We are now getting a first look at what the bridge might look like in new documents filed by Orlando Health with the City of Orlando.
The bridge connects ORMC to the proposed hotel on the east side of Orange Ave.
“The proposed bridge will allow cancer patients a safe and direct access from the hotel into the hospital. It is a life-safety necessity for the intended users, and will be accessible only from within ORMC and the hotel. It will not serve or give access to the general public or from the sidewalk,” the documents read.
The bridge will not have any ground-floor access nor will it be open to the general public.
The plans indicate that it won’t obstruct the sidewalk on either side of Orange Ave nor impede sight lines to the traffic signal at Copeland Dr. or to the downtown skyline.
On the east side, the bridge will directly connect into the future Orlando Medical Plaza hotel. On the west side, the bridge will enter into the ORMC building and the bases of the support arches will be within the first level of the terraced landscaped feature, five feet beyond the edge of sidewalk/ROW.
The city approved the new hotel to be built at 1405 S. Orange Ave August.
The plan to allow the hotel and hospital to build a pedestrian bridge will go for approval from the Municipal Planning Board next week and if approved to City Council.
Updated 7:20 a.m. with additional information to clarify the bridge design and that the developers are seeking permission to build the bridge not for funding.
There will be benefit to the taxpayer. This development (hotel and bridge) will significantly raise the value of the land and airspace where it resides.
Private pedestrian bridges at hospital campuses are commonplace in most cities. We are lucky that this one will also be aesthetically pleasing and a point of interest for Downtown South.
Thx, to put it in another framework, if a neighbor wanted to put a bridge over your backyard to another neighbors house and you didn’t benefit from it (even though it didn’t effect you – suspend belief it wouldn’t create shade etc.) wouldn’t you expect some value from the neighbor? (payment of your backyards taxes, payment for the air rights?). As tax payers this is our land and airspace and the city should get something for it….it has value, just like your own airspace….I’m in favor on the bridge, just some food for thought on how the city might negotiate for the publics benefit and not cave too quickly for a hotel developer who sees value and profit in this connection to the hospital.
I think that proposal is on next months agenda… 🙂
It’s an interesting question on building a “private” pedestrian bridge over a public road. There are other examples at FL hospital…just over smaller roads. I’ve reached out to FDOT (since Orange Ave is a state road) to see if there are any policies around when they allow a private company to build a bridge over a state road. I’ll let you know what I hear back.
I think there should be a bridge to the moon and the hospital should pay for it. Injustice. Bla bla bla.
The airspace has value to the public? Really? Just let them build the dang bridge.
Absolutely needed!
I read the article and gleaned from it that they only were seeking permission to cross the public road and sidewalks, not to obtain public funding ? As long as they aren’t asking tax payers to chip in anything, I don’t see any harm in it. Orlando Health is a lot like Florida Hospital in that it has expanded into a small city within a city. Short of pedestrian bridges, their other alternative would be underground tunnels to interconnect buildings and parking garages, etc. The water table is so shallow here, tunnels are precarious and expensive to retro-add. They are NOT denying public access to public paid land like was done at the St. James Elementary school when they closed the street off so I can’t see any harm to the public.
I think having a pedestrian bridge over 50 sends the message that the urban trail is a truly safer alternative with less wait time than waiting at a busy intersection. Uptown is kind of cut off from the rest of downtown. It would be a great gateway into our neighborhood.
There is significant value to the hotel developer to fund the bridge but the airspace has value to the public….I’m asking what is the benefit to the public?
I understand that but what’s in it for the city? It’s tax payer property they are crossing through…
They are just seeking approval not funding.
Just added some more info to clarify.
Without public access, a bridge should not be allowed over public land for the benefit of private interest alone. Is there any remuneration to the city for use of this airspace? Perhaps they should build two bridges one for them and an open air one for the public in an area that makes sense and pay for them both. I think that would be fair
There would not be a way to access the bridge from the street level. You would have to go inside the hospital and inside the hotel.
To clarify the developer/hospital is paying for this. They are just amending their PD for Orlando Health and the Hotel. And I happen to have an issue with the concept of pedestrian bridges because they send a message that crossing the street isn’t safe. Money should be spent to make roads safe instead of going over the road in one area.
Using the story of cancer patients to try to get funding for a bridge is pretty low. It’ll be used by hospital patients, so let the hospital pay for it.
Just read the article, the bridge is going over public property but is not for public use and is for the benefit of the hospital and their hotel. What do the taxpayers get out of this? Not only should something like this be funded by the hospital BUT the only way it should be permitted is that it should be accessible to the public since it’s on and over public land. Am I reading this wrong or is that right?
Unfortunately I don’t think ORMC is going to pay for that. But I agree it is much needed. Last I heard there just isn’t any money for it. Maybe we can do some crowd-funding? 🙂
Not for nothing, but they seriously need to get it together when it comes to finishing the urban trail and include the much-needed pedestrian bridge over colonial. Honestly, I think it’s much more important than this.
…ouch!…
Yes, yes, yes!
…does this involve another nursing pay cut?…