Rida Development Corp's Mixed-Use Complex [Under Construction]

[truebluecfl]

Panhandlers have been around since the ancient times, nothing that we can really do about it. The best they can do is make panhandling illegal like St Pete did, but that doesn't get rid of the homeless problem. Plus they just get around it by walking up to you and saying "hey, let me tell you a joke" (usually very bad) or they'll sing a song. I used to give money to homeless all the time downtown, till one "casual" outside the arena that I'd usually give some cash or an extra bottle of water got angry because I reached in my pocket but had no cash. he said "Don't be reaching in your pockets if you aint gonna give me nothing!" I told him he would never see a penny from me again. 

[HankStrong]

The real solution for the homeless problem isn't getting rid of them.  It's better care for the mentally ill and re-vamping social services so that people actually need help can get it and people that are mooching off the system can't do that.

 

A massive task, to say the least.

 

However, I think a nominal charge for the Lymmo wouldn't change a thing.

[jgardnerucf]

Can we pressure wash the front of Subway for the time being?

[FLheat]

I hope Buddy follows through on his pledge for Permanent Supportive Housing

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-cost-of-homelessness-orlando-20140521,0,881854.story

[nite owℓ]

^^

Exactly.  the problem is that peds don't usually walk a .25 mile in downtown Orlando each way for food or what have you.  And now that I think about it, who would want to live there with such a demographic in the immediate vicinity?  Courthouse patrons plus Lynx patrons and Lymmo line patrons- I forgot about those.  I wouldn't- unless there were many other developments adjacent to there- on property and Amelia, the Plus One proposed lot, and the proposal near BOA's south side.  Then, I think it would be ok.

 

 

I lived at the Paramount for a couple years and walked around Lake Eola at night on many occasions, including after drinking at 2 AM. I honestly never saw anything crazy happening around Lake Eola. Just drunk people being loud mostly. My only real complaint about living downtown was the abundance of homeless and the constant pestering.

 

The point I'm trying to make is that certain behaviors aren't exclusive to the homeless or "Lynx patrons" - as if the actual residents of downtown are innocent angels. Let's not kid ourselves...

 

Someone living at the VUE once told me a few stories that I just couldn't believe until I moved downtown myself. I live at the Metropolitan - my unit faces Rosalind & Lake Eola and within the past 2 years I've witnessed: a severe case of domestic violence (which an OPD officer pretty much laughed off), a hit and run, people relieving themselves in the bushes, a girl performing a sex act on her boyfriend on the sidewalk at Lake Eola, people smashing bottles in the street, and other drunken disturbances etc. None of these incidents were committed by homeless people nor are these everyday occurrences, but then again I'm not on my balcony 24/7 either...

 

I'm not bashing downtown and if I wanted Stepford living I would stick to Winter Park. Yes, the homeless can cause their own share of problems, but let's not pretend like crime doesn't occur outside of the vicinity of the courthouse or Lynx station. Take a look at a crime map sometime. I get daily updates just to be aware of what happens in our neighborhood behind the scenes. Sometimes I feel like we don't have enough of a police presence after 2am unless it's along Orange Ave.

[FLClarkKent]

The point I'm trying to make is that certain behaviors aren't exclusive to the homeless or "Lynx patrons" - as if the actual residents of downtown are innocent angels. Let's not kid ourselves...

 

Someone living at the VUE once told me a few stories that I just couldn't believe until I moved downtown myself. I live at the Metropolitan - my unit faces Rosalind & Lake Eola and within the past 2 years I've witnessed: a severe case of domestic violence (which an OPD officer pretty much laughed off), a hit and run, people relieving themselves in the bushes, a girl performing a sex act on her boyfriend on the sidewalk at Lake Eola, people smashing bottles in the street, and other drunken disturbances etc. None of these incidents were committed by homeless people nor are these everyday occurrences, but then again I'm not on my balcony 24/7 either...

 

I'm not bashing downtown and if I wanted Stepford living I would stick to Winter Park. Yes, the homeless can cause their own share of problems, but let's not pretend like crime doesn't occur outside of the vicinity of the courthouse or Lynx station. Take a look at a crime map sometime. I get daily updates just to be aware of what happens in our neighborhood behind the scenes. Sometimes I feel like we don't have enough of a police presence after 2am unless it's along Orange Ave.

 

There's far less panhandling downtown than there was 10 years ago. And the type of panhandling that I recall from that time was very aggressive (in your face, in your personal space, reaching out to touch you, etc.). When I'm downtown now, I think to myself - Wow, they've really cleaned it up.

 

I don't think there's been a significant decrease in the homeless population, but there has been a significant increase in people who live and work downtown. To my eye, there's been a substantional shift in the ratio of homeless to everyday, workaday folk.

 

That being said, I do believe that one of Buddy Dyer's greatest failings is the lack of action to help the homeless population. You can't hide them, sweep them under the rug, etc. But you can do things to help the problem. There's been great in Phoenix in helping homeless veterans receive health services and find permanent residence. That's a great place to start with our homeless population. 

[Jernigan]

Ill also throw in that our homeless population is magnified by the lack of other pedestrians outside of the weekday lunch crowd and the party crowd. There are likely as many or more in most major cities but they blend in and are easily avoidable due to the crowds and faster walking

[jrs2]

Construction on the Crescent Central Station building is really speeding up this past week.

 

The garage looks to be 1/3 complete in a matter of two days.  The are also on the 2nd residential level.

 

The garage beams look to be just taller than the OC Cthse parking garage roof.  So, although this is not going to be a high rise, it will have substantial presence on Orange Ave.  It will be at least as "bulky" as the low rise buildings of the courthouse complex.  It will probably be taller than that hideous Bellsouth building to the north as well.

