Florida in 2011: Celebration, Clearwater, Orlando, Jacksonville

Cirrus · #1 Posted **Aug 5, 2013, 7:17 PM**

I have family in Florida, and as a result have been there the past 2 Christmases. I never bothered to upload these pictures until this weekend:

First, Celebration. If you're not familiar with it, Celebration is one of the more famous 1990s-era new urbanist communities. Basically, it's a suburban subdivision designed to be walkable, like a small town. Since central cities became much healthier over the last 10-15 years these sorts of developments now seem... unnecessary. But in the '90s they were all the rage, and I do think the baby step towards urbanism they provided did play a vitally important role in convincing Americans that everything doesn't have to be a strip mall. Anyway, if you think of them as "better suburbs" rather than as replacements for cities, they're OK.

Celebration has a little town center that fronts on a lake. Behind it are the residential neighborhoods.

One of the major complaints about '90s era new urbanism is that's all too perfectly manicured and idealized. In Celebration this is immediately obvious with the town logo, a child on a bike with a dog.

But Celebration goes way above and beyond most other new urbanist neighborhoods. It's owned by Disney, and is plastered in friendly-looking but fascist-sounding signs that constantly tell you what you're not allowed to do. It's an incredibly Stepford Wives-like vibe.

And that's all there is to that.

I did promise other cities in the title, so here you go. You're going to feel cheated, but there's nothing you can do about it now.

A lone blurry picture of Jacksonville, from I-95.

Downtown Orlando's skyline, as seen from the Citrus Tower observation deck, some 25 miles west in the town of Clermont, atop some of Florida's highest hills.

Clearwater Beach:

Clearwater's downtown bus depot (you didn't expect a thread from me without transit, did you?)

One of the many buildings in downtown Clearwater owned by the Church of Scientology.

And finally, just to reward you for sticking through this painful thread, a nice shot of Orlando's skyline, taken from an airplane in 2009.

Danny · #2 Posted **Aug 5, 2013, 8:21 PM**

Well done, Cirrus! Great pictures.

It´s never late to share so nice pictures of Florida. I have an special affection with that sunny and beautiful state. I appreciate this thread and pictures.

Three times in Florida and wishing to go back there again.

Congrats and greetings from Madrid, Spain.

Cirrus · #3 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 2:07 AM**

I found a couple more from a 2010 trip.

Jacksonville:

Tampa:

plinko · #4 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 3:23 AM**

You sound like me talking about trips to Florida. My inlaws live in Orlando and I am subjected to its charms at least 2X a year. Never heard of the citrus tower, I'll have to check it out. I was planning on visiting the tower out in Haines city next time, curious if you can see the skylines of Orlando and Touristlandia.

atlantaguy · #5 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 4:26 AM**

Celebration is just too much for me. I much prefer Baldwin Park, which is actually IN Orlando on the site of the old Navy base. Hopefully you've checked that out on your visits.

And WOW at the sprawling subdivisions all the way out to the Citrus Tower!!!! That area was nothing but beautiful rolling orange groves all the way to the horizon when I was in High School. Absolutely unreal.

And great aerial of Downtown on final approach. I still like the core of the metro, especially the hoods around Downtown, Winter Park and Maitland.

And of course, New Smyrna Beach.

Check it out if you haven't on a future visit, it's North Orlando's favorite beach town and the third oldest City in Florida.

Thanks for sharing, Cirrus!

mrnyc · #6 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 8:35 AM**

celebration, disney and the rest of the sprawl around orlando disturbs me much more than most places. the everglades watershed is so fragile. a shame.

Ex-Ithacan · #7 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 11:11 AM**

Celebration looks too .................. perfect. No surprise it's a Disney creation.

Love that aerial of downtown Orlando which is unrecognizable from the 70s:

source:http://www.urbanplanet.org/forums/in...orlando/page-3

Thanks for the mini tour Cirrus

brickell · #8 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 2:03 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by plinko

You sound like me talking about trips to Florida. My inlaws live in Orlando and I am subjected to its charms at least 2X a year. Never heard of the citrus tower, I'll have to check it out. I was planning on visiting the tower out in Haines city next time, curious if you can see the skylines of Orlando and Touristlandia.

