View allAll Photos Tagged optimistic
For We're Here, spotting Optimistic Cloudgoats. The goat was in the teddy bear shop window (despite not being a bear). The church overlooks the famous iron bridge.
Sal La Rocca, contrebassiste d’origine sicilienne, revient avec un nouveau projet profondément différent. On y retrouve en version quintet, un tout nouveau line-up avec Mayaan Smith au sax ténor (absent et remplacé par Steven Delannoye) et Umberto Odone à la batterie. Deux musiciens fraîchement débarqués à Bruxelles, que Sal a rencontré durant une jam, et dont la fougue et l’énergie ont séduit rapidement.
Au piano, c’est l’inégalable Igor Gehenot dont le son percussif teinté de sonorités caribéennes donne une musique chaude et avenante. Et au trombone, Phil Abraham, qui a collaboré sur le dernier album de Sal, s’introduit dans le band avec de belles textures mettant en relief les compositions de Sal La Rocca. Ces dernières sonnent groovy, résolument optimistes. Elles font penser à la mer, à la plage, donnent envie de danser, de s’enlacer, de rire…
Listen
www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXDdhNcR93o
Sal La Rocca, double bassist of Sicilian origin, returns with a new, profoundly different project. We find in quintet version, a brand new line-up with Mayaan Smith on tenor sax (absent and replaced by Steven Delannoye) and Umberto Odone on drums. Two musicians newly arrived in Brussels, whom Sal met during a jam, and whose enthusiasm and energy quickly won over.
On the piano, it is the incomparable Igor Gehenot whose percussive sound tinged with Caribbean sounds gives warm and welcoming music. And on trombone, Phil Abraham, who collaborated on Sal's last album, enters the band with beautiful textures highlighting the compositions of Sal La Rocca. The latter sound groovy, resolutely optimistic. They make you think of the sea, the beach, make you want to dance, hug, laugh...
The Dixie Walesbilt Hotel, known as the Grand Hotel in later years, is one of a small number of skyscrapers built in the 1920s that still stand today and is a prime example of how optimistic people were during the Florida land boom. Built in 1926, it found financing through a stock-sale campaign in the local business community, costing $500,000 after it was completed(which equates to about $6 million today.)
The building architecture, masonry vernacular with hints of Mediterranean-Revival, is also a good example of the time is was built. It was designed by two well-known architects at the time, Fred Bishop who designed the Byrd Theatre in Virginia, and D.J. Phipps, whose designed both the Wyoming County Courthouse and Jail and the Colonial Hotel in Virginia.
The hotel was constructed using the “three-part vertical block” method, which became the dominant pattern in tall buildings during the 1920s. Three-part buildings are composed of a base, shaft and a cap, all noticeably visible.
The hotel opened as the “Walesbilt” in January 1927, shortly after the land boom had started to collapse and two years before the Great Depression began. It’s also best to note that the hotel opened around the same time the Floridan Hotel in Tampa opened, another hotel built during the Florida land boom.
In 1972, the hotel was purchased by Anderson Sun State and renamed the “Groveland Motor Inn”. The firm completely renovated the hotel and used it to host visitors to the area who were interested in Green Swamp, land sectioned off for land development. At the time there was heavy speculation in the land because of it’s close proximity to Walt Disney World and were selling for around $5,000 an acre at the time. That ended after a state cabinet designation of the swamp as an area of critical state concern, placing the land off-limits to any large land developments. The firm filed for foreclosure and the hotel was auctioned off in 1974. Despite RCI Electric purchasing the hotel, it remained empty for many years afterwards.
n 1978, the hotel was signed over to the Agape Players, a nationally known religious music and drama group, who would assume the mortgage and would pay the costs to make improvements to meet city fire and safety standards. The hotel was renamed the “Royal Walesbilt” and after extensive improvements were made, it became the headquarters for the Agape Players; using it as a teaching facility and the base from which the group launched their tours. In addition, they operated a restaurant, an ice cream parlor on the lobby floor and a “Christian hotel” on the upper floors, catering mostly to groups. The Agape Players disbanded in 1985 and put the property up for sale
Victor Khubani, a property investor from New York acquired the property and renamed the hotel “Grand”. The hotel closed briefly in December 1988, due to a variety of code violations and causing the owner to later pay $14,000 in fines. On August 31, 1990 it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, possibly for tax exemption reasons. In October 1991, The State Fire Marshall’s Office gave the owner one year to install a new sprinkler system and in May 1993, the code enforcement board gave Khubani until March to complete the work.
