Amid the vibrant shops and diverse restaurants,  Mount Dora's prize gem is its creative subculture. 

Sitting atop a short hill, a large contemporary building veils its treasure trove of artists from sight.  The three-story Baker Building on 3rd Avenue and Baker Street is the current epicenter of the city's growing colony of artists.  Read more...

Lots of passion and hard work  have been the key ingredients in turning Mount Dora's annual Bicycle Festival into one of Central Florida’s premier cycling events.  

This year the event expects to double the number of riders from last year’s 1361, according to Tracy Draper, the event’s chairperson.    The revamped festival presently has record pre-registrations for the three day event starting October 9.  Read more...

Ahead of the tourist invasion this fall, crews of one-eyed pirates will be descending on Mount Dora this month.

International Talk Like a Pirate Day has been celebrated by downtown's Cupcake Delights for the past 3 years after its owner, Judy Owens,  looked for something fun to do during a slow month when her daughter, Taylor,  suggested the pirate event.   Taylor loved the Pirates of the Caribbean series and talking like a pirate, so thought it would be a fun event.  Read more...

In February 1922 a fire destroyed the main block of Donnelly Street between Fourth and Fifth streets.   The city lost many important buildings including town hall.   The fire reportedly started when someone left an electric iron unattended.    At the time, the community had limited fire service.  Read more and see pics...

Artists approach their subject matter from many different angles.  They may visualize a finished piece  or arrive at it in a more intuitive manner.  No matter how the final piece of artwork is arrives, it starts with a concept.

The two artists featured in the "Conceptual Journeys" exhibit at Mount Dora Center for the Arts  take the viewer on very different pathways.  Read more...

Something extraordinary appeared last weekend in Mount Dora.    Large crowds.  A sight not typically seen in the dead of summer.    Read more...

For photos on the Mount Dora Seafood Festival  click here

Deserving of a parade or at least some fanfare, flatbeds hauling trees arrived downtown early this morning.   

The trees are the first of the oaks and palms to be planted in the construction areas on 4th Avenue and Donnelly Street.  Shade trees are also being installed in the parking lot on 3rd Avenue and Donnelly Street. 

The larger trees will be planted this week and the smaller understory plantings are scheduled to arrive next week, according to Burkhardt Construction, the project's contractor.

The number of trees, an environmental commodity and passionate issue for local residents, represent a difficult compromise between city leaders and residents.  The arrival of the trees is welcome news for downtown businesses, residents and visitors.

According the the contractor, favorable weather this summer has allowed downtown's streetscape project to make very steady progress.  

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In recent history the word 'expansion' was all but removed from an entrepreneur's vocabulary.  Times have changed and some Mount Dora favorites are not only thriving, but expanding.

Crissy Stiles, owner of Barrel of Books & Games is doubling-down in downtown with plans to open a new comic book store in the coming weeks.   Alleyway Comics will open in the adjacent space to the bookstore on Dora Drawdy alley in September.  Read more...

The cheerful, pastel stucco hints of what awaits.  Once lured inside, the senses are certainly in for a treat....or two...or three. 

Rows of freshly baked cupcakes fill the bakery case and quickly alert calorie-counters to surrender upon entering Cupcake Delights.  Key Lime Delight, Espresso-dipped Mousse, Red Velvet, Salted Caramel, Carrot Cake and Cookies and Cream are among 80 different flavors rotated among their 14 daily varieties baked from scratch on the premises.  Read more...

Escaping the brutal winters of New England is routine to many.   Retiring to Florida isn't novel either.   Coming out of retirement in Florida to open a new restaurant, well, that's a little more unconventional.  

Tim and Gail Lyons are doing just that as they prepare to open their new restaurant in downtown Mount Dora after retiring to Davenport 8 years ago from New Hampshire.  Read more...

PART 1 OF 3
There is no place like home.  However, local wine lovers seem to have cozied up to a very close second in a narrow courtyard downtown. 

In their quest to bring patrons their favorite wines and craft beers in a comfortable setting, the owners of one local wine bar created a cozy home away from home at Maggie's Attic.  Read more...

Right now they stand empty, but it won't be long before lockers are crammed and the halls are bustling with students.  

As Lake County ushers in the new school year on August 24, Mount Dora Middle School will be welcoming a new principal, Jacob Stein.  The school's new top administrator is a former teacher in Mount Dora and answered a few questions for Mount Dora Buzz to help the community get re-acquainted with him.   Read interview...

Some rumors just don't go away.   Some don't have to.

A new shopping center in Eustis, across from Target on the north side of US 441, is in the final approval stages with the city.  If all goes as expected, the land just west of Chili's will be home to an Aldi, Panera Bread, Vitamin Shoppe and more.  The retail center will be in close proximity to the Epic Theatre to be constructed in Mount Dora.   Read more...

It's said you can never go home again.  Luckily, for downtown Mount Dora that saying isn't always true.

