Old library undergoing rezoning for Blue Bamboo

The performing arts center’s director said construction could begin as soon as November

Aug. 9, 2024

By Zoey Thomas

Blue Bamboo Center for the Arts is a step closer to opening in the old Winter Park Public Library building.

Planning and Zoning board members approved changing the property’s classification from residential to PQP, or “public, quasi-public,” at a meeting on Aug. 6. The City Commission already voiced their approval of the change and is scheduled to formally vote on the matter on Wednesday.

“Functionally, it’s kind of a box check,” said Alex Stringfellow, a Planning and Zoning board member, at the meeting.

In order for Blue Bamboo to function as a public property, the board also had to approve changing the definition of a PQP itself to include “performance art venues together with ancillary gallery, educational, rehearsal, recording studios and offices to support the like, within a city- owned building.”

All members voted in favor of the changes except Bill Segal, who said he voted against it for “technical” reasons — he didn’t appreciate the way the issue came before the board, he said.

The zoning change will come back to city commissioners for final approval and public comment before Blue Bamboo can submit its official drawings for the building and get things “up and running,” said Chris Cortez, the center’s director.

Cortez told the Voice he feels confident the final steps will go “according to plan.” Two commissioners would have to flip their votes to block the zoning change from passing, which he said he doesn’t anticipate.

“No one has expressed to me that we’ve lost any of their support for this project,” he said. “There is a long shot chance that everything could change, and we would all feel like we wasted a lot of time, but it doesn’t seem very likely.”

Rather than losing support, Cortez said the monthslong process of winning the building over Rollins College, hammering out the lease and navigating zoning changes has only drawn more support from the community.

That includes from sponsors who have reached out to Cortez about offering the center money in exchange for advertisements and promotion, he said.

If the zoning vote at the City Commission on Wednesday turns out in Blue Bamboo’s favor, Cortez predicts construction will begin in November at the earliest.

Commissioners were initially hesitant to take away the property’s residential zoning classification for fear of setting a precedent that could upset people living in the area.

One person, Jess Bailes, spoke against the change at the planning and zoning meeting. He said his neighborhood near the library building already faces traffic and parking issues stemming from the Alfond Inn, which will only be made worse once Blue Bamboo, which he called was “almost a bar,” opens.

As the executive vice president of ABC Fine Wine & Spirits, the Florida-based alcohol chain store that originally opened as a bar, Bailes said he understood the problems that could be caused by serving liquor.

“I had a hundred bars at one point, and we have zero now for a reason,” he said.

Cortez said he wants to be a “good neighbor” to residents living near the building. He hopes to look into options to reduce traffic flow, including offering discounts to visitors who use ride share platforms like Lyft or letting Alfond Inn use his parking lot for overflow parking during Blue Bamboo’s off hours, he said.

“I really want to be given an opportunity to be a man of my word,” he said. “I say I’m going to address parking concerns and traffic, I really intend to do that. So I’m going to have to get in there and prove myself to these people.”

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