Neighborhoods

At street level, trendy restaurants, airy sidewalk cafes and stylish boutiques beckon passersby to stop and enjoy the hip, urban vibe of a revitalized downtown. Plus, a thriving late-night club scene keeps the city jumping long into the wee hours.

The rebirth of downtown Orlando reflects a trend reverberating throughout the country. Fueled by commercial investments in traditional downtowns and public/private partnerships created by Community Development Corporations, many once-forlorn urban centers are staging comebacks.

The appeal, in addition to a bustling ambiance, is multi-functionality. Downtowns offer places to live, work and be entertained, all in a relatively contained area and often in the same building, which may explain why the downtown area continues to boom despite a slowdown in suburban homebuilding.

Today, about 60,000 people work in downtown Orlando and about 17,000 live downtown, according to Thomas Chatmon, executive director of the Downtown Development Board/Community Redevelopment Agency. That number is changing rapidly as developments under construction near completion.

Living, working and playing downtown appeals to an array of homebuyers, from twentysomething singles and couples to baby boomers and empty nesters. The ease of maintenance-free condo living is an added bonus.

Anthony Bassile, 65, and his wife, Marianne, are typical of many empty nesters rediscovering city life.

“Back in the ‘80s, we thought about living downtown, but because of my daughter’s schooling, we chose to live in the suburbs,” says Bassile, one of the original residents of Heathrow, a luxurious suburb in Seminole County. “But once she was in high school, we started to look more seriously into moving.”

Bassile bought a condo unit at The Sanctuary on South Eola Drive in 2004. “I always wanted to be in a condo and not have the duties of maintaining a home,” adds Bassile, who still makes a reverse commute to his job in Heathrow.

For many, however, living downtown is appealing because it means less driving. John Camp, 36 and single, is a suburban escapee drawn to downtown because of convenience.

“After many years of living down in the Hunter’s Creek area and then two years of traveling around Europe, I decided that I wanted to live in an environment where I could walk to most places and rely on my automobile a lot less,” Camp says.

Camp works downtown and lives in The Waverly, downtown’s first condo conversion. He admits that living without a yard took some getting used to initially, but now he can’t imagine going back to the suburbs.

“Instead of constant outdoor housework, my free time now consists mostly of more time with friends, walking around Lake Eola and sitting at one of several wine bars downtown soaking up the atmosphere.”

Camp sees downtown not only as a great place to live, but a great place to invest. He recently bought one unit for a residence and two more for investment purposes at The Vue, a new condo high-rise at the corner of Rosalind Avenue and Robinson Street. He’s looking forward to moving in when the project is completed in October.

Realtors note that although the downtown condo market has softened somewhat, interest in living downtown remains strong.

“There are obviously more homes on the market than 18 months ago, but there are still a lot of buyers in the marketplace,” says Roger Soderstrom, owner of Stirling Sotheby’s International Realty. Soderstom’s company is opening a $4 million, 10,000-square-foot sales center, dubbed the Global Gallery, on the 16th floor of The Plaza, a new downtown high-rise.

Soderstrom believes amenities already in downtown or in development—such as a performing arts center, a multipurpose arena, a movie theater complex and more retail shopping—will further bolster interest in the urban core.

“We still have a large number of people who are on the sidelines, looking to see where the market will plateau,” Soderstrom says. “So right now there are some tremendous buying opportunities.”
Soderstrom notes that inventory is high, due in part to investors abandoning the market. But he says that the excess is being absorbed and that prices will resume their upward trajectory fairly soon. “Today’s prices are probably as good as we’re ever going to see,” he adds.

Indeed, the market for luxury condos in the downtown area seems to be holding steady. “Our market is not affected as much by mortgage rates and subprime [lending] issues,” says Steve Kodsi, president of Historic Creations Design Development Group, developer of The Sanctuary and Star Tower.

“For quality of life, you can’t duplicate a high-rise condo,” Kodsi adds. “There’s definitely a market for the kinds of amenities we offer, such as 24-hour security, concierge service, valet parking and an upper-floor pool and garden area.”

Eleven years ago, when Kodsi began his career building single-family homes downtown, there weren’t many high-rises. People who wanted to live in the city center generally had to renovate an older home or raze an aging structure and build a new one in its place.

Today downtown condos are everywhere, ranging in style from cozy studios for singles to sprawling spaces boasting multiple bedrooms and bathrooms. Prices can range from around the mid-$200s to more than $1 million, which ensures a vibrant mix of residents of various income levels and ages.

And while some condo builders in places such as South Florida are experiencing a free-fall in sales, so far downtown Orlando’s numbers are holding up reasonably well.

