Welcome to Monday Morning in Orlando
Well, I’ll be damned. I’m pretty terrible at keeping track of milestones or anniversaries on the work-front, but I just realized this newsletter crossed 3 years and 321 issues on October 2nd. The very first issue went out to a whopping 72 people! Some of you are newbies, and some are oldbies, but I appreciate you all the same. Thanks for taking the ride with me twice a week.
In today’s issue: 👇
- American Building
- Meet Lauren Thelwell
- Pickles
- ….and much more
Did someone forward this email to you? Join over 20K insatiably curious Orlandoans, right here.
Let’s dive in!
- Philip
P.S. Want some hawt community sourced foodie recommendations? Check out the Orlando Signal Restaurant Guide, right here.
(GREATER) ORLANDO REWIND ⏪
It Sold Cars, Housed Insurance Men, and Vanished.
Some buildings settle into one job and keep it for life. The American Building absolutely did not.
Over roughly seven decades on South Orange Avenue, it sold Dodges, parked cars, housed insurance men, changed its name twice, and quietly vanished, so completely that most people working nearby today have never heard of it.
The block started with a front porch. Orville L. Rogers, a Virginia-born lawyer, arrived in 1878. By 1894 a physician lived there. By 1920 the house was moonlighting as a tea room. Then the 1920s boom hit, and somebody decided Orlando needed a six-story Dodge dealership and parking garage.
Also, fun fact, the first structure in the area built with poured-in-place concrete beams, tough enough to hold rows of cars several stories up.
The dealers eventually moved on. The building became offices, then the Exchange Building, then, after American Fire & Casualty bought it in 1946 for $250,000, the American Building. The name stuck for decades. By 1960, Orange County commission minutes were still listing the company there, even as towers started muscling in around it.
By some accounts, the shell stood vacant until the 1990s. The Grand Bohemian now sits near that corner.
Not many downtown addresses packed this much plot into six stories. Orlando has a notoriously short memory. This one deserved a longer one.
📋 The full piece traces the block's earliest residents by name, the boom-era land rush that made a six-story car garage make perfect sense, and how Magnolia Avenue once went by a completely different name. Follow the full trail, right here.
THE SQUEEZE 🍊
Fresh Food, Free Guides, and Zero Excuses: Meet Lauren Thelwell
In 2022, Lauren Thelwell of Winter Springs picked up a shovel and founded Dig Deeper 4 Health with a mission as straightforward as it gets: help people eat better and understand why it matters.
It started as a community garden growing fresh produce for local families, until the project lost its growing space.
Most people hang up their gardening gloves at that point. Thelwell didn't blink. She linked up with community food distribution sites and physician mentors, shifting to monthly produce distributions through Orlando's Neighborhood Fridge.
She and her volunteers also worked with doctors to build free, physician-reviewed health guides on diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and nutrition: written in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole so no one gets left out.
Oh, and she's a college student doing all of this between classes.
Thelwell is now pushing outreach into the Pine Hills Community Center, fueled by one conviction: your income, your language, and your circumstances shouldn't determine whether you get healthy food and factual health information.
Read an expanded version of Lauren’s story, right here. Or, see what she’s up to, right here.
👉 Know a community superstar? Tell me about them, right here.
Quiet Takeover Happening in Central Florida Backyard
Dig Deeper 4 Health isn’t the only operation putting down roots in Central Florida. Across the region, a quieter movement is taking hold, one backyard at a time.
Before sunrise in Pine Hills, a mother is already on her knees pulling radishes from the soil, her young daughter close behind. What started as a pandemic project in 2020 has grown into a small urban farm and a children’s education program, a personal story that’s part of something much bigger than one backyard.
Experts at the University of Florida confirm it: urban agriculture has been building for years, and the pandemic kicked it into a higher gear.
Studies suggest gardeners eat up to 20 percent more fresh produce than non-gardeners. Working the soil also measurably reduces cortisol levels.
The backyard, it turns out, is doing a lot of work.
(Get the full buzz on Central Florida’s quietly growing backyard farming movement with Paul Giorgio, right here)
Orlando's Speed Cameras Don't Sleep, But They’re Feeling Generous Right Now
Orlando's school zone speed cameras went live last week at 20 locations across the city, and yes, they're already watching.
The good news: through November 29th, drivers caught going more than 10 mph over the limit get a warning, not a ticket.
The bad news: that window closes November 30th, when fines kick in for real.
The cameras are part of Orlando's Vision Zero initiative, which aims to eliminate traffic deaths by 2040. They run on school days only, nights, weekends, and holidays are off the table. BUT you should STILL behave!
Fines collected go directly toward crossing guard and school safety programs. You've been warned.
👀 Check out the Vision Zero initiative, right here.
👉 Partner With Orlando Signal 👈
💼 Who’s Hiring in Orlando?
Fresh opportunities from the Orlando Signal Job Board!
📱 Social Media Manager (Hospitality / Travel) Mediabistro / Marriott Bonvoy Resort | Orlando (Hybrid)
Shoot reels at the pool, court creators for influencer stays, and run paid campaigns for a villa resort on International Drive steps from Universal, where premium meets genuine vacation energy.
💰 Competitive salary + hotel discounts | 👉 Learn More & Apply
🏢 Workplace Experience Manager Cushman and Wakefield | Orlando
Create a workplace employees actually want to show up to, using data, hospitality instincts, and white-glove executive service to make every day in the office feel effortless.
💰 $86.6K-$101.9K/year | 👉 Learn More & Apply
🏗️ Director of Project Management Immersive Scenic Studios | Orlando (25-40% travel)
Own project delivery across two design-build divisions creating stunning multifamily amenities and custom residential playrooms, managing budgets, contracts, and a growing PM team.