In March 1994, the hotel closed due to multiple code violations and was to remain closed until a new fire sprinkler system was installed. To reopen, the fire escapes and elevator, which did not function, would have to be repaired as well. In 1995, the hotel was auctioned off to a redevelopment firm, which dismantled part of the interior for reconstruction, which was never completed.
Since then, the hotel has deteriorated, becoming an eyesore to many of the residents of Lake Wales and nicknamed “The Green Monster” for the greenish color it has acquired from over the years. In 1995, it was even jokingly mentioned to become a sacrifice to “the bomb”, an economic boom that occurred in parts of Florida where movie production companies would pay cities to blow up buildings for their movies. In 2007, the city foreclosed on the structure for more than $700,000 in unpaid code fines, with hopes in finding someone to restore it.
Development firm, Dixie-Walesbilt LLC announced plans to restore the hotel, signing into an agreement with the city of Lake Wales in February 2010. By the agreement, the city would retain ownership of the building until a defined amount of work had been accomplished. The work must be completed within 16 months and the amount of money invested must succeed at least $1.5 million. The building would then be handed off the Dixie Walesbilt LLC, where they may continue with private funding or other methods to for debt funding.
Ray Brown, President of Dixie Walesbilt LLC, planned to invest $6 million into the renovation, with original plans to put retail stores on the ground floor and using the upper floors for as many as 40 condominiums.
On June 2, 2011, the city of Lake Wales agreed to deed the building off to Ray Brown in a 4-1 vote, after meeting the requirements of the redevelopment agreement. Though Brown submitted a list of costs to the city totaling $1.66 million, Mayor Mike Carter wasn’t satisfied with the results so far, pointing out that Brown failed to repair the windows and repaint the building. Previous owners had put tar on the building and then painted over it, so much of Brown’s investment went to stripping the tar off the exterior walls.
To repaint the building, Brown would also have to resurface the hotel with hydrated lime to replicate the original skin as well as the window frames would need to be constructed of Douglas fir, red cedar and gulf cypress. According to Brown, previous owners who renovated the building rarely removed the building original elements. They carpeted over intricate tile flooring, stuck tar paper above skylights and placed modern drinking fountains in front of the originals. He estimated about 98 percent of the building is still in it’s original form.
Restoration of the building’s exterior began in January 2015 and included surface repair, pressure washing, paint removal, chemical treatment, and a comprehensive resurfacing of the exterior.
While the original plans were for turning the building into condominiums, that has since changed and current plans call for operating the building as a boutique hotel. The hotel will feature geothermal cooling as opposed to traditional air conditioning, a permanent art gallery as well as theme gallery showings throughout the year, and the best WiFi/internet in the city. The project is expected to be completed in 18 to 24 months.
Credit for the data above is given to the following websites:
www.cityoflakewales.com/505/Dixie-Walesbilt-Hotel
www.abandonedfl.com/dixie-walesbilt-hotel/
© All Rights Reserved - you may not use this image in any form without my prior permission.
Very optimistic - I attempted a photograph under the full red moon, in complete darkness and without a tripod. There are cows lurking in the gloom at the bottom of the photograph.
The Dixie Walesbilt Hotel, known as the Grand Hotel in later years, is one of a small number of skyscrapers built in the 1920s that still stand today and is a prime example of how optimistic people were during the Florida land boom. Built in 1926, it found financing through a stock-sale campaign in the local business community, costing $500,000 after it was completed(which equates to about $6 million today.)
The building architecture, masonry vernacular with hints of Mediterranean-Revival, is also a good example of the time is was built. It was designed by two well-known architects at the time, Fred Bishop who designed the Byrd Theatre in Virginia, and D.J. Phipps, whose designed both the Wyoming County Courthouse and Jail and the Colonial Hotel in Virginia.
The hotel was constructed using the “three-part vertical block” method, which became the dominant pattern in tall buildings during the 1920s. Three-part buildings are composed of a base, shaft and a cap, all noticeably visible.