One reason, Chatmon believes, is that developers, working in partnership with the public sector, have taken a prudent approach and have avoided overbuilding, “There’s been a healthy public/private partnership here that’s benefited all of us,” he says.

Research by Richard Florida, Hirst Professor of Public Policy at George Mason University and author of the book The Rise of the Creative Class, offers intriguing insights into the lifestyle that appeals to people in creative and entrepreneurial fields, many of whom are some of the “new urbanists” populating downtown Orlando and other re-emerging downtown districts.

“Florida’s research found that these people buy a certain quality of life,” Chatmon notes. “They want diversity of population by gender, race, sexuality and age. They want a slice of bohemia. They want quality places to eat and entertain, and other cultural amenities.”

When these factors combine to entice people to live downtown, businesses follow them. That’s why many new condo developments encompass office space, retail space and restaurants.

However, a grocery store has been one amenity lacking in downtown Orlando for a long time.
That’s about to change. The Paramount on Lake Eola, a 16-story, mixed-use development across from Lake Eola on Central Boulevard, will include a Publix Urban Market.

“A centrally located downtown grocery store was the missing piece,” says Steve Patterson, CEO of ZOM, developer of The Paramount and The Waverly. “The need for a grocery store was something the city recognized and worked to make happen. Having a Publix in the heart of the city will be great for people in the building, but also for the downtown community.”

As downtown Orlando continues its transformation, it’s likely that more jobs will be created, which will bring more people and more retail and entertainment options.

“The thing about downtown is you have immediate access to new people, new ideas, the arts, music, events, food—all the things the creative class thrives on,” Patterson says.

Bassile agrees. “At the end of the day, looking out my windows and seeing the city always lit up, it just seems like there’s always life going on.”

DOWNTOWN'S BOOM

Following is a list of major projects either planned, under way or recently completed in downtown Orlando. For more information on downtown
developments check: www.downtownorlando.com.

Camden Orange Court: Four-story apartment complex with office and retail space, 650 North Orange Ave. Under construction.

Capital Plaza III: Condominium and office complex with hotel, retail and restaurant space, southeast corner of Rosalind Avenue and Pine Street. Not yet started.

Dynetech Center: 31-story apartment complex with office and retail space, corner of Magnolia Avenue and Washington Street. Will house the international headquarters of Dynetech Corp. Under construction.

East on Park: 13-story condominium complex. Not yet started.

The Jackson: Nine-story condominium complex, 521 E. Jackson St. Recently completed.

Luxparque: 18-story condominium complex, 31 units. Not yet started.

Magnolia Circle: 30-story condominium complex with ground-floor retail, 90 E. Livingston St. Not yet started.

The Monarch: 23-story residential condominium building with ground-floor retail. 300 E. Jackson St. Not yet started.

Paramount on Lake Eola: 16-story residential condominium complex with Publix supermarket and office space, 400 E. Central Blvd. Under construction.

The Plaza: 21- and 16-story office complex, 29-story condominium complex with retail space and a movie theater, 101 S. Orange Ave. Recently completed.

Presidential Tower: 41-story condominium complex with retail space on the first floor, between Garland, Gertrude, Jefferson and Washington streets. Not yet started.

Cristal: 26-story, mixed-used project with hotel and retail space, 170 E. Washington St. Not yet started.

The Sanctuary: 18-story condominium complex with office and retail space, 100 S. Eola Drive. Completed.

Star Tower: 18-story condominium complex with office and retail space, 421 E. Jackson St. Under construction.

Tradition Towers: Twin 39-story towers with condominiums, office and retail space, 150 E. Central Blvd. A connecting “sky bridge” will house University Club. Not yet started.

Verde: Twin 35-story apartment towers with retail space, southeast corner of Orange Avenue and Marks Street. Not yet started.

The Vue at Lake Eola: 35-story condominium and retail complex, 150 E. Robinson St. Under construction.

+1: 27-story, mixed-use complex with residential, retail and office space, 385 N. Orange Ave. Not yet started.

55 West: 34-story condominium and retail center within Church Street Market entertainment complex, 55 W. Church St. Under construction.

101 S. Eola Drive: Twin 12-story condominium complex on two corners of Church Street and Eola Drive. Phase one under construction.

205/215 E. Central Blvd.: 22-story hotel development with ground-floor retail. Not yet started.
421 Eola: 421 E. Robinson St., seven-story residential building. Not yet started.

445 North Magnolia: Seven-story condominium complex with ground-floor retail, 445 N. Magnolia Ave. Not yet started.