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New Downtown Deal

tm68

By tm68
in Orlando

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cwetteland Burg

cwetteland

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Well, it make sense that the city, county, and Magic are talking about a little give and take. And I'm glad to hear it's about a new arena instead of a referbished T.D. Waterhouse. I think fixing up the Carr is a "nice" jesture. The shopping mall thing doesn't make sense unless (like the publix) it's a downtown mall. Now that would be cool. The city & county don't gain anything with a new mall out in sprawlsville.

A few years back city and county leaders went on a boondoggle to Indianapolis to see Conseco Fieldhouse where the Pacers play. At that time - pre 9/11 - they were thinking about a West Church Street location. Now if a downtown mall were a part of a large arena/shopping complex on west church it would all make sense.

Dyer has talked recently of top notch sports venues and a revitalized corredore between downtown and the stadium. He has also talked about doing to the west side of downtown what Thornton Park has done for the east side. Now wouldn't this all fit nicely into that plan. One more think for all you folks that are not happy with the FAA height limits on downtown. The further west you go the higher you can build. ... hey, it's ok to dream.

It doesn't seem that this specifically rules out PAC or Citrus Bowl rehab. Both mayors have said recently that keeping the Magic was a high priority. But neither ruled out the other options. One thing at a time. The PAC committee is still working on ideas and are to report out soon.

This is me speculating wildly from the little info given by Dale.

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cwetteland Burg

cwetteland

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OK .. at 11:00

"overhaul T.D.Waterhouse .. surround with stores, dorms, condos, apartments." Didn't mention Bob Carr tonight but it was a short story so it could have been left out for brevity. Magic will present plans in about 3 weeks. I suspect it will be a magor redesign to keep up with the league.

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knas167 Unincorporated Area

knas167

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I saw the six o clock story...they said a lot. Bob Carr renovation will add 1000 new seats. Marriot will build a new hotel right next to the existing one and the old Marriot will turn into dorms for the UCF Digital Arts School. They will add a mall to the north of the o'rena, condo's southeast of it, retail to the east...it seemed like the list went on and on. Oh, they said something about renovating the TD waterhouse to satisfy the Magic while they build a new one in the same area. As said above, they are expecting full plans in around a month. They said Dyer had said something to the effect of "It's time to move forward" concerning working with Crotty about having the tourist tax pay for it. Guess he got tired of waiting for the politics. They didnt mention anything about whether or not the renovation was a replacement for the new PAC Dyer wanted. Seems like a waste if they are still planning for a new PAC. Hopefully that's not the case. Hope that helps!

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tm68 Whistle-Stop

tm68

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sorry to leave you hanging -- i was out the door for dinner and the night but had the laptop handy.

so yeah, i guess now everyone knows the story -- renovate the waterhouse, add to the bob carr (not sure if I like that idea), and possilbly build a new hotel adjacent to marriott and a small mall adjoining the properties as well as a new building for nap ford charter school. i'll see what else i can dig up!

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cwetteland Burg

cwetteland

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I was all excited about this...until I read the article.

Or maybe I just missed the part where the Magic and their gazzillionaire owner are going to chip in.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

During half-time the Magic said they aggreed to look at the plans in a few days because of the reputation of the architech firm, but they are NOT optimistic that any rehab design will fit their needs.

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cwetteland Burg

cwetteland

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WESH - Is still running with this story ... They posted this today 31 January.

--------

The Orlando Magic are expected to have plans for renovating the TD Waterhouse Centre ready very soon.

The city would pay for the $50 million job by developing land around the arena, WESH NewsChannel 2 reported.

The Centroplex is 55 acres of downtown, which is prime real estate, and TD Waterhouse is the crown jewel. Renovation of the Magic's home would trigger the largest re-development in Orlando's history.

It's already begun inside the old Expo Centre, where the University of Central Florida is building its new film and digital media school. The school, which will open this year, will eventually be home to 3,500 students. But where would they live?

That's where the Marriott hotel comes in. The owners plan to replace it with a new all-suites hotel, and sell or lease the existing one for dorm space.

"It would make an ideal residence hall for students in the school of film and digital media," said Terry Hickey, UCF's provost.

Hickey said the combination of educational and living space could be the hub for a new downtown campus.

"When a strong research university partners with a strong city, they both can become even greater places," Hickey said.

As it is right now, the hotel has nearly 300 rooms that could easily be modified for dorm space. It also has dozens of rooms typically used for meetings and banquets that can be converted to classroom space.

A spokesman with Turnberry Associates, which owns the Marriott, said a new hotel, possibly high-rise condos and a large open-air mall could be built next to the arena in less than 2.5 years.

UCF should have a good deal of confidence in the huge arena development and a potential for a downtown campus. The developer, Kajima Urban Development, is also building the new UCF convocation center and dorms right on the UCF main campus.

Now, the school just needs to wait for the Magic to decide if a renovation of the arena makes sense.

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