The hotel opened as the “Walesbilt” in January 1927, shortly after the land boom had started to collapse and two years before the Great Depression began. It’s also best to note that the hotel opened around the same time the Floridan Hotel in Tampa opened, another hotel built during the Florida land boom.
In 1972, the hotel was purchased by Anderson Sun State and renamed the “Groveland Motor Inn”. The firm completely renovated the hotel and used it to host visitors to the area who were interested in Green Swamp, land sectioned off for land development. At the time there was heavy speculation in the land because of it’s close proximity to Walt Disney World and were selling for around $5,000 an acre at the time. That ended after a state cabinet designation of the swamp as an area of critical state concern, placing the land off-limits to any large land developments. The firm filed for foreclosure and the hotel was auctioned off in 1974. Despite RCI Electric purchasing the hotel, it remained empty for many years afterwards.
n 1978, the hotel was signed over to the Agape Players, a nationally known religious music and drama group, who would assume the mortgage and would pay the costs to make improvements to meet city fire and safety standards. The hotel was renamed the “Royal Walesbilt” and after extensive improvements were made, it became the headquarters for the Agape Players; using it as a teaching facility and the base from which the group launched their tours. In addition, they operated a restaurant, an ice cream parlor on the lobby floor and a “Christian hotel” on the upper floors, catering mostly to groups. The Agape Players disbanded in 1985 and put the property up for sale
Victor Khubani, a property investor from New York acquired the property and renamed the hotel “Grand”. The hotel closed briefly in December 1988, due to a variety of code violations and causing the owner to later pay $14,000 in fines. On August 31, 1990 it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, possibly for tax exemption reasons. In October 1991, The State Fire Marshall’s Office gave the owner one year to install a new sprinkler system and in May 1993, the code enforcement board gave Khubani until March to complete the work.
In March 1994, the hotel closed due to multiple code violations and was to remain closed until a new fire sprinkler system was installed. To reopen, the fire escapes and elevator, which did not function, would have to be repaired as well. In 1995, the hotel was auctioned off to a redevelopment firm, which dismantled part of the interior for reconstruction, which was never completed.
Since then, the hotel has deteriorated, becoming an eyesore to many of the residents of Lake Wales and nicknamed “The Green Monster” for the greenish color it has acquired from over the years. In 1995, it was even jokingly mentioned to become a sacrifice to “the bomb”, an economic boom that occurred in parts of Florida where movie production companies would pay cities to blow up buildings for their movies. In 2007, the city foreclosed on the structure for more than $700,000 in unpaid code fines, with hopes in finding someone to restore it.
Development firm, Dixie-Walesbilt LLC announced plans to restore the hotel, signing into an agreement with the city of Lake Wales in February 2010. By the agreement, the city would retain ownership of the building until a defined amount of work had been accomplished. The work must be completed within 16 months and the amount of money invested must succeed at least $1.5 million. The building would then be handed off the Dixie Walesbilt LLC, where they may continue with private funding or other methods to for debt funding.
Ray Brown, President of Dixie Walesbilt LLC, planned to invest $6 million into the renovation, with original plans to put retail stores on the ground floor and using the upper floors for as many as 40 condominiums.
On June 2, 2011, the city of Lake Wales agreed to deed the building off to Ray Brown in a 4-1 vote, after meeting the requirements of the redevelopment agreement. Though Brown submitted a list of costs to the city totaling $1.66 million, Mayor Mike Carter wasn’t satisfied with the results so far, pointing out that Brown failed to repair the windows and repaint the building. Previous owners had put tar on the building and then painted over it, so much of Brown’s investment went to stripping the tar off the exterior walls.
To repaint the building, Brown would also have to resurface the hotel with hydrated lime to replicate the original skin as well as the window frames would need to be constructed of Douglas fir, red cedar and gulf cypress. According to Brown, previous owners who renovated the building rarely removed the building original elements. They carpeted over intricate tile flooring, stuck tar paper above skylights and placed modern drinking fountains in front of the originals. He estimated about 98 percent of the building is still in it’s original form.
Restoration of the building’s exterior began in January 2015 and included surface repair, pressure washing, paint removal, chemical treatment, and a comprehensive resurfacing of the exterior.
While the original plans were for turning the building into condominiums, that has since changed and current plans call for operating the building as a boutique hotel. The hotel will feature geothermal cooling as opposed to traditional air conditioning, a permanent art gallery as well as theme gallery showings throughout the year, and the best WiFi/internet in the city. The project is expected to be completed in 18 to 24 months.
