Blossom Park Condominiums, long an
eyesore near the Florida Mall and a nuisance for sheriff’s
deputies who were called there 200 times over the past five
years, will soon face the wrecking ball, according to an
agreement signed by its new owners.
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Blossom Park, a former Days In motel now in ruins, has been forgiven of millions of dollars of Orange County code-enforcement fines to allow for new owner Sands Capital to tear down and redevelop the property. |
Cordero said the rundown complex was
an unsightly welcome for arriving tourists and
conventioneers headed to hotels and theme parks as they
would pass the rotting, graffiti-tagged buildings as they
drove the Bee Line Expressway from Orlando International
Airport.
The former motel was a haven for crime until code violations
shuttered it.
In 2014, Orange County sheriff’s deputies investigated three
murders there.
A deputy’s report in one of the killings described Blossom
Park at the time as “a high drug area, heroin in
particular...”
Now, signs on fencing encircling the complex warn that the
property is unsafe for human habitation.
Landstreet Project LLC, an affiliate of Sands Capital,
bought the seven-acre property for $4 million in March,
according to a report by GrowthSpotter. The seller was
listed as Harry Collison Jr., termination trustee for the
Blossom Park Condominium Association, Inc.
Orange County Property Appraiser Amy Mercado confirmed the
sale price.
Development consultant Jim Hall said the company is planning
a community of 250 apartments in mid-rise buildings,
typically four to six stories high. Hall submitted a request
last week to the county to rezone the property from
industrial use to a mixed-use planned development.
“It’s a great location for apartments,” he said, noting its
close proximity to bus stops, the Florida Mall and other
employment centers. “There are so many jobs around there,
adding some mix-use properties makes all the sense in the
world.”
In November, Sands Capital began negotiating with the county
to reduce accrued fines as part of an action plan to knock
down the eyesore and redevelop the site. The company agreed
to get permits within 45 days and finish demolition within
nine months.
The agreement, approved by a code-enforcement magistrate,
settles all code and fire-safety cases for $500,000.