Talk to Hotel Developer – Farmers Market Event Tonight
Editor's Note: Articles written by citizens reflect their own opinions and not the views of the Winter Park Voice.Talk to Hotel Developer – Farmers Market Event Tonight
This evening at 6:00 to 7:00 pm at the Farmer’s Market, developer Adam Wonus will be available to answer questions about the proposed Henderson Hotel.
Opinion by Adam Wonus, Developer of the Henderson Hotel at Lake Killarney
The Henderson Hotel at Lake Killarney takes its name from the Henderson family who owned and operated the Lake Shore Motel on the site next to the proposed Henderson Hotel at Lake Killarney. The proposed hotel site consists of approximately 2.6 acres of lakefront property. As with any new project, there are questions and concerns. Below are answers to some of the questions I have received.
- Will the Hotel Provide Lake Access to Its Guests? We will not. We will post signs warning guests to stay out of the lake. The four docks currently on the site will be replaced by a single dock, available for photos and there for people who want to enjoy the view. There will be no watercraft access to the lake from the hotel property.
- How will the Hotel Look from 17-92 and Lake Killarney? The Hotel façade on 17-92 is one story. The east and west sides of the hotel step back, increasing in height, to keep the greatest building height in the middle of the property. The hotel is set back at least 90 feet from the lake shoreline and is only two stories in height at the point closest to the shoreline and nearby homes.
- What is the size and height of the Hotel and how does that compare to the Alfond? Our architects, Baker Barrios, also designed the Alfond Inn, and we seek to emulate the quality of the Alfond. We have limited the number of rooms to 118, similar to the room count of the Alfond when it was first constructed with 112 rooms. The height is similar to the Alfond (64’-2”) — The Henderson Hotel is 65’-3”. There is an architectural feature designed to give the hotel an historical feel that extends past 65’ as seen in the rendering.
- Why are you Vacating a Portion of Fairview Ave? The Killarney neighborhood has a problem with cut-through traffic. We have provided a traffic study from Kimley-Horn, whose engineers have offered several recommendations to help alleviate the increased traffic flow through the community. One suggestion was to create a roundabout at Fairview Ave. blocking access to non-residents drivers. We have offered to pay for this portion of the improvement should the neighbors want to utilize this option. Ultimately, the Killarney neighbors will decide the traffic solution based on what works best for their neighborhood.
- What will the impact be to the Lake? The proposed hotel will help clean up Lake Killarney in several important ways. First, we will provide an exfiltration system to treat the storm water. We have committed to the City to install a filter on the existing outfall structure. Presently, untreated storm water is gathered from 17-92 and directed into Lake Killarney. The filter will remove trash and debris that currently flow into the lake from the road. Our engineer and landscape architect will create bio-swales to treat storm water near the lake. We also plan to remove the invasive species along the lakeshore and replant the littoral zone with native species.
A hotel should be more than just a place to lay your head. It should be an important part of the culture of a city and should contribute to the history of the city in a particular period of time. The Henderson Hotel seeks the opportunity to do just that.
It’s So interesting how $$ and quid pro quo intoxicate people. Watching the Land Trust line up behind these sleazy developers is like taking a class in Government for Dummies 101. Do they even have a mission statement other than cocktail parties and seeking self aggrandizement? They are useless.
Hello Wolfe. We are sorry that you got the impression that the Winter Park Land Trust supports this hotel project. The Winter Park Land Trust does not take positions pro or con on specific building developments. Our only concern is the short and long term planning and facilitation of improving and connecting parks and open spaces in and around Winter Park. We have no way of knowing if this specific project will be built, but if the city does allow the project then we would like to see that the developer does as much as possible to contribute attractive green space to the surrounding residential area.
Since this is Halloween prime trick or treat time, I wonder what attendance will be?
Say goodbye to your “quaint lille New England town” Winter Park residents.
By the time we get done with it, it will look like Brooklyn.
And we can do it, because we have 3 votes on the City Commission and you don’t.
I imagine Lurlene Fletcher, if she was alive today, would say something like, “How come anybody wants to build somethin, it always hast to be on the WEST side?”