Joel Springman, owner of the downtown entertainment complex, Wall Street Plaza (Facebook | Website), has just sold a number of his properties to the operators of Gilt Nightclub.
Wall Street has had a particularly tough pandemic with strict guidelines hobbling its operations through the past two years, ranging from CDC protocols that limited gathering in public spaces to the recent restrictions from Orlando City Hall on outdoor speaker permits – a policy that focuses on the Central Business District and not the surrounding Main Streets.
To be blunt, Wall Street simply hasn’t been allowed to host outdoor events, which is their bread and butter, in fact, the first time they were granted approval to host a street party following the beginning of the pandemic was Halloween 2021. Otherwise, the largest entertainment venue in downtown Orlando has been mostly silent this whole time while places like Central Florida Fairgrounds are free to stack their calendars.
Springman told Bungalower that he and his team have been walking a “… delicate tight rope for the past couple of years, both Wall Street and our neighboring businesses downtown. And that was further complicated by another six months of the speaker ordinance.” While Springman was clear that he didn’t want to vilify City Hall, he was adamant that the sound ordinance had pushed events out of downtown Orlando.
“It’s been next to impossible to host events with our community partners like UCF and Orlando City without an outdoor speaker permit. So they just go somewhere else in town where there aren’t any restrictions.”
– JOEL SPRINGMAN
So it’s no surprise that when the owners of Gilt Nightclub approached him with an offer to take on some of his properties, Springman agreed. “They’ve got money and fresh ideas and they really want to transform the properties I sold them.” Said, Springman.
The properties in question are Sideshow, Wall Street Cantina, Waitiki, and Monkey Bar, located on the second floor above Waitiki. Springman and Wall Street will continue to operate Hooch, The Hen House, and Shine, and they are partners in the new coffee shop/mixology bar, Bellhop, with Ricky Galicia that is currently being built out in the former Subway storefront facing Orange Avenue.
“I’m really looking forward to partnering on new events on Wall Street for downtown. We’ll keep our half of the street and they’ll do theirs. Downtown needs new energy right now. We want and deserve a vibrant downtown in a 24/7 city … downtown Orlando can’t be Park Avenue. I’m really excited about the future and this new partnership will help maximize the potential of Wall Street.”
– JOEL SPRINGMAN
Springman is also planning some updates for the properties he’s keeping with some renovations of the outdoor seating areas and patios to help bring people downtown even when there aren’t events taking place.
We’ve reached out to the ownership team at Gilt Nightclub to learn about their vision for their newly acquired properties but had not heard back by the time of this post.
Orlando’s downtown is way too loud outdoors and it pushes any other business not catering to people getting wasted away. Clubs can stay. Out door noise gotta go.
I was employed by Joel and Cathy Springman for 13 years. Helping bring their vision for Wall St. to fruition was a dream job – affording me the opportunity to learn while always encouraged to think bigger. It was a much different environment than they face today. They invested in our downtown, gambling their future while raising young children. I can say from my experience, having closed my own business downtown after 13 years, that the city has to wake up. I spent 30 years working with Downtown. And the last few left me feeling less than welcome. I say this while I operate two other successful venues within a few miles of Downtown. We have been supported throughout the Covid nightmare by the local governing officials. Downtown was more concerned about the noise level on streets of Downtown than helping us recover from being shuttered far longer than any other area of our city? Noise levels that have been the same for decades. Including when we all signed our leases for $10k-$20K a month.
Sad but understandable.
As a small business owner just across the way we are excited to hear of fresh ideas and new energy on Wall Street. The plaza was the center and energy of our entertainment district for years. It’s no secret we’ve all suffered with the effects of covid as well as the restrictions put on Wall Street involving their many creative events and concerts. Happy to hear Mr. Springman will still be involved and creating more magic Downtown!
It is so disappointing that other cities hare doing a far better job with their downtowns than Orlando.
Winter Garden is a planning masterpiece. Sanford for all of it’s grit still has a vibrant scene on many weekend. The Ivanhoe District/Mills Ave is growing slowly. The noise was not the reason for crime in downtown unless their intent was to turn it into a ghost town. Downtown has lost it’s soul . Covid did not kill downtown. The noise ordinance did.
Everyone who lives within a mile of Gilt is laughing at the idea that these guys can do anything quietly.