{"id":313369,"date":"2026-06-19T18:36:51","date_gmt":"2026-06-19T18:36:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/313369\/"},"modified":"2026-06-19T18:36:51","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T18:36:51","slug":"acram-group-redesigns-17-story-tower-planned-for-downtown-orlandos-north-quarter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/313369\/","title":{"rendered":"Acram Group redesigns 17-story tower planned for Downtown Orlando’s North Quarter"},"content":{"rendered":"

Architects from Baker Barrios<\/a> went back to the drawing board on a planned apartment tower in Downtown Orlando\u2019s North Quarter District, completely redesigning it as an homage to the city\u2019s historic downtown character.<\/p>\n

The developer, New York-based Acram Group<\/a>, scrapped the modern design from 2022<\/a>. The new concept, unveiled Thursday to Orlando\u2019s Appearance Review Board, consolidates the project from three separate towers into a single building and introduces more traditional materials, such as tan brick for the podium and dramatic arched windows and doors along Magnolia Avenue.<\/p>\n

Architect Wildred Rodriguez said they selected the finishes, like brick and raked stucco, to \u201cgive a tactile feel to the lower levels of the building\u201d and to activate the streetscape for both pedestrians and vehicles. As the building rises, the materials start to \u201clighten out and become more of a crown at the top.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The east elevation, fronting Magnolia Avenue, features antique brass arches over the windows and entrance to the lobby and resident amenities. (Rendering by Baker Barrios)<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The introduction of lighter masonry, raked stucco, arches and other exterior finishes creates a visual impact that echoes Magnolia Avenue’s historic fabric. (Courtesy of Baker Barrios)<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The north elevation of the building, fronting Weber Street, now features townhouse-style units on the first two floors. (Rendering by Baker Barrios)<\/p>\n

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The east elevation, fronting Magnolia Avenue, features antique brass arches over the windows and entrance to the lobby and resident amenities. (Rendering by Baker Barrios)<\/p>\n

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Acram paid $6.7 million in 2021 for a pair of 50-year-old, low-rise office buildings at 924 and 934 N. Magnolia Ave., just north of Orlando\u2019s senior recreation center.\u00a0Those office buildings would be razed to clear the way<\/a> for a new 17-story apartment tower, adding 350 residential units, a public greenspace, and 3,300 square feet of retail space to the downtown market.<\/p>\n

The new plan reduces the number of apartments from 386 to 350 and eliminates the previous live-work units along Weber in favor of townhouse-style units with front stoops overlooking the Orlando Urban Trail. The building is recessed at the corner of Weber and Magnolia to create a small parklet that will be open to the public<\/p>\n

The 8-level parking garage is rotated and the entire project is shifted back 30 feet from Pasadena Place to create better flow and lessen the impact on the senior center.<\/p>\n

\"This<\/p>\n

This design was submitted to ARB for a courtesy review in 2022. (Rendering by Baker Barrios)<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The 2022 building was designed as three connected towers with the pool over the 8-level parking garage, facing southwest. (Rendering by Baker Barrios)<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The redesigned project consists of a single L-shaped building that is 17 stories. The orientation of the parking garage and pool deck has changed. (Rendering by Baker Barrios)<\/p>\n

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This design was submitted to ARB for a courtesy review in 2022. (Rendering by Baker Barrios)<\/p>\n

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ARB members Mike Brown and Cecelia Maier both praised the new design, particularly the arches. \u201cI think that\u2019s kind of a neat element that\u2019s different from other buildings downtown,\u201d Brown said.<\/p>\n

They both asked if the design team could find ways to incorporate the arches in other areas of the building, such as the rooftop crown and parking garage.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going to say yes,\u201d architect Meghan Dietz said. \u201cWe have been playing around with that, as well, because that is one of our favorite features. Obviously, this is early, but we do appreciate that because I think as we continue forward, you might start to see some of those elements reappear in subtle ways, but to tie the top and the bottom visually, have some connection there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"TheThe southeast corner, at the intersection of Magnolia Avenue and Pasadena Place, is reserved for a retail or restaurant user. (Rendering by Baker Barrios)
\n\"TheThe corner of Magnolia and Weber is recessed to create a public courtyard, which hasn’t been designed yet. (Rendering by Baker Barrios)<\/p>\n

Since Thursday\u2019s meeting was just a courtesy review, several matters were left unresolved. For example, the team did not submit any renderings of the proposed rooftop architecture, saying it was still a work in progress. The streetscape was another topic of discussion, as ARB Director Richard Forbes added a condition that the developer should cover the costs of burying the power lines on Magnolia.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are in discussions on how to potentially clean that up,\u201d Dietz said. \u201cBut I\u2019m not going to make any promises here because every decision on electrical wires is pricey, so we\u2019re trying to find the right solution.\u201d<\/p>\n

The team hasn\u2019t submitted a design for the parklet at the corner of Magnolia and Weber, and some ARB members thought it might make more sense to have the restaurant adjacent to the courtyard instead of on the opposite corner.\u00a0 ARB member Damien Kolb said it would help activate the public space and provide room for outdoor dining, but Dietz said ruled it out because they felt the restaurant would help anchor the southeast corner of the building.<\/p>\n

The property is surrounded by other sites that have been primed for development. Two blocks to the west at 1000 N Orange Ave., Boca Raton-based Gables Residential\u00a0<\/a>just received MPB approval for a 295-unit building<\/a>.\u00a0 And a few blocks to the north, construction will commence later this year on a new Holocaust Center for Hope & Humanity<\/a> at the former Chamber of Commerce building on Ivanhoe Boulevard.<\/p>\n

Have a tip about Central Florida development? Contact me at\u00a0lkinsler@GrowthSpotter.com<\/a> or (407) 420-6261. Follow GrowthSpotter on\u00a0Facebook<\/a> and\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Architects from Baker Barrios went back to the drawing board on a planned apartment tower in Downtown Orlando\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":313370,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[558,34752,58467,28,114,12114,1335,139,141,140,32028,480],"class_list":["post-313369","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-orlando","tag-business","tag-downtown-orlando-developments","tag-downtown-towers","tag-florida","tag-latest-headlines","tag-multifamily-residential","tag-orange-county","tag-orlando","tag-orlando-headlines","tag-orlando-news","tag-projects","tag-real-estate"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/313369","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=313369"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/313369\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/313370"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=313369"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=313369"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=313369"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}