Potential Park Avenue corridor building project gets mixed reactions

Winter Park could see a major addition to its historic downtown – one that could change the skyline along Park Avenue.

A development project for a 53,000-square-foot, three-story office building combined with retail, restaurant space, and basement parking is being pursued by Battaglia Group Management, LLC, which is looking to break ground at the parking lot at 158 E. New England Ave. next to the Häagen-Dazs Ice Cream Shop.

The lot sits just off of Park Avenue, causing a mix of reactions from local residents on Facebook due to the building’s large size.

“I miss our lovely little town,” resident Molly Friedman Losey wrote. “Pretty soon our distinctiveness may vanish and we may be anywhere USA.”

Other residents saw the development as an upgrade.

“It will look nice,” resident Laura Peters Armstrong wrote. “Great use of that dilapidated lot.”

“The architecture is nice and will fit that part of New England.”

Resident like Geri Howell wrote that the parking along Park Avenue needs to be preserved.

“That lot serves as a pay parking lot,” Howell said. “We don't need any more buildings. We need more parking! Pretty soon people will stop coming to enjoy the charm that is Park Ave because they can't find parking! I hear it everyday!”

Battaglia Group also owns the six-story, 97,000-square-foot building just across the street, home to Luma on Park and a Bank of America. The building originally sported a modern mirror window look, but was given a $7.2 million facelift in 2004 to give it a more classical look in character with the rest of Park Avenue, according to the Orlando Business Journal.

City spokesman Craig O’Neil said Winter Park has not yet received an official proposal for the project along New England Avenue.