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Did Unicorp start construction in 2020 on redeveloping Orlando Fashion Square, as its president said in April 2019?

The Roadmap Reckoner · Orlando Fashion Square, East Colonial Drive at Maguire Boulevard, Orlando, Orange County, Florida · last checked 2026-10-23

Verdict	PENDING, OVERDUE (by 5 years, 9 months and 23 days)
Promiser	Unicorp National Developments, through its president and CEO (named Chuck Whittal in the WFTV article)
Place	Orlando Fashion Square, East Colonial Drive at Maguire Boulevard, Orlando, Orange County, Florida
Promised	Construction to start in 2020 (WFTV, April 26, 2019: permitting in "nine months to a year", then construction "next year"; counted from December 31, 2020)
Delivered / status	Not started on any city record read as of October 23, 2026; in August 2026 the city agreed to reimburse the leaseholder for a "Redevelopment Lift Station" to serve "redevelopment of the Mall property"
Last checked	2026-10-23

Verdict: PENDING, OVERDUE, by 5 years, 9 months and 23 days (counted from December 31, 2020 to October 23, 2026, which is 2,122 days). On April 26, 2019 WFTV published an article quoting the president and CEO of Unicorp, who is named Chuck Whittal in that article, on how long permitting would take (the words are as the page stands; its own data shows an edit on November 23, 2019, and no earlier copy was read): "it will probably take nine months to a year to have all of that done with permitting. Then, we will start to construction next year," [C1, C3]. The article gives no year for "next year". This entry reads it as 2020 from the article's date, as the earlier stages did, and counts the promise as due by the end of 2020 [C3, the trace]. No city record read shows a start in 2020 or since. The city's August 2026 paper on the mall speaks of the road "in the future as the Mall redevelops", and the only approval for it in the city records read is a 2021 framework plan, which the planning board was told leaves the details to "specific parcel master plans" yet to come [C18, C8, C9, C11]. The plan approved in 2021 does not name Unicorp as its applicant, so this entry does not score it as Unicorp's [C7, the trace].

Last checked: October 23, 2026.

The promise. Permitting in "nine months to a year", then construction "next year", on a plan to demolish "everything on the property near Colonial Drive, except for Macy’s." [C1, C2]
Where it stands. Construction has not started on any record read. In August 2026 the city agreed to reimburse the leaseholder for a "Redevelopment Lift Station" to serve "redevelopment of the Mall property" [C19].
Why, in Unicorp's words. In August 2025, Unicorp's president: "We’re not focused on any of that right now, until we work out a deal with the bank." [C27] In March 2026 WFTV reported that Unicorp owns the land under the mall and Bancorp owns the buildings [C28].
A deadline ahead. On part of the site, the former Olive Garden, the Code Enforcement Board gave the owners until November 10, 2026, which is 18 days from the last check, or a $500-a-day penalty [C24].

The promise

WFTV Channel 9, published April 26, 2019, as the page stands; its own data gives a last edit of November 23, 2019, and no earlier copy was read. The speaker is the president and CEO of Unicorp, Chuck Whittal in WFTV's spelling [C1, C3]:

"it will probably take nine months to a year to have all of that done with permitting. Then, we will start to construction next year,"

The scope. WFTV wrote that the company spoke "about their goal to demolish everything on the property near Colonial Drive, except for Macy’s." [C2]
The year. "Next year" is not given as a year in the article. April 2019 plus "nine months to a year" of permitting ends between January and April 2020, and this entry reads "next year" as 2020 [C1, C3, the trace].
Who made the promise. Unicorp owns the land under the mall but not the buildings; the buildings belong to the leaseholder, a Bancorp affiliate [C17, C27, C28]. The promiser is Unicorp.

Timeline

April 26, 2019. The promise, as WFTV's page now reads [C1, C3].
September 27, 2019. The land under the mall was sold for $22,900,000 to Fashion Square Land Trust [C4].
2020. The promised year passes. No city record read shows a start [the trace].
July 8, 2020. A reprint on the Maury L. Carter & Associates site of a report on Unicorp's president: "Groundbreaking may begin in mid-2021 on a roughly $1 billion redevelopment" [C26]. The same piece says "The development team must buy those buildings before it can start construction." and "No plans have been submitted to the city of Orlando." [C26]
November 16, 2021. The city's Municipal Planning Board recommended approval of the "Fashion Square Next Phase Framework Plan", by unanimous voice vote with one abstention [C6, C10].
December 6, 2021. City Council gave final city approval to the framework plan, carried unanimously on its consent agenda [C11, C12].
May 19, 2025. A City Council item on a redevelopment tax-incentive pilot lists "Fashion Square Mall" among properties that "may qualify" [C15, C16].
August 27, 2025. GrowthSpotter, in a piece published August 27 and updated August 28, 2025, reported that "any redevelopment of Fashion Square is likely years away" [C27].
March 4, 2026. WFTV reported that Unicorp owns the land beneath the mall but not the buildings [C28].
March 26, 2026. City code enforcement first observed violations at the former Olive Garden building on the mall site, 3675 E. Colonial Dr. [C20, C21].
August 10, 2026. City Council approved buying McCullough Avenue, a private road through the mall, from Unicorp Investors VIII and TBB Orlando [C17, C25].
August 12, 2026. The Code Enforcement Board found the owners not in compliance at 3675 E. Colonial Dr. [C24].
November 10, 2026. The board's compliance date at that address [C24].

