If all the pieces fit and Monarch Studios flies, more film projects could come to the Space Coast.
Visionaries in business ventures tend to dream big, and when the idea invokes Hollywood, the plans get absolutely immense.
An Orlando man with the backing of a few as-yet-unidentified celebrities has scratched out a deal to build Monarch Studios, which he calls the largest movie production facility outside Hollywood, at Daytona Beach Airport. The $100-million project would include a soundstage with a 60-foot overhead clearance, a 50,000-sq.-ft. soundstage and a 300-million-gallon deepwater tank -- each the largest of its kind outside of Tinseltown.
The project also would link with Daytona Beach Community College to help ensure trained production crews are available at all times. "Right now there are really only two class A crews available in this area," says Dan Cetrone, chief operating officer of Monarch and current front man for the project. "That's one of the reasons a lot of work goes elsewhere."
Monarch Studios will begin construction in January and be built in two or three phases over the next three years. A state and local incentives package worth up to $400,000 helped cement the deal. Monarch has signed one contract for a $50-million movie, Cetrone says, and another for a TV show that will be beamed to South America.
Cetrone is close-lipped about the new movie and Monarch's backers. He says it's backed by three banks that commonly finance projects in the industry, and by three well-known industry figures, all of whom are "recognizable celebrities." Although he says they will come forward when the time is right, so far the project is cloaked in enough mystery that even central Florida's county film offices have been publicly skeptical that it will fly.
If it gets off the ground, Cetrone says Monarch will have some solid economic advantages. With the help of NASA and the Department of Energy, the 24 acres of studio roofs will be covered with photovoltaic cells to produce power from the sun. Union concessions will keep production crew wages far below Hollywood standards. Those factors could keep studio costs 30% to 50% below work done in Hollywood, Cetrone says. That will help erase the cost pressures that have led many producers to Canada and even New Zealand to film everything from major movies to music videos.
The buzz surrounding the movie "Blair Witch Project" has pushed enrollment at the University of Central Florida's film program through the roof, and Cetrone expects it to put a little wind under Monarch's wings, too. In an industry where accounting procedures can lead studios to conclude publicly that blockbuster movies are financial failures, the mystery surrounding Monarch shouldn't come as a surprise. But when Monarch comes out of its cocoon, the 400 jobs and high-tech studio may be enough to show that an unlikely vision can help central Florida's dream of becoming a major production venue come true.
Light Rail: Back on Track
light rail
Back on Track
Light rail survived an 11th-hour defeat by Orange County commissioners, with Orlando Mayor Glenda Hood spearheading an effort to build a scaled-down version without the county's help. One of the most contentious political issues in central Florida, the proposal was troubled from the time it left the station. Bickering between city and county officials was common. The Orlando Sentinel put its editorial weight in favor, while Orlando residents put up yard signs attacking it. Supporters said it was a vision that would help manage growth, while opponents questioned the cost and wondered who would be commuting between downtown Orlando and the attractions.
After the county nixed involvement in the $600-million deal, several commissioners floated plans for a monorail connecting International Drive to the airport instead. But the city weighed in with a $325-million fragment of the original plan, saying it wanted the federal money that had already been approved. Hood said a light rail system had to start somewhere, and the proposed route would let other parts be added later. Congress agreed, approving $5 million in the next year for the system that will link downtown Orlando to the end of I-Drive.
In the News
Kissimmee -- Charter Behavioral Health System closed its 60-bed mental health facility as part of what the company called a nationwide restructuring. Company officials said the closure had nothing to do with a $4.7-million settlement last year relating to charges that Charter collected illegal Medicare payments.
Lake Buena Vista -- Disney opened its new Millennium Village at Epcot, sparking a storm of controversy over an exhibit on Israel. Arab groups object to the display, saying it does not make it clear that Jerusalem is disputed territory, claimed by Palestinians and Jews as their capital city.
Lake Mary -- Recoton Corp. (Nasdaq-RCOT), in the midst of a restructuring that involves layoffs at several facilities, lined up a $50-million increase in its credit line, leading company executives to predict the worst was over and providing a short-lived boost to the company's stock price.
