CNL’s Olympic Connection

It isn’t just ice skaters, hockey players and even a curler that Florida has contributed to this year’s Winter Olympics. Orlando-based CNL Lifestyle Properties made more than $23 million worth of improvements to its Cypress Mountain resort in recent years and expects to reap big benefits once all the medals are awarded.

CNL Lifestyle, which bought Cypress Mountain in 2006, made capital investments including a new high-speed chair lift, new ski runs and a new three-story, 48,000-square-foot base lodge. The improvements were planned in anticipation of Vancouver hosting the Olympics.

South Beach Drag

Hotels are affected just as much by their neighbors as other commercial real estate forms. The latest example would be Miami’s Tides South Beach, which seems to be having a little trouble with a “drag” show going on next door.

As detailed in the Inside Track blog by our ALM kindred publication Daily Business Review, the Tides is upset with the shows going on at The Palace and have called code enforcement several times. The Palace’s manager stopped short of calling the complaints “gay harassment” but wonders aloud what is up with all the calls.

Florida Must Change, And More

As my e-mail inbox fills up almost as fast as I can read everything, there are some items that are too good to put aside. Here are a few examples:
• Sean Snaith’s latest commentary in the University of Central Florida’s latest state and metro forecast makes a point many of us might have missed during the ongoing recession: Florida has long depended on population growth to fuel our economy, and now that wellspring appears to be drying up.

“The state was succeeding despite itself,” says Snaith, director of UCF’s Institute for Economic Competitiveness. “Then the housing boom went bust and population not only stopped robustly growing, it actually started to decline.”

Rebuilding Cypress Gardens

Anyone who has visited Winter Haven’s Cypress Gardens over the past several decades has fond memories of water-skiing shows, Southern belles and acres of lush landscaping. Unfortunately, all of that hasn’t been enough to attract newer generations of Florida tourists, especially with Walt Disney World just up the road in Lake Buena Vista.

And so the state’s oldest theme park, dating back to 1936, closes one history book and opens another with Thursday’s introduction of Legoland Florida, a new theme-park based on the popular building blocks. British-based Merlin Entertainments Group paid $22.3 million for the 150-acre property, which changed ownership several times in recent years but has been dormant since last fall.

Top CRE Stories of 2009

As we close the book on 2009, let’s take a quick look at some of the top stories involving Florida commercial real estate, ranked in no particular order:

• Transaction volume remained minimal throughout the year, largely blamed on a continued hard freeze in capital markets. Banks were continually reluctant to lend on major projects or purchases. Other sources are available but terms are tight.

• The Seminole Tribe of Florida continued negotiating with the state government over exclusive rights to Vegas-style gaming. New development on its reservations was at stake, including a new hotel in Tampa that promised to be the city’s largest. The tribe won over Gov. Charlie Crist but is having a tougher time convincing the Legislature.

Downtown Jax Worth Reviving

Jacksonville has arguably one of the prettiest city skylines in Florida, including three of the state’s largest office towers. However, a street-level view of the urban core reveals trouble that can’t be seen as easily from a scenic distance.

The Florida Times-Union published a detailed analysis of the current state of Downtown Jacksonville that covers ways to bring it back to life, borrowing concepts from other cities across the country. While being located along an ocean coast offers some advantages, it doesn’t insulate it from economic woes that affect every sector of commercial real estate.

Seminoles Put On Pressure

The Seminole Tribe of Florida, which already has a potentially lucrative gambling pact with Gov. Charlie Crist, is trying to convince the state Legislature to approve it. Their message, in so many words: We want it all and we want it now!

James Allen, CEO of gaming operations for the Seminoles, made the tribe’s wishes known at the Florida Gaming Summit on Tuesday in Hollywood, as covered by the Miami Herald. Lawmakers might have heard him better had he made his remarks in Tallahassee, but Hollywood just seems a friendlier venue to make an argument for more gambling, doesn’t it?

Cruel Summer for Orlando Hotels

A few random thoughts to close out a busy week…

• The summer tourist season was a tough one for Orlando, the nation’s second-biggest hotel market. According to a report by the Orlando Sentinel, only 58% of the market’s 112,000 rooms were filled in August, marking the worst month since Smith Travel Research started keeping track in 1987.

Huge discounts and other special offers didn’t help, with room rates down 14% over the year to around $76 per night. Theme parks won’t disclose how many people came through their turnstiles, though they did seem less crowded and the wait times for rides and attractions were shorter.

Cameron’s Crepes and Other Stuff

Here’s a six-pack for those of you who didn’t get enough during the opening weekend of the NFL:

• This sounds like something from a news parody site, but it’s legitimate scoop straight from the Orlando Sentinel: Cameron Kuhn, the former high-flying real estate developer, has established a crepe cart business with his wife, Traci Sihle.

Seriously, this is a guy who was once credited with redeveloping Downtown Orlando, and now he’s going to be selling crepes on the street. Well, he won’t actually serve them, but Sihle gives him credit for conjuring the idea.

Ready for RealShare, And More

A few notes and thoughts after clearing out the inbox from a long Labor Day weekend:

• You can now register online for our fourth-annual RealShare South Florida conference, set for Sept. 30 at the Hyatt Regency Miami. We will cover a broad range of topics in a single afternoon, from distressed assets and excess condos to the new wave of office space coming soon to the market.

Featured speakers will include Gene Berman of Marcus & Millichap, Tere Blanca of Blanca Commercial Real Estate, Michael Fay of Colliers Abood Wood-Fay, Keith Jennings of Westmount Realty Capital, Jose Juncadella of Fairchild Partners, Jonathan Kingsley of Grubb & Ellis, David Lynd of the Lynd Co., Jay Massirman of Rivergate Residential, Jack McCabe of McCabe Research and Eric Swanson of Flagler.