Downtown Orlando

On Saturday, December 14, the Orlando Downtown Arts District proudly celebrated the grand opening of the FORDify the Arts Courtyard at the historic Rogers Keene Building. This incredible new space will bring more of the arts to downtown Orlando while honoring the rich legacy of Church Street Station. Designed with sustainability and history in mind, the courtyard features repurposed materials from the iconic Church Street Ballroom. This revitalized space transforms a former alleyway into a hub for creativity, community, and connection. The event paid tribute to Bob Snow, the visionary founder of Church Street Station. 📍Located at 39 S. Magnolia Avenue, the FORDify the Arts Courtyard is now a vibrant new destination for public and private events.

Orlando City Council recently approved updates to the Orlando Community Redevelopment Agency's Façade, Restaurant, and Retail programs to further enhance downtown’s vibrancy and appeal. Highlights include funding for skyline lighting on high-rise buildings, supporting food halls to create diverse dining experiences, and expanding eligibility for recreational businesses such as fitness studios and entertainment venues. These changes aim to foster economic growth, attract more visitors, and reduce vacancies while creating a dynamic and thriving urban core. By investing in downtown’s aesthetics, dining, and retail spaces, we’re shaping a more vibrant and prosperous community for residents, visitors, and businesses alike.

This year’s Florida Blue Florida Classic delivered an electrifying weekend, showcasing the best of culture, music, and athleticism right here in downtown Orlando! In a thrilling matchup at Camping World Stadium, the Florida A&M Rattlers claimed victory over the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats, 41-38. The action-packed game kept over 56,000 fans on the edge of their seats, cementing its status as the largest HBCU football game in the nation. The Florida Classic continues to be a major economic driver for Orlando with an estimated economic impact of more than $30 million. The Florida Classic is more than a game—it’s a celebration of HBCU culture and a chance for the Orlando community to come together and honor this rich legacy. Since its inception in 1978, the Classic has drawn over 2 million attendees, creating a lasting impact on the city’s economy, culture, and vibrancy. A huge thank-you to all the players, bands, fans, and partners who helped make this year’s Florida Classic an unforgettable experience. We can’t wait to welcome you back next year for even more excitement in downtown Orlando!

Orange County and the City of Orlando are excited for "Canvas: A Cultural Plan for the City of Orlando and Orange County." This initiative aims to celebrate and grow the region’s vibrant arts and cultural assets through a shared roadmap. Currently in the Engagement and Research Phase, the plan relies on inclusive community input, with opportunities for residents to share ideas and shape future goals. To join the conversation, take the CANVAS community survey and help build a sustainable vision for arts, culture, and creativity across the region. Link to survey: https://lnkd.in/evdhCWGj

We’re incredibly proud to share that we have received an award from the Florida Redevelopment Association for Creative Project Funding and Redevelopment Partnerships – Large City, for our dedication to creating engaging, inclusive spaces in downtown Orlando. In 2023, we activated small, underutilized properties, turning two key corner sites into vibrant art gallery plazas as part of An Ode to Third Places. At 30 S. Orange Ave., we transformed the site with quick-build modifications and partnered with Visit Orlando on a global mural campaign. At 1 N. Rosalind Ave., a multi-year collaborative effort turned this space into a beautiful gateway to Lake Eola Park, featuring the Achromatic Aria Fresco celebrating Orlando's diversity. This wouldn’t have been possible without the support of the Orlando Economic Partnership, our City Commissioners, and our Mayor. Thank you to everyone who contributed their time and talents to bring this vision to life! #CRA #CommunityRedevelopmentAgency #FloridaRedevelopmentAssociation #Redevelopment #FLRedevel #FRA2024 #RedevelopmentWorks

Downtown Orlando just got even more vibrant with two incredible interactive art installations—POP! at City Hall Plaza and Prismaphonik at Luminary Green Park. Brought to life by Quartier des spectacles international, the creators behind last year’s Prismatica and The Loop, these installations are designed to engage, delight, and connect our community. POP! invites you to interact with towering monoliths that respond to your voice—whether it’s a word, a song, or a shout—with a mesmerizing display of lights and sounds. Meanwhile, Prismaphonik brings music and color together, lighting up prisms based on the energy of people nearby. Both installations are open daily now through January 5, 2025, offering unique experiences day or night. These installations support the CRA Plan’s mission to make art an essential part of our urban landscape, enriching our city with diverse, engaging, and accessible experiences for residents, employees, and visitors alike. Join us in celebrating the power of art in public spaces—strengthening community and creating unforgettable downtown experiences. POP! by Gentilhomme, a production of Quartier des Spectacles Partnership in partnership with Jack World, and Prismaphonik by William Simard and Antony Gagnon Boisvert a production of Gestion Willart. Distribution by QDSinternational.

As part of the DTO Action Plan to beautify and elevate the Lake Lucerne Gateway, we've added 100 floating flower beds. Each bed, spanning 4 feet in width, will showcase vibrant seasonal flowers that will be updated year-round. With 50 flower beds on each side, this installation offers a sustainable, self-watering display that requires minimal maintenance, adding a lasting, eye-catching touch of nature and design to our downtown. We invite you to visit Lake Lucerne at 125 N Lucerne Cir to see this unique floral installation in person and experience a fresh perspective on Orlando’s urban landscape!

Downtown Orlando's Curfew Update: At 5 p.m. today, the state of emergency curfew in the Downtown Entertainment Area will end. The curfew was enacted following a horrific act of gun violence that took the lives of two individuals in the streets of downtown last week. To ensure that downtown is safe and vibrant at night, the City of Orlando is working to take measures to end the street-party atmosphere during late-night hours, and encourage downtown visitors to patronize businesses. This will take effect starting the weekend of November 15 with the progressive opening of lanes through downtown, including Orange Avenue. This means pedestrians will be restricted to sidewalks when outside nightlife venues. While the reopening of Orange Avenue to vehicular traffic will take time, we hope that these additional efforts will create a safe experience in DTO while continuing to support our small businesses and nighttime economy.

This morning, we unveiled the DTO Action Plan—an evolved version of Project DTO 2.0. The plan is built around three big ideas: downtown is easy to get around; downtown is an iconic park; downtown is a neighborhood for everyone Key highlights include: Converting Magnolia Avenue from a one-way to two-way street with wide sidewalks, pedestrian-friendly amenities that will attract more retail and restaurant options. Transforming Orange Avenue to a two-way street, slowing down pass through traffic, adding more curbside uses such as parking, pick-up and drop-off zones, outdoor dining areas and gathering spaces. Making Lake Lucerne, downtown's southern gateway, a signature park with jogging paths, a boardwalk and playgrounds. Reestablishing Church Street as a gathering space and festival street for all kinds of events. These projects will reshape our urban core, making DTO a more vibrant, dynamic, welcoming place for all. Learn more at projectdto.com.

Over the next few years, creating people-oriented streets and park spaces that better serve residents, visitors and businesses will help every person find themselves in our downtown. During yesterday's Downtown Orlando Partnership State of Downtown, City of Orlando Mayor Dyer shared parts of the DTO Action Plan that will transform areas to ensure they are walkable for people and welcoming for restaurants and retail. Anchored by the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, Magnolia Avenue will go from a one-way street into a two-way road with wide sidewalks and pedestrian-friendly amenities. By adding jogging paths, a boardwalk and playgrounds, Lake Lucerne will become a leisure destination. Church Street will again serve as a gathering place and festival street for all kinds of events. These are big, long-term projects that will help reshape our urban core, and make it more vibrant and interesting while creating a downtown for everyone.