Maitland's Holiday Calendar Is Working Around Two Construction Fences

Where should you go for downtown Maitland's holiday events this year? On a Sunday morning, go to Lake Lily. On a Friday night, go to Independence Lane.

This fall, two construction projects run close to each other in the center of the city. One is building the North Independence Lane extension. The other is building the new public library at Quinn Strong Park. Together they have moved the city's events. The weekly market and the tree lighting are now at Lake Lily Park. The evening street parties and outdoor movies stay at Independence Square, a short walk from an intersection that is closed for most of November.

Sunday mornings went back to the lake

The Maitland Farmer's Market used to fill Independence Lane every Sunday. It last ran there on June 28. In a June 21 notice, the City said the market would reopen at Lake Lily Park on July 12 because of the North Independence Lane construction. The reason was parking. Construction would first affect the city lot at Maitland Avenue and Horatio Avenue, which market vendors and visitors used every Sunday.

The market has been here before. The City says it was held at Lake Lily Park until 2021. The stalls now run around the west side of the lake, near the playground and restrooms, and Performing Arts Matter provides live music. Hours are 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The City's November and December calendars list it at 701 Lake Lily Drive every Sunday through December 27.

The lake also hosts the season's biggest night. The City's Season of Light Holiday Celebration is Saturday, December 5, from 5 to 8:30 p.m. at 701 Lake Lily Drive. It includes games, vendors, live music and the tree-lighting ceremony. That puts the tree lighting and the next morning's market in the same park, about 13 hours apart.

If you want dinner nearby after the lights, Selva Rosa Cocina & Bar is on the same Orlando Avenue corridor at 901 S. Orlando Ave., in the former Teak Neighborhood Grill space. Orlando Weekly reported its opening in January. The menu covers Mexican, Latin American and Asian dishes, with a sushi bar and an outdoor area called El Patio Rosa.

Friday nights stayed next to the closure

The evening events have not moved. Getdown Downtown is on November 6 and December 4, and Movie in the Park is on November 14 and December 12. The City lists all four at Independence Square, 1776 Independence Lane. The Square is a park of nearly 2 acres next to City Hall. The City rebuilt it in 2020 with restrooms, a fountain, seating, wide walkways and an open lawn.

Until November 27, getting there takes a different route. In an October 22 notice, the City said the intersection of Horatio Avenue and Independence Lane would close on Monday, November 2, with work expected to finish Friday, November 27. Posted detours are at these points:

• Horatio Avenue at Orlando Avenue, for vehicles and pedestrians
• Horatio Avenue at Maitland Avenue, for vehicles and pedestrians
• Independence Lane at Packwood Avenue, for vehicles only

The November 6 Getdown Downtown falls inside that closure window, and the City calendar still lists the event at its usual address. The Maitland Public Works Department can answer access questions at (407) 539-3973. The December 4 party comes a week after the scheduled reopening.

The businesses along this stretch are the same ones the market crowd used to walk past on Sundays. The City lists Brewlando Brewery, Houndstooth Kitchen and Eatery, Parea Greek Taverna, Kelly's Homemade Ice Cream, Fleet Feet, Starbucks and Floyd's 99 Barbershop on or near Independence Lane. Maitland City Centre, with nearly 250 apartments, sits next door.

What the Horatio fence is building

The closure is part of the North Independence Lane extension. The project adds nearly 600 linear feet of road between George Avenue and Horatio Avenue. The new section is designed to match the stretch the City rebuilt in 2018 between Horatio and Packwood, with a brick-paver street, wide concrete walkways, trees, lighting, benches and bike racks. A $500,000 community development block grant helped pay for it. Mast Newsroom reported that Burkhardt Construction Inc. won the $3.527 million contract.

Crews started in late July. The City's July 30 Maitland Minute mentioned an unexpected find, an old buried weigh-scale structure, which crews removed. That newsletter expected the work to be done "by the end of this year." The contract terms Mast described allow 365 calendar days to substantial completion after notice to proceed, plus 30 days for final completion. The City's year-end target is shorter than that contract window. The City has not announced when the Sunday market will return to Independence Lane, so the lake remains its home for now.

The old library's last December on Maitland Avenue

A block away, a second fence went up on April 30 around Quinn Strong Park. The City held the groundbreaking on April 7 with HBM Architects and Turner Construction. The City has described the design as mid-century modern. According to the City's April release, the new library will be two stories and 20,000 square feet. It will stand on the north side of the park near Maitland Avenue and Packwood Avenue and will nearly double the space for collections, meetings and programs. The cost is estimated at nearly $16 million, and Quinn Strong Park will be rebuilt as part of the project.

The City's June 4 Maitland Minute estimated construction at "a little more than a year." Mast's reporting put the opening about 17 months after groundbreaking. Neither source names an opening date, but both estimates land in 2027. If that schedule holds, that would make this the final holiday season at 501 S. Maitland Ave. The library there first opened in 1907, and the building was expanded in 1959, 1972 and 1989.

The library's November calendar still lists regular programs in its Meeting Room:

• Conversation Café, American Sign Language, on November 10
• Fresh for Kids on November 11
• Share-a-Title Book Club on November 13

The building's next use has not been decided. Mast Newsroom reported in May that Art & History Museums of Maitland proposed a "Maitland History Center" for the building. The plan includes art classrooms and studio space, expanded galleries, a digitization lab with genealogical resources, and free year-round access for Maitland residents. The City Council discussed the idea on May 11 but gave no direction and did not schedule a follow-up vote.

The library project moved other programs too. Senior recreation programs that used the old Maitland Senior Center, which was torn down for the project, now meet at Maitland Community Park, the cottage at Lake Lily Park and City Hall. That makes Lake Lily Park the main stand-in for gatherings that used to happen downtown, from the Sunday market to the tree lighting to the senior programs at the cottage.

The season, date by date

December 4 through 6 is the only weekend with an event on all three days, split between the two locations. Getdown Downtown is Friday night on Independence Lane after the scheduled reopening. Season of Light is Saturday evening at the lake, and the market returns to the west shore of Lake Lily on Sunday morning.

At The A List, we follow how projects like the new library and the Independence Lane extension change Maitland, one block at a time. If you're thinking about how downtown's next chapter could affect your home's story, we'd love to talk. Request a VIP Listing Consultation.