Swing by College Park this Friday, September 16th, and check out the pop-up parks lining the street until 7 PM. This annual event by the City of Orlando converts parking spaces along the street into miniature Parks for one day, bringing attention to the importance of recycling. UCF has spot #1. And the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) is one I want to see. They have 2 spots #12 and #13. At least two of our architecture firms in town have entered. HHCP’s parking

AIA Florida has released the 2016 Peoples Choice competition. AIA Orlando has 3 buildings in the competition this year, Morimoto Asia, Daytona International Speedway, and Cameo Theater. Be sure to get your votes in! Here is the link to vote: http://floridapeopleschoice.com/ The list of buildings in our area can use our support to move up the list. To vote you will need to like them by clicking the Facebook LIKE button beside the photos. This is different than last year. You w

In less than a year the American Institiute of Architects National Convention is coming to Orlando! In order to showcase our impressive local architecture and city, and to garner individual support of educational tours, programs, and activities by AIA Orlando’s Local Host Committee, the Orlando Foundation for Architecture has launched the 365 Challenge! We hope to raise $5000 dollars to fund this effort. We have raised over 10% but still have far to go. Any amount is apprecia

Our local Greater Orlando Chapter of the Construction Specifications organized in 1966. The national CSI organization grew fast in its early years, and within 15 years had inspired local architects to establish a chapter. Like the local AIA chapter, they were one of the strongest and largest in the nation. Over the years, their influence has grown, receded and grown, and they are still working hard to continue the mission, which is the heart of the CSI Institute. Below is a q

Orlando Fashion Square mall is set to get some new development — bringing with it some future shoppers and diners. Atlanta-based Trammell Crow Residential Co. plans to tear down the existing 40,000-square-foot Anthem College building on Maguire Boulevard northeast of the mall and build in its place a new 356-unit, four-story Class A apartment complex, city of Orlando documents showed. Charlan Brock and Associates Inc. architects developed the designs above. You can view a sit

The therapy center, designed by RLF Inc. is three stories and 15,000 square feet, and will hold a Mevion S250 superconducting synchrocyclotron proton accelerator — the most advanced radiation technology for treating brain, spine, prostate, lung, breast, head, neck and pediatric cancers, according to Orlando Health. It’s located at 1400 S. Orange Ave. in Orlando. The frosted glass walls surrounding the building open to the sky like petals of a flower. The exterior brick ties t

Here is a link to the announcement on the History Center website: http://www.thehistorycenter.org/historical-society-honors-orlando-trailblazer-isabel-roberts-with-gravestone/ And here is a link to our short biographical post on Isabel Roberts: https://orcadblog.wordpress.com/2015/05/25/isabel-roberts-helped-shape-early-orlando-architecture/ And here is a link to our short biographical post on Ida Annah Ryan: https://orcadblog.wordpress.com/2014/08/18/first-female-us-archite

Florida Hospital has just opened their $65 million, three-story, 97,000-square-foot emergency center and 32 bed outpatient facility located at 2000 Fowler Grove Blvd. Earl Swensson Associates, Inc. (ESa) , were the architects. You can see more photos and read the entire article by Rachel Williams in the Orlando Business Journal: http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/blog/2016/02/first-look-inside-florida-hospital-winter-garden.html?ana=e_du_pub&s=article_du&ed=2016-02-12&u=dymwE

Walt Disney World in Florida has been busy Expanding and re-branding their Downtown Disney retail and restaurant district, which provides a focal point to the WDW hotel experiences. Hotel guests can take a bus or water taxi from their resort hotel to the District which originally opened as Lake Buena Vista in the 1970’s. Now, as Disney Springs, this expansion is more than doubling the size of the complex adding about 70 new shops and restaurants. The final phase of the expans

I-4 in downtown Orlando (AP Photo/John Raoux, File) The City of Orlando is brainstorming a new park under the I-4 corridor downtown, when the highway expansion project is finished. An opportunity to reconnect both halves of downtown from the Amway Center to Creative Village. Bruce Stephenson, an Urban Planning Professor at Rollins College, explores ideas to consider in this visioning process. He reviews other successful parks, and observations on John Nolan’s early planning i

