density) on any side. I do understand what a shame it was that a beautiful hundreds year old tree was lost by a fast move on behalf of the developers. If the city is interested in buying empty lots, this would have been a good contender for a park space especially in an area unserved by a decent one.

Trains don’t start and stop on a whim. It is not negligible. Brightline will not reach its potential as true high speed rail in Florida. Nevada and CA will get it.

I prefer the Clinton Foundation Tower. They are “New Yorkers” after all.

I’m not claiming Brightline should be any different from a money grabbing corporate entity. I just find it laughable that Rick Scott and anti-Obama Floridians told the federal government to take a hike on true HSR and are now begging for federal dollars to complete a segment that would already have been built right now. Hypocrisy at its finest. But hey, it’s good business for BL and yes, they’re taking you for a ride and not just on those tracks.

Cannot say I’m surprised. Brightline will focus on link the Cape Canaveral and I expect they will need to put in a considerable amount of their own money to do so. Its funny, I remember when this was touted as a private high speed rail system. Neither private or high speed. But I do appreciate the progress. Brightline is really taking Florida cities for a ride. There’s a reason the ext. to Tampa is on the back burner — there are no “Stuart’s” pleading to pony up cash on that route right now. It cannot be overstated how important the link to Disney was to this extension.

I’ll be most interested in the plan for 205 and 215 Central. Presumably 205 is demolished to create the Eola gateway. Does 215 Central have the same fate or is it saved and incorporated into a redesigned park? It’s a nice historic building that if retrofitted, could have a very nice park cafe space.

Pointe Orlando: I parked the adjacent garage for an event I was attending and walked through Pointe Orlando on my way to Hyatt. While I knew it was in decline I guess I didn’t really understand just how desolate the place is on the interior, as I only ever see it from I-Drive. They’d be better off knocking out the backside and building a large hotel back there. The current state is not unlike many struggling malls around the metro. It’s a tad creepy but mainly depressing.