Universal Orlando feuds with some neighbors, aligns with others

Universal Orlando has had a tough time lately getting along with some of its neighbors.

The growing theme-park complex has angered two local developers of large planned attractions who have accused the resort of stifling competition. At the same time, Universal is in a legal battle with a nearby hotel and Orange County over drainage issues.

Universal spokesman Tom Schroder said the resort generally has good relationships with surrounding homes and businesses. “We want to be a good neighbor,” he said.

Industry watchers say conflict is inevitable as Universal expands and the area around it booms.

Disneyland, which is surrounded by other development in Anaheim, Calif., has faced similar issues, including a lawsuit it filed against the city several years ago over plans for apartments. When Walt Disney established his theme-park resort here, he buffered much of it against competition and complaints by buying huge tracts of land. The Walt Disney Co. even got the state of Florida to create the resort’s own local governments: two cities and a taxing district.

“I think Universal, because they don’t have the insular protection Disney does, is going to do what they can to prohibit … attractions that draw business away from them,” said Duncan Dickson, a former Disney executive and an associate professor at the University of Central Florida’s Rosen College of Hospitality Management.

Chuck Whittall and Josh Wallack, developers behind unrelated projects on nearby International Drive, are unhappy with Universal.

After opposition from the theme-park resort, Orange County’s Planning and Zoning Commission last week voted against recommending Wallack’s Skyplex in a 4-3 vote. Orange County staff had recommended its approval. Universal argued against the height of the project, which features a 501-foot roller coaster.

“I blame them for doing business the wrong way by trying to strong-arm and dictate what happens over on International Drive,” Wallack said. “Universal’s like, ‘This is our side of town.'”

Wallack’s project will go in front of the Orange County Commission in December.

Whittall recently quit the board of an International Drive business group he said was too influenced by Universal and other big businesses. Whittall’s Unicorp National Developments is developing a complex in which a 420-foot-tall spinning ride called StarFlyer is proposed.

A representative for Universal recently urged planning officials to slow down approving height changes for the project.

Whittall also ran into conflict with Universal as he developed the I-Drive 360 complex that includes the Orlando Eye. Universal sued three companies, including Unicorp and Merlin Entertainments Group, at one point over the name of the complex, which was then called I-Walk Orlando, saying it was too similar to Universal’s CityWalk.

“They’re sore winners,” Whittall said. “They’re doing great in the market, yet they’re still souring it for other people.”

Universal has insisted that its interest in the projects has not been driven by competition. “Our concerns are about what we believe is a shared vision for our community,” Schroder said. Universal’s water-park subsidiary also recently sued the Enclave hotel and included Orange County as a defendant. The lawsuit says the county and the Enclave have permitted developers and other private-property owners to drain stormwater into an easement flowing into a lake behind Wet ‘n Wild water park, which Universal plans to close and redevelop.

“I’m very disappointed that it happened, and surprised,” Orange County Commissioner Pete Clarke said of the lawsuit. “We’ve always been very good partners with the theme parks.”

Wallack and his attorney Hal Kantor say they think the suit was aimed at Skyplex, because that project could also potentially drain into the lake.

“The lawsuit is about our ability to protect and develop our property, period,” Schroder said. “This is a private lake. Orange County is dumping more stormwater into a private lake than they should.”

Universal is surrounded by a lot of commercial development but also residential neighborhoods, whose homeowners have complained through the years about the resort’s fireworks shows and noise from rides. Some of those neighbors say relations have improved through the years.

“It was a rocky start,” said Lou Roeder, a resident of the Orange Tree subdivision between Dr. Phillips Boulevard and Turkey Lake Road. But now, he said, Universal has “acknowledged what the homeowners mean to them and what they mean to the homeowners.”

In fact, Universal has found an ally in Orange Tree in its battle against Skyplex. A Universal representative last week pointed out at Thursday’s meeting that the community had sent a letter to county officials the night before. Universal acknowledged it had reached out to neighbors about Skyplex but wouldn’t give other details.

With so many different types of development surrounding it, Universal’s relationships are bound to be complicated, said Robert Niles, editor and publisher of ThemeParkInsider.com

“They have to accommodate the relationships that come with living in close proximity with your neighbors,” he said. “Sometimes you get along, sometimes you don’t.”

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