// ORLANDO OUTLOOK
The Orlando economy and real estate market is experiencing its
strongest growth since before the Great Recession, and plans are
in place to ensure that growth continues in the future. Orlando area
job growth has outpaced the state, growing 3.8 percent year-overyear and dropping the unemployment rate to 5.1 percent – the
lowest among Florida’s major metropolitan areas. Job growth in
Orlando has been fairly dispersed among industry segments as
well. Although the leisure and hospitality industry still accounts for
the largest share of job gains (34.9 percent) since last year, office
using employment comprised 15.9 percent of all employment gains
and construction employment made up 7.8 percent, suggesting
a more robust and widespread economic strengthening. Beyond
the economic cornerstone of tourism, which is coming off of its
best year ever, Orlando is undergoing a transition that will help to
reshape the City and economy.
Orlando, and specifically downtown, is on the verge of substantial
transformation due to some large scale developments that will help
shape the City’s future. The largest and most significant project
in the pipeline is the Creative Village project, which is a 68-acre
master plan at the site of the former Amway Arena comprising
1.2 million square feet of office/creative space, 150,000 square
feet of retail/commercial space, 1,500 residential units and 225
hotel rooms. The development is focused on building upon the
burgeoning media and high-tech industry sector located in Orlando,
and will include an additional 500,000 square feet of education
space, with the University of Central Florida as a partner. The
$1.0 billion development is expected to add 6,500 construction
jobs during development, and is expected to sustain an additional
5,000 permanent jobs, and figures to play a major role in the future
economic growth of Orlando.
Additionally, as part of this development, the University of Central
Florida plans to construct a downtown Orlando campus, which
will add up to 13,000 students to downtown Orlando’s daytime
population and should help spur retail sales in the area. Many of
the programs to be offered at the campus will focus on high-tech
and life science fields, ensuring Orlando’s position as Florida’s
hub for these emergi