[spenser1058]

" It will probably be taller than that hideous Bellsouth building to the north as well."

 

Hideous it may be, but there's a great story there - it was built to house the lawyers fighting the 1980's AT&T antitrust suit. At the last minute, they decided to settle and break up the Bell System - the rest as they say is history! (It's looking worse because it's not being maintained but it has never been anything but generic corporate.)

[spenser1058]

Speaking of which, although Orlando Remembered has certainly tried to do its part to preserve our history, we really do need with so much changing to get the city to do historic markers for buildings that have great stories behind them but aren't architecturally significant. The big complaint I always hear from newbies in town is that "Orlando has no history" - well, we sure do, but it keeps being forgotten because no one bothers to keep it in the public's consciousness.

[Jernigan]

Any web cams on RIDA? Is there a way to successfully search oxblue? Only 2 cams that I know of are DPAC and Orlando Health had one.

[cwetteland]

There are cams on the citrus bowl.

[jrs2]

Any web cams on RIDA? Is there a way to successfully search oxblue? Only 2 cams that I know of are DPAC and Orlando Health had one.

I think that WP Construction updates the photo periodically.  Maybe the prior post automatically updates as they update their construction cam.

[John Hargrove]

Rising quickly. Toothpick fortress:

 

 

[JFW657]

Damn shame.

 

After nearly 30 years of that parcel sitting there empty we get a wooden shack.

 

Oh well... at least it will be easy to tear down when (hopefully) someone is ready to put a real building there.

[CaptainJustice]

This Project blows. Haha Sad for Orlando

[Pete C]

The first floor is made of concrete...it's quite tall too, so I guess they put wood on top of that. Is that common?

[jack]

Yes, if it is a podium. 

[Jernigan]

For every bit of missed opportunity that this project is, it's 100 bits more exciting and valuable than the status quo. And that's a 30 year status quo.

To me this represents one less unwalkable block, one less available land grab, more residents, more awnings, more retail that is in a geographic location to succeed, more ammo for SunRail supporters etc. I've said before that I don't understand how this is being built as residential when tons of businesses would like to be able to have NO connectivity issue with SunRail (meaning even a 1/4 mile walk is a concern for them). But while I don't get it, I still love it.

Drove down Orange today and between 800 N Orange, Residence Inn and CSS, it's a great time to be on board.

[Jernigan]

Some renderings from latest ARB focusing on the trail area

[CaptainJustice]

This is being built in phases right?

[Pete C]

For every bit of missed opportunity that this project is, it's 100 bits more exciting and valuable than the status quo. And that's a 30 year status quo.

To me this represents one less unwalkable block, one less available land grab, more residents, more awnings, more retail that is in a geographic location to succeed, more ammo for SunRail supporters etc. I've said before that I don't understand how this is being built as residential when tons of businesses would like to be able to have NO connectivity issue with SunRail (meaning even a 1/4 mile walk is a concern for them). But while I don't get it, I still love it.

Drove down Orange today and between 800 N Orange, Residence Inn and CSS, it's a great time to be on board.

 

I totally agree. I drove down Orange the other day for the first time since this thing started going up, and it really made a visual impact even with just the first floor there. It will completely transform the block in a good way, even if it is boring in design.

[jack]

For every bit of missed opportunity that this project is, it's 100 bits more exciting and valuable than the status quo. And that's a 30 year status quo.

To me this represents one less unwalkable block, one less available land grab, more residents, more awnings, more retail that is in a geographic location to succeed, more ammo for SunRail supporters etc. I've said before that I don't understand how this is being built as residential when tons of businesses would like to be able to have NO connectivity issue with SunRail (meaning even a 1/4 mile walk is a concern for them). But while I don't get it, I still love it.

Drove down Orange today and between 800 N Orange, Residence Inn and CSS, it's a great time to be on board.

There is a reason no office buildings in downtown have opened in 4 years. But the project looks good as is. If it was a tower, it probably would not be built to the sidewalk. 

[jrs2]

Well, I'll chime in too.

 

I would have preferred Skyhouse there, but, this is fine.  First floor and garage and elevator cores and stairwell cores are all concrete.  It's not NORA unfortunately.  Maybe concrete is still expensive?

 

Anyway, I too noticed the visual impact it made on the street scape.  And when you're walking from the courthouse garage to the courthouse and look across Orange Ave in that gap, this project already fills in nicely.

 

As long as its taller than the low rise courthouse buildings it will be ok.  Its way better than a vacant lot with a fence around it.

 

Once this is up and running and creates some semblance of synergy, then you'll see some good follow up projects nearby.

 

All things being equal, remember that this will be the first time ever that residential was located right there across from the courthouse.  I think that fact is probably more important than lack of a 30 story building in its place.

 

I foresee a plethora of residential mixed use projects getting built from there back to Garland and north to Camden.

[tm68]

jack -- interesting about probably not being built to the sidewalk if tower, making it like capital plaza, (more suburban campus like).  glad it will be built at street wall.

 

 

just for fun and an interesting comparision, compare central station and the magic development.

 

as currently proposed, they both are around $200 million projects built in phases, with office, hotels, apartments, retail, and parking garages with direct access to lynx and lymmo.

 

central station is proposed to contain double the office space, slightly more apartments, and direct access to sunrail.

 

magic entertainment district will have convention/expo space, a larger hotel,  and a flashier, high-profile plaza that is certain to be the location of many festivals and public events.

 

which is more livable, or not?  both or maybe neither?  different projects with similar budgets and both solid in their distinct ways. the good news is that we don't have to choose, because we are getting both.