Credit for the data above is given to the following websites:
www.cityoflakewales.com/505/Dixie-Walesbilt-Hotel
www.abandonedfl.com/dixie-walesbilt-hotel/
© All Rights Reserved - you may not use this image in any form without my prior permission.
First photo the (h)optimist (a useless thing that makes you laugh hoptimist.com), then the orange (same lighting), then both into Photoshop, making a mask to see the nose and eyes... and that's it! HMM everyone! and let us have an optimistic 2018, right? :-)
The Dixie Walesbilt Hotel, known as the Grand Hotel in later years, is one of a small number of skyscrapers built in the 1920s that still stand today and is a prime example of how optimistic people were during the Florida land boom. Built in 1926, it found financing through a stock-sale campaign in the local business community, costing $500,000 after it was completed(which equates to about $6 million today.)
The building architecture, masonry vernacular with hints of Mediterranean-Revival, is also a good example of the time is was built. It was designed by two well-known architects at the time, Fred Bishop who designed the Byrd Theatre in Virginia, and D.J. Phipps, whose designed both the Wyoming County Courthouse and Jail and the Colonial Hotel in Virginia.
The hotel was constructed using the “three-part vertical block” method, which became the dominant pattern in tall buildings during the 1920s. Three-part buildings are composed of a base, shaft and a cap, all noticeably visible.
The hotel opened as the “Walesbilt” in January 1927, shortly after the land boom had started to collapse and two years before the Great Depression began. It’s also best to note that the hotel opened around the same time the Floridan Hotel in Tampa opened, another hotel built during the Florida land boom.
In 1972, the hotel was purchased by Anderson Sun State and renamed the “Groveland Motor Inn”. The firm completely renovated the hotel and used it to host visitors to the area who were interested in Green Swamp, land sectioned off for land development. At the time there was heavy speculation in the land because of it’s close proximity to Walt Disney World and were selling for around $5,000 an acre at the time. That ended after a state cabinet designation of the swamp as an area of critical state concern, placing the land off-limits to any large land developments. The firm filed for foreclosure and the hotel was auctioned off in 1974. Despite RCI Electric purchasing the hotel, it remained empty for many years afterwards.
n 1978, the hotel was signed over to the Agape Players, a nationally known religious music and drama group, who would assume the mortgage and would pay the costs to make improvements to meet city fire and safety standards. The hotel was renamed the “Royal Walesbilt” and after extensive improvements were made, it became the headquarters for the Agape Players; using it as a teaching facility and the base from which the group launched their tours. In addition, they operated a restaurant, an ice cream parlor on the lobby floor and a “Christian hotel” on the upper floors, catering mostly to groups. The Agape Players disbanded in 1985 and put the property up for sale
Victor Khubani, a property investor from New York acquired the property and renamed the hotel “Grand”. The hotel closed briefly in December 1988, due to a variety of code violations and causing the owner to later pay $14,000 in fines. On August 31, 1990 it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, possibly for tax exemption reasons. In October 1991, The State Fire Marshall’s Office gave the owner one year to install a new sprinkler system and in May 1993, the code enforcement board gave Khubani until March to complete the work.
In March 1994, the hotel closed due to multiple code violations and was to remain closed until a new fire sprinkler system was installed. To reopen, the fire escapes and elevator, which did not function, would have to be repaired as well. In 1995, the hotel was auctioned off to a redevelopment firm, which dismantled part of the interior for reconstruction, which was never completed.
Since then, the hotel has deteriorated, becoming an eyesore to many of the residents of Lake Wales and nicknamed “The Green Monster” for the greenish color it has acquired from over the years. In 1995, it was even jokingly mentioned to become a sacrifice to “the bomb”, an economic boom that occurred in parts of Florida where movie production companies would pay cities to blow up buildings for their movies. In 2007, the city foreclosed on the structure for more than $700,000 in unpaid code fines, with hopes in finding someone to restore it.
Development firm, Dixie-Walesbilt LLC announced plans to restore the hotel, signing into an agreement with the city of Lake Wales in February 2010. By the agreement, the city would retain ownership of the building until a defined amount of work had been accomplished. The work must be completed within 16 months and the amount of money invested must succeed at least $1.5 million. The building would then be handed off the Dixie Walesbilt LLC, where they may continue with private funding or other methods to for debt funding.
