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Church Street Plaza | 28-Story Office/Hotel [Phase 1 Under Construction]


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14 hours ago, JFW657 said:

I think whether or not the buildings meet the technical definition of historic, kind of misses the real issue here and that is, that the Church Street Station section of downtown Orlando has a certain established atmosphere and identity, which is that of a quaint, old fashioned block of buildings that harkens back to a long gone, historical period and which the local populace has grown used to and fond of. Technically historic or not, these money grubbing boobs ought to be more respectful of that fact and the local community as well. I don't think most long time Orlandoans really want to see much of that atmosphere demolished to make room for another cheesy looking glass box.

Let me say I tend to agree. I’m not looking to ditch Bob Snow’s buildings along Church St. any more than I wanted to lose the Jaymont Block. Further, Cheyenne, historic or not, is just a great space I would like to keep. The various tiers of the facility, the natural lighting, the beautiful  woodwork, all add up to the most amazing venue in town.

Having said that, I drive past the ballroom almost every day and it just screams, “I don’t belong here!”

Unlike the Dr. Phillips House, which is in a similar predicament through no fault of its own (given the attitude toward preservation at the time the East-West was built, we should probably thank divine providence that it still exists at all), the ballroom was BUILT on that squeezed in lot from the beginning. Even if Bob Snow had built his Victorian themed hotel on the south lot, it’s still too much so close to I4. So, I can’t say it bothers me if it goes.

Edited by spenser1058
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32 minutes ago, JFW657 said:

I think whether or not the buildings meet the technical definition of historic, kind of misses the real issue here and that is, that the Church Street Station section of downtown Orlando has a certain established atmosphere and identity, which is that of a quaint, old fashioned block of buildings that harkens back to a long gone, historical period and which the local populace has grown used to and fond of. Technically historic or not, these money grubbing boobs ought to be more respectful of that fact and the local community as well. I don't think most long time Orlandoans really want to see much of that atmosphere demolished to make room for another cheesy looking glass box.

I don't think I could've conveyed my own feelings much better than this.

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43 minutes ago, spenser1058 said:

Let me say I tend to agree. I’m not looking to ditch Bob Snow’s buildings along Church St. any more than I wanted to lose the Jaymont Block. Further, Cheyenne, historic or not, is just an amazing space I would like to keep. The various tiers of the facility, the natural lighting, the amazing woodwork, all add up to the most amazing venue in town.

Having said that, I drive past the ballroom almost every day and it just screams, “I don’t belong here!”

The oddest part about that is, unlike the Dr. Phillips House which is in a similar predicament, got that way theough no fault of its own. (Given the attitude toward preservation at the time the East-West was built, we should probably thank divine providence that it still exists at all).

The ballroom, however, was BUILT on that squeezed in lot from the beginning. Even if Bob Snow had built his Victorian themed hotel on the south lot, it’s still too much so close to I4. So, I can’t say it bothers me if it goes.

Honestly, if it were just the ballroom they were talking about razing, I wouldn't mind so much. After all, it's just a 1990's era building made to look like an old building.

Plus, it's all white and as I've said several times before... I hate white buildings!!!! :angry:

But that doesn't address my second concern which is that another high rise crammed into that corner of downtown just seems a bit much. Especially if it's an exact copy of the "upright piano" that's going in there now.

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11 minutes ago, JFW657 said:

Honestly, if it were just the ballroom they were talking about razing, I wouldn't mind so much. After all, it's just a 1990's era building made to look like an old building.

Plus, it's all white and as I've said several times before... I hate white buildings!!!! :angry:

But that doesn't address my second concern which is that another high rise crammed into that corner of downtown just seems a bit much. Especially if it's an exact copy of the "upright piano" that's going in there now.

Ooooh, “upright piano” - another named building downtown. The Refrigerator will be jealous!

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My friend recently got married at the venue, and is of course deeply saddened.  The staircase and windows and lighting are all truly beautiful, and it is a shame to lose them.  I wish there was a way to reincorporate the good assets.  But, as @spenser1058 put so eloquently, it just doesn't belong there. 

For me it comes down to one simple thing.  If losing them means we get southbound Sunrail, they go.

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58 minutes ago, JFW657 said:

I'm fairly certain all the interior stuff will be salvaged and sold for re-use elsewhere.

What would be nice is if it could all be repurposed for use in a ground floor rail station in the new building. All the interior stuff from Orchid Garden, too.

Put it all in the actual Church Street station and we’d put the Chattanooga Choo Choo to shame!

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4 hours ago, AndyPok1 said:

My friend recently got married at the venue, and is of course deeply saddened.  The staircase and windows and lighting are all truly beautiful, and it is a shame to lose them.  I wish there was a way to reincorporate the good assets.  But, as @spenser1058 put so eloquently, it just doesn't belong there. 

For me it comes down to one simple thing.  If losing them means we get southbound Sunrail, they go.

Seems to me based on the layout of the buildings that you can get Sunrail by razing the ballroom, but you can keep Cheyenne.  Its kind of to the North and West of everything.   No mention of any of the other retailers being booted out along Church. To throw more into this, look how the property is split up.  The property line seems to follow the building Retail and Phase II being separate entities.

image.thumb.png.c1b185082cd1efdea799980f0b7e2487.pngimage.thumb.png.2d0a8f1f2ca7cbe93650cf0e2e7c89ba.png

 

Edited by codypet
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48 minutes ago, spenser1058 said:

Nite Owl, have you been hanging out with the planners of Daytona’s beachside again? *hides*

Nope, that had nothing to do with me and I haven't been to Daytona in years. But I do have the business card of a freelance dragon if they still need a little help sprucing up...

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Edited by nite owℓ
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6 minutes ago, IAmFloridaBorn said:

I've always been a fan of tearing all of that shxt down. Haha

You don’t have to - you can just go to Rich Crotty’s Downtown Orange County On I-Drive!

Given that most of the buildings built downtown in the last decade would be right at home in Maitland Center, that’s another option.

Personally, I’d like to keep my downtown a little less sterile and soulless. Put another way, which would you prefer: Winter Garden or Winter Springs?

 

Edited by spenser1058
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Alright I’ll say it - the justification for bulldozing the ballroom for another “twin” to this ugly building is eventually going to encroach in Church Street and I’m already seeing people here justifying it or creating a rationale for why it can / should happen.

The ballroom has been in Orlando for a bit less time than I lived there and doesn’t seem at all out of place to me. What will be incredibly disappointing is if it’s bulldozed for another awkward glass midrise that may also take the Cheyenne and forever alter the ambiance of CSS.

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I guess that's where we differ.  I don't find CSP ugly at all.  I think it's probably the best building outside of Citi Tower we've seen built downtown.  I've now seen it from all 4 different directions on the highways and still don't get the complaints.

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3 hours ago, AndyPok1 said:

I guess that's where we differ.  I don't find CSP ugly at all.  I think it's probably the best building outside of Citi Tower we've seen built downtown.  I've now seen it from all 4 different directions on the highways and still don't get the complaints.

I don't think it's "ugly", but it's not awesome looking either. Kinda odd looking. The main thing in my mind is... do we really need another one crammed in there right next to it? 

To me, the answer is no.

Just now, HankStrong said:

That sounds like the worst possible kind of misery.

Seriously. :huh:

1 hour ago, codypet said:

Eh. I'm waiting for the rest of the cladding to go outside the glass before I make my judgement.  I'm still of the opinion that we're just losing Club Paris and not the rest of it.  I can live with that.

Same here on both points.

If it's just the ballroom that has an appointment with the bulldozers, I can live with that. I still don't think a second tower is a good fit for that corner.

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