Oviedo Mall’s long list of maintenance projects are on their way to completion, slowly but surely, as mall management works to revitalize the massive shopping complex.
A quarter century after its construction in 1998, the mall has for years been dealing with a leaky roof, particularly its glass ceilings. The skylight-filled roof was designed to help sustain the vegetation that lined the walls of the mall. It gradually became a leaky mess, and buckets overflowing with rainwater became a regular sight for shoppers as they strolled the concourse between shops.
After multiple roofing companies declined to fix the leaks in the roof’s complicated glass structure, the flow has finally slowed.
Over a year ago, Oviedo Mall Development Director Kevin Hipes told Oviedo Community News that the mall would fix its maintenance issues within 12 months.
Now, 14 months after Hipes’ promise, the job is still underway but with good progress.
Hipes said the roof repairs are now 90% complete.
The nearly 200 large yellow and gray buckets that used to sit throughout the mall to catch dripping water have since been removed and replaced by three or four strips of colored duct tape to mark where unfixed leaks remain. The buckets are still kept nearby in hallways and behind signs in case of a leak.
“Turning around a regional mall is like turning a battleship,” Hipes said. “You have a great plan, but it just takes time to come to fruition.”
A large majority of the mall’s colorful skylight roofing has been replaced, including the spine down the center court of the mall where the leaks were most prevalent.
Marina Fantinel, manager of art and wine boutique Calliope Street in the mall, said mall management has fixed the two leaks that were once outside of her store’s entrance. Shepraised the mall for the progress it has made in fixing the leaks, although it is still not perfect.
“They have taken care of the problem,” Fantinel said. “As far as what [the mall was] planning to do and the things that we have asked, they have been working really hard and they have come through with most of them.”
The progress has protected the mall from flooding during large storms, such as Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton. Fantinel said the mall received minimal damage from leaks and was able to reopen within a few days following the storm.
“We had the hurricane and we didn’t get a single leak with all that rain,” Fantinel said.
This comes as a big contrast to the overflow of water the mall used to deal with during a simple rainy day.
In August 2023, Axel Rodriguez, an associate at Auntie Anne’s, told Oviedo Community News he often couldn’t find enough buckets to cover the leaks.
Some mall tenants such as Youssef Youssef, the owner of Feta Mediterranean Gourmet, said that while the leaks are a lot less apparent, they still exist.
Youssef used to have a leak directly in front of his restaurant which would drip onto his register counter. Now, the only leak he can see from Feta is farther away near the food court tables. The leak comes and goes on occasion without posing an inconvenience.
“They have a few problems, but they fixed most of them,” Youssef said. “We still have a few, much less though.”
Along with the leaks, the mall has faced other maintenance concerns. Between 2019 and 2021, 18 complaints about the mall’s landscape and roadways were filed with the Oviedo Code Enforcement office.
In 2021, Oviedo Special Magistrate Howard Marsee issued a mandate for the mall to fix dead trees in the median, curbs covered in leaves, overgrown weeds, disappearing parking lot stripes and faded directional signs by Nov. 30, 2021 or face a daily $125 fine.
According to the City of Oviedo, the mall complied with the Magistrate’s orders and was not fined.
Hipes said the mall met the city’s requirements by planting new trees and re-striping the parking lot but he still has plans to upgrade the rest of the mall.
In 2022, the mall also installed a new air conditioner in the hallways and recently updated the air conditioners in the stores.
The roof and the air conditioning repair together cost the mall over $5 million, Hipes said.
Development beyond the repairs
Hipes laid out a plan to revamp the mall and turn it into a one-stop shop for community members to get medical services, eat and shop.
Shoppers can look forward to amenities including new store tenants, mixed-use offices, apartments, hotels and structured parking.
“You want to have restaurants, and you want to have places for people to live, and you want to have walkability, and you want to have places to work and you want to have entertainment,” Hipes said. “We have all those components right now; we just don’t have enough of them.”
In his vision, community members can visit what he plans to call Medical Main Street, a medical center to be located on the east wing of the mall, and shop around or grab a bite to eat while waiting for an appointment.
The plan is already advancing as three medical offices have been opened throughout the mall.
In September 2023, Orlando Orthopedic Center opened 16 examination rooms near Imagine Performing Arts Center and a Paul Mitchell cosmetology school. Along with the orthopedic center, an eye doctor, Optical Outlets, and a behavioral therapy center, Catalyst Behavior Solutions, have been long-term tenants.
Hipes said he is waiting to see the mall’s upcoming housing project develop to move forward with his plans. So far, the City of Oviedo has approved apartments but is still filing documentation before construction, which Hipes hopes will begin in 2025.
As of right now, a new apartment complex is in the works to replace the former Macy’s property.
“It doesn’t pay to spend too much time on the landscaping until we put in place the additional components,” Hipes said.
Although Hipes said the updates will take many years to come to fruition, his plans already align with Fantinel’s vision of the mall as she said she sees the mall as the heart of the town that acts as a community hub for families to gather.
“The mall has become a place for experiences and that’s what I think the malls need to do to survive in general,” Fantinel said.
In Hipes’ eyes, that is exactly what the mall will be: An experience.
Sorry for the interruption but please take 1 minute to read this. The news depends on it.
Did you know each article on Oviedo Community News takes anywhere from 10-15 hours to produce and edit and costs between $325 and $600? Your support makes it possible.
We believe that access to local news is a right, not a privilege, which is why our journalism is free for everyone. But we rely on readers like you to keep this work going. Your contribution keeps us independent and dedicated to our community.
If you believe in the value of local journalism, please make a tax-deductible contribution today or choose a monthly gift to help us plan for the future.
Thank you for supporting Oviedo Community News!
With gratitude,
Megan Stokes, OCN editor-in-chief
Thank you for reading! Before you go...
We are interested about hearing news in our community! Let us know what's happening!
Share a story!