Ray Brown, President of Dixie Walesbilt LLC, planned to invest $6 million into the renovation, with original plans to put retail stores on the ground floor and using the upper floors for as many as 40 condominiums.
On June 2, 2011, the city of Lake Wales agreed to deed the building off to Ray Brown in a 4-1 vote, after meeting the requirements of the redevelopment agreement. Though Brown submitted a list of costs to the city totaling $1.66 million, Mayor Mike Carter wasn’t satisfied with the results so far, pointing out that Brown failed to repair the windows and repaint the building. Previous owners had put tar on the building and then painted over it, so much of Brown’s investment went to stripping the tar off the exterior walls.
To repaint the building, Brown would also have to resurface the hotel with hydrated lime to replicate the original skin as well as the window frames would need to be constructed of Douglas fir, red cedar and gulf cypress. According to Brown, previous owners who renovated the building rarely removed the building original elements. They carpeted over intricate tile flooring, stuck tar paper above skylights and placed modern drinking fountains in front of the originals. He estimated about 98 percent of the building is still in it’s original form.
Restoration of the building’s exterior began in January 2015 and included surface repair, pressure washing, paint removal, chemical treatment, and a comprehensive resurfacing of the exterior.
While the original plans were for turning the building into condominiums, that has since changed and current plans call for operating the building as a boutique hotel. The hotel will feature geothermal cooling as opposed to traditional air conditioning, a permanent art gallery as well as theme gallery showings throughout the year, and the best WiFi/internet in the city. The project is expected to be completed in 18 to 24 months.
Credit for the data above is given to the following websites:
www.cityoflakewales.com/505/Dixie-Walesbilt-Hotel
www.abandonedfl.com/dixie-walesbilt-hotel/
© All Rights Reserved - you may not use this image in any form without my prior permission.
Looking to catch a break in a swarming, plant-dominated world, the twin rusted orbs of an ancient truck peer cautiously from between two cedars, Skagit Valley Provincial Park, British Columbia.
My wife and I walked West down the Skagit River for awhile, not having a destination but moving briskly to prevent The Mosquitoes from catching up and finding a tender place to land. Some miles into the forest and down the river, we heard a splashing sound up and off to one side. Leaving the trail and following the sound of the water, we went up a slope thickly wooded with Western Red Cedar and discovered this distinguished visage peering through the trees. Nearby and a bit further up was an abandoned mine situated 20 feet from a medium-sized waterfall flanked with ferns and tumbling down a dark basalt channel. Given the lushness of the forest, it was difficult to imagine that a road had existed that would have allowed this truck to find its final resting spot.
This photo is a bit different for me so I wonder what folks think. For anyone checking the date taken, all I can say is 'Yes, I'm an American who decided to go to Canada for the 4th of July.' It was lovely, and it turns out that Canada Day (1st of July) was celebrated with a massive fireworks display in Vancouver at the Waterfront.
Thanks for your visits and comments!
there’s a time to be happy, to be hopeful, to be optimistic
and then there's a time to be sad
lately I haven’t even had time to even be sad at all (which explains the hiatus on flickr). You might be wondering, what could I possibly be doing to not even have time for sadness ( which if you poke a hole in my soul and peer through it, is what I am mostly made of). Well, there's the ocean, the mountain, the hiking trip, the weekend market, the food to try, the pictures to take, the journal to write, the reflection to make. Just a lot to do, but no time to be sad. I know my time here is short so I try to make the best out of the little time I have here.
My class ended on Friday so all is left is finals. Usually around final exams, time seems to decide to upgrade its engine to the latest model and runs at at least thirty-three times faster than its normal speed. Yet I don't have that usual impression this time. I think it's because we have a week with no class just to study for finals here. And besides, I have three finals in a row earlier next week and then my last two are a bit more spread out so I'm gonna worry about after the first three.
My days are so unstructured these days, it's kinda bad. Mornings usually start with me waking up late and then breakfast. Then gym if I feel like going in the morning or library instead if I feel very motivated. Then lunch then more studying. Comes dinner time then more studying. If by the third day I didn't die of boredom than I don't know what kills me :))
Anyway, I decide to upload this picture today because I was really inspired by the recent In Bloom post I saw on Flickr Blog.
