Category Archives: News

Celebrate St. Patty’s Day at our St. Patty’s Day Pub Crawl!

Purchase a wristband for $5 — get some green beads — and enjoy St. Patty’s Day specials at the Mills 50 St. Patty’s Day Pub Crawl.  The crawl begins at 6pm at Wally’s!  Other participating bars are:  Will’s Pub, BART, St. Matthew’s Tavern, The Guesthouse, The Brass Tap & Ten10 Brewing Co.  Proceeds from the Pub Crawl will be used for “green” projects in Mills 50!

pub crawl 2016.ai

March Business After Hours is Tuesday, March 15

The March Business After Hours will be Tuesday, March 15 from 5:30pm until 7pm at three Mills 50 member businesses:  gotkarma, Eclips Salon & Spa and Kelly Shannon Floral.  Lite bites, beer & wine will be served and you will find specials and surprises at all three shops!  Free for members; $5 for non-members.  This is a great opportunity to network with your fellow business owners and residents!  RSVP: director@mills50.org.business after hours march 2016.ai

Call for artists – Art Drain Project

Art Drains

Mills 50, in conjunction with the City of Orlando, desires to create another Public Art Project and seeks entries with a juried selection process to choose the artists.  The purpose of the project is to create an environment which depicts the community’s diversity, creativity, commerce and neighborhoods.  This project, along with the Mills 50 “Art Boxes” and “Art Dumpsters” will enhance the aesthetic of our community for all to enjoy.

“Art Drains” is a unique and educational program that utilizes art to communicate the function and importance of storm drains.  The purpose of “Art Drains” is to draw attention to the usually discreet concrete and iron infrastructure with the hope that observers stop and think about where the water flows after it enters a storm drain.  If they understand that storm water flows untreated to our lakes, ponds and rivers, they will be more conscious of potential pollutants that can enter those waterways.   This project, along with the involvement of our local artists, is unique and will have a positive impact on protecting our water.

There are 25 storm drains identified for this project.  Each artist will incorporate the physical storm drain into their submission.  The general size of storm drains are 4’ x 6’ but this will fluctuate with each drain.  All artwork should remain within the confines of the storm drain structure.  This is the concrete that immediately surrounds the opening (or throat) of the storm drain and the concrete box around the lid.  The lid is the metal manhole cover and may be painted.  The art CANNOT extend into the street.

Entries are open to all two dimensional artists living in Orange and Seminole counties.  Submissions are encouraged to include the message “only rain down the drain” as well as the Mills 50 logo somewhere in the art.  A five (5) point system based on overall aesthetics and design will be employed.  One (1) point will be deducted if “only rain down the drain” and/or the Mills 50 logo is omitted from the submission.  One (1) bonus point will be awarded for local artists, i.e, a business within the District boundaries or a resident living within three (3) miles of the intersection of Mills and Colonial.  The judging panel will determine which selected artist paints which storm drain.  Each artist may paint only a single drain but may make more than one submission.

Sketches must be submitted mailed to Mills 50, 1200 Weber Street, Orlando, FL 32803 or e-mailed to: director@mills50.org, no later than Friday, March 4.  Please include a self-addressed, stamped envelope if sketches are to be returned.

Mills 50 will provide paint & materials, up to $75, plus a $100 cash stipend for each of the selected artists.  Artist may exceed the paint & materials cost, but will not be reimbursed by Mills 50 for any costs exceeding $75.

Proposed timeline:

* Judging will occur the week of March 7; selected artists will be contacted by Monday, March 14.

* Storm drains will be painted between March 21 and April 1.  All drains must be completed by Sunday, April 3.upstream-art-keep-it-clean__large

Celebrate Hump Day at February’s Hump Day Happy Hour & Art Stroll!

HDHH poster

Stop at Wally’s, 1001 N Mills on Wednesday, February 24 between 6pm and 9pm – and for $10 (cash only)  you will receive a glass, a wristband and a map — which will get you complimentary beverages at 9 Mills 50 businesses!  Enjoy a taste at Wally’s, lil indies, Florida Fitness Concepts, BART, New Horizon Pharmacy, St. Matthew’s Tavern, The Guesthouse, Ten10 Brewing and gotkarma!!!  Celebrate the middle of the week with a stroll through the neighborhood!  Local artists will be set up along the stroll!

Celebrate the year of The Monkey!

The Fifth Annual Dragon Parade Lunar New Year Festival will take place on Sunday, February 14 at Fashion Square Mall.  The parade begins at 11am at Anthem College, travels along Herndon in front of the US Post Office, turns behind Dick’s Sporting Goods and ends at the main entrance of the Mall (located between Dillards & Macy’s).  Sixteen food vendors, including Bem Bom Food Truck, Korean BBQ Taco Box, Kona Dog Food Truck, Bom Grill/Thai Island, Hard Rock Cafe, Goichi Sushi Cafe, Chewy Boba, SuShi Eatstation and more will be located outside the main entrance.  Opening ceremonies and continuous entertainment will begin at noon on the interior stage.  Over forty vendors will be located inside the mall.  Sponsors include Asian American Chamber of Commerce, BrightHouse Networks, City of Orlando Families, Parks & Recreation, Florida Hospital, Orlando Fashion Square, OUC, Payas Payas Payas and Walgreen’s. The event is produced by Asia Trend Magazine, Mills 50 Main Street, REACH & YESS.Dragon Parade 2 Lunar Festival Dragon Parade map