Orlando Nightclub Restrictions
A unanimous decision by Orlando City Council impacts the future of the downtown area and the nightlife scene. Monday, commissioners approved permanent limits on new nightclubs. The city defines a nightclub as an establishment that provides entertainment after midnight like floor shows, DJs, or dancing, that typically have a cover charge, an assembly area, and offer bottle service.
Starting next month, any new ones must be at least 300 feet from each other, which is about the length of a city block. This plan replaces a moratorium that keeps any new nightclubs from opening. The moratorium was put in place in March of last year in response to reports of violence and shootings. City Commissioner Shan Rose represents Downtown Orlando in District 5. She joins Engage to discuss the vision for revitalizing the region and why she voted in favor of the location limits on new nightclubs downtown.
Eric Fuller is the co-owner of Celine Orlando, a concert and nightlife entertainment venue downtown. Fuller joins Engage to discuss the best way to manage nightlife from his perspective and concerns he raises about the attitude towards the scene.
Juvenile Justice
Depending on the age of the offender and the crime, certain minors can be tried as adults in every state. What’s unusual about Florida is that prosecutors can recommend a juvenile case go directly to an adult court without approval from a judge.
A Miami Herald investigation released this week finds those minors could be getting tougher sentences than adults. Shirsho Dasgupta is an investigative reporter and part of the team that analyzed data from the Offender Based Transaction System maintained by Florida courts. They found an extraordinary number of minor cases referred to adult court, resulting in longer adult sentences. Dasgupta joins Engage to explain what his investigation reveals about the juvenile justice system here.
Central Florida Home Purchases
Real estate website Redfin found a Florida market leads the country in the rate of home buyers backing out of deals. They found about 900 home-purchase agreements were canceled in June in the Orlando metro. Per RedFin's data, that is equivalent to 20.8% of deals on houses that went under contract that month getting cancelled, which is the highest percentage of the most populated metro areas.
Rose Kemp is President of the Orlando Regional Realtor Association representing more than 20,000 members in Orange, Seminole and surrounding counties. She joins Engage to discuss whether she’s seeing the purchase cancelations in the scale that Redfin is reporting.
