FEBRUARY 2016

​The 41st Annual Mount Dora Art Festival  lived up to its billing as one of the top art festivals in the country.   Click here to see the impressive list of  winners.

Hidden just outside of Mount Dora is one of the areas's best kept secrets. Sydonie, the oldest mansion in Florida, is an architectural treasure and currently undergoing more renovations.  Read more.

The City manager's planned last day is March 4 after the city council voted 5-2 to accept the separation agreement manager Vince Pastue presented.  The council will now begin the process of employing an interim manager until a replacement city manager is hired.  

Later this month is the last Antique Extravaganza of the season.  If you still have treasure hunting to do,  save the date!  Read more.

An interesting, yet commonly unknown piece of local history is Mount Dora's Redevelopment Project of the 1920's.  Certainly no reflection of Mount Dora today or its current residents, this piece of history is a sad and educational chapter.Read more

NEW BUSINESS BUZZ
-  Residents are anxious for the completion of the new Panera Bread, Tijuana Flats and Aldi in Eustis on its border to Mount Dora to be completed later this year.  Read more.

-  Craving casual Middle Eastern fare?  Aladdin's Mediterranean Grill, a new restaurant on 19A, has the falafel, kibbeh and gyros you're searching for.  Read more

-  The city now boasts one more fun activity for residents and visitors. A new company, Mount Dora Explorers, will provide creative scavenger hunts and pub crawls beginning this weekend.  Read more.

-  Downtown's art scene suffered a big loss with the closing of Bowersock Gallery
in January.  The fine art gallery will continue with its online presence and flagship gallery in Provincetown, MA.Read more .  Meanwhile, the familiar faces of Lee Fusion Art Glass are planning to open in the space on Feb. 1.  Read more.

-  One of downtown's favorite ethnic restaurants, Oudom Thai, has new owners.  The previous owners just took it over this past spring.  

- Meanwhile, steady progress is being made on two new downtown restaurants.  Shiva, the new Indian restaurant on 5th Avenue, is expected to open in February. Work continues to move forward on 1921, the new Chef Norman Van Aken restaurant opening on 4th Avenue.

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EUSTIS BUZZ

- GeorgeFest kicks off later this month.  The annual festival downtown runs February 26-28.

- The new Small Batch Bistro had its soft opening earlier this week on Magnolia Street.  The eatery serves up fresh breakfast and lunch and prides itself on house-made recipes without pre-made food service products.  Read more.

-  Another large, new restaurant and bar,Beach Bums, is set to open later this month, downtown.  The large space will feature a stage, sandy beach, deli and more.   Read more.

- Although The Cuban Place downtown closed, a new eatery, Maria's Latin Dineris scheduled to open in its place.  No opening date has been set.

-  As  mentioned above, the Panera Bread, Aldi, and Tijuana Flats shopping center update is available.  Read more.

For update-to-date info, click here...