💰 Competitive salary | 👉 Learn More & Apply
🍩 General Manager The Salty Donut | Orlando
Lead a fast-growing chef-driven donut and coffee concept where every shift is an experience, managing a passionate team, driving P&L, and earning 40% off the best donuts in the game.
💰 $65K-$80K/year + monthly bonus + 6 weeks parental leave | 👉 Learn More & Apply
Hunting, or know someone hunting? Peep 100’s of jobs on the Orlando Signal Job Board, right here.
✈️ Orlando’s best flight deal - Music city after dark edition
Here's the Nashville nobody talks about. Ditch the Broadway bar crawl and suddenly you've got one of the most interesting cities in the South. The Ryman Auditorium will give you chills whether you're a country fan or not, the Johnny Cash Museum is legitimately world-class, and the Civil Rights Room at the Nashville Public Library is quietly one of the most powerful stops in the entire region. When you're hungry, Prince's Hot Chicken is non-negotiable, Husk is worth fighting for a reservation, and 12 South has enough good restaurants to fill an entire evening without trying.
Orlando (MCO) → Nashville (BNA) for 203 bucks* (non-stop!), round-trip Thursday through Sunday, early-November. See the deal.
*Price shown above is accurate as of the time this newsletter was sent.
TASTY NEWS 🧑🍳
Orlando Area Eateries Coming & Going
1️⃣ SOFT OPENED: Koffee Sutra - Spice, Soul, and Stay Awhile
Tucked near Lake Eola, Koffee Sutra (Insta) isn't your standard café stop. Rose cardamom lattes, saffron cold brews, and turmeric tonics sit alongside thoughtfully pulled espresso, each drink built around spice, culture, and intention. And when the sun goes down, craft cocktails take over, designed for conversation and staying just a little longer.
#ORLANDOSIGNAL 📸
The vibes. Always there for the vibes….and elite donuts.
📷 via @orlandosignal |📍Audubon Park
Tag @orlandosignal to get your photo featured in the newsletter!
FOODIE FIND, FORK YEAH! 🤩
Pickles New York Deli
📍1891 W State Rd 434, Longwood, FL 32750. Map to this location.
There's a smell that hits you before you sit down: slow-cooked corned beef, hand-carved to order, Bronx water-boiled bagels, sauerkraut, house-made Thousand Island.
Pickles New York Deli (FB) is Central Florida's apex predator relating to authentic New York delicatessen. The awards back it up: Best Deli, Best Reuben, Top 10 Deli in Florida.
The Brooklyn Reuben alone is worth the drive. The Junior's Cheesecake makes you stay.
👉 Check out the menu, right here 👈
Source: Pickles New York Deli
MORE PULP! 😎
Weekday things to check out
🎭 FIAE: International Performing Arts Festival VI
📅 Monday-Sunday, October 12th-18th
📍 Maitland Art Center
One week, six countries, and endless discovery! Panama, France, Iran, Puerto Rico, Spain, and Central Florida collide through theater, live cinema, immersive art, and hands-on workshops.
👉 World Without Borders
🎨 Exhibition Opens: “Revolt in the Parlor”
📅 Tuesday, October 13th | 9:30am-4pm
📍 Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art
From Victorian clutter to bold reinvention, this exhibition traces the wild creative currents of art and design from 1895 to 1959. Experimentation never looked so good!
👉 Break the Rules
🎸 The Red Clay Strays: Grateful Tour
📅 Wednesday, October 14th | 6:30pm
📍 Kia Center
Alabama's most electrifying rising act brings gritty Southern country, blues, rock, and soul to the big stage. This is country music with its boots on fire.
👉 Wondering Why You're Not Going
🐾 Faire of the Dog Vintage Market
📅 Wednesday, October 14th | 6-11pm
📍 Will’s Pub, Lil’ Indies, and Dirty Laundry, 1042 N Mills Ave
25+ vendors of vintage, handmade goods, vinyl, and sweet treats in full spooky season mode, benefiting Poodle and Pooch Rescue of Florida. Bring your pup and howl at the moon!
👉 Shop for Good
💀 17th Annual Día de los Muertos and Monster Party
📅 Thursday, October 15th | 6-10pm
📍 CityArts, 39 S Magnolia Avenue
Seventeen years of skull face paint, monster art, street party energy, and cultural reverence colliding in one unforgettable downtown celebration. Come for the art, stay for the vibes.
👉 Spooky Celebration
🎨 Zen Texture Painting Workshop
📅 Thursday, October 15th | 5:30-7:30pm
📍 Location TBD
Sculpt and carve organic florals and modern abstracts onto canvas using palette knives like a pro. No experience needed, all materials included, and zero pressure guaranteed!
👉 Sculpt and Chill
🎵 Fritz Klezmer Trio
📅 Thursday, October 15th | 6:30-8:30pm
📍 Casa Feliz Historic Home Museum
Hungarian clarinet master Joe Fritz brings jazz standards, Hungarian melodies, and original compositions with the warmth and swing of a living legend.
👉 Swing and Sway
🎨 Meet the Artists Reception: "Itty Bitty Art" Expo
📅 Thursday, October 15th | 6-8pm
📍 Sanford Historic Welcome Center
Meet the talented locals behind the 4th Annual "itty bitty art" Expo's 6x6 paintings, enjoy hors d'oeuvres, vote for your top 3 favorites, and win a chance to take one home!
👉 Tiny but Mighty
🎭 Want to share an event? Use this link.
THANKS!
✅ Want to connect with 20K+ curious Orlandoans for your business?, start a conversation here.
🌟 Know a community superstar? Tell me about them, right here.
Thanks for reading! I’ll see you again on Thursday’s weekend fun issue.
My Best,
Philip - Publisher, Orlando Signal
