Powering up Parramore: Two projects set to transform downtown area west of I-4 - Orlando Business Journal (2024)

Jeré Matheny's phone is ringing off the hook for one of his downtown Orlando properties.

The vice president of brokerage services for First Capital Property Group Inc. is handling the leasing for the 25,000-square-foot Shops at City View, attached to the City View apartment building in Parramore. Matheny said calls, including from retailers with large footprints, have come as two major moves are set to shift the development of Parramore, the historically Black, low-income downtown area immediately west of Interstate 4.

The first major change is San Francisco-based real estate development and investment firm JMA Ventures LLC and Houston-based development and venue advisory firm Machete Group working in a joint venture with the Orlando Magic on a $500 million, 900,000-square-foot, mixed-use project called Westcourt on 8.5 vacant acres to the north of the Kia Center.

The other is Travel + Leisure Co.'s plans to move its headquarters and more than 900 employees from the area near SeaWorld Orlando to downtown at 501 W. Church St.

"We’ve always articulated the vision for that side of town and told the story of the path of growth, but now that we have concrete evidence of the seismic shifts in the landscape on that side of I-4, we begin to field calls from national retail tenants who were interested in the rates offered for office and retail, but not sold on the development in that area and the possibilities for it," Matheny said.

Those projects come as the city is working on its roughly $30 million The Canopy urban gathering space project under Interstate 4, which will serve as a connection between Parramore and downtown east of I-4, said David Barilla, executive director of the city's downtown development board and community redevelopment agency. "They all come together to create a new anchor on our southwest side of downtown."

With that in mind, Orlando Business Journal dives into the two projects and how they will transform downtown Orlando and Parramore.

Westcourt nears construction

The Westcourt development — in which the Magic have a 20% stake and JMA, Machete and other undisclosed partners have the remaining ownership — long has been a proposal as the city conceptualized and in 2010 completed the arena now called the Kia Center.

The project had its first feasibility study in 2011, with entities tied to the Magic acquiring property over several years during the 2010s, including the former Orlando Police Department headquarters and Orlando Union Rescue Mission shelter. The Magic named a development partner in 2020, but the Covid-19 pandemic kept the project from kicking off.

The Westcourt project will include a 260-room hotel with 16,000 square feet of indoor meeting space, a 65,000-square-foot live events venue with capacity for 3,500 people, a 270-unit high-rise residential tower with 10 attainable housing units, about 125,000 square feet of retail space and 300,000 square feet of office space, which will include the new headquarters for the Magic. It also will include a festival plaza area and a 1,140-stall parking garage.

In April, the city of Orlando approved up to $40 million in property tax rebates to help the project move forward. In exchange, the development will include a dedicated retail space for small businesses, as well as space for vendors in the green space area.

David Carlock, a principal with Machete Group, said the goal is to bring its experience from prior projects so it can create a catalyst for downtown.

“Arena-adjacent mixed-use needs to stand on its own two feet," Carlock said. "Even a very successful arena is dark most of the time, so it’s critical that the project has its own identity, energy and sense of place.”

The goal is to do site work and preparation toward the end of this year, with full construction on the first phase starting in early 2025. The hotel, live music venue, retail and office space are targeted for completion in late 2026, and the apartments by early 2027.

Travel + Leisure move

Meanwhile, the Orlando-based timeshare/vacation ownership giant Travel + Leisure will lease the entire 182,461-square-foot building next to the Westcourt development.

The city will provide up to $2.27 million through its targeted international headquarters relocation incentive program and up to $4.04 million through the downtown community redevelopment agency's High Wage/High Value Job Creation Program, both of which are paid out only if the company fulfills its commitments. Travel + Leisure said it would invest $29 million in building out the office building, as well as create 102 new high-wage jobs over a five-year period and create an action plan to work with young people who live in the Parramore community.

Travel + Leisure's lease is a big deal, as it is the biggest for a downtown office building since 2019, according to 501 W. Church St. owner Piedmont Office Realty Trust Inc. (NYSE: PDM). The goal is to move by late 2025 or early 2026, depending on factors like buildout. The move was necessary because the lease for its current office will expire in 2025.

Kim Marshall, chief human resources officer for Travel + Leisure, told Orlando Business Journal the city incentives help offset the cost of the move, as it initially was looking to relocate in south Orlando, but was encouraged by city and Orlando Economic Partnership leaders to consider downtown.

"Yes, there will be some construction we will have to deal with next door, but we think it will be exciting," Marshall said. "It will be a good thing for downtown Orlando."

Long-term vision

The HQ move and new development also could help spur infill development in other parts of the Parramore neighborhood and nearby.

Ryan Young, co-founder and CEO of commercial construction and real estate development firm Interstruct Inc., has plans for a three-story, 12,097-square-foot office building at 802 W. Church St. near his company's headquarters at 814 W. Church St. Part of the reason Young's company bought property in Parramore and moved its headquarters there was to pursue "thoughtful development" in the neighborhood.

The move by Travel + Leisure (NYSE: TNL) and the Westcourt project likely will form the foundation for growth, but additional "neighborhood-centric development" will help form the long-term future of the community. That includes "organic, infill-focused projects" within the neighborhood, Young said.

"This is slow, patient work, lot-by-lot, not block-by-block," Young said. "The results are creative uses and concepts centered around appropriately structured density for the urban core, focused on a mix of housing typologies, which ultimately will allow for a more walkable Parramore neighborhood."

Barilla said the activity in Parramore fits in with the city's Project DTO 2.0, which focuses on long-term planning for the downtown area to become more of a neighborhood. As of April, downtown has more than 4,258 residential units in the pipeline.

"Traditionally, your downtowns were your economic centers and continue to be that, so it's making sure we serve the context historically of what downtown Orlando and downtowns across the country have been known for, which is those high-wage, high-caliber jobs that are there," said Barilla. "On the flip side, you can think about what the event center and meeting space will mean for people to come to the area, whether that is to come for a conference or enjoy a concert hosted there."

Matheny said many Parramore residents are excited to see some of the unused industrial property be redeveloped, but they want to make sure their voices are heard as plans are made to reshape their community. The development has the potential to grow the West Church Corridor toward West Lakes and to downtown, creating a less concentrated downtown core.

"With the deals that have been announced, the game is on in that particular area."

OTHER PROJECTS

Potential targets for future development

Orlando leaders have said in the long term that other properties could fit into the future of development in Parramore.

Mayor Buddy Dyer said he thinks the undeveloped property next to Inter & Co Stadium — home of Orlando City SC and the Orlando Pride — eventually could be developed in some form as a part of theWest Church Street corridor. An entity tied to the soccer team ownership owns the properties.

Team officials said no development plans are imminent, as the property is home to its Mane Street Plaza and Tailgate area, which includes movable trailers, booths and inflatable fan experiences, as well as parking.recently added a Heineken Star Bar and DJ deck, as well as new food and beverage options and a retail site powered by Fanatics.

"We are excited to see the Westcourt project come to life, and we seek to understand how we can be complementary to development projects in the Parramore community,“ the team said in a prepared statement.

Two of the properties — 114 S. Terry Ave. and 22 S. Terry Ave. — are zoned in a way that would allow either 30 to 100 dwelling units per acre and/or a floor area ratio of 0.5 to 1. The property at 625 W. Church St. was formerly a church and would have to be rezoned.

Parramore demographics

Population's race/ethnicity

Household income

Source: American Community Survey (2022) for Parramore's two census tracts