The Orlando Magic are negotiating with the City of Orlando to purchase the Orlando Police Headquarters and a nearby parking garage in order to build a new entertainment complex near Amway Center, reports Mark Schleub of the Orlando Sentinel. Orlando mayor Buddy Dyer said the deal "is one of the most complicated things we've dealt with, quite honestly."
The deal could be worth as much as $12.7 million, a figure which Doug Head says might not be fair to taxpayers. Head, the president of CountyWatch, told the Sentinel, "The price, to me, looks like they are accommodating the Magic, not accommodating the taxpayer."
The 7.2-acre lot houses "the Church Street Garage, where many Magic fans and concert-goers park on event nights; the police station; and an OPD communications tower and vehicle service station," according to Schleub. The Magic are also hoping to purchase from the Orlando Union Rescue Mission another half-acre on which an iconic homeless shelter--its neon cross sign is visible from Interstate 4--stands.
In addition to eventually hosting "a hotel and conference center," the new complex would also have a new headquarters for the Magic.
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