What changed, and why, in the record's own words

The start date. The only restated start date in the records read is the July 2020 reprint: "Groundbreaking may begin in mid-2021" [C26]. Its words are "may begin", and it is a news report, not a Unicorp or city record [C26]. No city or Unicorp record read gives a start date after the 2019 promise [the trace].
The buildings. The July 2020 piece says "The development team must buy those buildings before it can start construction." [C26] The city's August 2026 paper says Unicorp "is the fee simple owner of the Mall, including McCullough Avenue, and TBB Orlando, LLC (TBB) has a leasehold interest in the Mall and McCullough Avenue." [C17]
Why, from Unicorp's president. To GrowthSpotter, in a piece published August 27, 2025 (updated August 28) that says he spoke on the Tuesday: "We’re not focused on any of that right now, until we work out a deal with the bank." [C27] March 4, 2026, to WFTV, where the article spells the name Woodall: "Hopefully one day they [Bancorp] come to reality on this thing and let us move forward with it." [C28]
The ground lease. GrowthSpotter wrote that "The shopping mall has a land lease that expires in 2071." and that "In 2021, Bancorp affiliate, TBB Orlando LLC, sued Unicorp after the developer attempted to cancel the ground lease." and that "The case was voluntarily dismissed in 2023." [C27]
The plan. GrowthSpotter wrote that a developer picked by the bank showed a new concept that "deviates from the framework master plan approved by the City of Orlando in 2021." [C27] The planning board minutes of 2021 list the owner as "Fashion Square Land Trust (Ground Lessee in Lieu of Owner)" and the applicant as Baker Barrios [C7].

The record the city keeps

The 2021 approval. The framework allows "additional +1,400 multifamily dwelling units, +177,000 sq. ft. of additional retail uses and a 120-room hotel." [C8] Staff told the board that "what was being presented today was the framework, which doesn’t include that type of details", and that "those details would be included in the specific parcel master plans that would come before the Board for approval in the future." [C9] No specific parcel master plan for the mall appears in the city records read [the trace].
August 2026, the road. The city's paper says buying McCullough Avenue makes "a complete public right of way to preserve this route in the future as the Mall redevelops." [C18] The price is "$1 million" [C18].
August 2026, the lift station. The same item lets the city reimburse TBB "in an amount not to exceed $100,000" for design of a "Redevelopment Lift Station" and force main "to serve the" "redevelopment of the Mall property", and "a sum not to exceed $1,650,000.00" for their construction [C19]. Council approved the purchase agreement on August 10, 2026 [C25].
The former Olive Garden. The county lists 3675 E. Colonial Dr. as "ORLANDO FASHION SQUARE MALL - FORMERLY OLIVE GARDEN" [C20]. The city's case lists the address as "Vacant", names "ALL DAMAGE CAUSED BY THE FIRE", and says to repair or "DEMOLISH THE STRUCTURE UNDER CITY OF ORLANDO PERMITS WITH FINAL APPROVAL INSPECTION." [C22, C23] The board's order gave the respondents "90 days or November 10, 2026, to bring the violations on the property into compliance or a penalty of $500 per day will be imposed for each and every day of non-compliance." [C24] The respondents are Fashion Square Land Trust, TBB Orlando and Unicorp Investors VIII [C21].
Tax incentives. The May 19, 2025 council item names "Fashion Square Mall" under "Properties that may qualify for these programs include, but are not limited to:" [C16]. The records read do not show whether council approved the item or whether anyone applied [C15, C16, the trace].

What it cost

The promise named no cost [C1].
The land. $22,900,000 in September 2019 [C4].
The city's money, August 2026. "$1 million" for the road, up to $100,000 for design and up to $1,650,000.00 for construction of the lift station and force main [C18, C19].
The project. The July 2020 reprint says "a roughly $1 billion redevelopment" [C26]. No city or county record read gives a project budget [the trace].

What is still open

Who applied for the 2021 plan. The board's records name the applicant's firm, Baker Barrios, and the owner as the ground lessee, and its representative before the board was Hal Kantor of Lowndes Law [C7, C10]. In October 2022 Kantor registered as a city lobbyist for TBB Orlando, LLC [C13]. The 2021 record does not name TBB or Unicorp, and this entry does not say whose plan it was.
The year. "Next year" is read as 2020 from the article's date [C1, C3].
Names. WFTV spells the president Whittal in 2019 and Woodall in 2026; other outlets spell Whittall [C1, C28, the trace].
Construction. The city's records read show no start. They are not a census of permits [the trace].

What this entry did not check

The city's permit system, so whether a demolition or construction permit exists for the redevelopment [the trace].
Court records of the 2021 ground-lease suit; the dismissal is as GrowthSpotter reports it [C27].
Bancorp's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and Unicorp's own site [the trace].
The 2021 staff report for the framework plan, which the archive lists only as an attachment name [the trace].
The Orlando Business Journal original of the July 2020 report; the reprint was read [C26].
Pages 7 to 9 of the planning board's 2021 minutes, conflict-of-interest forms that were not read [the trace].

Sources

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