I'm not familiar with a tower in Haines City. Are you thinking of Bok Tower in Winter Haven? I'm not sure you can even go up that one. But the tower and grounds are nice enough. I haven't been since I was a kid though.

Citrus Tower is the antithesis of Bok Tower. It's not pretty at all, but the views are ok. You get the whole scope of Central Florida. Plenty of hills in the area will give you similar views. You can get a panoramic view of all the different fireworks shows from the right spots. Sprawl is eating up that part of Central Florida pretty quickly though. Like Atlantaguy says, it used to be orange trees for miles and miles. Now it's subdivisions and chain stores.

We had a thread about towers once. Maybe I'll start one up again. Florida likes them.

photoLith · #9 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 2:19 PM**

Celebration is so sterile, but eh, it was a good but futile effort at new urbanism and was probably the first major new urbanist development in the states.

atlantaguy · #10 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 3:12 PM**

Here's the site for Baldwin Park, a new urbanism development integrated into Orlando's near-east neighborhoods.

http://www.baldwinparkfl.com/

Cirrus · #11 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 4:11 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by photoLith

Celebration is so sterile, but eh, it was a good but futile effort at new urbanism and was probably the first major new urbanist development in the states.

Seaside (also in FL) was the first, and Kentlands (MD) was the 2nd. Celebration was in the next wave after the initial experiments, along with I'On (SC) and a few others.

destroycreate · #12 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 4:40 PM**

Damn Orlando is way bigger land-wise than I thought! It really sprawls.

mousquet · #13 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 5:19 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cirrus

But Celebration goes way above and beyond most other new urbanist neighborhoods. It's owned by Disney, and is plastered in friendly-looking but fascist-sounding signs that constantly tell you what you're not allowed to do. It's an incredibly Stepford Wives-like vibe.

Bah, come on, that's a an exaggerated cliché nowadays, isn't it? As fairly libéral as I may be, I swear I like the older Disney work, just can't help it.
And this seems fair to me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cirrus

Well yes, those poor innocent and dumb creatures sure don't need us to fairly survive.

People are way more dangerous than crocodiles.

dave8721 · #14 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 5:52 PM**

Yeah, those signs have nothing to do with Celebration, you see them everywhere in Florida, because..well...it is illegal to feed or harass alligators, with good reason. Harassing them tends to get you bit, feeding them tends to get other people bit.

Cirrus · #15 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 6:45 PM**

OK. Give them a pass on the gators. How about the other two?

Do "park closes at dusk" signs in your city threaten you with the town code citation and a big Trespass with a capital T? Do they then try to friendly up the message with an insincere italicized thank you? And are there big signs at your town's parks saying only people who live there allowed to walk down the sidewalk? 'Cause they sure don't where I live.

mousquet · #16 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 6:58 PM**

^ Right, right! Easy, easy... I can't even see them when logged in but these are abusive signs indeed.
Just give them a little time, okay? Please. Please! Give them a little time to get easier, then it's fine.

SignalHillHiker · #17 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 8:34 PM**

Wow, so glad to see this thread! A massive new development in my city (which will be, on its own, one of the largest towns in the province) is beginning construction here. Celebration, Florida and some European developments were the main planning inspirations. Glad to see it's FAR superior to the typical urban sprawl we've been getting.,

Cirrus · #18 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 8:37 PM**

^
If you're going to have greenfield development (ie a "new town") then new urbanism is indeed a great way to do it.

Celebration's overzealous social regulations are more or less a separate issue.

brickell · #19 Posted **Aug 6, 2013, 9:38 PM**

Honestly, I don't see it as a Celebration thing so much as it is a suburban thing. Especially wealthy suburbs. At least through most of Florida.

bunt_q · #20 Posted **Aug 7, 2013, 4:33 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cirrus

^
If you're going to have greenfield development (ie a "new town") then new urbanism is indeed a great way to do it.

"If you're going to have greenfield development"? You've gotta get out of the urban core more! I'm willing to bet that even in DC, as a percentage of overall metropolitan growth, a solid majority is not infill. (I'd check but I don't know the counties well enough to do it quickly.) I think it's bold... Or just wrong... To even hint that the need for a better suburb has passed just because cities are desirable again. We could do a lot worse than Celebration for sure.

Zealous social regulations... Maybe just a Florida thing? It is sort of the land of vigilante neighborhood watch groups, after all.