The Yard is a mixed use complex ready to break ground any day. It will stretch from Virginia, north, almost to Lake Formosa along the east side of the SunRail tracks, and relocate Alden Road. Its 7 story apartment façade will have great views across Lake Ivanhoe beyond, and it includes 630 residential and about 56,905 square feet of commercial space. The aesthetic is industrial Chic, with lots of exposed cross-braced steel framing, glass and brick. A Phase 2 expansion of the

Placing number 2 for activities, and No. 12 for Healthcare, Orlando’s overall score in Wallet Hub’s survey of best places to retire ranked Orlando No. 5 overall. WalletHub compared the retirement-friendliness of the 150 largest U.S. cities across 24 key metrics, ranging from the cost of living to the percentage of the elderly population and the availability of recreational activities. Read the whole article in the Orlando Business Journal: http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/m

In an unusual move for Orlando,  instead of razing a structure to build new, Mark Kinchla has transformed the former United Pentecostal Church near downtown into five townhomes. Each unit has three stories, a garage for two cars, its own elevator, exposed historic brick and rooftop-terrace view of the Orlando skyline. It will be called: Samsara, which is Sanskrit for rebirth. Built in 1928, the building is not, by itself, on the National Register of Historic Places. But it is

A proposed memorial, developed by the Navy League, passed the Orlando City Planning Board review last week. It is meant to inspire today’s youth and honor sea service men and women and their families: past, present and future. The memorial will help to convey our city’s appreciation to the men and women in the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and Merchant Marine who voluntarily put their lives in harm’s way to protect freedom. It is to be located in Blue Jacket Park, the

The Daily City just shared news of a new program the City of Orlando is pursuing. Orlando is establishing a formalized design guidebook and corridor selection for the implementation of Complete Streets in the City of Orlando, which will address the unbalanced transportation system that leans heavily toward the automobile. Recent research suggest that approximately 75% of the population drive to work in a single occupant vehicle. By adopting a Complete Streets policy, the City

We have covered some of their local projects on this blog before, check the links below: AECOM- https://orcadblog.wordpress.com/2014/03/24/va-orlandos-community-living-center/ Jacobs- https://orcadblog.wordpress.com/2014/08/08/elegant-turnpike-service-plazas-raise-the-bar/ HKS- https://orcadblog.wordpress.com/2014/06/02/florida-international-university-parkview-student-housing/ https://orcadblog.wordpress.com/2015/02/15/ormc-presents-their-new-patient-tower/ https://orcadblog

Universal’s  1800 Room Cabana Bay Beach Resort is Universal’s latest addition to its collection of on property guest resorts adjacent to its Universal Studios and Universal Islands of Adventure Theme parks. This property was featured in last month’s issue of Architectural Record Magazine. The company’s three previous local properties are classified as deluxe accommodations, and Universal wanted to add a moderately priced amenity. “We kept coming back to the ‘drive-to’ vacatio

Phil Kean Design Group focuses their design studio on Modern styling. The houses they have designed are sleek, clean and spacious, with an open flow between the inside and outdoor entertainment areas. Sign up for this AIA Orlando event, and be treated to an exclusive presentation by Phil Kean Design Group on the ‘Way Cool Homes’ model & then get an exclusive tour where you can see some of the amazing design for yourself. WHEN: Thursday, July 23, 2015 from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM (

Last Week’s celebration highlighted the 2nd restoration of the Atlantic Coast Line’s railroad station built in 1926. The renovation undertaken by the City of Orlando, in conjunction with the Florida Department of Transportation, Orlando Health, Amtrak and The Collage Companies cost over $2 million. This Amtrak station is adjacent to the Orlando Health SunRail stop. Designed by the station’s architect, A.M. Griffin of the Atlantic Coast Line, in the Mission Revival style, the

The city had envisioned a hotel on the site during planning, and only one team submitted a response to the city’s request for proposals. The city plan shows a hotel with parking flanking each side of Seneff Arts Center Plaza, where the city plans to host more outdoor concerts, like the Sheryl Crow concert in front of the New Performing Arts Center, which was held during opening week last fall. Hotel guests on the outdoor terraces of these future developments could watch conce