For me spring is always such a magical season and for someone who likes taking still life and nature pictures, it is the perfect time to get my camera out and walk around.
Ektar 100. Minolta X-570
Coronavirus is a big and difficult test for Europe, as for the whole world. But, as it turns out from these photos, life follows its natural course and we are optimistic that it will be a happy ending :)
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Many Thanks to the +11,550,000 visitors of my photographic stream!
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© Ioan C. Bacivarov
All the photos on this gallery are protected by the international laws of copyright and the or manipulated without the explicit written permission of the author. Thank you in advance
y are not for being used on any site, blog or forum, transmitted
Please view my most interesting photos on flickriver stream: www.flickriver.com/photos/ioan_bacivarov/
I'm not referring to Harbie in the title, but a course JJ and I are following online (we had to pay a small amount to access the course, but we have it for life and are learning quite a lot along the way). The course, 'Sexier Than a Squirrel' aims to make your dog more manageable, more interested in you and your treats than a squirrel, other dogs, food on the street, etc etc, and it's presented by two people, a vet, Tom, and a dog trainer, Lauren. The idea is over time you can reshape your dog's brain with games and hopefully turning a pessimistic dog into an optimistic one. You can see Tom, on the screen behind Harbie. Each lesson, released daily, has 3 parts - a game, an explanation and a chance to see these two training people with their dogs in a field. They include things like 'ditch the bowl' (which we have done in the morning) and 'ditch the walk' (which we can't do because Harbie likes going out. You are supposed to practise the games at home so that they can take what they've learned into the outside world.
View to Magnetic Island from Castle Hill, once optimistically named Mt Cutheringa until found to be lacking in height and so was given its second-rate title. The red rock of the lookout lines up with Kissing Point and the Island.
Symbolic form and function
In his 1984 winning bid for the creation of the Canadian Museum of Civilization (now renamed the Canadian Museum of History) Canadian Architect Douglas Cardinal stated the following:
“The museum will be a symbolic form. It will speak of the emergence of this continent, its forms sculptured by the winds, the rivers, the glaciers. It will speak of the emergence of man from the melting glaciers; of man and woman living in harmony with the forces of nature and evolving with them. It will show the way in which man first learned to cope with the environment, then mastered it and shaped it to the needs of his own goals and aspirations. It will depict man as a creature of the earth who knows his tremendous power to change his environment, yet understands that he must live in harmony with it... The building itself should truly aspire to be an artifact of our time, a celebration of man's evolution and achievement. It should point optimistically to the future, promising man's continued growth to a higher form of life, exploring not just this continent or planet but outer space as well. It should endeavour to be a spiritual act, and should demand from all those contributing to its design and construction the very best of their endeavours.”
His vision convinced the selection committee that he was the right architect for the job, “of all the submissions, his seemed to achieve the best balance between the relationship of the museum to the land, and the relationship of humans to that environment.”
The Museum subsequently opened in 1989 and quickly became Canada’s most visited museum.
Source: www.historymuseum.ca/cmc/exhibitions/cmc/architecture/tou...
An oasis of peace from the hustle and bustle of the capital ....
all embracing, light, optimistic and fascinating.
This is what some people think life will be like three years after Brexit...I'm a bit more optimistic.
The Dixie Walesbilt Hotel, known as the Grand Hotel in later years, is one of a small number of skyscrapers built in the 1920s that still stand today and is a prime example of how optimistic people were during the Florida land boom. Built in 1926, it found financing through a stock-sale campaign in the local business community, costing $500,000 after it was completed(which equates to about $6 million today.)
The building architecture, masonry vernacular with hints of Mediterranean-Revival, is also a good example of the time is was built. It was designed by two well-known architects at the time, Fred Bishop who designed the Byrd Theatre in Virginia, and D.J. Phipps, whose designed both the Wyoming County Courthouse and Jail and the Colonial Hotel in Virginia.
The hotel was constructed using the “three-part vertical block” method, which became the dominant pattern in tall buildings during the 1920s. Three-part buildings are composed of a base, shaft and a cap, all noticeably visible.
