Orlando News
Have you ever dreamed of exploring Pandora – The World of Avatar coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom later this spring? Opening Day May 27th, 2017
Well, now is your chance with VisitPandora.com.
With a fresh calendar year, new hotels from coast to coast are opening their doors in cities big and small, and in areas where such developments are hoped to be the spark for renewal. They range from funky boutique hotels to lifestyle-oriented properties developed by furniture retailers to nationally known chains - Introducing The Grove Resort & Spa, Orlando
Construction activity will begin soon on the $1.8 billion South Terminal Complex (STC) Phase 1 Terminal C at Orlando International Airport. As the project advances toward the anticipated building phase, the design phase is nearly two-thirds complete. The design team of Fentress Architects, HNTB and Schenkel Shultz recently reached the 60 percent threshold, with only two design benchmarks remaining.
Florida set another record in tourism by welcoming the highest amount of visitors in the state’s history with 112.8 million visitors in 2016. This is the sixth consecutive record year for visitation to Florida, exceeding the previous high of 106.6 million in 2015 by 5.9 percent. Tourism jobs also hit a record high in 2016 of 1.4 million jobs, exceeding the previous record in 2015.
With the airport welcoming nearly 42 million visitors last year, and its current infrastructure built to accommodate an average capacity of 40 million, the need for expansion is obvious and immediate. Furthermore, this year's crop of new theme park attractions that include Volcano Bay water park at Universal Orlando Resort and Pandora: The World of Avatar at Walt Disney World Resort will make Central Florida's $60 billion tourism industry even more appealing to travelers and bring even more business to the airport.
Orlando’s overall median home price (all home types combined) is $199,000, which is 10.6 percent above the January 2016 median price of $180,000. Year-over-year increases in median price have been recorded for the past 66 consecutive months; as of January 2016, the overall median is 72.3 percent higher than it was back in July 2011.
The Orlando market has the second-highest projected employment growth of all the Florida metros. With a forecast 39,000 jobs to be added to the metro, local payrolls will expand 3.2 percent this year. Technology and tourism will fuel growth as the leisure and hospitality and professional and business services sectors add thousands of new positions. Orlando’s robust economy has created demand for housing, which has placed upward pressure on median sales prices for both investment homes and owner-occupied properties.
Orlando International Airport (MCO) ended 2016 processing nearly 42 million annual passengers, a new record!
“Orlando International Airport just experienced its busiest and most successful year in airport history,” says Frank Kruppenbacher, Chairman of the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority. “As a major economic engine in this community, generating over $31 billion in direct and indirect revenue, record domestic and international traffic means jobs and opportunities for our local economy.”
