| How It Affects the Citizens and the Area So how does the construction and operation of a multi-million dollar complex impact the citizens of Orlando and Orange County? According to the Amway Center press release, “the massive construction project served as a boon to the local construction business in a time when jobs were scarce because of the sharp downturn of the nation’s economy. The Orlando Magic and City of Orlando worked closely with local minority and women-owned businesses — some of which were based out of the nearby Parramore community — awarding them with more than 30 percent of the contracts totaling $90-plus million, exceeding the 24 percent benchmark established by the City of Orlando. Of the 170-plus minority and women-owned firms who worked to construct the facility, 61 were African-American-owned firms, 51 women-owned firms, 36 Hispanic-owned firms, 20 Asian-American-owned firms and two Native-American-owned firms.” Parking in Downtown Orlando is expensive. The demand for parking has intensified with the recent opening of the Amway Center. While the arena has 18,500 seats, the new garage built next to it has 1,285 parking spaces and 600 of those are reserved for the Magic and premium-ticket holders. There are a total of 16 parking garages in the Downtown area totaling 7,475 parking spaces. Of those 7,475 parking spaces, 1,108 charge $20 per space and the other 6,637 charge $10. If the Amway Center sells out the arena for an event and at least 2 persons ride in vehicle, 1,775 parking spaces are still needed. Some innovative residents in the Amway Center neighborhoods are providing for this need by offering parking in their yards and driveways for a fee. The Amway Center is revitalizing downtown Orlando. The restaurants in the area are experiencing an influx of patrons. The new Mojo Cajun Bar & Grill already has become a pre-game hot spot, bringing in several times its normal revenue on nights that the Magic play, co-owner John SanFelippo said. Hamburger Mary's owner John Paonessa said business was up 40 percent last month. Baby Grands, a piano bar on Church Street, has also noted having a stronger clientele since the opening of the Amway Center. At Kres Chophouse, managing partner Billy Ray Deans said the Amway Center has helped his restaurant "100 percent." On nights the Magic play, Paradise Island can bring in four or five times as much moneycompared with other nights, co-owner Marjorie Brown said. Hotels in the area are also experiencing a higher occupancy since the Amway Center opened. Mark Moravec, general manager of the Sonesta Hotel in downtown Orlando, said he's not sure whether the arena or an improved economy is the main reason his occupancy rate is up. But he's thrilled his hotel is 92 percent full compared with a little more than 80 percent this time last year. "Either way, I don't really care — it still makes me feel good," he said. "It's nice that we're seeing year-over-year increases and that's the most encouraging thing." The Amway Center is also helping the community by assisting in charitable work. Recently, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey collected 2,950 pounds (nearly 1.5 tons) of food to help stock Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida (SHFBCF)’s pantry shelves during a drive-through food drive held at the Amway Center. The amount of food equates to approximately 2,000 meals to feed the needy in Central Florida. Those who donated food got a voucher and they can return to the Amway Center box office now through Jan. 13 to redeem vouchers for tickets to the upcoming Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey show. Many area high schools held their graduations in the old arena so there would be room for student to invite guests, but most who attended these graduations felt too far away from the actual graduation or too close to those sitting next to them. The graduations will now take place in the new Amway Center and with new 42-foot by 41-foot jumbotron, no one will feel too far away anymore. So the new Amway Center is actually a win-win for the residents and businesses of the City of Orlando and Orange County. The only downside, according the residents, is the traffic has increased in the Downtown area and even that is not a bad thing as it is bringing more business to the area. |