Double Creek Pottery, will be re-opening a new store on Alexander Street next to Maggie's Attic and Gianni's. The family originally opened in Mount Dora in 1996 on Donnelly Street in the current space of Home & Garden Treasures.  The creative retail space was run by mother and daughter potters, Joanne & Betty Barwick.    The duo, worked and created together for forty years and eventually decided to close that store to focus on their wholesale business and international orders.   Read more...

Even for those that age gracefully, after a hundred years a facelift may be in order.    That was the case for the Mount Dora Historic Train Depot. 

Originally built in 1915, the depot's renovation was ten years in the making and cleared many hurdles before construction finally began in 2014.   The  project was completed earlier this month.   Read more...

AN UPDATE ON THE WARRIOR PRINCESS
Captivated by immense compassion, Mount Dora residents rallied together three years ago for baby Joss, the little Warrior Princess in need of perhaps the most risky medical procedure available.    Read more...

Three of the most enjoyable attributes in people are insane creativity, humility and wicked humor.  Mount Dora Buzz sat down last week with an atypical Southern belle who exudes healthy doses of all three. 
Lauren Graham Cunningham and The Buzz chatted about everything from the predictable to the slightly off-the-wall.  Read more...

An intriguing part of Mount Dora's lakefront, Boathouse Row's exact origin is ambiguous.  It was a fish camp.  It was built for commerce purposes.  It was because a wooden boat works was located there.

These are some of the answers longtime Mount Dora residents provide about the history of Boathouse Row, a small stretch of eclectic homes perched on pilings on Lake Dora's eastern edge.  However, the definitive answer--backed up with historical facts-to why and when Boathouse Row began was elusive.
Read more...

It's the brown craft paper that always makes passersby curious.  Once it comes off, it's like unwrapping a present.

That will be the case when a new store, Blue Sky Blue Water, opens on Fourth Avenue in August.   Read more...

Even the best kept secrets eventually get spilled.  The Leesburg Lightning is no exception.

The Lightning, a Florida Collegiate Summer League baseball team, consists of talented players from colleges throughout the country that compete in their off-season.   Commonly referred to as the Florida League, the Lightning is as close to a minor league team as Lake County claims.

Among the power hitters, double plays and curve balls, the Lightning experience delivers a big dose of summer nostalgia.   Read more...

Perched on a hillside, Mount Dora's newest neighborhood is progressing quickly.  Dora Parc sits on the southeastern border of Mount Dora on Clayton Street and will have 38 luxury homes with access to Lake Dora.  Read more...

In the dictionary, under the word  passionate there reads a statement: "having, showing, or expressing strong emotions or beliefs."  What should be listed next: Irene O'Malley,  Executive Director of Lake Cares Food Pantry. 

"I've been at Lake Cares Pantry since 2010 and trust me without the volunteers and community support we get --we could not do what we do," said O'Malley.  

Lake Cares Pantry distributes more than 7000 pounds of food a month to 800 families.  This year more than 30,000 families will benefit from the food bank.  This is an increase of 10,000 families from last year.

" We've had several food banks close this past year and those families now come to us," O'Malley said.  "We picked up all of those people and our 140 volunteers and the community has not missed a beat.  We  answered the call to help-- for food, understanding, compassion and any other assistance they may need."

Lake Cares needs more help.  Volunteers are needed to help bag the food, conduct client interviews and unload the trucks and pull wagons to the cars.   In addition to man or woman power, they also need donations of money and food. 

For every five dollars donated, the pantry can buy 27 pounds of food from Second Harvest.  For increased purchasing power, donations made through July 25 will be matched dollar for dollar.

" Even the B.O.G.O. [Buy One Get One free promotions] which several of our supermarkets offer can help us," O'Malley said.  "If people were to take advantage of those and bring the second item to us....it fills our shelves."    

"You know people ask me what do I get from all the hours I spend at the pantry," O'Malley said.  "I get more back from helping others than one can imagine.  It fills my heart and soul."

Lake Cares is located at 2001 West Old Highway 441 in Mount Dora.

By Sharon G. Nichols
Senior writer

For local news and events in Mount Dora, Tavares and Eustis, click here for your free subscription to the Mount Dora Buzz online magazine..  'Like' Mount Dora Buzz on Facebook for breaking news.

A tremendous shout-out is in order to local talent, David Oliver Willis for organizing the "One Night Stand" music festival last night in Mount Dora.  The free event rocked the hills surrounding the stage at Renningers Twin Markets and showcased the amazing talent of Willis, Jeff Whitfield, Savion Wright, Sweet Bea, and Jillian Jensen among others. 

Music lovers brought lawn chairs and sat on benches under the open sky to take in the artistry.  It was the perfect evening of musicians sharing their talent with an appreciative community.

Watch for pictures of the event to be posted on Mount Dora Buzz's Facebook page.   

For local news, reviews and events in Mount Dora, Tavares and Eustis, click here for your free subscription to the Mount Dora Buzz online magazine.