The hotel opened as the “Walesbilt” in January 1927, shortly after the land boom had started to collapse and two years before the Great Depression began. It’s also best to note that the hotel opened around the same time the Floridan Hotel in Tampa opened, another hotel built during the Florida land boom.
In 1972, the hotel was purchased by Anderson Sun State and renamed the “Groveland Motor Inn”. The firm completely renovated the hotel and used it to host visitors to the area who were interested in Green Swamp, land sectioned off for land development. At the time there was heavy speculation in the land because of it’s close proximity to Walt Disney World and were selling for around $5,000 an acre at the time. That ended after a state cabinet designation of the swamp as an area of critical state concern, placing the land off-limits to any large land developments. The firm filed for foreclosure and the hotel was auctioned off in 1974. Despite RCI Electric purchasing the hotel, it remained empty for many years afterwards.
n 1978, the hotel was signed over to the Agape Players, a nationally known religious music and drama group, who would assume the mortgage and would pay the costs to make improvements to meet city fire and safety standards. The hotel was renamed the “Royal Walesbilt” and after extensive improvements were made, it became the headquarters for the Agape Players; using it as a teaching facility and the base from which the group launched their tours. In addition, they operated a restaurant, an ice cream parlor on the lobby floor and a “Christian hotel” on the upper floors, catering mostly to groups. The Agape Players disbanded in 1985 and put the property up for sale
Victor Khubani, a property investor from New York acquired the property and renamed the hotel “Grand”. The hotel closed briefly in December 1988, due to a variety of code violations and causing the owner to later pay $14,000 in fines. On August 31, 1990 it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, possibly for tax exemption reasons. In October 1991, The State Fire Marshall’s Office gave the owner one year to install a new sprinkler system and in May 1993, the code enforcement board gave Khubani until March to complete the work.
In March 1994, the hotel closed due to multiple code violations and was to remain closed until a new fire sprinkler system was installed. To reopen, the fire escapes and elevator, which did not function, would have to be repaired as well. In 1995, the hotel was auctioned off to a redevelopment firm, which dismantled part of the interior for reconstruction, which was never completed.
Since then, the hotel has deteriorated, becoming an eyesore to many of the residents of Lake Wales and nicknamed “The Green Monster” for the greenish color it has acquired from over the years. In 1995, it was even jokingly mentioned to become a sacrifice to “the bomb”, an economic boom that occurred in parts of Florida where movie production companies would pay cities to blow up buildings for their movies. In 2007, the city foreclosed on the structure for more than $700,000 in unpaid code fines, with hopes in finding someone to restore it.
Development firm, Dixie-Walesbilt LLC announced plans to restore the hotel, signing into an agreement with the city of Lake Wales in February 2010. By the agreement, the city would retain ownership of the building until a defined amount of work had been accomplished. The work must be completed within 16 months and the amount of money invested must succeed at least $1.5 million. The building would then be handed off the Dixie Walesbilt LLC, where they may continue with private funding or other methods to for debt funding.
Ray Brown, President of Dixie Walesbilt LLC, planned to invest $6 million into the renovation, with original plans to put retail stores on the ground floor and using the upper floors for as many as 40 condominiums.
On June 2, 2011, the city of Lake Wales agreed to deed the building off to Ray Brown in a 4-1 vote, after meeting the requirements of the redevelopment agreement. Though Brown submitted a list of costs to the city totaling $1.66 million, Mayor Mike Carter wasn’t satisfied with the results so far, pointing out that Brown failed to repair the windows and repaint the building. Previous owners had put tar on the building and then painted over it, so much of Brown’s investment went to stripping the tar off the exterior walls.
To repaint the building, Brown would also have to resurface the hotel with hydrated lime to replicate the original skin as well as the window frames would need to be constructed of Douglas fir, red cedar and gulf cypress. According to Brown, previous owners who renovated the building rarely removed the building original elements. They carpeted over intricate tile flooring, stuck tar paper above skylights and placed modern drinking fountains in front of the originals. He estimated about 98 percent of the building is still in it’s original form.
Restoration of the building’s exterior began in January 2015 and included surface repair, pressure washing, paint removal, chemical treatment, and a comprehensive resurfacing of the exterior.
While the original plans were for turning the building into condominiums, that has since changed and current plans call for operating the building as a boutique hotel. The hotel will feature geothermal cooling as opposed to traditional air conditioning, a permanent art gallery as well as theme gallery showings throughout the year, and the best WiFi/internet in the city. The project is expected to be completed in 18 to 24 months.
