New look for Killarney

A planned lakefront shopping center beside Lake Killarney could boost the local economy with an array of unique shops – adding to Winter Park’s collection of specialty stores and destinations.

The 36,000-square-foot Lakeside Winter Park development will feature a Trader Joe’s, a personal training business and a Paddleboard Orlando board shop, among other retailers.

Construction is set to start in late July after the demolition of an existing office building, and Orlando-based land developers Unicorp National Developments hope to see their new project thrive.

“We’re creating not just a shopping center, but really a sense of place,” said Amy Schuemann, director of leasing at Unicorp National Developments. “We’ve got a beautiful site right on the lake that we’re going to take advantage of.”

The development will include a bank and a restaurant, as well as a garden area by the shore for sightseeing and picnics.

Visitors will also be able to ride paddleboards off a new dock at the adjacent lake, with paddleboard demonstrations provided by Paddleboard Orlando.

“We’ve got some unique concepts coming in that are new emerging concepts to the market, so we think that along with a prime location, it’s going to attract a lot of customers, not only from Winter Park, but from all over Orlando,” Schuemann said.

The combination of the Paddleboard Orlando shop and the personal trainer will give the area a “fitness lifestyle” feel, and will attract more people to the development, Schuemann said.

A development with that brings a new mix of locations and stores to Orlando could give the area an economic boost, said UCF economist Sean Snaith.

“I think projects like this have an impact on the community in a couple of ways,” Snaith said. “One is the whole phase of construction, which will create jobs and economic activity in Winter Park, and then, once the buildings are up, the economic benefit comes from the activities that are being carried out in those buildings.”

Snaith noted that shopping centers like Lakeside Winter Park allow for a much broader range of retail in the city.

“There’s limits to what you can do on Park Avenue,” Snaith said. “For these larger retailers, there’s not really a place for them on the Park per se, but there are certainly opportunities for it to succeed in other parts of Winter Park.”

Mayor Ken Bradley said he sees the addition of another unique shopping center in Winter Park as testament to the city’s ability to draw people from around Orlando.

“It speaks to the Winter Park brand, along with us being a destination,” Bradley said.

“I’m personally very excited about the new development. I think it’s a wonderful location and I’m excited to see, what I think, will be a very active center of commerce, entertainment and shopping.”

Lakeside Winter Park is set to open in late spring 2014.