ORLANDO, Fla. – On the shores of Lake Ivanhoe just north of Downtown Orlando, Ivanhoe Village has long been known for its unique shops, dive bars, and restaurants, but it’s becoming a popular place to live.
Back in the early 1900s, the Lake Ivanhoe Area was at the center of the United States pineapple industry. One newspaper named Orlando “the mother of the pineapple business.”
The charming, cultured, laid-back and walkable Main Street District was a big reason Jeff Starks wanted to open his small boutique shop Maffrey’s in Ivanhoe Village.
“When we had the opportunity to open up a business, Ivanhoe Village was at the very top of my list,” Starks said. “We were fortunate enough to land a spot here, especially along Swanson’s Ivanhoe Row. It’s one of the more iconic spots that people recognize.”
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The area’s desirability is now fueling residential development.
Two high-rise apartments have opened in Ivanhoe in recent years — The Yard and Lake House — and two more 14-story towers are planned for the future.
One of the proposed mixed-use developments will feature 252 units along with commercial space on the first floor. Plans call for redeveloping the 1.3-acre property at 1155 N. Orange Avenue, which has long been home to Lightstyle of Orlando and Workscapes.
The other 14-story high-rise, slated to go up near the DoubleTree by Hilton, will also have retail space with an additional 312 units.
“Are we mad about the added foot traffic? No. Are we sad things will look more concrete and stark? Yeah,” Starks said. “I think a lot of us in Orlando know Ivanhoe Village as a very quaint and charming place aesthetically. I think when the buildings don’t match the aesthetic that can kind of throw things off.”
To accommodate the growth of Ivanhoe Village, work is also underway to replace aging sewer lines along Orange Avenue. The project, now more than two months in, has backed up traffic and impacted nearby businesses.
Clint Vaughn, a service manager at Ski World, says the project has temporarily taken away all of their parking spots.
“It definitely negatively affected the Greek Corner and everyone else,” Vaughn said. “We all would talk about it. Not only the road being closed, but they’re doing sewage, so it doesn’t smell great.”
He says meshing cars and people through that stretch of Orange Avenue has also gotten more challenging and more dangerous.
“It’s sketchy,” he said. “People have been hit at this intersection and even down at the crosswalk. They are changing the layout, which I’m all for. Slowing people down and kind of making it into a Park Avenue, Winter Park-type area is going to be great.”
Transportation leaders have big plans for the stretch of Orange Avenue through Ivanhoe. They want to slow down traffic and add more street parking by making it a two-lane road as well as making changes to improve pedestrian safety.
“I’d love to see the area keep growing at a sustainable rate,” Vaughn said. “Otherwise, my escape — I’ll always just be on the lake.”
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