Credit for the data above is given to the following websites:
www.cityoflakewales.com/505/Dixie-Walesbilt-Hotel
www.abandonedfl.com/dixie-walesbilt-hotel/
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An optimistic squirrel I me near Oxford on a morning walk. We have moved on to Bristol and next is Shrewsbury tomorrow. A strange itinerary but depended on when peope could see us.
Sorry to contacts I am only on a hotspot from my cell phone which is too slow downloading pictures. Will try to get back to you when I have proper wifi.
Keep my Mom in mind today and keep optimistic! Her infectious smile and laugh that makes everyone happy. For a month, she has been in isolation and tested positive two weeks ago, and is making it through the COVID-19, age 93 at the epicenter (Life Care Center of Kirkland) in the US, and she will be 94 when it is over. When asked how she was feeling, she said, better than I was! She has made it through the great depression, tuberculosis quarantine, measles, mumps, chickenpox, and so many more episodes of flu than we can imagine. She has the faith and hope of a mustard seed and loves the Lord, Jesus Christ. With these factors, she is a perfect example that we must fight to flatten the line, keep self quarantined and keep smiling. Stay inside, please.
So many lives taken in this world from the virus. I am sorry to all who have lost someone they love.
This, too, shall pass! And we will be a better world for it.
Love to everyone!
Delicate Arch, Arches National Park, Utah. It was Thanksgiving holiday and it was crowded in the natural amphitheater, which was not a surprise at all. There was quite a lot of high level clouds already when I was hiking up to the arch, so I was quite optimistic that I will be treated with something spectacular after sun down. Sun was going down, people were busy taking shots. Then the moment when the sun down to the horizon lots of people started to pack and leave. Well that was quite a surprise and I was thinking like "wait.. are you sure not waiting for ten more minutes? what the hack you guys are shooting?". And ten minutes later, there was the show! Felt sorry for those who just missed it.
Thanks for stopping by!
I think humans like to seek patterns and maybe it is comforting to do so...to find an order in things. I chose this fence since it's design forms a pattern that can make the light conform to a certain pleasing pattern also. My title came from a random word generator which I have used occasionally to choose the challenge topic. One day optimistic lung came up and though it did not make a good challenge topic I think it's randomness adds a nice chaotic imbalance. Another random thing that happened today is a couple of people waited for me to get my shot of the fence not realizing they were in the shot and one person ended up waiting in a very good spot.
for our daily challenge - patterns
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Just in case anyone out there figured I forgot about my own city or just didn't care enough, I thought I'd post nothing but Chicago photos for a couple of weeks. I will say, visits to other cities and countries make me see my own city in a slightly new light, which is always good, and always inspiring. If you could take the politics out of this city and make it a city where tax dollars were spent on the public good, I would probably love living here much more. That said, Chicago is an amazing place for many reasons. As sad and disgruntled I get (especially in January and February when I'm bicycling to work in blizzards), I have to try to remember this.
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At a total height of 88 feet, this handsome segmented plunged-based waterfall drops only once and is quite the charm for its audience. Belonging to the North Fork Nooksack River stream and the Nooksack River watershed, this beautiful fall has a dark side; since the 1940s, at least 11 people have met their fate here. More than likely, they were attempting to achieve a better view of the falls, which costed them their lives. Be sure to exercise caution in this rather easy-going environment.
Photo of the top portion of Nooksack Falls, at its drop, captured via Minolta MD W.Rokkor-X 24mm F/2.8 Lens. Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. North Cascades Lowland Forests section within the Cascades Region. Whatcom County, Washington. On the first day of May 2016.
Exposure Time: 0.3 sec. * ISO Speed: ISO-100 * Aperture: F/22 * Bracketing: None * Color Temperature: 6450 K * Filter: Warming Filter (85)
I wasn't really optimistic that the weather would play ball as i set off for Rumbling Kern on sunday morning,but i was really pleased that the clouds would clear and give way to some quite nice light.
This was taken at that great time,when the darkness of night gives way to the light of day.In the right conditions its surely one of the best times to be out there with camera in hand.
EXIF....F19....3 SECONDS....ISO 100....11MM....LEE 0.9 ND GRAD (HARD)