Siemens Information and Communications Networks will add 300 jobs as the company consolidates manufacturing and finance operations from New Jersey and California. Of the new jobs, about 250 will be local hires and the rest will be transfers from Santa Clara, Calif., and Cherry Hills, N.J.
Orlando -- SimCom International Inc., a simulator-based school for teaching pilots to fly business aircraft, is planning an 84,000-sq.-ft. expansion that may raise employment from 57 to 100. The decision depends on incentives being considered by the city of Orlando and the state.
Lockheed Martin Corp. eliminated 200 jobs from the Orlando missiles unit by offering severance packages to employees who resigned or retired from the 3,500-employee facility.
Universal Studios opened Portofino Bay, a 750-room luxury hotel and the first of several hotels that will give the attraction 2,400 rooms in two years. High-end rooms include butler service, baby sitting and "smart rooms" that adjust the thermostat when guests enter and leave.
The venerable Harley Hotel, which overlooks Lake Eola in downtown, is shedding the last of its connections with infamous hotelier Leona Helmsley. The hotel is undergoing a $9-million renovation and will reopen in December under the name Four Points Hotel Downtown Orlando Sheraton.
A venture linking Ogden Entertainment of Illinois and Apopka-based Goodings Hospitality Service won the rights to sell concessions at the Orlando Arena, Citrus Bowl and Bob Carr Performing Arts Center, a three-year contract that could gross $10 million.
Osceola County -- Tupperware (NYSE-TUP) has agreed to sell 61 acres near its headquarters on which West Palm Beach developer The Goodman Co. will build a 500,000-sq.-ft. shopping center. Tupperware owns more than 1,000 acres in the area and had portions rezoned for office, retail and industrial projects in 1996.
Titusville -- Smart Choice Automotive Group (Nasdaq-SMCH) said it agreed to a merger with Crown Group Inc. of Dallas that will give Smart Choice the financial wherewithal to restructure its Florida operations. Both Smart Choice and Crown specialize in selling used cars to buyers with poor credit by financing with high interest rates. Crown will lend Smart Choice $3 million and convert $20 million in debt to Crown stock.
Winter Park -- A chain of alternative health clinics said it would move its headquarters from Washington, D.C., to an office building on Howell Branch Road. Complete Wellness Centers operates 63 clinics nationwide, a third of them in central Florida.
Good news, bad news at Stratcom Media Ltd. The company announced an agreement with American Airlines to distribute its flagship personal finance publications, MoneyWorld and Financial Sentinel, in the airline's Admirals Clubs, visited by about 600,000 people a month. A few weeks later, however, the SEC accused Stratcom of plugging stocks, then secretly selling shares at inflated prices. Stratcom disputes that version of the alleged offenses, which occurred from 1994 through 1996.
Overheard
Daytona Beach is taking a new approach to the touchy issue of Black College Reunion: burying its head in the sand. Problems surrounding the event are often numerous, and not always caused by the revelers. For example, five participants in last year's BCR are embroiled in a racial discrimination lawsuit with the local Adam's Mark hotel. Among the claims: BCR guests were made to pay a damage deposit and wear day-glo orange wristbands. Their rooms were stripped of pictures, minibars could not be unlocked, room phones didn't work and they weren't allowed to use the hotel parking lot -- inconveniences they claim were not endured by white guests. Amid complaints from residents about the annual event, which draws some 100,000 African Americans each spring, the city over the years has appointed committees and task forces to try and help BCR go more smoothly. The efforts have not worked. So in anticipation of the spring 2000 event, the city has decided the best approach is to do nothing. Local officials even refuse to get involved in deciding what weekend in April the event should be held. So, as of press time, there was no date for BCR 2000. But there's little doubt it will go on, and many predict an unorganized BCR is going to be even more chaotic. "I hope no one blames the kids if something happens; if something happens, blame the leadership," says Dean O'Brien, a Daytona resident and African-American businessman who feels some responsibility for the event after serving on city task forces. "This city's black professional community is banging its head against the wall about this," he says. "The event has been going on for 14 years, and it's going to keep going on; either we get control of it or it's going to be out of control."